Realistic New Years Resolutions

 

It happens every year, ask anyone what their New Years Resolution is and it's probably something like "lose weight", "go to the gym", or "go on a diet". While these are not bad things, but the problem is people too often set their goals too high and fall off the wagon. The trick is to set realistic goals

for yourself.

Here are some resolutions you can try to be more successful in 2015:

1) Strive to eat better. Don't just eliminate foods, but instead add more healthy food options. Grab an apple instead of a bag of chips, or opt for whole wheat/whole grain over white breads/starches.

2) If you are not a fan of the gym, but still want to get exercise, find a fun alternative like joining an adult sport league, taking a dance class, or workout routine like Zumba or yoga.

3) Drink more water. Swap out sugary drinks like soda or iced tea for water. Drink tea instead of coffee. Try not to add anything to your drinks like artificial flavors, sugar, milk, etc. If you are not a big water fan, add fresh fruit to give it flavor and some added nutritional bonuses.

4) Sleep more! Eating healthier and exercising is great, but one thing Americans are terrible at is relaxing! Sleep is so important both mentally and physically. Give yourself a bedtime, even if you haven't had one since you were 10, strive to be in your bed, even if you know you won't fall asleep right away. Also avoid TV or electronics too close to bedtime. Instead listen to calming music or read.

5) Document everything. Keep track of what you eat in a diary, you can write it down the old fashioned way or use an app on your smartphone (I recommend MyFitnessPal or NikePlus). Take photos of yourself, see the visual changes to your body, not just the numbers on the scale.

6) Take a start weight and end weight, from the New Year to the end of the year (or if you have a shorter length goal because of a wedding or some other special event). DO NOT check the scale between your start and end date. It's not all about the numbers on the scale. Make it about your body, how it looks, feels, and fits into clothes. Instead of measuring pounds, take body measurements or go by clothing sizes.

Year Of The Plus Size

This has been a great year for plus sized people! Finally, plus size models are getting the attention they deserve. This year, curvy women have been getting recognition with more and more appearing in magazines, on runways, and elsewhere. While I'm personally still not a fan of the term "plus-size", since the average American woman is a size 10, it is still wonderful to see women with shape and a variety of sizes in advertisements and other forms of media. So Let's celebrate every body!

Some notable wins:

• During London Fashion Week, an entire show was dedicated to plus-size fashion.
  
• Old Navy gets called out for charging more money on women's plus-sized clothing, a pettition is in place to make changes
  
• Candice Huffine was the first model plus-size model to be featured in the legendary Pirelli calendar
  
• Vogue had a lingerie photo shoot featuring women of 'all shapes and sizes'
  
• Swimsuits for All recreated the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover with plus-sized models
  
• Plus-size model Denise Bidot walked a straight-size runway at New York Fashion Week
  
• Lammily, a realistic 'Barbie' is created with average hip, waist, and bust size
  
• The hastag #fatkini trended on social media with women of all sizes showing themselves off in a confident manner
   
  
  
  
  

One of my favorite things is the Lammily doll and how she had a huge impact on young girls, in tests, a lot reported loving her because she looked more like them. Barbie is just too unrealistic to be a role model. We have to start at a young age by teaching children (boys and girls alike) to love their bodies and treat them well. Teach them to be healthy and happy.

These statistics are from the Nation Eating Disorder website:

"In the United States, 20 million women and 10 million men suffer from a clinically significant eating disorder at some time in their life, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, or an eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS)...By age 6, girls especially start to express concerns about their own weight or shape. 40-60% of elementary school girls (ages 6-12) are concerned about their weight or about becoming too fat. This concern endures through life (Smolak, 2011)".

The numbers are staggering, and that doesn't even include non-diagnosed persons. There are millions who suffer and don't receive treatment. This can be prevented with positive body image enforcement. Be positive about yourself and your child will take notice. Go out and play with them, enroll them in sports or other physical activities that appeal to them, and make good food choices.

Try not to use food as a reward. I remember being a kid and if I had a good report card or aced a test, and my parents taking me out for ice cream. I was a good student, so this happened quite often. If you've read any of my earlier posts, I struggled with food and weight growing up. Even though I was active and played sports, my eating choices were bad. Granted I was a picky eater, but my parents who were in control of my food consumption didn't help. They tried, they did feed me full dinners (meat, veggie, starch) and packed my school lunches, and all that. But they also didn't help because they rewarded me with sweets. Even though now, as a young adult I am aware and in control of my food and exercise habits, I firmly believe that if my parents limited my junk food intake it would've made a difference in my weight. Granted, genetics also plays a roll, but we can control our bodies to an extent, IF we start early enough. But remember, it's also never too late to start taking control of our bodies. So don't think because your over 30 you can't change your eating or exercises habits, you can! Start with small changes and incorporate them into your daily routine. You will look and feel better, inside and out.

Fencing Workout

Since I am a former high school/college athlete, and current coach, I have done some research as well as have experience in fitness for fencers.

Fencing is a sport that requires both full body and mental health. You use every muscle from your fingers to your toes, and perhaps most important––your brain!

Stretch: Getting a good stretch all over is important for any sport or physical activity, but when it comes to fencing it also helps to relax the mind. Take around 10-15 minutes to stretch.

Cardio: running/jogging and jump rope are two big favorites among fencers. Both are simple, and require the full body.

Strength: A lot of fencing involves the legs, you need the strength and explosiveness when it comes to footwork. Try doing wall sits, lunges, squats, calf raises, and the leg press.

Even though your legs are bent, your upper body needs to remain upright and still. So a strong back and core is necessary. Any weight training exercises that target the core or back will be essential. To name a few: pull ups, bench press, push ups, crunches, rows, cable pulleys, and planks.

Footwork: Any fencer will tell you how important footwork is. When I was in high school, my coaches had us do a minimum of 1 hour per day of footwork. Most people are so fascinated by the weapons and think that being able to hit with it is all that's necessary. But a fencer can win bouts with footwork alone. Being able to move and control the tempo of the match is physically and mentally demanding. Since most of my classes are an hour to an hour & a half, I usually have the kids do a half hour of footwork. But if on a particular day it's not up to par, the entire class time could be devoted to footwork. And it's not just Advance and Retreat. We do singles of those, doubles, triples; change the speed to be slow or fast; change the lengths to be long or short; add some jump backs, flunges, fleches, lunges, and combos of any/all the above.

Now this doesn't just apply to fencers, anyone looking for an all over body strength or conditioning workout can follow these ideas. You can also read about Olympic Fencer Tim Morehouse's training here. If you want to try fencing, or get more info, go to www.usfencing.org. Or you can just Google it.

Beat Belly Bloat

If there's one part of the body that most people want to change, it's their bellies. Women strive for a flat tummy while men hope to sculpt a six pack. There are so many diet products on the market that claim they will zap belly fat, but nothing beats old fashioned diet and exercise.

Now, you can exercise for hours every day, but coupled with poor nutrition it won't give you what you want. Repeat after me: You can't out-exercise a bad diet! Now when I say diet I don't mean a temporary fix or crash course to weight loss. I mean your dietary intake based on physical needs (and sometimes wants). Our bodies need a balance of carbs, fats, and protein. Based on your height, weight, age, sex, (and medical history) you can determine the amounts of these that your individual body needs. There are plenty of calculators on the internet that can give you an idea, but if you are serious about it, you may want to see a dietitian and/or nutritionist, especially if your case is the need for extreme weight loss (i.e. obesity).

Here's some tips and workouts I follow:

1) Water - drink lots of it! Aim for a gallon per day.

2) Tea - any flavor you like, but don't add milk, sugar, or any other stuff. Drink it pure.

3) Fruit - depending on the type you choose will help curve sweet cravings, provide fiber, and hydrate your body (apples, grapefruit, grapes, pears).

4) Russian Twists - Grab a medicine ball or dumbbell, heaviest you can hold without sacrificing form and bend your legs off the ground, so your body is a V shape. Twist from side to side, do 10-15 reps per set.

5) Leg Lifts - Lay on your back, entire body straight, hands under your butt. Slowly lift your legs up a few inches off the ground hold for 10-15 seconds then lower without touching the floor! Do 5 sets of 10. You can also work your legs a little extra by lifting them up and spreading and bringing back together before lowering.

6) Starfish Abs - Lay on the ground with your arms and legs out, making the shape of a star. Using your core bring your arms and legs together so you curl into a ball, then release back into the star shape. Do 5 sets of 10.

7) Spider Kicks - Get on your hands and knees, keep your back flat, start by lifting your (still bent) right leg out to the side, bring it in tight then straight out back. The leg should be in a sideways position the entire time. Do 10, then switch legs.

8) Ab Frogs - Similar to the Russian twist starting position, make a V shape with your body and have your legs off the ground. Wrap your arms around your legs then release while stretching legs and arms out away from you, then grab again. Do 5 sets of 10.

 **Try to limit your salt/sodium intake, avoid processed foods that are full of gunk our bodies don't want or need, and when possible aim for all natural or organic products**

Arms to Embrace

Ladies, don't think for a second that strong or sculpted arms is manly or only for men! Think of Halle Berry, Michelle Obama, Madonna, or Jennifer Aniston for some armspiration. They've got beautifully toned arms, and you can too. I get some remarks about my own arms being too big, but they're strong, so I don't care what people say about them. I'd rather they be big with muscle than fatty.

Here are just a few of my favorite arm workouts:

Bicep Curls

Tricep Pulldowns

Tricep Dips

Alternating Arm Press

Leaning Lateral Arm Raise

Push Ups

Arm Circles

Pull Ups

Any of these can be modified to do with or without weights. When using weights, use the heaviest you can lift without sacrificing form! Now get working!

All About Those Legs

Everyone knows it's important to work your legs, but some people skip them (*cough*big bulky upper body men*cough*). Why would you ignore something that you rely so much on?? Where would you be without your legs to stand on??

Don't be that guy (or girl). It's also important for your joints (mainly knees) to have strong legs. Take the pressure off your bones and build the muscle around them! While this applies to every part of your body, we rely on our legs to sit, stand, walk, run, etc. So treat them well!









Don't forget to warm up and stretch before any strength training. And be sure to include exercises that work your hips and glutes too, since they are all connected and rely on each other to function at optimal performance.

Now here's a dozen workout ideas to get those legs going:

1) Leg Press

2) Squat

3) Squat variations (Sumo, elevated, jump)

4) Lunges/Reverse Lunges/Side Lunges

5) Leg Curl/Leg Extension

6)  Front/Side Leg Lifts

7) Bottom Leg Lifts

8) Fire Hydrants

9) Donkey Kicks

10) Wall Sits

11) Planks

12) Hip Adduction/Hip Abduction

Now embrace the power of strong, sexy legs! Comment with your favorite leg workout!