Recently it [...]]]> The NYC metropolitan museum of art has an exhibit on how movies affect our reality. I have not seen it yet, but can only imagine that it has to do with how our realities are shaped by what we see, and in turn how we interpret these realities into our own lives.

Recently it seems, within the past couple of years, many people have chosen to read or watch the news in small doses. For many of them the thinking in favor of limiting news time is based on the idea that too much negativity inhibits positive emotions. Similarly, many people believe positive awareness creates positive emotions. I am embarrassed to admit that in the past, I have disregarded this type of thinking and instead opted for a more unyielding stance that no one can alter my emotions except myself. I think some people today have a similar stance. Unfortunately for us, such a rigid state of mind puts one at a severe disadvantage in our social everyday lives of work and play.

Emotions Are Affected by Environment
I’m glad to say, I’ve since softened my position on this “positive psychology stuff.” And, I might add, it comes at a good time because even though scientists have known for many decades that emotions are affected by our environments, it is now common place thinking to pay attention to how we can alter a healthier state of mind through positive thinking, and brain rewiring. Don’t misunderstand, I’m not referring to the Pollyanna personality where one may get run over by a truck and instantly see the positive points of being flattened by tons of metal. I’m referring mainly to what the scientists are now saying about how we can rewire our brain circuits to alter a multitude of habits that we would like to change. As of lately with books like The BrainThat Changes Itself by Norman Doidge, M.D. and Perception, Memory and Emotion:Frontiers in Neuroscience edited by T. Ono, health professionals, including myself, are taking the brain circuit behavior change theory much more seriously.

In my case, I’ve used it not only on myself successfully, and continue to use it to replace non beneficial behaviors with added new healthful behaviors, but on people that I coach in creating more healthful meaningful lives. In fact, I feel so strongly about the use of it that it has formed the basis of my coaching. I no longer shun the idea of positive psychology as a gimmicky self help approach, but instead believe that the strength of positive thinking, because of it’s scientific proven credibility, is an approach that is going to gain momentum in the world of healthy living and healthy aging for many years to come.

Positive Psychology is Not Just Positive Thinking
Many people think that users of positive psychology simply add positive words to their vocabulary, and eliminate negativity in their environments to invoke behavior change. Perhaps this is why positive psychology advocates have often gotten a bad rap. Positive psychology like many concepts is part of a much broader manner of being. It may start out as simply changing thoughts from the negative to the positive, such as replacing the words,” I cannot pass up a donut at the office because everyone is eating them” to, ” I can pass up this donut at the office because I have the capacity to say no.” In actuality, the use of positive psychology is constantly evolving as the person is able to handle more difficult challenges. Such is the case with one of my clients who has made huge strides in weight loss. He is at a standstill. He is intuitive enough to know what is getting in his way of continuing to lose weight, but isn’t taking the leap to the next level. A positive approach to this as a health coach is to be patient and stay with him as he figures it out. Everyone learns differently and at different paces. The best approach is not to offer advice such as what a spouse or family member might try to offer, but to offer an ear and inspiration. Too often we may think we are helping by offering advice, but positive psychology is not about telling the person what to do. He knows what to do. In situations, such as with my current client who is at a weight loss stand still, letting him figure it out in a positive approach environment is central to continued progress. Positive approaches might include filling the gaps of information that he may not be aware of, but more often include approaches that get his brain thinking on another level that includes more right brained creative thinking and less analytical left brain thinking. For example, as will be the case with my current client, helping him connect with people that are similar in age and whom have succeeded in similar circumstances may be all he needs to move on to the next weight loss level. Inspiration within a positive and non judgemental context is often all that is necessary to help people continue to thrive with their healthy lifestyle efforts!

One Additional Note
The very nature of rewiring our brain circuits is not a quick fix plan. I like that it is a more sophisticated, long lasting, and intelligent way of changing ourselves, our habits, and our brain structures. I believe, that in the next five years, the idea of rewiring our neuropathways through progressive behavior changes to better our lives, is going to stand apart from all of the quick fix diet, lifestyle, and exercise gurus that we’ve been inundated with in the last twenty five years. The editors of USA Today wrote that 2008, is the “Year of Living Smart.” Can we envision that living smart in 2010 will include this more savvy positive approach to healthy living and healthy aging.

Two years into this new beginning, the signs of a smarter health conscious group of people in our local Ponte Vedra and St. Augustine communities are evident. Smarter thinking is creating a more sophisticated mindset [...]]]> Two years ago today, the readers of Bodysmart News and I began a conversation about how our lifestyles can become smarter.

Two years into this new beginning, the signs of a smarter health conscious group of people in our local Ponte Vedra and St. Augustine communities are evident. Smarter thinking is creating a more sophisticated mindset of what it means to be truly healthy.

People Are Questioning
Eating healthy, exercising consistently, and living life in the present moment, is beginning to take off in our local communities. People are questioning the effectiveness of quick fix dieting practices, outdated modes of exercise adherence, and wavering self help practices aimed at seeing life as joyful and satisfying.

Awareness, it seems, is all around us. “I’m tired of eating these so called healthy meals found in supermarkets and restaurants. They are overly processed and loaded with sodium”, says one client in St. Augustine whose trying to live a healthier cleaner life. “And exercise”, one Serenata Beach Club member remarks, “is getting to be too much of the same old thing.” “Stepping out of the box of the same old routine is a good sign that people are aware”, one fit looking member comments, “that there is a need to progress physically and mentally in different directions.”

A Local Physician Notes
And, a physician here in town, reminds me that, “the need is there to work from the inside out with people by inspiring a more enjoyable process for living healthier. Health coaches are miles ahead of the game.” And, he states, ”those coaches that are armed with a background in kinesiology, physical therapy or personal training, are going to be the leaders in the next decade when it comes to infusing a sensibility into people that is effective in treating lifestyle induced diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, chronic pain, and premature heart disease.”

Two years into this conversation with Bodysmart readers, this new found perspective on health continues to take shape. Readers have progressed from asking, “What is the quickest way to lose weight?” to “What exercises should I be doing to be healthy?” “Is cardiovascular exercise better than weight training, and should I be doing both?” “I am exhausted after work, is it a good idea to exercise when I am so tired, as I have high blood pressure?” Questions such as these are inspiring to hear as they indicate a smart trend in thinking. A trend that recognizes that life is about feeling good about ourselves, our health, and what we can obtain that brings us a satisfying life.

Being Lean Makes Us Feel Good
However, as a trainer, I don’t want people to feel I am downplaying one’s desires to lose weight and look better. We all want this. Being lean makes us more feel alive, more in tune with life, more vibrant, and more satisfied with our physical appearances.

The reason I am so excited about this new trend in thinking is that positive psychology tells us that when it comes to weight loss, focusing on weight is futile, but focusing on behavior change is central to shedding weight for a lifetime. “With an emphasis on the power of mindfulness and positive lifestyle strategy planning we can actually begin to see people change their lives. In most cases body composition changes and people lose weight, feel better and become more satisfied with the way they are focusing their energies,” says health coach Sandy Moore of Boulder Colorado. “Health, Moore says,” is viewed more as changing behaviors vs changing body fat content.”

Changing Behaviors is Essential
In my 10 years as a personal trainer and health coach, I can attest to the fact that those that lose the most weight and keep it off, are the ones that have learned to change behaviors. In my practice people are aware of behaviors they do not want to change and they let me know. This is an important point, because we can’t change what we don’t want to change. And that’s OK. The important aspect is to get started on behaviors you feel ready to change. One should have no feelings of guilt. This is the old way of thinking. Just change what you want to change now, and keep it simple. You will progress. You will feel better. You will see results. There’s no hurry, but you must go into these changes with a positive spirit by making them manageable and meaningful.

Without a doubt this new focus on behavior strategies accomplishes the ultimate goal, which for most is losing weight. But many people still are not aware of how health coaches assist their clients. Everyone knows what a personal trainer does, but not everyone knows what a health coach does.

What is Health Coaching?
Health coaching can be described as a newly emerging profession that focuses on developing a partnership with individuals who are interested in improving their health status in order to enjoy a more vital and vigorous lifestyle. It has its roots in the findings of behavior scientists who have shown that one-to-one coaching is among the most effective approaches to helping people make and sustain improvements in their lives. A coach enables change by focusing on the client’s stated needs, values, vision, and personal goals in order to bring about his or her physical and mental best.

Weekly strategy planning with the client in a conversational setting is a large part of what a health coach does. At first glance, it often appears that “little work” is taking place. After all, most of us are conditioned to what we see on TV, for example, with the Biggest Loser television show, and how they have their clients exercise physically hard. It seems we are conditioned to think that the more physical exercise we do the, the more weight we will lose. This is rarely the case, and people are beginning to understand this fact. Don’t misunderstand me though, as health coaching involves quite a bit of strategy planning in exercise adherence. But for those that are most successful, balancing exercise with healthy eating changes is an absolute must in any successful weight loss plan.

Weight Loss is Best Accomplished in Collaboration With Others
For me personally, most of my clientele have a weight loss goal. “OK,” I’ll say, “you want to lose weight? Let’s set a three month weight loss goal. Now, forget about it!” Many look at me with questioning amazement. But only briefly. To tell you the truth, many are relieved. And that is exactly how I want them to feel. Think of all the times you were caught up in negativism while trying to diet. Wasn’t it a constant struggle of feeling good about yourself then bad about yourself? Now ask yourself if this is really the way you want to diet. Like so many things, learning new skills is best addressed with a positive spirit and with a collaborative partner that has an interest in you. Most successful businesses are those whose top people are coached and partnered in a collaborative effort to breed success. This idea, I am happy to report, is taking hold in savvy weight loss communities across the nation. And we fortunately, here in the Ponte Vedra and St. Augustine areas, are a part of that community.

Let’s continue to build a smarter community. Together we can realize a more abundant life. One that is free of obesity, lifestyle induced diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and all diseases that can be attributed to our lifestyles. Besides, looking good, feeling good and performing great is central to our continued good health!

The entire day that saying kept repeating in my head…. exercise helps us enjoy the things we love to [...]]]> The other day I was a guest at a club in town, and in the locker room there was a sign posted that said, ” Exercise helps us enjoy the things we love to do even more!”

The entire day that saying kept repeating in my head…. exercise helps us enjoy the things we love to do even more………………exercise helps us enjoy the things we love to do even more.

I know what the author of this statement was suggesting. He was stating that having a healthy body makes everything we love to do more fun, more enjoyable, less tiring, more meanigful. Most of us are fully aware of how exercise improves the life we choose to live.

Hmmmm…..but do we really know the meaning of this simple statement? Here’s my question: “Does knowing and agreeing with the meaning of a viewpoint equate with doing the action? More clearly, let us ask ourselves if we ever tried to exercise, following all the literature quidelines for exercising smartly, and then just failed miserably after a few weeks?

How could this happen we may ask? We read all the literature. It says to exercise daily. Do cardiovascular exercise such as jogging, walking, and biking for heart health. Strength train for bone and muscle health. Increase flexibility for better ease of movement. Do yoga. Reduce stress. Develop strong relationships. And the list goes on and on.

However, the real question we need to ask ourselves is this: “If we know all this, then why can’t we change?”

It’s not that we can’t change. We can change. Think about this. You are off to a good start knowing so much about healthy living. It’s a start though. That’s all. A beginning point for healthier living. Necessary? Absolutely. The secret, if there is a secret, is in understanding fully that healthy living requires effort. In the beginning the effort will be quite demanding, but as behaviors change, life gets easier. It gets more fun. More invigorating. More interesting. And more satisfying by far.

If I may offer one suggestion it would be to cease looking for the magic bullet. There’s work to be done by us all. And, if by chance you need assistance in putting healthy living into action, you are in luck, as that is what I do. I’d be happy to help. Kim@bodysmartinc.com 904 501 6002

Question: I am 57 years old and have been exercising regularly for the last 9 years. I do cardio classes at [...]]]> A question generated by a previous article, “How You Train Determines How You Look”, is from a reader who exercises regularly, but still has concerns regarding the approach to training and disappointing visible results.

Question: I am 57 years old and have been exercising regularly for the last 9 years. I do cardio classes at the YMCA two times a week, yoga one day a week, and additionally I am in a weight training class two days a week. I eat healthy, feel good, and am at a good weight, although I’d like to lose about 6 pounds. I have a lot of energy too, but with all this exercise, I still don’t look like I work out. My arms are flabby, I have no waist, and my posture is semi-poor. I don’t understand your last letter on recruiting muscle fibers with weight training for a leaner look! Don’t I do that in my weight training classes?

Your concern is understandable and also very typical for many people who exercise regularly. You are putting much energy into working out, but you just cannot get the look you desire.

Here’s What You Need to Know:

What is Cardiovascular Exercise Good For? What is it Not so Good For?
Cardiovascular exercise is great for burning calories and for making the heart strong. However, it does little for shaping the muscles of the upper body or even the legs. It’s true, sometimes you’ll see runners or other people who only do lots of cardiovascular exercise like biking and the elliptical trainer and they have nice looking legs. However, this is rare and seen mainly in those individuals with very little body fat. You’ll notice they look good, even though their muscle mass is minimum. For the other 99% of us, we must use full range of motion weight training techniques to fully sculpt not only the muscles of the legs and gluteus maximus ( rear) but the muscles of the upper body as well, especially the tricep muscles ( back of upper arms). As an additional note, if you are not exercising with good form and through a full range of motion, you are encouraging bad habits and increasing the likelihood of furthering poor posture.

What Can Yoga and Pilates Do For Us?

Yoga, pilates, and well designed stretching routines are great for increasing flexibility, general strength, and core strength. They aid our appearance by helping us move more fluidly as in our younger days. Some people who are very lithe and slender can attain a lean look solely by faithfully implementing these forms of exercise. This advantage lays in their super low body fat percentage visually magnifying what little muscle mass they may have. For those of us who are not so thin and lissome, or want a more fit look, developing muscle through properly tailored weight training routines are critical to achieving a visually appealing body frame.

Fortunately, many of today’s yoga and pilates instructors are well aware of the benefits of specialized weight training for a more desirably aesthetic look. These savvy instructors smartly refer and encourage their clients to engage in uniquely designed weight programs that are not being implemented in their yoga , pilates, or general weight training classes.

How Specialized Weight Training Can Change the Look of Your Body

Weight training is different than cardiovascular training flexibility. Of all the forms of activity, it is weight training that is crucial to shaping our muscles!

Think about this, but don’t get the wrong idea. Body builders sculpt and shape their muscles through the lifting of weights. It is not through hours on the treadmill, hours in the yoga studio, or hours spent on the pilates machine that muscles are densely defined. Now, before your image of the body builder is taken to the extreme form, know that their training is highly rigorous, highly intensive and highly systematic. That’s ok for them, but for those of us that want just a small amount of defined muscle that looks good and gives us that chiseled smooth look, we need not follow their program intensity or duration, but only their highly specialized weight room system for building muscle.

The progressive overload technique as well as various forms of what is called pyramid training done properly and implemented correctly are two of the quickest ways to achieve muscle tone that has been lacking for years. And yes, even in the hard to define areas of our bodies such as back of the arms, abdominals, rear end, hips and shoulders. What you need to know is that regardless of age, you are capable of gaining muscle, gaining strength, and gaining the confidence that you can not only feel better, but look better. For this to occur, specialized weight training is crucial, but the results are remarkable! You can do it! I will help. Bodysmart gives you the flexibilty to train online, on the telephone, or in person. For questions or inquiries on training with kim go to kim@bodysmartinc.com.

As [...]]]> ”The main reason diets fail, and health, fitness, and wellness goals are not achieved, is that our mental discipline weakens in an attempt to lose weight and become fit in a small span of time. Ironically, we consider ourselves weak willed and undisciplined when our dieting and exercise goals fail.” K. Miller

As a Health/Fitness coach and trainer in the St. Augustine, Florida area for over 10 years, I’ve seen many health trends come and go. Until a year or two ago, I received many exercise and health related questions from people seeking to obtain the “single” best approach to health. For example, “What is the best exercise?” “What is the best food?” “What is the best abdominal exercise?” And Etc. To most of us today, even novice exercisers, these questions appear narrow in scope and too basic for real health change to occur.

With the New Year here, this is a good time to summarize health observations. Specifically, I’ve noticed an ever increasing number of people gaining a better sense of what it means to be healthy and fit. They, it appears, are taking a broader and less superficial view than in previous years of what it means to be healthy and well.
There are many health observations that I could write about, but the three featured below were chosen because they represent an awareness that transcends superficial fitness practices and provide a hopefulness that I believe is necessary for real health change to occur.

Observations

1. We Use a Multi Tiered Approach to Health. People are savvy in what they require from a competent trainer. Years ago, a trainer needed only to be competent in putting a client through a vigorous routine without getting him or her injured. Today, this approach is fast disappearing. Trainers today must have an awareness and appreciation for engaging their clients in a more holistic approach to health, wellness, and fitness in order to keep up with the increased needs of their client base.

2. We Understand Exercise Cannot be Used to Mitigate Poor Eating Habits. The new attitude today is, ” I worked out hard today, let’s not mess things up by eating poorly.” People have adapted this new attitude because they are looking at food not merely as calories to be burned through exercise, but nutrition to be gained through proper eating habits.

3. We Realize The Best Exercises Are The Ones We Actually Do. There are certainly best approaches to take as it relates to a well balanced fitness program. It should include various aspects of fitness from cardiovascular fitness, muscular strength and endurance, to flexibility, balance, and body composition. And, they should include the more wellness oriented aspects of health, such as stress reduction, nutritional needs, and relationships with friends and family. However, if we are not ready to tackle the full demands of what it means to be healthy and well, then pick one exercise and do it well.

It’s amazing how focusing on one activity can change the heart and mind of an individual. In my earlier days of training clients, I used this singular approach successfully by putting one through an intense, but manageable workout with the hope that their minds would become open to engaging in other aspects of health and wellness. It’s still a great approach, and can be used as the basis of jump starting any lifestyle change! Try it yourself and drop me an e-mail at kim@bodysmartinc.com letting me know how you are doing.

Because the holiday season, with its [...]]]> Staying active and eating moderately during the holidays is a challenge for most of us. Enjoying family, friends, and fine foods while maintaining fitness goals is best achieved through proper planning. Take these action steps before your holiday outings by getting back to the basics of thoughtful planning.

Because the holiday season, with its emphasis on beautiful caloric rich foods and drinks places us in high risk situations for continuing healthful living, we need to recognize, identify, and practice a new set of skills. But before these skills are practiced, a little perspective helps in accomplishing our holiday goals of fitness and weight maintenance. The key is in not being too hard on ourselves, while asking ourselves to take responsibility and execute a plan.

Perspectives in Feeling Good During The Holidays

Stay Organized and Thoughtful. We tend to think that others are more disciplined in integrating healthy behaviors, but in reality, they are just more organized and thoughtful. Have a plan and tell yourself that you are in training for a new skill. As you improve at organizing yourself and projecting possible barriers, the newly learned skills will come naturally. Keeping healthy and maintaining your weight during the holidays will get easier with each passing festive season.

Stay Focused. It’s easy to rationalize unhealthful behaviors while shopping, cooking and enjoying festivities with friends and family. Recognize this type of thought process as destructive, and replace those thoughts with visualizing the people you admire who have mastered healthy skills. Know that it is within your reach to enjoy the camaraderie of the holiday season while maintaining your health. Take an attitude that others are doing it and so can you!

Stay Honest. Certain events during the holidays will inevitably occur, that you as an individual cannot control. Recognize and identify these events. This is no time to indulge in self-berating behaviors. Conversely, many events will be within your control, and will directly correlate to decisions that empower you to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Visualize how you want to feel after the holiday season has ended. It’s true, gyms are crowded with new members after the 1st of the year and we assume it is because of well thought out New Year’s resolution planning. The truth is, many people go to the gym in January simply because they have under-exercised and over-indulged in food and drink during the holidays. They are feeling out of control. Tell yourself that it does not have to be this way. We can enjoy the holidays, make workouts and or walking/jogging programs a priority, and try various foods that our friends, families and favorite restaurants have to offer in a moderate manner.

Take control this holiday season! And get back to the basics of what an increasingly growing number of savvy people consider the cornerstone of living well – a healthy life!

Action Steps

- Six days prior to the holiday festive season, put in writing your goals of weight maintenance and adhering to an exercise routine throughout the holiday season. Keep in visible area. Read daily to reinforce mentally.

- Four days prior, visualize what your days will look like during the holiday season. Imagine the shopping and time schedule you will have, the food preparation you may do, and what parties you may have, or will be attending. Envision accomplishing written health goals during each activity, and keeping your exercise schedule consistent.

- Three days prior, mentally strategize any barriers that may occur in preventing you from accomplishing your goals.

- Two days prior, write down possible goal barriers, as well as alternative strategies you will implement if barriers arise.

- One day prior, mentally rehearse accomplishing health goals and overcoming all barriers that may arise. See yourself adjusting to new strategies in various holiday settings. Use positive self – talk as a tool to gain self control of negative defeatist attitudes. Go to www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/sports/selftalk.htmlfor an overview of how positive self- talk can enhance your success.

Daily, remind yourself you are practicing skills that may be easy to implement during the year when your routine is dependable, but more challenging during the holidays when activities are more hectic. Remind yourself to slow down, and think about health priorities, while rewarding yourself for making good choices.
Daily, take solace in the fact that implementation of good healthful habits becomes easier through the holiday seasons, and changing old neurological pathways now, positions you for a more vital and vigorous quality of life as you progress through the years.

Contact kim@bodysmartinc.com or by calling 904 501 6002

Emphasis [...]]]> High intensity interval training, also called HITT, is a specific type of interval training that in the past was practiced mainly by athletes at the highest level of sports. Today, it is implemented commonly by athletes and non athletes alike who desire obtaining the most, lean, athletic, and sinewy physiques that are “possible for them.”

Emphasis on, “possible for them”, is placed because it’s important to understand that we have innate body shapes that make becoming lean more easy, or more difficult,depending on genetic factors. There are three body types:
Ectomorph
Body types are naturally lean and thin skinned. They will see quicker looking body fat results than the two other body types, mesomorphs and endomorphs.

Mesomorph
Body types are characterized by dense musculature. They will see results less quickly than ectomorphs, but have greatest lean muscle looking potential.

Endomorph
Body types are characterized by softness and fatty areas throughout body. These individuals respond to high intensity interval training less quickly than ectomorphs and mesomorphs, but results of fat loss percentages are more pronounced than the former two groups.

The Truth of the Matter
Think you are an Endomorph? Think again! Go back to your childhood, and recall what body type you were at age 10. This is what you are today, even if you feel a little soft.

EPOC to Super Charge Metabolism
When you exercise using the high intensity interval system, your body consumes considerably more oxygen. And the more oxygen you expend, the more calories you burn. However this increased oxygen during exercise is not really what fuels what we all desire- a higher metabolic rate, it’s the after-burn, or what is called EPOC, and more descriptively, excess post exercise oxygen consumption that fuels our metabolism. It works like this. The more energy your body uses during training, the higher EPOC. EPOC works in increasing metabolism by telling our body to get back to balance or what is referred to as homeostasis.

Getting back to homeostasis takes energy though, and this energy burns calories for several hours if not days afterward. That’s why hard working athletes who consume thousands of calories still find it difficult to sustain their weights. Their bodies are calorie burning machines even when they are at rest. How would you like to have even a fraction of their speedy metabolisms? You can. Next week we’ll go over specific high intensity interval training techniques to get you started on EPOC. In the meantime, think about this:

1. Training without good nutrition is nothing.
2. Over eating is not good.
3. You can do what you want to do.
4. Now is the time.
5. Control your destiny by managing your health.