December 2015 VEF Class Schedule

Supplements & The Rest

First know that the information contained on this blog is not medical advice and is not intended to replace the advice or attention of health-care professionals. I am not a registered dietician. Consult your physician before beginning or making changes in your diet or exercise program, for diagnosis and treatment of illness and injuries, and for advice regarding medications. 

That all said....Just a little blurb on supplements. Supplements should not be "replacements" for obtaining actual sources of nutrients your body needs, but only in addition to obtaining these nutrients. Bottom-line is you should always try to get your vitamins and minerals from natural, whole food sources. That being said, sometimes this isn't always feasible. A good whole food multi-vitamin with probiotics can be a great way to supplement your healthy and supportive dietary intake daily. When choosing a vitamin, make sure it is from a good source, will be ingested as opposed to excreted out and what times of day and with what foods is best for it to be taken, and that you are not taking an overabundance of any such vitamin. B Complexes are another good add on ... not to replace actual produce and other food sources, but to enhance what you are not able to intake on a daily basis. Things to know about any supplements you choose to take:

1) No one other than a medical doctor and/or a registered dietician who also know your full medical history should advise you of what supplements to take. Why? There can be severe drug and medical interactions that without full knowledge of your personal situation could cause harm to you.

2) It is important to get educated on what you are taking, whether it be medicine or supplement because there are certain foods you have to take with certain things in order for your body to ingest it as intended as well as certain foods you should not eat while taking certain things or they will cause adverse effects to you either immediately or over time. An example would be certain medications that cause adverse effects if you also eat grapefruit while taking. Another example would be something as simple as a vitamin which in large doses and with certain auto-immune diseases can cause thinning of the blood.

3) Everyone's make up is different and so too are their bodily demands. What an athlete may require, I would not, nor would you most likely need. So don't get caught up in sports enhancing selling practices for reasons why you need this sports drink and/or supplement.....'cause you don't, nor would that very sports drink and/or supplement have the same effect in your body as it does in a highly trained athlete.

Mostly what everyone needs is a balanced and supportive diet with proper daily/weekly exercise and rest. Save the quick fixes and gimmicks for folks who are not yet educated on proper healthy choices and practices! http://www.veryeffective.blogspot.com/p/eating-supportively.html

from the September 2012 issue of Fitness Magazine:

Should You Swallow by Paige Greenfield

"Taking vitamins to stay healthy seems like a no-brainer. But new research has found that supplements aren't the magic bullet we've been led to believe. One recent review of 78 studies found that antioxidant supplements don't reduce the risk for death from disease; in fact, in some cases they actually raise it. And now calcium supplements, which so many of us have been dutifully popping for years, have been linked to an increased risk of heart attacks. Say what? But don't trash your stash just yet. Read on so you can make the best decisions for your body."

The article goes on to state the facts that "Vitamins don't cancel out bad health habits" &  "Megadoses are useless and possibly even harmful" & "What you put on your plate mattes most". 

Sweet Anatomy Breakdown

from http://www.ifafitness.com/book/kinesiology.htm [with clarification in places added from me]

Anatomy Bones provide attachment points and support for muscles. Bones are connected together by fibrous tissue called Ligaments. Tendons are also fibrous tissue and attach muscle to bone. Both have some elasticity and do not heal on their own if torn. An overstretched tendon is called tendonitis and is an inflamed tendon. Cartilage is also fibrous tissue but is not elastic. Cartilage is used to cushion the junction of two bones. The body is divided into three anatomical planes the Frontal, Sagittal and Horizontal. The Frontal plane divides the body from front to back. The Sagittal plane divides the body down the center or vertically. The Horizontal plane divides upper and lower. The table below lists the anatomical term and the corresponding description. ANATOMICAL TERM DESCRIPTION Anterior front Posterior back Medial inside Lateral outside Supine face up Unilateral one side Bilateral both sides Prone face down Superior upper Inferior lower Muscle Action The three types of muscle contraction are Isometric, Isotonic, and Isokinetic. Isometric is defined as that type of contraction where muscle tension and muscle length remain constant. This type of exercise provides muscle strength gains but only at the joint angle held during the exercise. Isotonic contraction is defined as that where the muscle tension remains constant and muscle length varies. Isokinetic contraction is defined as varying tension and length. [Key difference between Isotonic and Isokinetic is rate of speed. They both lengthen and shorten the muscles in use, but isotonic does so at any speed varying at weakest link and isokinetic is the same rate of speed throughout the movement.] In each exercise there are four main functions of the associated muscles, Agonists (prime movers), Antagonists, Stabilizers and Assistors. The Agonists is generally the muscle we are exercising. The Antagonist is the opposing muscle and acts in contrast to the agonist. The Stabilizer muscles are those that hold a joint in place so that the exercise may be performed. The Assistors help the Agonist muscle doing the work. The stabilizer muscles are not necessarily moving during exercise, but provide stationary support. For example, when doing biceps curls, the biceps are the agonists, the triceps are the antagonists and various muscles including the deltoids are the stabilizer muscles. However, when doing a triceps push down, now the triceps are the agonists and the biceps are the antagonists. Again the deltoid muscles are the stabilizer muscles. The agonist/antagonist relationship changes depending on which muscle is expected to do the work. However, every muscle group has an opposing muscle group. The following table lists muscles and their opposing counterparts: AGONIST (Prime Mover) ANTAGONIST Biceps Triceps Deltoids Latissimus Dorsi Pectoralis Major Trapezius/Rhomboids Rectus Abdominis Erector Spinae Iliopsoas Gluteus Maximus Quadriceps Hamstrings Hip Adductor Gluteus Medius Tibialis Anterior Gastrocnemius In reference to Agonist and Antagonist, this above list could easily be reversed when exercising the muscles in the right hand column. Muscle balance is that relationship between the Agonist and Antagonist. It is important to have muscle balance to prevent injury. If the Agonist is much stronger than the Antagonist, the Agonist can overpower and injure the Antagonist. Tendons are made up of fibrous tissue and connect muscle to bone. Tendonitis is an inflammation of the tendon due to overuse. A stretching or tearing of the tendon is referred to as a strain. A Strain is a muscle or tendon injury. Ligaments are also fibrous tissue and connect bone to bone. There are less flexible than tendons. The function of ligaments is to restrict the joint movement within normal parameters. When a ligament is over stretched or torn it is called a sprain. Since ligaments don't have a vascular system, they may take a very long time to repair or may never return to their original length. This can cause abnormal joint movement and even cartilage and bone wear due to this unrestricted movement. Joint Action Joints provides a fulcrum point for muscles to do work. There are six types of joint action: JOINT ACTION MOVEMENT DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE MOVEMENT Flexion decreasing joint angle Biceps Curl Extension increasing joint angle Triceps Extension Abduction movement away from body centerline Lateral Raises (Deltoids) Adduction movement toward body centerline Horizontal Flyes (Pectorals) Rotation rotation about and axis Twisting the Arm Circumduction 360 degree rotation Arm circle around

Restaurant Survival

HELP! Is what I hear a lot of regarding how to "eat out" and not completely screw up fat loss success. Planning ahead is always a good idea. There are numerous ways to find out the nutritional information for any particular restaurant....easiest way is to simply Google it. Some restaurants offer their nutritional info and for those restaurants that do not, there are tons of free sites offering up the info. If you have a smart phone, there are free apps you can download such as Calorie, Fast Food, etc., that provide both fast food and sit down restaurant nutritional info at a quick glance and search. Whether you look up the info on the ride over to the restaurant, or in advance planning, knowing what you are choosing is the best way to side step the pitfalls of a restaurant experience and not falling "victim" to the head trips of what only looks like the healthier option.

Produce Serving Sizes

A question that gets asked a lot is what constitutes a serving size of produce. First know that the information contained on this blog is not medical advice and is not intended to replace the advice or attention of health-care professionals. I am not a registered dietician. Consult your physician before beginning or making changes in your diet or exercise program, for diagnosis and treatment of illness and injuries, and for advice regarding medications. That said, the rule I go by is to eat a minimum of 8-10 servings of fruit and vegetables daily. I try to weight the fruits earlier in the day due to the sugar content and I always combine my produce with protein. Eating Supportively The serving sizes I utilize are as follows:

1 Fruit Serving Size is Equal to:
1 medium whole fruit (e.g., apple, banana,, orange)
1/2 cup small fruit (e.g., berries, grapes)
1 cup chopped large (e.g., melons)
1/4 cup dried fruit

1 Vegetable Serving Size is Equal to:
1 cup cooked or raw
2 cups leafy greens
1/2 cup beans/legumes

Short On Time?

Short On Time? Don't think you have time to prepare supportive meals for you and your family? That's kooky talk! First, don't make it complicated!!! You can have extremely supportive home cooked meals in minutes! Here's how I do it: Pick one hour a week (whatever day you have an hour to be home...Sunday afternoon, Friday evening, Tuesday morning, whatever day works for you) to prepare your weeks worth of meals. I usually cook the meats (mostly baked...so not even in the kitchen for the hour) whether it be a combo of baked, grilled, sauteéd, or crock pot. Then if I am going to cook dried beans, I also put those on and/or anything that needs some time to cook or prepare. Then it all goes in the fridge to be pulled out the meal of throughout the week and put with whatever veggie or grain I am combining with it. Some grains (such as quinoa can be prepared also in advance and stored and just pulled out). Fresh veggies steam within 10 minutes in a free standing steamer pot (can be purchased at WalMart for $20). I can have a healthy and supportive dinner within 15 minutes of walking in the door at night (1/3 of the plate protein (lean meat/fish, beans/legumes) and 2/3 veggies and/or grains).  Eating Supportively

Alcoholic Beverages

Note that alcohol contains 7 calories per gram and add up very quickly. Just as restaurant plate sizes and portions have increased beyond reason and healthy amounts so too have the "pour" sizes. A glass of wine is not a "serving" glass of wine as an example....If you are drinking a full glass of wine, that is closer to 2 1/2 to 3 servings depending on the size of your glass. Beyond the calories and the sugar involved with drinking alcohol (and of course health concerns if you are drinking in abundance on a regular basis), a big thing to keep in mind is that alcohol SLOWS down your metabolism in a major way. I am no teetotaler by any means, but just as with your food, know that alcohol is a PI and should be handled as such so as not to derail your fat loss goals. Don't know what a PI is or how to track your food intake: Eating Supportively

Following is from: "What Is One Drink"

Beer: 22 oz 5% beer = 2.2 drinks                            40 oz bottle = 4 drinks 5% beer [3.3 of 4% beer]

Malt Liquor: 22 oz 6% malt liquor = 2.75 drinks    40 oz bottle = 5 drinks 6% malt liquor

0.5 oz ethyl alcohol / % alcohol by volume = serving size (oz)

For Typical Hard Alcohol Brands— 80 proof: (0.5 / .40 (80 proof is 40 % alcohol) = 1.25 ounces)

1 serving = 1.25 oz       4 servings = 5.0 oz         7 servings = 8.75 oz

2 servings = 2.50 oz      5 servings = 6.25 oz      8 servings = 10.0 oz

3 servings = 3.75 oz      6 servings = 7.5 oz        9 servings = 11.25 oz

Bad Weather Run

If you don't have access to a treadmill for those bad weather run days but don't want to get off schedule.....Do an indoor interval run. Put your pedometer on your shoe (or wear your fitbit) and do some warm up walking lunges and/or jump squats, turn on your tunes and get going. If you have stairs, great you can use those. If you don't have stairs no biggie cause this will kick your indoor run into high gear regardless. Do 45 seconds to 60 seconds full out and then 15 seconds to 30 seconds active recovery...you can do this for 15-20 minutes. Check your pedometer and see how far you were able to go. Or, the other way you can do this is to go close to full out in your normal run time (e.g., if you typically run for 5+min before a slower jog/walk interval then do that same course for up to the entire duration of your normal runs). Some ideas for the "work" move: leaned back knee highs, tuck jumps, rock star jumps, stairs, running in place, box jumps, ski jumps. Some ideas for the "active recovery" move: butt kicks, toe taps, light run in place, march in place, jumping jacks, jump rope. Have fun!

Entitlement = Led Astray

It's the feeling of entitlement that leads us astray!!! We are not entitled to comfort, relaxation, or work-free lives! Think about that....If you lived each day fulfilling your responsibilities and obligations without the mindset of "getting a break" or deserving time away from responsibilities and obligations, would you be as stressed out? Would you be as frustrated? More importantly, would you be as off track fitness and/or nutrition wise?? Are not a lot of bad eating, any bad habits really, just a result of "a vacation from our lives" mindset (aka responsibilities and obligations)??? Why? Who said we were entitled to anything but hard work?

Enjoy your life by not fighting it! What happened to the satisfaction in a job well done, a days hard work, a gift of good behavior from our children following our examples?? Our children mirror our behavior, so consider what the reflection is teaching them....Your Children Are Watching!

I am by no means suggesting you not have enjoyment or downtime, but rather you step outside of feeling it is owed you. Happy breaks come throughout each and every day, enjoy them in the satisfaction of truly earning them instead of yearning for them!

In that same regard, stop thinking of eating well as a chore or drudgery, or exercise as punishment.  Food is the nourishment your body needs to sustain life. That's it. Very simply, food is fuel. Where did we get so sidetracked to think that it was a sport or a well deserved treat? You are not a dog.  Reward yourself with something other than food! 'Back in the day' when food had to be grown or hunted or you didn't eat, there was plenty of physical activity. Exercise today is necessary to replace our very 'relaxed' and easy lives (seriously, think just as far back as the settlers and complain about your day?). The conveniences of modern day has left us needing to replace the lack of daily physical activity in an artificial way....EXERCISE. Your body requires it!