Weight Loss: Time frame and Realistic Expectations

Hello everyone! Many people have set some new year’s resolutions and one of the common resolutions topping that list is to lose weight. Unfortunately some of those people give up on that resolution to lose weight because they don’t see results fast enough. It takes time to see visible changes in your body…you didn’t go from fit to fat in a period of a few days or even a few weeks, right?

According to the American Council on Exercise, your resting metabolic rate and level of physical activity are the two biggest contributors to how many calories you need per day. When trying to lose weight, you can either burn up those extra pounds through calorie reduction or increased physical activity. Many of you probably already know that, but something you may not have thought of is there’s a third component: perseverance. When you don’t see immediate results you have to be willing to stick to your plan. Weight loss is a slow, steady process that involves making permanent changes to the way you live your life.

The three factors that determine how many calories you expend during exercise are the frequency at which you work out, how long you exercise and the intensity of the physical activity. A person who weighs 145 lbs. burns roughly 350 calories during a 50 minute, moderately intense aerobic class. On the other hand, a person who weighs 180 lbs. burns around 440. If both of them were to attend this class five days a week, they would burn 1,750 and 2,200 calories, respectively. After two weeks, the 145 lb. individual would lose around 1 lb., while the 180 lb. person could lose 1.25 lbs. from exercise alone. High-intensity exercise burns more calories per minute. For example, that same 145-lbs. individual burns roughly 350 calories running for 40 minutes at a pace of 5 mph, but only burns 88 calories if walking at a normal pace for that same 40 minutes.

The length of time it takes for you to see noticeable results from your exercise plan depends on your willingness to commit to it and stick with it for the long haul…your perseverance. Most medical professionals say the recommended standard for weight loss is 1 to 2 lbs. each week. Shave off 250 calories per day from your diet every day and burn another 250 calories per day through exercise and you will have a 1 lb. weight loss for that week. You might not be ready to rush out and buy those smaller size jeans you’ve had your eye on after a week or two, but if you work hard toward your goal, you can reach it!

- Mike

Friday Fitness Challenge

Good morning everyone! Everybody doing their best to stay warm? Well if you're having any issues with that I've got the perfect solution. The Friday Fitness Challenge! Today's workout will be a little intense and probably because I've recently increased the intensity to my routine. So you may hate me now, but you will be thanking me later. So let's put an end to this cold week, well, not getting better anytime soon, and kick off the weekend with a great workout! Have a great Friday everyone and feel free to share this with your friends and family.

- Squat Jumps - 1 min. (Get some air on these!)
- 15 pushups
- Squat Jumps- 1 min.
- 15 Chair dips
- Skaters - 1 min.
- Plank - 1 min.
- Bird dog - switch after 10
- Spiderman plank - 10 each side

- Mike

Weight Loss - Lifestyle Change vs Instant Gratification

For those who have weight to lose, it’s normal to want to find a less painful or easy way to lose weight.  Everywhere  you look there are TV commercials, weight loss pills, fad diets and with the combination of these and the increase of our society’s high priority on personal fitness, it’s only a matter of time before we purchase these goods or services. 

The word diet implies a short term binge of eating right can correct our weight problems.  People feel that if they do this diet for a month or so, they will lose the weight and then carry on with their life.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.  When looking to lose weight and keep it off, not only do you need to change the foods you consume, but you need to change your mentality.

There’s no diet or exercise machine that is going to instantly transform you without you putting in the effort.  This is the notion of instant gratification.  Just because you own the latest and fanciest piece of equipment you just ordered off some infomercial and decide to use it for 5 minutes a day, 3 days a week, doesn’t mean you’re going to see dramatic changes to your body.  This doesn’t mean that this piece of equipment is not effective either, it simply means that regardless of which machine, or which diet you undertake, you are going to need to put in some effort.  Something we need to come to grips with before we even begin is that discipline and hard work are essential to any weight loss program.

When the time comes to choose the diet you wish, choose the one that you can maintain for an extended period of time.  Don’t be unrealistic, like skipping certain foods or living on soup, because your decision to lose weight is not simply for the fact of getting through a few weeks of terrible foods, but it’s a choice of changing your habits pertaining to food consumption.  Diets that pay attention to providing the body with the nutrients it needs while reducing the ones that lead to weight gain, make the most sense.   When it comes to losing weight permanently, it’s best you choose a lifestyle of healthy eating and regular exercise than a trendy diet you can never hope to maintain.

Finding The Time To Exercise

“I don’t have time to exercise.”  Heard that one before?  You more than likely have because it’s the most common excuse given for not exercising.  Many people are in denial about their health and have built in excuses as to why they’re not exercising, but what it boils down to is better time management and fear. People fear they’ll get hurt, embarrassed, and most of all, fear of failure.  What they should be afraid of is what will happen if they don’t exercise.  How will their sedentary lifestyle affect them next year? 5 or 10 years from now? 

As busy as we might be, we seem to have little trouble finding time for TV or social networking.  Will you have time for multiple doctors appointments?  Will you have time and money to take medications every day to treat high cholesterol, high blood pressure or diabetes?  Puts things into perspective, doesn’t it?  If you want to exercise, you’ll make the time. 
 
Having a family and the obligations that come along with it are another reason people give for not exercising. But, a helpful strategy to make time for exercise is to have a written plan.  Figure out the best time for exercise in your schedule and actually enter it into your computer or cell phone calendar as a reoccurring event.  By doing this there’s less of a chance of you scheduling something during that time.

As I mentioned earlier, there’s little trouble finding the time to watch TV, so why not make the most of it?  Do some planks, crunches, squats, yoga poses, lunges or pushups while you’re watching.  Keep some fitness equipment, such as resistance bands, kettlebells or a jump rope, near your TV.  Use the commercial breaks to throw in brief cardio intervals. Run in place, up and down the stairs or do some burpees.

Parents, find yourself always picking up after your kids?  Next time while picking up those toys, towels and trash off the floor, instead of bending at the waist, do squats instead to increase glute and leg strength.  How about dinner time?  While standing at the stove or counter, do some calf raises.  Take the kids to the park?  Do you just sit on the bench and watch them play?  Get out there and join them.  I did a post a while back (The Playground Workout) which I showed some exercises you can do at pretty much any playground you go to.  Schedule family hikes, after dinner walks or bikes rides.  Just keep in mind that exercise is something you’re doing for your family.  When your kids see that exercise is important to Mom and Dad, it will be important to them also.

Tomorrow is the beginning of a brand new year.  Many of you may make some resolutions.  How about adding exercise to that list?  With a little planning on your part and maybe some of the ideas I’ve provided you, “no time” won’t be as easy as an excuse as it used to be.  Let’s make 2015 a great year!

 

-Mike

Friday Fitness Challenge - Full Body Circuit

It's Friday Fitness Challenge day! This circuit is going to get you sweating and the heart pumping! What a great way to head into the weekend, right?!  Please share with any friends and family. Have a great Friday everyone! :)

- 50 jumping jacks
- 20 bicycle crunches
- 15 burpees
- 15 V-ups
- 30 sec. plank
- 15 chair dips
- 20 lunges (10 each leg)
- 15 push ups
- 30 sec. side plank (each side)
- 20 squat jumps (get some air on these!!)
Rest. Repeat 2-3 more times

- Mike

Helpful Tips to Prevent Overindulging at Holiday Parties

With Thanksgiving behind us, which for some people, marks the start of fun holiday festivities that make it pretty easy to overindulge. This time of year you may feel yourself giving yourself a free pass to indulge more than usual, not expecting to lose weight, but hoping to maintain your weight with as little effort as possible. Here are a few tips that I can share which may help keep you on track without having to spend a lot of time thinking about it.

1.  Show up to the event feeling satisfied.  It may be tempting to save the calories for that holiday meal, but skipping meals backfires and it results in eating excess calories when you finally do eat that holiday meal. By eating your previous meals, there’s less room in your stomach for the extra junk you may consume. While eating your regular meals prior, make sure to include the veggies and fruits, which will not only prevent your stomach from growling, but it will help keep your blood-sugar levels stable without adding too many calories.

2.  Use the “every other rule” with alcohol.  Alcohol increases your hunger and it lowers your inhibitions. This combination means that it makes you want to eat more while caring less about doing it. Try swapping every other drink with a non-caloric beverage.

3.  Check out the entire spread before filling your plate.  Think about lean protein and vegetables and pick only your favorite foods instead of grabbing something of everything.

4.  Have dessert at home.  It’s much easier to turn down a party dessert knowing that you’ll be heading home to indulge on a dessert you love. That way you can come home and have it guilt-free rather than another choice…or two…you may regret in the morning.

Fruits & Vegetables

Hello everyone! We all know that eating more fuits and vegetables can make a significant difference in your physical and mental health, but are you struggling to get that daily recommended serving? Many of us struggle to get the recommended five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables per day. In fact, very few people—fitness professionals, included!—get anywhere near the recommended amount. Here are just a few ideas to help you work towards that.

- Wash and cut fresh vegetables after purchasing them. This makes it easier to grab-and-go during the week and reduces the risk they’ll be forgotten and go bad.

- Store fresh, frozen, canned and dried fruits and veggies in easy-to-see places in the refrigerator, pantry, shelves and countertops.

- Have a sweet tooth? Ditch the candy jar! Instead, keep a bowl of washed apples, oranges, bananas and other ready-to-eat fruits on the table.

- Add veggies like spinach, tomatoes, peppers and avocado to sandwiches.

- Do I have any pizza lovers out there? Add veggies to your pizza.

So start small if you have to. Set some realistic goals to begin with and work up to getting that five to nine servings a day. Try adding an extra serving or two today! Have a great day everyone! :)

-Mike