Choose A Healthy Heart

To urge Americans to join the battle against cardiovascular diseases, February has been declared "American Heart Month." Cardiovascular disease is the #1 killer of American men and women. More of our health care dollars go toward the treatment of cardiovascular disease than any other disease.

There are many steps each of us can take to prevent and manage circulatory disease and to live a long, healthy life. Celebrate "Heart Month" this year by determining your risk for developing heart disease and learning how to reduce your risk factors.

What's Your Risk Profile?
Risk factors for heart disease are typically labeled "uncontrollable" or "controllable." The main uncontrollable risk factors are older age, male gender, family history of heart disease, and race. (Statistics show that, on average, blacks and Mexican Americans are more likely to have heart disease than whites.)

Even if you have uncontrollable risk factors for heart disease, it doesn't mean that you can't take steps to limit your risk. Researchers say that controllable risk factors -- smoking, physical inactivity, overweight or obesity, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, and diabetes -- are all major influences on the development and severity of heart disease.

Reduce Your Risk
In the up-coming days, I will share with you ways to reduce your risk factors for heart disease. Today, I will touch on the first mentioned risk factor, which is COMPLETELY within your control.

Quit smoking. Smokers have more than twice the risk for heart attack than non-smokers and are much more likely to die if they suffer a heart attack. Smoking is also the most preventable risk factor for heart disease. If you smoke, quit. There are many Wellness Programs available which are designed to allow you to choose the smoking cessation program or technique - patches, gum, group support programs, hypnosis - that will work best for you.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Look In The Mirror And SMILE!

It’s the last day in January and I’m sure many of you have been successful in starting the New Year with healthy lifestyle choices.

Those 31-days of conscious living and decision making to commit to your 3-4 days a week for an hour exercise program (grueling at times); not skipping breakfast (difficult to not hit the snooze button to make sure you have time to eat); eating smaller portions (restaurants have run out of doggie bags because you keep taking home those leftovers); parking further from your destination’s door (you no longer feel stressed to find a parking spot); adding another day of pleasure activity like rollerblading, cycling, dancing, climbing, kickboxing, etc. (you’re too busy having fun to notice you’re “exercising”); cutting out sugar, white rice and alcohol (yes, “out”, not “back”); and using those stairs every chance you get (you have toned calves and lifted buttocks, who cares if it’s 30 flights) have started the momentum needed to keep moving into the next month of 2007 on fire and fueled with confidence!

It is true that it takes 30-days to create a new habit and after that it becomes your way of life. Since you’ve made it through January still continuing your participation in these healthy and active lifestyle choices, you can bet that the old sedentary, over-eating, over-drinking and over-indulgent you of 2006 is certainly a person of the past. Take a look in the mirror and smile with confidence because you’re living it! Keep it up! Your goals are on the other side of that door.

If you’ve had a difficult time keeping those healthy choices a part of your New Year, look in the mirror and smile with confidence! You’re still alive, you want to be healthier and you know what it takes. Realize that today starts the next 30-days to making those habits a way of life. It’s all going to be so much easier once it becomes your way of life. Keep pressing on and let nothing take your discipline and desire away from you today on.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Awaken The Kid In You!

The choice you’ve made to live a healthier lifestyle does not have to be an arduous one. One way to make activity a part of the “new” you this year is to be a kid again.

What activities did you used to love doing as a kid?

Take a dance class, hike a local trail, find a tennis partner, get a bike and helmet, dust off your rollerblades, hit the batting cages or jump in the pool and swim laps.

Try something new or revisit an old passion. Join your local indoor rock climbing gym, outrigger canoe clubs, kayak clubs, or take a lesson in golf, surfing or martial arts.

New activity is always inspirational and exciting. Why not have fun “playing” again? This not only boosts your energy and adds activity to your day; it will boost your self-confidence.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

January May Be "Health & Fitness " Month ---

However, the year 2007 is "Live Your Life Healthy & Fit, Powered by Your Passion For Life!" Year.

What actions have you taken in this first month of the New Year to create a healthy and active lifestyle for yourself?

Have you been consistent with your actions?

If you have been able to exercise that self-discipline, congratulations! It is difficult work to change habits that have been a part of your life for so long, especially when those habits bring you comfort and make you feel good, regardless if they are a hazard to your health (overeating, smoking, excessive drinking, or lack of exercise). You must value the quality of your life if you have taken steps to remedy those habits that pose a risk for obesity, diabetes, heart disease, lung cancer or osteoporosis. Great job!

If you have returned to your natural “comfort-zone” despite your desire to increase activity, eat healthier, drink less or quit smoking, January is not over! Neither is the year. Today is the perfect day to re-ignite that fire within you to make those healthy changes part of the newly empowered, “Healthy & Fit” you!

Take 60 seconds, right now, to honestly look at what your motivation was to make a commitment to live actively and healthily in the year 2007.

What are the health risks and consequences if you choose to not follow-through with the actions you took based on that motivation?

Is that the health (life) you want?

If your desire is strong enough, you will find a way to make those “new” habits part of the new, healthier, stronger and more alive you this year!

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Stand Firm!

"The great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do."

I recently heard from a friend, who after reading the entry regarding the 5K and Ironman World Championship, is inspired to begin training for the Half Ironman taking place in Oceanside, CA next year, tell me her husband basically said to her, "Yeah right" when she shared her excitement to compete. Let me tell you, that has motivated her that much more to do her best to train for the event. Granted, she is not expecting to win it, but she is truly motivated to get out and train for it so she can cross the finish line and tell her husband, "See, told you I'd do it."

To all of you out there getting the fire of your motivation and passion to be healthy doused by "non-believers", stand firm! There is no greater joy than succeeding in spite of the doubts of others.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Say "NO" To Type-2 Diabetes!

Cardio can save your health, your life!

Doing any type of cardio-vascular exercise, such as swimming, running, biking or rollerblading, five times a week can reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 45 percent.

Try cardio two to four times a week and you’ll experience a 40 percent risk reduction, and doing cardio even once a week lets you cut your chances by 25 percent. Why? This type of heart-friendly workout lowers your diabetes risk by reducing fat tissue in the body and allowing cells to be more reactive to insulin.

What are you waiting for? Get up and move!

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

The Human Spirit – THAT Is Powerful!

(Long, yet worth reading.)

PBP Fitness is established on the premise that one ought to live their lives actively with passion because there is power in passion. Today, I have seen and felt that very premise come alive. It has been two part – my first participation in a 5K run and watching the 2006 Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawai'i broadcasted on TV. Both are two very different events, yet both evoke pride and appreciation for the human body and spirit.

First, let’s look at the 5K this morning. 3.10 miles is not a long distance to run, not by the standards many active in fitness would claim. To the average American, sitting on the couch or at the computer, walking 3 miles can pose to be a challenge. For myself, I expected it to be a challenge simply for the fact that I do not run. I am either one that will walk very briskly, rollerblade or sprint short distances if called upon to run. I participated in the short distance events in Track and Field in high school and partook in the mile-run out of necessity for soccer training. When given the option, I have chosen to not run as a form of cardio-vascular training.

However, this Saturday, I decided I would run in the Jingle Bell 5K Run/Walk with The Arthritis Foundation in honor of my family and friends that suffer from arthritis. I am in great cardio-vascular shape according to my last physical, however, this first 5K humbled me. I’m far from arrogant about my physical condition. As a matter of fact, there is always room for improvement. I was humbled because I had my first experience in what it was like to run for competition. The competitive runners were not hard to miss. As I was running up one side of the road, they were already coming down the other at the same pace, if not faster, than when Santa initially said, “Go!” Not only did those competitive runners humble and inspire me, so did the children, some of whom were running with their parents. Yes, children ages 5-12 from what I could see. My competitive spirit relaxed for a moment when I saw that and I smiled and thought, “That’s so great! They’re having fun and they’re active. This is what exercise is about.” This supports my opinion that a healthy and active lifestyle is learned from your parents if you are a child. When more parents take the time to do activities with their children, there will not be an obesity epidemic effecting our youth. (That is for a separate article.) There were also seniors, “overweight” people, people with their dogs, others with knee braces, a group of girls dressed as the eight reindeer attached by a ribbon pulling on Santa (who was wearing rollerblades) and FAMILIES. I loved what I saw and I finished the 5K filled with a renewal of my passion….a passion to sprint. I beat my personal expected finish time by 5 minutes. I was surprised since I felt I could have run faster and harder. Next time! Yes, there are several "next times" set up. I have not only renewed my passion, I have added a new one….to run for distance. You can quote this sprinter on that.

Then today, as I lay at home resting from the lack of sleep (nerves of anticipation for my first 5K?) and run event, I clicked on the TV to look for College Football. I forgot that we are now in Playoffs. It was just as well, I noticed that the 2006 Ironman World Championship was being shown. This event, in and of itself, is a true expression of human will, spirit, determination, perseverance and passion. These athletes (and any who silently take upon similar endurance challenges) deserve admiration and respect, whether you like exercise or not. The people that partake are not just your elite Olympic athletes; they are your firefighters, nurses, math teachers, 76 year-old nuns, accountants, disabled military officers, paralyzed, Cerebral Palsy and ALS stricken and blind. I listened to the stories more intently today because I have a new appreciation for the unshakeable will-power it takes to finish an endurance race. The Ironman is a 2.4 mile swim in the open ocean, 112 mile ride in windy conditions and 26.2 mile run in hot, humid conditions. If the distance challenge on your cardio-vascular system is not enough, the weather and environment will make sure your “Iron Will” is tested to its fullest extent.

I wish I could take the time to share all the stories of these amazing people to help inspire you to get out and do the activities that bring you joy, reward and confidence. I could, but often times, it’s much more inspirational to go out and do those very activities yourself and watch those better than you excel in that activity. I was amazed to hear the adversities they had to overcome just to be at the Ironman. Okay, the Ironman may not be your goal….neither was the 5K mine. All the same, it’s important to keep what you believe to be holding you back from attaining your goal in perspective. Often times, your mind is making it a bigger obstacle than it really is. Honestly, there was a blind man in the Ironman and several paraplegics, not to mention a 76 year-old nun that beat the clock by 60 seconds before her whole race would not have count. (Had her foot crossed that finish-line 60.999 seconds later, and it would have been as if she had never been there.) There are no excuses!

So this week, I challenge you, rather you challenge yourself. Re-evaluate that goal you think is out of your reach because you have not been training whole-heartedly or eating properly; you have been scheduling other ‘important’ appointments; you have a nagging injury (are you doing your rehab exercises?) or health problem (most likely exercise can help that); or plain laziness. If you don’t care about your goal, then tear it up, you won’t ever achieve it. If it is important to you to achieve, you will find a way to make it happen! Always, when you tap into your passion to achieve something, it will come to fruition. It’s that simple. Challenge yourself to have the "Ironman or 5K Spirit" to reach your goal, "even if they have to roll you across that finish line.” (Jon Blais - ALS sufferer)

This week, do what it is you think is impossible, yet you want the rewards too much to quit. I wanted to run today for those with arthritis that cannot enjoy activity. Who would have known I (a sprinter) would decide to start conditioning my body to run a Half Marathon? (I also plan on going to the next Ironman in Kona…to cheer on the athletes and it’s a great reason to go home.) In my pursuit to help someone else, I have discovered the activity I thought I detested for cardio-vascular activity, is an activity I have become “hooked on”. Take control of your mind so that it doesn’t get in the way of you reaching your goals!

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Top 10 Reasons Why You Should Exercise With Arthritis

Arthritis is not a disease that is limited to the elderly. Unfortunately, it’s becoming more and more common among the very young. But don’t fall for the myth that you shouldn’t exercise if you suffer from arthritis – it’s quite the contrary.

The American Council on Exercise (ACE) has 10 reasons why you should exercise if you have arthritis:

1. Flexibility training helps improve your range of motion and reduces stiffness in joints. Just think of how stiff you are in the morning.
   
2. Walking and other low-impact cardio activities help improve your overall fitness and ease the psychological and emotional pain often tied to arthritis.
   
3. Exercise makes your muscles stronger and helps with mobility, allowing you to accomplish daily tasks with greater ease. The easier it is to move around, the more likely you are to be active.
   
4. Weight-bearing exercise, such as walking, increases bone mass, which helps reduce your risk of developing osteoporosis over time.
   
5. Arthritis often negatively affects balance, posture, and coordination, while fitness drastically helps to improve all three areas.
   
6. Excess weight puts a lot of unnecessary stress on your joints, making the symptoms of arthritis even more grueling. A sensible diet and a regular workout regimen are key to taking the extra load off of your joints.
   
7. Exercise reduces stress, which often worsens the symptoms of arthritis.
   
8. Because arthritis is a degenerative condition, people who have if often feel down in the dumps. Fitness helps people look at life in a more positive light.
   
9. Achy joints make sleeping difficult, if not impossible. Regular exercise helps induce deep sleep.
10. Arthritis often leads to a sedentary lifestyle, which is linked to heart disease and diabetes. Regular fitness drastically reduces your chances of both conditions.
    
    

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Make A Difference This Month

This month provides a fantastic opportunity to make a difference in the lives of those that suffer from arthritis. The Arthritis Foundation has organized an event, “Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis” which will raise money to help people with arthritis.

Chances are you or someone you know has arthritis. It causes pain, stiffness and sometimes swelling in or around joints. This can make it hard to do the movements you rely on every day for work or taking care of your family.

If you are a resident of San Diego County, I invite you to help others that have difficulty maintaining the active lifestyle we are fortunate to enjoy. I ask you be active for those that cannot be active. Either click on this “Jingle Bell” logo to register to participate as a runner/walker or to contribute in honor of someone with the disease.

If you do not live in San Diego, follow this link to find an event in your state (you are also able to contribute at this site in honor of someone that suffers from the disease):



The number of Americans with arthritis or chronic joint symptoms is staggering and requires attention:

• 1985 - 35 million
• 1990 - 37.9 million
• 1998 - nearly 43 million (1 in 6 people)
• 2006 – 46 million (nearly 1 in 5 adults)
  
• Arthritis is one of the most prevalent chronic health problems and the nation’s leading cause of disability among Americans over age 15.
• Arthritis is second only to heart disease as a cause of work disability.
• Arthritis limits everyday activities such as walking, dressing and bathing for more than 7 million Americans.
• Arthritis results in 39 million physician visits and more than a half million hospitalizations.
• Costs to the U.S. economy totals more than $86.2 billion annually.
• Arthritis affects people in all age groups including nearly 300,000 children.
• Baby boomers are now at prime risk. More than half those affected are under age 65.
• Half of those Americans with arthritis don’t think anything can be done to help them.
• Arthritis refers to more than 100 different diseases that affect areas in or around joints.
• Arthritis strikes women more often than men.

Overall arthritis:

• Women - 24.3 million of the people with doctor-diagnosed arthritis
• Men - 17.1 million of the people with doctor-diagnosed arthritis
  

With this information, and this being the month in which the Arthritis Foundation is actively seeking your help by giving you the opportunity to put your enjoyment for activity to fruitful use for others, I will spend the remainder of this week providing some insight, dispelling myths and providing exercise tips for the disease called “Arthritis”.

Please share this information with those you care about.

It's Monday - Get Motivated!

The “F” Word And Exercise

“Today I will leave my stopwatch, goals, and work ethic at home and try to recapture the fun that is in exercise.”

We all forget about the fun part.

It’s understandable that fun can be the last thing on your schedule when your body fights your mind (or visa versa) to go to the gym, aerobics class or running/cycling trail when it feels drained from a long day at work, or has not quite overcome the shock of the alarm clock blaring for you to get out of bed. When the mantra of “gotta, gotta, gotta” is what gets you to move to start your workout (gotta do this, gotta lose weight, gotta build these muscles), all the fun is taken away.

Do you remember when you were a kid and you would run and jump just because you could run or jump? You didn’t think about how fast or how far you ran, you just ran because you felt like doing it. (Although, I used to tease my friends just so they would chase me because I loved to outrun them, and I did.) Yet, notice, “because you felt like doing it.” That was the way to experience the pure fun and joy of being alive. You didn’t do it because you were trying to accomplish something or you had a long-term goal in mind.

When you take the fun out of what you are doing, exercise becomes obligatory and work. If you can find the fun in your workouts, you’ll be much more likely to keep going.

Have fun today!

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Falling For Footwear

Perhaps that could also read, "Footwear For Falling"....

As you know, one of the reasons it’s important to have proper-fitting athletic shoes is to minimize your chance of injury, especially a fall. Keep in mind, the importance of the proper-fitting shoe extends to everyday shoes, as I realize many of you do not work in athletic shoes like I do.

As mentioned, footwear has a role in minimizing your chance of a fall. There are several other important factors related to foot problems that make walking difficult and make you more susceptible to falling – a medical condition, muscle imbalances, weak stabilizers, and poor bio-mechanics. Just as all feet don’t look the same; neither is how foot problems affect different age populations.

It would be easy to understand that there are over 11 million seniors – one out of every three people age 65 or older – with foot problems. That is twice the rate of the total adult population with foot problems – 43 million Americans or one out of every six adults. It was a shock to learn that the majority of those affected are women, where studies have shown 90% of the females wear shoes that are too small for their feet. (I’m still recovering from that shocking statistic. If the shoes were on sale, and regardless if they were half a size too small or not, they had to buy it!)

Selecting shoes should not be for the latest fashion (a difficult tip to accept), but for the comfort. Foot comfort is essential to maintaining your stability, mobility and safety. Don’t get me wrong, high-heels are great (I’m 5’4” and enjoy the extra height) and I’ve sacrificed comfort for fashion many times. Yet, experience has taught me the price is rarely worth the pain (crushed metatarsals, bruised sole and lower back tightness). I also have had the privilege to work with several people with foot problems to understand the value of comfortable shoes. It is a very hindering problem, not to be taken lightly given our feet play a large role (no matter how small they may be) in how we live our lives actively. When something as small as a blister greatly affects movement in a negative way, you’re opening the door to a possible injury. It may sound absurd, yet it’s possible.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons have developed foot and shoe wear guidelines to help seniors prevent falls. One needs not be a “senior” to benefit from these guidelines, only pre-requisite is to have feet. Also, it is the Holiday Season and more high-heels are bound to hit the “Sale” rack and strike the pavement or dance floor.

Whether you wear heels, dress shoes, boat shoes, casual shoes, mules or Mary Janes, it behooves you to keep this in mind:

• Wear properly fitting, sturdy shoes that provide support. Be sure your shoes have a nonskid sole.

• Have your feet measured every time you purchase shoes. Your shoe size may change.

• Do not wear shoes that have extra-thick soles.

• Shoes with laces are safer than slip-ons, but keep the laces tied. Loose or long laces can cause you to fall. People unable to tie laces can select footwear with Velcro® fasteners.

• Replace slippers that have stretched out of shape and are too loose.

• If you have trouble putting on your shoes, use a long-handled shoehorn.

• Avoid high heels and shoes with smooth, slick soles. If you have a comfortable shoe that has a slippery sole, ask a shoe repair shop to add textured strips to the sole.

• Never walk in your stocking feet.

• Wear slippers with non-slip soles.

• Keep toenails trimmed.

• Women who cannot find athletic shoes that are wide enough for proper fit should shop in the men’s shoe department: shoe manufacturers make men’s shoes wider than women’s shoes.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

A Healthy Child Is A Happy Child

Share The Joy - Celebrate The Spirit Of Giving!

Saint Nicholas was a virtuous man who was known for his charity and philanthropic spirit. He lived in the fourth century and is best remembered for leaving bags of gold on the doorsteps of the poor.

Saint Nicholas' Feast Day, December 6th, is observed as a children's holiday in many countries throughout the world and celebrates the human kindness that helps build every community.

As the season of giving approaches, PBP Fitness, is partnering with Volunteer San Diego to help thousands of children around San Diego learn, not only the spirit of kindness, but also, as PBP Fitness believes, the power of self-confidence and self-worth.

Sponsor a Child with PBP Fitness by visiting the link below and making your donation. Through your generosity, on December 6th, 2,700 elementary school children from eight under-served San Diego County schools will realize the legend is true. On this day, the children will arrive at school to find they have all been left backpacks filled with toys and books. The children will also learn about kindness and caring.



Please join me in supporting A Visit From Saint Nicholas, and Volunteer San Diego by sponsoring a child for just $25.

Remember, A HAPPY CHILD IS A HEALTHY CHILD.

PBP FITNESS' HOLIDAY FUNDRAISER TO HELP THE CHILDREN

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

It Starts At Your Feet - Get The Right Fit

As you may or may not know, in the kinetic-chain of movement in activities such as running or walking, your body's balance and stability begin at your feet. Your feet are the starting points of your body's contact with the environment around you and it communicates to other muscles throughout your body as you move. Proper fitting shoes makes a big difference in your performance as well as avoidance to injury during physical activities such as running, walking, or hiking. For this reason, it is important to have proper-fitting sports shoes.

Follow these specially-designed fitting facts when purchasing a new pair of athletic shoes.

• Try on athletic shoes after a workout or run and at the end of the day. Your feet will be at their largest.

• Wear the same type of sock that you will wear for that sport.

• When the shoe is on your foot, you should be able to freely wiggle all of your toes.

• The shoes should be comfortable as soon as you try them on. There is no break-in period.

• Walk or run a few steps in your shoes. They should be comfortable.

• Always relace the shoes you are trying on. You should begin at the farthest eyelets and apply even pressure as you a crisscross lacing pattern to the top of the shoe.

• There should be a firm grip of the shoe to your heel. Your heel should not slip as you walk or run.

If you participate in a sport three or more times a week, you need a sports specific shoe. It can be hard to choose from the many different types of athletic shoes available. There are differences in design and variations in material and weight. These differences have been developed to protect the areas of the feet that encounter the most stress in a particular athletic activity.

Athletic shoes are grouped into categories. Among those are running, training, and walking -these include shoes for hiking, jogging, and exercise walking. Look for a good walking shoe to have a comfortable soft upper, good shock absorption, smooth tread, and a rocker sole design that encourages the natural roll of the foot during the walking motion. The features of a good jogging shoe include cushioning, flexibility, control and stability in the heel counter area, lightness, and good traction.

It's the end of the year, be sure to put those new proper-fitting athletic shoes on Santa's List.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

It's Monday - Get Motivated!

"It's not who jumps the highest - it's who wants it the most." ~ Buck Williams

Natural ability and hard work will take you a long way toward your goals, that's no secret. Those attributes PLUS a passionate desire will get you there.

Today, you want more in your workout and you will reach a little farther to get it.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Give The Gift Of Inspiration!

PBP FITNESS STORE NOW OPEN

Powered By Passion Fitness has a new line of products available just in time for the Holidays!

It's a fantastic way to share your passion and inspire others to feel and live life!

There are many ways to show you care, yet none greater than helping others find their excitement for health, wellness and LIFE!

VISIT TODAY!

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

**SPECIAL FEATURED COMMENT**

I wanted to feature this comment that was left in response to the post "Say It With Energy!" as I feel many of you will smile upon reading it as I did. Not only is it rewarding for me to be inspiring someone of great importance, but it keeps me committed to the "work" I do for all I come in contact with, face-to-face or via a Blog.

I encourage your comments and look forward to featuring yours so that others may continue to be inspired to live an active and healthy lifestyle.

"My workout secret? Blogs and Bunnies

I look for motivation anywhere I can seek it. Sometimes it's a magazine, sometimes it's a model and sometimes it's a really cute pair of designer jeans. Call it vain or egotistical, the truth is we all need that extra umph that gets us excited to do something that isn't always the most fun. I've always said that if my sister, Michelle, lived in Oahu that I would be the skinniest girl on the block.

She's always given me that extra umph of motivation when she visits, and somehow a simple walk usually turns into an exhausting hike or leg-numbing lunge workout. I complain, but all things considered, I really appreciate it. Imagine if I had her around all the time, I could half kill myself every day!

This is why I was so thrilled to read her new blogs. It's like instant motivation to get up and move. The day it launched I went out for a short walk and extended it by another couple miles. It felt great! (even though I was still too lazy to run)

I rewarded myself that evening by watching one of my guilty pleasures, the Playboy Show on the E! Network. The show is actually witty, funny and interesting-Hef's girlfriends are smarter than you would think. This week's episode was about the girls making an exercise video with their favorite workouts. I found this as additional motivation and began doing one-legged standing dead lifts during commercials...I knew Michelle would be so proud!

For those of you that Michelle trains, consider yourselves fortunate. All I've got are blogs and bunnies!"

Posted by Yvette

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Thanksgiving Can Be Healthy For You

It’s November, and this time of year is notorious for overindulgent holiday eating. However, the holidays need not be an excuse to overindulge in unhealthy foods and to stop exercising. In the general matters of your health, those two factors combined place you at risk for weight gain, diabetes and heart disease. That does not have to be the case this Thanksgiving or Holiday Season.

This time of year is especially important to maintaining a consistent workout routine. Having company need not be an excuse to dismiss yourself from your already in place exercise program. Your health is as important to you as paying the bills, brushing your teeth, getting to work, having your nails manicured and going to the grocery store. Why not invite your company to partake in a walk, run or workout with you? If they decline, stick to the appointment you made with yourself to stay healthy, only decrease the time (notice I did not say “skip your workout”) if they are unable to fill their time with something else. Maintaining your workout routine will allow you to sustain your energy during their visit, keep your pre-holiday body intact and steal some “quiet time” away from your company.

The exercises you performed have now freed you to enjoy the foods on the dinner table. Not just any dinner table either, but the Thanksgiving Feast Table. On this table lies temptation that will stress the elastic of your sweatpants at your ankles given the chance. There is turkey, cranberries, sweet potatoes, pumpkin and pecans to name a few. However, you don’t necessarily need to feel guilty over consuming this feast. Not only because you held your commitment to exercise until this day, but also because these foods have healthy nutrient value on their own. You just need to know what to put on your plate and how much.

*Turkey can be one of the leanest meats. For example, a 3-ounce serving of skinless, white turkey meat has 25 grams of fat and less than a gram of saturated fat. Turkey is also a good source of an amino acid called arginine, which your body uses to make new protein and nitric oxide, the substance that relaxes and opens the arteries. Keep in mind, not all turkey is equal. Dark meat has more saturated fat than white meat. You should also avoid the skin, which is loaded with unhealthy fats.

Cranberries are another healthy Thanksgiving food. They are packed with dozens of different antioxidants. It is best if you can make your own cranberry sauce from whole cranberries. It will be tastier and contain less sugar than canned cranberry sauce.

You are also likely to have sweet potatoes, which are an excellent source of fiber, potassium, beta carotene and vitamins A and C.

Even your dessert can offer health benefits. Pumpkin is low in fat and calories (before it is made into a pie of course) and is a good source of potassium and other vitamins. Pecans are a good source of heart-healthy fats.

While many of these traditional Thanksgiving foods are healthy on their own, they lose that health advantage when they are mixed with cream, sugar, butter and eggs.

Do not forget to take that post-meal walk.

*Source: Harvard Health Publications

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

You Couldn’t Help It – The Food Was So Good!

Another dinner party or night out with friends and you managed to eat fried appetizers, enormous entrees and dip into the towering chocolate fountain (let’s not forget the several uninhibiting glasses of cocktails.) Perhaps it wasn’t for just one evening, but let’s hypothetically say it was for 2 weeks. Relax! So you lived life and enjoyed your time eating and drinking. We all have slipped from the healthy eating habits we’ve adopted. I slip every time I go on a road-trip or on vacation. (I have witnesses. I don't pack egg whites and oatmeal "to go", not anymore.) The key to getting back on track is to take it in strides. There is no useful energy that accompanies guilt. Just take a deep breath and get back on track. You paved the healthy eating road before, so it’s an easy one to find.

You will bounce back after the “binge”. So long as you realize all the effort and hard work you put into eating right before that binge (or the trip to the island of “All You Can Eat” for 2 weeks) was not in vain. No one got overweight from one night’s slip-up, or from a 2 week hiatus if they choose to get back onboard their healthy ways. The trouble and messy pounds come when the binge remains and becomes the next “new way of life”. That is what we want to stop dead in its tracks.

Instead of declaring that you blew your healthy eating ways because you stuffed your body with high-calorie delicacies and devil water, accept it as a moment you chose to enjoy life and pick up on the next meal. Yes, the NEXT meal. Do not wait for “tomorrow”. Any more “living it up” with meals you partake in between now and tomorrow, will make it more difficult to get back on track.

Remember, the delicacies of life will always be there (you can still enjoy them in small portions not related to festive quantities)! But if you choose to keep indulging, your waistline and the health diseases that come along with it will always be there as well. I promise, if you continue with your healthy eating habits, you will be able to enjoy the next dinner party or vacation meals with less guilt post-binge because you will know you have the power to get your healthy eating ways back on track!

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

Working Through The Pain

After the “An Appreciation For Pain” entry, I must clarify the pain I am referring to are the “sacrifices” one must make to achieve the results he/she is after and the blissful pain of muscle fatigue. It is painful to your comfort zone to make a sacrifice- it should not be painful to your body to exercise.

The “No Pain, No Gain” mantra that generally accompanies a workout program is true- to a point. That point comes with common sense. It is not only sadistic to “work through the pain” if it is a pain that continues all throughout the exercise and worse yet, throughout the day when you are not exercising. It is foolish and asking for trouble.

Exercise done right should never be painful (except for the slight burn of lactic acid in the muscle that is natural when pushing the muscle to fatigue). Pain is an indication that something is not right in your body and your body’s way of telling you to “Stop!” Pain is there to protect you. Therefore, if you are experiencing pain (such as sharpness, pinching, twinges, or radiating pain) that is not normal muscle fatigue, STOP what you are doing.

If you are working with a professional fitness trainer, communicate with them immediately that the exercise is painful. I strongly encourage my clients to let me know if an exercise is painful. Whether I believe it’s an exercise they can “work through the pain” with or not, I respect they know what their bodies are saying and the exercise is over for the day. If there’s a pattern to the pain reoccurring, I will advise that a professional medical opinion be attained. Most often, there is a reason for the reoccurrence and a medical professional can diagnose that reason and prescribe proper care.

While an intense workout may create slight discomfort, it should never get to the point where you are in actual physical pain.

So yes, appreciate the pain of sacrifice to attain the results you desire. Also appreciate the “warning” pain that your body gives you. When you heed that warning pain, you allow your body to move for you another day. Remember, you only get one body in this lifetime.

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!

An Appreciation For Pain

This is why I'm passionate about what I do...

This morning, after returning to San Diego from just a week's trip to Kaua'i, a client stopped me at the end of an energetic and exhausting session and made certain to inform me how missed I was as their personal fitness trainer. I was told that though he was disciplined and motivated to do his cardio and abdominal exercises in my absence, it was not the same as "having me there with my whip". (It was said in the most sincere way for the appreciation of his pain.)

That resounded in the homes of every client I have visited since my return. A week's absence and my presence missed...nothing like living the life in which others look forward to me issuing out some pain, because I can bring it if they want it.

Yes, rewards come with pain...for some, it is the painful 5:30am wake-up, the painful scheduled commitment to an activity they never enjoyed before me, the painful act of missing calls or the news/TV for an hour, the painful acceptance of getting stuck in traffic, the painful interruption in the momentum of the day's errands/business dealings, or the painful (yet joyous) time performing acrobatics on a BOSU as the legs are screaming, "Why do you keep having her come back? This burns! Oh, because you need me to be strong for you."

As they have discovered, for life to be actively enjoyed, there is the price of some pain. They know this and that is why they appreciate my role in their lives. They are successful in living the healthy and active lifestyle I promote because they appreciate the value of pain. I am passionate about what I do because I know that the pain is enriching their lives in a positive way. They can accept the pains they suffer because they want to live another day.

Can you accept your "pain"? If your desire to be healthy is strong enough, you certainly can!

~Exercise Your Passion For Life!