Your Best Body Ever

9 Oct 2009

Spot reducing…and why it doesn’t work.

One of the most common questions I get from my clients at the Diversified Health and Fitness gyms is how to tone certain areas of the body. Most people have these spots – for women, it’s usually their thighs, butt, or abs. Men are usually focused on their “spare tire” region too. It can be frustrating to see these areas gain weight as we get older and are less active. Often, these “trouble spots” are the main motivation for people to get themselves in shape. But no matter how hard you try to weight lift and do cardio, can we really do anything about these areas?

Fat and muscle are two different kinds of tissue. So “fat doesn’t turn into muscle”, as I sometimes here when I train. Nor does it help to lift weight and then expect to see results when you have a layer of fat still lying over your newly stronger muscles. To really see a result in that area, you need to combine weight lifting with a lower calorie diet and cardio to burn off the extra pounds. I can’t tell you how many people I have with super strong abs but no six pack!

Spot reducing is also futile for another reason, primarily because you’re fighting your own genetics. If your genetics dictate that your butt is supposed to be pear shaped, there’s only so much you can do to change that. Your body also doesn’t know you’re trying to reduce a certain area, so when you do cardio and lose weight, your body may lose that weight in your belly instead of your butt. It simply depends on your personal genetics, and those are impossible to fight.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get into the gym though and start hitting the cardio machines! Even if you’re not seeing the results you’d like in your given trouble spots, over time you may see an improvement in that area as your body loses fat everywhere.

Hey, it would be great if we all looked like supermodels. But realistically, their body types aren’t what most people are going to look like. So even if you’re not satisfied with that little extra weight around your belly, it’s time to start accepting your body for the way it is and work out to lose fat and become healthy. Nobody, not even models, have “perfect bodies”, and you’ll drive yourself crazy trying to get there.

Have a great holiday weekend everyone!

5 Oct 2009

October is Vegetarian Awareness Month!

I bet most of you probably didn’t know this – the month of October is dedicated to celebrating a plant based diet and making people aware about its benefits.

I myself have been mostly a vegetarian for many, many years. I do eat fish, but no poultry or meat. There are different kinds of vegetarian eating, the most common probably being the lacto-ovo vegetarian, which allows milk and egg products into the diet. A total vegan diet doesn’t include any animal products at all, including things like honey. It’s a very strict diet and can be hard to follow, as well as get all your essential nutrients. But it can be done, you just have to work very hard to have a balanced diet.

The benefits of a vegetarian diet are many. Regarding your health, this kind of diet can help reduce your risk of heart disease, strokes, and certain kinds of cancers, as you’re eating less saturated fat and cholesterol. It can also help you lose weight, as you’re mostly consuming lower calorie vegetables and fruits. Studies have also shown that vegetarians live longer than meat eaters, approximately 7 years longer.

But that’s not all. You’ll spend less at the grocery store, as produce costs less than meat. You’ll also protect your bones, as eating meat (and we eat more protein than we should, which I recently wrote about) can leach valuable nutrients from your bones as your body. The average bone loss for a 65 year old vegetarian is about 18 percent, for a meat eater the same age, it’s double that. Pretty amazing, right?

Going vegetarian can also help you avoid toxins in meat, such as hormones and steroids. It will also help you avoid food-borne illnesses, as most of these are found in meat products.

And let’s not forget the benefits to planet Earth! Going veggie helps prevent global warming, as cows, goats, and other animals emit methane, which is a huge destroyer of the ozone layer. Less demand for meat means fewer animals in the world. It also helps prevent deforestation for animal grazing. Water preservation is also affected. One pound of beef requires 2,500 gallons of water, whereas one pound of wheat takes only 25 gallons.

You can also help reduce world famine. Currently, 72 percent of grains grown in the US are fed to animals raised for slaughter. It takes 15 pounds of feed to produce one pound of meat. But if these grains were given directly to the world’s people, famine would all but be eradicated.

So have I convinced you enough yet? And if you’re thinking that a vegetarian diet is bland and boring, think again! There are plenty of wonderful and tasty recipes out there to try, and it’s anything but boring. It’s also a lot easier than you think, as there are a ton of products now available at the grocery store (some even taste like real meat, if you really can’t go without…) and most restaurants also offer vegetarian options.

Tomorrow, I’ll go over some great recipe ideas to get you started. I’m trying to convince my clients at the Diversified Health and Fitness gyms to give up meat for just this month, so I am giving you the same challenge. Think you can do it?

1 Oct 2009

Gym Equipment Roundup…The Stairclimber/ Stair Master/Step Machine

Ah, the stairclimber. Chances are you have at least one at your gym, most do. There’s an even greater chance that you’ve passed it by on your way to something a little less stressful looking, like the elliptical machine or the recumbent bike. I know my clients at any of the Diversifed Health and Fitness gyms I train at look at me in complete horror when I drag them over to this torturous looking device. Some would probably have wild pigs chasing them than climb on it for 15 minutes.

I know, I get it. Climbing stairs is not that much fun, especially when they’re not “real” stairs and you’re not going…anywhere. But the benefits of this machine should not be overlooked – and if you’re looking to step up your fitness level (sorry, no pun intended!) and are getting bored with your other typical gym machines, it’s worth a try.

Most stairclimbers are the stepper variety, where there are two plates that you stand on and alternate your legs, pressing down on one plate while being lifted up on the other. The other variety is the rolling staircase kind, which definitely takes a little bit of practice on a slow speed when you first get on it.

Stairclimbers are great because they can really burn some serious calories! An average 150 pound woman can burn 408 calories an hour. It’s also a great way to get low impact exercise, which can be great if your having some knee problems or other injuries.

It’s important to maintain proper form on this machine, to prevent back injuries. First of all, choose a comfortable stepping pace. Also, don’t lean on the machine for support, which can throw your body out of alignment. You should have your hands rested gently on the handrails and use them to provide balance, nothing else. If you find yourself draped on the handrails, slow down or take a break from the machine for a bit. It’s better to do this exercise right than wrong.

Correct body positioning for this machine is standing tall, with your feet around hip distance apart. After a short warm up, you should start your workout at a lower speed and gradually build up to a quicker one once your body adjusts. You can also change the settings on the machine to different types of workouts.

In addition to getting a great cardio workout, the machine can really tone up your buttocks, legs, and calves. Your abs and lower back can also get a good workout, if you’re standing up straight as you’re supposed to.

As I reminded some clients at Butterfly Life this morning, ALWAYS drink some water before your workouts, and bring a water bottle with you to put in the machine’s cup holder. You’re going to get thirsty, climbing up flight after flight of stairs!

28 Sep 2009

Best ways to measure your body fat percentage

A lot of times, my clients at the Diversified Health and Fitness gyms will ask me a lot about their body fat percentages. And if you’re trying to lose weight right now, this is a number you should also pay attention to, as it is a good indicator of how much fat your body is losing through your efforts.

A regular scale is great to have, and I always suggest weekly (not daily) weigh ins to keep yourself on track and motivated. However, a regular scale doesn’t tell you what percentage of the body is made up of fat, bones, blood, and organs. So you could actually be losing fat, and gaining muscle – but the number on a normal scale will say the same thing. This can be pretty discouraging.

Body fat percentages can be measured in a few different ways:

Body Fat Calipers

This is one of the more popular ways to measure body fat, and one most commonly used in gyms when you start an exercise program. An expert pinches your skin in different areas and measures it, plugs the numbers into a formula, and comes up with an estimate of your body fat.

The result is based on the idea that the thickness of fat under your skin is reflective of your total body fat. It can be an accurate way to measure this, but more often than not, it isn’t. A very skilled tester is usually the key to success with this measuring tool, but most are not great at it. Also, as you age, your body fat tends to settle in different areas and moves inward, so you’re more likely to get a skewed result.

So if your gym offers it for free, try it out and see what your results are. But I wouldn’t recommend getting too worked up about the numbers you get, because more than likely, they’re going to be off.

Bioelectrical Impedance

One of the fastest ways to measure body fat, this popular machine is also commonly used at gyms, health fairs, and in the home. You can purchase one for about $150.

When stepped upon, the scale passes a signal from hand to hand or foot to foot. The faster the signal travels, the more muscle you have. The idea behind the scale is that water is a conductor of electricity, and muscle contains a lot of water while fat contains almost none.

The results of this test can be pretty accurate, with about a 4% margin of error, but will be affected by how hydrated you are, your skin temperature, and how much you ate that day. The best time to do it is first thing in the morning after you drink a glass of water.

Dexa (dual energy x-ray absorptiometry)

This is the test they use to measure bone density at your doctor’s office, but will also effectively measure your body fat as well.

It uses a whole body scanner and uses low dose x ray to measure your bone mass. It typically takes about 20 minutes, and has a high degree of precision, with about a 2 – 3% margin of error. If you’re getting your bone density done anyways, this is a great time to check up on your body fat!

Hyrdostatic Weighing

This involves weighing your body underwater, and measuring your body weigh underwater. You sit in the tank, blow out as much water as you can, and then you’re dunked underwater, where you blow out even more air from your lungs. Fat floats, so the more fat you have, the measurement will reflect this.

This is also a highly corroborated result, with a 2 – 3% margin of error. A lot of colleges and universities offer this service, generally within a lab setting.

Online BMI Calculators (Body Mass Index)

You can also determine your Body Mass Index by using online calculators, which will ask you your height and weight and plug those numbers into a formula. Still, this number is not a great indicator of overall fitness, and can be very misleading. It doesn’t give you the fat percentage, just a ratio that places you somewhere on a given chart. It can be a good guideline, but is not as accurate as the other methods.

So, there are many ways to measure your body fat. What I always suggest to my clients is that they take a look at the cost of the most accurate methods, and if they can afford it, go for those. You don’t need to remeasure your body fat for about another month or two after this, if you’re really on the track to lose weight and you’re eating properly and exercising. It can really be an excellent tool to keep you on the track to your best body ever.

17 Sep 2009

Proper footwear: An important part of your workout

Today I posted a quote on the importance of bringing your old running shoes with you to the store when you’re shopping for new ones. I’d like to elaborate on this topic, as I do feel it’s something that a lot of people don’t understand or overlook, no matter what kind of exercise they’re doing.

If you’re a runner like I am, the proper running shoes can be crucial to your performance and preventing injury. I know a lot of newbie runners who will start out in whatever athletic shoes they have lying around, who end up being discouraged and then injured with shin splints or strained muscles because the shoes didn’t offer them proper support.

Your structural body isn’t perfect, of course. How our hips are placed will affect how are knees are, and in turn, how our feet are. Most people have feet that pronate, meaning that they roll outwards or inwards. A lot of people also have either flat or high arches too, making that part of the foot painful if there is too much or too little support.

We’re pretty lucky in this day and age, though – so many companies have spent a lot of time and money making shoes for runners and other sports that are specific to your body’s needs and the needs of that sport. Now, I’m not saying you should go out there and buy a bunch of different sneakers if you’re playing tennis one day and doing aerobics the next. It’s just a good idea to have proper sneakers that offer you the support you need to enable you to do the activities you want without injury.

For example, the other day one of my clients at Butterfly Life walked in with some pretty cute sneakers. She had gotten them on sale at the local department store. And although they matched with her outfit (yes, this is important to some people), they were woefully unsupportive and not built for a strenuous workout. I had to tell her to stop wearing them in the gym and invest in some better sneakers for her workouts.

Great sneakers can be expensive, especially if you’re a long distance runner like I am and need to shell out $140 every few months. But listen up – it’s going to be a lot more expensive to have to deal with a medical problem you might have because you aren’t wearing the right shoes! I’ve seen this happen with my clients at my gyms so I know firsthand that it’s no joke.

If you’re a runner, or thinking about running, make sure you go to a proper running store and get fitted for shoes. They’ll watch you run, analyze your gait, and have you try on several pairs for fit. I go to Fleet Feet, which is an excellent store that allows you to return your shoes if they end up not working out.

If you’re not a runner, I still urge you to go to an athletic shoe store like Foot Locker or the Sports Authority and get a good pair of shoes. Your feet and body will thank you for it!

14 Sep 2009

The Elusive 6 Pack…

One of the most common requests I hear at Diversified Health and Fitness gym is the request for “6 Pack Abs”. These, besides the perfect butt, seem to be the Holy Grail of working out. And while there are many things you can do to get your abs in gear, it’s important to understand the abs and how to best acheive results.

Your abs are not just the space between your chest and your bikini line. Your abdominal muscles are a part of your core muscles, which is the group that supports your entire middle zone. That’s pretty much the neck down to the mid part of your thigh. You core is vitally important in almost every exercise you perform, so strengthening this entire area is, without a doubt, a very important goal. You engage your entire core in everyday movements, all the time.

But let’s focus on your front abdominal muscles, the ones that you’d like to look like a washboard. A lot of my clients think that if they just do 100 crunches a day, they’ll be well on their way. And while this can help a little, it’s not going to help if you have a layer of fat over your muscles, and if you’re only doing crunches. So it’s important to attack this from all sides: proper nutrition, smart exercise, and minimizing stress. Why the last one? Studies have shown that increased stress packs on the midsection pounds.

It’s also important to know that some abdominal exercises are much more effective than others. It’s also better to really work out your abs in a short amount of time with highly effective exercises than to waste time and energy on the aforementioned 100 daily crunches.

According to research, the single best move you can do for your abs is the device in your gym called “The Captain’s Chair.” This is a great piece of equipment that you hoist yourself between the two side supports on your elbows and forearms, which will cause your legs to dangle. Now bring your legs up from the waist for as long as you can to work those rectus abdominals, and then turn to the side and work those obliques. This is an AB KILLER, and believe me, yours will be burning in no time! My clients hate it when I put them on here, but they’re not paying me to not get them results. You’ll see some results too when you’re on here for awhile, I promise!

The second best thing you can do is use an inflatable exercise ball. Besides being a lot of fun, these work on your stabilizer muscles as well, and those sometimes get less use than they should. For core work, the ball is a must, and it’s very versatile. Tomorrow I’ll go over some more exercises on the ball, but most gyms have them and they should not be ignored.

The traditional crunch can still work wonders, it’s true. However, it’s important to switch up that crunch a little so you get the most out of the exercise (we’ll also touch on form for crunches tomorrow) and also work all the various areas of your abdominals. And unlike the others, the crunch is easy to do in a hotel room or when you’re at home, during TV commercials (hint, hint!)

So tune in tomorrow for my favorite ab blasting exercises!

28 Aug 2009

A vacation is not an excuse…

Summer’s winding down and the kids are going back to school. You may have taken a vacation already this summer, or are trying to squeeze one in this week before Labor Day. While you do deserve a break, remember that your vacation is still a great time to get some fun exercise. It shouldn’t be ignored just because you’re not at home and not able to go to the gym!

When I travel, I’m lucky that I can use one of Diversified Health and Fitness’ gyms, as I work for them. While it’s easy for me, there are still no excuses for you! Here are some ways you can get in a workout while you’re on your vacay:

- Most hotels have a gym. If you can even get a half hour workout in before you hit the theme park or whatever it is you’re doing that day, do it! I promise you, you’ll feel better that you did.

- If your hotel doesn’t have a gym, you can still workout in your hotel room. Simple exercises like pushups, sit-ups, lunges, squats, and jumping jacks can easily be done in your room. You can also bring along some resistance tubing with you for a better strength workout – these pack easily and are very useful. Jump ropes also fit easily into a suitcase.

- See if your gym has privileges with other gyms in the area. As I mentioned before, I’m lucky that I can find out where the nearest Diversified Health and Fitness gym is located, we have a lot of different chains all over the country. Your gym may also have different locations that you can workout in on a reciprocal basis. Check out your gym’s website for more information. As an added bonus, how fun is it to work out in a new location?

- Search out fun activities on your vacation that double as exercise. This is my favorite way to get some activity on my vacations. I’m usually hiking, swimming, biking, skiing, etc. If there’s something active around to do, seek it out. You may even get to try something you never knew you liked, and have a great adventure.

So there are a lot of ways you can find a way to exercise on your vacation. While sometimes it’s easier to sit in your beach chair and crack open a Corona, don’t sabotage all the work you’ve done. As an added benefit, you’ll feel better going out to dinner and treating yourself to something delicious – after all, you do need a reward for all this exercise!