Fitness, Personal Training, Health and Weight Loss Blog

Archive for the ‘General’ Category

Almost 75% of Americans will be overweight by 2015.

Here are some startling facts if you are overweight:

• 50% more likely to develop heart disease
• 360% more likely to develop diabetes
• 31% more likely to die of any cause
• 120% more likely to develop stomach cancer
• 590% more likely to develop esophageal cancer
• 35% more likely to develop kidney cancer

But for some reason, these numbers don’t scare us enough, maybe these next two will.

Let’s focus on what really motivates us – money and… well, you know:

• 14% less attractive to the opposite sex
• 37% more in expenses for prescription drugs

But there is hope. Exercising even a small amount each day has been shown to:

• Reduce mortality by 14%
• Reduce chance of cancer by 10%
• Reduce chance of cardiovascular disease by 20%
• Reduce risk of getting diabetes by 50%

Think you are “immune” from developing diabetes? The number of people who develop it are staggering:

• 35% of adults ages 20 years or older and 50% of adults ages 65 years or older have pre-diabetes
• 25.6 million, or 11.3% of all people age 20 or older have diabetes
• 10.9 million, or 26.9% of all people age 65 or older have diabetes

Weight loss decreases risk of diabetes. For every kilogram of weight loss, there was a 16% reduction in risk, adjusted for changes in diet and activity.  Increased physical activity was important to help sustain weight loss. Among 495 participants not meeting the weight loss goal at year 1, those who achieved the physical activity goal had 44% lower diabetes incidence.   Diabetes Care  September 2006,  vol. 29,  no. 9,  2102-2107                                               

So, getting in shape in 2012 will allow you be healthier, richer, and more attractive. Where do we start?

From Men’s Health editor David Zinczenko in his book The New Abs Diet.

Lynn’s Fitness Progress Report

At 49 years old, Lynn began training with me with a history of little to no exercise
and she was quick to tell me that she didn’t enjoy working out.  Her goals
were to tighten her body, increase her strength and lose inches. 

After 4 months of workouts with me three days a week and a nutrition makeover,
Lynn’s results were amazing.

Lynn lost 5 inches, her body fat went down 4.2%, and her pushup strength increased
600%. It is interesting to note that with all these results her weight actually
increased .8 pound. This illustrates that with the correct nutrition plan and exercise
program that lean mass is maintained or even increased and body fat decreases. 

Lynn now loves to exercise! She works out on a regular basis and continues to
see new and exciting changes in her body.

Lynn says: Best personal trainer ever!

I have never been able to stick to an exercise program but Maria changed that for
me in a big way. When I started with her in May I was extremely unfit. I had tried
other trainers, classes, gyms etc. but I’d always end up hurting myself or
being so sore I couldn’t get out of bed the next morning! She has shown me that
getting and staying fit is absolutely attainable and amazingly fun! I feel better
than I have since my 20′s. Thank you Maria, you have literally changed my life

In an effort to lose weight and excess fat, Americans spent billions of dollars for diet books, services and products. Yet, efforts such as these to achieve thinness are often based on misunderstandings about body weight and body composition.

Being thin does not necessarily reduce one’s health risk. Thinness simply refers to weighing less than the recommended values in age-height-weight tables. Leanness, on the other hand, refers to the muscle, bone, and fat composition of your body weight. Muscular people with relatively low body fat may be overweight according to weight charts. But because they are lean, this decreases their risk for health problems associated with being over fat.

Success of your weight loss and exercise program is defined as achieving and maintaining a healthy body composition.

Body composition refers to the proportion of fat and fat-free mass in the body. Those with a higher proportion of lean mass to a lower proportion of body fat have a healthy body composition.

This is a better indicator of your overall level of health and success than number on the scale. How much of a person’s weight is actually body fat is one of the most significant factors in evaluating health. Your ideal weight is really a range of weights that is considered healthy, as long as your body fat is in the “healthy range.

As we age our body fat tends to increase, and there is a loss of muscle mass. If you don’t do anything to replace the lean muscle you lose, you’ll increase the percentage of fat in your body.

Muscle weighs more than fat and strength training increases muscle. So the scale may not be a good indicator of your success with your program. If you have been working out with weights and watching what you eat, the number on the scale may stay the same or even go up. But there is no need to worry about this. The goal is to lose fat and maintain muscle and even build muscle. A more muscular body burns more calories per day, helping you manage your weight.

So body composition is a better indicator of your body’s health and fitness.

Body Mass Index (BMI) is an assessment generally used by physicians and health experts to determine if a person is underweight, overweight or within a healthy weight range. Note that the BMI does not take into consideration body type or muscle mass. If you are a very muscular person, your BMI may be in the overweight range, but your risk for health problems may be low.

A Body Mass Index between 19 and 25 is ideal. People with a BMI between 25 and 29.9 are overweight and a BMI greater than 30 indicates obesity. A BMI less than 17.5 could indicate anorexia, and less than 19.1 is considered underweight. A 5’6, 120 pounds and 25 years old’s BMI is 19.4. This is ideal.

For a 5’6, 120 pounds and 25 years old woman, 118-155 pounds in the recommendation for weight based on a healthy Body Mass Index (BMI) range of 19-25.

For a woman 5’6, 120 pounds and 25 years old, 121 pounds is the average weight that other people of that age, height, weight and gender would describe as their ideal weight.

To tone anywhere on the body requires increasing the muscle tissue and decreasing the amount of body fat covering the muscles. This allows you to see the definition and shape of the muscles. To get rid of body fat, you have to burn more calories than you consume, and that means cardio. So that means determining your caloric requirements and tracking your food intact and activity level to create a deficit (if that is needed).

How much of a person’s weight is actually body fat is one of the most significant factors in evaluating weight. I would suggest a body fat test to assess if body fat is in the desired goal range.

A person’s total body weight is made up of lean body mass (LBM) and fat. LBM consists of bone and muscle while fat is stored all over the body and makes up some parts of vital organs. A body fat test is a useful tool because it distinguishes between the weight of fat and that of your lean body mass (muscle). At 5’6 115-120 pounds I wouldn’t suspect that it is too high. However, a person can be at a normal weight but still carry too much body fat.(I call that skinny fat!)

Here are the total calorie require to MAINTAIN the weight of a 5’6 inches 115 pound 25 year old woman. (For a 45 year old, eat 100 calories less per day). A person’s caloric requirements are dependent on activity level, gender, height, weight, and age.

A study from the University of Bristol showed that after exercising, participants returned to work more tolerant of themselves and more forgiving of their colleagues. Their work performance was also consistently higher, as shown by better time management and improved mental sharpness.

Researchers expected that midday exercise would enhance mood. But the boosts in productivity surprised them, proving that workplace exercise programs benefit more than just the workers—they give companies more efficient employees who work better together. Health care costs can be expected to go down for employees who exercise regularly at work, resulting in fewer sick days, better attendance and more cooperation between co-workers.

So take your walking shoes to work and take a  walk instead of going out for a high-calorie lunch. After all, taking time to exercise could translate into higher pay if your job performance improves as a result.