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Not Losing the Weight You Want? – Consider These Six Things

March 27, 2012 By

Losing weight can be invigorating… and frustrating, maddening, overwhelming, etc. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could choose a diet plan that would allow you to lose 2 pounds a week (or 5 pounds, or insert your number here ____) every week until you reached your goal?

But if you have ever been on a diet, you know that’s not how it works. Some weeks your effort reflects the number of pounds lost. Some weeks you work your butt of and lose nothing. Some weeks (all be it rare) you slack a little and lose a pound or two.

Calories IN vs. calories OUT is definitely important, but there are other things that creep into the equation.

Here are 6 things to keep an eye on to make sure your effort reflects your outcome.

Eating too few carbohydrates
It’s true that we need to be careful when it comes to carbohydrate intake to maximize fat loss, but we still want to make sure we are getting enough carbs. Did you know that fat molecules will not enter the fat burning cycle unless they have a little glucose (carb) molecule to take them there. It’s easy to get excited when you reduce your carbs and instantly lose weight, but often this is more of a factor of storing less water than fat loss.

Eating the wrong type of carbohydrates
You might be eating the right amount of carbohydrates, but the type of carbs you eat has a big effect on weight loss. There is a buzz around high glycemic index (GI) foods and low GI foods, and the reason is that the type of carbs you eat will directly affect your weight loss. To keep it simple, low GI foods are good, high GI foods are bad.

Good carbohydrates are complex carbohydrates that take the body longer to break down. These carbohydrates typically are high in fiber, which takes the body longer to break down and helps stabilize blood sugar levels. The best sources of good carbohydrates include fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, whole grains and beans. All of these foods provide the body with energy, vitamins, fiber, minerals and phytonutrients. In addition to fresh fruit and veggies, good carbohydrates include whole grain cereals, whole wheat breads and pastas, and brown rice.

Bad carbohydrates are foods that are easily digestible and provide the body with limited nutrients and vitamins. Because these foods are so quickly digested, your body will experience a quick spike in energy followed by a crash. Examples of bad carbs include soft drinks, cakes, cookies, chips, white bread, white rice, alcohol.

Eating too little fiber
When we are eating for weight loss and we restrict our carb intake, it also changes our intake of fiber. Fiber might be the single most important secret to weight loss, and it is an essential factor for maintaining health. It helps you feel fuller and therefore eat less. It also binds with acids in the body and helps carry out excess fat, and it speeds the transit time of the food we eat, keeping the intestines in good order.

Getting too little sleep
When we are constantly sleep deprived the body secretes a hormone called ghrelin. Higher ghrelin levels have been shown to reduce energy, stimulate hunger and food intake, and promote retention of fat. Do you ever notice that some days you feel hungry all day, even though you are eating your regular diet. Think back to your sleep patterns, and you may realize that you haven’t gotten as much sleep lately.

Eating too little fat
Low fat diets have been really popular, but too little fat may actually make it harder for us to lose weight. Essential fats (aka good fats) help burn fat by helping to transport oxygen, vitamins, nutrients, and hormones to the body’s tissues.

Good fats include foods like non-hydrogenated oils (olive, canola, sunflower, peanut, sesame), avocados, olives, raw nuts (almonds, peanuts, walnuts, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts, pecans, cashews), fatty fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel, herring, trout, sardines), and tofu.

Bad fats include things like high-fat cuts of meat (beef, lamb, pork or chicken with the skin) whole-fat dairy products (milk and cream), butter, ice cream, commercially-baked pastries, cookies, doughnuts, muffins, cakes, pizza dough, packaged snack foods (crackers, microwave popcorn, chips), margarine or vegetable shortening, any fried foods (French fries, fried chicken, chicken nuggets, breaded fish), and candy bars.

Drinking too little water
Dehydration happens more than you think. If you want to have steady fat loss and high energy, it’s necessary to keep your body and liver hydrated every day. Our liver converts the fat soluble toxic chemicals (that we consume, breathe in, and absorb through our skin), into water soluble chemicals that are flushed out by the kidneys through urine. With limited water supply, the kidneys cannot completely flush out metabolic and foreign waste and weight loss can be more difficult.

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Cooling Down After Cardio – Is It Necessary?

August 20, 2011 By

When you are done with your cardio, and the shower or couch is calling, sometimes the thought of spending any extra time to cool down ranks right up there with organizing the desk drawer. Is it really that important to cool down after cardio?

Well, yes, because the purpose of the cool down is to redirect the blood flow and drop the body temperature back to normal before rushing off to meet the challenges of the day. It also settles down the heart beat quicker than without a cool down to feel better faster.

During a cardio activity, the blood is pumping vigorously through the muscles as they contract, and more blood ends up going to the extremities. When the heart is pumping fast, and there is a sudden stop, there’s a chance that the blood will start to pool in your legs and feet. Can we say head rush! This can lead to a drop in blood pressure, which may cause dizziness, nausea, and even fainting.

Cooling down allows the muscles to contract at a steady pace, which keeps the blood flowing back up to the heart instead of hanging out in the extremities, alleviating the chance of passing out in front of that hottie on the next machine over.

It’s time to chill, as cooling down is the easiest part of a cardio workout, so enjoy it. Ease out of the workout just like easing into it during a warm-up —taking it slow for five to ten minutes (or when breathing and heart rate return to normal), depending on the intensity of the activity.

Not only will cooling down get the body back to feelin groovy, but it punctuates a good workout kind of like a victory (slow) dance.

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Doing Everything Right Isn’t Getting Me Results

June 19, 2011 By

woman-on-weight-scale
Several months ago one of my clients made the above statement in a fit of disgust. She actually felt that all of her efforts to lose weight weren’t working. When she told me what was going on I soon realized that she thought she was doing everything “right” but in reality she’d forgotten several of the basic things I’d shown her. What were those things? I’ll get to that in a minute.  First, let me paint the picture of this woman for you.

She’s a Mom Entrepreneur with a significant amount of stress in her life. She originally came to me to lose weight but after I heard her talk about her life and schedule I soon realized that there were some things that were contributing to why she was having a hard time losing weight. It was clear that she had a stressful and busy life.  A fairly optimistic person she was feeling beaten by the fact that she couldn’t lose the weight and reclaim her appearance.  She was embarrassed about her looks, not wanting anyone to see her body in pictures she’d only get pictures of her from the shoulder up.   Over the years, the once ten pounds she’d gain and lose turned into thirty-five and at age 41 her every other year diet program wasn’t working anymore. She counted points, added the fiber, drank the water but NO LUCK. She came to me telling me she wanted to try something new.

Our work began the usual way with her trying to make all of the recommended changes I’d suggested.  Within a week she’d emailed me to tell me that there was a shift in energy and optimism.  A month went by and the weight shifted for the better. She was thrilled! But then another month went by and my once happy, weight losing client hit a wall. Not just a wall in her weight but one in her life. She hit a plateau and began to panic and when we had our next session that’s when I realized what she’d forgotten. You see my theory is that the pace of our lives and the stress that we endure on a regular basis directly relates to our weight.  As soon as life gets too busy or stressful the time to devote to planning meals, cooking them and chewing what you eat occurs less often. You start making excuses to get exercise in, not drinking water or to go to bed at a regular time. Life gets in the way, the overwhelm of life disrupts the routine you were just establishing and the weight stops coming off. My client came to me feeling that her great efforts were slipping away. Although we’d covered it all before, I spent the entire next three sessions reminding her of the basic things to do to get her routine and life back in balance.  In doing the work I do I’ve come to realize that it’s got to be a whole life approach. You can’t just change one area (such as eating better) you often need to work on several at the same time. I often need to remind my clients that it’s about choices, not necessarily in what you’re eating but in what you are doing that is causing your overwhelm.

The great news for my client was once we got her back on the right path she reversed the minor weight gain and six months later she lost all thirty-five pounds.  The even better news is that she feels like she’s got a grip on her life again and to me I think you can deal with anything once you have optimism in your life again.

Have you ever hit a plateau and wondered if it could be more than just the food you were eating that was causing the plateau?

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Getting Healthy Takes Time – 3 Steps to Help You Make The Most of Your Time

May 17, 2011 By

The other day I was watching a segment on TV about face creams.  The spokeswoman was talking about the products and how each of them treated the different signs of aging.  For one product, she said that the most important ingredient was patience, because it might take time, up to a few months, to see any results.

Getting fit and healthy is the same, and one of the most important ingredients is patience. It takes time to see results. 

Ironically, people end up wasting a lot of time because they don’t manage their time wisely. They spend too much time doing one thing, not enough time doing important things or wasting time doing anything and everything but the right thing. When people feel as though their effort does not match their results, they give up. 
 

Here are 3 simple steps to help you make the most of your time.
 
Take more time to eat less. Eating right takes time. The whole process starts with grocery shopping. If you don’t shop well, you can’t expect to eat well. You have to prepare the food and do whatever it takes to make sure you have healthy food with you at all times. Packing lunches and snacks are a vital part of avoiding temptation. Paying closer attention to calories and portion sizes will also require some time but the payoff is tremendous.  
 
Take less time to exercise more.  Many people invest a lot of time in what they would call exercise, but it  is really just increased activity. Although activity is good for your health, it’s not as effective for weight loss. Many people are just going through the motions and wasting a lot of time doing minimal effort. I see people doing 60 minutes of cardio casually reading a magazine.  What a waste of 30 minutes.  If  they would do 30 minutes of intense (where it is tough to speak a sentence let alone read a magazine) cardio, the effect would be more dramatic, and they would see results quicker.   Really burn some calories by turning  up your cardio effort. If you do weights, train at a higher intensity with less rest in between. You don’t have to spend three hours at the gym everyday. Commit to one powerful half hour three to five days a week and make every minute count! The more quality time you invest, the greater the reward.
 
Take the time to make sure you are not wasting time. This is a biggie. People spend a lot of time and energy on things that don’t work. Fad diets, weight loss gimmicks, books and fitness magazines often lead you to believe weight loss can be easy. It’s our human nature to try the easy way first. In the end, we just waste a lot of time trying to avoid the inevitable. Other people struggle because they completely go it alone with no guidance at all. A person who is basically guessing their way through their fitness program is doomed. Don’t waste your time floundering around aimlessly. Invest a little time initially to get good information from a trainer, a doctor, a well respected web site, or even me. Diet and fitness work. If you take time to understand why and how it works, you’ll see results in plenty of time.

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The Weight Loss Roller Coaster – How to Get Off

May 9, 2011 By

How many people do you know that are trying to lose weight? So many people want to lose weight.  They want to shed pounds, feel better, look better, get fit and so on.

People will buy books about it, join a gym, complain to their co-workers about it, buy products, consult with doctors, try new diets, try new pills, and try a new exercise program. And yet, they don’t lose weight – or they do but then they don’t keep it off.

It’s so common for people to be stuck in this weight loss cycle for years. 30 pounds lost, 28 pounds gained back.  17 pounds lost, 20 gained back.  It’s like an ongoing zero sum game where you go down on an escalator at Macy’s, just to turn around and go right back up again.

Why does this happen?
In spite of a sincere desire to feel and look different, it just isn’t a priority to really make the changes and do it.

Something is not right in this equation that we’re being sold from all directions about how to lose the weight we want.

We’re promised over and over again that this diet or this exercise sequence will help us to shed pounds easily, solve all our problems, and in 6 short weeks we’ll look like the slim young woman or the buff guy on the exercise video from HSN.

But here is the key. A big piece of this comes down to priorities. We can talk all we want about how we really want to lose weight and how we are thinking about really getting serious with the diet advice or exercise suggestions.

But at the end of the day, you’re not losing the weight because it’s not really your priority to do so. At the end of the day, you don’t lose weight because the chocolate mousse that was served at your best friend’s dinner party over the weekend was more important to you than losing weight.

Eating the tacos, chips, dips and Margaritas your neighbors served at their Cinco de Mayo party was more important to you than losing weight.

One of the biggest tricks to losing weight and keeping it off is to really shift these priorities.

So the next time you feel frustrated about the glimpse you catch of your profile in the mirror, don’t lament about how the last diet you tried didn’t work, but sit down and make a list of your priorities in life.

What are the 10 most important things to you in your life?

Is your health and weight really on that list?  If so, where is it? If not, don’t kid yourself into thinking you can lose weight successfully.

Really work with your priority list.  Be ruthlessly honest with yourself.

Look at your actions as the evidence for which priorities truly belongs where.  Once you get that sense of where your priorities have been, you are in a much better place to decide where you want them to be.

There is no right or wrong answer. If you come to realize that weight loss and fitness are not a priority, that is okay. But, if you want to lose weight and get fit, this is the first step in the right direction.

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The Best Way to Exercise – Watch your Results Soar

May 4, 2011 By

Google ‘health and fitness tips’ and you will find 155,000,000 results. Talk to five health and fitness professionals and get six different opinions. Clearly there is enough information to go around.

However, with all this information, what are we supposed to believe? Have you ever started a workout routine only to read a week later that you are doing it all wrong? It can be frustrating and overwhelming.  One of my favorites is the debate as to whether you should do cardio before or after weight training.  I’m still not sure, so I alternate before and after.  I figure at least I have a 50/50 chance of getting it right.

Fortunately, there are actually a few tips that most everyone will agree on, and one of them is my favorite.

It has changed the way I work out, and my fitness results have soared!

On the surface, this may not seem like an earth shattering, OMG Kristi you are a genius type of tip, but it really is.

The tip is INTENSITY.

Whatever your exercise routine, do it with intensity. Maximum intensity.

For all of you who just said “duh”, this is really one of those tips that is easier said than done and takes some practice.

I have been weight training consistently (and fanatically) for 12 years, and not until this past year did I really understand Maximum Intensity.

I got some advice from a college football coach. He put together a three-week plan that included an all over body workout three days a week for three weeks. No cardio.

My first reaction was serious anxiety. How could I work out so little and not either lose muscle mass or gain fat or both?  However, in his plan, he said something that made me want to try it.  He told me that I had nine workouts, and I must make the most out of every rep, every set, every workout, because there are only nine. So work out at your max intensity and make it count.

My second reaction was excitement about this challenge to make it count.  It was on!  I always thought I worked out really hard until I started focusing all my attention on this make it count stuff.  Immediately, I was doing more weight and more reps than I had ever done, and I saw my muscle tone change (something I hadn’t seen in a while).

An added benefit: my workouts are much shorter now. If I really focus on the exercise and the intensity, instead of the kid’s next field trip, or what I am making for dinner, I can get a better workout doing fewer exercises and fewer sets.

4 Tips for Maximum Intensity

  1. Stop thinking about your list of 46 things you have to do today
  2. Only think about the exercise you are doing right now
  3. Make sure your last rep is as good of form as your first rep
  4. Ask yourself if you can do one more rep or one more minute, then one more, then one more

If you are going to make the effort to exercise, make it intense.

Make it count.

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Exercise for Free – The Two Best Body Weight Exercises

April 26, 2011 By

A friend of mine asked me “if you did not ave any access to weights and only got to choose two exercises what would they be?” As a weight-training fanatic, my first thought was anxiety, but as I ran through the options, there were two clear-cut winners.

1. SQUATS – I have a love hate relationship with squats. I love them because they are so effective.  I hate them because if you do them correctly with a lot of intensity, they can make your legs feel like they are on fire. I think that is called a ‘good burn’.

You don’t need a barbell, stacked with weights, bending across your back to benefit from this great lower-body exercise. The squat works your hamstrings, your glutes, and your quadriceps.
 
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and with your hands either on your hips or stretched out directly in front of you. Lower yourself slowly until your thighs are parallel to the floor, like you are sitting in a chair, hold in that position for a second, and then rise quickly back to the starting position. To get the correct form, put a chair behind you and lower into the sitting position just barely touching the chair, then raise back up.

 2. PUSH-UPS –  Push-ups are one of the best upper-body exercises you can do, even if an entire gym full of weights were available. Push-ups work your entire upper body muscles.

Use proper form and technique, which includes keeping you hands just slightly farther than shoulder-width apart. If standard push-ups are too difficult for you at this point, try modified push-ups (knees on the ground).

If you are looking to start a resistance-training program but aren’t quite ready to join a gym? No problem because your own body weight is free. And, doing these two body weight exercises will certainly get your muscles moving.

These are exercises you can do during commercials, first thing in the morning, even in your office during a break. Challenge yourself to up your count each time; by trying to do one more than you did the last time. There are also so many variations to make the squat and push-up more challenging.  Are you ready? Email me for ideas on adding intensity to both. Musclemommy@fitchicktricks.com

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The Great Carbohydrate Debate!

April 23, 2011 By

carbohydrates

To eat carbs or not to eat carbs?  Many Americans still seem confused about whether they should eat carbohydrates or not.  Years ago, some popular diet plans suggested that carbohydrates make us fat.  The reality is our bodies need carbohydrates for energy.

So why all the controversy over carbohydrates?  It may stem from the type of carbohydrates that most Americans choose.  When you think of the typical American diet (and the foods your kids beg for) which comes to mind?

Frosted flakes for steel cut oats?

Apple juice or a fresh apple?

White rice or brown rice?

A candy bar or some trail mix with dried fruit?

The American diet is filled with refined sugars and simple carbohydrates that absorb into the bloodstream quickly, resulting in sugar “highs” and “lows” throughout the day.  These types of foods are typically high in calories and low in nutrition and are associated with unhealthy weight.

Complex carbohydrates, on the other hand, are associated with a great number of health benefits.  They are high in fiber which helps with digestion and slowing absorption into the bloodstream.  Fiber also helps us to feel fuller faster, and stay satisfied longer, which can help maintain a healthy weight.

In other words, you no longer need to fear carbohydrates, but you do need to choose the right ones. Avoid baked goods made with white flour, processed cereals, fruit juices, table sugar, soft drinks, and candy.  Instead choose from a variety of healthier carbs including whole grains, whole grain breads and cereals, fresh fruits and vegetables, legumes, and low fat Greek yogurt.

Enjoy!!

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Fit Tricks – Tips to Eating Healthy

April 20, 2011 By

So I don’t call my web site Fit Chick Tricks for nothing. Here is a list of my favorite “diet” tricks that I use almost every single day. These are easy little changes that can make a huge difference.

** Fit girls don’t drink their calories. If you want a sweet beverage, don’t go for a soda, juice, or sports drink. They are loaded with calories, usually 100-200 calories per serving. Water should be your number one choice. If you need something sweet, try a flavored sparkling water, iced tea/green tea with lemon or as a last result even a diet soda if you must.

** Fit girls don’t eat chips with their salsa. Carrots are a great alternative to the tortilla chip. Carrots add the crunch without the calories and fat, and you still get the great taste of the salsa.

** Fit girls don’t read the menu at a restaurant. Dining out can sabotage a healthy eating plan. It is good to splurge once and a while, but when eating out on a regular basis, you want to choose the healthiest option available.

(a) When you know you will be going to a specific restaurant on a specific day, plan ahead. After you have had a meal, and you are feeling full, go online and look up the restaurant’s website and menu. In the privacy of your own home, on your own time, you can really read the food options and decide on the best choices. You can take all the time you need, and since you have a full stomach, you won’t be influenced by hunger. Make your choice for the next time you are dining out… and stick with it. Don’t even open the menu when you are at the restaurant.

(b)If the restaurant doesn’t have a website, or you don’t have time to look it up, when you do have to open the menu, look to see if they have heart healthy options. Most places have a little symbol that they place next to the healthy choices. Only look at those options. Don’t read through all the yummy appetizer descriptions; don’t read through all the yummy pasta dishes, etc. Choose only from the heart healthy menu items.

** Fit girls don’t eat in their car. Stop eating major meals in your car like it’s a restaurant on wheels. Skinny girls will eat things like a health bar or some fruit, but no eating burritos, sandwiches, and pizza. How much can you really enjoy your food and pay attention to your portions if you are driving around and paying attention to 10 other things. Also, because skinny girls don’t eat meals in the car, there is no need to go through any kind of drive through which typically belongs to fast food joints.

** Fit girls stop eating before they are full. This is a big one. By taking a few minutes before you feel full, you can cut serious calories from your diet without feeling deprived. You must really pay attention to how your stomach is feeling, and stop eating before you feel full. It actually takes a few minutes for your brain to tell your body that it has had enough food, so eat slowly. (I started doing this, and it has worked every time. I am always amazed that even though I don’t feel full, if I stop eating, within a few minutes I feel full and sometimes stuffed. ) Eating just enough to satisfy your hunger will help you to feel your best, rather than stuffing yourself into a “food coma”!

** Fit girls eat a meal or snack before going to the grocery store. Grocery shopping can sabotage any healthy diet, as there are yummy temptations at every turn. If you go to the grocery while hungry, it can lead to crazy, unhealthy purchases, and in some cases, binge eating when you get home.

** Fit girls don’t eat salads at fast food restaurants. We all think of salads as being healthy, but his can be very misleading, especially at fast food joints. Most Wendy’s salads have over 600 calories each. A grilled chicken breast sandwich open face (remove one of the buns) or a bowl of chili is a much better option at less than 500 calories each. Salads can be a great choice because they are filled with veggies and fiber, but once you add the restaurant dressing (even the fat free option) it can put your calories way over the top. Don’t mistakenly make salad your “healthy” default menu option, because most times there are healthier, lower calorie, higher protein options. My favorite is a broiled chicken breast sandwich. I take off the side of the bun that has the mayo, and eat it as an open faced sandwich with a knife and fork.  Trust me, as a mom with kids who love fast food, I can tell you that almost every single fast food place has a broiled chicken breast in some form or another.

** Fit girls avoid food products that make healthy claims. Generally speaking, a health claim on a food product is a strong indication that it is not really a food but a food-like substance that has been scientifically engineered. You can find any type of junk food that will have a healthy claim tied to it, but just because a bag of potato chips has “no trans fats” doesn’t mean that it is healthy or low in calories.

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Good Morning Butt – Tighten your Gluteus Maximus

April 13, 2011 By

I really like exercises that work a couple of different areas really well.  I also like exercises that I can offer to you that you can do at home or in the gym.

And when I saw the sketch of this girl’s butt, I definitely wanted to share this one.  Who doesn’t want a butt like that?  I know I do!

So, among the exercises that strengthen lower back muscles and work to tighten and build your “gluteus maximus” (as my daughter would say, and then laugh) is the exercise called ‘Good Morning’. It provides wonderful results on a regular basis.

Why on earth is it called Good Morning?  You can snopes this, but I heard that it was called that because the action of it looks like a bow of respect used in some cultures to say hello, good morning, etc.

Good Mornings can be done with two dumbbells, or a barbell, or just your body weight.

Hold the weight at your shoulders in the initial position. Then you bow slowly with your back straight and knees bent a bit. You should bow down as far as possible without stretching your back below parallel and then return to the starting position, using hips to provide necessary balance.

The basic rule of Good Mornings is keeping your spine straight, without any curvature or rounding. To do this you should keep your chin up and work with your hips as well as lower back muscles on returning to the starting position.

If you want an extra challenge, keep your legs perfectly straight, and that will add an extra blast to your hamstrings.

(If you use a barbell, make sure it rests across your shoulders and not on your neck)

One exercise you can do anywhere… to work your lower back, glutes, and hamstrings… now that is working smarter!

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