Dangers of Acetaminophen

Acetaminophen (aka Tylenol) is widely considered a very “safe” drug.  I never really considered a risk of overdosing on Tylenol, short of downing a whole bottle, until a client shared her story with me.  I’m a big believer in moderation so I usually shy away from panic-invoking stories about the dangers of one particular substance whether it is Nutra-Sweet or Jack Daniels!  But one thing that I think is commonly overlooked/taken for granted is the danger of mixing and matching medications and overdosing over the long term.  This article is a little on the panic-invoking side, so take from it what you will, I just found it interesting.

FDA panel votes to eliminate Vicodin, Percocet
Government experts called for sweeping safety restrictions Tuesday on the most widely used painkiller, including reducing the maximum dose of Tylenol and eliminating prescription drugs such as Vicodin and Percocet.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31664450/from/ET/

Spring has sprung!

As the weather starts to break, the only cure for cabin fever is to get outside in the beautiful sunshine.  It’s admittedly difficult to be holed up in a gym when it’s 70 degrees and sunny outside.   Here are some exercises you can do outside without equipment or a monthly fee!

Trainers: the good, the bad, the ugly…

Personal trainers can be a great asset to a fitness program, but be sure to check out the person you are about to hire.  Don’t assume, just because the individual calls themself a “Personal Trainer”, that this person has the expertise appropriate to help you reach your goals.  There are no formal standards currently in place for personal trainers.  This is seriously damaging to the credibility of personal trainers.  There are governing bodies working together to create standards and licensing requirements for personal trainers, but until then be sure to check out your trainers credentials before forking over $100/hour.  Don’t get me wrong,  there are certainly trainers out there worth $100/hour.  There are also very respected organizations that provide certifications requiring extended periods of study, college degrees, and formal exams.  We hold our trainers to very high standards and require these certifications.  Unfortunately, many health clubs can’t be concerned with such details.  Click here to read a fun article about some bad experiences and when you’re finished visit the links page of our website to learn more about the reputable certifications you should look for in a trainer.

January Workout Plan – Week 3

Welcome to Week 3 of January’s workout quest! I hope that you are enjoying the workouts and results thus far. This next workout is the most difficult to date, but if you’ve been consistent, it should not be a problem for you. The good news is that it will be the hardest routine for the month.

This week’s workout includes four full body workouts that are followed with aerobic exercise. Two more days will include core and cardiovascular intervals. This will leave you with an essential day of rest!

Strength Program – Full Body (Day 1,3,5,7)

Cardiovascular Program (Day 1,3,5,7)

Push Up with alternating Hip Flexion
Position A	Position B	Position C

Cardiovascular/Core Interval Program (Day 2,4)

Reverse Lunge with Core Twist
Position A	Position B

For Weeks Three and Four, I would suggest that you follow the same nutritional plan with about 1200-1600 calories taken in each day. This depends, of course, on your gender, weight, and activity level. However, of those calories, about 40% should come from carbohydrates, 40% should come from protein, and 20% from fat. You should still spread out your meals, eating between 4-6 meals per day, every 3-4 hours.

January Workout Plan – Week 2

Hopefully you have successfully completed the first week of your January workouts. In week 2 we will be doing 2 upper body workouts, 2 lower body and core workouts, and 1 interval cardiovascular workout.

This week I would like you to focus on your heart rate (HR) during your cardiovascular training sessions on all 5 days. I’d like you to try to keep your heart rate at about 65%-70% of your maximum heart rate. Your maximum heart rate = 220 – age. To find your appropriate HR range, multiply this number by 0.65 and 0.70. For example, if you are 40 years old, you subtract 40 from 220 (220 – 40 = 180). Then you multiply 180 by 0.65 (180 * 0.65 = 117) and by 0.70 (180 * 0.70 = 126). Therefore, a 40 year old person should try to keep their heart rate between 117 beats and 126 beats per minute. Most cardio machines have HR monitors attached, so just hold on to the monitor and check to see where your HR is.

Cardiovascular machines usually have two zones written somewhere on their exterior. They are usually called “Fat Burning Zones” or “Weight Loss Zones” and “Cardio Zones.” The difference is that when you keep your HR in the “Fat Burning Zone” or “Weight Loss Zone” you are, theoretically, burning primarily fat calories (assuming many things, too many to get into right now). If you keep your heart-rate in the “Cardio Zone” then you are primarily working your heart, as a “muscle.” In other words, your are working on your aerobic capacity, while also burning as many calories as possible. The calories being burned are not specifically fat calories, but also calories from other macro-nutrients (carbohydrates and proteins). Which zone should you keep your heart-rate in? That all depends on your specific goals, the important thing is that you’re burning calories!

Strength Program – Lower Body Day

Strength Program – Upper Body Day

Cardiovascular Program

January Workout Plan – Week One

We all have a little extra padding after the holiday season so we have put together a workout plan to help you drop that extra weight.  The sooner you get it off, the easier it will be!

You should be able to lose 5-10 pounds in January, depending on your starting point, if you follow the plan I’ve laid out. We all find excuses to avoid exercise; “It’s too late.”, “I’m too tired.”  Let the enthusiasm of your resolution carry you through these excuses.  Once you get into a routine, the excuses will fade out.

For this first week, you shouldn’t have to be in the gym for more than one hour. You will be doing full body resistance training three days per week and doing some aerobic exercise after those workouts. You’ll also be doing some extra aerobic exercise on two separate days.  The following table is a sample workout prescription for this week:

When you are using machines for some of these exercises, please make sure to read the directions (which should be located on every machine) so that you can set yourself up correctly to perform the exercise.  Please remember to stretch the muscles you are working in between each set!

Exercise is only a small part of a sound weight-loss program.  The most effective weight-loss plans also include a solid nutritional aspect. Guidelines for this widely vary based on your goals, current condition, and many other factors.  A general guideline for Week One will include a nutritional plan with about 1200-1600 calories taken in each day. Of these calories, about 45% should come from carbohydrates, 35% should come from protein, and 20% from fat. You should spread out your meals, eating 4-6 small meals per day, about every 3-4 hours.

Good luck and check back next week for the next workout.

Ahhh, the Elusive Resolution…

We all tend to be very aggressive with our New Year’s Resolutions, setting ourselves up for failure.  This year follow a couple easy steps to assure a great start to 2009!

—Focus on small, attainable, and realistic goals -  If you want to get back to the gym, try 2 times a week for the first month.  If you want to lose weight, start by cutting down (not out) on one of your bad habits. Once you prove that you can make the small changes, you can progress your goals to the next level.

—Hold yourself accountable – Write your goals down in a journal along with your strategy to reach those goals.  If you’re not accountable enough to yourself, tell a friend, spouse, sibling about your goals.

—Stop punishing yourself – So you had a cookie, perhaps you skipped the gym, immediately plan your retribution before you can feel sorry for yourself.  All is not lost unless you allow it be.

—Congratulate yourself often! – Too often, we focus on what we haven’t done and not the positive changes we have made.  Set your goals weekly and set your rewards just as often.  Try to stay away from edible rewards, though.  Instead of a steak dinner, treat yourself to new shoes!

Good luck and Best Wishes for a healthy, happy and successful 2009!

Dumbbell Pectoral Flies

This exercise isolates the chest muscles.  It is an advanced exercise and can be modified to be performed on a machine.

Position A	Position B

1. Begin in Position ‘A.’ Lie down with your back flat on a bench. Start with the dumbbells in a position directly over the center of your chest, palms facing one another. Maintain a very slight bend in the elbows in this position.

2. Lower your arms into Position ‘B.’ Maintaining a fixed bend in the elbows, lower the dumbbells at about a 90 degree angle from the center of your body to a point where your hands are just above your chest. Make sure that the only joints that are moving are your shoulders, and not your elbows.

3. Bring the dumbbells back into Position ‘A.’ Again, maintaining the fixed bend in the elbows and using only the shoulders to move the weight, raise the dumbbells back above the center of your chest with the palms facing one another.

4. Repeat steps (1)-(3) for 3 sets of about 12-16 repetitions.

Getting through the Holidays

This is most definitely the hardest time of year to stick to your diet and exercise routine.  I’m sure that partly explains why January is the best time to start your new diet and exercise routine!  Here are some tips I use and share with my clients on how to get through the holiday parties without the extra 10 pounds.

Make a Plan

If you know you’re going to be somewhere with less favorable food options, plan ahead.  This means no cheating during the rest of the week leading up to the party.  On the day of, be sure to make healthy food choices before the event to “save up.”

Don’t Pick

I am not a fan of depriving oneself of any food that you like.  You can have that cookie, just don’t have three!  The best way to do this is to not eat anything that isn’t on your plate.  This will eliminate mindless nibbling on chips and cookies.  Feel free to load up your plate, but only take a 1/2 serving of anything you want, knowing that you can go back if you REALLY want more.  You’ll make better, less glutinous decisions after you’ve tasted everything and you’re a little less  hungry.  Lastly, make an effort to not congregate next to the food.  It’s much easier to keep those brownies out of your mouth if you’re not staring at them the whole night!

Exercise

Life gets busy during this time of year, but remember that even a little exercise is better than none.  Plan to get up a little earlier the next day to go for a walk.  It might be tough, but you’ll feel much better for it.

Too often, people get discouraged with their diet relapses and give up.  You’ll be much better off in January, if you’ve maintained at lease some of your exercise and diet regimen.

Why We Do What We Do

At the risk of sounding morbid, recently I’ve been faced with the failing health of more than one family member.  From cancer to pneumonia and old age, these situations bring perspective to a lot of things, in particular, what we do as fitness professionals.  As a personal trainer I am most commonly presented with the challenge to help a client lose weight or tone up.  Being surrounded by it, I am also driven by similar goals.  I’ll admit, in my case, as with most, these are vanity driven goals.  In light of the recent circumstances, I now find myself most grateful for my health rather than my dress size.  My quality of life is better because of my healthy lifestyle choices.  I am gratified everytime I go for a “city hike” or play pick-up hockey.   Sure it feels great to fit into those skinny-jeans, but it’s even better to play tireless games of tag with my nieces.  I do believe I’m not alone.  I can only speak for the clients I work with but, although their goals at first may not reflect it, I find that many are pleasantly surprised by the improved quality of life that results from their healthier lifestyle.

The moral of the story is, the next time you get on the scale and you feel a little frustrated, consider how you feel.  If you’ve been exercising and watching what you eat, ask yourself, “Do I feel better?”; “Do I have more energy?”; “Am I sleeping better?”; “Am I able to participate in activities that I couldn’t before?” Let those answers be your motivation for your next workout!