When clients embark on a new fitness routine and workout daily but see little results for their efforts they often get discouraged. Many times the issue is a result of underestimating the calories and other ingredients often found in processed food. The other issue is what people consider processed food. Technically any food that has been altered or changed for consumption is considered processed. Items include breads, and other items that come bagged, bottled or canned. The chemicals and additives found in these foods impact the body in ways that go beyond calories.

It’s best to try and eat whole, raw or minimally processed and cooked foods (with the exception of meats). Fresh vegetables, whole fruits and lean naturally raised or wild caught proteins always have a positive effect on the physical and mental wellness of us all. Clients who make the switch suddenly see the results taking place that seemed so distant. So learn to cook and enjoy fresh wholesome food that nourishes and rewards you for your efforts!

Many scientists now believe that prolonged stress, in and of itself, can lead to weight gain in some people. The focus of attention is the “stress hormone” cortisol. When you experience physical or emotional stress, the body releases cortisol to help you deal with the threat at hand. Some of the direct effects of cortisol include increased appetite, higher insulin levels, and breakdown of muscle tissue. Usually, cortisol dissipates after the threat has passed, and the body returns to normal. But if persistent stress keeps cortisol levels high for long periods of time, the effects on the body — including those related to metabolism — become more pronounced.

Specifically:

Increased appetite, over a long period of time, can lead to overeating.
Raised insulin levels cause the body to store more fat.
Breakdown of muscle tissue can lead metabolism to slow down. If you are trying to lose weight or maintain your weight, stress management is very relevant to your goals. Some of the best stress-relief strategies: aerobic exercise, getting enough sleep, deep breathing and simply allowing for some “down time.”

Squatting is a basic movement that we all need for everyday activity and health.  If you can’t squat or can’t squat without pain then this MUST be addressed in order to properly exercise, walk or do many everyday tasks. Many people have difficulty recruiting their glutes maintaing ankle flexibility and correct upper body posture. This leads to over utilizing the hamstrings as the primary mover instead – a recipe for sciatica/hamstring strains and continued pain.

A closer look into you move might just reveal that a troubling squat pattern is the underlying cause to many issues you may not have considered related.

There are four key areas to focus on when training - I like to use a little acronym to remember them FFTR (form, frequency, tempo and rest) if you can remember these four principles when training you are well on your way to a better way of training.

Form - Doing exercise in good form is essential, but at the same time it is important not to get obsessive with good form as this can slow down and hinder workouts. Movements should be smooth and fluid with a regular tempo. It is also important to feel the target muscle when working – after a few sets of press ups you should feel your chest and triceps have a good pump. If the target muscles don’t feel worked after a few sets of an exercise it probably means you are doing things too quickly without a conscious effort to squeeze/contract the muscle.

Frequency - Two or Three workouts a week are optimal and the most anyone should do. More than this and you are looking for burnout and or injuries – especially when working out with a good intensity and causing adaptation. For the rest of the time move, play and stay active. If a muscle is sore it is a good sign to take a few days off and definitely avoid training the sore muscles.

Tempo - When doing resistance exercise the tempo I have found most useful for general adaptation is 1:3 as in one-second up and three-seconds down. Of course these are rough and a better principle to keep in mind is to lower slowly to the count of three and do the push/pull part of the work as quick as you can whilst maintaining good form and resistance on the muscle. Really slow negatives can also be a good way to mixup workouts – try jumping unto a bar for a pull-up and lowering yourself over 10-15 seconds, repeat 5-8 times. It is the negative part of the exercises which breaks down and triggers repair of the muscles after all.

Rest - I am not a big fan of clock watching between sets when doing resistance exercise – it seems to make more sense to just wait until you feel ready, heart rate lowers and your muscles feel strong again. This is normally around 1-2 minutes but can also be as short as 30 seconds…In terms of rest between sessions you will find that each person is different. You may take 3 days to feel fresh after a workout, whereas another person can be ready to go within 24 hours. This not only depends on each persons unique recovery ability but also their level of fitness and amount of time training.

Use these four principles wisely - print them out, or make a little note of them somewhere and you will find that your workouts improve in terms of effectiveness and I have no doubt you will feel better by following them.

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Law #1 – Variety is the spice of health and fitness. Variety means mixing it up and doing something different every day. Sure you can do just cardio, or just lift weights, but you are going eventually hit a wall where your progress will come to a screeching halt. You want be able to run any faster or lift heavier, lose those stubborn pound or gain that prized muscle if you simply do the same routines day in and day out, so mix it up every few days!

Law #2 – Be Consistent! Now this may sound contradictory to law #1 but we are not referring to doing the same thing over and over. We ARE talking about commitment and being consistent in your efforts. In other words if you decide to work out 4 days a week then stick with it! Don’t begin to workout 4 days a week then slow down to two, start back up to 6 and then fall off to one. Consistent effort is energy well spent and will help you reach your goals faster and see your results quickly. You can choose to exercise four days a week and switch up those days. . . this is variety (see law #1).

Law #3 – Keep up the intensity! It happens all the time – we find a pace or effort that we are comfortable with and then we stick with it. We keep our intensity at a level we are comfortable with and it happens – we hit a wall, our results diminish and we wonder why? The body adapts quickly and we have to keep the intensity progressing in order to progress our results. So use a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 equaling lying on the sofa with a beer watching American Idol and 10 being more than you can handle for a few seconds. If you always shoot for a 7 or 8 regardless of you will be keeping your intensity at a results driven intensity.

Law #4 – Have a purpose. Without a reason to stay fit, eat healthy and exercise you probably want stick with it long enough to make or see any results. For me it’s quality of life and vanity ( I like to look as good as possible) and there is no shame in that because both of these drive me to push harder, do more and commit to what it takes to get there. You see whatever your reasons they must be personal and something you really want, otherwise they will lack the power to pull and push you onward. So find reasons that COMPEL you to get up and get at it each and every day!

Law #5 – Respect Reality. Right off the bat you have to be realistic about what you can achieve with what you have. Many times we set unrealistic goals and become bitter and disappointed when we can’t make them happen. If you are 65 years old and have never done exercise in your life, then doing a triathlon in 30 days is unrealistic. If you have been overweight since high school then becoming a supermodel overnight is about as likely as a someone who has never played an instrument becoming a rock star! So set realistic goals and allow yourself the time it will take to get there and remain there.

Law #6 – Play and have fun. It’s important to take time off from focusing on weight loss, inches and body fat percentages and focus on something you enjoy. Dance, rock climb, in line skate or ride a bike. It does not matter as long as you enjoy it and it takes your mind off your other goals in life. Outdoor activities are great but it does not have to be exercise oriented. If you like to sew or read a book then do so! The point is to get involved with something enjoyable that puts the emphasis on something you CAN do and not what you look like or weigh. When you shift to a mindset of playing and having fun, you want become obsessive about your fitness related goals.

Law #7 – Have a plan. You MUST have a plan! Without a plan you are simply wishing for something to happen. You should also plan to fail once in while, after all it’s only human and knowing that at sometime you may slip a little AND having a plan for when it happens is the best insurance for staying on track in the long run. So plan all your workouts in advance and schedule them on your calendar. If you schedule it you will do it, if you wing it you won’t it’s that simple. So hold yourself accountable by setting the time aside in advance and being as detailed as possible. Most people write or have a business plan when they start up a business, but I am amazed how many people don’t have a fitness plan in place for their health. Success comes from planning ahead so get out the calendar and put it in writing!

Law #8 – Sleep more and stress less. Exercising is important, but it is only half the equation. You see the body needs rest in order to adapt, repair and be ready for your next round. If you don’t include enough rest in your plan you may find yourself going in the opposite direction! This is because the body sees exercise as a form of stress (good stress) and with proper rest it adapts and becomes stronger. Without proper rest the body assumes you are under constant stress and begins to produce hormones such as cortisol that can actually cause you to gain weight, fatigue more easily and eventually burn out. You also need to let go of stress whenever possible (see rule #6) for the very same reason. Rest and relaxation are not passive activities and require you to actively release the thoughts and responsibilities that cause you to lose sleep, toss and turn all night and worry yourself over and over. Find ways to let it go and you will be rewarded with better sleep and a renewed sense of health and vitality. It’s not easy, but it’s something you have to make happen just as you would exercise or eating right.

Law #9 – Love it! You are starting to see that there is a lot more to being healthy than just hitting the gym everyday for 30 minutes. It was not always this way back in a time when we worked in the fields, toiled away at jobs that required physical labor and then settled down for a home cooked meal and relaxing evening with the family. These days we sit at a desk for hours on end, eat food out of boxes and cans and get off work to sit in a car fighting traffic, getting stressed and coming home to more food out of a package. Beating this modern lifestyle takes determination and effort and you MUST find a way to LOVE IT! You see enthusiasm is a big part of the puzzle, so you have to get creative and stay curious each day in order to succeed. Over the years I have learned to love beating the modern life, by getting rid of my microwave, unplugging my TV for the summer and learning to cook. I have found joy in swimming the other way and have been rewarded with a quality of life I never experienced even in my younger years! So do what you must, but find a way to LOVE the lifestyle you are trying to achieve and NOT loathe it. The benefits are immeasurable!

Law #10 – Eat Well!Healthy nutritious food provides the energy you need to get through a hectic day and high energy workout. It also provides the minerals and nutrients your body needs to make progress, recover and repair itself. Good food does not have to be expensive, fancy are hard to prepare. In fact most people see their grocery bill go down when compared to eating out and buying packed foods and convenience items. The benefits include lowering your fat stores, building muscle and preventing disease and inflammation. Food can be powerful medicine and in more than one case I have seen people come off medications and live fuller lives simply by changing the food they put into their bodies. So give good food a chance – what do you have to lose?

As I end this post I congratulate you on choosing perseverance over laziness, discipline over impatience, self reliance over self pity and hard honest work over quick fixes. I want you to know that the only difference that is going to made in your life is by you and there are no limits to where you can go once you commit to putting the wheels in motion!

Knowing it’s time for a change then committing to that change is the first step of many principles we are going to learn together. So know this – Taking that first step is the only way to build the momentum you will need for everything else in life! Now I know you may be worried about where you are right now. Maybe you think you are not in good enough shape to start or that you cannot give up the foods you love or make the time commitment. DROP ALL OF THAT – Just Start somewhere and the rest will follow.

Being healthy and fit is about more than just seeing the right number on a scale or fitting into your favorite jeans. Good health and physical fitness have far more powerful effects on your life. They will help you feel better, accomplish more goals, fulfill your intentions and be around for the ones you love. So don’t worry about the details, that is why you are here and together we will get there. Now I am not going to promise you any get-thin-quick schemes or sell you any magic pills or powders. I am going to respect you and ask you to work hard. If you really want something you have to work for it and I promise if you give your best everyday you will be rewarded with something that goes far beyond looking better – you will truly know what it means to be in touch with yourself and comfortable with what you know about yourself. You will have health, vitality and the best perspective on life – yours. So welcome to the first step of the rest of your life!

TRUTH OR TRICK?
The terms “fat burning zone” and “cardio zone” simply refer to workout intensity. It’s this intensity that dictates which fuel the body preferably uses to power exercise. We are always using both fat and carbohydrate calories to power activity, whether we are sprinting down the street, walking down the street or sitting in the street. It’s the relative ratio of sugar and fat use that changes as intensity shifts. Relatively more fat calories are used compared to carbohydrate calories at lower intensities, while the proportion of recruited carbohydrates builds as intensity increases. For example, sitting in the street might burn 4 calories per minute total (l from sugar and 3 from fat). Walking might burn 8 calories per minute (3 from sugar and 5 from fat). Sprinting might bum 20 calories per minute (12 from sugar and 8 from fat). Thus, the ratio of fuel shifts towards a more carb-heavy use, but the total amount of calories burned also Increases.

This is a key distinction, because although it’s true that at lower intensities a larger relative ratio of fat is used to power activity, the absolute amounts of both carbohydrate and fat calories are much less. So, what is more important to body change – total calorie bum or greater ratio of fat calories compared to carbohydrate calories? If the ratio were most important, as we are led to believe by the descriptor of “fat burning zone,” then simply lying down would prove the most effective activity for body change, considering this is when the fat to carbohydrate ratio is the greatest.

INTENSITY AFFECTS POST-WORKOUT FAT LOSS
In order to take this argument one step further, let’s examine the science of energy substrates not only during exercise, but also after. Carbohydrates are like high-octane jet fuel for workouts – they allow you to push to higher intensities whether you’re doing sprint intervals or strength training. Fat is a lower-quality fuel that allows you to go for longer durations at lower intensities like when distancing jogging or on a leisurely bike riding. Whichever fuel the body recruits for exercise, depending on intensity, will be somewhat depleted during exercise, forcing the alternate substrate to be used during post-exercise recovery mechanisms.

For example, performing high intensity interval training cardio will recruit a larger proportion of burned calories from sugar. However, the workout lasts only 30 minutes and is very intense. After the workout is over, stored glycogen (sugar) levels are somewhat depleted, forcing the body to pull from fat stores for energy use during post-workout recovery.

Recovery lasts hours and even days after a tough workout. Wouldn’t you rather burn fat for days post workout than during the 30 minutes of exercise only? Conversely, a low intensity 60 minute workout like jogging will keep an individual in the “fat burning zone” so that a higher ratio of fat calories are burned during exercise compared to sugar calories. Post-workout, however, glycogen stores still exist, and those carbs will be used as energy post-workout preferably instead of fat. Thus, it follows that it can be beneficial to deplete glycogen during exercise, assuring the 24-48 hour window of post-exercise recovery pulls from fat stores.

This scenario only occurs when performing more intense workouts in the “cardio zone” or even breaching the lactate threshold. Current research indicates that interval training, specifically doing short, hard bursts of cardio followed by rest periods, not only burns a significant amount of calories during the workout, but you continue to burn calories even after your workout is finished, “which is ultimately the key to body change.

BOTTOM LINE FOR FAT LOSS
It’s important to keep in mind the goal of the workout. If you’re an ultra marathoner and need to train your body to run for hours and hours without stopping, it’s probably necessary to perform the bulk of training in the fat burning zone, assuring that you can endure those miles. However, if the goal is fat loss or improving speed during endurance exercise, it’s necessary to train in the cardio zone (and beyond) for increased fat loss post workout, as well as improved lactate threshold and V02 max.

Have you ever seen a fat sprinter? Who is skinnier, the group of people at the front of a marathon or the group at the back7 It holds true that intensity always trumps duration when it comes to improving body composition. Endurance athletes who want to improve their times can benefit from dropping body fat as well as getting more cardiovascularly fit. For a well-rounded program, I always recommend mixing steady-state cardio as well as interval training to keep the body and mind working optimally.

The core concept behind intrinsic exercise is to exercise for its own sake. Because if you don’t get something out of every single run or spinning class you take, you won’t keep doing it. The goal is to achieve four specific mental states to develop a mind-set powerful enough to motivate you to exercise — and like it! These are: personal meaning, mastery, inner synergy and flow.

Personal meaning helps you find exercise rewarding in and of itself. How? By using exercise to explore who you are. Only when exercise becomes personally meaningful will you be motivated to do it regularly.

Next, you learn to monitor improvements in your own performance, a concept known as mastery. Intrinsic exercisers focus on challenging themselves and meeting personal goals, instead of comparing themselves with other people. A mastery focus keeps you motivated. Personal meaning and mastery connect you to your workouts. Inner synergy and flow help you stay connected.

Inner synergy refers to integration. By linking exercise to every other area of your life, you’ll want to keep doing it. You can use exercise to practice concentration or to socialize by meeting a friend for a jog. Physical activity can also be a way to explore your own spirituality: Running or simply taking a walk outdoors, for example, can help you meditate on the natural world and forces beyond yourself.

Perhaps the best way to stay intrinsically motivated during exercise is to reach “flow,” an optimal state involving total absorption in and connection to an activity. Consider it psychology’s version of “the Zone.” If you can reach it, you’ll want to exercise again and again to attain that positive state of mind. Flow is all about staying in the moment. With flow, it’s not achieving an endpoint that’s important; it’s the process of achieving.

When you balance perceived challenge and skill you ward off boredom. You must create new challenges for yourself, setting goals that make you work harder physically, changing the focus of goals from social to spiritual, anything that will up the ante.

If you really want to exercise regularly for the rest of your life, you need to start working from the inside out. As you begin to exercise for the inner rewards of the activity itself, you will find yourself going to the gym because you want to, not because you have to. These are the techniques I use each and every day with my clients and most of them are happy to admit they are hooked on exercise. In fact most say it’s changed their lives.

WHAT YOU CAN’T CHANGE: these factors influence metabolism, and there’s little we can do about it:

• GENES: Chances are your parents or their parents had metabolisms similar to yours.
• GENDER: In general, men have higher metabolisms than women.
• AGE: Metabolism tends to become a bit slower with age.

WHAT YOU CAN CHANGE: These habits can increase your metabolism:

• EATING BREAKFAST. Eating soon after you arise in the morning gets your metabolism going. If you skip breakfast, you miss out on several hours of higher calorie-burning. In fact, research studies suggest that people who eat breakfast are better able to manage their weight.
• BECOMING MORE ACTIVE IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE. Even if you have a sedentary job, you can introduce small bursts of activity into your routine — taking the stairs instead of the elevator, walking instead of driving — that burn extra calories.
• BUILDING LEAN MUSCLE THROUGH EXERCISE. Muscle tissue burns calories at a faster rate than fat does. By strength training (working out with weights) regularly, you can increase your body’s amount of muscle and increase your metabolism.