Exercising for Longevity

At some point in our lives, maybe in our 30's, a shift happens. Most People start thinking about exercise from the perspective of seeking the type and volume of exercise that provides the most long term benefits rather than instant gratification.  Simply put, most of us age 30+ exercise because we want to increase both the quality and quantity of our later years. The focus is less about weight loss (unless truly warranted) and more about keeping our joints, muscles and brain as young as possible.

The truth is, when you see someone who's in their 80's, 90's or even 100's looking spry and you think to yourself, "I hope I look, move, and feel that good when I'm their age." That person was likely not setting power lifting records in the gym in their younger years or playing professional contact sports. Why? Because those sports beat your body up and the curve of where exercise benefits your body begins it's downward slump before that intensity and consistency of physical activity is reached.

This begs the question, "how much, what type and what intensity is most likely to increase both the quality and quantity years ahead of you?" The answer is, "it depends." It depends on an individuals current training status, body composition and a myriad of lifestyle factors. That said, there are a couple things we know for sure (when I say we, I mean academics and my anecdotal experience being an athlete and working with clients over the last 10 years).

1. Walk more, sit and drive less. Blue Zones has complied an impressive amount of research regarding longevity and lifestyle factors. This article highlights and supports the concept of urban planning and how living in a walk-able community can increase your longevity and reduce your risk for heart disease.

2. Commit to move your body everyday. Even if it's just 10 minutes of walking or stretching the increase in blood flow (vasodilation). Just setting your attention on your body begins to cements the habit into your life. You're not someone trying to exercise, you are someone who exercises. You have to own the identity you're striving for. Founder of Brightline Eating, Susan Pierce Thompson Phd, does an excellent job in explaining the importance of how you talk about yourself and the impact it has on your ability to adhere to any plans you may have for your life.

3. Variety is key. Mix up your exercise routine. Include many different movements, in multiple planes of motion. Avoid doing repetitive actions (ie: running, swimming cycles) unless complemented by a variety of other movement. Those who only swim, only run or only do repetitive movement are prone for overuse injuries and muscular imbalances. Additionally, learning new movements under varying loads increases neural pathways and some studies show it can decrease the age of your brain and increase brain plasticity.

4. Do something you enjoy. Exerciser have the highest rate of adherence when they're preforming an exercise modality they enjoy or the company they're exercising with.  The buddy system works great here, but know enough about yourself to identity if you're seeking solitude during your workout.

5. Moderation is key. To experience the most benefits from exercise don't under or over do it. Do intense (if ok by your doctor) sometimes, do moderate exercise frequently and do low intensity exercise a lot. You might find yourself on either end of the  curve above,but hopefully it's temporary and then you can get right back to middle and your goal of increasing the quality and quantity of the years ahead of you.

Live long, feel well and be deliberate about your exercise and nutrition. Your future self will thank you.

In Health,

Brittany

The Many Misconceptions About Personal Training...

As a self-employed personal trainer I hear many misconceptions about the industry I work in.  People ask what I actually do and how I make a living doing it so here it is.

I do not sell any products; I do not work for a large corporation that requires me to meet a sales quota. I did not get into this line of work to work less. I started personal training because I love learning about the human body, exercise, nutrition, and disease prevention. And I really want to improve the way people feel in their own skin. There is an enormous amount of marketing out there for “health” products and quite frankly crap that gets a lot of hype because people make money selling it. But does this stuff actually help?

As a personal trainer, my job is to reduce pain, increase strength, flexibility and improve my client’s quality of life, not to sell products. Call me a purist, but my job is to educate and therefore I study a lot. I went to grad school to study exercise science and health promotion, I went through Integrative Nutrition to learn about dietary therapies and specialized diets. I've obtained various certifications, I read and listen to lectures about Yoga, strength training, nutrition, massage therapy, postural differences, diabetes prevention and care, Alzheimer’s prevention and care, stroke rehabilitation, drug interactions, pre and post natal exercise, and the list goes on because every client is different and presents more learning opportunities. I’m not here to tell people what is wrong or right, but I am here to provide information and resources. I am not a Doctor, Physical Therapist, Psychologist or Dietician. Each of them serve their own very important role and those defined roles must be respected. But in this career like the ones mentioned above I work with people from all walks of life, except I see my clients at least once a week if not more and I get to help via a listening ear and education as preventative medicine. I believe in what I do I think well informed Personal Trainers can play a huge role improving their client’s physical and psychological health. Personal trainers are not just cheerleaders and rep counters they should be far more than that.

To all Personal Trainers out there keep learning and take everything you learn with a grain of salt. To all consumers of Personal Training, coaching etc take everything you hear with a grain of salt and be your own advocate;  find a trainer that fits your needs, because even if you think “you’re  good” in a group class I guarantee that time with a well-informed one on one trainer/coach will bring a new awareness to your body and/or your health. Even if you hate to exercise there is a trainer for you. ;-)

In Health,

Brittany

Step it Up and Move Challenge...

Ladies and Gents!

This short and sweet challenge involves $15, the opportunity to move a lot more and even win some money!!! Here’s how it works…

Read About Walking Technique Here

Dates: June 1^st - June 15^th

Cost: $15 (per person)

Requirements:

1.       You must have a Fitbit, Garmin, i-Watch, an App on your phone, a pedometer or something like. 

2.       You must move (walk, run, bike swim)! (You must also be honest!)

The Details: This challenge involves you and a partner (if you don’t have a partner I can match you up, but please feel free to invite a friend, spouse, co-worker etc). Your team of 2 will try to obtain as many steps as possible between 

June 1^st and June 15^th. Each night or the following morning you will each submit your daily step count to me via email. I’ll keep a running total of your steps, but you should too just for good measure. The sum of you and your partner steps may earn you some spending money because the winning team takes $8 of every $15 entry.  For example if 40 people enter, the winning team splits $320 and all you have to do is move! I’m sending this invite to over a 150 people so the prize money should be worthy of your efforts. Please feel free to share it with family and friends, the more the merrier!!!

P.S. This challenge works for bikers and swimmers too see the conversion chart below:

Conversion Chart for this Challenge:

Biking	1 mile = 500 steps
Swimming	400 Meters = 600 steps (400 meters is about 8 laps or 16 lengths in a 25 meter pool)

Fine Print:

You can submit your numbers nightly or each morning and you can do so by sending me a screen shot from your device, app etc. All step final step counts are due by 1am on June 15^th. I’ll be keeping a running total as we go and I’ll keep everyone updated on current stats, but I’d suggest that you log your cumulative totals as well just for good measure (some apps do it for you). This is purely for fun, but serves as a great reminder to move more! A recent study revealed that walking less that 4,000 steps increases risk for weight related illness and another study showed improvements in metabolic profiles of women who stood or walked for 5 minutes every 30 minutes rather than bouts prolonged sitting. The point is it doesn’t take much to improve your health! Join us for 15 days of stepping it up!

Contact me with questions and to sign up.

Healthy-ish Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars...

Did you know that if you bake with sunflower seed butter your baked goods will turn green? Why you ask...Sunflower seeds contain chlorophyll, also known as chlorogenic acid. The acid reacts with the baking powder/soda in a recipe when heated and when it cools it turns green! It still tastes delicious so have no fear. This recipe is quick, healthy-ish and delicious!



Ingredients:
1 can (1 & 1/2 cup drained and rinsed garbanzo beans)
1/4 cup Sunflower seed butter
1/4 cup almond or oat flour
1/3 cup coconut sugar or (unpacked brown sugar)
1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
1/8 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Set Aside:
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
1/4 crushed walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and oil an 8x8 baking sheet or use parchment paper.

2 Mix all in ingredients together in the food process until throughly mixed (except the chocolate chips and walnuts).

2. Stir in ingredients from the "set aside list."

4. Spread batter in the 8x8 pan and bake for 30 minutes (it should still look moist when removed from the and oven).

5. Set on cooling rack until cooled (at which time they will turn green). Enjoy!

Do You Wear Your Busyness as a Badge of Honor?

I'm reading "The Yamas and Niyamas" by Deborah Adele. This book provides a perspective on the ethical practices of Yoga. The Yamas and Niyamas can be thought of as guidelines or words of wisdom to live by; the Yamas are the first five ethical practices which include nonviolence, truthfulness, nonstealing, nonexcess, and nonpossessiveness.

Nonstealing struck me for a couple of reasons. First of all it's not a word (and that bugged me) and I'm not a thief. Also, on the surface it seemed far too simple to be words of wisdom. Upon deeper reading I found that nonstealing is something I really need to work on.

For example, we could be stealing from ourselves. Being too preoccupied to actively participate in our own life is an example of stealing from ourselves. Rather than living in the moment we're mentally somewhere else and stealing those moments away from making new memories. I'm making an effort to slow down and smell the roses so to speak. Rather than wearing my busyness as a badge of honor I'm starting to see it as something entirely different. Using a mind-body practice is one way to incorporate the wisdom of nonstealing in our lives.

In mind-body classes like Yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi, Barrecore, etc participants are encouraged to use their mind to make movements, to contract certain muscles and to relax others. The focus and the intention that these classes require offers the perfect opportunity to "live in the moment." These classes encourage our mind to draw awareness to our body and our breath. They encourage us to focus on our motor skills, things like balancing on one leg in Bow or lifting the chest and legs simultaneously in Locust. These movements draw out the distractions and let us be truly present. Our minds may still wonder, but simply by attending mind-body classes we are creating a space to focus and live in moment.

Here's a great article about the authors personal experience with busyness.

In Health,

Brittany

Thoughts on Meal Plans...

Some of my clients are beginning the Fitness Challenge at the West Sac Rec tonight and others are not. I thought I'd share this because even if you're not doing the Fitness Challenge YOU CAN do this with me (you don't have to be client either). This morning I started eating a meal plan that I made just for me and my current lifestyle. I have some hesitation in doing this because I LOVE FOOD. I always have and always will, but I also know that for me personally meal plans work well in the short term. When I eat nearly the same thing, at nearly same time, everyday my body likes it and responds well. Getting myself on a eating schedule and meal plan is how I arrived at the leanest I have ever been (circa 2012). This time it isn't about being the leanest, it just about feeling better in my clothes and making some Yoga poses more comfortable. As one of my former clients so eloquently stated, "It's all about being a size "M."

That said, sometimes wearing a smaller size or getting leaner isn't a big priority because life delivers us bigger "fish-to-fry" (pun intended).  As I'm sure we've all experienced, I haven't had the desire to be really strict, partially because of my schedule, but also because sometimes worrying about how many calories, or grams of protein I've eaten in a day seems far less than important than everything else in my life for the last 4 years. BUT paying attention each day to how much I'm eating is doable right now. This strategy focuses on my daily actions rather than trying to see the big picture. Long term goals are far less tangible and though they may be important in some cases they do not get us through our day-to-day choices. Instead, focusing on one day at a time is how I have experienced and seen the best outcomes. My current objective is not aligned with any specific weight or body fat; it's just focusing each day on the parts of my lifestyle that I can improve upon.

Here's how you can join me:

1. Find a picture of yourself at the weight/body fat/etc. you desire to be. Let this be the picture you glance at when your motivation finds a slump.

2. Set a goal for how much water you will drink each day and perhaps design a meal plan to fit your needs (if you need help here let me know). Aim for high quality and nutrient dense whole foods.

3. Each day do not think, "Oh, when I was____I only weighed ____." Instead focus on the positive and present moment rather than the past. Try this... "I'm eating this food and I'm drinking this water to move the needle a tiny bit closer to where I want to be physically."

4. Eat your meals and plan your exercise with intention and awareness.

5. Grab your calendar and put a little heart of the days that pass to show yourself a little love :-) and to recognize your accomplishment.

My Personal Strategies:

• When I eat on a meal plan I prep my food in advance and put my days worth of food my lunch bag (sometimes even my dinner), if it's not in the bag then it doesn't go in my tummy.
• I do not log on myfitnesspal once I've settled into my meal plan because I already know exactly what I'm eating.
• I start each day with a big glass of water and always drink water before I eat.
• I drink lots of tea (hot and iced).
• I carry gum and mints for munchy moments. (I'm always hungry ;-)
• Lastly, I will not eat when I'm watching TV or on the computer because this is when mindless eating occurs for me.

Side Notes & Disclaimers:

• Eating on a meal plan does not teach you how to eat healthfully and if your meal plan is not appropriate for YOUR needs when you stop eating the meal plan and go back to your previous dietary patterns it's likely that you will gain weight (probably more than you lost).
• Meal plans can be tremendously helpful when they're used appropriately for short periods of time and customized to the individual's needs (they are not necessary, but very helpful for busy people). 
• Weight lost while using a meal plan can be sustained, but education must be provided to the person on the meal plan because eating less calories than needed will slow their metabolism thus decreasing the amount of food an individual can tolerate without weight gain.
• Final Tip...honor your body, be smart, use logic, do your homework & ask questions!!!

A Healthier Snack Solution...

I don't know about you, but I love to snack and because of my odd schedule it's important to have some options on hand. It can be hard to find snacks that are healthy, void of added chemicals, and that are also convenient and affordable. As a kid, my mom made homemade popcorn for my sister's and I all the time, but it was normally covered in butter and salt which tasted great, but as I got older I stopped eating it because I knew it was unhealthy. My friend Staci inspired me to make a healthier version that packs some healthy fats, lots of fiber and B vitamins. I hope you enjoy it as much as my hubby and I do!


Spiced Popcorn

Ingredients:
1/3 cup Popcorn Kernels (unpopped)
4 Tbsp Avocado Oil (Coconut or other high temp oils work well too)
1/3 cup Nutritional Yeast
1.5 Tsp Garlic Powder
1.5 Tsp Chili Powder
1.5 Tsp Turmeric
1.5 Tsp Sea Salt

Directions:

1. Mix the spices and nutritional yeast together and set aside.

2. Pour 2 Tbsp of the oil in a large stock pot. Add the kernels and mix the kernels with the oil until coated with oil.

3. Place on high heat and cover. Shake the pot every 30 second or so and wait to hear the popping noise. When 3 seconds passes between popping sounds remove the pan from heat and uncover.

4. Drizzle the remaining oil on top and gently stir or shake in the spices. The turmeric gives it the yellow color so it looks buttery. The measurements above will make your popcorn mildly spiced, but if you like more of a punch add more of your favorite spices.

5. Enjoy and if you want to read about the "Is popcorn bad for you?" question check out this blog post.

Healthy-ish Carrot Cake Muffins....

Today is Easter and I'm trying to wrap my head around the fact that March is nearly over. Normally our family has big holiday celebrations, but this year Easter just snuck up on  us so rather than doing a big family dinner some of the family came to our house for brunch. I made these healthy-ish carrot cake muffins and pineapple cream cheese frosting. I looked at a couple different recipes and ended up using this one with a couple modifications. I was worried they wouldn't have the right texture because there's no flour and a lot of wet ingredients, I was pleasantly surprised by both the taste and texture. Check it out!

Ingredients:

2 cups Almond Meal
1 cup ground rolled oats
1 tsp sea salt1 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
4 eggs
⅓ cup Sugar free maple syrup (pure maple or honey if desired)
¼ cup avocado oil
3 cups carrots, finely shredded (use food processor or cheese grater)
½ cup raisins
3/4 cup crushed pineapple with juice

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl (Flours, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg) and set aside
3. Beat eggs, olive oil and maple syrup together with a whisk.
4. Add in carrots, raisins and pineapple
5. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until fully 6. incorporated.
7. Place into lined muffin cups- makes about 15 muffins when cups are filled
8. Bake for 25 minutes

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients: 
8 oz softened cream cheese
2/3 stick of softened butter 
1/3 cup crushed pineapple + 3 Tbsp Juice
3 to 4 cups of powdered sugar

Directions:
1. Beat softened butter and cream cheese until thoroughly mixed.
2. Add 3 Tbsp of pineapple juice and mix thoroughly.

3.  Slowly add powered sugar until you reached your desired consistency.
4. Fold in crushed pineapple.


Let muffins completely cool prior to frosting. I recommend refrigerating the frosting prior to use to make it easier to spread. Enjoy!!!

Every Movement Serves a Purpose...

Every element of a personal training session serves a purpose...

Most sessions begin with some form of myofascial release and a light cardiovascular warm up to get the body warm, to increase circulation and prepare the mind and body for more intensity. This portion of the workout may also include some Yoga and dynamic movement. During this time I'm watching my client's movement to see if I notice any physical changes since our previous session and I'm getting verbal information from them about what has been going on in their life in the last couple days. The session proceeds with strength and/or agility using major muscle groups and exercises that require the most coordination and focus. Smaller movements are reserved for later in the session as well as more mobility and balance work. Each client has different objectives and each session includes different exercises, but for the most part the structure of a session is similar. The exercise selection of each session is determined by the client's personal objectives, injuries, strengths and weaknesses. The reps, sets and load are also determined by the client's individual needs (this is something I'd like to write a lot about, but will save my rambling for later). Everything is planned and thought out in advance with an understanding that "game-time" decisions will be also be made based on the client's needs in that moment.

I'm a big believer in quality workouts that are designed in a way that's sustainable for my clients; each workout should challenge, but not crush my client (just because a workout is hard doesn't make it smart). There are many small elements in each session that make the session what it is (hopefully fun, challenging, educational and just what the body needed on that particular day). Without attention to detail and focus on my clients mind and body it becomes more like group exercise and as much as I love group exercise it does not provide one on one attention or the same specialized environment that personal training does. That said, if you're thinking about starting to exercise, have reoccurring injuries, or if you're looking for some guidance I'd highly recommend finding a PT in your area and seeing if it's right for you. Feel free to contact me questions about to vet a PT.

In Health,
Brittany

An Opinion Piece...Thoughts on Guilt, Self-Sabotage etc

This post was inspired by a couple things, but what brought the topic of guilt to the forefront of my mind was a Yoga class I attended this morning at Solefire in Sacramento.

Near the end of the class the instructor was speaking about the feeling of guilt, how it comes about, and strategies to change the way we handle ourselves when we feel guilty. If you're familiar with the Serenity Prayer or you've attended a meeting for addiction, eating disorders etc than you've probably heard of the concepts of serenity, courage, and wisdom. In my mind I connect the resolution of guilt with the Serenity Prayer.

The Serenity Prayer evokes a sense of peace and calmness with things "just as they are," but it also requires understanding the difference between serenity and surrender. Serenity is about accepting the condition or situation and learning to work with it. On the otherhand surrender is like waving the white flag or giving in to the condition or disease. For example, I've struggled with eating disorders since I was 11, but I've accepted that there's a part of my brain that will always think and feel certain way. Through education, time and awareness I've learned to live with my eating disorders and use my knowledge and energy in a positive way. Unfortunately, living out the Serenity Prayer is not as easy as it might seem because acceptance is hard and accepting that there are somethings we can not change is even harder.

Living out the Serenity Prayer as a way of life requires letting go of guilt, accepting what has happened and learning to live with the outcomes. I believe that holding on to guilt is a fatal flaw in recovery from any addiction, disease, or traumatic life event. When we hold on to guilt it's like carrying a heavy weight on our shoulders, it causes us to dwell on the past and set parameters for the life we think we deserve rather than living the life of our dreams.

Letting go of guilt and moving forward starts by saying sorry for wrong doings to friends, family members, coworkers, or even ourselves. After apologies have been made all we can do is wipe the slate clean and start our life fresh to best of our abilities. Holding on to guilt can lead to self destructive or self sabotaging behaviors when it comes to weight loss and wellness endeavors.

I've taking the long route in making my point here, but what I'm getting at is that everything we think, feel or do impacts our quality life and well we live. If you're holding onto guilt, shame or embarrassment take the time to learn to let to go and allow yourself to forgive and start fresh. No matter how serious or minor you feel your guilt is, it is worth every minute of your time to resolve it.

Meat Free Monday Spaghetti Casserole

Seth loves pasta. Any kind really, but his favorite is lasagna. I love making it for him, but in it's traditional form it's not so healthy as an everyday meal. I've been experimenting with different ways make both of us happy at dinner time and here's what I've been cooking.

In exploring creative ways to consume generous amounts of protein without being too hard on our bodies I've been cooking with vegetarian proteins every now and then. High protein diets are touted for weight loss, but they can be hard on our liver and kidneys over time. Click here to learn more. To add variety to our diet and keep our bodies functioning optimally I believe that using vegetarian sources of protein sporadically can be beneficial. Meaning that I don't think meat is bad, but sometimes I think it's appropriate to less meat and more veggies and legumes (don't get crazy my meat loving friends.)! But if you really want some "vegucation" check out this video. Without further ado...

Ingredients:
8 oz Spaghetti or noodle shape of choice
1 Jar Spaghetti Sauce (no corn syrup or weird stuff and homemade is even better!)
1 carton sliced baby bella mushrooms (or about 15 sliced mushrooms)
20 cherry tomatoes
1 sliced white onion
1 head of  chopped broccoli
1 sliced zucchini
1 can garbanzo beans
2 Tbsp Oil ( I used MCT, you'll want one that can sustain high heat)
Salt
Pepper

Optional:
2+ oz of Mozzarella Cheese and or parmesan
Red Pepper flakes
Crushed Garlic


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Cook spaghetti, drain, place back in pot and pour sauce on top. Mix together and set aside. (while pasta is cooking it's a good time to chop veggies.)

3. Once your veggies are chopped place them on baking sheet and season with sea salt, pepper and toss with oil. Place in oven for 10 minutes at 450 degrees.

 4. While the veggies are cooking spread the spaghetti in bottom of a large glass baking dish as pictured below.

                                     

5. Place the drained and rinsed garbanzo beans on top in an even fashion.

6. If using cheese place a light layer of cheese top of the garbanzo beans and spaghetti.

7. When the veggies are done place them on top of the spaghetti, garbanzos and cheese.

8. Add more cheese if desired and place place oven at 450 degrees or until cheese is golden brown and bubbly.

9. Remove from oven and let rest before serving. Enjoy!

Before it goes in the oven for it's final melt.

Quinoa Pasta Salad

Hi All-

Since grad school started I've done very little blogging and posting of recipes, but I tried to take as many pictures as possible and keep creating new tasty things so that I'd have many recipes to share when grad school ends. And guess what?! I graduate in 5 weeks! Right now instead of doing homework (as I should be) I'm writing and sharing this yummy meal. It's a just a little taste of what I hope to spend my free time doing after graduation.

This has been a go-to meal for my hubby and I because I can prep it ahead of time and it keeps for several days (in fact I think it tastes better after a day in the fridge). This recipe has a lot of room to be creative and add vegetables of your choosing, these are just some of my favorites!



Quinoa Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

1 box quinoa pasta (8oz) (I use ancient harvest brand) Cooked and drained
2 small cucumbers diced
2 bell peppers diced
3 cups chopped raw broccoli
1/3 cup crumbled Feta Cheese (seasoned, fat free or your choice)
1 cup shredded carrot
1 can garbanzo beans (rinsed and drained)
1 can smoked sockeye salmon in EVOO (remove skin and drain oil)

Dressing: 1 tsp ground sea salt, 1 Tbsp minced tried onion, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/8 cup EVOO

Method:
Mix all ingredients together with dressing & enjoy! It keeps in the fridge 4-5 days and is great served on a bed of lettuce and topped with cherry tomatoes like in the picture below!

Lunches packed and full of good nutrition!

Next Month!

Hi All!

Grad school, work, home ownership and wedding planning has taking me away from writing. As they say, "something has to give." BUT... Next month I have 30 days off school starting 5/8. I intend to paint the inside of our house rearrange our furniture, work in the backyard, cook, bake, and blog! And my favorite pastimes, working out outside and spending time with friends!!! Until then, here's some new ideas I'm working on...

1. More Small Group Yoga Classes

2. Meal Prep Meet Ups

3. Women on Weights (an educational series)

4. 30 Minute Outdoor Small Group Cardio Meet Ups!

Do you see something you like or have thoughts about? Other ideas? Let me know!

Ready for this? New Small Group Classes!

Click Below to Learn More!!!

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090c4aadad28a02-newsmall

Now Offering E-programs!

The new year brings new offerings! The first program I'm offering builds cardiovascular endurance and core strength; each day has specified objectives and designated exercises, sets and reps as well a recommended weekend flexibility training practice.

I'd suggest repeating this weekly plan for 2 consecutive weeks or more depending on how quickly your body adapts and where you're starting from (keep thorough notes and measure your progress). This can serve as your weekly routine or compliment your existing exercise practices, but having visible abdominal muscles takes healthy eating & exercising. This program is just one piece of the puzzle so I'll be publishing an accompanying "Meal Plan" and "Next Level" programs soon! Click the "Buy Now" button at the right to get started with this program for a STRONG foundation! 

**After your purchase on PayPal click on return to E.S. Fitness to retrieve downloadable link.**

Hopefully at this point in your exercise journey you've learned the names of several exercises and you're pretty confident in your ability to navigate the gym (if not, YouTube will be very helpful in identifying exercise names). On the other-hand, if you're feeling entirely overwhelmed, contact me directly and let's chat!

In Health,
-B

New Years Resolutions and Exercise as Punishment...

While working on a discussion question for school, a classmate and I started chatting about self awareness and really thinking about what your body needs. It made me think about this study I saw not too long ago which I don't have a citation for at this time. To sum it up, it concluded that if personal trainers can re-frame the way their client views exercise (specifically making it enjoyable) the client would be less likely to consume excess calories post workout. An example could be running around playing Frisbee verses running on the treadmill. If the client burned the same amount of calories in both activities they were less likely to consume extra calories after playing Frisbee verse running on the treadmill. Sounds crazy, right?! But it makes perfect sense to me because I've seen and experienced it. 

Many people exercise because they don’t like the way their body looks. They see exercise as punishment (not a healthy perspective because they're so many great reasons to exercise). Then, they’ll eat badly as a reward for surviving the so called punishment or vice-a versa (think New Years Resolutions, eat bad through the holidays and then beat yourself for it). In some cases this becomes a vicious cycle; eating poorly, and exercising too much to make up for it....repeat, repeat, repeat. In the end, the person becomes over trained, exhausted and frustrated. Be cautious because if you're thinking this sounds like a eating disorder, you're right. 

If you've been in this trap maybe next time take a rest day, sleep in, and relax. What if we could view exercise as a means of rewarding ourselves for taking care and listening to our body? If we can change the way we think about and exercise, we can change the way we view our health and wellness disposition. I like to remind my clients to exercise and eat well because you love your body and take care of it because you only get one.

If you find yourself in this vicious cycle don't be afraid to ask for help, but feel free to try some of these tips too:

1. Drink lots of water and throw some sliced lemon and cucumber in there too for their cleansing properties. 

2. Focus on green vegetables in your diet (especially at holiday meals). Load up on filling fibrous veggies, like broccoli and brussel sprouts.

3. Limit exercise in duration or intensity or take time completely off if that's what your body needs. Get outside for a walk or play in the park with friends or kids. Just be active without thinking about intentional exercise. 

4. Spend quality time with family and friends (it's amazing how powerful this in almost every situation).

5. Finally.... Don't look in the mirror naked and set short term goals this New Years. Instead, look in the mirror fully clothed and set long term, meaningful goals. Get my drift? Short term vanity based goals don't last, dig deep and think big picture so you don't fall in the "New Years Resolution"  or " Exercise as Punishment" trap.

Happy Holidays! Wishing you a happy and healthy 2015!

-B

Fiber One Chocolate Peanut Butter Crispy Bars

I made these for Gertrude's 15th Birthday at Fitness Rehab. If you've been to FR then you know Gertrude...she's kinda famous!  This recipe is quick, easy and high in fiber. It's still sweet, just a little less sinful!

Ingredients: 

Layer 1: (From the bottom up)
1.5 cup Fiber One, 3/4 c Coco cripsies, 1.5 c rice crispies, 1/3 c all natural peanut butter, & 3 c mini marshmallows
Layer 2:
1/2 cup Semi sweet chocolate chips, 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips, 1/4 cup all natural peanut butter
Layer 3: 
1.5 c Fiber One, 3/4 c Coco cripsies, 1.5 c rice crispies, & 3 c mini marshmallows, 2 T butter

I don't typically measure things exactly and this time of year my house is freezing so when I made this I had to move even more quickly because everything was setting up before I could mix it all together! That said, these measurements are not exact, but the nice thing about these kid of treats is that you can always add more cereal if the ratio's don't seem quite right when you mixing the wet and dry ingredients.

Directions:

1. Prepare large baking dish with butter or coconut oil.
2. In a medium sauce pan, melt marshmallows and peanut butter for layer 1, stirring constantly on medium heat, when well combined mix with dry ingredients for layer 1 and press in to the prepared pan.
3. Wash your pan in warm water while the marshmallow is still easy to get wipe off. Put 1/2 inch water in sauce pan and place it back on the stove on low-medium heat (or if have a double boiler use it). Place a glass bowl inside the sauce pan and melt/stir layer 2 ingredients together.
4. Evenly pour layer 2 ingredients over the top of  layer 1, spread with spatula.
5. Empty out sauce pan and dry thoroughly. Replace sauce pan on stove and melt butter for layer 3 on medium heat, stir in marshmallows until well mixed and melted, combine with remaining cereal and spread on top of layer 2.
6. Use a buttered spatula or hands to press layers together. Let cool, cut and enjoy. This a huge recipe and could probably serve 20ish people.

Enjoy!

Scapulohumeral Rhythm

Hi All!

More educational ramblings to share... 

In teaching group exercise, and more frequently in Crossfit, I've experienced and seen many shoulder injuries. What may cause these injuries is weakness in the middle trapezius and serratus anterior. Most group classes and Crossfit include tons pushing and pressing movements without tons of pulling to counter balance all the anterior work. Even pull ups cannot address the lack pulling alone, but including seated rows, band rows from high and low angles, as well as scapular stabilization exercises can greatly reduce the risk of injury for group class and Crossfit participants. To further understand the shoulder joint, below is a description of the relationships between various parts of the shoulder and the muscles involved in upward rotation of the scapula, as well as the description of one shoulder condition that inhibits healthy movement patterns. 

Scapulohumeral rhythm describes the coupling of shoulder girdle movement with arm movement, Muscolino also states that the motion of the clavicle is also required; therefore perhaps a better name would be “scapuloclaviculohumeral rhythm” (2011). Two separate joint actions that must occur simultaneously are called coupled actions. In the case of the shoulder, only a small degree of movement can occur solely at the glenohurmeral (GH) joint, so when the shoulder moves, movement occurs between the clavicle of the shoulder girdle and the sternum at the sternoclavicular (SC) joint and between the scapula of the shoulder girdle and the rib cage at the Scapulocostal (ScC) joint. A scapular force couple is produced by the trapezius and serratus anterior muscles in upward rotation of the scapula (Donatelli, Ruivo, Thurner & Ibrahim, 2014). Upward rotation of the scapula occurs in arm elevation, for this movement to happen with a full range of motion the shoulder must be healthy.

Having the condition known as “frozen shoulder,” or adhesive capsulitis, may result in the failure of the scapular force couple because of pain and stiffness that can inhibit normal movement at the shoulder joint. Although the cause of frozen shoulder is unclear, it is characterized by the process of thickening and contracture of the capsule surrounding the shoulder joint (Soviero, Gucciardi, & Geraci, 2008). When a client is experiencing frozen shoulder their mobility will be greatly reduced, particularly in external rotation and overhead movements. The three muscles that are traditionally attributed as upward rotators are the upper trapezius, lower trapezius and serratus anterior. Due to the complexity of the shoulder joint, there are many conditions that may cause force couple failure, but frozen shoulder can be treated with low load stretching, end range tensile stress, and progressive loading (Donatelli, Ruivo, Thurner & Ibrahim, 2014). Most often frozen shoulder will be improved through treatment and then scapular motion can be reassessed to see if there are other factors inhibiting force coupling such as forward head posture, rounded shoulders or hyperkyhposis.

1) Muscolino, Joseph E. (2011). Kinesiology: The Skeletal System and Muscle Function.  St. Louis, MO. Mosby, Inc., an affiliate of Elsevier Inc.

2) Soviero, F., Gucciardi, S., & Geraci, A. (2008). THE FROZEN SHOULDER: UNKNOWN AND KNOWN KNOWNS. (English). Capsula Eburnea, 31-14.

3) Donatelli R, Ruivo R, Thurner M, Ibrahim M. Masterclass: New concepts in restoring shoulder elevation in a stiff and painful shoulder patient. Physical Therapy In Sport [serial online]. February 1, 2014;15:3-14. Available from: ScienceDirect, Ipswich, MA. Accessed October 23, 2014.

My Flight Attendant Voice

This post is for Mike M and all the folks who come to my classes and think, "Geeze it's like she's reading a script," or "Hey, she'd make a great flight attendant, she talks just like one!"

This voice or style of delivery I've apparently developed was unintentional, but hilarious to me because I can't help it. Anyway, I haven't been blogging much because I'm in a Exercise Science Graduate program that requires a lot of reading and writing (as I type I should be doing homework, but I needed a little time away)! All of this studying is making the flight attendant voice more unavoidable when I teach classes. In fact, I was proof reading one of my discussion posts aloud and caught myself using the voice. Since the post was flight attendant voice worthy I thought I'd share.

As a Yoga Instructor I talk about posture and breathing with class participants to try to improve their Yoga experience. Individuals who are new to Yoga often find it difficult to maintain steady breathing in poses because they are unfamiliar with having their body twisted or compressed in ways that makes breathing feel constricted. For example, in Cobra Pose (prone with spinal extension, with knees and ankles contacting ground, but hips, chest and shoulders lifted)  it can be difficult to maintain full breaths because of the constriction that may be felt in the abdomen and chest if the head is fully lifted and cocked back.

The constriction new practitioners feel is real as inspiratory ventilation requires an increase in thoracic cavity volume (Clark, Corn, & Lucett, 2008, p. 47). When lying prone and creating a back bend or spinal extension as experienced in Cobra Pose the thoracic cavity is put in a compromised position relative to the anatomical position. In addition, often in Cobra pose the head is cocked back therefore potentially compromising some of the respiratory passageway such as the Pharnyx and Larnyx.

This is one example of how body positioning (posture) can affect breathing. I encourage all of my clients to practice Yoga because it helps them understand anatomy in a practical way. When they understand how the cardiorespiratory system functions with the kinetic chain we can began implementing more advance concepts like lifting with the Valsalva maneuver thereby increasing rigidity of the entire torso to support heavier loads (Baechle & Earle, 2008, p. 85). Incorporating more advanced concepts and teaching clients about the human body helps to keep them safe and consistently progressing in their training.

Clark, M.A., Corn, R. J., & Lucett, S.C. (Eds.). (2008) 3rd Ed. NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training. Baltimore, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Baechle, T.R. & Earle, R.W. (Eds.). (2008) 3^rd Ed. NSCA Essentials of Strength and Conditioning. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. 

If you want more exercise science/school stuff I'll keep sharing or if you just want to read stuff in your best flight attendant voice I'll share for that reason too! 

One a side note, in what Yoga pose do you find it hardest to breathe?

Stuffed Bell Peppers...

Ingredients:

1/1/2 cups cooked grain (brown rice, quinoa, millet)

1/3 cup crushed almonds or walnuts

1 lbs cooked ground turkey, beef or pork

1 onion, finely chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced

4 celery stalks, finely chopped

4 bell peppers (green, red, or yellow)

2 teaspoons olive oil or ghee

salt to taste

Directions:

       1.  Sauté onion and garlic with oil for 1 minute.

       2.  Add celery and sauté for 3 minutes.

       3.  Mix with remaining ingredients, except peppers and crushed nuts.

       4.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

       5.  Cut off tops of peppers and scoop out insides.

       6.  Steam peppers until slightly tender.

       7.  Fill each with stuffing and top with crushed nuts.

       8.  Place in casserole dish with 1/8 inch water, bake in oven for 30 minutes and serve.

Adapted from Healing with Whole Foods: Asian Tradition and Modern Nutrition, by Paul Pitchford.