Wonderfully Fit Personal Training

Planning your meals ahead is a great weight loss tip to keep you on track with your daily nutritional plan. By planning meals, you will have a set schedule to adhere to and know exactly what to eat at specific times of the day. You can even take it to another level and pre-cook your meals. Many body builders will pre-cook their entire week of meals and store them in Tupperware bowls. Along with these pre-cooked meals, you can store quick protein snacks like protein bars for tasty treats during the day.

Visual reminders can really help motivate and inspire you to stay on your weight loss plan. Cut out pictures of your ideal body and put them on your bathroom mirror, bedroom night sand or your office desk. These will remind you what your physical goals are and keep you on track to reach them. It’s important to note that although this technique is a great motivator, you should not strive to look exactly like the pictures you choose as inspiration. Know that everyone’s bodies are different and genetics play a big part with the way your physique will appear in shape and symmetry. Work hard to get the best body you can achieve within your limits.

Your insulin levels are very sensitive at night and it will be much easier to store extra fat if you consume sugars later in the day. Stick with the lean protein and non-starchy carb. A great meal would be a grilled chicken breast salad with romaine lettuce, sliced cucumbers and a little balsamic vinaigrette dressing. You could also opt for a nice chicken breast/veggie stir fry. Throw some broccoli, mushrooms and chicken into a stir fry pan with a touch of soy sauce. This makes a great meal for later in the day!

Fat-free foods can be very deceiving. Many of the fat free foods on the market make up for the fat levels by loading their foods with tons of sugar. Make sure you read the food labels and check the calories, sugar content and list of ingredients. You will likely find a very large amount of sugar which will wreak havoc on your insulin levels making it harder for you to lose body fat. The overall calories in these foods are usually also very high.

A terrible habit and serious calorie killer is eating while watching television. It’s extremely easy to unconsciously snack on junk food while watching your favorite shows. You will be inundated with commercials that urge to eat junk foods like soft drinks, fast foods, sugar-coated cereals and candy. By the time you know it, that entire bag of potato chips or cookies is all gone and you’ve consumed what too many empty calories. If you have to snack on something while watching television, try healthy snacks like: • Air popped popcorn • Celery stick with no-calorie dip • Non-fat cottage cheese • Frozen grapes • Protein and fruit smoothie • Fresh fruit • Carrots

In order to have long term success with any weight loss plan, you need to be honest with yourself. You need to set short term goals which are attainable, follow them with determination and put forth the effort o succeed. Everyone slips up from time to time and it takes courage to learn from your mistakes. Ask yourself what made you foul up and how you can avoid this in the future. If you have a cheat day, don’t think your entire weight loss plan is ruined. Get right back on your plan the next day and stay focused.

One of the biggest issues with people trying to lose weight is that they try to look like their favorite movie stars. Women may want to have the body of Jennifer Aniston or guys may want the body of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Genetics play a large part in your overall physique, so don’t get depressed if you can’t get your stomach to just like Jennifer Garner. Each person is unique, so try to focus on making positive changes to your own physique and be glad when you reach a goal.

Reading food labels is one of the most important tools to help you make healthy choices when grocery shopping. Once you have the knowledge to choose nutrient dense and healthy foods, you will be able to make the right choices to fuel your body. When reading a food label, the most important areas to look at are the calories, servings per container, and sugar, fiber, carbs, fat and sodium. Choose foods which are high in protein and fiber and low in sugar, fat and sodium. The servings per container can be extremely important because many products will try to mislead you by providing the nutrient information for a very small serving size. This is very typical for snack foods. A bag of potato chips may only show 120 calories on the nutrient label but the actual serving size is only 7 chips! The overall calories for the entire bag may e over 1,000 calories. Make sure to read the serving per container to know the truth about the overall nutrient levels. Also, make sure to review the list of i

Fruit is such a great choice for dessert since it’s very sweet and contains far less calories and fat compared with a traditional dessert like pie, cake or ice cream. You can save hundreds of calories when dining out by simply ordering a bowl of fruit or even a fruit sorbet. Fruit contains the natural sugar called fructose, which should take care of your sweet tooth. When eating at home, you can make several delicious fruit deserts like mixing sugar-free Jello-O with diced apples and bananas. You can also mix a cup of non-fat cottage cheese with blueberries or strawberries.

A great trick for continued weight loss is to cycle your calories. When you cycle calories, you’re simply increasing and decreasing your caloric levels day to day. Calorie cycling should be in direct relation to your strength training and cardio routines. On your strength training days, you might try increasing your caloric levels by 500 calories over your BMR (basal metabolic rate). You can also increase your level of starchy carbohydrates a little to help fuel your muscles for the intensive training session and also for recovery. On your cardio days, tighten up your calories and decrease it back to the normal 500 deficit per day and really focus on limiting your starchy carbs after 6 p.m. This will allow maximum body fat loss.

Try fidgeting to lose weight. Scientists at the Mayo Clinic published a study in which they outfitted 10 skinny mean and women and 10 overweight ones with sensor-equipped underwear that measured, with minute precision, how much they moved around during the day. The results showed the overweight people tended to sit still all day, while the skinny ones would pace and fidget, spending two hours more on their feet each day. The difference translates into about 350 calories a day, enough to produce a weight loss of 30 to 40 pounds in one year without trips to the gym. If you’re sitting at a desk all day, then try tapping your feet and moving your legs. Not only will this burn calories but you will increase the blood circulation in your lower body.

Go outside and get some exercise in your daily routine. You don’t necessarily need to go into the gym for cardio work. It’s much better to head outside and enjoy the day by walking around the neighborhood, playing a game of tennis, hiking some trails, mountain biking, running at the local track or walking a round of golf. By involving outside exercise routines like enjoyable sports activities, you will be able to burn calories and consistently doing it on a regular basis.

A great way to cut the fat and calories from milk is to choose a low fat product. They have a line of rich and creamy diary beverages that provide the wholesome, delicious nutrition of milk without all the sugar, calories and carbohydrates. They provide 75% less sugar, 40% fewer calories and 75% fewer carbs than regular white milk. Low-fat milk is great to use with your meal replacement powders or protein powders to make a low calorie, high protein smoothie. Low-fat dairy beverages can be found in the refrigerated dairy section of retailers nationwide.

Try to cut down on the starches after about 6 p.m. Starches consist of foods like rice, pasta, bread and potatoes. Starches tend to be higher in calories and have a higher glycemic index value which has a direct impact on your insulin levels. When you’re insulin levels rise, you will have a tendency to be hungry soon after eating and have a more difficult time losing body fat. A great choice for a late night snack is a broiled chicken breast salad with romaine lettuce, mushrooms and diced celery. Use a healthy dressing like balsamic vinaigrette.

Do not hold your breath. Keep breath flowing. Inhale through the nose to cleanse air Exhale through the mouth. Exhale completely Breath into your back and sides of ribs Relax your jaw and tongue, neck and shoulders Do not let shoulder rise on inhale Hollow abdominals, pull navel to the spine on exhale Zip or stitch ribs together on the exhale. Try zipping down and zipping up. Try to breathe at least five seconds each way Exhale to flex/round spine Inhale to extend/arch spine Exhale to move legs and arms away from body (typically in mat work)

 Improve Blood Circulation  Reduce Heart Strain  Develop the Lungs  Stretch the Muscles, Increase Flexibility  Develop Minor Muscles to Strengthen Major Muscles  Perfect Posture  “Law of natural exercises recognizes ‘companion’ or reciprocal movements Gain a Sturdy Body and Sound Mind Coordinate the Mind, Body and Spirit Happiness and Relaxation Reawaking Revitalization “mental vigor” awakening the mind “spiritual enhancement” Patience and Persistence “Exercises Emphasizes the need for…constant stretching and relaxing.” Quote by Joseph Pilates

Air popped popcorn is a fantastic low calorie snack that is low in calories and high in fiber. Stay away from microwave popcorn since it contains way too much butter and oil. You can buy a hot air popcorn popper for about $10 at your local Wal-Mart or Target and a bag of kernels. If you love butter, buy “I can’t believe it’s not butter” spray and give a couple of squirts onto your popcorn. The great thing about air popped pop corn is its low calorie and provide a ton of quality fiber which will make you feel much fuller. It also provides a major “crunch factor” so you will be chomping and eating with each handful.

Try to eat foods that involve crunching, chewing and really enjoying your foods. Go for texture and choose foods that provide a stimulating chewing experience. The more you chew a food, the less likely you will be to overeat. Great “crunch” factor foods include air popped popcorn, celery, carrots, and broccoli. If you want to dip these into a tasty sauce, choose the no-calorie sauces. They are delicious and come in flavors like ranch, blue cheese and bacon.

Buy a steamer A food steamer is a very healthy and easy way to cook healthy, low calorie meals in minutes. You simply add some food, a little water and set the steamer. It’s that easy! Most steamers have the ability to cook rice, vegetables, meat, fish, poultry and several other types of foods. The most common foods to steam are rice and vegetables. The healthiest type of rice to use is whole grain brown rice and you can use a wide variety of vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, squash, celery, zucchini, peppers, lettuce and green beans.

Pilates Basics There is so much to know when it comes to practicing Pilates. Here is a list of basic concepts every Pilates student should know. Mind Principles: Concentration: On the purpose of the exercise, correct movements, and coordination of the body and mind. Centering: Mind and Body Control: Moving on Purpose/Engage Imagination: Using Creative images to increase the Mind Body Connection Intuition: Listen to our bodies Integration: Make Pilates Principle Part of your Daily Life Body and Mind What is Your “Center” or “Core” Abdomen: Rectus Abdominus, Internal Obligues, External Obliques, Transversus Lower Back Hips and Buttocks Shoulders/Upper Back Body Principles: Breathing ”Even if you follow no other instructions, learn to breathe correctly” Joseph Pilates Pelvic Placement Neutral and Imprint/Scoop Rib Cage Placement Lateral Thoracic Breathing Scapular/Shoulder Girdle Protract/Retract ; Elevation/Depression Head and Cervical Placement Neutral Cervical Placement Axial Elongatio

Exercise in the Morning When Possible. When you exercise, your body is obviously burning calories. But don’t forget, every body function burns calories and that includes all of the recovery processes your body goes trough to adapt to your exercise program. After you exercise, your muscles are busy with their “recover, repair, grow” process and this goes on for several hours after your workout. By exercising in the morning, you can take advantage of your body’s heightened metabolism and burn fat all day long! Try High Intensity Interval Training! Yes, cardio burns fat. For those of you who hate to run, there is an answer…HITT! “High intensity interval training” refers to shorter, more strenuous cardio sessions (usually about 3-5 minutes for each exercise), performed back-to-back to create a fast-changing, exciting workout session specifically geared to burn body fat. For example, you may do 3 minutes of jumping rope, followed immediately by a 5 minute jog, and then 3 minutes on a rowing

A wonderful, healthy and refreshing treat is a protein smoothie. Protein smoothies can easily replace your cravings for a milkshake and provide the important nutrients your muscles needs to recover and grow. Pour 2 cups of Carb Countdown milk (or skim milk) into a blender with a few scoops of your favorite protein powder (whey, soy, egg) along with 1 cup of fruit (apple, banana, strawberries, blueberries) and some ice cubes. Blend this up and enjoy! Choose a protein powder that is low in sugar and has a great flavor. Optimum Nutrition carries a great line of 100% whey protein powder in several delicious flavors.

If you have to cheat on your diet and you’re really craving one of your favorite foods, try to make “better-bad” choices and select healthier alternatives. If you can simply make a healthier choice and pick a food with less fat or sugar, you can easily save hundreds of calories to help your weight loss plan. Remember, if you set a daily goal to create a 500 calorie deficit per day, you can lose 1 pound of body fat per week! By including these healthier choices, it will assist you in saving calories in your nutritional plan. Some great better-bad choices include: * Freeze a container of lite whipped topping vs. ice cream * Fat free frozen yogurt (low sugar) vs. ice cream * Air popped popcorn vs. Microwave popcorn * Frozen grapes vs. hard candy * Non-fat mayonnaise vs. Regular mayonnaise * Black beans vs. refried beans * Steamed rice vs. fried rice * Non-fat cheese vs. regular cheese * Protein smoothie vs. Milkshake * Chicken breast sandwich vs. Hamburger * Non-fat milk vs. Whole milk *

You can burn major calories by increasing the level of your cardio intensity. An amazing method of cardio training is called HIIT (high intensity interval training). The overview of this training method is to limit the time to a maximum of 20 minutes per session and vary your training intensity during the workout. Start out with an exercise like the elliptical trainer and begin at about a 65% intensity level for the first 5 minutes. Once you’re warmed up, increase the intensity to 90% for the next 30 seconds and then drop back down to 65% intensity for the next 60 seconds. Repeat the cycle for the next 10 minutes. Once you hit the 15 minute mark, drop your intensity back down to a steady 65% intensity and cool down for the last 5 minutes. You can apply the HIIT cardio training to any exercise like running, jumping rope, cycling and even aerobics.

Make sure to reward yourself every week. Set a small goal and stick to it. If you reach your short term goal at the end of the week, reward yourself. You might go to the mall and buy yourself something nice. Maybe it’s a great pair of pants you have been waiting for or a nice new shirt. You can also head down to the local spa and have a relaxing massage or facial. These are great incentives to keep you focused on your weight loss plan and motivate you to succeed every week.

This tip may be the most important aspect of succeeding with your weight loss plan. You should go through your kitchen and remove all the temptations from your refrigerator, pantry and all other areas in your home where unhealthy foods reside. Try taking the mindset of treating food like a drug. If you were a recovering alcoholic, the last thing you would want is to have alcohol in your home. The temptation would be too intense and the probability to relapse and consume the harmful drug would be far too strong. Just like alcohol, treat food like a drug. For many people, food is their drug of choice and this is the primary reason why it’s very important to minimize the temptation as much as possible from your home. Start by going through your kitchen and removing all the high fat, high sugar and empty calorie foods such as cakes, candy, crackers, potato chips, rolls, chocolate, pies, cookies, pizza and ice cream. Replace these unhealthy items with healthy, nutrient dense food tha

You should include a lean protein source at every meal. Your muscles need protein. You need the amino acids that comprise the protein we consume to repair, maintain and facilitate growth in muscles. Protein is also used in a host of other ways by the body, specifically by enzymes, blood and other cells. Adding protein at each meal will generally reduce the glycemic index of the meal. Focus on getting at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. So, if your weight is 175 lbs, try to eat at least 175 grams of protein per day. Your protein should come from lean sources which are low in fat and calories. The best lean proteins to include in your nutritional plan are: * Chicken breast (skin removed) * Turkey breast (skin removed) * Egg Whites * Fish Fillet (flounder, sole, scrod, cod, etc.) * Shellfish (clams, lobster, scallop, shrimp) * Lean Beef (top round) * Tuna (canned in water) * Non-fat cottage cheese * Beans (black beans, kidney, chick peas or lentils) * Wh

Try to always sit down when eating. By taking the time to sit down, you will be more likely to eat slower and really enjoy every bite of your meal. Try to avoid eating while in the car, walking or running errands. This leads to “unconscious” eating and you will forget how fast and how much you’re consuming. It’s very easy to overeat while doing other things and this is something you really want to try and avoid at all costs. Sit down and take some time by yourself to enjoy a healthy meal which pleases your appetite.

Try to figure out the underlying issues with any food addictions you may have. Some people binge on certain foods and others have serious issues with certain foods acting as “triggers” for massive cravings. When you find yourself falling into an issue and overeating on junk foods, sit back for a moment and think why you are doing what you’re doing. Ask yourself if you’re depressed, happy, sad or angry while you’re consuming these unhealthy items. By trying to self-diagnose your food issues, you should start building important habits and behaviors into helping you conquer unhealthy eating patterns.

When you put something in your mouth, think for a moment if the food/drink is helping you achieve your goals or if it’s setting you back. By thinking about what you’re consuming, you will have a better understanding of your overall dietary habits and you will be able to implement healthy changes to help you succeed.

Before going grocery shopping, make a detailed grocery list of everything you need and stick to it. Write down all the healthy foods you need such as lean proteins (chicken breast, turkey breast, fish, egg whites), healthy carbohydrates (whole wheat bread, brown rice, sweet potatoes, black beans), fruits (apples, strawberries, oranges, watermelon) and vegetables (broccoli, mushrooms, zucchini, green beans, squash, romaine lettuce). If you like to add dressing or marinade, make healthy choices like no-calorie salad dressing and low-carb marinades/sauces. By writing a detailed grocery list, it will be much easier for you to stick with healthy food choices and avoid making impulse buys like candy, chips and unhealthy foods.

Many restaurants add butter to the majority of their meals. Butter adds a lot of flavor to foods but is a calorie killer! You would be surprised on just how many restaurant dishes contain butter. Even the “healthy” choices they list such as grilled chicken, shrimp or vegetables may contain loads of butter. Be a smart eater and simply ask the server if the dish is cooked with butter. If so, ask to have it “dry” and hold the butter.

Dining out can make or break you when it comes to trying to eat healthy and losing weight. A few calories killers are bread and butter. Since it’s free, you may think you should eat endless amounts. Well, think again because this will ruin any hopes of dining healthy. Keep temptation away by asking your server to remove the bread basket from the table. Another great calorie saver is to stay away from any food which is cooked with batter. Ask to have the meal broiled, roasted or grilled with olive oil instead of butter and you will save hundreds of calories in no time!

As with cheese, mayonnaise is another calorie killer. It contains a very high amount of fat and calories per serving. If you can hold the mayo on your sandwiches, you will drastically cut your calories consumed per meal. Instead of mayo on your favorite sandwich, try adding a low calorie alternative like spicy mustard. You can also choose the fat free version of mayonnaise which contains far less calories per serving than the regular kind.

Cheese contains a very large amount of saturated fat and is very high in calories. Each gram of fat contains over twice the amount of calories compared to protein and carbohydrates (fat has 9 calories per gram compared to 4 calories per gram for carbs and protein). A small cube of cheese has the same calories as several cups of broccoli. If you can cut out the cheese on your sandwiches and salads, you will drastically cut down on the overall calories in your meal. If you have to have your cheese from time to time, you can choose a non-fat version which will help cut down on the overall calories. Unfortunately, many restaurants don’t carry low-fat versions so it’s probably best to hold the cheese when dining out.

You really need to focus on getting up and moving your body to burn excess calories. You can start off by going for a casual walk. Try to walk 1 mile with a friend. Work you way up to several miles per day and you will be amazed how great you feel. You can also try doing sports or activities which are entertaining and provide a great workout. Start playing tennis, racquetball, or golf (walking). By moving your body and exercising regularly, you will increase your ability to lose weight and keep it off.

Make healthy choices when it comes to fats. When choosing cooking oils, choose ones high in mono-unsaturated fats and low in saturated fats. Oils with high levels of mono-unsaturated fats include olive oil, almond oil and canola oil. Essential fatty acids (EFA’s) like Omega-3 fatty acids are also very important to include in your nutritional plan. Salmon and albacore tuna are great sources of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids appear to help prevent and treat various disorders in different ways. Research suggests that individuals with non-insulin-dependent (or type 3) diabetes, omega-3s can improve insulin sensitivity. Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to play a part in keeping cholesterol levels low, stabilizing an irregular heart beat (arrhythmia), and reducing blood pressure.