If You Want To See Remarkable Results

An acquaintance of mine approached me yesterday. She had heard about Weighting on 40 and was interested in the information here. So she spilled all of the details about her weight gain, and her approaching wedding, and wanting to be thin for her big day. In short she wants to lose 60 pounds in 10 months. That’s certainly not impossible. In fact it’s a very realistic goal. The kicker is that in order to accomplish that goal, she’s going to have to work for it.

In our short conversation, I attempted to talk her out of her original idea of starving herself and encouraged her to exercise while eating a sensible, healthy diet. Her idea of exercise, unfortunately, was limited to walking a mile every evening. While better than sitting on the couch watching American Idol, that’s probably not going to help her achieve the kind of results she’s looking for.

Her body is used to walking. It’s been doing it for YEARS. In fact, she does it EVERYDAY. And in spite of all that walking, she finds herself in a body she’s not happy with. She needs to challenge her body, get her heart rate pumping, make her muscles work. A stroll around the neighborhood just isn’t going to cut it.

In order to accomplish remarkable results, you need to make remarkable changes.

Please don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying that walking a mile every evening isn’t worth doing. Just don’t expect to accomplish something remarkable (like losing 60 pounds of fat in 10 months) doing it.

Let’s look at the numbers. A pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories. In order to rid your body of just one pound of fat, you need to create a deficit of 3500 calories through exercise while at the same time, limiting the amount of calories consumed (try to stay away from those donuts). A 200 pound person, walking at a somewhat leisurely pace of 2.5 miles per hour is only going to burn 109 calories during that mile-long evening stroll. At that rate it’s going to take over a month just to rid your body of just one measly little pound of fat.

If you want to see how many calories your body will use during a certain activity, check out Health Status’s calorie calculator. They have results for everything from brushing your teeth and mopping the floor to lifting weights and cycling. You might be surprised just how few calories your body uses during your favorite exercise. (This is one very good reason You Can’t Out-Train A Bad Diet.)

So if walking your dog around the neighborhood isn’t going to cut it, what exactly is? Try reading Exercise for Fat Reduction, but before you do there are a few other things to consider. Fortunately Keith walks you through the steps and tells you all about Getting Started With Physique Transformation.

Exercise Myths

They are plastered all over the covers of women’s magazines, affirmed by crazy infomercials touting the benefits of the latest exercise contraptions, and perpetuated by conversations with your girlfriends over steaming lattes. It’s challenging enough just to get to the gym while avoiding the cheese danish beckoning you from the local bakery display case. Don’t let these common exercise myths weigh you down.

Myth 1: If I stop exercising, my muscle will turn into fat.

Reality: While it’s true that if you stop exercising you will begin to lose some of the muscle tone you’ve worked so hard to develop, that muscle will not turn into fat. Muscle and fat are two entirely different tissues and it is impossible for one to morph into the other. Muscle cannot become fat, and fat cannot become muscle. However, a decrease in muscle size (which is very likely to happen if you nix your workout routine), makes your body burn fewer calories in a resting state. Add that to the calories you are no longer burning during exercise, and there’s a very good chance for your body to lay on some extra fat.

Myth 2: Weight training will make me bulky.

Reality: Weight training will not make women “bulk up”. They just don’t have the levels of testosterone (at least not without the aid of injected steroids) to develop big, bulky, hulk-like muscles. What weight training will do is help your body become leaner and reduce body fat percentage. Weight training also helps increase bone density, balance, and strength. So don’t be afraid of the free weights.

Myth 3: If I exercise long enough, I’ll get the body I’ve always wanted.

Reality: It’s not necessary (or even advisable) to spend hours upon hours in the gym. Exercise quality is just as important, probably even more important, than quantity. Walking at a slow to moderate pace for an hour every day isn’t going to yield fabulous results in the weight loss department, and you’re probably going to get frustrated over time. Increasing the intensity of your workouts may be far more important than increasing the duration. By utilizing High Intensity Interval Training (or HIIT), you can shorten the duration of your cardio workouts to no longer than 30 minutes, and still achieve great calorie-burning effects. For more detailed information be sure to read Keith’s article, HIIT vs. Steady-state Cardio

Myth 4: If my muscles aren’t sore, then I didn’t have a good workout.

Reality: A lot of people will judge the effectiveness of their workouts by how sore they feel the following day, but you don’t need to feel like you’ve been run over repeatedly by an eighteen-wheeler to have had a great and effective workout. Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) is the muscle soreness that creeps in a day or two after training. It’s most common when you first begin a new fitness routine and usually lessens in intensity as your body begins to adjust to it’s new level of activity. But muscle soreness isn’t always a good sign. A healthy and balanced diet, proper hydration, sufficient amounts of rest between workouts, and a “cool down” period after exercise all help lessen the intensity of DOMS, which is a good thing. Who wants to walk around feeling like a hit-and-run victim?

Myth 5: I can “spot reduce” areas of fat by targeting that area with exercise.

Reality: While it would be cool to think that performing daily abdominal crunches would rid you of that poochy belly for good, it’s just not going to happen. Fat cannot be toned up by targeting an area with weight training or calisthenics. Fat is stored throughout the body and can only be reduced by controlling the calories you consume through your diet and increasing the calories you expend through exercise. Unfortunately, it’s probably your trouble spots like your belly or thighs that will hold on to it’s fat deposits the longest.

Myth 6: As I get older, gaining weight is inevitable.

Reality: It’s true that most women (and men for that matter) gain weight as they get older, but that doesn’t mean they have to. The reason most people pack on the pounds with each birthday is loss of lean muscle mass. Women can lose as much as 8 percent of their muscle mass with each passing decade. Muscle tissue burns more calories than fat, so a decrease in muscle mass means a lower metabolic rate. Couple this with the typical decrease in activity level that seems to come with age, and it’s no wonder waistlines seem to grow with each passing year. But do not fear! Just a few months of weight training can help a woman recover years of lost muscle mass and increase her metabolism, not to mention firm up those floppy underarms.

Myth 7: I need to stretch before I exercise.

Reality: There is no research to support the common misconception that stretching before a workout reduces the risk of injury. It’s the warm-up before exercise that seems to be the important factor in injury prevention. Your warm-up should used to get the blood pumping, something like jumping jacks or a brief jog. Save your stretching for AFTER your workout. Then it will help maintain and even increase flexibility, which, in the long run, could help prevent injury.

Myth 8: It’s better for my joints if I run on a treadmill instead of pavement.

Reality: Joint pain is a result of your body pounding against any surface when it isn‘t used to it. If you experience joint pain when you run try switching up your cardio routine with an elliptical trainer, recumbent bicycle, or stair stepper. If you do decide to run, make sure you have proper shoes. Switching up between a treadmill and pavement might be helpful, too.

Myth 9: As long as I exercise, I can eat anything I want.

Reality: It’s important to eat a healthy balanced diet, even if you exercise regularly. Don’t try to justify the extra empty calories of a brownie sundae or triple cheeseburger just because you spent 30 minutes on the treadmill this morning. The amount of calories your burned on the treadmill aren’t nearly equal to the calories in your most recent diet splurge. This is especially important if you are trying to lose weight. It is common for people to over-estimate how many calories they burn in a day and under-estimate how many calories they ingest. If you aren’t expending as many calories as you consume, you’ll find yourself packing on the pounds. Sorry ladies, I wish this myth was true, too. Recent research seems to indicate nutrition is the key element in weight loss, with exercise helping you along. For more on this subject read You Can’t Out Train A Bad Diet.

Myth 10: Wearing or carrying light weights will boost the effectiveness of my workout.

Reality: Strapping on those Velcro wrist and ankle weights (or carrying light dumb bells) when you walk or run only slows you down. A slower pace reduces the aerobic benefit of the workout, and the weights, usually just a few pounds, aren’t enough to provide the muscle-building benefits of regular weight training. So leave the weights at home and pick up the pace.

Woman Makes Finals of Bodybuilding Championship Just Weeks After Giving Birth

Here's an interesting article about KT Coates, a 32 year-old mother who placed second in British Natural Bodybuilding Federation (BNBF) just weeks after giving birth.  Coates stayed very active during her pregnancy, swimming, cycling, and even running up until days before her daughter's birth.  Too often women use pregnancy as an excuse to limit physical activity, but pregnancy shouldn't be treated as an illness.  Regular physical exercise can help a woman's body prepare for the big (and often very physically taxing) event of childbirth.  Of course, you should check with your physician for any limitations before engaging in any exercise program.

Bodybuilding mother makes finals of national championship just eight weeks after giving birth

A mother has wowed judges by qualifying for the finals of a national bodybuilding championship - just eight weeks after giving birth.

KT Coates, 32, came second in the British Natural Bodybuilding Federation (BNBF) heat despite giving birth to daughter Blossom on May 31.

Ms Coates, who runs her own pole dancing fitness business, was also teaching classes nine days later, training 10 days later and performing on the pole after just two weeks.

Read more at Dailymail.

5 Reasons To Drink More Water

I see people everywhere carrying around bottles of water, the gym, the park, even the grocery store. It’s almost like a fashion accessory. In fact you can purchase all kinds of hip (dare I say “chic”?) water bottles to match every outfit.

It’s not a bad trend at all. The recommended daily intake of water is 64 oz for a normal, healthy adult. It can be hard to reach that goal, so toting around a bottle of the wet stuff to sip throughout the day is a pretty good idea.

Most of us know that drinking water is healthy, but here are a few benefits to drinking water that you might not have thought about.

5 reasons to drink more water.

1. Zero Calories. A glass of water contains nothing in the way of calories. That’s right, ZERO. Zilch. Zip. Nada. Plus, It can be used to replace juice, soda, and other sweetened drinks, which helps reduce total consumed calories. Plus water has no fat, no carbs, and no sugar. Now that’s refreshing.

2. Appetite Suppressant. Often times we think we’re hungry, but it’s just our body trying to tell us we’re thirsty. This sometimes causes us to eat, when all we need is a nice glass of water. Also, drinking water can help curb hunger pangs by filling the stomach. This doesn’t mean that you can substitute water for a good healthy diet. Starvation diets are just plain destructive to your body. What this does mean is if you feel hungry between meals, you can try a few swigs of water to help tide you over to the next meal.

3. Speeds Metabolism. Staying hydrated is one of the easiest ways to rev up your metabolism. When your body isn't sufficiently hydrated, your body jumps in to starvation mode, slowing the metabolism and holding on to fat cells which contain high levels of fluid.

4. Energizes Muscles. Lean muscle tissue is about 75% water. Cells that don’t maintain the proper balance of fluid and electrolytes actually shrivel, causing muscle fatigue (not to mention shrinking muscles on that hot body you’ve been working so hard to obtain).

5. Better Exercise. Lacking proper hydration can hamper athletic performance, slowing you down or making it harder for you to lift weights. Exercise actually requires additional water, so be sure to drink plenty before you head to the gym, and go ahead and carrying that fashionable bottle with you, too.

For a quick test to see if you're getting enough water, check out Keith's article "Take The Pee Test".

Different Than Average

 Last night at almost 9 pm, Keith and I laced up our sneakers and headed out the door for a run. We live in the south and summer heat and humidity can be absolutely dreadful, so waiting until the sun goes down is just plain common sense, unless you enjoy dehydration or heat stroke. I admit I could get up early and run before the heat of the day closes in, but the truth is I’m just not a morning person. I’ve decided not to struggle against my nature, so I’m okay with that. Besides, running in the evening is just more peaceful. It’s quieter, except for singing frogs and locusts, and the moon adds nice ambience to our small town atmosphere.

Something hit me while I was concentrating on not tripping over the uneven spots in the side walk - and it wasn’t a bug either. It was the realization that there probably weren’t many people out at that time of night doing exercise of any sort. Heck, on a typical day, the average American doesn’t exercise at all. In fact only 16% of people in the United States participate in any type of sports or exercise activities. 16 PERCENT! That means if you’re out there working up a sweat at the gym, enjoying a morning run (or an evening run like me), participating in a yoga class, or power walking around the neighborhood, you are part of the elite. Doesn’t that feel good?

A wise friend of mine once told me, “If you want to be better than average, you have to be different than average.”

The average American is about 20 pounds overweight and watches more than 4 hours of television a day. While he or she is propped up there on the couch watching Seinfeld reruns, the average American is consuming about 300 containers of soda, 5 pounds of potato chips, and 20 gallons of ice cream each year. Are you sitting down? This next one is shocking. The average American spends $47,000 on prescription drugs each year.

I don’t want to be average.

I choose to limit the time I spend as a vegetable in front of the television. Instead, I choose to join the 16% of people who exercise on any given day. I choose to eat nutritious whole foods, while limiting the amount of soda, chips, ice cream and other junk foods that enter my body.

And because I choose these things I find myself in better health, in better physical shape, and quite probably feeling better about myself and my future than the average American. I’m just saying…