What’s Your Inspiration To Get Healthy
Getting fit and healthy isn’t always easy or convenient. There’s no microwavable healthy fitness magic that comes in a box. That’s why I ask clients in Louisville, KY, what their inspiration to get healthy is and to focus on that motivation when the going gets rough. It can help at those times when doing one more lift seems impossible or that cake looks like it needs an avid fan to eat it. It also helps to keep priorities in line. If your family is your motivation, yet you’re not using your new found energy to do fun and active things with them, it’s time to make changes there, too.
Keeping your inspiration in focus can help you visualize the new you.
Do you want to look fabulous for your next reunion. Picture exactly how you want your body to look. Is it slim? Is it muscular and toned? Get a good mental picture that you can hold in your head as you workout to actually make you feel like you want to do just one more set. Keep it in your head when you’re hungry, so you get healthier food to eat. It also helps when you’re tempted to consume a pint o ice cream or a whole cake! You’ll find that vision is far more beckoning than the extra dessert.
Don’t wait until you’re totally fit to start having family fun.
Maybe you can’t go an hour with the kids shooting hoops or hike for hours on rugged terrain, but you can go to the zoo or an amusement park that requires walking. It doesn’t have to be anything as special as Disneyland, it can be just taking a walk around the neighborhood and looking at flowers or riding bikes with the kids on a bike trail. If they’re your inspiration, make sure you start using your extra energy and build on those quick walks as you get fitter.
Get social when you eat.
Sharing healthy eating is quite rewarding, especially when the food tastes delicious. Learning new recipes and broadening your experience is a reward in itself. Getting children involved in healthy eating by making healthy food fun, like ants on a log, which is celery, peanut butter and raisins. There are drawbacks. Not everyone has developed a taste beyond Mountain Dew, coke and cheese puffs. Try fun foods like vegetable spaghetti, particularly if you have reluctant eaters. It’s so unique, everyone will want to try it.
- Healthy dishes, no matter how delicious, aren’t always loved by family and friends, so taking them to group bring-a-dish get-togethers may mean you carry them home almost intact. That’s okay if you’re taking a lot home. It’s a day or two worth of meals you won’t have to cook.
- Your inspiration often is a clue on how to measure your success. If you want to have more energy, checking your weight won’t inspire you, but tracking repetitions and sets will.
- Getting healthy can be the ultimate outcome of working out and a healthier diet. If that’s your goal, do it up right. Get a heart monitor watch or a blood pressure machine for in home use to track your progress.
- Don’t worry if you find new inspiration along the way. People do. It doesn’t invalidate your initial reason for working out, but just adds to it.
Get Rid Of Arm Flab
Arm flab is often called bat wings because they give your upper arms a winged appearance. While working out is one way to get rid of arm flab, sometimes it takes more than that. They come from either too much fat and too little muscle or losing weight rapidly and having excess loose skin. The younger you are and the shorter time period you were overweight will determine how fast your skin shrinks back to fit your new body. Whether arm flab comes from too much fat, too little muscle or weight loss, there are ways to get those upper arms looking good again.
Start with exercise.
Grab some weights and get ready to go. While exercise will tone the muscles in the area, if it comes from extra fat, you’ll have to lose weight all over your body. Luckily most people do a full body workout at the gym. Not only will the exercise reduce fat, it should also have exercises for the triceps, which dangle if you have flabby arms. If you don’t have weights, fill milk jugs or detergent bottles with handles with water or sand until you have the perfect weight for exercising. Using water filled bottles provides another benefit. As you get stronger, you can add more water or sand to increase the weight.
Get fit where you sit.
Use your chair or seat as a support as you do a chair dip. Your feet should be on the floor and legs slightly extended. Putting both hands on the sides of the chair next to your hips with your fingers pointing down, lift your bottom off the chair and forward using just your arms. Lower your body with your elbows at 90 degrees then raise yourself back to seated position. Lay on the floor for another great exercise. Hold a single weight, filled bottle or heavy object in both hands. Lift it above your head and then lower it behind your head and lifting it back up to in front of you.
Get on your knees with the weight in your hands.
While you have the weight in your hands, sit up on your knees. Hold the weight in both hands above your head and slowly bend at the elbows to lower it behind your head and back up with hands straight in the air. Use two weights, one in each hand bending over. You’re going to create a slow flapping motion (how appropriate for bat wings) with your arms. Bent over, lift both weights behind you, lifting the weights in the air. When you’re done, focus on doing the same thing, but providing resistance as you lower the weights.
- Push-ups help strengthen and build the triceps. You can do modified forms, like bent knee or partial ones that keep your feet on the floor and hands on the bed.
- Do a plank and hold it. This simple exercise isn’t really as easy as it looks, especially when you hold the position longer. It will help sculpt your upper arms.
- Make sure your diet has adequate nutrition to build both collagen and muscle tissue. You’ll need the collagen to add elasticity to the skin and the protein to build muscle tissue.
- Resistance training, using weights or resistance bands, not only helps eliminate flab under the arms, it builds the upper arm, too. While the focus may be on the triceps, the biceps need a workout, too.
Staying Healthy This Summer
One of the most important goals you should have for you and your family is staying healthy this summer. One of the first things you need to remember is to stay hydrated! Instead of loading up on soft drinks, make your hydration water. It’s healthy and no calorie, making it a far better choice for anyone, whether trying to lose weight or not. Not only is cola unhealthy, it doesn’t quench your thirst. It contains two ingredients that makes certain it doesn’t, salt and caffeine. Sugar masks the salt, which makes you thirstier and the caffeine acts as a diuretic, also making you thirstier.
Don’t forget the sunscreen or to do safe sunning.
Getting some sun will help prevent vitamin D deficiency, but getting too much can lead to cancer. There’s a sweet spot that allows you to do safe sunning, followed by sun block, so you don’t get too much sun. If you go out at midday, which is when the sun is at its highest point, just ten to fifteen minutes three times a week may be enough to maintain vitamin D levels. The fairer your skin, the less time you should be unprotected. Midday sun is safer than exposure to the sun later in the afternoon. Unless you’re specifically trying to soak up the rays, wear sunscreen to prevent burning and skin damage.
Get moving before you embark on a super active day.
While you should exercise all year around, summer offers loads of opportunity to have fun doing it. Rather than miss out on summer fun, start getting in shape as soon as possible. You’ll build your stamina, flexibility and strength, which also protects you from injury. Don’t be a weekend warrior and overdo. Get ready for those times when you’re going to be extremely active by getting into shape ahead of time. If it’s hot out, take breaks and don’t forget to hydrate.
Get plenty of rest.
It’s harder to sleep in the summer. The days are longer and often sleeping schedules change because of that. You still need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep to be your healthiest. Getting adequate sleep not only keeps you more alert during the day, it’s heart healthy and can help you lose weight. If you need to make your room darker, blackout shades and curtains help.
- Stay on the beaten path when hiking. If you’re out in the woods or even gardening, watch out for plants like poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac. Learn what they look like so you can avoid them.
- Practice water safety. Keep children supervised and assign swimming partners, even for adults. Don’t forget life vests for everyone when boating.
- Make family get-togethers and barbecues healthier by including healthier food selections. It’s summer and a perfect time for grilled veggies. Grilled chicken is a better option than hot dogs, while grilled portabellas can substitute for burgers.
- Steer clear of alcohol, especially when out in the sun. Alcoholic beverages dehydrate you, so if you choose to drink when you’re out in the hot sun, alternate it with water.
Real Mom Nutrition
Like most moms, good nutrition for your kids is important. It’s not always that easy to do, but certainly can be done by following a few steps. The first and most important is to have healthy foods in the house and ready to snack on and eat at meals. If you don’t have junk available, all your kids will know is healthy food. If you’re making a switch from junk food to healthier eating, it’s more of a challenge, but still can be done.
Don’t force kids to eat healthy food.
The minute you force kids to eat new foods, automatically, they know they won’t like it. If you’re introducing new food to a child, you can put some on their plate and see if they’ll try it, without the hassle and tears of just one bite. Some parents don’t give their child any of the newly introduced food, but serve it to themselves, saying they don’t think they’ll like it because it’s for adults. That alone makes kids want to try it. Smart moms make food look appealing and fun, so there’s no doubt kids will love it.
Make eating healthy more fun with meals kids will love.
If you want kids to enjoy their meals, make them fun. Make your own taco or burrito night can be one way to do it. Have plenty of healthy options ready to pile on the taco or burrito, like the traditional lettuce, tomato, onion, taco meat and cheese, plus other options, such as avocado chunks, sweet potato squash filling—instead of refried beans—mixed mushroom sauté and Greek yogurt. There are fun recipes that kids will love that combine fruits and vegetables with flour, eggs, a small amount of sugar and spices for fruit and vegetable muffins. Smart mom’s even let kids help make these, so they see how delicious fruits and vegetables can be.
Real mom nutrition includes what the kids drink.
You may think that you’re doing your child a favor by providing fruit drinks, but you’re not. Neither are sugar drinks and soft drinks appropriate. Smart mom’s make sure the fluid is as healthy as the food. One problem with fruit juice is that it’s missing important fiber and far more calorie laden than eating the fruit. Instead, have bottled water on hand for the kids. Frozen fruit or ice cubes with fruit in can add a cold treat while adding flavor. A tiny refillable bottle also makes it easier for kids to drink. Even adding some juice or berries to make it more flavorful will boost their desire to drink it.
- Make healthier French fries in the oven from sweet potatoes. You can even make sweet potato chips and kale chips for snacks.
- Homemade trail mix in individual single serving baggies, popcorn, and fun treats like ants on a log—celery with nut butter topped with raisins—can make kids look forward to healthy treats.
- Never give kids junk food as a special treat or reward. It makes it look far more appealing and desirable. When eating in restaurant, choose healthy several healthy options and let your child pick from those.
- Teach your children to make their plate a rainbow. Each colorful fruit or vegetable contains specific nutrients that often relate to the color it is. When you have a plate filled with a rainbow of colors, you’re more apt to have all the nutrients you need.
Eating Simple
One of the benefits of eating whole foods is that they’re often the easiest to make. I have clients in Louisville, KY that love eating simple and reap the benefits from that whole food diet. Eating simple doesn’t mean eating boring. In fact, you’ll be amazed at just how flavorful the food can be. It doesn’t mean that you can’t use herbs and spices, either. It simply means that you don’t eat complex foods created in the lab by food manufacturers.
Slicing and dicing is part of eating simple.
Eating fresh fruits and vegetables is certainly part of the program. A simple meal can include a huge salad with a variety of vegetables, nuts, herbs, spices and even some fruit. A salad composed of romaine hearts, cherry tomatoes, olives, baked chicken or tuna, hard boiled eggs and green beans cooked until tender, yet crisp and topped with a vinaigrette is simple, well balanced and simply delicious. You can combine dried cranberries with quinoa, thinly sliced Brussels sprouts, pecans and an orange vinaigrette for a delicious and nutritious salad that’s perfect for lunch.
Eating simple can be quite inexpensive.
When you eat simple, you choose fruits and vegetables that are in season. That can cut the cost of meals considerably. To avoid those with pesticides, choose organic versions for food on the Dirty Dozen list. That’s the list of fruit and vegetables shown to have the highest amount of pesticides. They include strawberries, spinach, kale, nectarines, apples, grapes, peaches, cherries, pears, tomatoes, celery and potatoes. This year it’s a baker’s dozen, since it also includes number 13, hot peppers. For all other fruits and vegetables, eating non-organic is safe.
Let’s steam, roast, grill, broil, slow cook or boil the food.
Eating clean and simple means cutting out the breading, pan and deep fat frying. Air frying has become a popular alternative to deep fat frying, but it never should replace the other cooking techniques. It does use only a fraction of the oil used in frying foods, but still creates compounds in the foods, some of which can cause cancer. You’re better keeping it simple by throwing the lean steak on the grill or roasting a chicken.
- When eating simple, always remember portion control, particularly on meat, nuts, cheese and starchy vegetables.
- Eating simple means having snacks readily available for mid morning and mid afternoon. Slice and cube fruits and vegetables and store in the refrigerator as soon as you get home, so they’re ready for those times you need a snack. If you buy nuts, store in individual serving size bags or containers.
- Don’t forget to make soup, especially with leftovers. You can use the left over vegetables at the end of the week to create a delicious soup. The bones from the meat or poultry can be used for bone broth.
- Add a little extra to every salad or meal by sprinkling herbs, ground flax seed, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds or leftover roasted vegetables.
Why Some People Call Alzheimer’s Type 3 Diabetes
One of the reasons I became a personal trainer in Louisville, KY was to help people stay healthier using natural methods, including exercise. Lately, there’s been a lot of promotion on food as medicine and rethinking about serious conditions like Alzheimer’s. Several studies are now considering Alzheimer’s as Type 3 diabetes. While most studies are in their infancy, there are links to insulin use in the brain and Alzheimer’s disease. It all starts with genetics in this particular case and shows that serious conditions occur from a variety of causes, not just one. It reminds us that we all are different and have different needs.
Your genes determine your risk factor.
There’s a study produced by Mayo clinic in both Jacksonville, Florida and Rochester, Minnesota that identified a specific type of the Alzheimer’s gene APOE4 (approximately fifty percent of people with Alzheimer’s have the APOE4 gene.) that affects the brain cells use of insulin, causing them to starve to death and leading to the dreaded Alzheimer’s symptoms. Since it involved the brain’s use of insulin, they called it Type 3 diabetes. People with that genetic factor pose a ten to fifteen times higher incidence of Alzheimer’s than those that don’t.
The study had a hopeful outcome.
The study first identified those they believed would be helped by delivering insulin to the brain, then created an intranasal mist to provide the insulin. The results were excellent and a great start. The decline of brain functions slowed in some patients and reversed in others. The next step is a bigger trial backed by the National Institute of Health.
What you can do until there is a cure.
If you’re at risk for diabetes, have insulin resistance or have diabetes, the best preventive measure you can take is keeping your blood sugar levels under control. One study showed that people who used medications, like Metformin, for four years, had only one fourth of the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s. Animal studies show GLP-1 receptor agonists—newer diabetes drugs—also improved memory. Even if you don’t take medication, laying off donuts and high glycemic products and eating a healthy diet can help.
- Just like controlling insulin resistance and diabetes 1 and 2, exercise is also a boost in brain health. Not only will it help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s, it also helps prevent dementia and other brain diseases.
- Besides eating a healthy low glycemic diet, eating probiotic foods, those with omega-3, vitamins D, B12 and folate can help. Lowering your carb intake and including healthy protein and fat in your diet boosts your resistance.
- Adding foods like blueberries and spinach to your diet can also reduce the potential for Type 3 diabetes.
- Control stress in your life. One of the best ways to burn off stress and enjoy that great feeling is a hard workout. Learning meditation or deep breathing can also help. My favorite, after exercise, is to be thankful. Wake up every morning and go to bed every night thinking of something you’re thankful for that day.
Changes To Improve Your Energy
There’s a lot of ways to improve your energy level that help maintain a high level. While some people automatically reach for a sugary treat, it may help for a short time, but it won’t take long and you’ll be right back to dragging around, trying to stay awake. Instead of grabbing a sugary treat, try a bottle of water to give yourself a boost. Sometimes, even mild dehydration can drain you of energy, which is often why coffee doesn’t do the trick—it dehydrates you. Water also can be helpful if you think you’re hungry. Often the body confuses the messages and sends a signal of hunger when you’re really thirsty. At those times, you’ll often find yourself craving watermelon, sodas or other foods that are filled with fluid.
Get daily exercise.
Of course, you should expect that to be on the list. I constantly tell people how much working out regularly boosts your energy level. You can get some instant help if you’re tired at work where a pushup is really inappropriate. Take a brisk walk up and down the stairs. For those with a private area, deep knee bends, jumping jacks without the jumping and even doing windmills can boost your circulation and get you back on track to feel great.
Eat healthy.
Yes, we already covered snacking on sweets, but you should consider cutting out sugary foods at every meal. Making sure you have adequate proteins, healthy fats and complex carbohydrates will provide energy throughout the day. You’ll also improve your health, which means another boost of energy and keep off extra pounds. If you’re overweight, that’s important. Being just ten pounds overweight is like carrying a ten pound weight everywhere. That certainly can sap your energy reserves. Make sure you don’t restrict your caloric intake too much. It saps you of energy and can be counterproductive for weight loss.
The no brainer is to get more sleep.
In our country, people pride themselves on burning the candle at both ends, working long hours and basically abusing themselves to achieve their work goal. In truth, it may actually harm them and impede their progress. Lack of sleep affects everything. It negatively impacts your energy level, weight loss efforts and cognitive functioning.
- When you sleep, make sure the room is dark and you have all electronic devices turned off. You’ll get the most benefits from your sleep that way.
- Build a social network or stay connected with the one you have. Socializing will help get you moving even when staying in bed or watching television would otherwise be your endeavor.
- Move more. Park further from the store, take the stairs or make an effort to get up and walk for a few minutes every hour. It keeps your circulation going and boosts your energy level.
- If your energy level is low and you’re doing everything right, get a checkup. Sometimes, feeling dragged out is a sign that something is wrong.
Ways To Boost Your Exercise Benefits
Taking time out of a busy schedule is commendable, but finding ways to boost your exercise benefits is just plain smart. Exercising isn’t normally part of every American’s day. Most people have jobs that are sedentary, so getting adequate exercise means scheduling it into their day. Those with more physical jobs often don’t get a complete workout. They may have strength style movements or endurance ones, but seldom flexibility movements. That leads to injury unless they also schedule a workout time. Here are a few ways to maximize that time and give you better results.
Use HIIT, circuit and interval training.
With the right type of workout, you can have it all in one, strength, endurance and flexibility training. Interval training is one way to do it. One type of interval training is HIIT—high intensity interval training. The difference is the intensity at the high end. Both types of training give you more benefits in less time. Circuit training uses different types of exercises, but when done with alternating intensity, becomes interval training, too. The type of exercise you use makes the difference in whether it adds strength and flexibility. Getting more for your workout time is a huge boost.
Make strength training part of your workout.
Strength training has so many benefits. It burns up calories quickly, while also burning more calories for hours even after the workout. Unlike cardio training that burns calories from both fat and lean muscle tissue, strength training builds muscle tissue. The more you have, the more calories you burn, since muscle tissue requires more calories than fat tissue does. You’ll get benefits in the gym and afterward by including strength training.
What and when you eat makes a difference.
Drink a cup of coffee before a workout, especially if you workout first thing in the morning. Studies show it boosts performance. Eat some of your daily carbs before going to the gym. Your body needs fuel for a workout and you’re far better off giving it that fuel before a workout than afterward, where the calories can go to fat. Eating your carbs ahead of time increases your overall effort and calorie expenditure, too. It also helps muscle growth.
- Exercise with a friend. You’re more likely to push a little harder when you have a friendly competition and keep on working out even if you’re tired. It’s one reason trainers help get the best results. They hold you accountable, just like an exercise buddy does.
- Don’t do strength training every day. Give your muscles a chance to heal. If you do too much without that rest, you won’t get the results you hope to achieve. In fact, it actually negatively affects building.
- Make sure you hydrate frequently. Water is your friend. I have an older client that calls it her magic elixir. Since the older you are, the quicker you dehydrate, she is absolutely right!
- Get the right amount of sleep. No matter whether you’re going to the gym or going to work, a good night’s sleep is important to keep you focused and less apt for injury. It helps you boost your intensity, too.
Working Out Lifts Your Mood
Everyone has those days when you want to scream at the store clerk, kick the dog or knock off everything on the counter. It’s often created by an extremely stressful situation that occurred earlier, but sticks with you for a long time. You can get rid of that bad mood by working out. It doesn’t take long before you feel the mood lifting back to your normal, relaxed self.
Exercise burns off the hormones of stress.
Why do you feel so much better? It’s easy. When you’re under stress, your body creates hormones for the fight or flight response. In the days of the caveman, it was extremely important. It sent the blood to the extremities, raised blood pressure, increased breathing and got you prepared to run from the danger or stay and fight. Today, stress comes from many places, yet the body still prepares as though it’s a physical threat, not the boss screaming or a traffic jam. By working out, you’re mimicking fighting or running, so you burn off those hormones that make you feel bad and replaces them with ones that make you relaxed.
Exercise helps with anxiety.
Trying something new, talking in front of a group or even worrying about your children can cause anxiety. It’s a normal part of life, unless it happens constantly and takes over your entire life. That’s when you have to take action. When it’s mind-numbing and stops you in your tracks, then it becomes a problem requiring professional help. Many therapists are now using exercise as part of their therapy for clients suffering from severe anxiety. It helps you to relax and even sleep better. You don’t have to wait until it’s out of control to start, you can use it as part of your mental wellness program. I have a client that runs up and down the stairs until she’s tired when she starts to get anxious and she says it really works.
You’ll love how you feel after you workout.
Not only does the body burn off hormones created by stress, it replaces them with ones that make you feel at ease and relaxed. When you consider that early man who had to run or fight when stress occurred, you probably already realize he or she didn’t always come out unscathed. Providing the body with a pain blocking endorphins that bind to the opioid receptors of the spine and nervous system, any injury wouldn’t be nearly as devastating. Endorphins also trigger the release of dopamine, which gives you that great feeling often called the runners high.
- If you’re going to a stressful meeting, consider walking there or parking further from the meeting place to walk more. That brisk walk can help you improve your mood.
- Learning breathing techniques and meditation can also help reduce stress immediately when you’re faced with it. That helps minimize the stress you have to deal with until you can workout.
- Exercise increases serotonin, that hormone that helps you sleep and regulates your appetite. It also helps neurons grow by increasing brain-derived neurotrophic factor.
- When you workout in the gym, it not only reduces the feeling of isolation, it takes you away from most of your problems, at least for a short period. You can get lost in your workout, relieving you from worry at least for a while.
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