A Guide To Fueling Your Workout: Part III

July 22, 2010 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

Welcome to week 3 of What to Eat to Fuel Your Workout. I am skipping ahead a little this week. I’ve gotten lots of questions about what to eat after a workout, so I’ll jump ahead to the post-workout meal and then wrap it up next week with what to eat in the 1-4 hours before your workout. This is a long one, so sit back, relax and enjoy the read:)

You’ve had a tough workout and you feel drained. What really happens to your body during exercise and what does your body really want to speed recovery, build strength and increase endurance?

What you’ve done: Depleted your glycogen stores. What is glycogen? It’s the energy (sugar) stored in your muscles and liver. Your body uses glycogen to fuel muscle contractions and as a back-up fuel source once you’ve depleted your pre-workout meal. Immediately following exercise, glycogen is depleted. This triggers an enzyme in your body to re-stock your energy stores. This enzyme, called glycogen synthase, is extremely active and ready to create glycogen immediately following exercise. Therefore, the more carbs you include in your post-exercise meal, the more efficient your body will be at converting those carbs into stored energy or glycogen. As time passes after your workout, this enzyme is less active and the body is less efficient at making the conversion to glycogen. Studies recommend consumption of high glycemic-index foods within the first 1-4 hours following competition to take advantage of the body’s ability to completely and quickly replace glycogen immediately following its depletion. Carb intake is important throughout the day as it takes about 20 hours to completely replace glycogen, but is not the only nutrient to focus on each day.

Re-hydration. One of the time-honored, easiest ways to check your hydration level is to weigh yourself both before and after exercise. For each pound lost, you will need to drink 2 cups of fluids to get your hydration level back to where you started. Keep in mind though that if you were not well-hydrated before exercise, the 2 cups per pound will just bring you back to where you started. You may still require more to be fully re-hydrated.

With re-hydration comes electrolyte replacement. If you’ve exercised in particularly hot and humid conditions, or you’re sweating profusely, you’ll want to remember to replace the electrolytes you lose in sweat (sodium, potassium and chloride). If you’re an average sweater, salt can be added to foods (unless they’re pre-packaged and likely already have a high salt content) and additional potassium can bet obtained from fruits and veggies.

Muscle Repair. If you’ve had a weight-training workout, a particularly grueling cardio workout, or just completed Boot Camp, you may have created small tears in your muscles. Your post-workout meal should provide the amino acids your body needs for muscle synthesis and repair. You’ll want some protein in your post-workout meal, but keep in mind that you don’t necessarily want to make this meal protein-heavy or solely protein-based. Adding 8-10 grams of protein1 to your meal should provide your body with enough amino acids to jump-start muscle repair.

What’s On the Menu? In terms of real food, what does the post-workout meal encompass? Immediately after strenuous exercise, the most important things to consume are fluids, electrolytes and carbs, along with a small quantity of protein. An English muffin or small bagel with a schmear of peanut butter or cream cheese, and an electrolyte drink, are great choices. Or try a banana and a high-carb sports drink. Remember you’ll need to ingest a fairly heavy amount of carbs to replace glycogen stores. Muscle repair takes longer, and you can continue to eat protein throughout the day, but your body most efficiently replaces glycogen within the first 1-4 hours following strenuous exercise.

My personal favorite post-workout shake is Physique by Shaklee. It has the exact ratio of carbs to protein that your body needs to start muscle repair and glycogen replacement immediately. It’s super-easy and super-fast to make…just add 8oz. of water. If I’m at home and using the blender, I add 3 ice cubes too, to make a yummy, light & frothy shake. And the best part is that even after my toughest workout, I’m not sore…or at least I am way less sore than I am when I don’t have my shake. Not only that, it makes me feel like a pro athlete because I know the US Ski & Snowboard team used it in the last winter Olympics…did you see how many medals they won? (Want to know more? Click here.)

Many athletes find it difficult to eat and/or drink anything immediately after exercise. This is the time to experiment with high-carb sports drinks and drinks that specialize in electrolyte replacement. It’s also wise to keep meals light and packed with nutrients—this is not the time for fast food. It may fill you up, but it won’t replace any of what you’ve just lost and may delay your recovery because you’re not taking advantage of your body’s enhanced ability to repair itself immediately following exercise. If your body needs carbs to best refuel itself and you give it high quantities of fat, your muscles won’t be as ready as they could be for your next workout.

Keep these guidelines in mind, along with the pre-workout recommendations, and you’llbe well on your way to healthy eating without feeling like you’ve sacrificed anything. Give your body what it needs to best fuel itself before and after your workout. You’ll have more energy, recover more quickly, and you’ll be at your best for your next challenge!

To your health,

Ginny

P.S. Have you heard about Your Best Body Challenge? It begins August 7 and we are giving away over $1,300 in prizes! Visit www.YourBestBodyAlaska.com for more info and to register.

1. Advanced Exercise Nutrition Version 1.1. Dunford, M. Human Kinetics www.HumanKinetics.com

Filed Under: Articles, Blog

A Guide to Fueling Your Workout

July 8, 2010 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

I often get nutrition questions from my Boot Campers, so for July, I’m featuring a weekly nutrition articles that focus on how what you eat affects your workouts.

This week, I’ll begin with a short review of the basic nutrients. Next week, I’ll cover the pre-workout meal (what to eat 1-2 hours before your workout). Week 3 will be what to eat 2-4 hours before your workout and Week 4, what to eat after your workout. All of these factors are critically important to your success in our Boot Camp classes or any other workout you may be doing.

Nutrition 101: Basic Nutrients Defined. Nutrients are the reason we consume food and fluids . . . to give the body what it needs to function properly. With all of the food options out there, there are only six types of nutrients:

1.  Carbohydrates are the body’s preferred energy source, and contrary to popular belief, are not the enemy. They are easily digested, readily available energy for the body to use. Carbs come from various sources, including whole wheat bread, sugar, fruit, etc. Carbs provide 4 calories of energy per gram.

2. Proteins are the building blocks of body tissue and integral for muscle growth. Protein provides 4 calories of energy per gram.

3. Fat is essential for utilization of fat-soluble vitamins and some fats are beneficial for heart health. It’s energy dense, and provides essential fatty acids (Omega-3s and Omega-6s) which the body cannot produce on its own. Fat provides 9 calories of energy per gram.
4. Vitamins aid in bodily functions such as energy metabolism, bone maintenance and building, and reducing the damage done by free radicals. Without them, the energy in food cannot be used by your body’s cells. Vitamins provide 0 calories of energy per gram.

5. Minerals are inorganic (non-living) substances and are essential to human health. Each of the minerals we require, such as calcium, zinc, iron, sodium chloride, etc., comes from the foods we consume. They cannot be manufactured by our bodies. Minerals provide 0 calories of energy per gram.

6. Water and other fluids are essential for keeping the body hydrated and functioning properly. Water is a highly under-rated, and often forgotten, nutrient. Water provides 0 calories of energy per gram. Other fluids vary.

If you would like more detailed information about eating right for your specific metabolic profile, check out our Nutrition KickStart Plan.  We offer Resting Metabolic Rate testing, meal plans and grocery shopping lists.  We make it super-easy for you to begin eating right, right now.
Filed Under: Articles, Blog Tagged With: Anchorage Boot Camps, Anchorage Personal Trainer, Nutrition KickStart

Healthy Food or Healthy-Sounding Food?

June 7, 2010 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

When you’re trying to lose weight and get into shape, picking the right foods is essential for reaching your goals. Unfortunately, the prospect is not as easy as it sounds and it can be downright confusing. It sure doesn’t help that many foods that sound healthy turn out to be nothing more than junk.

If you’re fed up with hidden surprises in the foods you eat and want to see real results with your exercise and weight loss program, you are going to need to learn to be savvier about the foods you consume. While your trainer or your AlaskaFit Boot Camp instructor or I can guide in the right direction as far as meal plans go, you can benefit from brushing up on the bombshells to watch out for. The reality is many healthy sounding foods simply are not.

Here are some of the things to watch out for as you work on weight loss efforts:
  • Canned soups – While mom’s homemade chicken soup is good for you, canned soups are not the same thing.  Many are high in preservatives and most have tons of salt. Sodium can hamper weight loss efforts and it’s just not good for your heart. Even if canned soups are low in calories and fat, the salt content can make them a very bad choice.
  • Juice – Fruit juice is a great option in place of sugary sodas, but this is not the case if that juice happens to contain high fructose corn syrup. This is used in place of sugar, but has the same basic empty-calorie effect.  Make sure you read the label!  Don’t assume just because it’s a “juice beverage” it’s good for you.
  • Dried fruit – Although plain dried fruit is a great snack choice, many prepackaged products have some hidden ingredients. Sugar, trans fat and other unwanted ingredients might be lurking in those apricots or prunes. Read the label before buying just to be sure. Not to mention that dried fruits are high in sugar already.  Once you take out the water, you’ve concentrated the sugar.
  • Low, or no-sugar items – Take extreme care when buying products that tout themselves as low or no sugar alternatives. While a product might not contain “sugar,” it could have corn syrup, dextrose, sucralose, aspartame, and a variety of other high-calorie sweeteners.
  • Diet sodas – You won’t get a high sugar content with these, but you might end up with a few ingredients you didn’t bargain for. The synthetic sweeteners in diet sodas are not good for you (regardless of what the marketing gurus tell you). Many have actually been linked to weight gain and a host of other health problems.

Eating right is essential for losing weight and getting into shape. Work with your trainer, instructor or me and you will find out just how important diet is. Unfortunately, making the right choice in foods is not easy.  To get the most out of your meals and snacks, make sure to read labels, stick to whole foods and brush up on the pitfalls to avoid.

About the Author

Ginny Grupp is the owner of AlaskaFit, LLC, Anchorage’s premier fitness and wellness business.  If you’re ready to begin your journey on the road to health, please call 783-1241 right now to receive a complimentary nutrition and fitness Consultation (valued at $97).

If you’re not yet ready for our free consultation offer, please click the banner to the right of this article to instantly download any of our FREE health and fitness reports, including “The Only 3 Exercises You Need,”  “Healthy Meals in 10 Minutes of Less,” or “The Ultimate Weight-Loss Secret.”

Filed Under: Articles

Your Kids Are What They See. What Do They See in You?

February 17, 2010 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

What keeps you up at night? Childhood obesity, underage drinking, smoking, lack of exercise, Diabetes.  These are all concerns for parents these days. If you want your kids to adopt a healthier, wiser lifestyle, it all begins with you.  Children learn more by watching what you do than by listening to what you say.

So, how are your lifestyle habits?  Not great?  What can you do?  Consider taking these steps to put yourself and your family on the road to better health and fitness:

  • Work closely with a personal trainer.  Exercise is one of the best things you can do for yourself and for your family. Coming up with a program that will suit the needs of family members of varying ages isn’t easy though. A trainer can help you plan activities that will work for you while encouraging family members to get involved. You may want individualized plans or you may want to incorporate family exercise time that’s fun. Skiing, hiking, bike rides, walks or even jogs through the park might do the trick.
  • Make eating right cool. Children are not born with a hatred for fruits, vegetables and other healthy food choices. They learn to scorn these things when processed, sugary and salty snacks and treats are introduced into their diets. Reserve the unhealthy snacks and fast-foods for occasional treats and make the healthy options the staples in your house.
  • Make sure your family sees you eating healthy foods. If you munch on grapes, yogurt or whole grain crackers in between meals, your children will be more likely to do the same (not to mention you’ll be looking and feeling great!). At mealtime, present healthy options, but do take the steps to make them tasty and enjoyable. Remember, you’re the adult, you get to make all of the decisions.  Grilled or broiled lean meats, fresh vegetables, whole-grain side dishes and other similar choices can be both healthy and flavorful.
  • Make exercise fun. When it’s your time to exercise, don’t let your kids hear you complain. If you really can’t handle the idea of a trip to the gym on a particular day, load up the kids in the car and go for a hike or a ski. Heck, have a snowball fight or  just head to the backyard for a game of Frisbee or something fun. You’ll know it’s exercise, but your kids won’t.
  • Work on breaking bad habits.  If you smoke or drink too much (common issues here in Alaska), take steps to kick these habits. When children see their parents smoking or drinking, they associate these behaviors with being grown up. They also believe they are acceptable. Reducing drinking and/or giving up tobacco can send your children the message you want them to learn.

If you want your family to become healthier and more fitness conscious, you must take the first steps. When your children and even your spouse see you having fun, feeling and looking great, they are likely to follow your example. Working with your trainer can help you get off on the right foot to effect a healthy change for yourself and your family.

About the Author
Ginny Grupp is the owner of AlaskaFit, LLC, Anhorage’s fastest-growing fitness company.  If you’re ready to begin living a healthier, more fit lifestyle, please call 783-1241 right now to receive a complimentary nutrition and fitness Consultation (valued at $97).

If you’re not yet ready for our free consultation offer, please complete the form to the right of this article and get instant access to our “5 Fat Loss Tips” Free report.

Filed Under: Articles

Healthy Snacks? It's True, They do Exist!

February 3, 2010 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

Contrary to what the fad diets and glamor magazines scream from their headlines, fat loss is not helped by fasting or embarking on plans that severely limit caloric intake. When your body takes in fewer calories than it requires, it goes into “starvation” mode. This means your metabolism slows down and tries to hold on to its fat stores for dear life. This doesn’t do your goals or your body any good! (Click here to see our blog post from Stephen Chaney, Ph.D. for more info on this topic.)

If you’re working with a trainer to develop a fat-loss program, chances are a balanced diet that includes three portion-controlled meals and two to three snacks has been recommended. Your trainer has probably also told you that you want to make sure those meals and snacks not only curb hunger, but also provide your body with the nutrition it needs to function properly and even assist in the fat-burning effort.

If you’re stumped for snacks and can’t figure out what can help you along the way, there are plenty of options out there. If your trainer also has you working on muscle-building to speed up the fat-burning process, you’ll want to keep foods that feed the muscle in mind as you select both meals and snacks.

Some of the healthier snacks that can help rather than hinder fat loss efforts include:

  • Fresh fruit. Apples, bananas, grapes, pears, blueberries and other fresh fruits are excellent snacks to pick up energy levels when they are dropping without adding a ton of calories to the mix. Fruits contain natural nutrients, fiber and even antioxidants in some cases. This makes them great to include not only on the snack menu, but also with meals.
  • Nuts. While nuts get a bad reputation because they contain fat, they also contain a lot of protein.  And most of the fat is healthy fat! If muscle-building is a part of your plan, low- or no-salt nuts can serve as an excellent snack time pick-me-up. Also consider low- or no-sugar added peanut butter.
  • Yogurt. Low-fat yogurt is one of the best snack time treats out there. It offers some sweetness, but fuels the body with nutrients and adds calcium to the daily mix.
  • Raw vegetables. Like fruits, raw vegetables can bring a lot of nutrients to the table. Plus, they are excellent for satisfying a craving to crunch something.  Most veggies are high in fiber which will make you feel fuller.
  • Popcorn. A small serving of unbuttered, unsalted, air-popped popcorn can also work in well with a diet plan to lose fat. Instead of adding butter and salt, try other herbs…Italian seasoning, cayenne pepper, black pepper.  These will add Zing without adding calories.
  • Whole-grain crackers. Top two or three crackers off with low-fat cheese or peanut butter and this will count as a power snack for curbing hunger while feeding muscle.

    • Boosting the metabolism by eating throughout the day in the proper portions can greatly assist your fat-loss effort. Selecting the right snacks, however, is essential for making the program work. For other ideas on snacks for fat loss, talk to your trainer, give us a call at 783-1241 or send an e-mail with your questions to info@alaskafit.com.  Don’t forget to check out our blog and other articles for recipes and other nutrition ideas.

    About the Author
    Ginny Grupp is the owner of AlaskaFit, LLC, Anhorage’s fastest-growing fitness company.  If you’re ready to begin living a healthier, more fit lifestyle, please call 783-1241 right now to receive a complimentary nutrition and fitness Consultation (valued at $97).

    If you’re not yet ready for our free consultation offer, please complete the form to the right of this article and get instant access to our “5 Fat Loss Tips” Free report.

    Filed Under: Articles

    Say Good Bye to Cellulite

    January 21, 2010 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

    The anti-cellulite program is simple. You only need to know 5 tips to rid yourself of cellulite.

    Those tips include nutrition, hydration, cardio, strength training and rest. These are the 5 tips to fat loss. Before I hand over those 5 tips I really feel like we should break down some misconceptions about cellulite.

    The anti-cellulite plan is not about creams or surgery. It is not about skin wraps or miracle cures. The anti-cellulite plan focuses on one primary goal: fat loss.

    Cellulite is nothing more than stored fat. It’s not some genetic mutation of fat cells. Cellulite is simply stored fat. The cottage cheese look, or the dimpled look, associated with cellulite occurs because of the connective tissue in our body. Men tend to have horizontal tissue. This tissue actually creates little departments where stored fat lives.

    Women have the same tissue, but its shape is different. Women have honeycombed shaped connective tissue. The cellulite settles into the honeycomb compartments and gives the look and feel of cellulite.

    A REDUCTION IN BODY FAT IS THE ONLY WAY TO RID YOURSELF OF CELLULITE.

    The best anti-cellulite program is one that combines cardio, rest and nutrition. Here are the anti-cellulite tips to fat loss…

    1) Eat 5-6 small meals throughout the day. Each meal should be 2-3 hours apart. Each meal should contain one type of protein and one type of carb. The first meal should be eaten within an hour after waking.

    2) Drink a cup of water at each meal.

    3) Rest properly. This means taking at least 48 hours between strength training the same muscles, and it also means getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep per night. Lastly, it means taking 1-2 days off from exercising per week.

    4) Cardio. This should be done at different intensity levels and different session lengths. Consider doing a low intensity/long session, a high intensity/short session and a few medium intensity/medium length sessions.

    5) Strength Training. Strength train each muscle 1-3 times per week. You should lift a proper weight and perform the proper amount of sets/reps for your strength training method.

    All of the above things combined will result in fat loss. This anti-cellulite plan will work. It includes good wholesome foods and regular exercise. Above everything else it asks you to make permanent lifestyle changes. Crash dieting and exercise routines are unsafe to continue for long periods of time.

    I suggest working closely with on of our trainers.  Our trainers are certified to be the best in the area for lasting fat loss and overall health.  The best time to start your program is right now!

    About the Author

    Ginny Grupp is the owner of AlaskaFit, LLC, Anchorage’s premier fitness and fat loss center.  If you’re ready to begin your fat loss journey please call 783-1241 right now to receive a complimentary nutrition and fitness consultation (valued at $97).

    If you’re not yet ready for our free consultation offer, please fill out the form to the right and start working on weight-reduction right now!

    Filed Under: Articles

    10 Secrets to Keeping the Weight Off for Good

    January 21, 2010 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

    What’s interesting about weight loss is that many people think that it’s just a process that begins when you make changes to lose weight and ends when you’ve lost all the weight.

    However, if you’re not continuing with the changes that you’ve made, you might find yourself back at the original weight that you were. Instead of going up and down on the scale, here are ten secrets that you can use to keep your slim figure.

    1. Weight training works – Studies have shown that people who have more muscle mass will burn more calories, even at rest. Because of this fact, you will want to incorporate some weight training into your maintenance plan so that if you increase your calorie intake, you’re able to burn those calories off without any gain.
    2. Food journaling – When you write down what you eat, you will be able to control the amount of food that you are eating. Even if you only write down your food intake for a few days a week, keeping an eye on how you’re eating can help alert you of problems before they become pounds.
    3. Daily exercise – When you want to keep the weight off, exercise will need to become a part of your life. However, this doesn’t mean that you need to workout for hours each day.  Work out by doing something you enjoy… dancing, hiking, skiing, kick boxing…
    4. Allow yourself treats – Life isn’t about deprivation, and neither is your new figure. When you’ve lost weight, you have learned about how many calories you needed to eat in order to achieve weight loss. Once you’ve learned this, you can also learn to have a treat every now and then, enjoying it instead of overindulging in it.
    5. Look at making changes rather than dieting – When you’re looking to lose weight, the ‘sprint’ approach isn’t a long-term fix. You need to permanently change your eating habits in order to ensure that your weight stays at its new position.
    6. Learn to make favorite recipes healthier – If you have a favorite cheesecake recipe; why not learn how to make it lower in fat and sugar? This way, you can still enjoy the foods you love.
    7. Get support – You don’t have to join a weight-loss club to do this, but telling your friends and family about your goals can help get everyone into supporting your efforts. When you do this, people will start to recognize that family gatherings should have healthy options as well as not always revolve around food.
    8. Keep the stress away – Many people eat when they are stressed, but when you’ve lost weight, you want to avoid this kind of trigger. Instead, figure out ways that help you deal with stress. What can you do instead of eating to help calm down and relax?
    9. Watch your weight – Studies have shown that those that regularly monitor their weight tend to keep off weight better than those that don’t. You don’t have to get on the scale every day, but weighing in once a week can help alert you to when you might need to rethink that second slice of pie.
    10. Recognize a slip up and forgive yourself – When you start to get angry about mistakes, you can backslide into old eating habits. You will have times when eating right will be more difficult, but you will persevere. Acknowledge that you made a poor eating choice (or several) and then forgive yourself and eat better at the next meal. There’s no need to punish yourself.

    Keeping the weight off can actually be more difficult than losing it in the first place, but when you’re committed to keeping trim, these tips will make sure that you do.

    Consider working closely with a weight-loss expert.  S/he can provide you with a safe and effective weight-loss program while keeping you motivated.  There is no better time to make this decision for yourself than right now.

    About the Author

    Ginny Grupp is the owner of AlaskaFit, LLC, Anchorage’s premier fitness and fat loss center.  If you’re ready to begin your fat loss journey please call 783-1241 right now to receive a complimentary nutrition and fitness consultation (valued at $97).

    If you’re not yet ready for our free consultation offer, please fill out the form to the right and start working on weight-reduction right now!

    Filed Under: Articles

    Think Before You Eat for Anchorage Weight Loss

    September 23, 2009 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

    If you learn to think before you eat, you will achieve Anchorage weight loss by making the right choices.  When you eat foods simply because you like them without regard for their nutritional content, it is easy to choose foods that are not good for your body.  Losing weight doesn’t have to be a traumatic experience when you learn how to choose healthy and tasty foods with high nutritional content.

    Thinking It Through to the End

    There was once an old expression that went something like “a moment on the lips and a lifetime on the hips”.   You don’t hear this expression often anymore, but it really sums up the need to be fully aware of what you put into your mouth.  When you thoughtlessly prepare and/or eat meals that are unhealthy, the food tastes great in your mouth but quickly turns to fat in the body.

    Even worse is the fact the wrong food choices can lead to disease and shorten your life span.  Almost everyone knows that high cholesterol foods can cause cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, or even cancer.   Foods that are high in sugar can cause type-2 diabetes and heart disease.

    All too often, people decide to go on a diet and make a big production of the decision.  They announce their decision to family and friends, make a date to start the diet, and begin weighing religiously.  Most diets start out well, but it’s not long before the cravings for certain foods begin and the constant effort becomes tedious.

    Instead of deciding to go on a diet, you should decide to start living a healthy lifestyle.  Going on a diet for Anchorage weight loss is a short term solution.  Living a healthy lifestyle is a choice you are making that will endure the rest of your life.  You can begin by simply thinking about what you eat and when you eat it in order to achieve Anchorage weight loss.

    Lose Weight By Living the Healthy Life

    When you embark on a healthy lifestyle, it is important to begin thinking about your decision related to food and physical activity.  When it comes to food, you want to mentally evaluate your choices.  For example, when you reach into the refrigerator for an evening snack, you can choose ice cream or a piece of fruit.  When it’s time for breakfast, you can choose a bowl of oatmeal or bacon and eggs.  Do you really need that in-between meal snack?  Are you that hungry, and if so, why?

    You can begin to substitute foods with high nutritional value for foods that are not good for your body on a meal by meal basis.  Instead of being obsessed with Anchorage weight loss, you can focus on your energy level and how well you are aging.  When you make the right food choices and manage the quantity of food you eat, you will lose weight.

    Your diet management should be combined with regular exercise too.  If you just think about each food item you put into your mouth, you are bound to maintain Anchorage weight loss as you learn to make better choices.

    Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Anchorage Weight Loss, Anchorage Weight Loss Info, Weight Loss in Anchorage

    Keeping Off the Pounds You Lost with Anchorage Weight Loss

    September 23, 2009 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

    Everyone who cares about Anchorage weight loss has heard of yo-yo dieting where you lose weight and then slowly (or quickly) put the weight back on and then lose it again and so on.  It is unhealthy to treat your body in that fashion, and it puts a lot of stress on your organs and cardiovascular system.  In fact, you can do permanent damage to your body’s ability to maintain equilibrium.

    Maintaining the Right Weight and a Lifestyle

    When you lose weight by following a calorie restricted fad diet, you are not making a lifestyle change.  You are simply dieting.  This makes it very difficult to keep lost weight off, because as soon as you start eating again the weight will return.

    The ideal healthy diet is really not a diet but more of a fitness plan.  You learn to eat right and get regular exercise.  The fitness plan is not something you follow for a few weeks until the weight is lost, but it is a plan for living a healthy life.  There is a big difference between dieting to lose weight and getting fit while losing weight.

    Maintaining Anchorage weight loss is a lot easier when you adhere to a healthy lifestyle.  The key is to make your fitness program interesting by eating a variety of healthy foods and choosing physical activities you enjoy.

    If you are uncomfortable working out at the gym then you can hire an in-home trainer who can develop a varied exercise program.  If you like exercising outdoors, there are many different athletic and recreational activities which you can do to burn calories.  You can play tennis or start a walking program.

    Paying Attention to the Details

    The key to Anchorage weight loss is to continue your weight maintenance program in your daily living while paying attention to habits which could lead to weight gain.

    • Stay focused on your daily Anchorage weight loss maintenance program by becoming aware of physical symptoms indicating the body is distressed (i.e. eating high fat food that causes indigestion)
    • Weigh yourself regularly without being obsessive
    • Learn how to choose a variety of healthy foods
    • Learn how to cook foods in a healthy manner
    • Exercise 5 to 7 days a week
    • Change your exercise program regularly so you don’t lose interest
    • Don’t let your body feel starved which lowers your resistance to eating junk food or extra calories you don’t need
    • Only eat when you are hungry and not because it is “meal time”
    • Eat smaller meals more frequently
    • Make sure your exercise program includes aerobic and strength training exercises
    • Look for ways to burn more calories as you go through the day (i.e. stand instead of sitting, parking far from the store door and so on)

    Keeping the pounds off for Anchorage weight loss is not difficult as long as you pay attention to your diet and continue to exercise regularly.  Even as you age and the metabolism naturally slows down, low fat diets coupled with increased exercise can help you stay at the right weight.

    Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Anchorage Weight Loss, Anchorage Weight Loss Info, Weight Loss in Anchorage

    Managing Fitness And Diet: Good Calories Vs. Empty Calories In The Battle For Weight Loss In Anchorage

    September 23, 2009 By Ginny Grupp Leave a Comment

    When trying to achieve weight loss in Anchorage, gaining a balanced diet can be confusing.  There is a lot to include and there are real moderated needs for protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and even calories.  As most people know, quantity of calories is a major concern; but then, calorie quality is important, too.

    Good Calories, Bad Calories

    All calories are not created equal; not all calories are evil—you need calories to live and have energy.  A diet capable of supporting health and fitness is one that is packed with good calories.  So what’s a ‘bad’ calorie?  You might recognize it by another name—an empty calorie.

    An empty calorie is a calorie with no nutritional value.  It is a calorie largely based in fats and sugars devoid of vitamins, minerals, and important nutrients. When trying to achieve weight loss in Anchorage, you should learn which calories are empty calories and try to avoid them.

    Protein, carbohydrates, and fats are all macro nutrients.  There are good sources of these needed dietary elements, but there are also a lot of bad sources that are nothing more than empty, useless calories.

    Good calories and good sources of macro nutrients have necessary carbs, good fats, and proteins, and they also have micro-nutrients such as fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.

    Useless, Empty Calories

    The problem with empty calories is that they provide little to no energy, no restorative and constructive properties (for muscle, bone, and tissue), and add to fat stores.  Very simply, empty calories have none of the necessary elements needed to support body function, workouts, and good health.

    Fitness depends on having good sources of calories that also provide other needed elements and energy for working out.  The right caloric sources will result in improved energy, enhanced muscle formation, and increased weight loss.  Empty calories will negate these efforts, making it harder to achieve weight loss in Anchorage.

    How To Spot An Empty Calorie

    In a hurried world it is easy to consume many empty calories throughout the course of the day and not even realize it.  This can leave you feeling sluggish and thwart the best of fitness efforts.  Many people trying to achieve weight loss in Anchorage eat mainly empty calories and do not even know that they do it.  So how can you easily spot an empty calorie?

    First off, consider that all ‘junk food’ is empty calories.  Avoid sugar-laden foods and refined grains (white flours).  Eat natural sugars (fruits and vegetables) and whole grains.  Avoid fried foods, candy, and sugary drinks (soda, but also sugary ‘energy’ drinks that are often nothing more than sugar and caffeine).

    Also look out for beer and alcohol; these are sources of sugar and stored fats with nothing else to offer.

    Depending on preparation, even good calories can turn empty quickly (fried foods and more).  To really learn to quickly spot empty calories you need to get educated—talk to a nutritionist, your doctor, or your personal trainer.  These professionals will give you the basics of good calorie consumption, help you balance out your diet and point you to reliable resources for more information about weight loss in Anchorage.

    Your health and well-being depend on your good diet.  Reaching your fitness goals does, too.  Many a person has found that simple dietary changes, a switch-over to good calorie sources rather than consuming empty calories, has made the difference between a stalled fitness campaign and reaching and exceeding fitness objectives.

    Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Anchorage Weight Loss, Weight Loss in Anchorage, Weight Loss in Anchorage Report
    « Older Posts