3 Of The Worst Exercises Of All Time!

September 21, 2009 By

 

In the past, I’ve shared my top secret exercises to help you lose fat faster by doing total-body exercises that use tons of muscles in each move that you do.

Whether it’s compound movements for your upper body (e.g. push-ups, pull-ups, rows, dips, etc.), lower body (squats, dead-lifts, lunges, etc.) or core (plank holds and rotational core exercises) these "many muscle" exercises provide the biggest bang for your buck during your workouts requiring MINIMAL time, but giving you MAXIMUM results.

Today though, I want to talk to you about something different. Today, let’s bring our focus on the WORST exercises you could ever add to your training routine.

I believe that a lot of women turn to these "easy" exercises because they just don’t know what else to do or are intimidated by the free-weight room at their gym.

You’ll never see me perform these movements because it’d give half the results in double the time and probably hurt me in more ways than one.

I truly believe that sometimes learning what NOT to do is just as beneficial as learning what you SHOULD do.

So let’s get to the three exercises that you would never want to do in your life!

1.) The Abs Machine

Crunches and sit-ups aren’t necessarily deadly; but because most people do them all the time, it creates a lot of bad force on your low-back and neck which will cause you many awkward pains ranging from your neck to low back.

Do you want to know whats worse?

When you add weight and use a machine that isn’t specifically made for your body. It’s made for the average person on about 5’6". Even if you are 5’6", do you have the exact same arm/back/leg length that the machine was made for?

With all those factors it’s no wonder that it trains you in an unnatural front and back motion. Plus you are in a seated position that demands minimal use of your core, meaning even more room for injury.Now add to that that we already mimic a crunch in life. For example: look at most people who stand or sit with poor posture, don’t they resemble someone before a sitting crunch or someone on an ab machine? Add even more crunches and sit-ups and you’ll just get triple the disaster on your back.

You may be saying, "But I feel the BURN!" And I’ll say, there’s better ways to make your abs work, rather than literally tearing up your spine. It’s a high risk exercise, only meant to be used for certain circumstances.

Remember, your core is meant to stabilize you when you are standing and when you are moving so you can stand nice and tall from your hips and to your shoulders in any way you can move (front to back, side to side and if you rotate).

21 Century Training Upgrade: For rock hard, Greek goddess abs, focus on plank stabilization exercises like from, side and back planks, as well as ground based rotational core work like chops variations and upper body twist. Also work on your diet. Without the diet, you’ll never see the washboard abs that you can do laundry off of.

2.)The Back Machine –

As you can tell, I am not a fan of the abs machine, so it figures that I am also not a fan of the reverse of it, the back machine. This is another exercise you should avoid for more reasons than I have fingers to count on.Here’s just one:

You probably already use too much "back" on most movements because your butt and hips aren’t working like they’re supposed to. Meaning they are too weak to do what they are supposed to do, so other muscles have to take over.

An easy way to think about it is when you are moving a heavy couch that needs 4 people to lift it. First four people lift it, then say one person decides not to hold it up anymore, so now there’s only three people lifting. How much heavier is it for each person? Now imagine another person decides to stop lifting and you only have two people holding the couch. Imagine how your back is now. Your butt and your hips are those two people that decided to rest. Your back and arms are left over, trying to take the slack.

So instead of focusing on your back, let’s focus on strengthening your hips, especially the front part of your thighs by focusing on squat based movements that really get you using your butt, big time.

21 Century Upgrade: For a strong, stable back, work on deadlift and good morning variations while simultaneously focusing on the corrective stretching and self-massage of the Lumbo-Pelvic-Hip (LPH) complex, meaning you back, butt and front/back/inner/outer thighs. A prone cobra or airplane as it it sometimes called is also a great exercise to improve your back endurance while also improving your upper back strength and stability.

3.) The Leg Extension Machine

This exercise is a personal one for me. When I first started lifting weights, I abused this exercise like few others.

Most women love to abuse this machine like crazy. They see the pictures of the lean sculpted fitness models sitting on this and think this is the machine for them to bring out those cuts in their legs.

Here’s the truth-if you want knee replacement surgery, use this exercise 3 times a week for a year. If you don’t want your knees to be wrecked and have horrible stabbing pain that will lead to arthritis, avoid this machine like the plague.

21 Century Training Upgrade:For strong, stable knees, focus on both knee-dominant (lunge, step-up, and single-leg squat variations) AND hip-dominant single-leg exercises (single-leg hip extension, deadlift, and good morning variations) to keep the strength of both legs the same AND to help keep the front and back thighs and your inner and outer thighs balanced between each other. With balanced muscles comes stability, and with stability comes strength.

Filed Under: Exercise and Fitness Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The 5 Biggest Obstacles for Busy Moms

September 4, 2009 By

 

I have had the pleasure of personally working with hundreds of busy moms over the course of my fitness career.

WORKOUT? There’s no time! I can’t even go to the bathroom!

I love working with mothers. They are the most selfless clients I have ever worked with, almost to a fault. Honestly, I wish they would just be a little more selfish sometimes because if they aren’t healthy, then their entire family will go downhill. Plus, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to look and feel better.

Many good mothers have a hard time when it comes to their fitness. In general, they tend to think that it’s okay to put all of their personal goals and desires aside as if they’re merely dust to be swept off the floor for the good of their friends and family. But in reality, moms are not as effective as they could be when deviating from a healthy lifestyle.

After all, a mom who doesn’t work out will not have the energy to keep her engine pumping 24/7.

Multi-Task Much?

In retrospect, I have identified the 5 anchors that hold most moms back from getting the sexier body they’ve dreamed about. Here they are, in no particular order:

Obstacle#1
– Too Many Missed Meals- Especially Breakfast!

Many moms work twenty four hours straight – dealing with the stresses of parenting and/or challenging careers. Mornings can be especially
difficult since most moms have to make breakfast for their children and husbands, drive their children to school, and even go to work themselves.

Set that alarm 5 minutes earlier and make it a point NEVER to miss breakfast!

So missing breakfast becomes a reality, often leading to a host of other missed meals and snacks throughout the day. This leads to depriving
yourself of a lean, toned body while also priming your body to overeat junk food later in the day, and storing ugly, unwanted fat, especially around your hips and midsection. Furthermore, this starvation protocol creates low levels of blood sugar which zaps your energy and leaves you feeling awfully sluggish the entire day.

Look- there’s always room for breakfast, you just need to make the time! Better yet, plan ahead. Prepare a breakfast high in lean protein and fiber, so you stay right on course.

One solution that’s worked really well for our clients is called PROGRADE LEAN   It’s a tasty, nutritious, meal replacement shake that contains a whopping 35 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber. What’s the best part about it? There’s NO room for excuses! All you need to do is put 2 scoops in water, mix, and enjoy. The Ultimate way for you to get all you need, for the busy mom who needs a good meal.

For more info, please click the link below:

www.fbbcnutrition.com

Obstacle#2 – Failing To Make The Daily Workout Appointment

This one is simple, yet oh so powerful. Think about it- moms never miss an appointment for their kids. Why? It’s because they love them, and
stick to their appointments to keep their kids healthy.

Schedule your workouts and stick to them like they are a family obligation!

What would happen to your kids, if something went wrong with you? Do you really love your kids? If you did, then you’d also want to be religious about keep your appointments, especially the fitness ones. You’ll be just as religious with your appointments as with theirs because if you’re not healthy, in the long run you can’t keep them healthy either.

Scheduling is also important. You might like to workout in the afternoon, but with a very busy schedule, you’ll probably need to work out in the morning just like I do. This way the stresses of life do not get to you.

In my experience, most Moms work best when doing their workouts either first thing in the morning while the kids are still sleeping, or right after they drop their kids off at school. It seems that too many unexpected obstacles get in the way of an afternoon or evening workout for the typical mother. But, regardless of when the best time may be, just schedule it in and stick to it like it’s a family commitment!

Obstacle#3 – Too Much Mindless Snacking In The Kitchen During The Day

I can’t tell you how many times I have had a Mom who has “been following the nutrition plan” with limited success to later find out there were
some extra eats and treats in the mix. You know, I know what you’re talking about. It wasn’t that they were being dishonest about it- rather most people don’t count every snack, candy, or “piece” of food they eat (even if the piece ends up being an entire meal).

Think about it – how many people do you see randomly snacking? Now imagine how many times you have popped something in your mouth and haven’t logged it in and now you can see what’s going on. Right?

Many moms spend LOTS of time in the kitchen around tasty food all day- and they eat a lot more of it than they realize!

I know, I know- you have to sample the goods to know if it’s good. But, you need to understand that the occasional taste test can sabotage your fat loss goals.

Furthermore, moms get into trouble with the multiple snacks their children have, and of course it’s tough to pass on food when it’s always in your face. A couple goldfish here, a couple goldfish there, and before you know it you’ve just killed the entire bag of wonderful fishes sure to fatten your waistline.
My advice is to guard your mouth with lock and key. Ask yourself every time you bring something close to your lips the following question: “Will this help me burn fat and build muscle?”

If NO – then throw it away or leave it be, it just ain’t good for ya!

Obstacle#4 – Too Much Cardio While Pushing a Stroller

You need more time, since that’s not possible, then let’s make the way you use your time as efficient as possible. Interval training burns 9x more body fat than long and slow cardio for 45 minutes of your day. Aerobic training burns calories, but doesn’t increase your metabolism and burn fat as efficiently as interval training does. Also, the true power of interval training comes from the intensity of each work period.

Don’t get me wrong, moms should be active and it’s great to be outside and move with your kids. However, I wouldn’t want to see a bunch of moms hurling their child in their stroller, while the mom is trying to do a bunch of sprints. So hopefully you sacrifice some time for yourself, so you can run hard, and speed up your metabolism to burn all the fat you could ever imagine.

Honestly, how much intensity can your cardio workouts have when you are pushing a stroller?

Obstacle#5 – Too Many Glasses Of Wine In The Evening

Nobody wants to hear that a glass or two of wine at night is going to stop your fitness goals in its tracks. But alcohol is oh so bittersweet. It paralyzes the fat-burning process while at the same time creating fat within the body. Plus alcohol tends to lower inhibitions, meaning you don’t care about eating all that scrumptious junk food. Not good!

A couple glasses of wine per day is a your one-way ticket to cellulite city… sorry!

So I say “zip it” to all of those health experts who say: “consuming several glasses of wine a day is healthy because it has anti-oxidants and that keeps you from getting sick.” This is just a bunch of cheap talk from drunk doctors who are trying to convince themselves that it’s okay to drink regularly and keeps you healthy – it’s not by the way.

Fruit and veggies have more health and nutrition than all of the wine in the world, so we just need to cut the BS that wine is an integral part of a healthy diet and you need to start eating what really will get you to cut your waistline. Don’t forget, there’s always grapes.

Now, I want to be sensitive to those busy, hard-working moms who have a glass of wine at the end of the day to unwind and take some of the
load off of their shoulders, because I get that. But I also know there are easy ways to de-stress that don’t have such a negative effect on the way you look. Such activities are stretching, yoga, taking a bath, reading a book, etc.

So please remember – if you booze, you WON’T lose! (Fat that is!)

Filed Under: Exercise and Fitness, Mental Health, Nutrition Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Top Two Exercise And Diet Tips To Shred The Weight Off

July 22, 2009 By

 

TOP 2 EXERCISE TIPS:

Nothing Beats the Power of Whole Body Workouts, Making Your Body The Terminator of Fat:
This means doing a Five-Exercise Circuit focused on your upper and lower body and everything in between. Do this at least three times per week with a day of rest between workouts and you’ll be wondering when you’ll be starring in the next 300 movie.

Here’s the plan: We’ll call this the 50-10 Split. For 50 seconds, I want you to work as hard as possible, busting your butt off each set. For the first set, you’ll have your double-leg exercise (the squat); the second set, you’ll have your pull (the renegade row), for the third set you’ll have your single-leg exercise (the lunge); for the fourth set, you’ll have your push (push-up) and for the final set you’ll have your core (the Plank).

The 50-10 Split

50 seconds of Squats

10 seconds of Rest

50 seconds of Renegade Rows

10 seconds of Rest

50 seconds of Lunges

10 seconds of Rest

50 seconds of Push-ups

10 seconds of Rest

Lastly, 50 seconds of Plank

Rest for 10 seconds

Repeat 4x, starting back at Squats

Perform up to 4 rounds without rest in between for a killer 20-minute total body workout, leaving you drenched in sweat and shedding away your gut, leaving you looking like a Greek statue.

Intervals, Did Someone Say You Look Like Your 20?:
Want to burn 9 times more body fat than running on a treadmill for 45 minutes and keep it burning for 48 more hours afterwards? Spend 20 minutes doing Intervals and not only will your heart be thanking you in the future, but so too will your body when the weight starts dropping like flies.

Here’s the plan for intervals:

Preparatory Period for those who like Running: On the first week, 3x a week, I want you to be able to work up to jogging at least one fourth a mile. I don’t care how long it takes, as long as you can do the entire ¼ mile without resting. The next week, I want you to do the same thing, except work up to half a mile. On
the third week, I want you to put all your effort into running a full mile. This gives your body a good-prep period before you start the hard work to help avoid shin splints and all the other nasty injuries that’ll keep you from
losing weight.

If you choose to do something else besides jogging, say rowing. Keep the plan the same way, just substitute jogging for rowing.

Preparatory Period for those who like Jump Roping: Oh, and if you wanted to do jumping roping. Here’s a separate plan. On the first week, 3x a week, work up to jump roping for 10 straight minutes. Make sure your arms aren’t flailing, and only your wrist is spinning the jump rope. The next week, jump rope for a total of 20 minutes. On the third week, make it all out effort of 30 minutes. Just like the jogging program, this will give you the prep period and endurance to make sure you really give intervals your all.

The real fun begins after those three weeks. On your non-exercise days, the full body workouts I gave you earlier, do some cardio intervals three times per week.

Here’s how they work:

Select a cardio exercise of your choice. The top choices are running, rowing (if you gym has one), or jump roping (a prerequisite is being able to jump rope for 30 minutes). Now, this 20-10 split is simply 20 seconds
of INTENSE work, following by ten seconds of active rest. Now, repeat eight times, for four minutes total. Active rest for one minute, and repeat the entire thing for up to 20 minutes

If you want to do this at home, do it with jumping jacks, jump squats, or burpees. Use the preparatory period, I wrote for jumping rope for any of these exercises, and you’ll be a lean, mean, fat-burning machine in no time.

TOP 2 DIET TIPS

You thought you could get away from Eating, just because you’re late for work:
Eat Breakfast when you wake up. Don’t avoid it please. You need to eat every two to four hours to help starve the fat and feed your protein grubby muscle. By constantly feeding the worker bee (your muscle and stomach), they will constantly be revved up through the day, making sure that you don’t eat a hearty meal that will knock you out for the rest of the day – food coma anybody? Enjoy those meals with animal protein (meat, eggs, cheese, milk, etc.) and your body will thank you.


The Broom of your body, Eat it with Carbs and Watch Your Body Melt Before Your Eyes – Just the bad stuff of course: Fiber is your friend, eat lots of green veggies to fill your bell during and between meals. To keep your fat-burning furnace running like a berserk boar, eat simple carbs like fruit, rice, and white bread to within 1-2 of your workout when your body best uses starches and sugars.

Eat an unlimited amount of fibrous, cruciferous green veggies to fill your belly both during and between meals. For optimal fat-burning, try to limit fruit and other carbohydrate consumption to within 1-2 hours post-workout when your body best tolerates starches and sugars.

With these 2 training and nutrition rules, it’ll look like you’ve found the fountain of youth. Your body will transform faster than any of the robots in Transformers and no doubt you’ll be proud of all that you’ve
accomplished, guaranteed.

Stay focused,

Sarai Jones

PS- Please forward this blog post to anybody that you know
who can benefit from it!

Filed Under: Exercise and Fitness, Fat loss Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Action Taker in You

March 20, 2009 By

 

Spring is here and that means one thing – it’s time for spring cleaning.

The word alone conjures up the image of a garage too filled with junk to walk through, let alone park a car, and closets filled to capacity.

When things get this out of hand it’s easy to just give up.

Why put your shoes on the rack when you’d have to climb over a stack of newspapers to reach it? It’s easier to throw them down by the door. Why hang your coat up when the closet is a disaster area? It’s easier to drop it over the back of a chair.

What does this have to do with fitness and weight loss? It’s actually a striking analogy for where many of my clients are before they find me.

They’ve given up.

Why eat a salad when you’re thirty pounds overweight? It’s easier to enjoy a heaping plate of pasta. Why go to the gym after work when it will just make you sore? It’s easier to relax on the couch.

Living life with unwanted excess weight is like allowing your garage to stay clogged with junk. It’s a discouraging place to be.

The good news is that you aren’t stuck.

In the same way that you take a weekend to roll up your sleeves and get that garage cleaned out, it’s time to take a month or two (or more depending on where you are in relation to your goals) and drop down to your ideal weight.

I know I’m making it sound easy, and when you approach it this way it is easy.

Beware: There are two ways to approach weight loss, one will leave you discouraged and frustrated
while the other will get you fit. Which approach do you use? Read on to find out…

The Diet Dabbler


You know this person. Every month they are trying out a new diet, one week they can’t eat carbs and the next week they are only eating soup. They feel guilt about food and are unable to experience the results that they want.

Exercise is equally as spotty and is done in bursts. One month they power walk on their lunch break, a few months later they try taking a class at the gym. Results aren’t achieved and the programs are abandoned.

Maybe you can relate.

The entire problem with the Diet Dabbler mentality is their lack of consistency. The only thing consistent is that their frustration grows with every failed attempt and their weight continues to rise.

The Action Taker

You also know this person. This is that guy or gal who buckled down and lost the weight with the use of a massive plan of action. They teamed up with a professional, they stuck with a diet plan and they exercised hard. And in a short time their body was transformed.

Guess what? Now that Action Taker is in maintenance mode-the best place to be. They look great, they feel great, their cloths fit just right and they’re loving every minute of it.

Maybe you’re thinking "I tried to lose the weight and it didn’t work, so this won’t work for me either." Forgive me for putting it bluntly, but you’re wrong.

Maybe you’ve dabbled with diets and exercise only to come away frustrated. I understand. Many of my clients have experienced that same frustration before they found me.

Here’s the bottom line: it’s time to tap into your inner Action Taker, roll up your sleeves and do what it takes to drop down to your ideal weight.

Get serious about your results and begin the last weight loss program that you’ll ever do. Contact me today to get started on a program that will deliver results.

Then you can kick your diet dabbling days to the curb.

Stay focused,

Sarai D. Jones

Filed Under: Exercise and Fitness Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Upgraded FITNESS Shopping

March 16, 2009 By

 

Want to upgrade your FITNESS shopping trips? Here are 3 additional tips:

  1. Don’t go to the grocery store with an empty stomach. Your cart will mysteriously fill with extra, unnecessary foods that will end up crashing your good intentions.
  2. Make a list before you go to the store. You’ll be able to think rationally at home before you’re surrounded by tasty, FITNESS destroying foods.
  3. Plan out your meals for the week ahead of time, then shop specifically for those items. This will cut out the junk, and save you calories and money.
Filed Under: Nutrition Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Go Fitness Shopping

March 15, 2009 By

 

Did you know that the grocery store is the source for most of your unwanted pounds?

Well, that and the fast food restaurants, but we’ll leave that for another day.

If you’re like most people then your shopping trips aren’t exactly organized. In fact, your grocery cart is likely to be more fat than fit.

The good news is that with a few small modifications to your routine you’ll be able to turn your grocery shopping trip into an easy opportunity to slim down.

I’ve broken down the process of healthy grocery store navigation with an easy-to-remember acronym – FITNESS.

Come, take a walk with me through your grocery store and we’ll improve your shape and the shape of your family members.

F: First Veggies
Your mom always told you that you had to eat your veggies before dessert-so this will be an easy one to remember. When you start shopping, first go to the produce section. The bulk of your shopping should take place here. Fresh vegetables, lettuce for salads, and fruits are the best things to eat when you want to look and feel great.

Don’t skimp on produce-aim to fill most of your cart here.

I: Is it Wheat?
When it comes to bread you only need to ask yourself one question. Is it wheat? White bread products have been processed and filled with simple carbohydrates – these will easily stick to your body as fat. Wheat breads, on the other hand, contain more fiber and are much healthier. Make it a policy to never purchase white bread, wheat bread is the right choice even for the little members of your family.

Always choose hearty wheat bread products-the more whole grain, the better.

T: Trim the Fat
In the meat section you are faced with a major decision. Do you go with your taste buds or do you go with your health conscious side? I urge you to stick with the latter. These days lean meats are more available than ever, and the benefits to going lean are numerous. When you choose lean meats you avoid extra saturated fat (your heart will thank you for this) and you also avoid the extra calories that come packed into each fat gram.

Want to be lean? Then eat lean meats.

N: Never enter the Junk Food Aisle
I have a simple policy that has saved me from thousands of unnecessary calories. I don’t walk down the junk food aisle. You and I both know that it is nearly impossible to walk past rows of chips, candies and cookies without putting something into the cart. The bright packages stamped with mouthwatering images will give your will power a run for its money. My two cents? Avoid that row altogether and save yourself from the whole ordeal.

Nothing good ever came from walking down the junk food aisle-just say no.

E: Edge around the store
Here’s a really easy trick for healthy shopping. Edge around the store, as in shop the perimeter and avoid the inner aisles. Think about it-the healthiest products are kept around the perimeter of the store: produce, meat, dairy. The inner aisles are where you run into trouble: processed food, baked goods, and sweets. Don’t get me wrong, there are healthy products kept in the inner aisles too, but a majority of the items are waist-expanders.

Shop in a circle-stick to the perimeter of the store, do less shopping in the aisles.

S: Skinny Cow
The dairy section is filled with many healthy items; it is also filled with extremely high fat items. Your job is to pick out all those calcium-rich foods that you love in the low fat and non fat versions. I realize that many people have a prejudice against low milk or yogurt, simply because they’ve always eaten the full fat version. Making the switch to low fat is such a simple way to cut unnecessary fat and calories from your diet, while still getting all the benefits of dairy.

Fat free dairy products are the way to go-you’ll only lose unwanted pounds.

S: Stick with Water
Warning: mini lecture to follow. I’ll make it short and sweet. Drink more water-period. Sodas, sugary juices and calorie-laden alcoholic beverages are responsible for a large number of unnecessary calories in your diet. Don’t fill your cart with these sneaky calories. Keep them out of your kitchen and out of your life.

Looking for a tasty beverage? Look no farther than crystal clear water.

There you have it-your FITNESS shopping plan that will take your cart from fat to fit. I suggest that you write down the FITNESS steps on a note card and take it to the store with you.

Are you ready to take your body from fat to fit? I’ve got what it takes to get you there! No guess work, no fad diets, and no super long workouts.

Email me today to learn more about my fitness and fat loss programs that will quickly change your life.

Filed Under: Nutrition Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Win the Battle Against Fat Cells

January 27, 2009 By

 

As a fitness expert, you know I’ll never promise you a pill is going to be the answer to that "jiggle in your wiggle." If you want a flat sexy stomach you’re going to have to work for them.

BUT…

There is some very promising research out there in regards to a dietary supplement you’ve probably been hearing a lot about.

Yes, I’m talking about Essential Fatty Acids. You probably have heard them called something like Fish Oil pills.

How’s this for good news?!

*University of Georgia researchers have found something pretty amazing about Essential Fatty Acid supplements containing DHA. Get this: The actually help STOP the conversion of pre-fat cells into fat cells by causing them to die out before they can mature.

Once a pre-fat cell becomes a fat cell, well, there’s no turning back. You’ve got that fat cell for life. Imagine, actually decreasing the accumulation of fat by taking an Essential Fatty Acid supplement containing DHA!

Now let me do my best infomercial voice for you…

But wait, there’s more!

Seriously, that’s not the only benefit of Essential Fatty Acid supplements containing DHA.

According to studies** done at the University of South Australia people that combined exercise with Essential Fatty Acid supplements containing DHA saw greater fat loss than the test group that only exercised and did not take the supplement.

How can you not be excited by these research studies??

Now, personally, I don’t like Fish Oil pills because they cause you to burp like crazy. If you’ve ever taken them you know exactly what I mean. And they aren’t always the highest quality.

I prefer EFA Icon from Prograde Nutrition because they use Krill Oil. It’s been found to be a superior source of Essential Fatty Acids containing DHA. Plus, with EFA Icon there are NO fish burps. And I haven’t even mentioned all the amazing health benefits from this dietary supplement.

If you’re looking to accelerate your fat loss results than I really recommend you go with Prograde Nutrition’s EFA Icon. You can get it here: www.bootycampnutrition.com/Icon

Stay focused,

Sarai D. Jones

PS – Remember, EFA Icon is NOT a miracle solution. You will need sound nutrition and exercise. BUT the research is there. It’s definitely a supplement with powerful fat loss properties. www.BootyCampNutrition.com/Icon

* Journal of Nutrition, Vol. 136:2965-2969** American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 85:1267-1274

Filed Under: Fat loss, Nutrition Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to Shovel Snow Pain-Free

January 23, 2009 By

 

So why is this California born and raised girl who has been to the snow a whopping 1 time writing to you all about how to shovel snow safely?

Because in the last month I have had 3 clients come back from vacations in the snow, hurt from shoveling it while they were away. So I figured it might be good to pass along some smart shoveling tips to you all. Whether you live in the snow or you simply visit, you need to be careful.

For those of you who like me, do not live in a snowy location, you still need to know this information too. Why? Because with the global epidemic that is climate change you really never know when snow is coming your way. It snowed in Vegas for the first time in 25 years this past holiday season. How trippy is that?

So today I am going to reveal my top safe shoveling tips:

1.) Warm-up Before You Begin Shoveling

You need to get your body ready to shovel snow just like you would warm up before intense exercise. Sometimes we forget snow is heavy, especially when it’s wet, and it’s not the easiest thing to move
around. If your body is tight and cold when you start to shovel then you will dramatically increase your chances of short or long-term injury.

I designed a great shoveling specific five-minute warm-up to get your body ready to rock. I focused on opening up the hips and chest to save your back and shoulders, the two most commonly injured
areas of broken down shovelers:

Perform each exercise in the following warm-up circuit at a slow, controlled tempo for 50 seconds with a 10 second rest and transition between exercises. Do this warm-up indoors to better increase core temperature and total body blood flow:

Exercise#1- Stationary High Knee Run

Exercise#2- Jumping Claps (modified jumping jacks with arms moving across chest level, palms facing)

Exercise#3- Alternating Forward Lunge, Overhead Reach, and Twist

Exercise#4- Alternating Lateral Lunge with Opposite Hand to Toe Touch

Exercise#5- Prisoner Squats (hands behind head with finger interlocked)

2.) Stay Balanced

Back pain is probably the biggest complaint for avid shovelers. In most cases, a sore or tight back stems from restriction at the hips (see the warm-up above to best remedy this). A lot of pain can also be prevented by keeping your body and movements in balance. From the stance of your legs to the direction of your toes, balance in your body and your movements is the key.

So to start off:

· Use a split stance, where one leg is forward and the other leg is back, when shoveling. Most
people stand with their legs parallel, this stance puts your lower back at a greater risk of injury due to the greater likelihood of excessive flexion of the lumbar spine that often leads to back spasms in the short run and herniated discs in the long run. However, with a simple switch to shoveling in the split stance described above, you will not only help prevent this hyper flexion while bending over and moving snow, but you will also actively stretch and open up those tight hips at the same time. Alternate which leg you put forward every 10 reps or so to keep things balanced.

· Point Your Toes In Same Direction of Shoveling –Even when you split your stance, you can be susceptible to injury whenever you perform a rotating back extension (e.g. a shovel toss to your rear). So, to further bolster your body, be sure to always shovel snow in the direction that your toes point to minimize excessive spinal rotation that can literally wrench your back.

· Shovel EQUALLY to BOTH Sides –Another big mistake people make is that they always shovel to their strong sides causing further strength and flexibility imbalances that can put your body at greater risk for injury. Be sure to do an equal amount of shovel tosses to your left AND right. Do 10 shovel tosses to your left with your left leg forward and then do 10 shovel tosses to your right with your right leg forward. Repeat until your driveway or sidewalk is crystal clear.

3.) Buy or Rent a Condo

No, I’m not joking. The great thing about a condominium community is that they do all of the outdoor maintenance for your home, including shoveling. You will save valuable time and the extra stress of having to do it yourself. If it is a viable option and you live or like to vacation in a harsh winter climate, make the smart move and get a condo. 3b). This is my personal favorite – vacation on the beach instead! It’s hard to get hurt shoveling if you never shovel.

So there you have it. The 3 tips above will go a long way in keeping your body as bulletproof as possible during the next blizzard or snow-bound vacation. If you do hurt yourself shoveling snow, it’s a sign of an even bigger problem: being overweight and/or highly de-conditioned. However, if the unfortunate happens and you find yourself side-lined by a snow shoveling related injury, try to think up a better story in case someone asks why you’re limping around like their 85 year old grandmother. Tell them you got hit by a
snow plow truck. You’ll never hear the end of it with the real version of the story. 😉

Stay focused,

Sarai D. Jones

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Resolutions Into Results Pt.2

January 14, 2009 By

 

Yesterday we discussed the first step to making your resolutions a reality this year. Let’s get to the next step.

Step Two- The What and When: What do you want to accomplish and when do you want to accomplish it by?

So we already figured out the obvious: you want to look better and maximize your sexy! So, now we need to establish what objective goal(s) need to be accomplished in order to realize this subjective dream.

In other words you need to know what you’re starting with. You also need to be able to track your progress in relation to your time line. Since I work with women in a group setting and you probably do not have access to lots of equipment at home I like to keep things as simple and cost effective as possible in keeping track of your “look better” progress. So in order of importance from least to most important, here is what you need to do:

1.) Scale Weight: This is by far the least important goal, but it gives a number that’s worth tracking. Though body fat percentage would be a much better method of tracking progress, it is simply too inaccurate on a small scale and too costly on a large scale. The key is to taking your initial weight before you start and then not weighing more than every 2 weeks. I have found most people to do better with tracking their weight every month. As women there are simply too many variables for controlling your body weight and the natural fluctuations based on diet and menstrual cycle, so the less frequently you do this the better. If the scale is just too de-motivating for you in general, then just skip this one altogether if you must, because the next two markers are far more important.

2.) Dress/Pant Size: This is probably the most simple and effective unused method of tracking whether or not you look better. I think it’s safe to say that if you are dropping dress and/or pant sizes that you will be looking better, right? So go into your closet and pick one pair of pants that you’d like to ultimately fit into as your end goal. I tell my clients to assess how they are fitting in their preferred pant size tracker on a weekly or bi-weekly basis since our clients that follow our program exactly as outlined typically lose a dress and/or pant size every month (until they get to their ideal dimensions). Use the same pair of pants every time, that way you can accurately track your progress (because as we all know and Ann Taylor 12 is different from a bebe 12). There’s nothing more powerful than literally being able to feel yourself comfortably get
into clothes that you almost use to rip when you put them on.

3.) Digital Pictures: Pictures don’t lie, that’s the bottom line. If you want to look better, what better way is there to assess this than pictures? I cannot begin to tell you how important this is. Taking a before picture is essentially you telling the whole world that you are ready to change and that you are ready to do whatever it takes to make those changes. They key is take pictures wearing exactly what you want to look your best in.I have my boot camp ladies send their first set of pictures to me so I can visually track their progress as well. So, what do you want to look smoking hot in? Maybe it’s taking pictures of you in the dress or pair of pants that you are using to track your dress or pant size. Or maybe it’s a sleeveless shirt and tank top that you want to wear during the summer. And if you want to see your abs, then you best believe that you need to take pictures of your abs to track how much more definition you get. Take a front, side, and rear view picture and be sure to note the exact conditions in which the picture was taken (lighting, distance from camera, time of day/week, etc.) to be as accurate as possible in your assessment. I know many of you want to skip this step because frankly, it’s a huge dose of reality as to exactly where you are. But trust me, the clients whom I’ve transformed that failed to take before pictures in the past have nothing but regret about it. Your before pictures will become your trophy and they are an absolute must if you really are serious about getting results that count. We tell our clients to take new set of pictures monthly until they reach their goal(s).

So that’s it for today. Get out that pair of "goal pants", take those pictures and yes, get on the scale.

See you tomorrow for step three.

Stay focused

Sarai Jones

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Resolutions To Results -The Final Step

January 14, 2009 By

 

Step Three- Planning and Preparing for Roadblocks: What are the big obstacles that will prevent you from having the success you desire? What’s contributed most to past failures?

Now that we know what you want to accomplish, it’s time to plan and prepare for any obstacles that might get in your way of getting the job done based on your own personal schedule. Or I as I like to put it, the self-sabotage that we as women so often engage in.

In general, the number one thing I hear is that people are too busy and tired and don’t have enough time to get their workouts in or make their meals. I am sure that you are in fact a very busy, mother, wife, professional. Any one or more of those things is a lot to handle. The truth is however is there is always hidden time throughout the day and week that can be freed up if your re-prioritize. Again, think back to why you wanted to do this in the first place and then examine what’s most important to you. Make your workouts and your meal times just like work appointments. Either
you make the appointment or you don’t. And if you want to keep your job (or get your dream body) then you better make that appointment.

Another big obstacle is alcohol. People like to drink and unfortunately alcohol is about as detrimental to burning fat as it gets. Again, what’s more important to you, looking sexy or getting hammered. The choice is yours. Remember, once you achieve your goal(s), alcohol can be added back in with moderation. But know this, lean people just don’t get wasted unless they are genetic freaks. Low to zero alcohol consumption is needed if you want to look your best year round and that’s a fact.

Lastly, many people deal with boredom eating or emotional eating. Boredom eating means just that, eating to fill up dead time when you have nothing better to do. The best way to deal with this is, you guessed it, to do something! Find an active hobby to keep your mind off of eating when boredom strikes and you can beat this trend.
Emotional eating describes the use of food to cope with stress or to reward for accomplishment. Food is not unlike drugs or alcohol in this regard, it can be very addictive. There is no quick fix for emotional eating other than avoiding
trigger situations (bars, parties, etc.) and trigger foods (starches, sugars, fast food, etc.) in the short term to break bad habits. I’ve written several times in the past about both of these issues check the archives for more detailed post.

At the end of the day, whether your roadblocks are very individual or if they fall in line with the general roadblocks my clients encounter on a regular basis, the key is to be honest about them and to plan and prepare for them. And that’s where social support and accountability come into play. The clients who have had the most success with me have undergone their transformation with the support of other friends or family members. This is so critical, especially since most of the poor food and drinking choices that sabotage one’s progress occur on the weekend, when most people hang out with their friend and family. If they are committed with you and your goal to get fit and look better, you can put yourself in a much better position to realize the success your desire and deserve. The last thing anybody needs is sabotage or peer pressure from those closest to you, so get them on board and get them on board early.

Stay focused

Sarai Jones

Filed Under: Exercise and Fitness Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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