Today, I wanted to touch on an uncomfortable but critical subject…
When we eat, one of the four things happens…
Read more on Do not read if you are eating!…
The biggest problem we face with weight control is as follows. Ask yourself these two questions.
1. How long does it take to consume 1000 calories?
2. How long does it take to expend 1000 calories?
Well, if you were to workout at a pretty good intensity, it would take you probably between 1.5-2 hours to burn 1000 calories. And how long would it take you to consume 1000 calories? Probably only about 5-10 minutes depending on what you are eating!
So you can see why it’s so easy to gain weight and so difficult to lose it for many people.
One critical physics principle to remember is that if your goal is weight loss, at the end of the day you need to have consumed less calories than you expended.
So it’s all about the balance between calories in and calories out.
But a really super important concept to understand is that even though a calorie is a calorie, there are certain calories if consumed now will cause you to consume more calories later.
So if fat loss is our goal, you need to consume calories that are nutrient-rich, high volume for low calories types of food that fill you up now and suppress your appetite later.
What types of foods do this???? Read more on Portion control tips to maximize fat loss…
As a fitness trainer, I’ve heard every excuse in the book. And although I can empathize with reasons for someone not starting or sticking to an exercise program, most of the time, the excuses don’t hold any water. If it’s important enough to you to look and feel your best and live life to the fullest, you just have to make it happen.
For example, yesterday it was pouring down rain. And for anyone who lives in an area where you have unpredictable weather patterns, you can’t use the weather as an excuse for not exercising or else your workouts will be super inconsistent which leads to poor results. I always say there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad gear. If you’ve invested in some good outdoor workout attire, you can manage any weather and be completely comfortable. And once you get out there, it’s actually not bad.
And then of course, people will use their kids as an excuse for not exercising. “I can’t workout, I’ve got the kids.” Sorry, that doesn’t work. If you’ve got young children, there’s tons of tools to keep you in great shape such as back packs for walking and hiking, bike carriers and seats for cycling, baby joggers for running…Take the kids to the park and let them play while you workout. Or get involved by playing tag, basketball, Frisbee, or soccer with the kids. Or if you’ve got older kids, get them involved. They might ride a bike while you run or head out for a family cycle, hike or walk and make sure everyone gets some exercise. Then of course, there are gyms that provide child-care or maybe swap babysitting with a friend so you can both get your workouts in. You’ve just got to be creative but bottom-line, you’ve got to make it happen.
Here’s a videoclip of Jackson cycling yesterday in the rain. He had an absolute blast. I had him in gloves and a rain jacket so he stayed warm and I had the correct gear on to stay warm too. He was out there for 40 minutes riding in the rain hitting every single mud puddle and having a great time while I ran beside him. It was a quality morning!
And what about the people who say they can’t afford a gym membership or personal trainer. Read more on Really?! Sorry, that’s not gonna cut it!…
