Keys To A Healthy Lifestyle

My Sneaker Talks to Me

2011-05-23T10:24:00.003-07:00

One thing is certain, in this age of iPads and smart phones and Internet-connected everything: There is no shortage of cool gadgets to help you keep every aspect of your life on track.

My latest favorite is the Nike plus device on my Iphone (more here: http://www.apple.com/ipod/nike/). I wasn’t kidding, in the title: My sneakers really do talk to me. Well, the little gadget laced into my left sneaker talks to me, to be specific. It tells me when my pace slows down, for instance, or that I have 5 more miles to complete my workout.

It doesn’t hurt that the voice of the gadget on my sneaker is that of a sultry, sexy man who maybe sounds a teensy bit like John Hamm. 

There are lots of fitness gizmos out there. There always will be. One of my workout buddies, for instance, swears by the “fitbit,” (www.fitbit.com) a $99 pedometer that connects over Blu-tooth to an Internet log that gives even more options to log health-related information.

For me, the fitness gizmo that always keeps me going is the one that has my music on it. Creating playlists to go with whatever type of workout you’re up for will help with motivation. Plus, playlists are fun to put together. Imagine what type of workout you are doing – intense cardio, or deep yoga? Different songs motivate differently.

But there’s more than sneakers that talk to you, of course. Another way to get motivated is to find a workout partner. For the last 8 years I have worked out three days a week with my best friend -- and even though there has been times where it took every fiber of my being to get up at 4:30 am to meet her at the gym at 5:30, the simple fact that I know she’s going to meet me there gives me the motivation to get out there door.

What’s great about having a workout partner? Primarily, it gets you there. You won’t bail if you know someone is going to be waiting for you. Plus, you push each other further than you would if you were on your own.

The alternative is to push the snooze button, go back to sleep, and spend the rest of the day with a little nagging feeling at the back of your head, that you didn’t get your workout in (again.) Sure, maybe you accomplished a lot that day, at work, or at home. But you didn’t accomplish anything for your body.

So think about putting a fitness gadget on your Birthday wish list, and find that friend or a personal trainer who motivates you the most, and get some great tunes together. Most of all: Get movin’.

The Plan of Attack

2011-05-23T10:23:00.001-07:00

We all have something special to plan for the future, even if its 10days or 6 months away, we to have to have a plan of attack to look good for that wedding, reunion or just a sunshiny vacation, to get in shape. Well here are some suggestions to help you get started.

If you have 10 days, here is the plan:

EAT FOOD, don’t starve. It’s not good for your metabolism to go below 1200 calorie diet. Instead choose your foods wisely. Don’t eat out stay home and prepare your meals.

Cleanse your system. Although there are a lot of different types of cleansing products out there, you must be careful of which products are good for you. Try to find one that you can still eat food while you are cleansing. Do your research. I find the best cleanse is easy as this one – one liter of bubbly water, one cup of lemon or lime juice, 1/8 to ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper, ½ cup grade A maple syrup. Mix together and drink throughout the day, just one day a week. Also, make sure you eat during that day of cleanse.

Exercise, if you have been slacking in the activity department, well get back on track. Exercise is the best way to shed those lingering pounds. Even though starting exercise with in this 10 day goal won’t take of the pounds immediately, but it will get you going in the right direction.

If you have 4 to 6 weeks to your goal:

Food, aim for a 1200 to 1500 calorie diet (or as I like to say, “changing your bad food choices to good food choices”). Stick to lean meats, low sugar, fruits and green veggies, low fat dairy products, legumes and whole grains.

Journal your food and exercise intake every day. It will keep you on track and even gives you a record of what you did weeks prior.

Don’t deprive yourself of those tasty temptations. If you take away all pleasures of your favorite yummy goodness, you may find yourself resenting and then binging. Have that piece of candy or cookie or glass of wine. It’s ok, I’ll bet you will be a lot happier.

Exercise, start to change it up!!!! About this time frame your body will start to plateau and you need to change your routine. Find another class to take or try some other type of cardio machine. And as the weather starts to getting warmer and sunny, maybe try hiking or going out for a long walk. It’s always great to get out of the monotony of the gym and/or house.

If you have 4 to 6 months:

Food, mix it up. By now you have a comfortable diet plan and are well on your way to your goal. Try different healthy recipes.

How to Like your Naked Body by Christmas

2010-11-12T17:06:00.000-08:00

Everyone wants to look good naked all the time, but this is the time of year we start to snack and drink ourselves off track, which has a direct impact on how we look unclothed.

Think about it. The holiday eating season is knocking. It starts with the Halloween candy. Then, less than a month later, the Thanksgiving gorge, followed by Christmas cookies and candies and cocktail weenies. Then, we bubbly ourselves through New Years Eve. That’s four major eating/drinking events, in two months. No other period of time contains this much eating/drinking temptation.

Let’s keep you on track! Close your eyes and imagine how good you want to look naked by Christmas. Imagine that sweet little dress you want to wear at your company holiday party, or that new tankini you got for your escape to Hawaii for Christmas.

We have two months, my friends, and a lot can be accomplished in that time frame. But time is limited. To get serious you must start now.

Start with a plan to be active every day. Now is a good time, for instance, to get to the gym and try out the latest and greatest group exercise classes. If you don’t have a gym membership, then bundle up and walk outside. Grab 5 lb dumbbells and pump your arm while walking. Do some walking lunges. At stop signs, do some squats. Who cares if someone is watching? It’s not about them. It’s about how you want to look naked. Keep the goal in sight.

At the same time, turn up the knob on how attentive you are to what you eat. Plan your meals through the eating season. Plan for healthy snacks. On days that end with holiday parties, eat healthy and drink lots of water before you go. Eat your healthy meal at home, and when you are at the party, stay near the veggie tray.

Another angle for staying on track is to challenge yourself. At my studio starting November 15 to December 15, I am challenging my clients to do 30 days of Pilates or some sort of workout to stay on track. I will be monitoring progress throughout the month. Yes, I’m taking measurements and body fat calculations, and naming a winner at the end. The winner gets a 5 pack of Pilates classes.

Since many, if not most of you are not nearby my studio, do it on your own. Challenge yourself at your local gym or at home. Most gyms will test your body fat and take your measurements. Keep a journal of your progress, and when the 30 days are up, reward yourself with something you always wanted. Or, just strip down and see how much you like what you see. If you stick to your plan, you will see results --- which will shore you up to keep it going through the holidays.

Getting Back on Track

2010-11-01T15:49:00.003-07:00

Here’s one from the Department of Personal Experience: When you are bombarded with extra-curricular obligations, at too high a rate, for too many consecutive days, no matter how organized you are, you’re taking a toll on yourself.

I am a hyper-organized person. It makes people close to me nuts sometimes. By mid-summer, for instance, I’m already pretty sure what’s happening for Thanksgiving. I’m always 10 minutes early, wherever I go, which makes people I meet with regularly feel like they’re always 10 minutes late, they tell me.

Being organized tends to impart a feeling of control. You have a plan, you will not deviate from the plan, and if you do, you will find a way back to the plan. You are in control. Right?

Not always. Case in point: During the month of August, I had an unexpected house guest who required a lot of attention. It was an old friend, going through some stuff, and no the timing wasn’t great, but, old friends are old friends.

The following week, two expected houseguests arrived. Then, a business trip. Then, more house guests, who stayed for a while.

By the middle of it, my head was spinning. I was exhausted. I’m accustomed to and enjoy living a fairly busy life, usually with a pretty hectic routine – but this was different. Amid menu planning and finding activities for my guests, I found myself obsessing about how to get my life back to NORMAL.

This made me take an inventory of what “normal” means for me. It included these basic questions:

• Did I work out? Yes or no?

• Did I get a healthy amount of “us time” with my sweetie? Yes or no?

• Am I getting healthy amounts of "me time" / alone time?

• Am I eating healthy? Yes or no?

• Am I falling asleep and staying asleep? Yes or no?

• Am I drinking enough water; taking enough deep breaths?

• Am I living in moderation, when it comes to adult beverages?

At the end of it, I realized I was doing really great … on drinking lots of water. (Woo hoo!) But that’s about it. It follows that too many “no’s” means things are not normal.

When life’s anticipated and unanticipated intensities gets you down, re-align by reminding yourself who you are when you’re feeling healthy and at ease. Find your goals again. Or, if they don’t do it for you any more, set some new ones.

In my case, I took a bigger step – like changing my schedule to get a full weekend back in my life. That was pretty major, because it meant

So You Had a Bad Day

2010-11-01T15:49:00.001-07:00

So, you had a bad day. Well, gee, just take 10 deep breaths, examine how bad it was, and see about putting it back together, right? Right. Just like that.

The economy is still in the toilet, and times are still tough. When times are tough, people aren’t always, shall we say, their best selves. In the latest (October 2010) issue of Vanity Fair, editor Graydon Carter observes that “America … seems to be just plain angry, all the time.” He calls it “the anger movement.”

When you’re trying to survive and thrive in the midst of an “anger movement, it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s especially hard to do so and talk about it, without sounding like a sap.

Still, I like to think that it’s always there.

Without going into a whole lot of me-me-me, let me just say that being a small business owner, operating a boutique Pilates studio south of Denver, has its stressful moments. Cable TV subscriptions stayed steady through the recession, which perhaps explains the spike that didn’t happen in the fitness sector.

I try not to let it upset me too much. Bad or good, things usually fall into two categories: Lesson learned, or action item.

Still, there are those days when I get home and Just. Can’t. Shake. It. Off. In these glowering moments, exercise works best for me. Rather than sitting around in a funk, plotting revenge, I get the dogs collared-up for a hike, or (on really really bad days ;-) go for a run.

Listening to some kick butt music also works almost every time to get myself recharged. (My top 3 kick-butt recharge songs: Dancing with myself by Billy Idol, Save it for Later by English Beat and OMG.. by Usher.) I always end my day with a journal entry, and finish with meditation.

So, while I can’t take away your or my bad days, my suggestion is to remember the endorphin. It will kick you into gear. Remember it early, if you can – even a brisk walk around the block (try jogging one leg of it.) It’s almost as good as coffee to kick start at day, set your mind at ease, and set up the day straight.

As optimistic as we can or should be about life, there are just some days that will bother us more than others. (“Momma said there’d be days like this, there’d be days like this, Momma said!”) Do the best you can to shake it off. Remind yourself that tomorrow is a new day.

The more we keep a positive attitude about our everyday life, the more positive it will be.

Tips To Get Some Action in Your Life

2010-11-01T15:48:00.001-07:00

Lots of times, when interviewing and being interviewed by prospective clients, I run into the “yes, but.” They want to live a healthier lifestyle, and they know it will involve making lifestyle changes. BUT, (fill in the blank here – your schedule’s too busy, you’re swamped with work, the kids, the travel…)

First of all, give yourself a big clap on the back for recognizing that if you want to live a healthy lifestyle, you’ll need to make some lifestyle changes. And that’s as much coddling as you’ll get there, because let’s face it, those are excuses. Right? Or, at best, you have prioritizing issues.

So here’s what you do. I know this because I’ve been there: You make the commitment to put activity back in your life, and hit the ground practically sprinting. You work out seven days in a row, hard core. And a few years later, you realize that your life is patterned around having this strange, two month bouts of intense activity, at the end of which you pulled something, and you need to take a break.

Sound familiar? I thought so.

Small changes, friends. Start slow, work up. We are not children anymore.

Start by being realistic about your day-to-day activity level. How active are you, and what openings do you have in an average day to put in some exercise? You want to be as active as possible without getting hurt. That’s the goal. This, of course, depends on where you are in life: Raising kids, flat-out career-mode; free time on weekdays or weekends. Here’s a few pointers to get started:

For those of you who sit at a computer most of the day:

• STAND UP. Get up every half hour or so, if you can.

• Stretch; move around. Stretch your hands; pinwheel your arms around.

• Take the stairs, not the elevator. (For those of you above the 10th floor: Plan walkups for days when you’re not schlepping too much STUFF.)

• Talk a walk at lunch, especially if you eat at your desk.

• Look at your calendar, and find a time (include drive time) for an hour at the gym for weight training, or pilates, or yoga, or cardio. Repeat for at least 2 other days each week; preferably more. STOP. Do this right now. 

For those of you who are stay-at-home Moms and Dads:

• Go for a walk with the kid(s). Pop that little one into a jogging stroller and hit the trail.

• Don’t just go to the park – play at the park. For starters, who doesn’t love the swings? Great way to stretch your legs and your back

Finding Your Goals to Good Health

2010-09-12T18:36:00.001-07:00

As individuals, we have to define our own goals and use them as our guide. Goals are targets and can (should) be changed as our situations change. We target ourselves for a certain weight or exercise. Perhaps it is exercise related, running a marathon or triathlon, swimming in a race or maybe there are exterior goals such as rock climbing, skydiving or hang gliding. Whatever the case, write it down and have a plan for how you’ll achieve those goals, and DO IT.

What has always helped my through my goals in good health is finding something that I want to train for. For example, every year I walk 39 miles for Breast Cancer. It takes a lot training but I love it because it gives me a goal to get in better shape. I look at my diet and make small changes. I schedule my workouts in my calendar. It gets me motivated. Now, that is a ‘once a year’ event for me and my colleagues. Each year I strive to hit the goal and God-willing I am able to do so. But I think goals are about reaching higher, further than you possibly could imagine. What do I mean? It’s called ‘stretch goals’. What is it you want to accomplish, and can you improve that by 10%? Maybe 20%? Back to my annual walk. Those 39 miles are tough, and in two days that is like combining a marathon and a half! I’m beat and totally tired after the walk…and yes, no running is allowed. I have a certain time to get done, but I would like to beat it (I’m that competitive). How do I stretch my goal? I keep walking a bit faster each mile, put myself on a pace to get done early.

Achieving good health and living a healthy lifestyle is not hard to do. Set your goals and keep them front and center. You’ll find yourself doing thing better than you could possibly imagine and reaching higher than ever.

Positive Reinforcement

2010-08-21T08:19:00.000-07:00

What’s Better: “Drop And Give Me 50, You Fat Cow,” or “Good Going, Let’s Try for Five More”?

Recently, I was watching an episode of The Biggest Loser, a program dedicated to helping very overweight people lose weight. I was aghast to see one of the trainers yelling, screaming and downright humiliating one of the contestants. This guy clearly was in no shape, physically or psychologically, for the sort of exercise he was asked to do.

I get it that some of us respond better to encouragement, while others of us respond better to fear and guilt – but even so, it was just too much. In my view, getting healthy doesn’t deserve yelling and screaming. There’s a behavior aspect that needs to be adjusted. This particular guy on TV was ridiculed to no end. I did see some positive strides being made, but no positive feedback.

How can anyone treat another human being that way? (Don’t answer that. ;-) It’s vulgar and mean, and I just don’t train that way. If I treated my clients that way, I wouldn’t have clients! Leave the yelling and screaming to the military boots camps. As for the rest of us – we’re training for healthier lives, not for the killing fields, for heaven’s sake.

Positive reinforcement is the way. If we don’t get positive reinforcement, how can we feel good about what we’re doing, let alone move forward? I’m not suggesting we need to be coddled and hand-held every step of the way. I’m saying it’s good to know when you’re doing a great job. Feeling good makes even really hard goals feel achievable.

Some clients ask me regularly about their fitness achievements, and what they can be doing to get to their next level. I love that they ask me! It makes me feel like I’m actually helping them get to their goals, and that they’re truly interested in succeeding. It’s a win-win.

With clients who don’t ask so much, I lay on the positive reinforcement anyway -- how much better they’re doing, how much more balanced they are in their workouts. I’d rather say “great job, go for 10 more,” than “drop and give me 50, you fat cow.”!

It’s important to take positive reinforcement into our everyday lives, too. Beyond workouts. “The Secret” is not such a big secret anymore, and parts of it are right on: Staying positive in life ia great way to get through your day. When you come upon negativity that brings you down, take a few deep breathes and re-frame it. Find the positive. It’s always there. And with it, we can get through any pretty much any obstacle that’s trying to block our way.

So there!

Tune Up With Touch

2010-07-28T09:20:00.000-07:00

Next to yoga and meditation, I rank massage right up there as a valuable and useful (and heavenly!) way to relax. There are certainly different ways to ease the mind and body, but for me, it's massage.

We all have a tendency to give up what is important to us, to make room for conference calls, meetings and errands -- and before we know it, we feel burned out. Taking the time out of a busy day to get a massage is one of the most important ways to heal the body, mind and spirit.

Massage therapy is especially helpful for de-stressing the muscles around your neck and shoulders, where most people hold tension.

When you have relieved muscles, you can perform better at your workouts and your everyday life. A professional massage therapist knows where to touch, how much pressure to apply, and how to make a difference.

Finding the right massage therapist takes some research. Obviously, you want to find the best fit for you. Start by asking friends whom they recommend -- bearing in mind that everyone will swear they have the best massage therapist EV-er. ;-)

Before you hop up on the table, do ask the clarifying questions, which really do matter: How long they been in massage therapy? (One of my Denver favorites, Carolina Gosselin, has been performing massage therapy for so long, she very literally rubbed the fingerprints off her fingers!)

Where did they acquire their certification? What kind of massage therapy do they perform? And most importantly, just see if you connect with them. There’s nothing worse than showing up at your appointment, only to feel ill at ease, for whatever reason.

What if you don’t feel comfortable? You have two choices: Stay and tough it out, or get up and leave. I tried the first path once, at a chain that offered cheap-cheap-cheap ($30) massages – and ended up with a severely stiff neck for several weeks afterwards. I knew as soon as she started jamming her elbow into my neck that it didn’t feel good, but I stayed quiet, stayed polite. I should’ve gotten up and left. Do have the courage to get up and walk out.

(Massage Etiquette 101: Just as it’s tacky to ask for a doggy bag at an all-you-can-eat buffet, don’t get up and walk out 55 minutes into your one hour massage. If it’s not working, leave within the first 10 to 15 minutes.)

Taking the time for massage is very important for your mind, body and soul. An hour every two weeks is ideal (and luxurious!). If you can’t commit to the ideal, then try once a month. Even once a quarter is better than none.

Here are some links to help you find the right massage therapist for you:

www.finda.com

The Punishment of Gluttony

2010-07-25T07:11:00.000-07:00

Independence Day: A time to rejoice the birth of our nation, celebrate our individual and collective independence … and watch 20 or so big eaters go nuts gorging on Nathan's Famous Weiners, in their 94th annual hot dog eating contest?

No really. I’ll spare you the flatulent details, but suffice it to say there were well over 400 hotdogs (with buns) eaten by these bingers. Fans cheered and rooted on their 'heroes'. The winner, in fact, slammed down FIFTY FOUR HOT DOGS in 10 minutes. It probably won’t come as any big surprise that my mind wandered off to the dangers of overeating.

Hey. We all go off our 'program' at times. What’s most important isn’t as much the recognition of our 'sin' as how we handle it afterward. On Independence Day weekend, we find ourselves focused on fireworks, togetherness, celebration and re-birth....but let’s be realistic. We also find ourselves focused on potato salad and cheeseburgers and beers and ice cream.

None of this is bad - unless you go overboard and cannot control the difference between what your mouth wants, and what your body needs. If you find yourself eating too much, which many of us do, don't feel so bad. It happened. It's over. Turn the page and start fresh. Put some distance between that “bad eating day” and many good days, and, soon enough, it’ll be in the rear-view mirror.

A good way to keep your food mentalities in check is to apply the 80/20 rule. 80% of the time we should eat well and healthy and drink lots of water. And 20% of the time we should be human! ;-)

Live a little! Have some fun. I think the 80/20 ratio is a great way to stay healthy in body and mind.

We all fall down. It's how quickly we get up and make the right choices that’s the difference between 10 “vanity” pounds that could go, and 50 “health-impacting” pounds that must go.

So on those holidays that invite overeating and drinking, have fun. Then, as soon as you can, get back on track.

Working With Your Personal Ideal

2010-07-18T10:47:00.001-07:00

So you don't feel like Wonder Woman today? Cut yourself some slack. Which is not the same as slacking off.

When we wake up each morning, sometimes we can smell the coffee, and sometimes not. Let’s face it: We don’t always wake up at our personal best. Not enough sleep. Too much stress. Too much on the to-do list.

Distractions, real and imagined, prevent us from consciously committing to being our best selves.

As a trainer, and having worked in the fitness industry for over 15 years, I’ve developed a keen sense of intuition about how my clients are doing on any given day -- often without them even speaking a word to me.

Yes, friends, I can tell when you’re stressed, tired, sick, or just a little ho-hum. I’ve seen you when your energy hits me like a tidal wave, and I’ve seen you when your energy hits me like a faucet trickle. My job is to create a workout for you that jives with your vibes.

It works better for me, though, when we work together. When you go to see your trainer, or your yoga instructor, or your pilates class, and you’re feeling like a 3 out of 10, don’t overcompensate. Toning it down a little is not a bad thing!

Our bodies get overworked and stressed out and yes! Exercise aids in all of that. No doubt. But it’s all relative, and it’s important to factor in some reality about how hard to push ourselves at any given point in time.

So if you’re a 3 out of 10, take it down a notch for today. Maybe a little less incline on the treadmill, or, if you lift, drop your weights back a few pounds. Do fewer repetitions, do whatever it takes to get you through your workout. Importantly, get THROUGH it. You’ll feel satisfied that you did. Maybe it’ll even bring you up to a 5.

Be conscious about wanting to work at your personal best, but know that it’s not always possible. Every day is a new day. Maybe tomorrow you’re rested and ready to take on the world. Then you can push yourself a little harder. As with everything, seek balance and consistency.

At the end of a longer timeframe, say a month or two, you will see the difference in your results. Write it down, if that works for you. I write down in my journal daily about how I’m feeling, what may have influenced me and what kind of energy I had. Was I high energy or low energy? Did I give it my all, and if not why? I ask more questions about my own behavior because it teaches me what works, for me, to try to live healthy.

And hello: This is not an invitation to slack. Be very honest with yourself. Tag a low energy day as such, but go do your workout. Get through it. Don’t skip it.

Relax, Meditate, Slow Down

2010-07-09T14:18:00.000-07:00

Relax. Meditate. Slow Down.

Along with making definitive room for your workout in your busy schedule, you do need to get a little relaxation. Sounds counter-intuitive, but, so are lots of things! The world is yin and yang, black and white, good and evil. Life needs balance, you need balance. Without balance you are stressing too hard on one side vs. the other.

In short: To keep your mind, body and spirit healthy, you need to carve out some quiet time.

Do it by finding 30 minutes a day to sit quietly. (This will be the hardest part, finding the time!)

If you’re familiar with meditation, all the better. If not, just sit still. Sit in a quiet room: No TV, no radio, no iPod, no screens. Just sit quietly. Try to clear your mind. Try to think of nothing. Yes it’s hard to do, but with some practice you can calm the mind. If your mind is totally corkscrewed into a motor-head realm, start with 5 minutes. Work your way up to 30. Set an alarm, so you don’t have to worry about how many minutes have passed.

Why stillness and meditation matters: It helps aid in stress relief, sicknesses, and above all, peace of mind.

Here are some techniques that can help:

Count Your Breaths. That’sright, just count. Count every inhale, count every exhale. It’s a way to clear the mind that you can do even when you’re walking.

Follow Your Breaths. This means focusing more intently on your breaths. If you’ve taken yoga, you’ve heard the line “go to your breath.” This is a variation. Relax, breathe. In through your nose, out through your mouth; in through your mouth, out through your nose, doesn’t matter. Just focus on filling your lungs with air.

Visualize. Go to your happy place, in other words: Think about the cool breeze of the beach, the sunset, a very delicious mango shake or whatever you feel like thinking about, as long as it is positive. Not only will you start to relax. You really will reduce tension and stress.

Want more?Here’s a useful web site for further meditation techniques:

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-491/Meditation-Techniques-for-Beginners-Demonstrated-by-Deepak-Chopra-Video.html

Turning it OFF will Turn you ON

2010-07-09T14:17:00.002-07:00

Here’s a reality sequence that may sound familiar: You come home from a long day at work. You put your stuff down, look in the fridge, scrounge up some dinner -- and sit down in front of the screen. Doesn’t matter what screen it is – TV, laptop, family PC, iPad. It’s a screen. You sit in front of it. It’s a habit.

Perhaps this is obvious, folks, but in case it’s not: Screens are a habit. The bad news is, they’re a sedentary habit. We SIT in front of our screens.

The good news is, just like rules, habits can be broken. We look our screens day in, day out, week after week, month after month. We get tons done! Right? (And they’re a plausible refuge, right? “I have to work.”)

Get UP. Stop thinking so much. Move your body. Push your body! Go for a walk around the block, for starters, or pretend you’re a Marine. Drop and gimme 50! (Ok, 10. To start.)

Head too busy? Ok, get out another tool: Your music. I often work out with my iPod. It doesn’t quiet the brain’s restlessness, in making lists and multi-tasking, but it can drown it out for a while.

Or, go to the farthest extreme: Unplug. Disconnect your satellite or cable subscription, and back off on the Hulu and the YouTube, too. Go look at the bugs in your garden. Count the bees. Pull a weed or 10. Bitch about the Miller moths, this time of year. Just keep your eyes off of the screen.

The best way to become a former couch potato is to stop spending so much time there. End up there, instead of starting there.

Whatever you choose to do, understand that it's not all that bad, but like anything good it’s best for the physiology of your body to choose moderation over excess. That goes for the screens, too.

So here’s an alternative. Come home from work, put your stuff down, and change into something more comfortable. Something you’d wear to, say, go for a walk, or a run, or a hike, or a bike ride. If your brain is too busy, plug in to some tunes.

This isn’t news to you, right? You know this, and you know what to do. I’m just here to remind you to apply some discipline. Get your eyes off the screen. Turning it off you will turn it ON!!!!! Try it. Tell me what happens.

A Positive Attitude is Extremely Contagious

2010-07-09T14:17:00.001-07:00

So far so good: You wake up each morning knowing that you have to work out, especially when you’re trying to lose weight. From there, you start the conversations with yourself – to get motivated to go to the gym, go for a run, or to just curb a food craving.

How to break the bad habits that shunt forward progress? Start with that conversation. Keep it positive. Positive self-talk is an invaluable tool when it comes to changing behaviors – either to lose weight, or to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

I just can’t say this enough: Staying positive while taking the steps to better your health is what will deliver you to success.

It follows that when you work out, you’ll feel exhilarated and positive, which continues you on the journey.

Attitude is everything. Take a look at yours. Are you negative? Do you get all over yourself at the first mis-step? Find all kinds of good reasons to postpone your good health?

Stop. Re-frame. How do you re-frame your attitude? What works for me is to think of something funny. Smile. It doesn’t have to be “Pollyanna” – goody two-shoes humor. You know what funny is to you. Go there.

Do what it takes to nourish a positive attitude, which will direct your perspective, which will give you control over being motivated. It’s all connected.

And it does snowball. The more you stay positive, the more it becomes contagious. Next time you’re feeling stressed, or that you’ve hit a wall, or that you’d rather do any of a dozen other things than get your butt in gear, stop. Re-frame.

Ask yourself: How do I WANT to feel today?

Hint: Try “I want to feel fabulous.” Tell me what happens. J

Will and Desire - If they can do it, you can, too!

2010-07-09T14:16:00.002-07:00

Last Sunday my husband and I took the dogs out for a run, and saw the inspiration for this particular post. It was a man, an older man, walking with a walker on a trail. He had to be in his late 80s. Smile on his face. Whistling. I turned to Ross and said, now that’s what it means to have the will and the desire to keep moving. I hope when we’re that age, we still have that will and desire to MOVE, just get out there and smell the sweet summer air and move the body.

I don’t know what external or internal factors caused the man on the trail to require a walker. The moment passed without any conversation.

But it reminded me of another inspiration of an older man, also instilled with the desire to keep moving. My grandfather. We called him Popa. He had poliomyelitis as a child, and was very sick, for a very long time. We hardly think of polio now, because we’re vaccinated against it when we’re young. But for people who grew up in the early part of the 1900s, polio was a hideous, literally crippling viral disease.

Popa overcame his polio, but for the majority of his life, he wore braces on his legs to keep him stable.

I bet you can guess where I’m going with this. Yes. Popa was an exercise anamoly, especially in that timeframe. He wanted to be strong. He lifted weights, and even went out to the back fence to do squats and stretches. Meaning, he not only had the will and desire to be strong – he also had to do it without a gym membership, or a personal trainer. In the lingo of that (Depression-era) timeframe, he had to "make do with nothing new." And he hardly missed a day.

We are surrounded by people who’ve experienced debilitating accidents, loss of limb(s), partial paralysis, you name it. And guess what: They lift weights, play basketball, ski, surf -- you name it, they do it. They have the will and desire to keep moving.

So I guess what I'm trying to say here is simply this: HEY YOU. Hey you with the two working hands, arms, legs and feet. You with the perfectly fine heart, lungs, internal organs. Get it together. Keep moving.

Because you can.

There Are No Shortcuts

2010-07-09T14:16:00.001-07:00

Maybe this sounds familiar: You're in your 30s or 40. You’ve been battling a bulging belly for years. You’re driving down the road one day, and there it is! The miraculous cure, up there on the billboard: “CALL NOW TO LOSE WEIGHT FAST.”

Maybe it’s the Lap Band, or some other elastic band miracle. Maybe it’s gastric bypass, to go to the most formidable extreme.

Really? Could this work? Should you call the number?

Guess what, friends: It all comes back to one thing, and that’s mind over matter. Being conscious and deliberate and intentional about what you want for your body. Because “get rich quick” schemes (or, in this case, “get skinny quick” schemes) are just that: Schemes.

Repeat after me: Physical modifications do not change the behavior of the mind.

Nor do habits change easily. Eating the whole pie, or three burgers with fries, or polishing off six meals a day? Not good choices. Healthy living is about a slow and deliberate walk toward good choices. Healthy living isn’t a speed round!

Try this: Instead of going for the quick fix, try for 21 straight days of intentional “sobriety” about whatever it is. Three weeks of taking a deliberate stand, thought by thought, about what you want out of your fitness life. Whether it’s about eating less, drinking less, or exercising more, you can make it happen. One thought at a time.

Tracking Your Progress

2010-07-09T14:15:00.000-07:00

When I only see clients occasionally, it’s hard for me to know what’s going on in their “fitness lives.” Some journal their time in the gym, which is great. It gives me a better idea of what they’re doing, which helps me to fine-tune our time together. I strongly recommend it!

Yes, yes, it’s hard to write everything down. I’ll soon be up with a “Get Movin’ with Jaime” hot list of things to get you on your way. But until then, a few tips on how to make a fitness journal that works for you.

For starters, the raw materials: There’s no shortage of journals and journaling books on the market. An Amazon.com search produced 423,542 results! From workouts to calories to enlightenment to parenting, journals exist. Such resources can be very useful -- but you don’t need to spend a pile of money on a journal. A spiral-bound notebook is just as effective. The important part is to put the pen on the paper regularly.

Next: What to write. The basics include notes about your workouts, exercises, diet. Goals, achievements, ideas. Your energy goes where your mind goes, so keep it positive – if you’ve had an off week, filled with commitments and perhaps more food/drinks than you’d like, don’t beat yourself up about it.

Why did I eat that ice cream cone (or drink that extra glass of wine) when I didn’t need it? How do I work out when life is such chaos? It was cold and rainy and I just wanted to stay in bed – these things happen. Life isn’t perfect, fitness isn’t perfect. The trick is to just keep going. Then write it down.

For me, journaling is almost an out-of-body experience. I write it all down – what went well, what didn’t go well. It’s a release of stress (good and bad!). It’s an internal feedback mechanism, which helps me to make adjustments. Refreshing older goals, and setting new goals.

Stuck in a Rut?

2010-07-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

'Stuck in a rut and can’t dig your self out’?

Scenario: My client came to me today with a challenge, she said to me that she feels stuck in a rut and can’t get out of it. So I asked her a few questions to see where we need to make changes to her program. She works out 3 days a week with me and can’t find the time to do more on her own. As mentioned in my last blog, you have to make commitments for yourself and place them in your calendar.

We changed her cardio program to going to spinning classes (as she input the classes into her schedule) and started her on a circuit weight training session with me at my studio. TBD on her progress.

We all get to this point of our workouts and feel like we keep digging that hole. Here are a few things for you to start doing to get you on that path again. You must look at what you are doing in your workouts and make modifications to them. CHANGE IT UP!!!!! Try a new class or try a circuit weight training (add cardio and weight in the same work out) (10 minutes cardio and 10 minutes of weights and do 3 sets of each in that same session). If you are stuck in a rut in the gym, then go outside for workouts. Run stairs, hike, bike, swim, etc…. Whatever it is you like to do outside, go out and DO IT!!!!!!

"The most important thing to do if you find yourself in a hole is to stop digging."

~Warren Buffett~

No Time You Say? MAKE TIME

2010-07-09T11:16:00.001-07:00

Seize the Day!

We all come up with excuses and we have a million of them. I'm too tired, I have to wash my hair, it's too hard, gotta make dinner. We have all used em and heard em. Well it’s time to stop making excuses and get up and move. As I mentioned in my previous blog, you can make the change. But only when you are ready, will you know.

As most people are on a calendar, schedule, etc… why not make an appointment to workout? If you write it in your schedule you will make it happen. You wouldn’t miss a hair cut or hair color for that matter would you?!?

The best way to do this is find that time of day which works best for your energy. Personally, I’m a morning person. If I don’t workout in the morning I find it harder to get motivated to workout in the afternoon or evening, but I do it anyway. Out of the 24 hours in your day, isn’t there one hour you can find to move your body? Say it isn’t true!!!! You can find the time if you are ready to commit to getting healthy.

Some other ways to make the time is find a workout buddy, a neighbor, friend or hiring a personal trainer. Having someone with you while you work out is very motivating and inspiring. It also makes the workout go that much faster. If it’s a cardio or toning class you like to take at your local gym then put that class in your schedule every week.

You can make the time and before you know it, you will celebrate that hour you took taking care of yourself.

~ Open your heart and mind to new possibilities and you can have a memorable and pleasurable experience ~

Change - It Starts Right Now

2010-07-09T11:05:00.000-07:00

Change is hard for most people. It requires a lot of will and desire to make that change. My business partner said it the best “One of the best days of your life is when you decide you’ve had enough and you decide to change”. Well I agree. Making changes is like making habits. It takes two weeks to start or end a habit.

You must ask yourself these questions and look at your lifestyle. For example, are you?

Sitting at a desk
Sitting in a car
Sitting in front of a TV
Sitting in front of a computer
Eating out at restaurants
Drinking alcohol
Eating fast food or junk foods
Staying up late/not getting enough sleep

The best way to get started would be writing down your goals as a checklist. To start making changes you must start out with having a small goal and a big goal. Baby steps are the only way you won’t get burned out so fast. Try these few changes

Being active in general (taking the stairs, walking instead of driving, standing instead of sitting, etc.)
Doing cardio exercise, walk on the treadmill or take the dog out for a walk
Strength training for all muscle groups. Joining a health club and find a weight training class
Preparing your own meals and snacks and eating fruits, veggies and wholegrains

If you can just think of moving for one hour a day, you will start seeing changes in your habits. Then you will make changes to how you are moving. You will be surprised on how good you feel and want to continue on your journey to making those goals happen.

Coming Soon – “No time you say? Make time”.