Last year ---SNOW SNOW

It's 50 degrees here today in Massachusetts ---YES 50 in January!!!!
1 year ago --WHAT A MESS.......


My trainer LeeAnne put me through this!!

Check out these Cardio Myths

What do you guys think? This month I've seen more and more folks doing slow cardio---the gyms are packed, New Years, right?. Great if you're just starting out.
 
Check out this article on Cardio Myths
7 Popular Cardio Myths

Benefits of ANY type of cardio:

• Any movement is great for your system.
• Great heart health.
• Makes you feel good.
• Burns calories while you do the work.
• Clears your head after a tough day or gets you started in the morning.
• Builds Endurance.
• Helps coming back from a long layoff or injury.
• Great for beginners.
• Great for overweight   There are many more reasons to do your cardio --I never diss hard work.

Now for folks that want to reach that next level and folks that want body-fat loss and body transformation. Intervals are superior-----

You don't need equipment to do Intervals --check out LeeAnne doing some metabolic stuff with some "Fitness Toys"

                                      

Happy New Year!!!!

Who’s making a Fitness Resolution today? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?"

I have to be honest it hasn’t been a pretty site at my house. (Except for LeeAnne, she was still able to get ripped!) Now it’s time to say goodbye to the comfort food, Italian cookies (my favorite) eggnog, gingerbread houses and the entire array of feel-good-now-but-pay-for-it-later foods!

So what’s next? Well, gyms are crowded and folks are walking and running. This month is big in my profession. I’ll take it, but what went on the rest of the year?

It’s not too early to be thinking about fitting into your bikini. I know its months away, but basically you’re training now for your body and appearance for spring/summer!
 

So all together now, let’s get our butts back on track, healthy, fit and get energized for the New Year! If you want 2012 to be the year you take control of your health, make your body beautiful, strong and get your energy back, NOW is the time to do it. Temptation is gone. No more excuses!

I’m with some of you. My workouts were great, but food wasn’t. I know folks might say both their workouts and food weren’t up to par. So let’s get back to basics, so here are 5 helpful tips to get you back on the fitness track:

1. Let’s start with the easy one. Water, drink your water! This is the one that makes me crazy. When a client tells me they don’t have enough time to get water in, I want to scream. Yes, you go to the bathroom more, deal with it. Drink a lot of it because you probably drank more eggnog, wine, soda and beer more than you normally do these past few weeks, so now it’s time for a detox. Water will restore the balance in your body and get you back in health mode.

2. Get the meals in. Make sure you’re eating every 3-4 hours. 3 meals and 2 snacks are ideal. Increase your veggie intake; they are water-dense foods. Fruits and veggies boost your fiber intake, since it’s probably been insufficient this past month. These foods will get you off the fat-and-sugar track and on the fat-burning one in no time.

3. Throw away! My mother-in-law hates this one. She’s from the generation that forced us to finish our huge portions. Those poor kids in wherever are starving, so “finish what you have on your plate”. errrrrrrrr---So, watch your portion size at meals and its okay to, yes throw away or use as leftovers. Re-stock your shelves with GOOD food. The junk should be gone. Sorry, if you didn’t finish the sugar cookies, they must go, far, far away! 

 

4. Resistance training! Please don’t follow the cardio-crowd workout. You’ll notice the treadmills and elliptical machines are packed. Go to the weight room, if you’re unsure hire a trainer and learn to workout the right way. If you’ve taken time off from your training, don’t go all out. Start with a lighter workout that’ll remind you how it feels to work out and get your body back in the groove. I see too many people push way too hard too fast out of guilt for eating a lot and “not having time to work out.” And end up getting hurt or just quit. That first week is for getting back on track, not kill you! One of the keys to this is finding an activity you enjoy. If you do you’ll stick with it!

5. SLEEP! The last month for most of us has been hectic and stressful. Remember not enough sleep is stress on your body. Not good for fat-loss. So get back to a normal sleep schedule 7-8 hours a night.

Don’t forget to Plan!

Too many people just jump into things without proper planning. This is a huge mistake! Have a plan going forward. This could mean workouts and your food plan. Don’t take chances, it’s too important. Don’t just go to a gym and decide you’ll do this or that. A good workout program is crucial for your success. Remember “if you fail to plan”, “you plan to fail”.

With planning you need strategy to overcome potential roadblocks. If you have potential roadblocks, ask yourself, “What can I do differently to avoid this?” Willpower can only take you so far, remember this, thinking that more willpower is the best strategy is not the way to go……Let planning and preparation be your strategy.

Make Fitness a habit and be consistent. Commit to Thirty Days – Three to four weeks is all the time you need to make a habit automatic. If you can make it through the initial conditioning phase, it becomes much easier to sustain. A month is a good block of time to commit to a change since it easily fits in your calendar.

Goal Setting. Once you have a plan in place set a goal. This gives you a way to measure your progress, and provides a real boost when you realize that a goal which seemed out of reach last year, is easy this year. Set small goals for yourself that are somewhat challenging, but not so difficult that they are unattainable. Once you’ve achieved each goal, set your sights slightly higher and begin again. This is the only way to keep progressing.

If you need help with planning and strategy, hire a pro. A good Life-coach can assist you and get you through those roadblocks. My wife LeeAnne has taken her successful program on-line. If you're interested in learning more, check out her FREE Webinar here: http://coachingforhealthandfitness.com/

 

The New Year often brings resolutions that turn into broken promises, but this year DECIDE to make it stick. If you do, besides not having this same resolution next year you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you have accomplished something very important. That will go a long way!

Let’s do it!
Looking forward to a great year!

 Keep Training!!!

Hoilday Weight Gain --NOT a great gift.........

One Holiday down 2 to go, here’s the thing, enjoy yourself. We look forward to this season, let’s enjoy. But I have to admit it can be a challenge, especially if you’re trying to lose weight. For the next month you are going to have some of the biggest challenges you have faced all year to losing weight and keeping it off. In my experience from Thanksgiving to New Year's can raise havoc with your plan.

Many people easily gain 5-10 pounds over this time and when they finally realize this, they don’t know what hit them. I guess the mindset is that you can let everything slide now since once Ryan Seacrest finishes his New Year’s Eve countdown you'll get right back on track.

I have to be honest with you letting things go and gaining 5+ pounds over the next several weeks is going to put a dent in your weight loss process. The reason being that you will have to spend January losing that last 7 pounds you gained before you can even start on the new weight you want to lose.

To compound this, during this time-period most people have a harder time fitting in their workouts –double-whammy. More calories and less exercise equals you know what. Let’s avoid this Holiday weight-gain, now more than ever you need to stick to your planning.

1) Get your workouts in. Make an appointment with yourself. It’s much easier to get it done in the morning. Yes get your butt out of bed 45 minutes earlier and do your workout. I don’t have the time is the poorest excuse on the planet---PLEASE.

2) Plan your meals and snacks –yes you may have to do that the night before –Modern Family can wait –use your DVR and watch later.

3) If you’re attending a Party –don’t go in hungry ---eat before you get there.

You don’t have to miss out, but stay the course and only indulge during a few special occasions such as Christmas Eve, Christmas dinner and New Year's Eve. The rest of the times try avoiding the excess food and drinks - you'll be happy you did come January 2nd!

Great Holiday Workout ---from Val Waters.

Keep Training!

Snowy Outdoor Bootcamp!

It wasn't suppose to stick!!  It's only October............ Thanks FOX25 Boston --great forecast!!

It didn't stop some of you --great job!!

Halloween Weight Gain--should you Trick or Treat yourself?

All right my little trick or treaters, it’s that time again, the Holiday season. Where statistics show we gain the MOST weight during the year…..ouch. If you couldn’t fit into your Princess Leia costume this year, that’s a shame, you wasted a great outfit!

Halloween is that sneaky holiday that creeps around the corner and attacks with a vengeance! All of the candy disguises itself as cute, bite-size, harmless treats so we can’t resist. One leads to five and next thing you know, you’re sitting there with a belly ache. We become like Hoover’s and inhale everything we wish we could during the rest of the year simply because “it’s the holidays.” It is a very dangerous time for the health-conscious and anyone looking to drop weight.

And yes your trainer has a hard time also. Those damn peeps ---I try to avoid the candy aisle in CVS. If I make eye contact with those nasty little marshmallow ghosts, it’s all over. They call my name!!! Don’t get me wrong. Having a treat is not the end-all. I am a firm believer in moderation. You can enjoy a healthy Halloween and still reach your goals. By following a few simple rules you can avoid that Halloween hangover……

Our neighborhood is not good for trick-or-treat. We’re lucky to see 1 kid. So we don’t have to buy bags of candy, we still buy a small bag just in case, here’s a couple tips to help you through:

1. Buy candy you DON’T like. If you don’t like a specific type of candy, buy it and hand it out to trick-or-treaters. Purchasing candy that is not enticing to you will increase your chances of not over indulging. I thought LeeAnne and I agreed on Butterfingers—not sure if she still sampled one:)
2.  Eat a healthy meal right before the kids start knocking. Having a full satisfied stomach while handing out candy might make it less tempting to dig into the candy bowl.
3. Make sure that you don’t substitute candy for a meal. If you think that eating 10 pieces of candy exempts you from a proper nutritional meal … think again. This kind of eating is a sure way to help you GAIN weight fast.
4.  Don’t keep that extra candy! I used to give extra treats to the kids towards the end of the night if I thought I was going to have too much leftover. Don’t keep it in the house, bring it to work and place it in the kitchen area –just don’t go looking for it!!
5.  Some folks hand out healthy options; passing along some healthy eating habits to trick-or-treaters. Instead of handing out candy, hand out snacks that are healthy. This is a tough one, but there are healthier versions of stuff we love…………
6.  Don’t miss workouts that week ---keep the momentum going. Keep in mind that Halloween is the non-stop train to temptation town, but if you stick with your nutrition and exercise routine plan, you can indulge a little and still stay healthy during the holidays!
7.  Just say NO! This does take willpower, but if you’re training for your High School Reunion you may have to resist. It won’t kill you to say “No”. By saying no, you can rest assured that later on you won’t need to fight to burn that extra weight. When someone offers you candy during the Halloween season, you really don’t have to say “yes” each time it’s offered to you!
8.  If you do decide to have something, don’t feel guilty. But make it count! Find that ONE piece of candy you LOVE and enjoy. Right after, it’s back to steering clear of holiday weight gain through exercise and conscious, healthy food choices.

I am not saying these are exactly healthy holiday treats, but they do contain fewer calories than a lot of their counterparts.

Some health(ier) Halloween treats:
• AbbaZabba, small (12 g) 50 calories and 11 g carb
• Raisinettes (Fun size – about 16 pieces) clock in at 56 calories and 11 g carbs.
• Three Musketeers, Fun size (15 g) – 64 calories and 11 g carb
• Snickers Bars, Fun size (17 g) – 80 calories and 10 g carb
• M&Ms, plain, Fun size (18 g) – 88 calories and 12 g carb

So here we are, the Holiday Season. Everyone loves this time of year and for some of us it’s non-stop until January 2. That’s another blog! Don’t wait until New Year’s to make your resolution. The time is now! So get into your Catwomen costume and ENJOY your Halloween and when it’s over get right back on track. Halloween doesn't have to be scary for your diet. By proper planning, you can make sure you stay on track with your eating and still have a great time. Happy Halloween!!

Keep Training!!

Last Outdoor Camp of Year!!!