Category: Fitness and Weight Loss

“How do I get rid of my muffin top (the abdominal fat hanging over the belt) ?”, “…lose the fat on the back of my arms?”, “…get rid of the fat on my butt and thighs?”, “…get rid of my love handles?” These are questions I hear every day.

I’ve been a Personal Trainer for over 30 years and have known the secret to spot reducing for all of those years. Why is it a secret? Beats me. I’ve been preaching it as long as I can remember, but it just doesn’t seem to catch on. I’ll tell you it… are you ready? Wait for it… the secret to spot reducing is…you can’t! That’s it. That simple. There is no spot reducing. There is no triceps exercise that will get rid of the fat on your arms, no abdominal machine or gadget that will hit those love handles.

So here’s how it works:

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We all know that there are many excuses why people don’t exercise or don’t exercise enough. Are they valid? I polled colleagues to come up with a top ten list of excuses. Let’s explore them David Letterman-countdown style:

#10 You’re Too Embarrassed to Start

Really… it’s surprising how often we’ll hear “I’ll go to the gym after I lose some weight.” People can be very worried about what other club members are thinking about them. In fact, whatever shape you are in, by going to the club, you draw admiration because you chose to come in and change it. See Priscilla’s story on Fit at Five.

#9 You Have No Motivation

Change in behavior takes two beliefs: you must believe you can change and you must believe it’s worth it to change. There’s your motivation question: Is it worth it? Specifically, how would you feel differently if you reached your goals? How would your life be different? Your health? Now, is going to the club, working out, watching what you eat, worth it?

#8 You Don’t Know What to Do/How to Start

As with anything new, from ballroom dance, learning to play an instrument, to using a new computer program, get professional instruction. In this case, hire a Personal Trainer or take a group exercise class.

#7 Exercise is Boring/Don’t Like to Exercise

This is usually because people hold a stereotypical view of what exercise is. Yes, it can be the gym/club activities, but it is also all forms of dance, sports, yard work, and more importantly, physical play. If you’re bored or don’t like to exercise, you just haven’t found the right activity yet…

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Contrary to popular belief, diet supplements, the latest diet fad, and even exercise can’t help you lose as much weight as this secret. And I’m going to let you in on it….are you ready?

It’s portion control.

If you can control the size of your food and meal portions, you’re well on your way to looking great – and [bonus] feeling better.

It’s easy to over indulge, especially with those foods that may not be the healthiest for us. But don’t worry. You don’t have to give up your chocolate or lose the carbs.

Here are some tips that will help get your portions down to size [pardon the pun]…

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Brain health is an ever growing concern as people age. Alzheimer’s is the second most feared illness in America. What if we could help ward off the effects of this and other brain diseases? What if we could not only battle disease, but could also help increase everyone’s ability – young and old, to learn, reason, and remember things? Well guess what, we can. The science behind brain fitness provides exciting insights into how to maximize our brain health.

Here are the five pillars of brain fitness:

Pillar 1: Nutritional Guidelines

Proper nutritional habits are associated with better brain health (ratings like Guiding Stars can help you make better food choices)

• Decrease saturated fat (fats solid at room temperature) and sugar in your diet
• Increasing intake of antioxidants (found in beans, berries, apples, nuts, etc) & omega 3 fatty acids (including fatty fish, flaxseed, walnuts. sprouts, kale, etc)

Pillar 2: Stress Management

• Reduce cortisol, increase rest/recovery. Cortisol increases with stress. Elevated levels of cortisol interfere with the brain’s energy supply, the function of neurotransmitters, and helps increase free-radicals that damage brain cells. Reducing stress (through exercise, meditation, etc.) can help keep cortisol in check.

Pillar 3: Physical Exercise

• As little as 3 hours/week of cardiovascular can stimulate increases in Brain Derived Neurotropic Factor (BDNF), described as “Miracle Grow” for the brain

Pillar 4: Mental Stimulation

• Variety, challenge, novelty are essential to brain function. Just like our bodies responding to physical exercise, our brains respond to the challenge of mental exercise. What kinds of new, different things can you try?

Pillar 5: Social Interaction

• Create more opportunities to interact, build friendships. The more friends and daily interactions you have, the better it is for your brain function.

There you have it. The things we can take control of to enhance our brain health and function. Of course, as a Personal Trainer, I like to point out that pillars 2-5 can be found in a fun, friendly health club. So get to it. As the saying goes, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste…

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There’s more to exercise than meets the eye. Sure, you lose calories, weight, and look great. You chisel muscles and get lean; but exercise can do more than that.

Looking good leads to feeling good – both reasons lead to higher self esteem. Regular exercise will help you alleviate stress and feel happier.

Exercise helps your body work more efficiently, thereby giving you more energy. We could all do with a littler more energy, couldn’t we?

Not only will you have more energy, but at night you’ll be more tired. That’s right…put those sleeping pills away if you have trouble falling asleep at night. Exercise more, and you’ll find the secret to catching your z’s.

Walking, running, or going to the gym? Regardless, more exercise combats illness and chronic disease.

Spend some quality time with friends or family and go for a walk or a hike. Play with your kids on the jungle gym. All these seemingly fun activities?…code words for exercise…

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At any given time, approximately 45% of women and 30% of men in the United States are trying to lose weight. In 2006, The US public spent $46.3 billion dollars on weight loss products alone. Yet, over 65% of Americans are overweight. Why can’t we as a nation get control of our weight?

The answer is that we must change our belief system to succeed. Change takes two beliefs: I CAN do it, and it’s WORTH doing. Failing to lose weight is failing to believe one or the other (or both) of these statements.

Think about it. If you, down deep, don’t believe that you can lose the weight you need/want to, whether it’s because your family doesn’t support you, you feel you don’t have time, or even that you don’t have the willpower to stick to a program, how much effort will you truly put into it?

What if you don’t believe it’s worth it? “Working out, sweating, watching what you eat, smaller portions…. that’s not worth it. It’s just too hard. Isn’t it?”

Those are the fundamental beliefs that we need to change in order to attain our health/ weight loss goals and I’d like to offer a few words to help you move forward with that.

Can you? Absolutely! In my 30 years as a Personal Trainer, I have never met anyone that couldn’t, if they thought it was worth the effort. You don’t have to change your life all at once. It’s about making small modifications (tweaks) in what you’re currently doing. Ask yourself, “What 1 or 2 things could I change this week to start me in the right direction?” When you accomplish that, pick another 1 or 2 for the next week, then the next week, etc. Before long, you’ve accumulated enough better behaviors to really see a difference in yourself. Next stop… reaching your goals.

Is it worth it? Ah, this is one that only you can determine. Health risk warnings aren’t enough, if effective at all. It has to be very personal to you. How would being leaner/healthier change your life? If you can’t answer that question with clarity, you’ll never care enough to change. Try answering this way, “I want to be able to (i.e. look, feel, do) because…”

Like a toddler, you have to continually ask yourself “Why?” So, you want to lose weight…why? Your doctor told you you should…why? Because he said you were at risk for cardiovascular disease…why does that matter to you? You could die prematurely…why is living longer important to you? You have two young kids and you want to see them grow up and be an active part of their lives. Now we’re getting somewhere.

So, if you’re going to try to lose weight and get healthier, first make sure you believe.

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I don’t know about you, but the holidays were killer for me in terms of my fitness level. I started out keeping with my regular exercise routine while having a cookie here and there. Gradually, the holiday treats took over and the refined sugars made me lethargic and not wanting to exercise. Now that the holiday and Super Bowl treats are gone, it is time for me to get back into the groove by exercising daily and eating right. It all seems so logical so why is it easier said than done?

Well, it could be because it is the dead of winter in New England and the sub-degree temperatures make me want to hide under my comforter. However, I have to remember the pros; being able to fit into my clothes and staying healthy for my little ones, my husband and most importantly myself.

I’ve always followed Lance Armstrong on Twitter where he tweets about his daily training and personal insights. Seeing his tweets pop up in my stream keeps me motivated. After all, here is a man who was at death’s door with cancer, and then went on to win seven Tour De Frances and run the New York City marathon. I think I should be able to ride my spin bike for at least an hour while watching a movie…

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