Why Do You Work Out?

We all know the basic reason that people start a diet

and exercise program.  The number one reason people

change their life style is to lose weight – or nip small

gains in the bud.  But there are plenty of other

benefits from working out that don’t have anything to

do with the numbers on a scale or how your clothes fit. 

 

Can you name six other benefits of working out?

 

1) Exercise improves your mood – Exercise stimulates

chemicals in the brain which may leave you feeling happier

and more relaxed.

2) Exercise combats chronic diseases – Exercise can help

you manage high blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

3) Exercise helps you manage your weight – This one is

pretty self explanatory…the more calories you burn, the

easier it is to manage your weight.

4) Exercise strengthens your heart and lungs - Exercise

helps your cardiovascular system work more efficiently.

5) Exercise promotes better sleep - A boost in activity

can provide a better night sleep….especially if you wake

up at 5am!

6) Exercise can be fun – Whether it be rolling around in

the park or hiking with your kids, exercise can be a fun

group or family activity.

 

Anyone would agree that all of these are great benefits

of working out.  And most of them are pretty easy to

believe.  But how does exercising actually make you

happier? 

 

There are two hormones in the body that with exercise

affect a person’s mood.  Cortisol is a hormone the body

produces when anxious, stressed, angry or afraid.  When

working out burns cortisol and in turn our mood increases. 

 

The second hormones are endorphins.  Exercise stimulates

the pituitary gland to release endorphins.  These

endorphins then attach themselves on receptors that

normally send pain-signaling molecules to other parts of the

brain.  No wonder everyone at boot camp is so happy!

 

Aside from losing weight or going down a size, what other

changes have you noticed in yourself since you started

working out? 

 

Shoot me an email back and let me know.

To Your Health and Fitness,

 

Your Coach, Mark

How Are You Sleeping?

Have you noticed a change in your sleep patterns
since you started boot camp?

Hopefully it is getting easier to get to bed early to
make sure you get the rest you need! If you are
not getting enough sleep at night, you may be
hurting your chance of achieving performance and/or
weight loss goals.

Many studies have been conducted related to sleep
and exercise performance. Needless to say, it has
been found that if you are not getting an adequate
amount of sleep every night, your exercise
performance will suffer. Also, with the lack of sleep,
your body’s need for rest and recovery will increase
and your risk of injury may be higher.

The weight loss (or lack thereof) connection has
been proven as well…

An article that just came out in the January 2009
issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
took a look at sleep and snacking. It was a small
study that let the same group sleep for 5.5 hours
or 8.5 hours per night, each for two weeks.

When the group was sleeping for 5.5 hours per
night, they ate approximately 220 more calories
from snacks, particularly during the hours of 7pm
to 7am. And a greater percentage of their
calories came from carbohydrates when they slept
5.5 hours per night.

Looks like getting adequate sleep may help you
stick to your eating plan and keep from turning to
snacks for an energy boost.

And if that’s not enough to convince you that
adequate sleep is important, studies have also shown
that sleep deprivation strongly impairs human
functioning overall.

And depriving your body of sleep causes hormonal
changes that mimic the effects of aging. Surely you
don’t want to feel/look older!

We know you’re working hard to achieve your goals,
so make sure you get enough sleep so you aren’t
sabotaging your efforts.

To Your Success,

Your Coach, Mark
877-331-0622
mark@hbpersonaltrainer.com

P.S. Make sure to bring your JOURNAL to our next class
orthere’s going to be some EXTRA WORK for you!
Journal = More Results!

Water and Weight Loss…

During the summer when it’s 20 degrees warmer
at 6am and you start sweating as soon as you
walk out the door, it is easy to see why you
would need to drink a lot of water. 
 
But just because the temperature has dropped,
it doesn’t mean you need to drink any less water. 
 
It is important to properly hydrate your body for
activity.
 
Drinking water before, during and after a workout
makes a big difference in the level of performance
while working out.  If you are not drinking enough
water, your body becomes dehydrated.  If your
body is dehydrated then your muscles are also
dehydrated and they will not work as well.  You’ll
also feel fatigued, which combined with the fatigue
you may feel from getting up at 5:15 will make your
workout seem really difficult!
 
This article says that a good rule of thumb is to
drink 1 cup of water every 15-20 minutes during a
workout, then to drink another 2-3 cups within 2
hours of your workout, and to keep drinking water
consistently throughout the day.  So if you have
been feeling sluggish during your workouts, try
drinking more water and see if that helps. 
 
Did you know that a lot of those water drinks that
are supposed to be chock full of vitamins are also
chock full of sugar?  Make sure you are checking
labels on everything you consume.  You will be
shocked when looking at some of the labels for
“water”. 
 
Sticking to plain water may be better for
you in the long run.
 
There have been studies that show the more water
you drink, the more weight you are likely to lose. 
If you replace the sugary drinks (soda, sweet tea,
etc.) with water, you will lose up to 5lbs more a year. 
And if you increase the amount of water you are
drinking, you will lose up to 2lbs more a year. 
 
Check out this article from the USA Today for more
information on drinking water and weight loss.
 
To Your Success,
 
Mark Mancilla, CPT
877-331-0622
mark@hbpersonaltrainer.com

The TRUTH About Nurtition Bars!

When walking around the health food section of a

grocery store these days, you may find that there

are many different types of nutrition bars.  And with

so many options and fancy marketing, it is good to

arm yourself with a little bit of knowledge about

what type of bars you should be eating. 

 

Since I’m not a scientist or a medical professional

of any sort, I asked a nutrition expert for a little

help on this topic. 

 

Jim Dunk, a Certified Sports Nutritionist has worked

in the health and wellness industry for almost 20 years

and was kind enough to provide us with some guidance.

 

He gave us these helpful hints when it comes to which

snack bars to choose:

 

- A bar is a good “in a pinch” snack, but should NEVER

replace a meal.

- The bars should be all natural and if possible should

not have any high fructose corn syrup.

- When choosing a bar look for:

 200 calories or less
 8-10 grams of protein
 30 grams of carbs or less
 2-3 grams of fiber
 3 grams of saturated fat or less

- The less saturated fat, the better.  The saturated fat

is usually due to the chocolate or any yogurt coating

added to the bars.  Saturated fat is the bad animal fats

that we do not need a lot of, and most people eat too

much.

 

With these guidelines in mind, Jim recommends the following:

 

-Zone Perfect Fruitified bars (because they don’t have a

chocolate/yogurt coating) – 190 calories, 14 grams of

protein, 24 grams of carb (3 grams of fiber), 2.5 grams

saturated fat

 

-Luna Toasted Nuts ‘n Cranberry bar (also no coating)

180 calories, 10 grams of protein, 26 grams of carb (3g

of fiber), 0.5 grams saturated fat

 

-Kashi Go Lean Crunchy! Bars – the Chocolate Almond

flavor (some coating) – 170 calories, 27 grams of carb

(5 grams of fiber), 8 grams of protein, 2.5 grams saturated

fat
 
So remember, if you are “in a pinch” and need to eat a bar

for one of your snacks, make sure you are following Jim’s

suggestions to choose the best possible bar. 

 

This is especially important if weight loss is one of your

goals, as some of the bars pack a lot of calories into very

little space- there is a reason some of them taste like candy

bars! Pay attention to the labels and find one you like that

is also healthful.

 

Anytime  you have any nutrition questions, feel free to post

them to the blog or shoot us an email.

 

To Your Success,

 

Your Coach, Mark

mark@hbpersonaltrainer.com

 

P.S. Check out the newly posted boot camp photos at

www.flickr.com/photos/maxbodyfitness

Alcohol and Weight Loss…

One of the hardest parts about starting boot camp isn’t necessarily the exercise. Yes getting out of bed before the sun comes up and running around in the cold is not always easy to say the least. But for many people, they struggle much more with what they should be eating and drinking through out the day. And the hardest thing to give up is the alcohol they are used to drinking.

But there are several reasons we want you to refrain from alcohol during boot camp. And believe it or not, it is for your own good! If you are trying to lose weight or improve your athletic performance and you don’t refrain from drinking alcohol, you may be sabotaging your efforts.

Here are just some of the reasons you should lay off the sauce for the next couple of weeks:

-Alcohol is metabolized differently than other foods and beverages. Alcohol molecules diffuse through the stomach wall and reach the brain and liver in minutes. The liver then focuses primarily on the alcohol, leaving the carbohydrates and dietary fats to be changed into body fat.

-Alcohol is a diuretic. When your body loses water and becomes dehydrated, it loses important minerals that are vital to the maintenance of fluid balance, chemical reactions, and muscle contraction and relaxation.

-Alcohol contains 7 calories per gram and offers NO nutritional value. Alcohol only adds empty calories to your diet.

-Alcohol lowers your inhibitions. After consuming alcohol, people are more likely to do things they would not normally do sober. Alcohol stimulates appetite and reduces willpower. Many people tend to overeat when they are drinking.

Check out this article for more reasons you should watch your alcohol intake while dieting and exercising.

To Your Success,

Your Coach, Mark

The TRUTH About Diet Soda…

It’s true that diet soda may be a better option then drinking regular soda, but is it your best option? Probably not.

Researchers have found that drinking an excessive amount of diet drinks may not help with weight loss. Consuming a sugary beverage, even if it is artificially sweetened, may lead to cravings for other sweets. It may not mean you eat chocolate, but you may choose a sweeter cereal, bread or dessert.

Also, if you are constantly drinking diet beverages, you probably are not drinking enough water. Diet soda is completely nutrition-free and as important as it is to remember to not drink your calories, it is also important to remember to drink water. If you need a caffeine fix, try drinking tea.

So if you are a big diet soda drinker, try to remember to switch out that soda for water most of the time and save the diet drink for a treat. And just for fun, check out the 20 Unhealthiest Drinks in America and the 13 Worst “Healthy” Foods in the Supermarket.

To Your Health,

Coach Mark

Boot Camp Is Back!

Ahh, January.  New beginnings, recommitting to exercise and eating right – it’s the perfect time for boot camp!

During the month there are some important things to remember…

1)  It is January and it can be very cold at 6am.  Please check the weather the night before camp and make sure you are dressed appropriately.  It is better to wear a lot of layers that you can take off, than to not wear enough and freeze to death.  Make sure you have gloves, a hat that covers your ears, thick socks and warm clothes.  Learning to layer your clothes is going to become very important, very quickly.

2)  We know that new shoes can be expensive.  But getting new shoes can help prevent injury.  You really should have a pair that is less than 1 year old, even if you haven’t worn them very much!  We don’t want you to throw away your money so take care of your shoes!  The grassy and muddy conditions at the park can be hard on your shoes…so clean them!

3)  It has been proven that people who write down what they eat on a daily basis lose more weight then those that do not.  So use those log books.  We are here to help you make good choices, but you have to take the first step of logging every thing that you eat. 

4)  Please take care of yourself this month.  If you pull a muscle, do not stretch it (if you stretch, you are just adding more micro tears).  Relax and get ice on it ASAP.  And remember, RICE, Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation.  That’s right…it says REST!  Sometimes you may need to take a day or two to allow your injury to heal.  But this doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t exercise at all.  If you twist your ankle and can’t run or jump, shoot me an email and I’ll come up with another fun and effective workout for you.

5)  It is important to remember that we don’t own the park!  Please be respectful of the parks and help to take care of them.  If you bring water bottles, gloves, towels, or anything to the park, they should leave with you!  Also be mindful of your surroundings.  There are many obstacles at the parks such as holes, rocks, sleeping people, dogs, etc…you get the point!  Keep your eyes open as you make your way through the parks.

6)  Mark your calendars now!  Bring a Friend Day is Wednesday, January 28, 2009.  More details to come.

To Your Fitness Success,

Your Coach, Mark