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Take a walk through any gym, and you’ll notice many mistakes. Mistakes that waste time. Mistakes that put people in danger. And mistakes that are just plain stupid. Maybe you even make a few of these mistakes yourself.

By avoiding these common blunders, you’ll put yourself on the fast track to results. Check out the following 5 fitness mistakes and the solutions you need to avoid danger and to get fit fast.

Mistake 1: You use the wrong weight

The goal is to challenge your muscles, not to simply go through the motions. If you are able to complete 15 repetitions easily, then the weight is too light. On the flip side, if you aren’t able to perform an exercise through its full range of motion, and find yourself cheating on form, then the weight is too heavy.

The correct weights will feel challenging by your last few repetitions, but won’t force you to sacrifice form.

Mistake 2: You do the same routine

You may have noticed that most people do the same exercises each time they visit the gym. Maybe you’ve been doing the same exercise routine as long as you can remember - if it isn’t broken then don’t fix it, right?

The truth is that exercise routines have expiration dates, and that is the date that they begin to lose their effectiveness. As a rule of thumb never use the same routine for more than 4 weeks.

Mistake 3: You don’t warm up

Most people consider warm up time to be wasted time - they’d rather jump right into the heart of the routine. What they don’t realize is that a good warm up will allow you to perform at a higher intensity, which means greater results.

The point of a warm up is to increase your muscle temperature. This increases blood flow, muscle contraction and reduces muscle resistance. Your warm up should last 5-10 minutes.

Mistake 4: You use bad form

Gyms are filled with people performing exercises with bad form. The two biggest reasons are that you aren’t concentrating on the exercise, or you’re trying to lift weight that is too heavy. Lifting with improper form almost always results in injury.

Take the time to achieve proper form, by doing so you’ll avoid injury and will reap the full benefit from each exercise.

Mistake 5: You workout alone

People who exercise alone are less challenged, less accountable and typically see fewer results. It makes sense, doesn’t it? Why rush to the gym if no one is there waiting for you? Why push yourself if no one is watching? Exercising alone is a recipe for disaster.

The best way to avoid injury and to see results is to work with me, your trusted source on fitness. I am passionate about seeing my clients achieve results - without wasting time, energy and effort on mistakes.

Call or email today to schedule your first workout.

We are entering the holiday season, a time when sugar-and-fat laden desserts will materialize wherever you go. Wait! Before you forego your fitness goals for another piece of pie, try this simple recipe.

Fruit is nature’s candy - it’s sweet, delicate and delicious. Grilling fruit extracts the natural sugar, making it a warm, tasty treat. Serve seasonal grilled fruit for dessert this holiday season - you’ll lose weight without depriving your taste buds.

Yield: 2 servings

Here’s what you need:

• 1 mango (or apple, pear, melon, pineapple)
• 1 banana (or fig, apricot, papaya, peach, nectarine)
• Dash of cinnamon *optional*
• Grill pan
• Non-stick cooking spray
• Wooden skewers

1. Submerge wooden skewers in water for 15 minutes. Cut fruit into chunks, thread onto skewers.
2. Lightly spray a grill pan over medium heat. Place the fruit skewers in the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon, if desired.
3. Grill for 5 minutes, or until dark grill lines appear. Flip the fruit over and grill the other side.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 120 calories, .5g fat, 31g carbohydrate, 3g fiber, and 1g protein.

The year’s most calorie-dense day is almost here—are you ready? Use this game plan on Christmas to avoid gaining extra weight:

• Start your day of thanks with a fiber-filled breakfast.
• Take 30-60 minutes for a brisk walk or jog before the big meal.
• At the table, fill most of your plate with lean cuts of meat and vegetables. When you’ve filled up on the healthy stuff then simply taste the heavier dishes, rather than eating a large serving.
• Wait at least 20 minutes before you get a second helping. This is very important since it takes at least this long for your body to register how full it actually is. You may realize after 20 minutes that you don’t want seconds after all.
• Enjoy a warm serving of Grilled Fruit for dessert instead of pie.

The number one reason why people don’t exercise is that they don’t have time.

At least that’s what they tell themselves .

I know we are all busy. Between getting to and from work, balancing responsibilities and having time for yourself, there’s little left over for workouts.

With the holiday season fast approaching your busy schedule is sure to get even busier. There will be parties, shopping, decorating, cooking and family gatherings. It’s no wonder that exercise quickly takes a backseat to holiday activities.

You don’t have to succumb to weight gain this holiday season. Escape the time crunch excuse in three easy steps:

Step One: Schedule Your Workouts: You’ve heard this before, and it makes so much sense. If you treat your exercise time with the importance of a work meeting then you’d never skip a workout and you’d be in amazing shape.

While the scheduling concept is brilliant in its simplicity, you have to put it into practice to reap the benefits. Pull out your calendar and a pen. Don’t laugh, I’m serious! Just do it. If you want to get into shape it starts with committing to a revised
schedule with a set exercise time.

Identify three 40-minute time slots and mark them on your calendar. That is when you’ll exercise.

Remember this: if the thought that you should exercise this week is floating around in your head, but you haven’t anchored it down to a specific time and date, then it will quickly disappear.

Step Two: Get the Most from Each Minute: The days of endless, mind numbing cardio are over. A great workout can take place in under an hour, when done correctly. The idea is to burn more calories each minute. This is done through short, intense bursts of exercise.

Use the following three tips to bring your routine up to the next level:

1. Be Unstable: Use your entire body, and target your core, by performing exercises that engage stabilizing muscles. To do this use an exercise ball, a balance board, a balance disk, or you could simply stand on one leg.
2. Add Resistance: The more resistance that you incorporate with your routine translates into higher intensity and more calories burned. Some ideas for adding resistance include: carrying dumbbells while doing lunges, wearing a weighted vest while walking or jogging, or putting a weight between your feet while doing leg raises.
3. Use Intervals: Interval training is an amazing tool for creating short yet effective workouts. Don’t worry, it’s not complicated. Interval training is simply alternating between different short bursts of activity.

   Here’s an example: Let’s say you want to focus on your legs and abs and to also get an effective cardiovascular workout. This would be a great interval routine for your goals:

• Lunge while curling dumbbells, 15-20 repetitions
• 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or jumping jacks
• Squat while pressing dumbbells overhead, 15-20 repetitions
• 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or jumping jacks
• Crunches on an exercise ball, 15-20 repetitions
• 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or jumping jacks
• Leg raises off the end of an exercise bench, 15-20 repetitions

Step Three: Twice the Results in Half the Time: What if I told you that I have a proven way to deliver twice the fitness results in half the time? It’s simple really…

When you attempt to lose weight or meet a fitness goal on your own, the odds are stacked against you. Sure, you could do it over time – but it’s a long and lonely road. A road lined with detours that threaten to undermine your progress.

When you start a program with me, you suddenly have the upper hand on weight loss. You have me in your corner, coaching you each step of the way, keeping you accountable to workouts and giving you that dose of encouragement went the going gets tough.

And I’ll be the one congratulating you when your goal is met.

Call or email today to get started on a fitness program that will put exercise firmly on your calendar, and results squarely in your future.

Remember how Popeye would drain a can of spinach and half a second later his muscles would begin to bulge? Think of this recipe as your own can of spinach. While your muscles may not instantly grow to three times their size, your body will surely experience a nutritious surge.
Yield: 2 servings

Here’s what you need…

• 1 cup packed fresh spinach
• 2 green apples
• 4 large carrots
• 1 Tablespoon fresh ginger
• Juicing machine

1. Wash the vegetables, cut the ends off the carrots and peel the ginger.
2. Run each item through the juicer. Mix until combined, pour into two glasses and enjoy.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 139 calories, .5g fat, 34g carbohydrate, .8g fiber, and 2g protein.

Breakfast is the most influencial meal of the day. If you start your day with sugary pastries or a greasy breakfast sandwich, the rest of your food choices will follow suit. However, when you start your morning with a wholesome and nutritious meal you’ll be more likely to continue with good choices throughout the day.

Certain foods are powerful.

They cast a spell over the most well-meaning dieter, and cause logical people to overeat until their sides hurt.

They occupy your thoughts to the point of obsession as you try to ignore a plate of cookies.

And when it’s all said and done, they accumulate on your body in the most obtrusive way as a result of dozens of unused calories.

Why does food hold such power? And, most importantly, how can you control your eating?

The End of Overeating

David A. Kessler, MD set out to answer these pressing questions in his instant bestseller, The End of Overeating. Despite being a pediatrician, a former FDA commissioner, and former dean of the medical schools at Yale and the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Kessler struggles with his weight.

Observing the current obesity epedemic, he knew that he wasn’t alone.

Dr. Kessler, with the insight of some of the brightest minds in medicine and science, discovered the following three reasons that most of us are compelled to overeat.

1. An Irresistable Combination Rewires Your Brain: Think of your favorite treat - most likely it can be broken down into the basic building blocks of sugar, fat and salt. This combination is known of as the ‘three points of the compass’, a combination that has been shown to literally alter the biological circuitry of your brain.Sugar, fat and salt give food a high hedonic value which gives you pleasure. This pleasure reinforces you to return to your favorite foods time and time again.
2. The Food Industry Targets You: Everywhere you go you’ll see the clever work of the food industry, tempting you with highly palatable creations. Food has become a science, and your taste preferences the guiding light.The food industry has one goal - to get you hooked. By constructing food items that are high in sugar, fat and salt they know that you will come back time and time again.
3. Conditioned Hypereating Becomes a Way of Life: Humans are conditioned to seek more reward. When readily available, hyper palatable food become our reward a pattern of hypereating quickly emerges. Dr. Kessler describes the cycle:”Foods high in sugar, fat, and salt, and the cues that signal them, promote more of everything: more arousal…more thoughts of food…more urge to pursue food…more dopamine-stimulated approach behavior…more consumption…more opioid-driven reward…more overeating to feel better…more delay in feeling fulll…more loss of control…more preoccupation with food…more habit-driven behavior…and ultimately, more and more weight gain.”

Breaking the Cycle

The good news is that you don’t have to remain trapped in a cycle of overeating. The following three tips will put you back in control.

1. Set Your Rules: In order to resist overeating in today’s tempting food environment, you must eat by a set of self-imposed rules. Predetermined rules take away the need to make food decisions in vulnerable moments.Dr. Kessler thinks these rules should be, “simple enough to fit with your busy life, but specific enough to remove uncertainty from the food equation.”For suggestions as to what rules you should adopt, let’s turn to another authority on eating, bestselling author of ‘In Defense of Food’, Michael Pollan:
   • Don’t eat anything your great grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
   • Pay more, eat less. Look for quality of food over quantity.
   • Eat meals. Cut out snacking, stick with structured meals.
   • Don’t get your fuel from the same place your car does. Gas stations are great for fueling your car, but the food they sell are not suited to fuel you.
   • Try not to eat alone. Eating can become mindless when alone, leading to overeating.
   • Eat slowly. Eat foods that have been prepared slowly – that means no fast food.
2. Make Negative Associations: When was the last time you peeled a lemon and ate it whole? Probably never. That’s because your taste buds have a negative association with the sour taste.Our taste buds have traditionally been our guide when it comes to food selection, but this must change for you to successfully avoid overeating. Since the food industry purposely crafts food items to please your taste buds (not waistline) what tastes good can no longer dictate what you eat.It’s up to you to create negative associations with unhealthy food - despite their pleasing taste. Here are some negatives to focus on:
   • Those extra calories will accumulate around your waist.
   • Your health will suffer.
   • You will become more disspointed with your appearance.
   • You’ll feel sluggish.
3. Give Yourself a Real Reward: The bottom line is that we eat unhealthy food as a reward, even though it causes more harm that good. It’s time to give yourself a truly benificial reward – exercise.Exercise is a healthy reward that will not only release endorphins into your system, but will also give you the benefit of weight loss and improved health.

I truly believe that you can overcome your pattern of overeating with healthy eating and regular exercise. Call or email today to get started on a program that will truly change your life.

Few things are as comforting, on a brisk autumn day, than a bowl of hot lentil soup. This recipe is surprisingly simple with 5 minutes of prep and a cook time of just 30 minutes. Serve for lunch or dinner with a piece of hearty whole grain bread and a salad.
Yield: 12 Servings

Here’s what you need…

• 7 cups water
• 2 1/2 cup dried red lentils
• 1 large onion, minced
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• Large pinch of cayenne pepper
• 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• Salt and pepper

1. Combine water, lentils, onion, turmeric, and cayenne pepper in a large soup pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, partially cover, and simmer until lentils have disintegrated, about 30 minutes.
2. Stir in lemon juice, cumin, salt and pepper to taste.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 148 calories, .8g fat, 25g carbohydrate, 6g fiber, and 11g protein.

The Holidays are right around the corner, and candy seems to be everywhere. Most people use the holiday as an excuse to purchase their favorite treats, and end up eating far more of it than they should. Break out of the weight gain cycle by saying no to candy this year. There are plenty of non-edible treats that you can purchase for the kids, or stick with healthy treats like boxed raisins. By taking a minute to plan ahead you’ll save yourself from countless calories.

Have you ever wondered how some people are able to maintain amazing bodies while you struggle with your weight?

They make it seem so easy to achieve and maintain results. What do they know that you don’t? When you boil it down, the answer is quite simple.

The missing link between you and your ideal body is good old motivation.

A healthy dose of motivation coupled with determination will get you almost anything in life. So how do you know if you’re genuinely motivated?

• Motivation will tell you to get out of bed for an early workout.
• Motivation will nag you to put down the doughnut.
• Motivation makes passing on fries a reflex.
• Motivation makes a sweat drenched workout exciting.
• Motivation constantly reminds you why you do what you do.

If your motivation levels are lacking, read the following four steps to turn on your motivation.

Step #1: Pinpoint Your Motivator.

Motivation stems from having a goal. What is your goal? Why do you want to get into great shape?

Once you uncover your personal motivator you’ll find that motivation flows quickly your way.

Take a minute to really uncover the reason that you want to lose the weight. Don’t say something vague like you want to ‘Be thinner’ or ‘Look more attractive.’ Dig deeper – there is a very specific motivator in your life, you simply need to uncover it.

Here are some possible motivators…

• I want to have more energy to keep up with the kids.
• I want to improve my health through weight loss to extend and improve my life.
• I want to lose 15 pounds before my vacation.
• I want to restore my confidence to wear sleeveless shirts.
• I want to regain my figure to impress and attract my significant other.

Step #2: Make It Official.

When you write something down it suddenly feels official, doesn’t it? Write down your motivator for getting into great shape, and post it where you will see it often - next to your alarm clock, on the bathroom mirror, or in your car.

Each time you see your written motivator take a moment to visualize yourself accomplishing your goal. Try to make the scene as clear in your mind as possible. This is a powerful tool for maintaining your focus and direction.

Step #3: Be Practical.

It’s game plan time. You know what you want, and now you need to map out exactly how you’ll achieve it. It is important to be practical in your planning, rather than throwing out ideas that you know you won’t stick with.

With any weight loss goal it is important to 1) maintain a healthy low-calorie diet, and 2) participate in a consistent and challenging exercise program.

Plan a routine that will fit into your schedule and you’ll be more likely to stick with it. Also choose an exercise program that you enjoy - don’t force yourself to jog everyday if you hate jogging.

Step #4: Call For Backup.

Enlist the support of your friends, family and co-workers. Tell everyone about your goal to lose weight and get fit, you’ll be surprised how supportive most people will be. By being open about your goals you’ll likely be an encouragement to others to make healthy changes in their own lives.

The most effective way to ensure that you meet your goal is to enlist my support, your personal trainer. Together we will identify what really motivates you. Together we will design a workout routine that fits into your schedule and into your life. And together we will see it through until your goal is met.

Call or email me today to get started on the program that will transform your life.

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