What Are You Eating? Diet Is Important!

I was doing a podcast interview about my life as a fitness instructor and trainer and the host asked me “Is it true that you can’t out-exercise a bad diet.”  I 100% support this statement. Changing your diet will always yield much more drastic results than changing your workout plan. This is not to discredit exercising, please don’t think I don’t want you to exercise. I simply want you to be more aware of what you put in your mouth.

Diet & Exercise:

Looking for change in your body? You will see more success on good diet paired with 3 hours of light exercise a week, than on a bad diet paired with 7 hours of intense exercise a week. Really. That’s the truth.

It seems simple. Just remember “A moment on your lips, forever on your hips.” Is that candy bar worth it?

You know what else is silly? The ridiculous belief that someone can get abs by doing endless sit ups, or a “thigh gap” (ugh) by spending hours on the inner thigh machine. Guess what? You can’t spot reduce! Seriously, you can’t, so stop! Yes, magazines post plans that are titled “Get a flat stomach with these core exercises!” or “Blast Back Fat!” they are misleading you and not giving you the full picture. They are doing it to boost sales. If you want a flat stomach or a fat-less back, you need to lose fat and gain muscle. Doing those “spot treatment” muscle exercises will certainly help you build some shapely lean muscle mass, but that’s only half the equation. The next part is losing the layer of fat over your shapely muscle. And unlike muscle, you cannot spot reduce fat. Sorry, it just doesnt’ work like that.  It requires lowering your overall body fat percentage… everywhere.

As far as reducing your overall body fat percentage,

Get your diet under control. This is simultaneously the easiest & most difficult way to cut down on body fat. And getting your diet under control does not necessarily mean eat less, it means eat right. Proper nutrition is hard, even for the most experienced athletes and nutritionists, because it requires consistency. Frankly, eating healthy all day, every day, is more effort than banging out a one-hour workout & being done with it. A good place to start is cutting processed foods out of your diet. And soda. Screw soda.

Get an accountability buddy and find something you like, be consistent, and most of all, be patient. The body is capable of amazing transformations, but it will always take time, and consistency.

• A rockin’ bod is made by a combination of building muscle and reducing fat, you cannot ignore one or the other.

Cut Calories Fast With These Simple Tips

Blue Monday is upon us. Are you thinking “What the heck is blue Monday?” I never heard of that phrase either. Basically January 19th, is statistically the most depressing day of the year. This is because most people realize the holiday season is over and it’s only January. UGH! Warm weather isn’t coming for months and months. Yep, that is depressing. I agree.

This is the time of year alot of people gain weight.  Today, I want to share some tips for avoiding the wintertime weight gain.

• Drink water or zero-calorie beverages. Ditch soda and sugary “sports drinks.” Most bottles are 16 ounces, and if you drink five bottles per day, that adds up to 100 calories!

• Cut the cheese from your sandwich. If you do this you can cut 100 calories fast.

• The bread basket at your fav restaurant is another place to cut calories fast. Stop at just one piece of bread or one dinner roll to help keep calories under control.

• Watch Out for Toppings, Dressings, and Dips. Salads can be full of hidden calories. Measure salad dressing (stay under two tablespoons) to cut calories. Or dip your fork into the dressing before each bite of salad (that’s what I do). And leave off the croutons! As for dips, try hummus instead of sour cream or cheesy options to top veggies.

• Schedule every workout

Are Pedometers Smart?

Recently, I was fitness clothing shopping. I know what you are thinking, Jessica you need another piece of workout clothing like you need a hole in the head. Well, that is true. During my shopping excursion I noticed the crazy amount of “smart pedometers” available for sale. Like the Jawbone Up, Nike FuelBand, and Fitbit Flex. They even have ones you can buy for your pooch. Do these actually work? Does it provide enough motivation to push you to be active?

I admit, I’ve gotten into wearing a gadget to track my fitness but me wearing it is just not fair. I’m a fitness instructor. I am active for a living. My question, does it work for non fitness pros? I’m a little bit skeptical.

Are smart pedometers worth it? The answer seems to depend on what type of person you are, what level of fitness you’re at, and what type of workouts you’re looking to do.

Only a few and very expensive, smart pedometers are capable of distinguishing between regular movement and “active” movement, and even then, they’re unable to track your heart rate, which is a true indicator of your intensity.  I noticed that most of these “smart” devices only tracked your “aerobic steps” when you let the device know you were about to workout. I ran into this trouble too. I could never remember to notify the damn thing before I started. Also, how can it tell the difference between a light jog and an intense workout? The answer: it can’t.

So basically, smart pedometers are best for people who are motivated by data, numbers, and graphs. If you just need help getting off the couch, taking the stairs instead of the elevator or parking far away from the store, then invest $10 in a regular pedometer.

Sassy Girl Fitness: Get A Hobby

Sassy Girl Fitness: Get A Hobby: Need more meaning in your life? Try taking up a hobby. It can be anything of your choosing but should be an activity you like to do. T...

Get A Hobby

Need more meaning in your life? Try taking up a hobby. It can be anything of your choosing but should be an activity you like to do. The creative forces of energy present in everyone should not be repressed. Having a hobby can help with rage, depression, anxiety, etc.

One reason I took up blogging is to connect with me. I know it sounds corny but hear me out. Writing allows me to get in touch with me as a way to explore. It’s private time that I have with myself. I strive to create time to blog. I try to keep that appointment with me. Blogging also gives me a chance to meet other bloggers who like the same stuff I do. I was so surprised to know how serious some people are about their hobby and have such a vast knowledge about the subject. Instead of forcing friendships with people I don’ t really have anything in common with, I get to meet people with whom I have something in common. I get to learn and create with people who love the same thing I do. Connecting with other bloggers on Twitter gave me a reason to reach out and share with another person.

So my advice to you, invest some time in cultivating a hobby. It is a gift you can give to yourself that shall be an enriching and rewarding experience for the rest of your life.