Essential Holiday Eating Tips

I'm sure a lot of you are as sick of me ranting on Holiday Eating as much as I am of writing it!

But we still have a bit of December do deal with. We just need to get through the next few weeks! And remember, we're not trying to loose any weight right now; just not gain any. Net Zero from November 1st to January 1st.

Right now, we just need to think clean.

Henry Ford wanted a V8 engine. Actually, he demanded a V8 engine. For years, his engineering team told him that it couldn't be done. It wasn't possible. The rest, of course is history as the V8 engine has been the most popular engine in automotive history.

Think Positive. Think Clean

Regarding the Holiday blues, Holiday stress, Holiday food fest, and the rest,

replace negative thoughts like ...

• There’s nothing I can do to stay healthy during the holidays.
• That’s just the way I am during the holidays.
• The holidays make me feel so stressed.
• I can’t take the time to work out until after the holidays.
• I Can’t…………………I Must……………….If Only

... With proactive thoughts such as:

• I’ll find alternatives to overindulging this happy season.
• I can choose a different approach this year.
• I control my own feelings at all times and I choose to feel great!
• I want to take the time necessary to make sure I stay healthy during the holidays.
• I Choose……………….I Prefer……………I Will

The point is: "Whether you think you can, or think you can't, you're right either way."
-- HENRY FORD

A few concrete tips:

• Substitute non fat yogurt or non fat cottage cheese for sour cream in cooking and recipes
  
• Wear your tightest, most form fitting pants to dinner parties and/or tie a string around your waist under your shirt that will not budge with the bulge. They'll help keep you conscious of overeating.
  
• Have a healthy, protein rich snack before going to cocktail or dinner parties. Or a meal replacement shake. The high fat content appetizers won't look so good of your not hungry.
• Don't keep trigger foods in the house; just don't buy them!
  
• Do not stop your regular exercise program. If you don’t have a regular exercise program, get one immediately!
  

Metabolism Boosting Exercise Plan: Frequent Quickies

December is one of the toughest months of the year for Fitness Professionals . As if busy lives, work schedules, and family affairs weren't enough, extra travel, holiday parties, out of town guests, and office gatherings all add to the normal daily stresses. Making time to exercise is always a challenge, but this added pressure can be a nightmare for trainers trying to keep their clients on track!

Of course, in the blindered world of a Fitness Professional (because no matter what the question is, exercise is almost always one of the best answers), we'd argue that if you're life gets so stressful that you don't have time to exercise, you really can't afford to NOT exercise.

But, enough's been said on that. So what I will pitch as a solution to December exercise deprivation is the notion of Frequent Exercise Quickies. That is, rather than spending 75 to 90 minutes working out 2 or 3 days per week this month, plan instead for training 3 or 4 days per week (one extra) for just (much shorter) 45 to 55 minutes.

Normally, we coach clients (and you should plan) for a minimum of 10 to 15 minutes warming up before your workout and 30 to 45 minutes of cardiovascular work following your session. Along with your 45 minute session, this give you have a standard 75 to 90 minute workout. While that doesn't seem like a huge time committment to us, it can certainly seem intimidating when there's cooking to be done, the in-laws are inbound, and you have an unfinished gift shopping list.

A 50 minute workout, on the other hand, is short, sweet, and mentally conquerable. Heck, it's not even a workout ... more of a workoutling ... a workout too small, cute, and incomplete to be a real workout. Get in, get it done, and be on your way. The key, of course, is that if you reduce you cardio and resistance effort volumes, you'll really, really need that additional exercise quickie per week!

Training for 50 minutes 4 times per week (200 total minutes) instead of 75 minutes 3 times per week (225 total minutes) also has other advantages.

For one, you raise your metabolism one extra day per week. Not only do you burn calories while exercising, but you'll burn additional calories recovering from the exercise after your workout. And this extra day of recovery effort more than covers for the reduced total volume (25 minutes).

Additionally, the 4th workoutling per week gives you one more boost of energy to make it through stressful days, and another shot of endorphins to make the holiday stress more tolerable.

If you're training with FT, your session pace is always quick and with aerobic elements, but if you're getting your (regular or extra) workoutlings on your own, keep these things in mind for effective exercise quickies:

1. It's just 50 minutes, so plan for being seriously committed for the entire workout; it goes fast!
   
2. Rest no more than 1 minute between sets
3. Drink plenty of water
   
4. Wear your headphones, and don't make eye contact with anyone else in the gym (no time to get pulled away into a conversations)
5. Look ahead, and plan your next exercise before you're finished with your current one
6. Have an alternate exercise in mind with alternate equipment to keep you moving should your equipment get taken before you get there
7. Go relatively light with high repetitions (20+) on the 1st set of any exercise (missing out on a proper warmup will increase the risk of injury, so you'll need to warmup in-line)
8. Plan for no fewer than 10-12 repetitions on any exercise (again, making the workout more aerobic in nature to compensate for reduced cardio)

Save your Joints! Practical Advice for Cardiophiles

I played some open hockey yesterday, and spent the better part of my bench time explaining the significance of resistance training to another old fart complaining about his knees and knee pain. Hockey, you see, like running, swimming, and racquet sports is just plain tough on the joints.

So I thought I would share with you some specifics on how, and why resistance training is critical for good joint stability ... PARTICULARLY if you do a lot of 'pounding' cardio work.

Within the context of joints, exercises can, basically, be separated into two types: closed chain exercises and open chain exercises. Not surprisingly, the analogy is derived from the links on a chain (bike, necklace, bondage, whatever ;-). The links of a chain are closed when there is tension on the chain; open when the tension is relieved.

At the joint, there is a lot going on:

• Ligaments connect bones to other bones;
  
• Tendons (attached to muscles) attach to bones and
• There is a soft tissue that functions as padding, or bushing between the bones
  

As you exercise, muscles contract, or shorten to pull your bones in the desired direction. And if you didn't know this already, muscles ONLY contract. All body movement is ONLY through the contraction of muscles: muscles never push anything, event though your trainer is constantly (and quite ironically) shouting push, push, push all the time!

And during an exercise like running, an individual knee joint undergoes the repetitive process of opening and closing. First, it is supporting the load of your bodyweight as you land and push off of it, and then it dangles somewhat freely as you extend your foot forward to take your next stride.

Thus, this is what we call an open chained exercise: just as the links in a chain 'open' when tension on the chain is relieved, the link between the tibia (lower leg) and femur (thigh bone) is 'opened' when you run (or walk). Then, the tibia and femur are quite literally 'smashed' together (closed) upon your foot's impact with the ground. Only the soft tissues (meniscus), ligaments, and tendons keep the bones from contacting each other under this load.

So, while something like running is terrific and necessary for your heart health, it is actually quite abusive on your joints. Repeat this movement over years and years (or a marathon or two) and you are virtually guaranteed knee, hip and back problems later in life.

Conversely, an exercise like leg curls is considered a closed chain exercise: during the complete range of motion of the exercise, there is never any 'open relief' between the chain of bones at the knee joint. The tendons, ligaments, and muscle groups are constantly 'pulling' and 'tightening' the joint. The Chain link is Closed without opportunity for impact.

The moral, of course, is that balance and variety is the key: strength training and cardio cannot be safely separated. Anyone who runs a lot, plays hockey, or otherwise performs a lot of open chained exercises simply needs to incorporate additional closed chain resistance training to help maintain good strength and stability around the joint. Depending on your age and fitness levels, this type of strength training should be performed at least two days per week.

Additionally, proper form on closed chain resistance exercise also helps assure good skeletal alignment ... particularly for you cardio beasts. Because even the slightest skeletal MISalignment is magnified with thousands of open chained repetitions.

Finally, muscle mass, bone density, and flexibility all decrease significantly once adults turn 30 ... and then accelerates with age. So not only will you help ensure the soundness of your joints through resistance training, but you'll hold on to your lean mass and strength!

Resistance training is the ONLY way to reverse this degradation.

And it's not just the knees. Racquet sports (tennis, racquetball), softball, and swimming does the same thing for the shoulders. These open chained exercises are terrific for you heart and lungs, but not so gentle on the joints. Even something as potentially harmless as bowling or curling can cause knee, shoulder, and lower back problems without strong joints.

I'll also make a small confession: I'm firmly convinced that I would NOT have ruptured my biceps tendon playing hockey back in August had I been more consistent with my strength training over the summer. Back then I was rolling off of a long summer of cycling, skipped strength training for a few weeks, and ended up injured.

Where is the Fitness Savings Account?

October tends to be benefits open enrollment month for a lot of larger organizations. Bureaucracy intact, this is your one and only chance to modify deductions and elections for the entire year!

As is common knowledge, the federal government supports a couple of tax savings programs in the form of Health Care Savings (HSA) accounts and Childcare Savings Accounts. Employers implement the programs by allowing pre-tax income to be placed into accounts that will be used either for Health or Child care. That way, the subscribing employee doesn't pay income, fica, or fuda tax on the account funds.

All that's all good, but my Big problem, is that there aren't currently any provisions for Fitness Related Expenses. I had lasik surgery to correct my vision a few years ago. That was covered under the HSA. My teenagers are currently in braces. That's covered too. Need teeth whitened? No problem.

So, with these, apparently cosmetic items covered under Health Care Savings Account rules, why aren't Fitness Related Expenses!? I haven't looked, but wouldn't be surprised if you could get a boob job with HSA account funds! What the heck!? Spending money on your heart health, reducing your risk of disease and cancer sure seems to make a lot better sense in an HSA than braces! Don't get me wrong, I am delighted that the braces are covered (it helped soften the bill a bit), but as a 'family-related' allowance it doesn't do much for childless couples, singles, or empty nesters.

Why aren't gym memberships, bicycles, and personal training services included as well!? What could possibly make more sense when looking for ways to improve fitness levels, reduce health care costs, and put a bit more cash into ailing American pockets during an economic meltdown!?

Many employers have recognized the benefits of exercise and offer reimbursement for regular exercise attendance. At Fitness Together, we actually don't participate in these programs. Quite frankly, the twice weekly exercise employers and health care providers recognize might be acceptable for a fit individual simply looking to maintain their fitness levels, but is grossly inadequate for anyone looking to make significant changes in their health and fitness. We simply give our clients a free session when they train 12 or more days per month. We avoid the paperwork, and our session value is a lot more valuable than the 50 bucks employers and providers offer.

BUT, if my clients, big box gym goers, and anyone spending money at the bike shop could simply draw against an HSA accepting of fitness expenses, everyone wins! Employers and providers could eliminate the overhead of their one-off attendance reimbursement programs, and their employees could exercise tax free.

Healthy Eating Requires Exercise

Get your flavanoids! They're good for your heart. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables for that. Make sure you get enough Omega 3 fats in your diet; they're good fats and can reduce cholesterol and ease the metabolism of bad fats. Salmon, flax seeds, walnuts, and soybeans are good sources. Make sure you get enough dairy in your diet; it's needed for strong bones and will help avoid degenerative disease like osteoporosis. Cottage cheese, yogurt, and milk will cover you there. And don't forget about fiber, protein, vitamins, and minerals, and ...

The list goes on an on and on. So it occurred to me while making my way home after a long commute ride the other day (and thinking of what I was going to devour once I got home) that if we actually followed all of the nutritional guidance pumped into the media by food companies, supplement companies, and well-intentioned fitness professionals, we'd all look like sumo wrestlers!

The missing variable, of course is exercise. So, while there are lots of great reasons for exercising, THE MOST SIGNIFICANT BENEFIT OF EXERCISE could very well be that it simply allows us to eat more! Most of us love to eat, and a lot of us exercise just so that we can eat more!

Indeed, while it's well documented that exercise alone improves your heart health, reduces stress, and enriches your lifestyle, regular and occasionally intense exercise burns extra calories. And without exercise, most of us would be obese within 6 months if we consumed all of needed food to obtain all of the needed nutrients. Or you could pay thousands of dollars per year on organic supplements, though even the best manufactured nutrients fall far short on nutrient quality when compared to natural food sources. So, we need to eat better and eat more!

Hydration also factors in. Water is the body's primary means of cleansing itself by flushing toxins out the back (bottom) door. Further, proper hydration improves digestive efficiency, reduces blood pressure, and improves the appearance of skin, nails, and hair.

We've all heard the advise to drink 8 glasses of water each day. You know, that's a lot of water! It actually takes conscious effort to consume that much water positioned butt down at your desk. But crank out a few hot cardio intervals, or knock down one of our HEAT programs, or do a few FT Coley lunges, and you'll have 20 ounces through your body before you event think about food! The primary vessel we drive, our bodies, simply requires exercise induced thirst to get in enough fluids on a regular basis.

So, there you have it! Never mind that exercise improves your heart health and reduces the risk of acquiring all types of disease and illness, THE MOST SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION OF EXERCISE IS THAT YOU CAN EAT MORE!

And getting nutrients, from trace minerals to water to protein is critical to your health. We are what we eat.

Fitness Fanatic Approved Fair Foods

The great Minnesota Get Together starts in just a couple of weeks. Feared and Dreaded by trainers across the state since the beginning of time, this single event can cause more damage to a client's otherwise predicable progress than Thanksgiving and Valentine's day COMBINED. 12 days of high fat content food. 12 days of grazing and lazing.

But it doesn't have to be so! We've done some research on the deep fried lard on a stick alternatives, and have found that a trip to the fair can be fun, friendly, and fitness approved.

But before I get into the food tips, let me give you two other pieces of advice for making the fair regret-free to your fitness goals.

First and Foremost, Get your workout in BEFORE you go to the fair. Most venues don't open until 8 or 9AM, so get up early, get that workout in, boost the metabolism going into the battle, and you'll have a few more caloric liberties while your're there.

Secondly, PLAN for riding your bike to the fair. Search for and plan to park by Como and you'll have less than a mile to ride to any of the FREE bike parking lots. You'll still want to bring a lock, but the fully attended corrals will check-in your bike to ensure that everyone leaves with what they brought in. Three Gates host bike corrals:

• Como-Snelling Gate (#6)

• Hoyt-Snelling Gate (#2)

• Commonwealth-West Dan Patch (#15)

Bike Corral Hours: 6 a.m. to midnight daily.

Bicycle corrals are sponsored by Twin City Bike Club.

Visit them online at www.biketcbc.org

As far as food is concerned, my recommendation would be to have a healthy, hearty meal before you go.

BUT, I know a lot of folks flock to the fair simply to enjoy the delicacies, so here are a list of the least damaging choices.

Category 1: Your Trainer will love you

Andres Watermelon

Caribbean Fruit Smoothies

Midwest Dairy Association of Minnesota "All The Milk You Can Drink For $1"

Minnesota Apples

Minnesota State Fair Bottled Water

Orange Treet

St. Martins

Category 2: A few good choices, but not all good

Bayou Bob's Gator Shack (watch the sodium)

Beef Kabobs (kabobs OK, side dishes marginal)

Buffalo Burgers (kabobs OK, side dishes marginal)

Cafe Caribe

Corn Roast (skip the butter)

Demetri's Greek Foods (Salad OK)

Dino's Gyros (Salads OK)

Falafel King (stay away from the fried vegies)

Hawaiian Shaved Ice (go light on the cream & nut toppings)

Jerky Shoppe, The (watch the sodium)

Mini-Kabob (watch the sodium)

Minnesota Buffalo Association, E-18 Judson Ave.

Porkchops and Turkey Legs (Turkey OK; Porkchops not)

Ragin Cajun (peel/eat shrimp or boiled crawfish only)

Smokin' Joe's Smokehouse

Turkey To Go (drumsticks OK)

And that's a LOT of Food. Much of it wouldn't fit into the optimal, heathly diet, but, again, is going to blow your diet LESS than almost anything else you'll find at the fair.

Top 10 Tips for Staying Fit While on Vacation

Summer's here and it's easy to miss or avoid exercise while on 'vacation.'

Just remember though, that your metabolism NEVER quits, and all of those extra calories looking back at you will either be converted into heat through exercise, or land plump on your backside.

It's up to you to decide, and here then are my top 10 tips for maintaining good health while vacationing.

1. Plan Active Vacations that include hiking, cycling or backpacking. Instead of yet another year inside an air conditioned museum, hike the canyons, paddle the boundary waters, or backpack a national park.
2. Discuss Exercise with your traveling partner(s) before you hit the road. Which cities and parks will offer exercise opportunities. Plan for exercising at least half of the days you travel.
3. See sights in new cities by cycling. You'll avoid a lot of auto traffic and get healthier in the process. Bike shops everywhere will rent bikes, and have tips and maps for safe riding in urban areas. Better yet, get a bike rack and take your own bike with you! Stow it in your room at night if you don't have a great rack locking system. We Believe in Bikes.
4. If you can't bike, then walk. And don't skip the stairs!
5. Pack active and exercise attire accordingly.
6. Get a Healthy Breakfast. Plan for a clean, high protein breakfast to start your day night.
7. Avoid deep fat fried foods. This tip goes for always, but especially if you're traveling, you may be spending half of the calories you would otherwise spend on a normal day, and can NOT afford the extra, heart clogging calories while sedentary.
8. Eat Clean while in the car. If you're on a road trip impose and enforce a Healthy Foods Only Rule: bottled water, fruit, nuts, and jerky are plenty fine road foods. My favorite convenience store on earth is Kwik Trip. They have cheap bananas, fresh fruit, baby carrots, and great tasting skim milk.
9. Exercise 1st. If your day includes a planned exercise event, do it first thing in the morning so that all of the uncertainty of travel won't get in the way of your workout later in the day.
10. Carry your bag or pull a cart if you golf. You'll spend almost 3 times as many calories as you would if you dump your but into a rider.
11. Stretch. And stretch some more. I am always shocked at how out of place I look when stretching at waysides. EVERYONE should be stretching there. Warm up a bit first with a brisk 5 minute walk, then stretch every muscle group you can find ... twice!