Healthy B.P.M.

Hey Fitbuddies,We all know we should have more fibrous foods, but tend to think of them as stringy and tasteless. But did you know that something as simple as leaving the skin on a piece of fruit adds fiber to your diet. Also keep in mind that fiber fills you up and keeps you feeling full longer. A definite plus when it comes to dropping pounds. Fiber is also found in whole grains such as breads, cereal, pasta, vegetables and lots of other fruits. Of the 20-30 grams of fiber that the American Dietetic Association recommends each day, we average only 12. Whole wheat bread, whole grain cereal, rye bread, beans, fruits, and vegetables are the highest in fiber content. Increase fibrous foods moderately to prevent bloating and diarrhea, and make sure you get plenty of fluids. Again, by reading food labels you can easily identify the amount of fiber, it’s listed under the total carbohydrate section. A good fiber source has at least 2-3 grams per serving. An especially high fiber source will have five grams or more. Here’s a look at the fiber content of some common foods.

Hey Fitbuddies,Arthritis is an ailment which affects millions of people. I’m one of them and I can tell you it’s no bag of chips. Some people only experience mild discomfort, others are in horrible and debilitating pain every single day. No matter how mild or severe your pain is, you can probably benefit from some exercise. Not only will it improve your overall health, it may also help combat some of your symptoms, leaving you relatively pain free and able to go about your day in more comfort.

Hey Fitbuddies,

Does this sound familiar? You’ve just eaten out. Everything seems fine until you get into bed. First, there’s a general discomfort like you need to belch. When you do, you can taste your dinner from two hours ago. Then your chest begins to feel warm. Clearing your throat begins a burning sensation that extends back down the esophagus to your stomach. Now, you have to sit up. Fully awake, you drink a glass of water to ease the burning but the relief is short lived. This is heartburn. Here are five tips to keep your heartburn under control.

Tip One. Know your triggers. Those who experience heartburn after certain activities can reasonably assume what is causing their episodes. Certain foods can bring on a bout of acid reflux. Like the scenario above, spicy or fatty foods can trigger an attack. Fats digest slower in the stomach. Chocolate can also cause heartburn in certain people. If these or other foods such as fruits and juices or tomatoes, tomato products, and alcohol are suspected of causing your heartburn, avoid them.

Tip Two. Don’t eat late. Going to bed right after eating is a disaster waiting to happen. The acid needed to break down the food is getting revved up. If you lay down, the contents of the stomach shift causing pressure on the sphincter (valve opening) between the stomach and the esophagus. Acid escapes and travels backwards up the esophagus and back into the mouth.

Tip Three: If you must indulge, take a pill. Some people are addicted to their heartburn triggers. If you must have your morning coffee or your weekly dose of Mexican food, head off the heartburn before it starts. Several over-the-counter medications are designed to reduce stomach acid before an episode occurs. These products can be taken forty-five minutes to an hour before a meal. Ask your doctor which may work best for you.

Tip Four: Lose weight. If you’ve never experienced heartburn before, but recently it has become a common occurrence, check the scale. If you are overweight, this could be the problem. For men in particular, excess weight is held around the abdominal area. This extra weight puts more pressure on the sphincter causing acid reflux. I learned this fact from my doctor when I began experiencing heartburn. I started a diet and exercise program to shed some unwanted pounds. After the first twenty pounds, the heartburn I felt at night stopped for good.

Tip Five: De-stress. Stress can lead to weight gain, smoking, drinking, and other behaviors that trigger heartburn. If increased pressures at home or work are leaving you frazzled, confide in a friend or professional counselor. A listening ear now can avoid heartburn later.

The Spiritual AspectWe were created in the image of God/the Creator. That means by birthright we have the same inherent qualities as our creator. The ability to create what it is we desire. Tap into that source energy, that creative potential. Now if we have that inherent ability, losing 15-20 pounds shouldn’t be a problem. Use that energy and ingenious potential that is your connection to your creator and do it. Sickness and low energy are feedback mechanisms. As obvious as this may seem so is weight gain. When you gain weight that’s a cue that something isn’t quite right in your body, you are not living in the natural whole state that you were intended to. Our bodies were not designed to be insufficient or not to function properly. Our metabolism was made to work efficiently digesting food and burning calories. Overeating hinders that process, and it’s not the fault of KFC or Krispy Crème, it’s all you. Build credibility with yourself. Be like the source you came from, which is a perpetual state of wholeness, vibrant health, and abundant energy.

Weight loss advice sells. Fitness advice sells quicker if it makes a promise; like thin thighs in 14 days. Just like we collect exercise equipment that we don’t use, we collect magazines, and books with the hope of discovering the “magic�. While surfing the net the links that invite us to check our next big thing in weight loss lure us in. Salivating and twitching we click on looking for the cure.Don’t feel rained on, I’m checking out the same things you are, but for a slightly different reason. I want to save you time, money and frustration. Once in a blue moon there is some validity to the claims. There are lots of legitimate programs out there, it’s a matter of finding one that fits you.

In research what’s hot and what’s not I did find a great new exercise gadget. Like most of them you do have to use it to get the advantages. It’s called the Val Slide® . This workout reminds me of the slide workout we used to do back in the day. Instead of a 6ft slide you have to oval shaped discs that are used under one or both feet. They can also be used on carpet, and hard surfaced floors. As the name implies, you’re sliding and it really targets the lower body. You will also discover muscles you never knew you had. Place under the hands you can also assume the push up or plank position and intensify your upper body workout as well.

With so many new products on the market it’s helpful to know what to spend your bucks on. What’s also important is that you use what you buy. I don’t care how much of a bargain it might be, if you’re not using it, its money wasted. Look for more product reviews, I don’t mind testing a few of them for you. For those of you who train with me in real time on a regular basis, lookout! You’ll soon be sliding away!.

I bought them at Target for $24.99 (plus tax). Here’s the link to check them on the net. www.valslide.com

We know the benefits of fitness for us, but how often do we consider the benefits of exercise for our children? It isn’t necessary to have a formal workout routine for them (unless that fits your family structure). What’s important is that they spend less time with the Playstation and get moving. Here are some stats from the CDC. Daily participation in school physical education among adolescents dropped 14 percentage points over the last 13 years — from 42% in 1991 to 28% in 2003.

In addition, less than one-third (28%) of high school students meet currently recommended levels of physical activity. The most important lessons children learn, begin at home.In our busy hectic lives, it can be hard to work in playtime with our children. To properly grow and learn, children need to be active. We can help by playing with them. Here are some ideas and benefits:

Hey there, I’ve got a few more tips on how we throw a wet blanket on our metabolism.

The not so right way to start the day - Skip breakfast, hibernate in a dimly lit room, be still for too long.

Couch Potato Syndrome - Keep being still and you’re asking your body to conserve energy. You don’t have to run a marathon (unless you want to) but common sense says you burn more fuel when you move more.Wasting Away - Not in Margaritaville either. I’m talking about your muscle mass. Use it or lose it. If you’ve got a set muscle toning workout twice a week that’s a great start. Bits of toning here and there daily boosts your metabolic rate also, so why not? A squat here, a lunge there, it’s all good.Oxygen Deficit - Poor posture, and a sedentary lifestyle keeps us on the low end of the benefits of deep and full oxygenation. Shallow breathing dampens our capacity to energize properly.Thirst Quencher - By the time you realize that you’re thirsty you’re on your way to dehydration. Not taking in enough fluids puts a strain on your cardiovascular system, kidneys, and promotes fatigue.Last Call - The body treats alcohol as a toxin and works to get rid of it rather than burning fat for energy. Too much also increases your sensitivity to blood sugar, which leads to too much insulin which does nothing to promote fat burning.

Here’s a batch of mini tips to get you and your metabolism going full steam ahead.

Exercising in the Zone

If you’ve wondered what it means to workout in your zone here’s the explanation. When you exercise in your endurance zones you are burning glucose and not fat. This is important because not only do you want to burn fat you want to burn glucose also. When glycogen (a compound stored in the liver and used for energy) is burned it’s called glucose. When your body uses its supply of glycogen, it lets the body know that it needs to store more glycogen next time. So in order to store more your body stores less fat. Imagine the food you eat as a fork in the road that can either go to the right to be stored as fat or it can go to the left to be stored as glycogen. Obviously we want it to go to the left. So if you train your body to go to the left more than the right this helps to speed up your metabolism. But if you don’t exercise your body will assume that it doesn’t need much glycogen because it’s not getting burned. And as you probably guessed the food gets stored as fat. When you exercise in your fat burning zones, obviously you are burning stored fat. So it is important to work out in both zones for maximum metabolism benefits.

Resistance Training

By now you know the importance of resistance training. The more lean muscle you have the more calories your body burns at rest. Also with resistance training you’re still burning calories because you are still getting your heart rate up. That’s why you want to create a balance between cardio and resistance training. This helps to tone the body as you lose the weight. Some women have a misconception about resistance training, especially about lifting weights. Just because you work out with weights doesn’t mean you’ll bulk you. Even super models lift weights. It’s all about your sets, reps and the amount of weight.

No Fasting

Fasting puts you on the fast track to a sluggish metabolism. Women on average should eat 1200-1600 calories a day, and men should eat 2000 or more.

Too Little ExerciseMake sure you exercise a minimum of 3 times a week; 5 would be better. Working out on a regular basis keeps your metabolism stoked and the calories burning. This will also increase lean muscle; the more lean muscle your body has the more calories it burns at rest. So don’t worry about what the scales say but the amount of lean muscle mass you have.Not Enough ZZ‘z

Some people procrastinate, as a way of life, tomorrow never gets here when it comes to making changes. So here’s the $20 million question, what are YOU waiting for? While it is true that proper mindset is crucial in making changes, it is also true that there is no magical date or time when it’s going to show up. This is true in regards to fitness more than any other area. There’s no denying that a vast majority of us are in denial. We have a thousand and one excuses for not getting started and even more for quitting. Different things spur individuals into action, whether it’s a less than favorable report from the doctor, or that dreaded three-way mirror in the fitting room.

How’d the first set of common sense rules sit with you? Hey don’t shoot the messenger, I’m just trying to help. Following these practical tips can save you time, money and frustration. Tally ho!

Most of weight loss and fitness is just plain ol common sense which some seem to be lacking. I have 14 basic common sense steps you can take to take the pressure off and enjoy your life in the meantime. Here’s the first 7 and the second set will come tomorrow.

Let me give you some vacation recovery advice before you sail, fly, or in case you hit the lottery drive away on summer vacation. Some of the best laid healthy eating and fitness plans and bitten the dust because of vacations and holidays. The road to optimal fitness is often blocked with vacation setbacks. Here are some common vacation fantasies: