Your Trainer Did WHAT?

Even wonder if what you trainer is doing is acceptable, or even grounds for letting him or her go? Here's my short list of what I feel you should and should not accept from a personal trainer, as well as what you can do to rectify the situation:

- Your personal trainer should make a plan according to your goals, not pull out a workout plan she's used with dozens of clients before you. This doesn't mean the trainer shouldn't have a template: We all do. It means your program doesn't look exactly like every other person your trainer works with.

- A personal trainer should push you. Not to the point of injury, but to the point where you walk away feeling like you accomplished something.

- Your personal trainer should be watching you all of the time. They may need to speak with someone quickly, but you are their main focus for the entire session.

- Your personal trainer should treat you with dignity and respect. Period.

- Your personal trainer should change up your program no less often than every 4 weeks. Part of what you are paying them for is to see change. Bodies will eventually stop responding to the same routine after a few weeks. And if you say you are getting bored, they should modify to help keep you interested.

- Your personal trainer should ask questions if you say something hurts. This will help them determine if your pain is from muscle fatigue (which, honestly, you need to accept will often happen in order to have an effective training session), or something more serious. If you know what the trainer is asking you to do is going to hurt you, the trainer should modify or change the exercise.

- Your personal trainer shouldn't be on their phone. I have kept my phone with me to use the timer on it, but as far as texting, calling, checking Facebook, or any other purpose not related directly to YOU, phone usage is not Okay. You are paying your trainer to train you, not communicate with others. (Exception: There is a potential emergency and the trainer truly does need to know right away if it happens. This should be an extremely rare occurrence, and the trainer should ask you if this is Okay with you at the start of the session. To give you an idea of how rarely this should happen, in over 10 years of being a Personal Trainer, I have had a phone with me for this purpose exactly three times.)

- Your Personal Trainer should never, ever, ever flirt with or make an overt pass at you. You might be surprised how often this happens, particularly with male trainers. Many consider getting very personal a job perk. Trust me, if he's trying it with you, it's been successful with others. It's easy, and actually quite normal, to get a "Trainer Crush". But don't be another notch in his belt loop. Even if you don't give in, is it worth other trainers thinking you are one of his conquests? (Because trust me, he's not as discreet as he claims to be.)

In many cases you can speak with your trainer about all but the last of the above issues and see if he or she is willing to fix the situation. If they aren't willing to make some changes, it's time to break up with your trainer. They may even suggest another trainer to you. Don't take this as an insult! Honestly, it just makes it easier for you. In the case that you have prepaid sessions you can ask nicely for a refund, but it's more than likely that you signed a contract. So you may be stuck working with that trainer until the paid sessions are up if you are the one initiating the break up.

If, however, it's the last point (the trainer coming on to you) that you are having an issue with, calmly and firmly offer to talk to their boss if they won't refund you by a specified time (I'd give them 3 days) for the unused sessions. And you may want to talk to their boss, anyhow.

If he or she doesn't have a boss, offer to tell your friends. Chances are you'll see a refund quickly. Even if you don't, whatever you paid him or her is not worth the loss of dignity and, quite possibly, reputation.

Managing Pushy Hostesses

You know how it is- You are at a dinner somewhere, and a well-meaning hostess decides that you just MUST try her special Batter-Dipped and Double Fried Shortening that she ONLY makes for this particular occasion.  You really don't want to derail your healthy eating plan at this particular moment, but this gal is just not giving up.  How to handle it?

The natural inclination is to tell the truth: "No thank you.  I am trying to be careful with my eating right now."  I encourage you to try this tactic first.  But as we all know, so often it does not work and the hostess seems even more dogged in her determination to have you try her fabulous delicacy, even if it means informing you of all of the virtues of her dish.

In this case, I have found two very effective solutions to this delimma, neither of which involves lying:

Solution #1- "That looks so delicious.  It looks like you put a lot of time and effort into making it. But I am simply too full right now to enjoy it.  Can I take a rain check?"  One thing I know, being a bit of a food pusher myself, is that what you most want is to feel appreciated.  This covers that base, as well as leaves hope that the person will still sample your dish.  Besides, what's she going to do?  Say no?  

Solution #2 (I only use this in the event that, for some reason, Solution #1 does not work)- "I am so sorry, but I have an adverse effect to that type of food."  This is true.  It makes me fat. If asked what that adverse effect is, you can simply answer "It's too personal to share".  Of course, the person is going to think that it makes you have massive amounts of horrible intestinal issues, but you aren't lying because, quite frankly, I'd rather not discuss this at a party, anyhow.

As a parting note, keep all of this in mind when YOU host an event.  Be sensitive and don't push when someone tells you "No, thank you."

If It's Working, Don't Change Anything!

Anyone who has read my Spark Page recently knows that I have gained more weight than I am comfortable carrying, and that a lot of this came from stress eating. But in doing the self-examination that comes along with the Spark Coach Program (which I highly recommend), I have started to think of something else that helped with my weight creeping up: I let the opinions of others change how I worked my maintenance plan.

This was really pretty stupid of me, since I am acutely aware of my own limitations and have warned others to respect theirs, as well.

I guess the reason I listened to these other folks is because they were people who had accomplished tasks fitness-wise that I really admired. I respected them. But they don't live in my skin.

The key things I stopped doing were tracking my food and weighing myself at least several times a week.

I felt like it displayed weakness if I logged my foods and didn't trust my own appetite. I saw that many of the more advanced fitness people don't need to track- They cam be accountable on their own. Surely I was at least that advanced. Right?

And I was listening to others opinions that weighing regularly was being a slave to the scale, thereby putting the emphasis in the wrong place- That the scale was a liar and didn't tell the truth.

For some people these tactics work. For me, they were borrowing trouble.

And honestly, it's no surprise that in the near-absence of these things, I began to gain weight when extreme stress hit.

The truth is, as I've written in blogs past, that my personality is one that does better with regular food tracking. I do this in a written food log. Writing things down makes me face the facts about what I am eating. This works for me, even in maintenance.

As for weighing, I really do believe that the scale is the least accurate of the gauges that we use. But it also is the most immediate source of input I have. It takes time for my pants to get tight, but the scale tells the tale right away if I overate brownies recently.

Knowing I am going to have to face the numbers on the scale frequently keeps my head in the game when it comes to my eating habits.

And the fact is that if I get much over 155, size six just can't be maintained, no matter HOW much muscle versus fat I am carrying.

So while no one should live and die by the scale, it DOES give me a very useful snapshot of how things are going.

One good thing that this recent weight gain has taught me is that I would rather be considered weak using these accountability tools and looking fit, than considered emotionally strong not using them and viewed as overweight

I don't believe that tracking and weigh frequently is for everyone. What works for you is what you need to do. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

As for me? I'm back to tracking and weighing. It's going to be work getting back to where I was, and even more work to stay there. But I remember how feeling great about my health was so very worth everything I did NOT eat. And this time, my opinion of how I need to stay there is the only one that counts.

Selective Amnesia

Yesterday, or more specifically last night, I went off the rails with my eating. 

The problem started because I was genuinely hungry later in the evening.  All  I could think about was carbs.  One trick I have to keep myself from eating once my daily food has been consumed is that I brush my teeth and put my retainer in. (I had braces a few  years ago and am very interested in keeping my teeth strait!)  I had done this, but the hunger was getting to me.  So I did something I NEVER do and took the retainer out to eat a little something.  Well, a little something turned into a LOT of something.  Ugh.

This morning I was trying to figure out what to do with my Weight Watchers Points.  In case you don't know how Weight Watchers works, you get a certain amount of points for the day based on your weight.  And then you get an additional 49 "flex points" that you can add into the week as needed. 

Yesterday was day 1 of my tracking week, so I had all 49 Flex Points still available to me at the end of the day.  However, I know that if I subtract as many as I approximate I ate last night, that won't leave me enough for the days when I go to the gym and genuinely NEED more food.  (I get ravenously hungry when I lift weights.)

I sat there and looked at my points, and thought of what I ate, and considered what I could do.  I was starting to get pretty stressed. 

It finally occurred to me to take a look at my "Good Health Guidelines" from yesterday.  These ensure that you hit certain dietary goals each day for maximum health.  And I realized that, despite thinking I'd eaten them all, I had only eaten 3 of my required 5 servings of produce.

Hmmmmm.......... Maybe if I'd of filled up on veggies I wouldn't have been so hungry.  Ya think, Nance?

At that point, I realized that to expect myself to be able to try and somehow make up the calorie difference in the following 6 days was setting myself up for failure.  I have a big appetite.   My body needs fuel.  And if it doesn't get enough I am very likely to go off the rails again.  One "blow it" this week was more than enough.

So I have made a decision to have selective amnesia.  The part I am forgetting?  What I overate.  The part I am remembering?  To check my Good Health Guidelines before I allow myself to go into my Flex Points.

As for my Flex Points, I did subtract 7, since that is the average daily amount (49 Flex Points divided by 7 days in the week equals an average of 7 points per day).  I am just going to proceed through the rest of the week like the overeating didn't happen.

In some ways I feel like I am starting over with my weight loss.  I am re-learning things I learned before and assumed I already knew.  This is really discouraging.  I get impatient with myself, because I've been here before- I should have this down, right?

But then I realize that if I continue to berate myself, I am doing nothing to help myself move forward. 

For me, this requires selective amnesia. 

And the fact that the gal in that photo has the type of body I'd like doesn't hurt anything, either.

A Few Quick Oatmeal "Recipes"

I love oatmeal and eat it almost every morning.   But I also like variety, and have found ways to spruce it up and make it a complete meal with protein powder.  The only brand I use is Beverly International, since I know their quality is sound.  And for my oats I use their UMP (Ultimate Muscle Protein), which is mainly casein.  I am sure other brands of casein protein would work, too.  Casein works much better with heat than other protein powders. 

Anyhow, here are a few of my favorite "recipes".  I usually make these with 1/3 C of dry oats, but sometimes I'll got down to 1/4 C or up to 1/2 C, depending on my carb targets for the day:

- Peaches and Cream Oatmeal:
Cook oats with a little extra water (to absorb the protein powder).  When done, stir in-
     * 1 scoop of vanilla UMP
     * pinch of salt
     * 1 peach, diced with skin on
     * 1 teaspoon coconut oil (optional, but I like the flavor this healthy fat adds) OR 1 teaspoon butter (if you use salted, omit the salt)
Put in an microwave-safe serving bowl and microwave for about 30-45 seconds to heat it back up, as the peaches will have cooled the oats down.


- Oatmeal Peanut butter Cookie Oats:
Cook oats with a little extra water (to absorb the protein powder).  When done, stir in-
     * 1 Tablespoon natural peanut butter
     * Salt to taste
Mix well to distribute the peanut butter evenly.  Then stir in:
     * 1 Scoop Vanilla UMP
     * 2 Tablespoons raisins


Chocolate Oats:
Cook oats with a little extra water (to absorb the protein powder).  When done, stir in-
     * 1 teaspoon coconut oil
     * pinch of salt
     * 1 scoop chocolate UMP
     * 1 Tablespoon cocoa powder (optional, and when I use this, I often add a teaspoon or so of calorie-free sweetener to help offset some of the bitterness of the cocoa)
- If you like, substitute 1 T of natural peanut butter for the coconut oil.


Snickerdoodle Oats:
Cook oats with a little extra water (to absorb the protein powder).  When done, stir in-
     * 1 scoop vanilla UMP
     * 1 teaspoon coconut oil or butter (if the butter is salted, omit the salt)
     * 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, or to taste
     * pinch of salt


Apple Pie Oats:
Place oats in the pan you are going to cook them in.  Cut up an apple into very small pieces and add to the oats.  Put in less water than you would usually cook the oats in, as the apple will cook down and add to the liquid.  Cook oats, stirring often (unless you do them in the microwave, then just let 'em cook), until done.
When cooked, stir in:
     * 1 scoop Vanilla UMP
     * 1 teaspoon butter (if it's salted, omit salt)
     * 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, or to taste
     * pinch ground nutmeg (optional)
     * pinch salt


I'll be that as you start using more variety with your oats, you will start coming up with your own combinations.  I'd love to hear what you create!

Only Undertake What You Know You Can Maintain

One lesson I have learned the hard way in my fitness journey:  Don't take on anything to lose weight that you aren't willing to do on a permanent basis.

If you do a bunch of nutty stuff to lose weight, you are very likely to gain the weight back once the nutty stuff is ceased. Why?  You didn't learn a darned thing about how to exist in your real, day-to-day world. 

I've been heavy and I've been very thin, and here is what I know: The stuff you did to lose weight is the stuff you will have to continue to do to maintain it. 

The fact is that the difference between weight loss and weight maintenance for me is about 300 calories a day.  Maybe.  This is two cookies.   So keeping up the weight loss methods, with a cookie or two (or whatever else equals 300 calories) added in, is what I must do to stay at my preferred weight.

Consequently, before I give up carbs after lunch, I ask myself:  Can I live like this for the rest of my life? 

Do I really want to live without ever eating sugar again?

And before I go to two workouts a day, I have to be honest about if that's something I can keep up after the weight is off.

If it's not, I don't do it.  Maybe it means carrying around some excess weight a bit longer.  That's Okay.  I'd rather find and adapt to liveable solutions than go through the frustration of gaining back some or all of weight I'd sacrificed so much to lose.

It all goes back to that overused term "lifestyle".   You will need to make changes, but find methods that fit into your lifestyle, or that you can build a new lifestyle around.  Trust me, you will save yourself a lot of frustration this way.

And, honestly, I think taking on methods that can't be maintained is the main reason there is such a discouragingly high percentage of weight regain.

The difference between maintaining and gaining is separated by a VERY THIN line.   Make sure you don't make it even thinner by setting yourself up for failure with changes you can't maintain.

My 4-M Method of Goal Setting

When it comes to fitness and weight loss I have learned that if I have a specific and measurable method of both setting and looking at my goals it not only helps me with achieving and believing I an accomplish them, but also with visualizing and staying encouraged along the journey.  I call it "My 4-M Method of goal setting".  With this method, I break my goals down into four categories:  

Micro
Mini
Moderate
Max

For the purposes of this blog, and because I'm currently trying to lose fat (again!), I will give examples of weight loss.  But you can adapt this to whatever goal you are trying to achieve, be it a level of musculature, running a marathon, or even something non-fitness related like getting a degree.

Let's cover them one by one:

The first goal, Micro, is something that is easily acheivable and very much within reach.  For me this is every 2 1/2 pound mark.  So at my current weight of 170,  "Under 170" is my micro goal.  After I get there, it will be "Under 167.5", then "Under 165", etc.  When I can tell I am getting very close to my Max goal this will get narrower, since I lose much slower when I get leaner.  I'll probably set my micro goals in 1-lb increments at that point.

The next in line is the Mini goal.  Mini is something that is juuuuuuust out of reach, but you can see it's attainable.  Usually for me this is the 5-pound mark (Under 170, 165, etc.). Mini lets me say I did something that would be worth mentioning to others.  "I just lost fifteen pounds" sounds so much more impressive (and less weird) than "I just lost twelve and a half pounds".

The second to biggest goal, Moderate, is something that isn't quite as easy to achieve and is a fairly impressive milestone. With weight loss, for me it's usually the next size down.

Now for the biggest goal: Max. In short, max goals are where you want to see as the end result of your current fitness journey.

Often at the beginning of the journey I'll have more a a general idea of what this goal might be.  For instance, right now I know I want to have a figure something like the actress Tamara Taylor's:

Isn't she stunning? 

This is a fairly general goal for several reasons- While I believe I can achieve a look very similar to hers, I am NOT her. Specifically I am more muscular than her, have a (much) bigger bust-line, and we are of different ethnic backgrounds. But "Tamara Taylor More Muscular" is not an unrealistic look for me, since we have similar bone structures, height, and age. It gives me a general shape to keep in mind.

Another reason this is a general goal is that I don't know at what exact weight, body fat percentage, or even size (although I suspect it's my coveted size six) I will look like this. Nor am I sure of how long it will take to get a similar look. When I get closer to being there I will be able to narrow it down more, but for right now saying I want to look like her sister, sans skin tone, is about as specific as I can get.

All of these goals are fluid and move as I progress, with the possible exception of my Max goal. But even it is subject to change if I get close and realize it's unrealistic or I'm not expecting enough of myself.

I guess my reason for categorizing goals like this is that it gives me reasons to celebrate alone the way, instead of just trudging along until I get to my ultimate goal. And I DO celebrate. Even if it's just to take a minute to sit alone, smile to myself, and feel truly proud that I made it past another goal. The more I do this, the more I am encouraged to press on.

Miraculous Menopause!

In case the title wasn't enough, any men reading need to be informed that this blog is about "the change".  Should male-types choose to continue reading, consider yourselves warned.

In November or 2013 I posted  this blog on not having the horrible side-effects of menopause since getting into shape. Today's blog is "The rest of the story".

A year and a half ago I had my last cycle.  They'd been sporadic for years, and even though some doctors tried to tell me I wasn't in pre-menopause, I knew better.   I'd had signs since I was 34 that menopause was going to come early.  I couldn't have been happier when I hit the one-year mark for being period-free last November, making me inarguably through menopause by medical standards.  I did a little dance of joy.

I had someone once wonder aloud if my lack of cycles had something to do with my leanness and activity level.  No way.  During the 11 years leading up to the cessation of my cycles I was both obese/sedentary, and extremely lean/active.  Right now I am about 20 pounds over where I want to be.  And my cycles are gone.  Kaput.  Hasta la vista.  Buh-bye.  So obviously, it has had absolutely nothing to do with my fitness or body fat level.

Between menopause and aging I have found some wonderful benefits:

- I'm a lot nicer on a regular basis.  I had cycles from hell- This is not much of an exaggeration.  They were horrible.  To the point where my family wanted to get away from me.  I understood because I would have left me alone, had that been an option.  I would go into rages, cry at the drop of a hat, and be inconsolable.   It was terrible.  I did get some relief from taking iron pills (turns out my heavy cycles were making me iron deficient), but it never completely released me from my hormonal torment.  Now that I don't have those massive hormone surges going on any more I am more "level" and therefore better able to manage my emotions.

I read somewhere once that an early menopause can  mean a shorter lifespan.  I can say with utmost honesty that if that is the case I would much rather live a shorter life happy than a longer life miserable.

- My cycle was really heavy to the point where sometimes I wondered if I was hemorrhaging.  My sheets were very familiar with the washing machine, regardless of how much I "reinforced" myself.  Not having to deal with that anymore is fabulous.

- I get to use moisturizer!   May sound like a silly benefit, but up until not long ago I was always an oil slick.  People would talk about how good moisturizer felt and I didn't get it.  All it did was make me slimy.   I love that I can put a moisturizer on, feel it sink into my skin (which would now be classified as "normal"), and enjoy that feeling.

- I no longer have to wash my hair every day, since reduced oil production means it no longer looks like a bunch of greasy strings less than 24 hours after washing.  I can go every-other day before it looks that way now.  Big time saver!

- Zits are (almost) a thing of the past.  The occasional pimple still sometimes rears it's ugly head, but as for the multiple volcano zits I used to sport on a regular basis?   Gone!

- I can go without foundation and not look horrible. After 30+ years of slathering the stuff on I am no longer a slave to it. I either had to wear it before to cover my horrible acne or combined it with powder to soak up the oil from my face.  Now I can just wear sunscreen and feel good about the way my "real" skin looks.

- When I do wear foundation, it's a moisturizing formula.  This is cool because moisturizing foundation doesn't stick to my skin and dry before I am done blending it like the oil-absorbing varieties did.

- My body fat is distributing a bit better.  I'll always be bottom-heavy, but now when I gain fat I get a bit more in my upper body.  This is nice because I don't feel quite as disproportionate any more.  My shadow on the ground more resembles and hour glass with more sand on the bottom than a bowling pin.  I like that.

- I'm not so concerned with my appearance these days.  I'll never be someone who is Okay with looking sloppy.  But needing every hair in place and worrying about people seeing spider veins on my legs?  Nah.  I'd rather let it go and just enjoy myself.

Getting older isn't that bad, it turns out.   In a lot of ways, it's beneficial.  I'm happy to be 47 and through menopause.  Now if I could just lose these blessed 20 pounds again.......................

Sugar is NOT My Friend!

I won't say I gave up refined carbs for Lent, since I am not Catholic.  I will, however, say that I gave them up for approximately the 6 weeks before Easter in an effort to become more of what I believe God created me to be.

I'm a firm believer that God calls me to be a good steward of this body He has entrusted me with.  The truth is that I hadn't been doing a good enough job of that in the eating department. I didn't particularly like the idea of giving up refined carbs (white flour, sugar, white rice, etc.), but I really did feel that to do so would do nothing but good things for my health, so I relented and committed.

I found myself surprised by a bunch of things in the process, and have arrived at a conclusion as a result. (You will probably guess the conclusion, but I'll save it for the end of this blog, anyhow.)

Surprise #1- Giving up refined carbs was not as hard as I thought it would be. I was anticipating/dreading horrible cravings and withdrawal-type symptoms. Really, these were minimal. This was a relief.

Surprise #2- I lost NO weight in the process. I thought by giving up such non-nutritive food I might have a weight loss to report, and I do not. I am EXACTLY the same weight that I was at the beginning of the 6-week period. Turns out, you can get ample calories without processed carbs. Imagine that!

Surprise #3- My joints didn't hurt as much. I have arthritis in a knee, and some aches and pains in my upper right side due to past injuries. (These have nothing to do with weight lifting, by the way. I always hurt myself by doing normal stuff like walking down the street or talking on the phone.) Anyhow, I started noticing about a week into my "no refined carbs" period that I wasn't aching as bad. It never went away entirely, since the arthritis and injuries will always be there, but dang! Did it get a LOT better! I started doing some research and turns out that arthritis is a inflammatory condition. As a matter of fact, most prior injuries are aggravated by inflammation. Refined carbs are inflammatory foods. So it makes perfect sense that my condition improved.

Surprise #4- There is sugar in all sorts of stuff I normally eat and consider healthy. Case in point: I was munching away on the organic whole-grain bread I always buy. Suddenly it occurred to me that it takes some kind of sugar, whether white or molasses, to feed yeast so that it can rise. I took a look at the bag and, sure enough, "Organic Cane Sugar" was listed in the ingredients. Dang. This meant that bread also exited my diet.

Surprise #5- Sugar-free "treats" (i.e. candy) give me gas. Not worth it. 'Nuff said.

Surprise #6- Fried foods don't necessarily contain refined carbs. I had pretty much given up fried foods prior to my "no refined carbs" implementation, but suddenly I found myself gleefully filling in the carb gap with french fries. Thankfully I was able to identify this as problematic and knock it off in fairly short order, but I can see where that could have caused me to emerge from this whole thing with diminished health and a higher body fat percentage.

If you are paying attention, you have noted that in addition to the refined carbs, I also wound up giving up bread, sugar-free "treats" (which really left me nowhere to go at the movies but water, since I also don't drink soda), and fried foods. My very satisfying consolation was that I knew none of these "sacrifices" were bad for me. 

Surprise #7- My sleep improved. A LOT. I have often had issues with waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to get back to sleep for an hour or more. The only bonus to this is that I got a lot of recreational reading done. A few days into giving up refined carbs I was sleeping like a baby every night, not needing naps during the day (I used to nap like I was 85), and loving it! You know how much more you can get done when you aren't staggering through the day and have an entire extra hour in the afternoon to accomplish things? I didn't associate this with sugar until last night, which I will explain in the next paragraph.......

So, on Easter I allowed myself to eat refined carbs again. It actually kinda started the day before, because I was baking for Easter dinner and took a few licks and tastes. I could feel I was starting to mentally "let go", knowing that the next day I could eat whatever I wanted. That night I wasn't sleeping as soundly as usual and woke up several times aching where those old injuries are. I didn't make the connection until last night. I'd eaten plenty of goodies over Easter Sunday. My upper body was aching so bad that I went to bed thinking maybe I should have taken a Tylenol PM. I slept fitfully and finally woke up for real at 1:30am KNOWING I should have taken a Tylenol PM. The pain was easily twice what it had been the night before, and I was simply NOT sleepy. I read for at least an hour before I was able to go back to sleep.

And, turns out that when you haven't had refined carbs for a while they cause gas, too. I am certain that didn't help my sleep state, either.

And now I sit here, aching as I type, occasionally stopping to rub out or rotate my shoulder. I was hurting so bad when I woke up this morning that I foam rolled first thing. I almost lost my cookies when I lifted weights this morning, and all I had to eat for breakfast was the smallest bowl of oatmeal imaginable. I'm pretty sure that this is my digestive system continuing it's rebellion.

Conclusion? I'm going back to my "no refined carbs" rule. I've always been able to reason myself out of things like drug use and bulimia (neither of which I have ever done) because I could see nothing truly good that would come of it other than momentarily pleasure or relief. The negatives far outweighed the benefits. And now I see the same applies to refined carbs. Now, I'm not going to go checking Organic whole grain bread labels.  But when it comes to things like desserts and white bread, it will do nothing but benefit me to cut them out of my diet almost completely. If something is new, or it's a holiday and I know I won't see this food for another year, I'll try taking just a bite or two and leaving it. Honestly, I could have done that yesterday and been just as happy and a lot less miserable.

My point is not that everyone should give up refined carbs. We each have our own fitness path to walk. But maybe my experience can give someone else an "aha" moment and help them to not hurt, too.

Stability Ball Crunch Pointers

When doing ab curls on a stability ball (the big ones full of air), make sure you extend back over the curve of the ball, and only come up to where your head is just barely above parallel with the ground.

I see so many people start with their torso parallel with to ground (or higher!) and wind up almost sitting up on the ball at the top of the movement This pretty much negates the advantage of having a ball. You'd get a more intense ab contraction if you did regular ab curls on the ground.

Also, keep in mind that the closer together the legs are, the harder the move is. So legs together from heel all the way to upper inner thigh is the most advanced method of doing stability ball crunches.

Additionally, as with any ab exercise, keep the abs tight and engaged throughout the movement. When you don't let momentum take over and instead actively use muscle all the way through, the exercise becomes both more challenging and more effective.

You Can't Cliff Note Lasting Fitness

The other day on Sparkpeople.com I posted this status update: "You can't 'Cliff note' fitness. If you only learn what you should do without the why, you won't stick with it because you won't know why it's important."

I have had many people tell me that they don't want to read a book or get informed about how to make their own diet or exercise plan. "Just tell me what to do and I will do it", they say. They'd rather not be bothered with taking the time to learn the details.

While, to a large degree, this kind of attitude is what keeps us personal trainers employed, it's also what tends to keep well-meaning people from reaching or maintaining their goals. Look, if a person doesn't understand the mechanics behind why what they are doing is working, they won't feel compelled to keep it up once they have reached goal.

I give long pause to eating buttered popcorn because I am fully aware of the reasons why the combination of carbs, fat, and sodium is going to cause a scale hike that will take a couple of days of disciplined eating and water consumption to undo.

You can't go into denial about stuff you have full knowledge of. This is a powerful tool in the battle of maintaining your goals once you have reached them.

I know it can be boring. At the age of 19 I started this whole weight-lifting thing. Back then we didn't have women's fitness magazines that were designed to engage the mind of a female. We had Flex and Muscle and Fitness- both geared primarily towards men. I would force myself to read the details in the articles that talked about why what they were suggesting worked. I read books on fitness and proper eating, forcing myself to pay attention in the more boring parts. After a while, as I started to understand more of the terminology, it got a little more interesting. But trust me, some of this stuff is still about as fascinating as reading the prescription information that comes with your antibiotic.

However, twenty-eight years later this discipline has given me a no-excuses ownership of the shortcomings that have led me to struggle with weight gain. This has been extremely facilitative in initiating change. Without this information banging around in my head, and growing as I have continued to educate myself, I am sure my struggle with excess body fat would have been even greater.

As a trainer, I love it when my clients ask questions. The people with the curious minds who inform themselves are much more likely to stick with the program and get good results that last.

So educate yourself. Turn into a giant two-year-old by learning to ask "Why?". Ask your trainer why you are super-setting chest press with step-ups. Look up the reasoning behind the eating plan you are using. Read articles. Read books. Don't blindly follow; Educationally follow. If for no other reason than to enable yourself to be able to make your own exercise and eating plan if, God forbid, you can no longer afford to pay for assistance.

40-Year Key Study Flawed?

I recently read a very interesting article in my IDEA Fitness Journal, which is for ACE certified professionals.  (A great publication with cutting-edge fitness and nutrition information).  I was so happy when I was able to find this article online so that I could share it with my Better Body group on Facebook.  (If you want to join, search "Better Body" on Facebook.  It's a private group, so you will have to request to join and see the posts, but as soon as me or one of my admins sees the request, we'll add you.)

Anyhow, the article says "that 40 years of nutrition information from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey—the gold-standard database for such information—may be fatally flawed."

It goes on to explain (this is pretty interesting, if you ask me) "the authors said that it would be nearly impossible to survive on most of the energy intakes— the “calories in” and “calories out”—that participants reported. This misreporting of energy intake varied among participants; it was greatest in obese men and obese women, who underreported their intake by an average of 25% and 41% (716 and 856 calories per day), respectively."

Wow!  Those are some pretty skewed numbers in relation to what people are actually consuming.  And for 40 years they may have very well managed to make the "gold standard" flawed!  Amazing.

I find this pretty fascinating.  It puts a lot into perspective.  How many times have we either heard someone say or said ourselves "I  really don't eat all that much?"  The fact is that a vast majority of people weigh the amount that their caloric intake supports.  This is something you just can't run very far from.  Yes, there are rare exceptions, but the key word there is "rare".

The best defense against this is to log your foods, including calories, and be very honest about portion sizes.  Measure and weigh your food.  You might be surprised at how much less a Tablespoon or an ounce is that you thought.

Admittedly, I just cafeteria-styled that article and took the parts I wanted.  Here is the article in it's entirity.  I would encourage you to read it right here.

I'm a big believer in facing your circumstances.  If you get honest with the facts, you can make adjustments to see change in your health and appearance.

No, I Don't Juice

This morning, while purchasing frozen berries, my checker asked me if I juice.  (And by this I mean make juice in a juicer, not use steroids.... which I also don't do!)  She looked surprised when I told her no, I don't believe in it and asked why not.  I told her because everything I've seen about juicers shows that they leave the good stuff (the pulp) behind. 

Juicing seems to be the symbol of health and vitality lately, but in reality it's cutting one's self short of a lot of fiber and nutrients.  The whole fruit or vegetable is more healthy than squeezing the liquid out and leaving the solid behind.  In terms of heart health, colon health, cholesterol, satiety, and elimination, to name a few, the whole food is far superior to what you are left with when juicing.

Every time someone crows "I can get twelve servings of fruits and vegetables in one glass!", I inwardly roll my eyes.  Uh, that's not twelve servings, because a true serving would have the pulp.  That's like, maybe, 4 servings by the time you get rid of all the good stuff you left behind, and even then it's only partial nutrients.  They'd be better off spreading half of those twelve fruits and vegetables out over the course of the day.  The nutrition of six pieces of fruit or vegetable would be better overall, and it would be a lot less expensive.

So no, I don't juice.  When I do make a liquid with my produce, I blend.  That way, I get ALL of the food down me, and don't have to clean up a messy juicer when I'm done.

Double Meat Cheapskate

Here is a tip I use at Subway.  This will REALLY apply now that they it is January and they are selling all foot-longs for $5.

I like to get my turkey or ham 6-inch subs with double meat.  This is usually an extra dollar.  When I can get my sub in foot long for $5, it's less expensive than the 6-inch double meat. So I order it in the footlong, ask for a fork, and only eat half the bread.  I either use the fork to move the meat and toppings over to the half of the bread I am going to eat or (easier) eat them right out of the bread with the fork.  This isn't all about saving a buck, though- I also get double the veggies this way. And I'm always looking for more veggies!

Additionally, I always have local discount cards sold by our high school Band program that include a free drink with a footlong at Subway.  So by the time all is said and done, I have spent $5 plus tax for a double-meat sub and drink.

And, as I have said before, it's not waste to throw the bread away.  Would you rather put it directly into the garbage, or eat it and then have to go through the butt-pain of losing it?  Seems to me the garbage route saves a step.