Guide to the Better you

  There are few things as exciting as new boot campers eager to make serious lifestyle changes and make up for lost time in their quest to get fit and healthy.   Their motivation and passion are contagious, and watching transformations is one of the most fulfilling aspects of being a trainer. But in their excitement, many boot campers make a common mistake – overtraining.   The thinking goes like this:   “If 20 push-ups are good, then 30 must be better,” or “If 35 pounds challenges my muscles, then I’ll really get ripped if I do 50!”   In other words, more is better and leads to faster results. Unfortunately, this just isn’t the case, and taken to the extreme can lead to getting hurt and MISSING workouts.   As with most things in life, moderation and consistency in fitness are the keys to success .   Too much of anything can be a bad thing, and there is no need to do more than the minimum needed for maximum results.   For example, consider m...

  Have you noticed?  The days are getting a little shorter, store aisles are full of school supplies and you may have seen a school bus or two making practice runs in your neighborhood.  All this can only mean one thing:  it’s back to school time! If you are like most people, you are not quite ready to say goodbye to the relaxing days of summer.  Late nights and lightly-scheduled days are a welcome break after a year of early mornings and homework deadlines.  Those slow days of summer are such a welcome break! But with the approach of the new school year comes the necessity to ease back into a routine that helps your children succeed.  Changing routines can be tough under any circumstances.  But when our routines change from ‘fun and relaxing’ to ‘less fun and somewhat stressful,’ it can be even tougher to pull off! The best way to lessen the shock of a new school year is to ease your children into their school routine before school starts. Getti...

  There’s a reason why celebrities and other highly successful people use coaches and trainers:   IT WORKS.   And that is why so many people are turning to personal trainers to help them move from mediocre to excellence in their pursuit of health, fitness and weight loss. The reality More than 91% of people who start an exercise program quit early —even before their new routine becomes a habit, and 61% will give up within the very first week! 1 Why?   Because changing your lifestyle is hard.   In spite of all the infomercials and ads claiming that you can lose weight and transform your body in thirty days (or six weeks at the longest), the truth is, getting fit requires a lifestyle makeover that takes ·          Time ·          Determination ·          Support   If any of these components is missing, the odds of success plu...

  Plenty, it turns out, and it has everything to do with what you’re eating this summer.   Even though summer brings with it an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables, making it easier to eat healthily, it also brings added risks. What could taste better during the lazy, hazy days of summer than fruity cocktails and rich ice cream?   Unfortunately, these are the foods that can spell danger for your blood sugar level.   The few minutes of pleasure that you derive from those cold, sugary treats can pave the way for decades of chronic illness. Blood Sugar Basics When you eat sugary treats, your blood sugar levels rise.   Your blood sugar level is a measure of how much sugar or glucose is circulating in your bloodstream. Too much glucose in your blood is dangerous, so your body works hard to lower the levels.   It does this by releasing insulin, a hormone which enables your cells to absorb the excess glucose.   The danger comes when you continue ...

So you spent the winter working hard.   You exercised consistently, you were careful to eat more healthy foods and you watched your portion sizes.   Why?   So you would look great at the lake and have plenty of energy to enjoy summer.   You greeted summer with a healthy, toned body. But summer, in spite of all the fun and relaxation it brings, can be tricky and deal us a cruel blow when it comes to our fitness. Have you noticed the scale creeping up a little over the last couple of months?  If so, you are not alone. Summer is a very easy time to overindulge and pick up those pounds that you shed during the winter months. Is that what you want though?  Are you willing to undo all that you worked so hard to accomplish?  Remember that bad habits creep in slowly.  Perhaps you are skipping your workouts a couple days each week, because ‘You have so much to do.’ Or maybe you have been indulging in unhealthy food or drinks a little more frequentl...

  Since the dawn of the fitness industry, cardio has been used by bodybuilders and novices to achieve one goal - decrease body fat percentage. It is not a secret that many athletes want that six-pack and the first thing that is associated with nice-looking abdominal muscles is cardio... However, is cardio really that useful for dropping these extra kilos or is it just a waste of time? Well, today we are going to find that out, but first... What is the price of cardio? Though cardio may offer a variety of benefits that can help us get closer to the ultimate goal of burning extra calories and losing weight, there are hidden costs to it… So let’s have a look at those! Cardio is time-consuming. We live in a world where everything moves fast and if we are not adaptive, we may fall behind. Putting these extra 30-40 minutes after training is something not many people could afford. Students, working adults, pregnant women, and entrepreneurs are managing their schedules ...

  Vacation season is in full swing.   Whether you are traveling to the mountains or the beach, it’s the time of year when many of us start planning for a much needed break from the daily grind. When you think of getting fit, resting is probably not the first thing that comes to mind.   It is true that becoming healthy and fit involves work.   It involves lots of effort and sweat and determination.   But it also involves taking time to rest and relax.   To reach your goals, you need balance :   both hard work and R & R. Dangers of over training In our enthusiasm to lose weight and get fit, it is tempting to focus so hard on effort that we overwork ourselves.   But this is unwise, because it brings undesirable consequences such as: 1.   Burnout.   If you exercise too much with no breaks, you will likely experience burnout.   And this can be deadly as far as your goals are concerned.   Burnout leads to loss of motivati...

  It’s 3 in the afternoon and you can barely keep your eyes open.   Your mind feels foggy, and all you want to do is curl up under your desk for 20 minutes and take a nap. But cutting-edge, productive people don’t take naps, do they?   Actually, they do. It turns out that a nap is exactly what you need in the afternoons when drowsiness takes over your body and mind. From N.B.A. players 1 to Google employees 2 , high-achieving people are turning to naps to recharge. Sleep experts have discovered that naps can improve stamina and motor skills, and enhance creativity.   In fact, Dr. Sara C. Mednick, author of Take a Nap! Change Your Life and Assistant Professor of Department of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside says, “…without a midday rest, we are not able to perform at optimal levels throughout the day. In fact, our performance falls apart. Napping maintains and even boosts our skills.” 3 When you are running on empty and slugging thr...

  Baby, it’s hot out there!   If you have been working out over the past winter and spring months, you may be surprised at the new challenges that summertime fitness throws at you.   Today is the first day of summer, and you are probably discovering that your body reacts to the heat and humidity differently than it does to cooler, drier conditions. But don’t let the heat cause you to lose your momentum.   You can keep working hard in the summer, you just have to adjust your approach a little.   Keep the following summertime fitness tips in mind as you continue getting stronger and healthier. 1.   Cool down first!   You can improve your performance in the heat by lowering your body temperature before heading outside.   Taking a cold shower or simply putting ice cold cloths on the back of your neck can help you to better tolerate the heat. 2.   Find some shade.   You may need to move your workout to a different area in order to be ...

  Some days you simply do not have time for your usual workout.   Perhaps you are traveling or you have meetings from dawn ‘til dusk.   Or maybe something totally unexpected comes up and your workout time disappears. When life steals your exercise time, however, you do not have to forgo your workout.   If you have just a few minutes, you can burn off 100 calories, get your heart pumping fast and redeem at least a little of your workout. Here are 10 ways to torch 100 calories   Use them on busy days or even to supercharge your normal workout days.   Most estimates are for a person weighing approximately 130-150 pounds.   If you weigh more, you can probably shorten the duration, but if you are lighter, add a few minutes to ensure that you burn at least 100 calories. 1.     Take the stairs .   Stair climbing for 15 minutes will burn 137 calories.   Have a 15 minute break at work?   Find a stair case and set your phone...