Fit for Life Coaching News Feed

PIES part 2 - 168 hours in your week minus 1 hour of exercise = A FAT ASS

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PIES part 2 Intensity & Exercise

Let’s make it clear, excuses are not reasons, they are excuses.

Exercising once per week is not enough
This will explain it.
168 hours in your week minus 1 hour of exercise = A FAT ASS

Intensity is the best weight-loss training tool you will ever learn. When you understand how to use intensity you can get more out of the time you spend training.
It’s all about 1 – 10.

Think about your exercise in 2 parts.
Part one is the working out and part two is how long it takes to recover from that work out. The longer it takes you to recover the more weight loss you can achieve.
Body fat is just the way your body stores energy. Simply, when you eat food your body converts it to energy. You use that energy during the day to pump blood around to keep you thinking and to keep you moving. It then stores any energy you don’t use as fat. The excess gets stored! So the great news is you’re not fat! You’re just over charged!

Your body does not like converting body-fat back into energy so it makes you crave food instead.
Also if you skip a meal your body thinks it’s staving. It slows your metabolism down to use less energy rather than use the energy it has already stored

The workout
When you workout, the results come while you recover. If your workout is easy, let’s say 4 out of 10 in intensity, something like a 30min walk, your body will burn energy at a higher rate for about 2 hours
30min easy = 2 hours of accelerated fat burning potential
If you were to work out at 8 out of 10 intensity, something like a 30min run at a pace you find uncomfortable to maintain, your body will burn energy at a higher rate for up on 6 hours or more.
30mins hard = 6+ hours of accelerated fat burning potential
That’s a much better investment of time for results, and who wants to spend hours exercising when you don’t have to.

When it comes to exercise it’s not as much about the type of exercise you choose, it’s more about choosing something you can do efficiently. You either need to work out hard or work out long. A 3 hour walk is a great way to burn some energy but if you don’t have 3 hours, then, as you now know, you could spend 30mins doing something else to get a similar result.

So what is the best exercise? To understand exercise let’s put it into 3 categories

Category 1 resistance exercise
This is working out with weights or doing exercises such as push ups and pull ups
Fact one: Muscles burn fat. The more muscle you have the more fat you can burn.
Category 2 cardio exercise
This is running, walking, biking, and swimming, or anything that gets your heart rate up and makes you breath harder is cardio exercise
Category 3 incidental exercise
This is the exercise you do every day without thinking about it. Taking the stairs, walking from the car, getting up to change the channel, this is incidental exercise and it all adds up.

When you exercise you can’t do the same thing all the time
This is a very common mistake that people make when they exercise. For instance if you started running 3 times per week your body would need to adjust. You would get fitter and maybe lose some weight so you could run more efficiently.
Once your body has made that adjustment (usually over a 6 week period) your body will stop adjusting. You don’t get any fitter and you don’t lose any more weight. Why? Because your body has now adjusted to going for a 30min run.

Part 3 coming next week - Sustainability

PIES Part 1 - I Love Listening to All Your Excuses, But You Still Have a Big Fat Arse - Contents may offend

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PIES

Persistence – Intensity – Exercise – Sustainability

Persistence – It’s not that you don’t want to lose weight. It’s just that you don’t want it bad enough.

People tell me all the time that they want to lose weight, but when I ask what they are prepared to do about it, the conversation pretty much stops there.

If you are one of those people then you need to ask yourself “Why don’t I try hard to get the weight loss I want?” If you were to be honest with yourself there is no other reason for you not losing weight other than you don’t really want to try. It’s not that you can’t and it’s not that someone is stopping you. It’s because you don’t really want to.

Excuse number one: If I lose weight I’ll just put it back on again and feel worse

> when you lose the weight burn those fat clothes. That way, if you put the weight back on you’ll be naked!

Excuse number two: I hate exercise!

> you don’t hate exercise, you just suck at exercise. If you were fitter you would learn to like it

Excuse number three: I won’t be able to eat the food I love!

> Not true. You just need to not eat the same amount as a sumo wrestler. Moderation is the key.

Excuse number four: I don’t have time to exercise

> Ok, stay fat and unhappy then or you can trust me about the fact that you do have time. You just need to plan it in to your week.

Let’s make it clear, excuses are not reasons, they are excuses.

Part 2 coming next week - Intensity & Exercise

FRESH IS BEST

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Making your own home made sauces means you can can use fresh ingredients and control exactly what goes in, its better for you than supermarket bought products that contain aditives and preservatives.
I make my own delicious sauce using fresh, simple ingredients and it is so easy.
I love Annabel Langbeins Harvest Sauce. I highly recommend it, its packed full of tomatoes, red peppers (I grew my own this year), onion and garlic.
You can use it as a pizza base sauce, with steak, in sandwiches, as a base for soups, stirred through pasta and whatever your heart desires.

Try it out for yourself http://www.annabel-langbein.com/cooking/recipes/recipe/?id=292
I doubled this recipe and it made 6 jars....although, they will not last long in my house!

Hawea Epic Survivors

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A quick congradulations to two of our Monday night crew Paul "Turboman" Southworth and Steve "Speed" Cooper for surviving the Hawea Epic, Paul for his first attempt finishing at 8hrs 33mins and Speed for a tidy second year finish at 8hrs 6mins.

Special mention to Kirsten "Gerk" Cooper for being the support crew having to listen to them go on all weekend!

Renew yourself for 2012

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Are you feeling a bit sluggish? lost your edge? put on a few kilos over the holidays? Fit for Life Coaches have three killer options to help you take charge of your 2012. Personally tailored six week fitness programs to get you on the way to feeling fantastic for 2012.

There are three options to choose from for more information and full details see our services page.

Group Training Monday 30th April

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Monday the 30th group training will be at Queens Gardens 5.30pm. All welcome.
We need you to confirm by Sunday evening if you will be coming along to group training on the Monday. Txt or email is fine. This will mean we can tailor the program to those attending and you will be committed to your fitness goals and less likely to fade out at 4.50pm.
The evenings are getting cooler now so please dress warmly.
Looking forward to catching up.
Cheers
Janet

Have you tried Road Cycling?

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Today I did one of my favourite activities, I went for a cruise on my road bike down the Otago Peninusla to Taiaroa Heads and back. It is one of the most beautiful rides in Dunedin and gets you away from the busy world we live in.

Cyclists are a diverse group. Some of us ride fat tires down rocky trails, some of us ride road bikes up big hills, some of us ride for sport and some of us ride just for fun. But all of us can take advantage of the healthy benefits of cycling, even if we never ever buy a single item made from lycra!

So I was thinking, how many people have tried road biking?
We all know that mountain biking is hugely popular, more so on the road than on the mountain.
Road bikes are a great cross over training from mountain biking and the two compliment each other well.
If you would like to try road cycling, feel the thrill of the ride, the smooth speed, stunning scenery then give it a go!
I have a spare road bike with your name on it, come out with me & I will show you the ropes. Training does not always have to be in the gym.

Cycling, along with being the most efficient mode of human transport, is also one of the best all-around activities for improving our health.

1. Cycling is good for your heart: Cycling is associated with improved cardiovascular fitness, as well as a decrease in the risk of coronary heart disease.

2. Cycling is good for your muscles: Riding a bike is great for toning and building your muscles, especially in the lower half of the body – your calves, your thighs, and your rear end. It’s also a great low-impact mode of exercise for those with joint conditions or injuries to the legs or hips, which might keep them from being active.

3. Cycling is good for your waistline: You can burn a lot of calories while biking, especially when you cycle faster than a leisurely pace, and cycling has been associated with helping to keep weight gain down. And cycling has the added benefit of ramping up your metabolism, even after the ride is over.

4. Cycling is good for your lifespan: Cycling is a great way to increase your longevity, as cycling regularly has been associated with increased ‘life-years’, even when adjusted for risks of injury through cycling.

5. Cycling is good for your coordination: Moving both feet around in circles while steering with both your hands and your body’s own weight is good practice for your coordination skills.

6. Cycling is good for your mental health: Riding a bike has been linked to improved mental health.

7. Cycling is good for your immune system: Cycling can strengthen your immune system, and could protect against certain kinds of cancers.

Even with all of these health benefits to cycling, some of us may ride them just for fun. That's one of the reasons I do.
So what are you waiting for? Send me a message and lets go riding...

Ann's final update from her 6 week fitness Challenge

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Here is Ann's final update from her 6 week fitness challenge, the results are great! Nice work Ann.

I have now finished my 6 week fitness challenge and last Tuesday Janet gave me the repeat fitness test.
I have lost 4.2kg, my strength has increased and the number of things I could do in 1 minute has increased. The weight ones have also increased by a lot more 20kg and 10kg which is pleasing, and I could do a prone hold (plank) for 1min 30sec up from 52. Running, which I like the most stayed about the same which was disappointing – have to do more work there. I also took 20 minutes off my time getting up Mt Cargill, a great challenge working out how I could do it faster and smarter.
I did enjoy it – liked checking my email each Tuesday evening to get my assignment for the next week, and enjoyed the challenge. I learned a lot about what I could do and just how hard I could push myself. It was a good test to see just where my fitness is and what I will have to do to be ready for Mongolia in August. (lots) It also got me used to the discipline of going to the gym more and working harder.
I would recommend the challenge for any one getting a little stale, who needs something to focus on and change their life. I didn’t want to finish – wanted to keep going. I do like a challenge, pushing myself and keeping a record of everything I did and ate. Would definitely do it again. Thanks Janet.

Anns Six week fitness update

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Now up to the end of week 5 and all was going so well. One of my best things was a 5km time trial. Did 2 laps of the Logan Park/Harbour Terrace circuit plus a bit more (I go into Google Earth and work out my route and distance). Started off in fine weather but by the time I finished it was pouring and I was wet through. Didn't worry though as I was doing so well and went so fast. Also enjoyed intervals - run 1km, rest 60 seconds, run 900m, rest 60 seconds down to 100m. Think I have finally got my running sorted.
Then last Thursday after work it was off to Te Anau to walk the Kepler Track with 2 friends. ( I did it last in about 1990 and have never done it again because of the hill on day 1). I had been thinking (some might say obsessing) about day 1 and doing it as quickly as I could, so I was on a mission. Took off and powered up that hill, stopping only for lunch - did the 13.8km to Luxmore Hut in 4 and a half hours ( sign said 4-6hrs).
Day 2 to The Irisburn Hut was another story - lots more hills, windy ridges and long, long downhill. We won't talk about the time. Unfortunately the downhill caused problems with my big toenail and it did not feel good at the end.
Day 3 to Rainbow Reach - 22.2km and we had to catch the Track Bus at 3, so we left at 8 and it was head down all the way. It also rained lightly all day, so apart from a short lunch break didn't stop. We did it in about 2 hours less than the signs. I even managed some running in the good, flat parts.
The result is that my big toenail is an unhealthy looking purple and looks as though it will come off. This means that with one week to go my challenge is on hold, until I can do more running and still have to take 5 minutes off my time getting up Mt Cargill.
It was good to have a light session with Janet today and get my tight muscles loosened, I now walk much more easily than I did this morning.