Every Which Way

When I go to the gym or see people exercising outside, most of them are moving in one direction-- forward.  Think about it- walking, running, biking, using the elliptical or stairmaster are all forward motion.  That is not the only way we move our bodies in real life.  Every day, we move forward, backward, sideways, twist, bend, go up and down.  We push and pull, squat and lunge.  This is how you should exercise.  Train your body with real life movements.  This is called functional training.

Many people get injured when their bodies aren't prepared for the movements that I just talked about.  Most knee and ankle injuries occur in non-athletes simply because somebody twisted wrong or stepped down incorrectly and their joints weren't ready for it because the muscles protecting the joints were weak and untrained.  Many people have back pain due to a weak core....crunching and sit ups in one plane of motion does not make a strong core.  You can also have back pain due to gluteals that are "sleeping."  Their not doing their job due to undertraining and so the low back takes over.

When you are preparing your exercise routine, remember to include movements on different planes in different directions.  For example, when you take a walk, include some lunges or stairs to get that up/down plane.  Walk sideways or backwards up and down the stairs.  Twist and bend while holding a weight.  (Make sure you hold your belly button in and squeeze your gluteals to brace that core.)  A "woodchop" is a great exercise for these movements; look it up on YouTube to get a visual.  Include jumping movements in your workout, but be cautious of how you land and make sure your knees don't come past your toes and are in line with your middle toes to prevent injury.  When you lift weights, make sure you even out how many push exercises you have versus pull.  Choose some weight training exercises that involve standing on one foot or in a split stance.  Real life doesn't involve standing with both feet together at all times, so you need to train accordingly.  And for heaven's sake, stand up when you work out as much as possible.  It drives me crazy to see people sit at one machine, then the next machine, and the next, etc.  We sit enough as it is.

If you need guidance on ideas, hire a trainer (like me).  Read some fitness books or come up with your own ideas.  A really great series of books on this topic with workouts included is the New Rules of Lifting series by Lou Schuler and Alwyn Cosgrove.  Rachel Cosgrove's books are another resource for fantastic fitness programs.  

Move forward in your journey and toward your fitness and health goals, but go every which way that your body was intended to move.

Peaks and Valleys

Life is full of peaks and valleys, highs and lows.  When we are up on top of the world...on top of the peak, we take care of ourselves with no problem because we're feeling so great!  Everything seems just as it should be and we run off of positive energy.  Often times, we forget to take care of ourselves during the time in the valleys-- the hardest and darkest times in life.  These are the times that we MOST need to care for ourselves.  This is the time to eat nutritiously so that we feel good inside, exercise as a stress drain, sleep enough to function and have energy.

I believe that nurturing your body during hard times can help you ward off depression.  Eating horribly will only make you feel remorse, give you low energy, and stress your body.  Emotional eating will undo what you have worked so hard for and really will not make you feel any better.  It won't solve your problems.  I have first person experience to this lately...I'm watching my dad lose his battle to cancer and many days I have felt an incredible urge to stuff my face with something I shouldn't just to make the pain inside go away for just a minute.  To be honest, I have given into that.....and then, I think, "Why did I do that?  I knew it wouldn't help."  I'm human like the rest of you and I don't know where we got this idea that food consoles us.  Maybe it can console you while it's in your mouth, but as soon as you swallow, it's over.

What's my point?  Life is hard sometimes.  Harder than we ever thought possible.  In fact, it can be such an emotional roller coaster, we don't know how to act.  Just keep moving forward through it all.....climb the peaks, trudge through the valleys, find out how it makes you the person you are or are meant to be.  Treat yourself nicely along the way and take care or yourself even when it seems impossible.

True Self

We all have our "true" selves within us.  There are a few lucky ones who are living up to their full potential now.....most of us are still a work in progress and will be most of our lives.  What do I mean by "true" self?  Well, I guess it's living in a way that you are doing exactly what you should be doing, feeling and looking your best and healthiest, radiating confidence and assurance that you are exactly where you want to be in your life.  You are enjoying it and loving it and are ready to share it with everyone around you.

Finding your true self is a journey...I feel like the fitness journey that I've talked so much about in the past is part of that.  You work your whole life to achieve what you want or at least try to get there.  You carry around this picture in your mind about what kind of body you want or how you want to feel.  You set goals about how you will move forward toward that now and in the years to come.

Guess what?  Even if you are at a stalemate at this point, your true self is in you right now.  You just have to call it out.  You have to find the courage and strength to work toward achieving that picture.  Maybe what you thought you wanted will change along the way and you'll evolve into an even better place.  I feel like I'm asking you, "What do you want to be when you grow up?"   Not so much that as, "Are you where you want to be physically, mentally, emotionally?"  If not, take either a baby step or a giant leap in the direction of your goals.....it depends on you.  Nobody will take that risk FOR you.  Nobody can make those changes FOR you.

How will you know when you are close to being true to yourself?  You'll know....you will tell yourself, "This is exactly who I was meant to be and what I was supposed to be doing."  I have to tell you that ever since I started being a personal trainer who helps people along their fitness journeys, it hit me that THIS is what I am supposed to be doing.  When I got my body into shape and felt strength inside and out, I knew that I was getting closer to my true self.  I'm not completely there....I feel like there is more that I should be doing.  I'm a work in progress.

It may take you your whole life, but go after what you want.  Go get it....nobody will get it for you.  What are you waiting for?

A Well-Rounded Workout

For years, I had no idea what a good workout should consist of.  I would pick a cardio machine at the gym or a few weight machines and when I finished those, I'd stretch and call it quits for the day.  I would only move my body in a forward motion and no other direction.  That is not real life.....we need to train our bodies for real life.  Every day, we move side to side, front to back, up and down, and in twisting and bending motions.  Your workouts should have those movements.

I want you to imagine a checklist with these boxes on it:

* CARDIO

* STRENGTH

* FLEXIBILITY

* BALANCE

* CORE TRAINING

* POWER/ PLYOMETRIC

* SPEED/ AGILITY/ QUICKNESS

If you were to put a checkmark in those boxes, which ones would you have marked in terms of your workouts?  Many people are stuck in the "cardio" box and only that box.  I want to educate you that ALL of these components are important for their own reasons.  You want a checkmark in each of these.  One of the biggest reasons is that we lose these abilities with each passing year in our lives if we don't work to maintain them or improve them.  Power is lost first, followed by strength.  Balance and flexibility get lost with age as well.  Core strength is important because your core is the source of most body movement.  Before you know it, you are a weak, inflexible person without balance or reaction time and back pain due to a weak core.  

Forget about becoming "bulky" or not being an athlete.  The components that I listed above are crucial for a functional, strong, able body.  Are you stuck in the "cardio" box?  Keep that, but add some weights.  Add a warmup before you start and learn to foam roll and stretch before and after your workout.  Look up some balance and flexibility exercises on the internet.  Same with power and speed.  Find a good core routine-- look up core stabilization.  Learn to move your body in all directions and you may avoid injuries in your future.  There are also people that are stuck in the "strength" box too.  If this is you, add in some interval training for cardio, work your core, and do the other things I listed above.

Get creative!  I've given you the checklist to follow now.  Go for it!

April Challenge- "Camaraderie"

I posted a fun FIT challenge for April in my latest e-newsletter.  It's simple, really:  At least one time this month, work out with a friend, spouse, loved one, stranger off the street, whoever.  It's time to test the power of camaraderie in your fitness journey.

For some people, a workout buddy is just what they need to inject a little motivation, accountability, a little social time, and just a little boost to do something that you maybe didn't feel like doing.  For others, working out alone is usually fine-- for me, I just plug in my tunes and away I go.  I like to chat with those around me, but don't usually need someone to motivate me.  If you are a loner, just try the camaraderie challenge once to see what it's like.

This is an easy challenge-- think of who you'd like with you and go to a new fitness class (like hot yoga or boxing), go for a walk or run, go hiking, find a new strength training workout and lift weights together.  Whatever you think of, make it fun and new because chances are, you'll do it again...and again....and again.  Before you know it, you won't have to think about it, you'll just meet up and do it.  Bodies will be changing for the better right before your eyes, all while having a good time with someone else.

Accountability

The Merriem-Webster's dictionary definition of accountability is as follows:

"the quality or state of being accountable; especially : an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions"

Accountability is a key component of long term success in your fitness and health journey.  If you are not accountable to yourself, a fitness partner, or anyone in general, you somehow give yourself permission to stop what you are doing and become complacent.  Complacent in what you eat, in your activity level....it's easy to become lazy, think up excuses, and tell yourself you'll just "start tomorrow."

For today, I'll be your virtual accountability:

1) Have you worked out today or do you plan to?  How will you move your body today?

2) What does your menu look like for today?  Are you eating 4-6 times per day?  Does your menu include protein, healthy fat, and fruits/veggies?

3) Are you attending any events or social gatherings this week?  How will you plan for it in advance-- find out what they are serving, make sure you get a workout in that day, sample the food instead of the free reign mentality, stick with one drink then switch to water, etc.

4) If you are close to reaching a goal, have you thought of your next goal?  You must keep going your whole life.

5) What's in your kitchen?  Is there anything there that is "calling your name?"  My advice is to avoid bringing your kryptonite foods into the house, period.  You will eventually eat them.

Take a minute and think to yourself, "Where is the accountability in my life?"  Is it yourself?  Your family?  A gym buddy?  If you don't have it, find it and find it quickly.  On the flip side, if you already have that in your life, then serve as someone else's accountability person.  YOU can help a friend or loved one bust through the excuses.  YOU can be that person that helps someone else achieve their goals and beyond.

Some Fat Facts

 I'm going to mention two types of fat:  body fat, which you carry around with you all day, every day, and "healthy" fats, which we should all be eating in our diets every day.  How to they relate to each other?  Well, what you eat each day directly affects your body fat and how much you have.  So, read on....

Measuring your body fat is one way to track your success in your fitness journey.  If the numbers on the scale aren't moving, you may still be losing body fat and gaining muscle (if you are hitting the weights), but will never truly know it unless you track your body fat. You can buy a body fat scale or have a fitness professional perform a measurement.  There are many scales and charts out there that you can look at.  The following is one that represents an example from ACE (American Council on Exercise). Average women should keep their body fat in the range of 20-29% until they become menopausal. After that time, body fat through age 60 can peak at about 32%. .

A chart from American Council on Exercise:

Classification            Women (% Fat)        Men (% Fat)

Essential Fat            10-12%                 2-4%

Athletes                 14-20%                 6-13%

Fitness                 21-24%                 14-17%

Acceptable                25-31%                 18-25%

Obese                 32%+                 25%+

It's important to have SOME fat on our bodies.  It protects our vital organs and helps our bodies function properly and hormones work as they should.  It also gives us fuel for when we are facing an unforeseen illness or famine.  Unfortunately, the "essential fat" is not the problem in our country these days.....the problem lies on the other end of the spectrum in the "obesity" category and there is nothing healthy about that!  Too much body fat all over the body increases a woman’s risk for breast cancer. Too much inner abdominal fat leads to heart disease and diabetes. 

You may not know this, but there are "skinny fat" people all around us that look like average sized people, but have a high amount of fat on their bodies.  You can usually tell when you see an average sized person with no muscle tone whatsoever on their bodies.  They don't have much shape.  You would never categorize them visually as "obese," but for their own health, they should lower their body fat without losing their lean tissue in the process (lean tissue= muscle, bone, connective tissue, fluids, etc.).  I can testify to the "skinny fat" phenomenon because I WAS that for years and years!   

You can never "spot reduce," meaning that you can't willingly lose fat from just one area of your body.  You will lose fat from all over your body and that is why we take fat measurements from different areas.  For my clients, I do the "4 Point" measuring that includes the bicep, tricep, above the hip bone, and below the shoulder blade.   Everyone loses fat differently....from different areas first and last at a different rate.  It seems as though the "trouble spots" are the last place to lose!

One way to lose fat is to actually eat healthy fats in your diet.  I recommend around 30% of your daily intake being healthy fats. Healthy fats can even out the insulin response in your body, can keep you full and keep you from over eating, and taste great!  Many of them contain fiber and aid in digestive processes (keeps things moving through!).  Some healthy fats in your diet can include:

1) Olive Oil

Extra virgin please! Olive oil has been shown to reduce the risk of cancer, reduced blood pressure, bolster the immune system, maintain bone health, act as a digestive aid, and even prevent age-related cognitive decline. Olive oil, a monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) is also a staple of the heart-healthy Mediterranean diet. MUFAs lower heart disease risk by decreasing total and LDL cholesterol without altering HDL levels. Some research also shows that MUFAs may also benefit insulin levels and blood sugar control to reduce the risk of diabetes.

2) Nuts (and NATURAL nut butters)

Almonds, pecans, walnuts, macadamia nuts, pistachios, etc.  Nuts are part of a heart-healthy diet. Since nuts are high in unsaturated fats, eating them can help lower LDL cholesterol levels. They are also a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids that are associated with lowering triglycerides, raising HDL levels, improving blood circulation and lowering blood pressure, while also reducing hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance. Nuts provide a source of vitamin E and L-arginine, helping to keep artery walls healthy. Moderation is key when eating nuts as they are high in fat and calories, but are a better choice than most nutrient lacking snack foods. Easy to store, easy to pack, nuts can be incorporated into meals and snacks for a fiber, protein and flavor boost. Stick with the appropriate serving size though!  Tip:  try macadamia nut oil for cooking.

3) Fish Oil Supplements:   Why is fish oil so important?

They contain omega 3 fatty acids, which our bodies need, but do not make on their own.  Omega-3s are very important for health, including:

*cardiovascular function

*nervous system function and brain development

*immune health

*cognitive function

(Research shows that low DHA consumption (and blood levels) is associated with memory loss, difficulty concentrating, Alzheimer’s disease and other mood problems.)

-It also aids in digestive function, helping to keep you "regular."

-Cells also require these good fats for repair and regeneration.

-With lots of omega-3s, muscle cells become more sensitive to insulin, while fat cells decrease! This may mean that the body can divert more nutrients to muscle tissue.

-Recent studies show that you may burn more calories with Omega 3s!

-DHA and EPA (two omega 3 fatty acids) can increase metabolism by increasing levels of enzymes that boost calorie-burning ability.

Dosage:  Aim for 6-12 daily grams of total fish oil (about 3-6 grams of EPA + DHA) per day.   Add up the amounts of EPA & DHA listed on the back of the product and make sure the total is at least 300 mg per 1000 mg capsule.   

4) Avocados

These are so versatile and so filling!  Mash it up for guacamole, put it on sandwiches or in salads, or even make it into ice cream!  It has such a mild flavor, it can go with most anything.

5) Flax and seeds

Sprinkling flax or seeds on salads or other favorites is an easy way to get healthy fats into your diet.  These also provide fiber which your digestive tract will appreciate and they will keep you full.  Seeds often contain protein which is a bonus.  I like sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Stick with the appropriate serving size!

Try injecting some of these things into your daily nutrition arsenal and find out the benefits for yourself.