Mix It Up!

I had an interesting conversation about exercise with my brother a couple of days ago.  He was talking to me about how he'd like to get back into great shape, but that he was not quite sure what the correct way to approach a new fitness regimen would be.  Through describing what he normally does on a weekly basis, I brought to his attention that he already gets more exercise than he'd think.  He plays tennis a few times a week with his buddies, which may not sound like much, but this form of exercise can burn up to many hundreds of calories.  What's better yet is that it doesn't even FEEL like exercise!  My brother is getting a great cardio workout, burning fat (tennis is generally played for longer durations, tapping into the body's fat stores), and best of all, having FUN!  What more could you ask for out of a workout?!  This led me to write a post on this topic because it is incredibly important for those of us who hate the idea of exercising and view it as a chore.  It doesn't have to be a chore if you are doing something you enjoy!  Keep in mind that many things you enjoy doing are in fact EXERCISE!!  Even low-strenuous activities such as gardening can burn up to 250 calories in an hour.  Just try not to be sedentary!  Your body is still burning calories while resting, however, you'll find yourself having to watch your calories that much more without physical activity.  I ended up advising my brother to continue playing tennis 3 times a week (or more because it is an enjoyable hobby of his), take a 45 min-1 hour power walk 2-3 days a week, and weight train at least 3 times a week.  This should trim down unwanted body fat and leave the body with lean muscle.  He is performing both low-strenuous and high strenuous activities by mixing up his workouts and making them enjoyable!

For example, some of my favorite things to do are people watch and listen to music, so for me, power walking is my guilty pleasure.  I have come to love it because it doesn't feel like exercise, I get to see so many different people while I'm out, and I'm blasting some great tunes.  Sometimes I even lose track of time while I'm walking, and before I know it I've already walked 5 miles!  Also, I am by nature a competitive person, and love any sport involving a ball, so whether it's kicking around a soccer ball with a friend, shooting hoops, racing each other, etc., I have fun when I turn my exercise into a game.  Find what works for you.  It's important that you do a hobby you love, and do it as much as you can for the health benefits!  Exercise doesn't have to be in a gym on a boring treadmill.  I find treadmills harder to walk on because the scenery isn't changing, and you can see the time (which goes by sooooo slowly!) in front of you.  Begin viewing exercise as FUN by doing activities you enjoy, and you will soon begin developing a healthy lifestyle!

On The Go? Fit And Fabulous Reminders

Today was one of the worst days I have had in a while.  Recapping, I woke up to find my car window had been shattered--someone had broken into it in the middle of the night and taken some things of value.  After waiting around for a few hours to repair the damage/file the police report, I was then late to my lab (and believe me, this professor makes a scene out of it!)  I then rushed straight to my acting class downtown, only remember 3 hours into the class that I had left my keys INSIDE the drivers side lock while I was paying the meter.  Needless to say, a very nice homeless lady had taken my keys and was watching my car for me, so the day ended on a positive note.  Regardless of running around and having a million things on my mind today, I managed to stay conscious of my diet (which I hope all of you are doing as well!)  Given that I had about 4 hours of downtime this morning while waiting for the glass repairmen to come, I wandered into the kitchen, opened up the refrigerator out of boredom, and began mentally craving a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  As I began removing the jar of peanut butter from the refrigerator, I began to realize that I wasn't even hungry (I had just eaten a bowl of cereal!), and that eating this sandwich was merely a way of distracting myself from the process of waiting.  So naturally, putting the fit and fabulous mindset to work, I shut the refrigerator, grabbed a good book, and began catching up on some reading.  Before I knew it, the repairmen were here and I was off to school.  Stopping myself from pointlessly eating that pb&j sandwich, or habitually grabbing that handful of wheat thins, I saved myself at least 400-500 calories today that I didn't even need.  This goes for most all snacks we eat out of habit.  The body does not need food nearly as much as we'd like to believe.  A healthy reminder is that we should eat until we feel satisfied, not until we are completely full.  Sticking to a diet of many small meals throughout the day will keep your metabolism busy, as well as decrease your appetite.  And when you feel hungry, pour yourself a tall glass of water and drink it before you begin eating.  It will surprise you how often we mistake hunger for thirst.  Reflecting on today, I am surprised I did not settle for less healthy foods, as it is more tempting to do so when you are on the go and do not have the time to plan your meal out.  Luckily, I ALWAYS keep at least one, if not two pieces of fruit on me at all times.  These are my lifesavers--healthy carbohydrates that you should be eating every single day.  My favorite at the moment are crunchy red apples--I never leave home without one (and when I'm craving sour candy, I bring a sour apple to substitute for the craving.)  Try bringing fruit or vegetables with you when you leave your home for an extended period of time, whether it be a small bag of carrots, an apple, a banana, etc.  You will begin to notice that it will fuel you for longer than you'd imagine, and it does wonders for your budget!  It is also very empowering to look back on your day when you think about what you've eaten, and know how healthy you've been in your choice of snacks.  Remember, you are what you eat!

Metabolism...how does it really work?

Personally (and I know I'm not alone!), I have always been a bit intimidated by medical lingo, and have unfortunately tried to avoid understanding how the human body really works due to the difficult terminology.  Lucky for all of us, understanding how our bodies work is not nearly as complicated as we'd imagine.  I'd like to try and break down the facts of metabolism in simple terms, in hopes that it will help kick-start your new fit and fabulous lifestyle!  So, what is metabolism?  Metabolism is the process by which our body breaks down food and converts it into energy (whether it be in the form of fat, or giving us that extra push in our workout!)  Metabolism is a complex process, however for our purposes, we will stick to the basics.  Your body uses different systems to provide the energy needed to exercise (eg glycolysis, the system in which your body burns glucose in the anaerobic beginning stages of your workout.)  Depending on intensity levels and duration of exercise, your body is either burning more carbohydrates, or more fat (and no, your body does not really pull energy from protein for workouts, so eat it after exercising!)  Carbohydrates are essential to exercise, because when we begin working out, our primary source of energy comes from carbohydrates, and then we begin to burn fat.  Because many of us want to burn as much fat as possible, we must keep in mind that the more intense our exercise, the body increases its metabolism of carbohydrates and decreases its fat metabolism.  Why?  Basically, when we are exercising intensely (running/heavy cardio), our body is utilizing more fast muscle fibers, which do not contain as many "fat burning" enzymes.  These fast fibers are better at metabolizing carbohydrates.  On the flip side, when we choose low-intensity, prolonged exercise, lipolysis (the process of breaking down fat) is triggered.  

So what does this all mean?  Once we establish our health goals, we can begin to plan our exercise regimen with much more accuracy!  Whether it be to strengthen our hearts and become as fit as possible (without putting much emphasis on weight-loss), we can design a list of foods to eat, as well as know that higher-intensity exercises will help us meet our goals.  If we decide we'd like to drop a few pounds and maintain that weight, we must assess and track our daily caloric intake, as well as focus on low-intensity, prolonged exercise (eg power walking at a brisk pace for an hour.)  

As far as fueling our bodies, please remember that breakfast is the most important meal of the day!  It is vital that you eat within one hour of waking up, even if you are not hungry--you want to fire up your metabolism early in the day for optimal performance.  Here are a few things to keep in mind as you eat throughout the day:

1.)  EAT!!  Depriving your body of food when you are hungry will actually slow down your metabolism and set you up for gaining MORE unwanted weight!  Your body will go into survival mode and begin storing energy instead of naturally burning it because it does not know when it will be fed again.  I cannot stress this point enough.  Do not deprive yourself of food when you are feeling hungry!  Weight-loss coming from the starvation technique is TEMPORARY, and it leaves you unhappy!!  It is possible to eat and stay slim!

2.)  Try and eat multiple small meals throughout the day.  A good rule of thumb is about 5-6 small meals of about 300 calories or less.  Try to avoid pointless snacking in between, as these snacks are to blame for those extra 400 or so calories that we can't seem to shave off from our daily intake!

3.)  Begin tapering off your meals toward the end of the night.  Your body does not need so much energy when you are getting ready to sleep, and you should feel hungry for breakfast in the morning.  Avoid late night snacking at all costs...your body will store the energy in unwanted places while you sleep!  Instead, try drinking a cup of decaf green tea.  You will get an antioxidant boost, as well as fill your empty stomach enough to satisfy you before bedtime.  

Now that you have decided to turn your life around and adopt a health-conscious mindset, keep in mind the effects of the fuel you choose to put into your body, and the different ways to influence your metabolism to compliment your lifestyle.  Whether its taking a long walk with a friend, or running stairs to "Kanye's New Workout Plan", get out and do something active today and work your metabolism!

"I hate exercising, I never see any results!"

Ahh, the all too common quote used by far too many of us.  Exercise may seem like the demon to many of us who are simply too busy to fit in that half hour of cardio between work and dinner.  And when we finally become so fed up with feeling "soft", especially after gasping for breath after walking up that short flight of stairs (embarassing!), we manage to create an amateur fitness routine for ourselves, only to hopelessly give up a week later after seeing no immediate results.  If this is the mindset you have toward exercise, you are not alone!  But it is NEVER too late to start leading a healthy lifestyle!  All it takes are a few minor tweaks in how we view life, physical activity, and feeling healthy.  Now I know what many of you are thinking--you are no longer a teenager, so your metabolism simply is not as fast as it used to be in your younger years.  While it is true that metabolism does slow down as we age, it must not be viewed as a barricade to maintaining a healthy weight.  The basic building blocks to leading a healthy lifestyle include fitness and nutrition, or shall I say nutrition and fitness (because for many of us, nutrition is equal to, if not MORE important than exercise!)  We cannot labor for hours in the gym and eat what we normally eat--large plates of pasta/fast foods/bagels (and all other foods with these simple "bad" carbohydrates.)  This entails managing what you eat, and planning your grocery lists carefully!  You must change the way you eat PERMANENTLY to lead a healthy lifestyle.  I cannot emphasize this point enough!  Sure, it's still possible to lose weight quickly by temporarily starving yourself, but in doing so, you are actually slowing down your metabolism and setting yourself up for weight gain again.  I will dedicate my next post to the metabolism, and how we can speed it up/slow it down by the nutritional choices we make.  STEP 1:  Deciding that you want to change your habits and lead a healthy lifestyle is KEY!!   You can do it without as much effort as you'd think!  Start today!