Just for the Health of it

Life is Not Fair, Part 5: You've Been Convicted

2012-01-18T09:40:00.000-08:00

Life is Not Fair, Part 5: You’ve Been Convicted

con•vict (from Dictionary.com)
1. to prove or declare guilty of an offense, especially after a legal trial: to convict a prisoner of a felony.
2. to impress with a sense of guilt.
3. a person proved or declared guilty of an offense.
4. a person serving a prison sentence.

Since we have been discussing means, motive and opportunity, it seemed to follow that, having investigated all the clues, we would eventually have a conviction. Further, the etymology of this word goes back to the Latin, convictus from com - with, together + vincer to conquer. I like the last part of this definition, because by conquering objections, we can set out to be victorious in our goals.

“Guilt” has been determined without any shadow of a doubt. The jury has returned a unanimous decision. But instead of being confined to an 8 X 8 cell, you have to go out and explore a whole world of exercise opportunities. Not a bad sentence now, is it?

Recently, I spent the weekend with my sister. She said, “I want to talk about calories.” Ever the attentive younger (smile) sister, I gave a nod, indicating she should continue. “I added the zero to my weight, and I know how many calories I need.” “Well,” I said, “that seems a little low.” “Well, yes,” she replied, “it is, but it’s not what I actually weigh, it’s what I want to weigh.” This is a smart woman, because if you calculate your BMR from your current weight, and continue to consume that amount of calories, it follows that you would maintain your current poundage. What she did was absolutely correct as far as goal-setting.

Here’s another angle: what if you were neither losing nor gaining weight? What if instead of only restricting calorie intake, you increased calorie expenditure? What if you slightly reduced calories and steadily increased your body’s daily calorie expenditure? To me, that sounds like a lot less trauma for the palate, and ultimately a healthier option, because you are not only lowering the amount of harmful adipose tissue in your body, but also strengthening your cardio-vascular system. Consider your body your very own science project and see what happens when you adjust calorie intake and calorie expenditure. In addition, keep a log as to your state of mind as you record your journey.

One thing to keep in mind if you work out in a gym, and regularly use cardio machines that automatically calculate your calorie expenditure. The machines are set to record the calories of a 150-pound individual. If you weigh less, you should adjust the settings accordingly. But if, for example you weigh 145 pounds, and you really want to weigh 130 pounds, set the machine to calculate expenditure based on your goal weight. That way you will have to work a little harder, because a smaller person requires fewer calories to function, and therefore will require a longer (or harder) workout. On the treadmill, this could mean adjusting the speed, but I would recommend adjusting the incline, because you will also get a really good hamstring and glute workout in the process, and trust me, your heart will be working hard, as well!

You don’t always have to exercise at a gym. Here is a site that will give you approximate calorie expenditures for most activities. http://www.nutribase.com/exercala.htm.
Here are a few other ideas:
• Take a bus, walk to the bus stop. Take a walk during lunch.
• Use the stairs whenever possible.
• Park further from the grocery store (come on, a little rain never hurt anyone!)
• Stand up from your desk every 45 minutes, or get up and walk around.
• Split up your workouts so that that you do 30 minutes in the morning, and 30 minutes in the afternoon or evening.
• Cook more meals at home instead of eating out (you actually burn calories preparing food!)
• Read instead of watching TV. A lot of calories are consumed in front of the TV.
• Drink more water. Dehydrated people tend to experience a drop in their metabolic rate (muscles have a lot of water in them and muscles are better calorie burners than fat).
• Fidget.
• Wear a pedometer and try to increase your steps each week. It’s funny how you will challenge yourself when you have a means to measure your progress.
• Laugh. A study at Vanderbilt University found that people who laughed burned 20 percent more calories when laughing. (No joke!)
• Get enough sleep. (there's a blog coming on this topic)

Life is Not Fair, Part 4: Prime Suspect

2012-01-12T17:12:00.000-08:00

I have a confession to make. I am addicted to suspense novels. Whodunits, if you will. I have been addicted to them since I was old enough to check out the Hardy Boys at my local library in Spokane. Now, while my predilection to pulp fiction may offend the finer sensibilities of the pure bibliophiles out there, I make no apologies. They are fun and fast to read and a distraction from some of the true crime that goes on in our society. (I do also read some socially relevant prose, but it is usually only when my oldest daughter shames me into it…)

In addition suspenseful novels, I also appreciate indulging in some of the more salient crime genre on the tube. But my favorite is Prime Suspect; a BBC production from the 90’s which stars Helen Mirren. She is absolutely riveting in her role as Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison. A brilliant actress, needless to say.(Stay with me, I am getting closer to the point).

So what does this have to do with working out, BMR, adaptation, homeostasis and the like? Well, on the surface, nothing at all, but bear with me, and all will be revealed.

The common thread for these thrillers, whether film or print, is catching the bad guy (person). In order to do this, and for him (her) to be convicted, the following three components must be established: means, motive and opportunity. Oddly enough, this started me thinking about how similar this is to establishing a good workout routine. (Finally got there!)

Many of us have good intentions about making positive changes in our lives. The impetus for these changes can be vanity-based, or simply a desire to feel better about ourselves. But as we all know, good intentions can often be derailed.

Now back to our thriller. Consider yourself the Prime Suspect. But the twist here is that instead of proving that you have committed a crime, we want to ensure that you will actually be “charged” with committing to a goal. With that in mind, we have Means, Motive and Opportunity to consider.

In US criminal law (and British, as well), “means” refers to a suspect’s ability to commit the crime. For our purposes, we will assume that since you have decided to make a change in your life, and for all intents and purposes, you have the ability. If, however, you are 75 years old, and your goal is to beat the best time of Usain Bolt, the fastest man alive http://www.usainbolt.com/, you may want to adjust your goal a bit. Say, for instance, you want to work towards running a 12 minute mile, or completing a 5K or 10K run. That might be doable, and within reach.

Most of us possess some type of motive for making a change in our lives. It could be a milestone birthday, an upcoming class reunion, or fitting into a wedding gown or tuxedo for a 25th anniversary. Some motives are stronger than others. For instance, if you are about to become a grandparent, and you are unable to bend over, pick up more than 5 pounds, or stand for longer than 5 minutes at a time, starting an exercise routine might be in your future. So, motives are important, and according to the National Weight Control Registry, most people who started a life-changing program did so as a result of a momentous incident in their life. (Some people call it an “Ah-Ha!” moment)

Opportunity seems to be the biggest hang-up for most people. As a trainer, I have seen people with the least amount of time and opportunity capitalize on the time they have available to fit in a workout. Conversely, I have listened to people who appear to have means, motive and plenty of opportunity to exercise lament the lack of sufficient time to do so. (Note: 5 hours per week works out to about 3% of an entire week devoted to exercise. If you count sleeping 8 hours a night, it comes out to 4.4%). I suggest to the jury that in this case, the motive isn’t strong enough to convict or commit. I submit to you that by possessing a strong motive, means and opportunity become more apparent. I rest my case.

Next up: You've been convicted, now how to serve your time?

Life is Not Fair -Part 3: Adapt or Die

2012-01-08T15:49:00.000-08:00

Why is the Vinegar Fly (Drosophila) of Australia dying out, while the Brown Argus butterfly is successfully expanding its distribution northwards in the UK? And what does this have to do with BMR, weight control, and plateaus? Let’s find out.

You will recall that there was a brief discussion of your body’s need for homeostasis, calories in and calories out, etc. Remember that I mentioned that when you reduce your body’s weight, you also reduce your BMR, or the number of calories your body needs to function. So you might get really frustrated that after denying yourself day in and day out of all your favorite things, you must now survive on fewer calories, in general. (I don’t make the rules, I just report them). Many people have gotten caught in the vicious cycle of caloric restriction, weight loss, elation, weight gain, depression, etc., without understanding how to break the cycle. Let’s do a little researching…

Segue: Not long ago, a not-for-profit organization began gathering data documenting how people lost weight and kept it off. It is called the National Weight Control Registry. It contains data from people who have voluntarily submitted stories of their weight loss and weight maintenance history. (read more at www.nwcr.ws/stories.htm). There are common threads as to how weight was lost, and how the participants avoided the yo-yo effects of dieting. In a nutshell:
• Most participants had a major event that spurred them to action.
• Many used only calorie and portion control to lose weight, but a large percentage used a combination of calorie control and regular daily exercise (often vigorous) to maintain the weight loss (94 %!)
• In addition, here are some habits that were consistent with participants:
o 78% eat breakfast every day.
o 75% weigh themselves at least once a week.
o 62% watch less than 10 hours of TV per week.
o 90% exercise, on average, about 1 hour per day.
Sounds boring, I know, but it seems to work for them.

The point I am trying to make (and yes, I do have a point), is that many of these people had tried and failed many times before finally achieving their goals. They could have chosen to be like the Vinegar Fly, and just die out, without even trying to adjust their metabolic processes. But instead, they chose to take the route of the Brown Argus butterfly, and change their fate. (this is a stretch, I know, but bear with me)

Nature has forced its inhabitants to adapt over and over for eons. So, some species died out, and others survived. If we consider our bodies as self-contained eco-systems, what we are doing is modifying the environmental landscape, if you will, to accommodate the changes that occur when we do things like restrict calories or exercise vigorously. If simply reducing caloric intake results in only temporary metabolic success, then we need to adjust our environmental factors, internally, as well as externally, to adapt to those changes, and by so doing, survive.

That’s it for this segment. When the going gets tough, think of yourself as a Brown Argus Butterfly (and when you do, say things like “Cheerio,” “Pip Pip, Old Chum,” and “Right you are, Guv’na”)

Life Isn't Fair, Pt. 2- Good News and Bad News

2012-01-05T10:56:00.000-08:00

The good news (for me, at least) is that you are reading this blog. The bad news is that part of what I have to say may be frustrating to some people. But hopefully you will learn something new, and perhaps this information will hit a nerve, which might cause you to take action.

Let’s review the last (miserable) blog. We talked about BMR, or Basal Metabolic Rate (don’t get this mixed up with BMI, which is kind of a crock, but don’t get me started), which is basically the amount of calories that a body needs to function. There are some quick estimates, and some longer equations to help determine what your body needs. There are also BMR calculators on line that are free and do it all for you. We talked about tall and small, men and women, etc.

If you started keeping a food log in order to determine your caloric consumption, good for you. If you didn’t, you are probably still in the “thinking about it” stage. That’s okay; there are several steps to taking action when changing behavior, so no worries. (We’ll have a blog on Behavior Changing later).

Let’s say, however, that you kept a food diary (hopefully, an honest one!), and you determined that, based on BMR requirements, you may be consuming more “fuel” than your body actually needs. And in addition, you seem to be putting on 1-2 pounds on a regular basis. (This is a little bit like trying to stay within a budget, but every month you find one more pair of shoes or that perfect, must-have outfit that you just can’t wait to have, and so you end up having a few more bills to pay the following month). These things are part of what make us human, and they can seem unmanageable at times, but they shouldn’t present insurmountable roadblocks to your goals.

Let’s take just a moment to talk about homeostasis. It’s kind of like balancing a budget. Money comes in, money goes out. Hopefully, what you spend roughly equals what you make. If you have money left over, perhaps you put it into a special savings account for later use. It’s the same way with balancing the weight in your body, or maintaining homeostasis. If you take in more calories than your body needs, your body stores it, because it might need it later (this is not a new concept and anyone who has read anything about weight control knows this). Many years ago, when we had to go out and hunt and gather food for our subsistence, it was often necessary for a tribe to fill up on whatever they had killed in order to survive until the next kill. But we don’t exactly have that scenario in modern times, do we? If you take in fewer calories than you need, your body will start to “burn fat” in order to supply the body with the energy it needs to function. You lose weight. That might be a good thing.

Okay, now back to the amazing body, food logs, and calorie consumption. I am also going to give you bad news. If you continue to consume fewer calories as you seek to lose weight (and this is not an easy task, as “dieting,” per se is an arduous task), you also lower your BMR. Now, that’s a kick in the teeth, isn’t it? Because now you are becoming one of the “little people!” Ha! I knew I’d have my revenge! Your body now needs fewer calories, because you told it that was all it was going to get. You (said in the voice of Rod Serling) have just entered the “Plateau Zone.” Stay tuned for further revelations.

Life is Not Fair

2012-01-03T15:32:00.000-08:00

Remember when you didn’t get your way, and you complained (probably to your mom, cuz your dad would have popped you for being a pain), “That’s not fair!” And your mom would say, “Nobody ever said life was fair.” And then she would go on to explain all the inequities thrust upon her in her lifetime, and how she has never complained. A little dramatic, possibly, but you get my point.

Here’s another thing that’s not fair, at least not in the realm of calorie counting and the shedding of that last 10, 15 or 20 pounds. Tall people burn more calories than short people do. Really. (To someone who has been "vertically challenged" her whole life, this is especially egregious). This is a whole scientific concept of Basal Metabolic Rate (the amount of calories your body needs to perform all its daily functions) that says that tall people just automatically get to use more calories than short people. It could be that the taller you are, the more wind resistance there is, and therefore, you have to work harder to move. (I am being facetious). It has to do with Body Surface area. It simply takes more calories to operate a machine that uses up more space.

You’d think that for leaving a smaller carbon footprint, the short people of the world could get extra points (in the form of calories). We don’t. But don’t despair. There’s a workaround. Bear with me.

In order determine your caloric needs, you could go do some relatively expensive metabolic testing (which is actually kind of fascinating, and if you can afford it, you should go and do it), or you could use this little formula. Take your weight, add a “0” to it, and you’ve got roughly your daily calorie requirements. That’s if you do nothing at all. There is a somewhat long, but easy to do calculation, but I found that it’s basically easier with just the “0” method. Here is the long version anyway (knock yourself out):
Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years )
Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) - ( 6.8 x age in year )
Oh, here’s another thing that’s not fair: See that last set of parentheses? The one that deducts based on age? A little bit of discrimination there, I believe. Oh, yeah, and men get more calories just because. (No, because supposedly they have more muscle mass, yada yada…)
So, we can say that calories don’t count, at least if you are 5’10 and willowy thin, or 6’2 and resemble a Greek God. But for most of us, it is just a matter of scientific necessity to know what your body needs to maintain a healthy metabolism. That’s not a matter of fair or unfair, it’s just body science.

Over the years, when I have had clients come to me to train, they often have wanted to shed excess pounds. The first thing I have had them do is keep a food diary (not because I’m nosy, but because it’s helpful). You have to know where you are before you can figure out how to get where you want to go. In other words, how many calories do you consume now? Are you gaining, losing, or staying the same? If you don’t track it somehow, you can’t know what your next step is. The cool thing is that there are so many aps available for smart phones that will do that very thing. It makes the calculations a lot easier.

So, life is not fair. But if you are reading this, maybe you are learning something you didn’t know before, and, hopefully, you will be inspired in some small way. Stay tuned, and we can discuss some metabolic “workarounds.” Seriously, it will be fun!

Age-Old Wisdom

2010-06-22T20:09:00.000-07:00

I want to die young at a ripe old age.
- Ashley Montagu

Yet another birthday looms. And so it begins. That inevitable descent into crankiness, incontinence, irritability and ultimately, dementia. It’s called aging. That word at its worst strikes fear into most baby-boomers, and, at its best, is simply ignored. “50 is the old 30, 60 is the old 40,” blah, blah, blah. We are always trying to sugar-coat the inevitable. But let’s face it, we are getting older.

This is not something that I take lightly. I creak a little more, I nap a little more, I forgive a little more. I check each morning to see if there is still a vestige of the saucy young woman who once looked at the world through rose-tinted lenses (and in the 60’s, they really were rose-tinted!). To my horror, one morning in the shower, I felt something on the backs of my thighs, and realized it was my rear end! In spite of the squats, the lunges, the step-ups, the mostly well- balanced nutrition plan, things have just, well, shifted. Fortunately, so has my attitude.

What I regret most about aging is that I didn’t appreciate my youth enough. But I was too busy being young to worry about being old. So, I guess I really enjoyed my youth, because if I had spent all my time thinking about being old, I wouldn’t have been appreciating being young. And so on. This is what I mean about that dementia thing. It creeps up on you before you can stop it. (Like the derriere on the thighs).

There is actually a website called “Stop Aging Now.” I won’t provide the link, as it will stimulate your brain cells to try and find it. How ludicrous. We can’t “stop aging.” It’s what bodies do. It is all part of the Grand Scheme (emphasis on the word, “scheme”). We have to provide yet another activity for our kids as they get older, namely, taking care of us. So we need to age.

What if we thought of aging as “ripening”? But then, that brings visions of rotten things, so maybe that’s not quite the right picture to depict. I volunteer at a lovely winery in Woodinville, and when they have a new release of one of their succulent red wines (Malbec, Syrah, or blend), they will say, “It’s good now, but wait for about 6 more months, after it’s aged a bit, and it will really come into its own.” So that’s the image I would like to summon. We aren’t really aging, per se, we are coming into our own.

As I Come Into My Own, I won’t always do it well, or quietly, or appropriately, but I will do it intentionally, and try to enjoy myself along the way. And Happy Birthday to me.

Holiday Madness

2009-12-03T17:49:00.000-08:00

I am taking a little break from the “Budgets and Bulges” theme, but will pick it up again after the first of the year. I think we really need to look at how to survive the holiday season.

When I was a kid, I lived from holiday to holiday. Indeed, the school system encouraged this way of thinking, as the bulletin board, the reading assignments, and the math problems centered around whatever holiday was approaching. Let’s face it: this approach got you through the year and on to summer.

As a youngster, I had absolutely no angst about Christmas, because I didn’t have to buy the presents, I didn’t have to make the Christmas dinner, I didn’t have to make sure everyone was having a good time at family gatherings. I just floated along on the joyousness of the season, and the sugar-induced high that accompanied it.

Forget about sugarplums: bring on the homemade fudge and the cookies, and the candied yams, and the peppermint sticks, and whatever else found its way into the house. Here’s another thing: I never worried whether to indulge, how much to indulge, or when to stop. I just did whatever I wanted. Those were the days when Christmas had real meaning—wreckless indulgence without guilt.

Fast-forward to today’s scenario. Halloween treats barely make the shelves before they are whisked off to the 50% table, to be replace by a sparse collection of Thanksgiving offerings. Thanksgiving is not-so-subtly nudged to the background as Christmas dominates the aisles, the endcaps, and the entrance of every store in the neighborhood.

And then the shopping begins. And the sales, and the door-busters, and Black Friday, and Cyber Monday, and all the marketing madness takes over. Then it’s not fun anymore. (excuse me if you enjoy the madness—I don’t mean to rain on your parade.) The gay, carefree, angst-free days of Christmas rapidly fade to the background, and the crazy, harried, exhausting days of Christmas begin.

It’s no wonder people get stressed out over the holidays. Contrary to popular belief, however, suicide rates actually decrease during the holiday season (snopes.com). That is not to say, though, that we still don’t go a little crazy. How could you not? Have you looked at your kids’ Christmas lists lately?

But seriously, let’s try to be positive. Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year. (If I offend anyone by not saying “the holiday season,” please let me apologize. But to me, it will ever and always be Christmas.) You should be enjoying yourself. That means taking time to be with family and friends, and, oh yes—indulging. I really said that.

Is that really so bad? I don’t think so. What is bad is regretting your over-indulging on January 1st, and having to scramble around trying to find the most effective, least painful diet. That is such a crappy way to start the year, especially if you have had, like 2 weeks off, and in addition to having 10 pounds to lose, you also have to return to WORK.

So here’s my suggestion. Indulge. But go to the gym every day. Yup. I said EVERY DAY. I realize this a very radical concept. Trust me on this, because I think I might have something here. Here’s what can happen:

• You will reduce stress.
• You will have more energy.
• You will feel better about yourself.
• You will make healthier choices.
• You might actually lose weight over the holidays!

Isn’t that a nice way to look at things? I believe it’s a lot more positive that denying yourself. And if you think you can skip the gym all through the month of December, and then return in January with a "fresh new perspective" on exercise, think again. Your whole New Year's resolution just got that much harder, my friend. Going to the gym doesn't give you carte blanche to eat everything in sight,but you definitely have more room to negotiate.

Here’s a link to some other helpful hints for de-stressing the madness (unless of course you thoroughly enjoy the madness…)
http://exercise.about.com/od/exercisementalhealth/tp/holidaystress.htm

Merry Christmas!

Budgets and Bulges, Part 4

2009-11-15T09:14:00.000-08:00

“I’ll start at the first of the year.. “ “I’ll start Monday.” “I’m going to start on my birthday.” “I’m happy with my weight. People in my family are just big-boned.” I’m sure you have heard, or uttered these same statements as you pondered a lifestyle change, or significant decision. These statements could be considered a form of procrastination, but I see them as different stages of readiness.

Stages of Readiness is not a new term, or anything that I cooked up on my own. James O. Prochaska, the psychologist who identified the cycle, recognized each stage as a means of utilizing different strategies or tools. I have borrowed the following from his book, Changing for Good.

Precontemplation
"People at this stage usually have no intention of changing their behavior, and typically deny having a problem. Precontemplators resist change. They may change if there is enough constant external pressure, but once the pressure is removed, they quickly revert. Precontemplators are often demoralized and don't want to think about their problem because they feel that the situation is hopeless. "There is certain comfort in recognizing that demoralization is a natural feeling that accompanies this stage-and in realizing that if you take yourself systematically through all the stages of change, you can change."

Contemplation
"I want to stop feeling so stuck. Those simple words are typical of contemplators. In the contemplation stage, people acknowledge that they have a problem and begin to think seriously about solving it. Contemplators struggle to understand their problem, see its causes, and begin to wonder about possible solutions."

Preparation
Most people in the preparation stage are planning to make changes within the next month. An important first step is to make their intention public. "But although those in the preparation stage are committed to action, and may appear ready, they have not necessarily resolved their ambivalence. They may still need to convince themselves that this is the best step."

Action
"The action stage is the one in which people most overtly modify their behavior and surroundings. They stop smoking, remove all desserts from the house, pour the last beer down the drain, or confront their fears. In short, they make the move for which they have been preparing.

Maintenance
In the maintenance stage, you consolidate the gains you made in the action stage and work to prevent relapses.

This stage is a long, ongoing, and critically important process. We all know someone who lost many pounds on a diet, but regained them all in a few months. Successful maintenance requires active alertness.

Termination
The termination stage is the ultimate goal. Here, your former addiction or problem will no longer present any temptation or threat. You will not need to make any further effort and will exit the cycle of change.

So, one of the first thing an individual needs to do is assess his stage of readiness. If, deep down, you really don’t want to change, he will be spinning his wheels as he struggles to alter behavior. Remember in one of my first postings, I said it was funny that 6 or 9 months after I trained with someone, I would see them, and they had finally lost weight ,or gotten healthier? Well, I believe now that when they were working out with me, they were not in the stage of readiness that would have allowed them to achieve their goals. Something or some event came along in those intervening months and became the catalyst that wasn’t present 6 months before. At that point, they could now start to put into practice the workout concepts they had learned with me earlier. The difference, however, is that they had started incorporating the nutrition portion of their lifestyle change into the formula.

I would love to take credit for their success stories, but I really can’t. I might have been an instigator, or a coach, or possibly even a motivating factor, but ultimately the individual (the Y.O.U. factor, if you will) was what drove the little engine up the mountain (I think I can, I think I can…). It all comes down to what is inside, and identifying your motivations and catalysts. Good luck.
Next up: How to be S.M.A.R.T.

Budgets and Bulges, Part 3

2009-11-12T14:52:00.000-08:00

This is the posting where I start to reveal the secret to your success. Here’s the really cool thing. It is actually easier than you think. Here’s the hard thing: it requires a little determination, perseverance, and self-motivation. At least I’m honest, which is more than can be said for the people that tell you that a little pill, a magic potion, or a revolutionary new exercise gadget is going to change your life. Nobody changes your life except you. So I call my magic formula Y.O.U.

For me, Y.O.U. stands for “Your Opportunities are Unlimited.” For you, it might be something completely different. See, that’s the idea. You are an individual, and your journey will be different from everyone else’s.

There are, however some similarities in how people approach getting healthier, and specifically, weight loss. There is an organization called the National Weight Control Registry (http://www.nwcr.ws/) that collects data from people who have lost at least 30 pounds, and kept it off for at least a year. The membership is totally voluntary. The information that people submit is solely for the purpose of gathering data and noting similar trends among individuals who have lost weight. Some of the success stories are quite remarkable. Interesting thing is that there aren’t a lot of accounts of bariatric surgery in the success stories. Here are a few statistics gathered by NWCR:

•78% eat breakfast every day.
•75% weigh them self at least once a week.
•62% watch less than 10 hours of TV per week.
•90% exercise, on average, about 1 hour per day.
•98% of Registry participants report that they modified their food intake in some way to lose weight.

Here’s an assignment if you are interested in losing weight. If you feel your weight is just fine, ignore this. But if you think you need to make some changes, simply write down EVERYTHING you eat for a week. Nobody will read it except you. Be totally honest and pay attention to portions that you eat. If you aren't sure of the calorie value, add at least 50 calories, because we usually underestimate our intake. There are several websites (ie.: http://www.myfitnesspal.com) that can give you calorie content, so you can total things up at the end of the day. There are applications you can use on a data phone that will do that, as well. If you are maintaining your weight, you can probably just stay the course (unless you are not happy with that weight). If your weight has been creeping up over the past months, you could probably “cut the fat” out of your food budget.

Don’t get crazy once you make a decision to change your eating habits. It's hard to change habits, so you move slowly, but deliberately. It pays off in the long term, Do little things. Just look for one thing that you can cut out. One of my favorite treats is a Starbuck’s cinnamon chip scone. It’s not that big, at least it doesn’t look that big…But it is 470 calories!! And they are for the most part empty calories. If you are on a 1500 calorie per day eating plan, you have just used a third of your calories before 8 (maybe even 7) AM! Let’s add a tall latte to that, and you’ve got another 80 calories, if it’s non-fat. And voila! You have lots of calories, with little nutritional value. If you want an eye-opener, go to the Starbuck’s nutritional value pdf
http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition/Zone024_SBUX_Food_Nutrition.pdf and look at the calorie counts. It reminds me of looking at the price tag of an impulse buy once I get home and realizing that I’ve just shot my entire clothing budget on one pair of shoes!! I have nothing against Starbuck’s, but we have to take charge of what we put into our bodies.

That’s all for today, because I just realized I’m really hungry from writing, so I’m going to go down to Starbuck’s and… Stay tuned for the next installment! In the meantime, Write it Down.

Righteous Indignation

2009-11-08T15:16:00.000-08:00

I know I said that my next installment was going to be about tapping into the Y.O.U. factor in order to achieve you fitness goals, but something else got my attention. I have a tendency to be a little random in my thought processes, and writing this blog has really helped me to focus, but, I have given myself permission to veer off course when I believe the occasion calls for it.

My cousin has just been diagnosed with breast cancer. She is currently talking with surgeons and oncologists and radiologists (oh my!), about her treatment options. Scary times. Very scary times. And let’s throw one more boogie-man into this little horror scenario: she doesn’t have health care. Through some unfortunate circumstances, she was recently forced to retire at 60, and couldn’t afford to pay the insurance premiums to fill in the coverage gap between her retirement and Medicare eligibility. So now she begins the Alice in Wonderland journey of treatment options.

I read an interesting statistic the other day: life expectancy for Americans who have already reached the age of 65 is strikingly above average among industrialized nations. Why? Because Americans above age 65 actually have universal health care coverage. Medicare.

One of my clients was telling me about her breast cancer diagnosis. One of the first questions she was asked was if she had insurance, and what kind it was. Glad to see we have our priorities straight.

But back to cancer. I hate this disease. I hate it in whatever devious form it takes. It changes lives-not in a good way- and it steals our self-confidence and makes us fearful and paranoid. Even after a series of surgery, chemo and radiation, and even after the patient has been given a clean bill of health, there is always the lurking fear of its reoccurrence at each subsequent doctor’s visit.

I must tell you that after I walked in the Komen Foundation Breast Cancer 3-Day, I still wasn’t sure why I walked, except to see if I could do it. I wasn’t a survivor, and didn’t have a mother or a sister or a grandmother or aunt who had been diagnosed with breast cancer. I just felt so powerless every time I heard of one more person being diagnosed, that I just got angry. So I transferred my anger to my feet, and I started walking. I don’t think that’s enough, but it’s something, and something is better than nothing at all. Unfortunately, when my cousin contacted the Komen Foundation, she was basically turned away. I’m still a little confused about that. (that might be another subject at a later date)

I am now on the universal health care band wagon. Call me a socialist. Call me a hopeless romantic. Call me crazy. But we need to do better than this. We’re AMERICA, for goodness sakes! Home of the free, land of the brave. The place where the baseball team with the most money can win 27 World Series Championships. We just need to do better.

Budgets and Bulges, Part 2

2009-11-04T07:40:00.000-08:00

I wasn’t being completely honest when I said that I didn’t have a secret formula for weight loss. After researching, I think I finally came up with something. I searched many websites that promised that if you click just one more button, the secret will be revealed. I actually clicked the button, and then I had to click another button, and then finally I got to the page where they’re sure you’re hooked, and you’re ready to part with your hard-earned cash. That’s when I logged off.
Weight loss is a little like clicking lots of buttons. Or maybe like viewing lots of websites, or perusing a lot of weight-loss books. One thing that all these methods have in common, is that they are all a little bit right. But not a single one is the absolute answer. So you keep clicking buttons.

I hate to keep anyone in suspense (actually I do, but I thought that sounded good), but I am now ready to reveal the key, the magic button, the secret potion, the ultimate tip. Here it is: Y.O.U. YOU hold the key. You are the only person who knows the most about your body, your likes, your dislikes, your weak points (I like to refer to them as “areas of opportunity”), your strong points. You know what you like to eat, you know what you hate. You know how you like to exercise, or if you don’t. So take that self-knowledge and put it to work for you. Become a fitness expert on yourself.

As I mentioned in the last post, I didn’t know how to put a strategic spending plan together, so I went to someone who did. I had a strong enough motivation (long-term financial stability), and that was what compelled me to take action. It is the same with good health and weight loss—there needs to be a tangible reason to make a change—something that starts the process. I don’t believe anyone makes lasting changes in their life unless they have a good incentive. You may or may not seek the help of a health and fitness professional, who will assist you in your journey, but ultimately you are the one who succeeds or doesn’t (I don’t like to use the “f” word—it’s so negative).

To go back to the budget thing: if I had read countless books on wealth management, or had gone to workshops, or consulted financial gurus and spent thousands of dollars on their advice, and then gone back to my old habits, I’d be right back where I started. It’s the same with fitness. You can work with a personal trainer every day, or buy all these great diet and exercise books (last count on Amazon, I think there were in the neighborhood of a gazillion titles), but if you don’t DO it, you are still at square one. Excuse the example, but look at Oprah—she has every fitness and dietary professional in the world at her beck and call, and she still reverts to the old habits.

In the next post, we’ll get a little more specific on how to reach your goals. After all, I can’t expect you to read more than 1200 words in one post! You have work to do! Have a great day.

Budgets and Bulges

2009-11-02T08:37:00.000-08:00

Recently, I started an on-line class through the local community college called, “Where Did All My Money Go?” After eight years of non-stop college tuition, and a few other life events, I decided to try and put my house in order. As I was approaching my "golden years," I felt I needed to be more cognizant about how money was being spent, and how to better save for the future. (Don't ask me why I didn't do this 20 years ago..) I found the assignments on spending, particularly the tracking of spending habits painful, yet illuminating. I started to see how small purchases here and there, combined with a lack of oversight can lead to a loss of control over our finances.

As I studied the curriculum, terms such as “spending plan” (aka “budget”), and “net worth” (what you have and what you owe), started to light little bulbs in my head. Simple concepts, but if you pay no attention to them, they don't do you much good. So in essence, I put myself on a –excuse the lack of euphemism—DIET. It occurred to me that what the instructor was having me do was exactly what I was asking clients to do when they were trying to lose weight!

When you establish a spending plan (budget), you first must look at what you currently spend. When I ask clients if they know how many calories a day they consume, most cannot tell me. When I ask them how many calories they need to survive, they cannot tell me. So here’s the dilemma: how can you know what needs to be done to resolve your burgeoning budget (read: waistline), if you don’t know how to curb your spending (eating), and monitor your assets (exercise) and debits (sedentary lifestyle and extra pounds)? We'll talk about this later.

With the HOLIDAYS fast approaching, we find ourselves “outspending” on many levels. We spend a lot on entertaining, presents, and travel. We also spend a lot of time indulging in foods that do not help our fitness budget. And in addition, I have people tell me that they don’t have time to exercise “because of the holidays!” This is probably when we need to be scrupulously monitoring our exercise assets more than ever! Eating rich food is okay once in awhile, but it starts a vicious cycle: the more you eat, the more you want (rich food is very addictive), the slower you become, the less you do, the fewer calories you burn up. Spending on non-essentials is kind of the same way. Heck! It’s fun to spend money. I am the first to admit it. But I know it’s not going to help me get where I need to be financially. The same is true when it comes to exercise and a sensible eating plan.

But, let’s get back to my analogies. January rolls around. And the bills start trickling in. You wonder how the heck your VISA bill got that big. Where did all these Nordstrom charges come from. I bought WHAT? at Amazon.com? Then you step on the scale, and you wonder where the extra 5 lbs came from, and then the resolutions start. You see where I’m going with this.

There are countless clients who have come to me wanting to lose weight. They are desperate. I have told them I do not hold the key to weight loss. They do. They want some kind of secret formula, and I don’t have one. I just tell them what I know has worked for me and many others. What I find interesting, is that during the time my clients worked out with me, very few actually lost weight. (Sad, but true). But then I see them 6 months later, and—by golly!—they’ve lost weight. You may want to know how that happened. Tune in tomorrow to find out more….

Ghosts of Games Past

2009-10-26T16:46:00.000-07:00

There are several things I enjoyed about last Saturday’s Oregon-Washington Football game. Obviously, as a Duck fan, I enjoyed seeing Oregon wing its way to a substantial victory over the Huskies. The weather was gorgeous, the view over Portage Bay and Lake Washington was postcard-perfect. It was football weather at its best. Because it was homecoming at UW, the stands were filled with purple and gold. After some disappointing seasons, it was heartening to see the bleachers packed, instead of conspicuously vacant.

Because we were using tickets that were given to us through an undisclosed source, we found ourselves seated amid a sea of purple and gold. And these were not congenial folks. They did not appreciate our green and yellow, and were not shy about letting us know that we were in hostile territory. We returned their frostiness with what we hoped were gestures of good-humored passivity, and tried to laugh it off. We started out not cheering as loud as we would have had we been in Autzen Stadium, but by the end of the game, we found it difficult not to infuse our cheering with just the tiniest bit of arrogance.

What I was heartened to learn, however, is the Ducks took the game in stride. They played their game, they played well, and they won without punching anyone out. An article in the Seattle Times described their workmanlike approach to the game.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/budwithers/2010131220_withers25.html

Defensive end Will Tukuafu made this comment concerning the USC matchup on the 31st: "I'm guessing it'll be fired-up," said Tukuafu, referring to Eugene. "We aren't really too worried about getting involved in the hype."

I guess they learned their lesson about talking smack without having something to back it up. (Don’t let your mouth write no checks that your defense can’t cash, or something like that). As well as the Ducks have played, they will be forever haunted by the pre-game and post-game nonsense in Boise that threatened to define their playing style, as well as their ability to win games.

Coach Chip Kelly says of his team, "They love to practice and they love to play." Let’s hope that when they play USC this weekend, the ghosts of games past will just be a bad dream. Go Ducks!

The Power of Two

2009-10-23T08:46:00.000-07:00

This morning at 4:30 as my husband headed out the door on the way to the gym, he facetiously commented, “Oh this ought to be a great day to run!” In fact, it had been pouring all night, it was dark, nasty, and windy. A 5 AM run in such conditions is not usually considered to be ideal. But there was at least one other runner who was waiting for him, so he soldiered up and joined his running partner, and actually had a really good 5 mile run. The power of two.

One of my clients often has evening social engagements that preclude her from getting a really good night’s sleep. She meets with me two days a week at 6 AM. There are often days that she does not feel like getting up and coming to our workout, but she does it because she knows I’m waiting there for her. She usually feels better by the time she heads to work. The power of two.

As people trained for the Komen 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk, they had training partners and groups. I often trained by myself, but I was amazed at how fast the time went by when I did an 8 or 9-mile walk with one or two others. The power of the group.
If you have difficulty getting motivate to exercise, whether it’s at 5 AM or 10 PM, you might want to consider finding a workout partner. One point of caution, however: try to find someone who is a little more committed than you are, otherwise it’s too easy for one person to “un-motivate” the other.

Here are some helpful tips:
• Set some goals. For example, if you want to run a 10K, walk 20 miles, or compete in a triathlon, challenge your workout partner so you can start working towards achieving your goal.
• If you want to get toned, or lose weight, you might want to engage the services of a personal trainer for awhile—they can help you get a workout set up that both people can do. The other benefit to that is that you share the cost of the trainer.
• Set a time, and specify the days of the week you want to work out. Don’t deviate from those times or days, unless someone is traveling or ill. This will help you to set up some consistency.
• Working out with a spouse or life partner can be fun, but it can also be intimidating if one person is making progress and the other person isn’t. You might want to evaluate your compatibility quotient as it applies to this endeavor. You want to make sure you don’t end up sabotaging one another.

How do you find a workout partner?

• There are several websites that can help you find a workout partner. Some of them are singles only websites. Be cautious as you share personal information. You can do a search for “workout partners,” and you will see several sites listed.
• Put a note up at your gym to see if someone wants to have a partner.
• Your office. You might be able to get someone to take a walk at lunchtime, instead of going out to Mickey D’s for lunch.
• Get a dog, or find a neighbor who needs to have their dog walked, but can’t get out to do it.
• Join a class, which is a whole lot of partners.
• Family members, including kids, can be good partners. When I took walks with my daughters, it was amazing to me how much talking they could do in an hour.

Do you have some suggestions to help motivate a friend? How do you stay motivated? Is it with a workout partner, alone, or in a group?

Berry, Berry Good

2009-10-21T13:01:00.000-07:00

One of my friends, and once-in-a-while client asked me today about acai. More specifically, she had been asked to participate in a multi-level marketing plan to distribute this berry juice. She wanted to know if it really is worth all the hype it gets. The first time I heard about it,(maybe 5 or 6 years ago), my sister had received a couple of sample bottles from a good friend. They were sold at around $20 a bottle, and you only had to drink 5 oz (three times a day) to have your life transformed. Okay…… such a deal. Well she found the juice to be pleasant, drank it, but didn’t really feel any different. I suppose if she had continued to purchase this product, and drunk many more 5 oz. portions, it probably would have changed her life. But at the time, she needed to pay her mortgage, so she opted for the latter, which was actually more beneficial for her mental health.
Here’s the deal: over the years, we have never been at a loss for snake-oil salesmen ( and women). I latched onto Dr. Atkins in the 70’s, and ate my weight in eggs and bacon. In the 80’s oat bran was touted as a wonder food, guaranteed to reduce cholesterol and cure heart disease (probably from all the bacon and eggs). The bagel industry ballooned as a result of being marketed as low cal and low fat. Then we ballooned because of our addiction to these 300-400 calorie taste temptations shmeared with cream cheese. The 90’s brought us those great low fat options, which morphed into sugar and additive-filled morsels because they tasted so wretched as low fat selections, which probably helped contribute to our diabetes problem. And then Dr. Atkins came back!! Hurray! You get my point.
So now, we are all about anti-oxidants. And many fruits have anti-oxidant qualities. So do tea and coffee, and --praise the Lord!—wine. A landmark study shows that just one cup of berries provides all the disease-fighting antioxidants you need in a single day. Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, goji berries, grapes, acai, blackberries—it’s a long list. Acai is one of those berries, and up to now, it has tested out very well in the antioxidant category. My objection is when the mass marketing mega moguls decide to drive a good thing into the ground, and attempt to get rich doing it. Don’t be drawn into the multi-level distribution crap. If you want to drink acai, go to your grocer, or drug store, or local health food store and get some. But include it along with a healthy, well-balanced regimen of good food, exercise and a restful night’s sleep.

Sculpt, shape and tone

2009-10-20T14:30:00.000-07:00

I was reading a popular women’s fitness magazine the other day. (they’ve been publishing for 30 years) One of the main articles for that issue was titled, “Sculpt the Sexiest Curves,” and proceeded to show how one would go about shaping and toning the abs, triceps, shoulders, back, glutes and calves. I did not have a problem with the exercises themselves. They were easy to follow, safe and sound. What bothered me a bit was the fitness model who was demonstrating the exercises. She had a 25 year old’s face with a 12 year-old’s body. That led me to believe that this was the before picture, but it looked like the finished product. There wasn’t a curve to be found on this poor woman! And for goodness sake, she had to be working with at least 3 pound dumbbells!! The woman looked emaciated. I wanted to invite her over for dinner and fatten her up, or at least get her some protein. You see, this is what’s wrong with much of the fitness industry: they say one thing, and they picture something else, giving many people a very mixed message. What the heck is wrong with curves? And if they can be enhanced and perfected by some honest-to-goodness weight training, I say let Pandora out of the box!! (and then we’ll feed her)

To Sleep, Perchance to Dream

2009-10-19T10:00:00.000-07:00

To sleep, perchance to dream… This morning, one of my clients listed her health priorities in this order: 1)Sleep, 2) Food, 3) Exercise. Now, as a fitness professional, I could have corrected her and suggested that she put EXERCISE at the top of her list, but her priority list actually gave me pause. I “binged” sleep clinics in Seattle, and found no less than 20 listed there, so I guess sleep is important to a lot of people—or should I say the lack of sleep is problematic for many people. Here are a few benefits of restful sleep:
• Sleep helps to repair your body;
• Sleep helps keep your heart healthy;
• Sleep reduces stress;
• Sleep improves your memory;
• Sleeping properly can help you to control your body weight.
So without proper sleep, your body does not repair itself from exhausting workouts. All the cardiovascular exercise we foist on people might be for naught if lack sleep affects heart health. Health clubs hawk memberships and exercise as a means of reducing stress, but getting a good night’s sleep can help to lower blood pressure and rejuvenate our hormone production. “Foggy” memory? That’s probably not from too much exercise, but rather too little sleep. In fact, if you get on a piece of equipment at the gym, and you are virtually exhausted, you might do more harm than good. There are several studies that have pointed to the lack of sleep as a direct link to bulging waistlines. There are other contributing factors, but lack of adequate and restful sleep affects our cortisol and leptin levels in such a way to inhibit our body’s ability to manage fat production around our middles. When a new client comes in, and complains of weight gain, one of the first things I ask is how much sleep she is getting. http://www.wellnessresources.com/weight/articles/lack_of_sleep_stress_adrenals_and_obesity/
So, if there are people you know who brag about their ability to get through the day on 4-6 hours of sleep, pay them no mind. Work hard, breathe, and get a good night’s sleep. See how good you can feel!

Happy Birthday Jack Lalanne - Google Search

2009-10-18T16:40:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Jack Lalanne - Google Search

Dark Days, Slow Bodies

2009-10-17T07:35:00.000-07:00

When it's still dark when you get up, and the rain is pouring down, and you oh so slowly drag your unwilling body out of your warm bed, do you hit the showers, make some coffee, or go to the gym? Maybe you do all three. Here's a suggestion. Have the coffee on a timer, so it's ready to go as soon as you get up. Have a big (8-12 oz) glass of water, have some coffee, grab an easy to transport snack (banana, protein bar, or similar), and head to the gym. Don't think about how tired you are, don't think about all the stuff you have to do that day. Just get up and GO. By the time you're done at the gym, you are energized, and everything else falls into place, because both your body as well as your brain got a great am boost. You are ready to face the day.