Fun Fact Friday: Did you know that your muscles cannot turn to fat when you stop exercising regularly?

It’s true- they can’t.

Why, you ask?!  Because muscle and fat are two separate and distinct tissues.  There is no physical capability to change from one to the other.

No way Jose!

With muscles, you either “use it, or lose it!”  When you’re not using muscle, it will literally just waste away.  When that happens, it’s called atrophy.

Here’s a good example for you:
Think about someone who wears a cast on a broken leg/ arm.  When the cast has been removed, the leg or arm that’s been unused will be smaller than they were before.  If it was true that muscle turned to fat from not being used, you’d see  a fatter leg or arm after removing the cast- that isn’t the case, though.

With that being said, don’t let those muscles waste away!

It’s Friday and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Is Losing Weight Extremely Difficult?

Let’s set this straight.

Losing the weight (for most) is pretty easy.  Once you get going, you’re golden.
The most difficult part about this process- the weight off.

Studies show that 75%-90% of dieters who lose weight will actually regain the weight they dropped within 1-3 years of fully “completing” the diet.  Faster is not better.

Exercising regularly and maintaining healthy eating is a great way to keep the weight you worked so hard to lose, off of your body.  Once you reach the weight you desire, or the “look” you desire, doesn’t mean that you should go right back to old ways. Treat yourself once a weak to a cheat meal (because it is okay every so often to let loose) then for the remainder of the week, keep to your schedule of eating healthy & working out.

---

I do understand it’s extremely frustrating to have to wait to get to your goal weight; however, the work that you put into your body and your health will show.  Give it the time to do so!  While your body is changing, so are your systems!  It does take time and some don’t have that patience, but how about you make that something to improve in your life as well?

I’ll repeat this again… because it’s so true:

YOU’LL GAIN THE WEIGHT BACK AS FAST AS YOU LOST IT.  Don’t look toward the “faster” route for weight loss- It. Takes. Time.

Myth Busting Monday: Do you really lose more body fat if you make yourself sweat more?

You hear that all the time, don’t you?

 “If you wear sweats and make yourself soaked in your own sweat, that means you’ll lose weight much quicker…. “

Eh… Yes and no….. Here’s what happens:

Well, it does make sense that when you exercise in a rubberized suit or sweats you will indeed sweat more; however, any “weight loss” you experience after your workout isn’t from losing fat, it’s actually from losing water within your body.
After your workout, you’re going to want to eat or drink and as soon as you begin to replenish your body fluid stores, those pounds you had lost from “sweating it out” will return almost as fast as they had left! 

Please keep in mind that while wearing rubber suits and sweats to drop numbers on the scale… there is a slight potential danger- heat injury.
This happens when exercising too vigorously in extreme heat…or purposely wearing clothes that will make you sweat profusely.  Keep in mind that you aren’t a super human and can’t control what’s happening inside of your body like you can control what you’re putting on your body to workout in.  Working out in these conditions keep you from being able to safely control your internal temperature (or core) by preventing the sweat you keep producing to evaporate.

There are so many reasons why someone is perspiring…

• temperature
• humidity
• lack of conditioning
• body composition
• individual variability

Don’t measure the amount of sweat to how much energy you’re expending during your workout.

Just be mindful what you’re wearing and adjust to the weather and stay hydrated! We are all built differently, and with that being said…we all sweat differently! Sometimes I go through an entire workout and I’m not drenched in sweat like I am for other days I have worked out… but the next couple of days I know I worked hard because my body is surely telling me!

Don’t tell yourself, “If I don’t sweat a lot and my shirt isn’t soaked at the end of the workout… I must not have worked out hard”

That isn’t always the case…at all.

Please share this with your friends!
Thanks for taking the time to read my post! I’m almost finished with my courses to become a personal trainer and I’m getting very excited! I can’t wait to begin my job!
I hope that this gave you some good tips.  I really enjoy sharing what I learn with you all!
I’m going to be doing Myth Busting Monday every Monday so that way you can continue to learn with me!

Have a great night, everyone!!

#motivationmonday

 It’s Monday!  Make this week g r e a t ! 

Good morning, everyone.  So, I have decided that every Monday I’ll be making a new blog post to motivate you all.  This is going to probably be until I finish my personal training certification.  I’ve been extremely busy and I’m working on getting back where I need to be.

I, myself, am using today…Monday… to restart my routine.  My previous post explains a little bit about why I’ve been slacking.  Our new puppy we had rescued almost didn’t make it out of a routine procedure and had to have a major procedure done.  Thank God she’s doing great now and is very energetic.  Her staples were removed last Thursday and she’s doing amazing!  Super happy with her progress… God gave us quite the little miracle.

Now that she’s doing a ton better, and our 5 year old, Oakley (he’s our other fur baby) are getting along perfectly I’m working my way back to getting back on track!

On top of having a new puppy who was in recovery, we were moving from NC to VA and our food supply was limited.  Because we were trying to get rid of the food in our house as much as possible, the lack of healthy food in our fridge was nuts.  I was going through a panic because I always have something.  I wasn’t eating as well as I wanted to and I could tell because my body was getting a little bit “puffy”.

After the pup came home from the hospital, I stayed with her literally all day and fell back on my studies and gym time significantly.  Making sure Oakley was being loved when she was napping because he was so mad at me for bringing her home.

Like I said, I fell off my rocker.  I wasn’t happy with my choices but I felt so overwhelmed and there was so many things I had to do.  I put my health behind me and focused on the puppy and moving and studying (when I could make that happen).

Today- that’s changing.  I encourage you to use this as a sign to go ahead and make the change with me!
This past weekend, we went out and got the necessary groceries and healthy snacks and fruits to get my body back on board with a healthy lifestyle! There’s no way I could keep letting myself go.  Things are much calmer now, and my body is dying to get back into the gym and really get a great workout regimen back into action!

You’re probably wondering….why is she telling me this?  Well, it’s simple.  I have gotten so many messages about how people can’t do what I did and lose weight and tone up and eat healthy and all of that.  Stop saying you can’t.  I’m showing you that even people who do it everyday and make it a lifestyle change can fall out sometimes.  But that doesn’t mean you should keep falling out.  Stop, breathe, make a plan, set a goal and go achieve it! Don’t let yourself forget about your body, not matter how much stress is imposed on you.

I shouldn’t have stopped eating healthy, and I shouldn’t have stopped working out- but I did.  And N O W is the time to take that and flip it.  TODAY.  IT’S MONDAY, FRESH STARTS ARE FUN!!
Take advantage of today and work towards your short term goals to reach your long term ones.

I’m taking this trip with you!

I hope you all have a great work week, and a great fresh start!

Happy Spring!

 

Good morning, everyone! Happy 1st Day of Spring!! It’s raining here in Virginia… And some of you are experiencing snow…. How weird. Hopefully, spring will step up the game and swing into full force here soon!! 

I just wanted to drop in and write something to let you all know I’m still here.  I apologize for slacking, but things have been extremely hectic lately. 

First, we were preparing to move and working on getting everything that we had with our old house closed, so that way when we got to Virginia, we would just have to unpack. 

Secondly, we got a new puppy! Her name is Tallulah.  We rescued her and she was 8 weeks old when we adopted… In the state of North Carolina, you must get your dog spayed/ neutered before you’re able to take the animal home.  (Wish this wasn’t the case, but it was). Tallulah’s vet ran into a problem when he went to find the right ovary, and he ripped her kidney and she almost didn’t make it. Thankfully, she did. The doctor felt completely horrible. It was quite the job to make sure she didn’t go too wild with staples in her stomach… That’s been taking up most of my time. Yesterday, she did get her staples removed and she’s doing so great! Growing good and being the spunky, happy little pup!  

Third, between moving and our new pup… I’ve been trying to really get in study time. I’m about a week and a half behind and that’s driving me insane. So, my main focus now that we are unpacked for the most part and her staples are out is to catch up! 

Finally, I haven’t had time to get to the gym, either. With the move, we didn’t want to keep going grocery shopping and have our produce go bad and I’ve been eating more junk than healthy foods. I’ve definitely put on some weight and this week coming up, I’m planning to get my butt back in gear. Just goes to show you that I fall out of line sometimes, too! It happens. Life happens. the past 2 weeks, my puppy was my main concern and that’s okay. Just means I have to work hard and get back where I was before! 

I’m going to try to designate a day of each week that I’ll post something… (Most likely, it’ll be either Sunday or Monday). 

Thanks for understanding! I’ll be back on track in no time!  TGIF & have a wonderful weekend!! Hope it warms up! 

“Straighten Up!” & Check your Posture!

My mother had always told me to, “stand up straight, don’t slouch” and with being a dancer, it wasn’t acceptable to have a hunchback.

Well, it just so happens- there’s a reason for that.

Having good posture means that your muscles are in balance and your body is symmetrical.  If you have a deviation, it makes it more difficult for the muscles in your body to hold the needed position (usually, due to  lack of strength).

Posture is super important for your performance and well being! Most people will just look the other way when it comes to someone telling them to straighten up.  If you’ve been ignoring those who tell you that, this is especially for you…listen to the facts right here, right now.  

Good posture is very important to your health.  Posture is what keeps your organs in place and allows them to properly function effectively and efficiently!  Take a look at this example:  if you have a rounded upper back or rounded shoulders you’re actually constricting your chest cage; therefore, making it more difficult for your lungs to completely fill with oxygen (as it should be able to).  Being able to use your lungs to their full capacity is vital if you’re an athlete or performing fitness activities.

Among other things, your posture affects how you walk, run, jump, and lift weights.
Example time: let’s just say you have rounded shoulders…  your arms may be slightly in front of your body instead of hanging alongside of your body and because of this, while you’re lifting weights, instead of your intention to lift your arms sideways directly overhead; you’re actually lifting your arms up and in front of the body.  This action will end up changing the muscular movement and also the movement pathway (so what you think you’re working out, you’re not).

Another duty of lovely posture would be to prevent and rehabilitate back problems.  With good posture, you’ll be able to strengthen and stretch the necessary muscles to prevent and rehabilitate injuries.  In certain cases, fixing your posture could alleviate or cure the back problems you may be experiencing!  Pulling your head back into the proper alignment is sufficient to produce the normal curvature of your vertebral column. With lifting your head and looking forward, you’ll be able to activate your lower back muscles to hold your spine in place and alleviate your problem as well.

The main key to having a well- aligned, balanced body is to proportionally develop muscles on one side of the joint along with the  muscles on the opposite side.  This will allow your muscles to keep your joints in the natural state and not allow any deviations to occur!

---

---

To those who work in an office setting or those who are seated throughout the day during long periods of time- this is for you!

Maintaining good posture isn’t something that should only be noticed during physical activity.  It’s actually most commonly overlooked in day-to-day, routine, activities. Those who train regularly, often look at any problem they may get and blame it on the stress from their workouts- which may not always be the case, here’s why:

Everybody spends a fairly decent amount of their day sitting down, what you fail to realize is that it has a negative effect on your spine, which happens when you are in this position for an extended period of time.
While sitting, the pressures that are placed upon your vertebral disks are actually higher than when you’re laying down.  Some experts actually suggest that your pressure when you’re seated is up to eleven times greater than when lying down…that’s tremendous!   

….and you want to blame your back pain on standing….. HMMMPH! 
Think of it this way-  when you’re standing, your body weight is distributing itself over a wide variety of structures (muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints).  When you sit down, your abdominal “corset” will relax and this is what causes a lot of your body weight to load on the disks.
Most of the time you’re not going to feel any pain when this happens; however, over time the constant, increased load placed upon your disks can result in a mess of problems.  If you’re job is behind a desk, take some time in your day to stand…or walk around.  Limit your time sitting down as much as you are able.

Some other ways you can reduce the amount of pressure on your spine are to:

• look into some fancy chairs with lumbar supports that can help maintain the normal sway of your spine
• use a chair with armrests
• sit in a reclined position (not fully reclined, I’m almost positive your boss wouldn’t like you laying down….LOL!)
• keep your knees opened when sitting (when your knees are close together it makes you more prone to slumping in your seat)
• have an adjustable chair (due to different sizes of each individual)
• arrange your desk so that your forearms will rest on your desk with your elbows at a 90 degree angle close to your sides.

Having good posture will make you feel good.  There are so many benefits to maintaining a good posture.  I understand that nobody is perfect, I have a problem myself with bad posture on occasion, but I am trying to be more aware of how I’m standing or sitting or even the amount of time I am sitting.  With good posture comes ease of movement, good balance of muscle strength, proper positioning of the spine, flexibility, proper functioning of your organs and again…. you’re feelin’ good! 

Posture should be a prime focus in your fitness activities and you also want to make sure you’re strengthening key muscles that hold you there! Because when you’ve got good posture you’re ready to perform!