Fitness & Wellness

Fitness For Women Over 40

Fitness For Women Over 40

When women reach 40, they also approach perimenopause and menopause that throw hormones into a frenzy of fluctuation, causing weight gain, muscle tissue loss and food cravings. That doesn’t mean that you have to succumb to weight gain or an ever growing muffin top. You can fight back with a healthier lifestyle that will also reduce the effects of menopause by balancing your hormones in the process.

Regular exercise can help prevent osteoporosis, strengthen and maintain muscle tissue and keep you healthier.

Even though it’s harder to maintain muscle tissue the older you get, it’s not impossible. Not only does a program of regular exercise maintain your muscle tissue, it also can help you maintain bone tissue too and prevent osteoporosis. In fact, one study showed weight bearing exercise was more effective than drugs. You’ll also keep your entire body healthier, your skin younger looking and your energy levels high.

Eating healthier not only helps you lose weight, it helps you prevent serious conditions.

Eating healthier doesn’t mean dieting, but you will end up lowering your calories. When you eat healthier, you’ll prevent the sugar highs and lows that can plague everyone and cause further binging on high calorie foods. Eating healthier doesn’t mean you should feel deprived either, but just learn to make smarter choices when it comes to food. Making some small changes in your eating habits can reap big rewards. Not only will you help prevent the accumulation of extra weight, you’ll also be preventing many serious conditions, which include high blood pressure and diabetes. Being prepared with healthy snacks for those times you need an extra boost is also extremely important.

What you drink makes a difference too.

If you’re not drinking plenty of water, you’re cheating yourself of one of the most valuable beauty secrets. Water flushes your system of toxins and waste while aiding in rehydrating it. Alcohol dehydrates you, making you look older than your years. It also adds plenty of extra calories. Choose your beverages as wisely as you choose your foods. Water retention is often a problem at this age and you can prevent that with either plenty of water or the powerful backup, unsweetened green tea.

You’ll improve your circulation when you exercise regularly sending oxygen and nutrient rich blood to all parts of the body, including the skin. You’ll not only have a healthy glow, you’ll also help build connective tissues that keep your face firmer and keep wrinkles at bay.

Getting adequate sleep is often neglected as a fitness ritual, but it’s just as important as eating healthy or exercise.

The development of abdominal fat is one problem after forty. Sometimes it’s caused by stress related hormones, such as cortisol. Exercise burns off these hormones and replaces them with ones that make you feel good.

Some foods actually help flush out excess estrogen, such as crucifers and citrus fruit. This can help you balance your hormones and help you stay fit, while also staying calmer and more collected.


Use Your Apps

Use Your Apps

If you haven’t already started, you can use your apps to help you with weight loss and a healthier lifestyle. While I won’t recommend a specific, primarily because there are a number of good ones, with new ones coming out every day, I will outline how you can use them to make your fitness regime more enjoyable and successful.

Get paid for sticking to your goals?

There are a number of apps out there that help you stick to your goals, but some actually pay you for doing that. One new app I found actually pays you for sticking to healthy eating patterns and workouts. You’re making a bet you’ll stick with the program and they bet you won’t. You set the amount you wish to wager and log in everything. If you win, they pay you the amount, if you don’t they debit your account. This type of app isn’t for everyone, but can make fitness more of a game.

Check the calorie count quickly.

Even though eating healthy combined with regular exercise is the only way to lose weight and keep it off, sometimes it helps to know just how many calories each food contains. There are a number of different apps that will help you find out whether to order the fresh salad with ranch dressing or munch on fresh shrimp with a side of veggies. These apps can be a big help when you’re first starting.

See how many calories you’ve burned with an app.

There are a number of different apps that allow you to input your weight and the activity you’ll be doing to let you know just how many calories you’re burning. Remember, these are just an estimate and don’t let you know all the benefits you’re receiving from a workout, but do give you a sense of accomplishment.

Get your favorite tunes to keep you going. Whether you create your own collection of songs to listen to during a workout or use a premade one, it’s easier to workout to music and a lot more fun.

Some apps allow you to track your food intake and calories burned. You’ll see how you’re doing each day.

Find an app to create meals for you. Some actually allow you to input the foods you love and then design meals that will help you lose weight and get healthier.

Find healthier foods with an app to scan the bar code. This app scans the code and then grades the food based on how healthy it is. If you’re in a hurry, you can use it without reading all the ingredients in the package. Of course, the best foods are whole foods, which often don’t have a bar code.


Nutrition Myths

Nutrition Myths

Nutrition myths aren’t limited to internet stories about eating magical foods for weight loss, some of them start right at the USDA food pyramid. Some nutritionists feel the pyramid is slanted in favor of promoting the agricultural industry rather than serving Americans what’s best for them nutritionally. In most cases, the food pyramid fails to differentiate between good fat and bad fat and lumps many types of carbohydrates together, ignoring the fact that some are healthier than others.

Starve yourself and you’ll lose weight is another myth.

While you will lose weight on an extremely low or no calorie diet, you’ll also do one more thing. You’ll throw yourself into starvation mode. That means the body slows down to conserve calories. You can’t eliminate food entirely, so eventually you’ll eat and any weight you lost will return, sometimes it even brings friends and makes it even harder to lose weight the next try.

Fat is bad.

Some types of fat are bad for your health. However, others are essential to keep your body functioning at its best. In fact, some vitamins require fat to go to your bloodstream. Saturated and trans fats are the culprits that give every fat a bad name. At one time, hydrogenated vegetable oil was considered healthier than other types of fat. Now we know it’s the worse offender. Omega-3 fatty acids can actually improve your overall health.

Calories eaten at night make you fatter.

Seriously, it really doesn’t matter when you overeat, so this is a huge myth. If you eat far more calories than you burn, you’ll gain weight. While raiding the freezer for a pint of Ben and Jerry’s at three in the morning isn’t going to help your weight reduction program, it would have the same effect if you ate it at three in the afternoon.

Another myth is about food cravings. You don’t necessarily crave foods for their nutrients. Sometimes you crave foods because of a sugar addiction or you just want the flavor.

Some diets restrict carbohydrates or cut them out completely. That’s a dangerous myth since fresh fruits and vegetables fall into that category and are ultimately important for your body.

Some myths about meat can leave you unhealthy. Meat is not the only complete protein. Plenty of plants contain all the amino acids your body needs.

All butter is bad for you. Some butter is better than others. Butter made from the milk of grass fed cows actually has additional heart healthy benefits.


Are Late Nights Making You Fat

Are Late Nights Making You Fat

If late nights are second nature to you, they also may be what is making you fat. Lack of sleep is closely linked to weight gain with scientific backing that shows why. Most studies show that between 7 and 8 hours of sleep is optimal for most people. Those getting far less, such as 4 to 6 hours, will eventually show the effect in weight gain. It’s because of how your body works.

When you lack sleep, you need a burst of energy.

One not-so-difficult explanation is that when you’re tired you want an extra boost of energy. That means you want more food, often food with a sugary nature that gives you instant energy. Of course, as with any simple carbohydrate, your body digests it quickly and gives you the burst of energy you looked for when you chose it. Within a few hours, however, that skyrocketing energy level dips to the abyss of exhausted and you need another hit of sugary delight. That starts the vicious cycle that packs on pounds quickly.

It’s all about hormones.

While the sugar leveling is part of the reason, your hormones play an important role too. There are two hormones that are involved with the process of hunger. Ghrelin is one and leptin the other. Ghrelin is the hormone that sounds like many moms. “You can eat some more. Come on, you know you’re hungry.” is the conversation it starts in your head. Leptin is like a personal trainer or good friend. It tells you that you’ve had enough to eat. If you don’t get enough sleep, there’s more ghrelin created and you’ll be starved all the time. Get more sleep and get more leptin to help you not only avoid, but ignore temptation.

You’ll move slower and burn fewer calories when you’re deprived of sleep.

Lack of sleep can cause your metabolism to come to a standstill. Have you ever noticed how you just want to sit and don’t even have the energy to get up and turn the television station or get the remote to do it? That slower metabolism and lack of energy means you’ll be burning fewer calories making weight gain easier and weight-loss almost impossible.

A good night’s sleep has other benefits besides weight loss. You’ll look better the next day and won’t have raccoon eyes that are a dead giveaway you’ve been burning the candle at both ends.

You’ll be healthier when you sleep seven to eight hours a night. Studies show that lack of sleep increases your chances of a serious condition, such as diabetes, stroke, heart disease or high blood pressure.

Lack of sleep can make you mentally slower and less efficient at work. Cutting several hours off your nightly sleep can cut points off your IQ.

You’ll age faster if you don’t get enough sleep. When you lack sleep your body sends out cortisol that can destroy the collagen in the skin and make you look older. It also blocks the creation of HGH that keeps you looking younger.


Give Yourself A Break

Give Yourself A Break

Beating yourself up over eating a few sweet treats or a serving of “forbidden food” is useless. You can give yourself a break when you eat healthy and forgive yourself occasionally or simply include a favorite food in your diet on rare occasion. When you choose to eat healthy, rather than diet, it means that most of the food you eat is not just low in calories but healthy. While you might make adjustments in the way you cook or make substitutions of a fattening food for a lower calorie one, it doesn’t mean you have to give up all the foods you love or miss out on the holiday celebration.

The key is to eat a small portion if you do break away from healthy eating.

While you might love cream horns or other delectable dessert, eating them everyday, or several a day, can make you gain weight and isn’t part of a healthy lifestyle. However, if a coworker brought cream horns as a treat for the holidays, you could have one, or a half of one, saving the rest for a later time. As long as you stick to a healthy diet the rest of the day or week, you won’t see much difference in your weight loss. That doesn’t mean that if you fall back into old habits it doesn’t affect you. It does, and can ruin your weight loss program.

Special occasions don’t happen every day.

A wedding dinner, a holiday celebration or a vacation might be occasions that you find yourself eating more than you should or eating foods you shouldn’t. These special occasions don’t occur every day, which means you aren’t changing eating habits, you’re making an exception for one day. As long as everyday isn’t a holiday in your book, enjoy the time you have with friends and family, making as many adjustments as you can to keep your meal healthy, but not flogging yourself if they all aren’t.

Some experts suggest you do take a day off and splurge a bit.

When you first start a program of eating healthier, you’ll be tempted at every turn for a bag of fries or a quick donut stop. The more you learn about eating healthier and practice it, the more your taste will change, bringing temptation to a halt. By allowing a few splurges, feelings of guilt and self-loathing are at a minimum, which can keep your self image at a high and help you stick to healthy eating habits.

After eating healthy for a length of time, you won’t even be tempted to eat greasy foods. In fact, some people find that quickie burgers taste horrible after they’ve developed healthy eating habits.

For those who still feel like they must do something to offset their nibbling on unhealthy foods, adding a few extra minutes of exercise can burn off extra calories and make them feel less guilty.

If you find you’re eating foods that aren’t healthy too frequently, it’s time to take action and get back to the basics.

Sometimes social pressure causes you to indulge in foods that aren’t part of your program. If you prefer not to tell your host or hostess they’re serving food that isn’t healthy, it’s better to eat a little of it rather than offend them.


Firm your Booty

Firm your Booty

You’ll reap huge benefits from regular exercise. You can firm your body and get a shapelier, more svelte figure. While some people incorrectly believe that all exercise builds bulky muscles, the truth is that it all depends on the intensity and type of exercise. Our personal trainers can design a program to help you achieve your goals, whether they’re just to firm and tone the body or to build large bulky muscles.

We can help you with a diet that will make the journey quicker.

You are what you eat is very true. That doesn’t mean you’ll turn into pastry if you have a few donuts, but you might have a muffin top or donut around your waist. Eating healthy should be a goal of every individual, whether they’re trying to lose weight, gain muscle tissue or are at the perfect weight. A healthy diet can help prevent serious conditions and allow your body to maintain an appropriate, healthier weight. A healthy diet doesn’t mean dieting, but simply making smarter choices when it comes to the food you eat. We can help you learn how to make wiser food choices.

You need a program specifically design for your needs.

No two people are alike, whether you’re discussing goals, fitness or special needs. We know that and design a program for each person based on individual needs, the person’s level of fitness, including identifying weak muscle groups and that person’s goals. We’ll help you strengthen muscle groups that need strengthening and get an overall workout based on your goals. If you have special needs, such as problems with your back, we can adjust the form you’ll use for each exercise to prevent putting more stress on that injury.

You’ll do more than just build a firmer more attractive body.

There are so many studies that focus on the benefit of regular exercise and a vast array of all the good it does for the body and your health. Not only does it improve your appearance, it can also help prevent serious conditions or aid you in controlling them if you already have a problem. High blood pressure, diabetes and osteoporosis all respond to a program of regular exercise.

You’ll see amazing results for your complexion when you workout regularly. Exercise stimulates circulation, which provides needed nutrients and oxygen to every cell in your body, while also sweeping away toxins.

You’ll burn off the harmful hormones created by stress. It helps untie the knot in your stomach and lets you relax again.

You’ll have improved spirits after you exercise. Exercising stimulates the brain to create hormones that make you feel good, such as endorphins and dopamine.

You’ll sleep better at night and awaken refreshed and ready for the day. Not only does regular exercise boost your thinking capacity, it helps you sleep better, which can also give you a clear head, while eliminating circles under your eyes.

Strong is sexy. That’s always been true for men, but now, more than ever, it’s true for women too. Whether it’s for self-defense, keeping up with the kids or just opening that difficult pickle jar, you need to be able to do it yourself. In today’s changing society, many women are on their own, so the stronger you are, the more able you’ll be able to handle those tasks at home from carrying limbs off the lawn to carrying bags of groceries.

You’re never too old to get into shape.

It doesn’t matter what your present level of fitness, your age or your limitations, you can get healthier and stronger with the help of one of our personal trainers. If you have physical limitations, such as weaker needs, the trainer will adjust the program or exercise form that prevent further injury or pain. If you’re older or out of shape, the trainer will first assess your level of fitness and then create a program that you’re capable of accomplishing but will still make you work hard.

You’ll look sexier.

Firm toned muscles are sexy, otherwise “kick-butt” heroines wouldn’t exist, like Xena, Sarah Conner from “The Terminator, ” Daenerys Targaryen from “Game of Thrones” or Liz from “Blacklist.” Every season the list of tough strong women becomes longer, reflecting society’s view on female strength. Frankly, most men find both brains and brawn extremely attractive when found in one woman. Of course, strong men have always been considered sexy, so there’s no reason to elaborate on them.

You’ll have more confidence the stronger you become.

Physical strength doesn’t mean you’ll have big bulky muscles, unless that’s what you want. It does mean you’ll walk taller and feel more confident, eliminating the look of a victim and replacing it with the look of a “don’t mess with me” victor. It can be intimidating if you want it to be and can be beneficial for you in a competitive work force. People judge you first on your appearance and your appearance will say, “I’m confident.”

You’ll lose weight as you tone and firm your body.

Exercise will burn off the harmful hormones created by stress and replace them with ones that make you feel good.

Studies show that just starting a program of regular exercise improves your self-image. You can imagine how it makes you feel when you see the results.

You’ll reduce your risk of serious debilitating conditions, such as diabetes, high blood pressure and osteoporosis, when you exercise on a regular basis.


Strong Is Sexy

Strong Is Sexy

Strong is sexy. That’s always been true for men, but now, more than ever, it’s true for women too. Whether it’s for self-defense, keeping up with the kids or just opening that difficult pickle jar, you need to be able to do it yourself. In today’s changing society, many women are on their own, so the stronger you are, the more able you’ll be able to handle those tasks at home from carrying limbs off the lawn to carrying bags of groceries.

You’re never too old to get into shape.

It doesn’t matter what your present level of fitness, your age or your limitations, you can get healthier and stronger with the help of one of our personal trainers. If you have physical limitations, such as weaker needs, the trainer will adjust the program or exercise form that prevent further injury or pain. If you’re older or out of shape, the trainer will first assess your level of fitness and then create a program that you’re capable of accomplishing but will still make you work hard.

You’ll look sexier.

Firm toned muscles are sexy, otherwise “kick-butt” heroines wouldn’t exist, like Xena, Sarah Conner from “The Terminator, ” Daenerys Targaryen from “Game of Thrones” or Liz from “Blacklist.” Every season the list of tough strong women becomes longer, reflecting society’s view on female strength. Frankly, most men find both brains and brawn extremely attractive when found in one woman. Of course, strong men have always been considered sexy, so there’s no reason to elaborate on them.

You’ll have more confidence the stronger you become.

Physical strength doesn’t mean you’ll have big bulky muscles, unless that’s what you want. It does mean you’ll walk taller and feel more confident, eliminating the look of a victim and replacing it with the look of a “don’t mess with me” victor. It can be intimidating if you want it to be and can be beneficial for you in a competitive work force. People judge you first on your appearance and your appearance will say, “I’m confident.”

You’ll lose weight as you tone and firm your body.

Exercise will burn off the harmful hormones created by stress and replace them with ones that make you feel good.

Studies show that just starting a program of regular exercise improves your self-image. You can imagine how it makes you feel when you see the results.

You’ll reduce your risk of serious debilitating conditions, such as diabetes, high blood pressure and osteoporosis, when you exercise on a regular basis.


Everyone Needs Motivation

Everyone Needs Motivation

Everyone Needs Motivation

Motivation is the key to achieving any goal, but it’s not always easy to achieve that motivation. Successful people always seem to have that little push that puts them to the top of their game and keeps them going toward success. Even successful people have their weaknesses. While a person may be a leader in industry, they may have a sweet tooth or a weakness for fattening foods that shows itself by causing health issues or obesity. Finding the right help to achieve a fitness goal can be as easy as looking for a gym that personalizes training or finding a personal trainer.

Motivation can be learned.

It’s so amazing that once people achieve a goal, they can be empowered with personal motivation that helps them tackle another. Achieving that first goal is the most difficult part, however. Focusing on the outcome and how great you’ll feel when you achieve your goal helps, but the most important help comes from the support of others until you develop the internal motivation to achieve your goals.

Motivation can come from following a path and seeing success.

Sometimes people lack motivation because they haven’t clearly identified their goals. Other times lack of motivation comes from lack of having a clearly defined path toward goal achievement. Creating clearly defined goals and charting a path can help you achieve almost anything and overcome almost any road block. Charting successes along the way boosts your conviction too.

Weight loss and improved fitness is one goal you can tackle and use to build your motivation.

While a lofty goal of becoming a billionaire may entice you, you need to start with something that’s more attainable and that can be fitness. When you work toward becoming stronger, more flexible and fitter you become more confident and improve your belief in yourself. That improves your motivation. Whatever you believe, you can achieve and getting fitter is one important way to help build that and your overall health.

When you lack motivation to achieve any fitness or other goal. Find help. Sometimes working with a professional in the area of your goal or working with a group can pay big dividends.

Having fun can make any goal more attainable and improve your motivation. You’ll not only be motivated by the goal, but by the desire to achieve enjoyment.

When you keep a written record of your goals and achievements, it improves motivation. You can see the results of your hard work and that is motivating.

Belief in yourself and a good attitude helps you become more motivated. A program of regular exercise not only stimulates the brain to create hormones that make you feel good, but also boosts self-confidence.


Do Things You Never Thought You Could Do

Do Things You Never Thought You Could Do

People are now starting to realize they can do things they never thought possible when they get physical and begin to work on their goals. You no longer have to just dream about entering a marathon or power walking to a different city, if those are your goals, you can start working on a plan to achieve those goals. Achieving physical goals, whether they’re as simple as having more energy at the end of the day or shedding a few pounds or as difficult as running a 10K marathon or losing enough weight to shed a few clothing sizes, you can achieve it when you have direction and support.

More and more science is finding how exercise helps health problems.

Aching backs, high blood pressure, diabetes and even osteoporosis can be controlled and helped with proper diet and exercise. That doesn’t mean you can give up doctor’s advice, but it does mean that you’ll put a smile of amazement on your doctor’s face as you improve your level of fitness. You might even be able to lower or eliminate the need for medication.

Exercise helps you achieve more than just physical goals

You’ll be amazed at how much better your life will get when you work toward a physical goal. That doesn’t mean you’ll suddenly win the lottery or become the king or queen of England, but it does mean that as you get stronger and fitter, you’ll notice others showing you more respect and looking at you in a different light. One of the reasons is that regular exercise can improve your mood and self esteem, both of which reflect to others and they respond in kind. Another reason is your outward persona changes, giving you more presence, which garners improved respect.

Combine the physical with the mental and you’ll have a dynamite package.

If you have a mental goal, such as taking courses that will lead to a promotion, learning a new trade or even finishing college, becoming fitter helps. When you exercise you help both your body and your brain. Exercise reduces inflammation, lowers insulin resistance and helps the brain by stimulating growth factors, which in turn stimulate the creation of new blood vessels to feed the brain, while also creating new brain cells and improving their chances of survival. You’ll think better too.

Exercise also is a great stress buster. It burns off the hormones created by stress, which helps clear your mind and makes you think clearer.

When you start a program of regular exercise, you’ll see negative thoughts about achieving goals start to disappear. That’s because exercise causes the body to release hormones that raise your spirits and can wipe out depression. You’ll feel great after working out.

Having support on your path to personal achievement is important, whether it’s from family and friends or a professional staff that can help create the path and chart your progress.

Enjoy the road to your achievement. Lots of times the road to achievement is as rewarding as actually achieving your goal.