Mix Fitness's Blog


Diet: A Four Letter Word

Posted in Uncategorized by mixfitness on October 13, 2009
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Did the title do it’s job?  You may be surprised to learn that it’s been used over and over again.  But, your interest is peaked.  Stop for a moment and ask yourself, “why?”  Are you still trying to lose the weight you had hoped would come off with your New Year’s resolution?  No matter the reason, a diet will only temporarily help you lose weight.  You starve yourself and deny cravings to lose weight, then go back to what you normally eat.  After resuming normal eating, the pounds creep back on.  That’s one reason why diet is a four letter word.  No one says, “I’m going on a diet….oh goodie!”

What thoughts go through your mind when you “go on a diet?”  Usually, you make yourself miserable by restricting many of the normal foods you eat.  When you eat a “restricted” food, you feel like a failure.  Then, you pig out or give up thinking the damage has been done.  How long does it take to get to that point?  One day? One week?

It’s time to take “diet” out of your weight loss vocabulary.  Until you learn to eat sensibly the majority of the time, food will always be viewed as good or bad for you.  Sure, there are foods that are “bad for you.”  But, you already know what they are.  My clients often ask me what they should be eating.  They, and you, know fried foods, gigantic portions, and copious desserts are not recommended.  But, if you eat them rarely, they won’t do much damage.

Make today the day you let yourself enjoy healthy eating most of time.  When you commit to eating well, weight will no longer be an issue.  Think colorful fruits and veggies, lean meats, and high-fiber carbs.  Of course, you still need regular exercise.  However, exercise can not do it alone.  Weight loss is most effective when you combine nutrition and exercise.  Start today!

Have you signed up for my newsletter yet?  Visit http://www.mixfitness.net to do so!  If you are on Facebook, become a fan of Reality Fitness.  It’s a fitness studio in Chicago that gives daily fitness and nutrition tips.

Interesting Facts About Fat

Posted in Uncategorized by mixfitness on August 17, 2009
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Hi blog fans!  I went to a fitness conference a couple weeks ago and got some amazing statistics about fat cells.  So, I will share these with you.  Before we get started, though, I would like to encourage you to sign up for my e-newsletter.  It’s totally free and is released monthly.  Go to http://www.mixfitness.net to join.  This will be my primary method, from here forward, in sharing fitness tips.  Announcements done….let’s go!

  • Genetic factors account for only 25% of body fatness.  That means, 75% of the reason you can become overweight is because you are not active enough and eat more calories than you burn!
  • Men gain an average of 1.25lb of fat mass per year from the ages 18-44.  Then, it slows between age 45-66.
  • Women gain an average of 0.97lb of fat mass per year between age 18-44.  Then, it speeds up to 1.14lb per year from age 45-66!
  • On average, a person has 40 billion fat cells.
  • Fat cells can swell to 3-6X in size.
  • When a fat cell can no longer increase in size, it splits – creating more fat cells and inflammation in the body.

If reading those stats don’t encourage you to go for a walk or run, then maybe reading about those who have successfully lost weight will.  Check out the National Weight Control Registry at http://www.nwcr.ws.

  • 89% of those successful at keeping the weight off report they achieved success through exercise and diet.
  • 94% indicate they increased their physical activity levels – citing walking as the primary form of activity.
  • 62% indicate watching less than 10 hours of TV per week.  How much do you watch?

I leave you with the take home message, which has been repeated in almost every post I’ve written.  Eat less and move more on a daily basis!  That’s it.  It’s simple.  No excuses!

Setting Smart Goals

Posted in Uncategorized by mixfitness on August 3, 2009
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In my last blog, I stated the reason for either doing cardio or weights first depends on your goal.  That got me thinking about goals in general.  As a personal trainer, I help my clients determine their fitness goals.  Then, put them on a path towards achieving those goals.  The number one goal I hear is related to losing weight.  And, it’s a good reason to hire a personal trainer!  But, here’s how to set meaningful goals on your own.

Setting SMART goals is an easy way to stay on track.  You can apply the SMART method to any goal you set whether it be fitness-, financially-, or career-related.  SMART is an acronym:

S – Specific

M – Measurable

A- Attainable

R- Reward-Based

T – Time-Bound

Specific – Saying “I want to lose weight” or “I want to be fit” is very broad.  What does “being fit” mean to you?  To set a specific goal, associate a number with the goal.  For example, “I want to lose 20 pounds” is specific.  Or, “I want to be able to do 10 pushups without stopping.” Or, “I am going to BodyPump on Mondays at 6pm.”

Measurable – Once you’ve set a specific amount of weight you’d like to lose, you can measure that on a scale.  So, it’s a measurable goal.  Having more energy is not a measurable goal.  You may feel like you have more energy when you regularly exercise, but it’s subjective.  Identify what about the exercise is giving you more energy.  Is it walking 3 times per week?  Lifting weights every other day?  Then, you can measure if you’re doing the amount of workouts per week you need to have more energy.

Attainable – Make sure you set a goal that you are capable of achieving.  This sounds simple, but it’s easy to have unrealistic expectations of ourselves.  Losing 10 pounds in 2 weeks is not only unsafe, but also unlikely.  That’s an example of an unattainable goal.

Reward-Based – It’s very satisfying to achieve a goal.  But, along the way, it’s helps to have something to look forward to.  That’s why before starting on your goal, you should decide what your reward will be when you reach your goal.  Make it something that will motivate you!  Maybe it’s buying a new bathing suit or maybe it’s going to your favorite restaurant and ordering whatever you want!

Time-Bound – Set a deadline to achieve your goal by.  “I want to lose 10 pounds in the next 5 weeks.”  Or, “I want to lose 15 pounds by December 1.”  Just keep in mind that if your deadline is a long way out, you may want to set some shorter goals along the way to keep you on track.

Here’s to your goals!  Leave a comment on this post about how SMART your fitness goals are and I will take 40% off your purchase of a customized fitness program.  Regularly $60 – you’ll get a 20-30 minute phone call with me and a 1-month exercise program!  Act now: offer good until August 31, 2009.

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