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Posted by in Uncategorized on October 5, 2016

Always, always make time to exercise your heart. Although I believe lifting weight is more important (especially as we age) cardio is still very important for cardiovascular health. The heart is a muscle and needs to be exercised just like your legs or arms. There several different types of good ways to to do cardio: Slow & steady, Interval, and High Intensity. I’m a believer in mixing them up to get the best results.

Slow and steady is good for endurance. Interval is great for mixing slower with faster. And high intensity is great really challenging and growing by utilizing short bursts of hard cardio.

Examples of each: 

Slow & Steady – Walking or jogging for a prolonged period of time

Interval – Walking then running and repeating this pattern for a medium period of time

High Intensity – Sprinting for a very short period of time 

All are good and don’t forget to do some fun cardio – bike riding, tennis, basketball, badminton, golf, rollerblading, etc.

Keep moving and keep that heart healthy!

I’m pretty shocked when people say they don’t workout or do any type of activity. We have all these amazing moving parts and if you’ve ever watched the Olympics or been to Cirque De Soleil then you’ve seen humans doing what appears to be impossible. The point is any type of movement is beneficial to your body and health. Walking, biking, dancing, lifting, pulling, pushing, rowing, swimming, stretching etc. and list goes on and on. So, think about all the amazing things bodies can do and be glad that your body is very capable. In fact, we’ve all seen paralympic athletes  and other veterans with only 1 leg or 1 arm still doing incredible things despite missing limbs! So, ge t out there do something with your body and maybe try something new or get back to something you used to do!

In the fitness world of body builders, athletes, fitness junkies, etc. you often hear of how important protein is for muscle growth, recovery, and keeping it. It’s all true, however, finding the right amount for your body, activity, intensity, etc. is debatable. Here is the best general rule:

Quality Protein at every meal is the best guarantee to fulfill your body’s needs. What is quality protein?

Free Range vegetarian fed Eggs, Grass Fed Beef, Organic Chicken, Wild Caught Fish , Plain Whey Protein Powder

These are good examples of excellent proteins. Now, how do I know if I’m eating enough or not enough?  This is my best answer…..

Use a reliable method for tracking & measuring your muscle & fat. At Lifestyles Fitness Personal Training in Tempe, AZ we utilize Ultrasound Scanning so that we can see muscle & fat and our software calculates and tracks everything. If we have clients losing fat and muscle, I recommend increasing protein intake then we test again in about 2 weeks to make sure we’re keeping (at a minimum) or gaining muscle while still losing fat. This, of course, is always based on a client’s goals.

So, Eat Your Quality Protein regularly and Track/Measure Your Results! Then adjust accordingly if necessary and Test/Measure again.

Such confusing times when it comes to carbohydrates!  Low carb, Paleo, Ketogenic what’s good? what’s bad? When? How much?

Carbohydrates are one of the 3 maconutrients with protein & fat and are absolutely necessary for good health.  But with all the information out there it can be really hard to know what to do.

Here’s the absolute best approach I share with my clients….Prioritize your carbs by eating in this order of the best to worst. Eat more of the good stuff and avoid or rarely eat the worst stuff.

Here’s the list the best to worse: greens – lettuce/romaine/arugula/chard,etc, all vegetables, all fruits, all legumes (beans), steel cut oats, quinoa, brown rice, sweet potato, white potato, pasta, white rice, honey, fruit juice, highly processed foods, candy, sugar. So, if eat greens & veggies 70% of the time oats/quinoa/brown rice/pasta 20% & the rest about 10% you’re doing great!

Also, here is something every important…PORTIONS!  You can pretty much eat BIG portions of veggies & greens because they’re so low in calories & High in Nutrition.Fruits are good too but think of them as Nature’s dessert.  Beans, oats, pasta, quinoa, brown rice are good sources…but watch your portions and read the labels. Honey in your tea, sugar in your coffee should never be more than 1-2 teaspoons and don’t have 4 cups of coffee!. If you love chocolate or apple pie or a milkshake, that’s ok but limit yourself to 1 – 2 per week as a reward for eating good all week and working out and watch the portion!

So, don’t fear the carbs….just be smart about them.

The easiest tip I can give anyone…..Every morning have a big glass of water with lemon, Apple Cider Vinegar, and a little honey. Why? Here’s why:

10 Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar

  1. Rich in enzymes to maintain a healthy gut
  2. Helps relieve allergies
  3. Lowers blood pressure
  4. Reduces inflammation
  5. Helps relieve muscle pain from workouts
  6. Helps dissolve kidney stones
  7. Helps prevent sinus infection
  8. Helps prevent acid reflux
  9. Helps prevent arthritis
  10. Lowers levels of fatigue

10 Benefits of Lemon

  1. Boosts your immune system
  2. Flushes out toxins
  3. Is a natural blood purifier
  4. Helps relieve respiratory issues
  5. Helps aid in throat infections
  6. Helps rejuvenate skin
  7. Reduces blemishes
  8. Decreases wrinkles
  9. Naturally energizes you
  10. Hydrates the body

Wow! What a way to start your day every day!

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