Step It Up-Fat Loss X-Factors

We have been talking about fat loss over the last few weeks.  Cardio and strength are the obvious but there are other factors I feel are very relevant to your success in dropping bodyfat.  Here they are…

1. Mental Focus
You need to have a clear vision of where you want to go. Something that drives you to get your butt out of bed in the morning.  Put that vision or long term goals up where you can see it each day. Also make it more tangible by adding some visual effect to it. Here’s an example. I have some serious business goals that I want to accomplish by May of next year and I need to focus daily moving towards accomplishing these goals.  I set them at  a conference put on by my coaching organization called NPE. I have this great NPE coffee mug that I fill every morning on the way to work. That visual aid reminds me of why I get up and do what I do each day. Bottom line it has to be more about just losing weight maybe it’s being there for your kids or gaining more self confidence in your business by being more fit whatever it is write it down and post it up with something visual that reminds you of where you want to go.

2. Hydration When the body is well hydrated your fat burning organ the liver works better. You also flush out excess water retention which can appear like fat.  If you are dehydrated your liver has to redirect it’s efforts to help the kidneys function better thus putting a monkey  wrench in the fat burning machinery. A good rule of thumb is to drink 1/2 your bodyweight in ounces of water every day. So if you weigh 200 pounds drink 100 ounces which equates to 12.5 8 oz glasses.

3. Sleep- Studies show people who are sleep deprived tend to gain more weight. This is attribute to higher levels of the hormone ghrelin which tells your body you’re hungry – driving you to eat more calories. So get 7-8 hours a night to nip this problem in the butt.

4. Stress- When you are under a lot of stress or aren’t managing it well you tend to release more of the hormone cortisol which leads to high blood sugar and more storage of abdominal fat. If you are feeling stressed make sure you find outlets such as exercise, meditation/relaxation techniques and give yourself downtime.  If this hormone is high it tends to drive more stress eating as well.

5. Set the environment- You need to a create an environment that motivates you. Back in the 80s when I started working out we had this little gym with heavy metal music cranking and that did it for me. I’m a hairband fan so I now use my I-Pod with my favorite music and work out at gyms and my studio which have windows and the layouts I like.  Many times a home gym just doesn’t cut it because of all the distractions or even the big industrial gym either.  Find a place that energizes you instead of sucks energy from you.

So these are a few other things to keep in mind to help you be successful in your fat loss quest. Please post any other tips you might have so others can benefit as well. The bottom line is draw up a good plan and execute it. If you don’t know how to do than than hire someone who does so you can quit wasting time and start making progress.

Erik Peacock

Puravida Fitness LLC

10551 165th Street West

Lakeville, Mn. 55044

(952)-220-2448

www. puravidafitness.com

Step It Up Part 2 Metabolic Strength Training

Last week we talked about stepping out cardio activity to stimulate your metabolism using intervals. This week we are covering strength training.  The same concept can be applied here.

Typically strength training is one using free weights or machines targeting specific muscle groups while taking rest periods between sets. This might work for a bodybuilder but most people do not want to bodybuild.

What works is moving in circuits or groups of exercise with little or no rest trying to get the heart rate up and adding in intermittent rest periods. Also focus on exercises that involve the whole body and are compound exercises. These will burn more calories, move your body in a functional manner to improve functional strength, and you can hit more muscles in less time.  Here are some examples:

Squats vs. leg Extension
Lunge to bicep curl vs. seated machine bicep curl
Step up to overhead press vs. seated overhead press

Basically total body or compound movements that use multiple joints are better than exercises that use only 1 joint.  Here is a circuit I use with myself and clients. Do 2-3 circuits of each resting one minute between circuits.

Abs/Core

Leg lift and crunch pike combo  15 reps
Alternating  turning sit ups on stability ball  10-15 reps each way
Side bend over stability ball or on edge of bench  15 reps each side

Legs
Squats any version 15 reps
Single leg squat  15 reps each leg
Stiff leg deadlift with dumbells  15 reps
Plyometric squat jumps 15 reps

Pull
Squat to row cable 15 reps
Kettlebell swing 15 reps
Reverse flyes with dumbells over stability balls 15 reps
Lateral walking with alternating dumbell curls 15 reps (go 7-8 reps and change directions)

Push
Push ups  any version   15 reps
Standing cable or rubber tubing punch step forward and press with both arms(alternate legs)  8 reps each side

Step up to overhead dumbell press alternating legs  15 reps
Tricep Dips on bench  15 reps

This gives you an idea of what a n intense metabolic fat burning workout looks like. You can substitute exercises if you like based on injuries you may have and ability.  The take home point is work hard minimize rest and get that heart rate up. You should sweat more and feel more gassed after wards.  You might even fail on some sets that’s okay push to the max because you will love the results.

Erik Peacock

Puravida Fitness LLC

10551 165th Street West

Lakeville, Mn. 55044

(952)-220-2448

www. puravidafitness.com

Fat Burning Workouts

Back in the day we were told you had to stay in the fabled fat burning zone with your cardio to burn more fat and less sugar. This was commonly taught all around the fitness realm.  Many people would drone out like zombies on some piece of cardio equipment staring vacantly ahead or even sometimes throwing towels over the time so they wouldn’t have to look at how long they had to go. 

Some kooky myths popped up like “you need to do 1 hour minimum of cardio to really burn fat and “cardio needs to be done everyday.”  These are truly fairy tales.

Here’s the deal. A 1996 study by Treuth, Hunter and Williams studied two groups of cyclists one group did intervals at 100% of their VO2 Max and the other continuous cycling at 60% of their VO2 max(The fat burning zone).  The interval group not only burned more calories during the workout but significantly more calories 24 hours post work.  Likewise another  study done by Laforgia in 1997 did a similar comparison using running and subjects who did the intervals had a much more significant amount of fat loss.

The bottom line is if you are serious about burning more fat you need to incorporate some interval training into your cardio regimen.  This will elevate your metabolism post workout for up to 38 hours. Basically burning more fat even when you might be sitting at your desk at work.  There are several ways to do this. Here are some examples:

• Spinning class or hill programs on the stationary bike
• Run/Jog or walk/jog depending on your fitness level
• Boxing/Martial Arts
• Mountain Biking
• Agility Drills/Plyometrics mixed with recovery jogging
• Basketball-hustling not standing around
• Snowshoeing/Cross country skiing on a hilly course

Here are some interval formats to use

Always do a 5-10 min warm up and cool down with each of these

• 5-6x 3 minutes of hard work at 95-100% max HR with 2-3 min recovery periods
• 4 x4 minutes at 95-100% man hr with 3-4 min recovery periods
• 8-12 x 30 sec  cranking it out with 1-2 min recovery periods

So if you are stuck on a boring cardio routine crank it up with some new intensity and creativity. Also this is very time efficient. I believe 25-30 min of intense cardio is better than 1 hour of light “fat burning” cardio. Jack up the intensity 2-3 times per week and you should start seeing that fat melt off.

Stay tuned next week as I address strength training for max fat loss part 2 of this blog series.

Erik Peacock

Puravida Fitness LLC

10551 165th Street West

Lakeville, Mn. 55044

(952)-220-2448

www. puravidafitness.com

FIVE GREAT LOW GLYCEMIC SNACKS TO KEEP YOU ON TRACK

One of the frequently asked questions I get is what do I do for snacks?  Many times I see snacks being unbalanced  with too many carbs(pretzels, crackers) or a lot of fat and protein and no carbs. Each snack should have some quality protein mixed with a healthy carb.

As always with nutrition it’s imperative that you prepare food ahead of time. Hard boil 5-6 eggs to get you through the week, buy enough fruit etc.  These snacks ideally are best between lunch and dinner and between dinner and breakfast to keep blood sugar stable and stoke the metabolism. Which are two things vital to your weight loss success.  Here are 5 good snack ideas.

#1-Blueberry Yogurt
1 C.  Low fat Greek Yogurt Plain

3/4 C. Fresh Blueberries

Add a few slivered almonds, if desired

Stevia (optional)
Mix all together, smashing some of the blueberries, to make a sweeter yogurt.

TJ’s Low-fat Greek Yogurt (plain) is a rich-tasting, but low-fat, high protein, low-carb treat! I love it in smoothies too.
 
#2-Cottage Cheese w/Fruit & Nuts
Low Fat Cottage Cheese

Grapes (red or green seedless)

Walnuts or Almonds

Cinnamon or Nutmeg
Add all ingredients, mix and enjoy
 
#3-Sesame Ginger Lettuce Wraps
1.5 pounds chicken boneless,skinless,cubed

1/3 cup cashews or peanuts

1/4/ cup grated carrot

3/4 cup mushrooms diced

1/4 cup bean sprouts

1 can diced water chestnuts

1 head of lettuce (washed)

Sesame Ginger Dressing/Sauce

Cook mushrooms and chicken until done. Add cashews, grated carrot, bean sprouts, and water chestnuts. Cook 2 minutes. Add Dressing/Sauce, heat thoroughly. Separate lettuce leaves. Spoon chicken mixture on lettuce leaves. Fold to eat. Serves 6.

Sesame Ginger Dressing/Sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1-2 tablespoons fresh ground ginger

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1-2 tablespoons hot chili oil

pinch salt

pinch garlic powder
 
 
#4-Turkey Avocado Roll

Deli Sliced Turkey – Boar’s Head is the best

Fresh Avocado (sliced)

It’s kind of like a ham and cheese roll up…except better for you! Take the turkey, and roll it around the avacodo…then enjoy! A great snack, that doesn’t spike that blood sugar!
 
#5-Hard Boiled Egg/Fruit
Hard boiled egg with whole pear or peach

#6-BONUS
Apple or pear with 1 piece of string cheese

I hope this helps. It still up to you to make sure you have them prepared for grab and go during your busy days.

Erik Peacock

Puravida Fitness LLC

10551 165th Street West

Lakeville, Mn. 55044

(952)-220-2448

www. puravidafitness.com

BEWARE OF LIQUID CALORIES

By now, you’ve probably heard the term “empty calories”.  What are they? Why are they so bad for you? How can you avoid them?

Empty Calories = High Calories but Low in Nutritional Values
 
In other words, these are calories that enter your body and provide no useful purpose other than increasing body fat.
 
Here are a few examples of “empty calorie” foods: chips; candy; French fries; all other deep-fried foods; sweetened packaged foods; refined grains such as crackers, cookies, pastries, white rice, white pasta; alcoholic beverages; etc. 
 
But the major culprit of “empty calories” are in liquid form—soda, bottled iced teas, flavored waters, artificial fruit juices, energy drinks, etc.  So before you reach for that next drink out of the vending machine or convenience store cooler, think again, you may be stifling your fitness efforts.
 
DrinksHere are a few of the “20 Worst Drinks in America 2010,” according to Men’s Health magazine:
 
#20. Worst Water: Snapple Agave Melon Antioxidant Water
(1 bottle, 20 fl oz)
150 calories, 0g fat, 33g sugars.  Sugar equivalent to 2 Good Humor Chocolate Éclair Bars. 
 
#19. Worst Bottled Tea: SoBe Green Tea 
(1 bottle, 20 fl oz)
240 calories, 0g fat, 61g sugars.  Sugar equivalent to 4 slices of Sara Lee Cherry Pie…Don’t be fooled, most bottled teas are made of two primary ingredients: water and sugar.
 
#18. Worst Energy Drink: Rockstar Energy Drink
(1 can, 16 fl oz)
280 calories, 0g fat, 62g sugars.  Sugar equivalent to 6 Krispy Kreme Original Glazed Doughnuts.
 
16. Worst Soda: Sunkist
(1 bottle, 20 fl oz)
320 calories, 0g fat, 84g sugars.  Sugar equivalent to 6 Breyers Oreo Ice Cream Sandwiches.  While all sodas get 100 percent of their calories from sugar, some are still worse than others.  Fruity sodas tend to carry more sugar than regular colas.  Orange soda relies on artificial colors yellow 6 and red 40 – two chemicals that may be linked to behavioral and concentration problems in children.
 
#14. Worst Kids Drink: Tropicana Tropical Fruit Fury Twister
(1 bottle, 20 fl oz)
340 calories, 0g fat, 60g sugars.  Sugar equivalent to two 7-ounce canisters of Reddi-Wip.  Don’t be fooled…the Twister line of ‘fruit juices’ have 10 percent juice and 90 percent sugar with artificial flavors and coloring.
 
#11. Worst Espresso Drink:  Starbucks Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha with Whipped Cream
(venti, 20 fl oz)
660 calories, 22g fat (15g saturated), 95g sugars.  Sugar equivalent to 8 and half scoops of Edy’s Slow Churned Rich and Creamy Coffee Ice Cream…and more calories and saturated fat than two slices of deep-dish sausage and pepperoni pizza from Domino’s.
 
Okay, I’m going to stop there.  Do you see a pattern here?  Lots of calories and loads of sugar. 
 
Research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has shown that it’s not uncommon for the average American to consume 800 calories or more per day through drinks along.
 
If you drink 2-3 of these “empty calorie” drinks every day, that’s up to 5600 calories per week or over 1-1/2 pounds of fat per week.
 
Extra weight isn’t the only problem associated with drinking empty calories, consuming too many calories—especially empty calories—can lead to a variety of conditions: coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea, high cholesterol, not to mention tooth decay from the sugars.
 
Your best bet, stick with water. 

Calcium and Vitamin D Enhance Heart Health Benefits of Weight Loss

Recent research has shown that overweight individuals with low calcium and dairy consumption are at increased risk of developing metabolic syndrome. These findings suggest that adequate calcium intake could create a healthier metabolic profile.

Canadian researchers investigated this issue by testing cardiovascular benefits of long-term calcium supplementation in women with low calcium intake. Healthy, overweight or obese women with a daily calcium intake of less than 800 mg/day were randomly assigned to one of two groups: a group consuming two tablets/day of a calcium + vitamin D supplement (600 mg elemental calcium and 200 IU vitamin D/tablet), or a group consuming placebo. Both groups completed a 15-week reduced calorie weight-loss program.

Significant decreases in LDL cholesterol levels, as well as the ratios of total to LDL and LDL to HDL were seen the calcium + vitamin D group. These changes were independent of changes due to fat loss and reduced waist circumference. A tendency for more beneficial changes in HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, and total cholesterol was also observed in the calcium+D group.

This was the first study to show that calcium and vitamin D enhance the beneficial effects of weight loss on cardiovascular risk factors in overweight women with typically low calcium intakes.

Major GC, et al. Supplementation with calcium + vitamin D enhances the beneficial effect of weight loss on plasma lipid and lipoprotein concentrations. 2007. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 85(1): 54-9.

LIVEWELL – Starts October 18

I’m tired of people who think they know everything there is to know about losing weight. They think it is just a simple concept.  I hear the same old boring vanilla phrases like “portion control”, eat lees move more” “low fat”  “moderation”.  It’s so redundant and it is really a bunch of BS pardon my French.

Weight loss is a complicated endeavor especially weight loss that is maintained for over five years. Did you know that only 3.9% of people who achieve their goal in Weight Watchers actually maintain it past five years. That  is a worst stat than the Vikings total offense from last Monday night’s game.

Seriously that percentage sucks. If weight loss was so simple why are we predicted to hit 75% of Americans are going to be overweight by the end of this decade. If it was as simple as cutting calories and exercising we would be going down in percentage of overweight people not up. It’s not working. We need to go deeper with weight loss.

Myself and some other dedicated wellness professionals in the area have decided to launch a new program that deals with the core issues behind weight gain things like mindset, hormones, chemical effects from food and other physiological concepts that need to be included with a solid weight loss program.

This program the new and improved LIVEWELL program features 8 classes where we get down to the nitty gritty.  People in this program can’t just sign up and take notes. No we will be not only teaching but implementing concepts through activities such as our supermarket tour, eating out a local restaurant,  potluck dinners so you learn to cook healthy and assignments given weekly by the instructors.

So here is the deal if you want to learn more about this class or are interested in signing up you need to let us know by this Friday at  12 noon. We are starting Monday nights this coming Monday (October 18)  from 7-8pm and meeting each week after that for 8 weeks straight. Just in time to get you primed for the holidays. 

Here is the best part is that since this is a beta-class we are only charging $80 which can be made in 2  monthly payments of $40.  We only have a 6 spots left so if you are serious about losing weight and keeping it off don’t make excuses on how now is not a good time because of this or that.  As a time share salesman once told me “when in life are stoplights all green”. I love that saying because guess what you will always be busy and there will always be reasons not to but here is one parting fact. If you eat an average of 100 extra calories per day over your maintenance level you will gain 10 pounds of fat per year. That’s just one cookie extra or one can of pop.

To  apply for this course call me direct at 952-220-2448 or reply to this email by this Friday at noon. After that we are shutting down enrollment.  You’ll have to wait until after the holidays for the next one. Wouldn’t you rather go in strong versus be that much further behind the 8 ball after the treacherous holiday eating period?

Dedicated to your results,

Erik Peacock
Puravida Fitness LLC
10551 165th Street West
Lakeville, Mn. 55044
952-220-2448
http://www.puravidafitness.com