Mt Laurel Personal Trainer March 2010 Success Story
March 13, 2010 by Kevin Hensel
Filed under Blog, Success Story of the Month
Patti Pushing It
“My Jeans Fit Better And I Lost My Muffin Top” says Patti Robinson 37 year old, IT Tech and March 2010 Success Story (She’s going to kill me for using this photo). Patti started Bootcamp with us back in Nov ‘09 because she made a bet with her husband who could get in better shape before the New Year. Well needless to stay Patti totally kicked her husband’s butt. She came to bootcamp religiously 3-4x/week and was definitely on a mission.
Patti lost 4% bodyfat, 2 inches off her waist and 1.5 inches off her thigh. These kinds of results don’t come easy, Patti has gotten super strong and works really hard during Bootcamp. She’s also a previous winner of our Bootcamp Butt-Kickin Client of the Month Award.
“I joined a gym before but I never went. I’ve got great results with your Bootcamp and I LOVE everyone here they are so much fun. I fit into my jeans better and I lost my muffin top,” proclaims Patti. Listen to the secrets of her success by listening to her video testimonial.
Fresh Vegetable Taco, Mount Laurel Personal Trainer
September 3, 2009 by Kevin Hensel
Filed under Healthy Recipes
There is no question that these veggie stuffed tacos are both healthy and delicious. Fresh asparagus, sweet peppers, corn, onion, pinto beans and cilantro create a tasty blend of flavors. To increase your protein intake feel free to throw in strips of lean chicken breast. Serve with sliced avocado and a side of salsa. Servings: 6
Here’s what you need…
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 cups asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 cup sweet peppers, chopped (red, yellow, orange or all three!)
- 3 ears of corn, kernels shaved off
- 1 (15 oz) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 chopped cilantro
- 6 whole wheat tortillas
- 1 avocado, sliced
- Salsa
- Place the olive oil and garlic in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté for about three minutes or until the onions begin to soften.
- Add the asparagus and continue to sauté , stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.
- Add the peppers and continue to sauté , stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.
- Add the corn, beans and cilantro and sauté for 5 more minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. *Note: Make sure you don’t overcook the vegetables. You want them to be tender but not too soft.*
- Remove from heat. Place a scoop of the veggie mixture in each tortilla and top with sliced avocado. Serve with your favorite salsa.
Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 308 calories, 8g fat, 46g carbohydrate, 13g fiber, and 12g protein.
The Freedom of (Self-Imposed Chains) Mount Laurel Personal Trainer Reveals
September 3, 2009 by Kevin Hensel
Filed under Blog, Get Motivated
Nothing could be farther from the truth.
I’ll let you in on a little secret…It’s not hard to get and stay fit. It’s not about hard work and deprivation.
It’s all about boundaries.
Let me explain…
When you were a child your parents set boundaries around you. They were the authority on what was or wasn’t acceptable behavior. You had to complete your chores before dinner. You had to finish your homework before going out to play. You had to eat all your vegetables before dessert.
If you failed to comply with these boundaries then you knew that there would be consequences.
As an adult you, and only you, are the authority on what is or isn’t acceptable behavior. You are in the position to set boundaries around yourself. These boundaries serve as a framework of order around you – a rock of support in an otherwise chaotic world.
With self-imposed boundaries you can assure your success in anything…specifically with weight loss.
Your fitness boundaries have to be self-imposed—no one is going to do it for you. Don’t look at this as a bad thing! Self-imposed boundaries are self-empowering.
Let’s face it, you’ve been living life without fitness boundaries.
- You eat whatever you want, whenever you want it.
- You use any excuse to avoid exercise.
- You indulge whenever it feels good.
Your Fitness Boundaries
It’s time to introduce boundaries back into your life. These boundaries are the key to unleashing your ideal fit and healthy body.
1. Fitness Boundary One: What you eat
If you were to be perfectly honest with me, you could list off the foods that are unhealthy and fattening. So why are you still eating them? You know that refined, fried, processed and sugary foods are not good for you.
Place boundaries around what you will allow yourself to eat. Acceptable food items include whole foods, vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and lean meats.
2. Fitness Boundary Two: How you exercise
I know that you’re not an Olympic athlete, but that doesn’t mean that you can simply pass on exercise. By now you are well aware of the host of benefits that exercise provides. With regular exercise you’ll look great, feel amazing and have more energy than ever.
Place boundaries around how often you must exercise. Choose exercise that is challenging and fun – don’t be afraid to try new activities that improve your strength and endurance.
3. Fitness Boundary Three: When you indulge
Let’s face it, we live in a world where indulging has become the norm, rather than the exception. When you live life without fitness boundaries, everyday is an opportunity to indulge. These indulgences all add up quickly, causing your clothes to become tight and your energy levels to drop.
Place boundaries around when you can indulge. You’ll find that by limiting your indulgences you’ll end up enjoying them even more.
Putting It In Action
Sit down and take a long, hard look at your lifestyle. Are you eating as healthy as you could be? Are you exercising 3-5 times each week? Are you indulging too often? Answer the following questions:
- What 3 food items can I eliminate from my daily diet? (These should be nutritionally void items like high-calories beverages, fast food, packaged snacks, high-fat food, candy or desserts.)
- When can I schedule exercise into my week? (Pick 3-5 days, and select a specific timeframe. Example: I’m going to exercise on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays from 5am-6am.)
- When will I allow myself to indulge? (Don’t go overboard here, especially if you need to lose weight. Enjoy a treat a couple times each month, and do so guilt-free knowing that you’ve maintained healthy food boundaries the rest of the time.
Remember that self-imposed boundaries are self-empowering.
Fitness boundaries put your fitness results on autopilot. If you know what constitutes an acceptable meal, then choosing what to eat just got a whole lot easier. If you’re committed to exercising 3 times a week, soon it becomes second nature.
Need help setting up your fitness boundaries? I am here to help – call or email me now!
Eat Yourself Thin, Mt Laurel Personal Trainer Breaks The Silence
August 25, 2009 by Kevin Hensel
Filed under Blog, Eat Healthy!, Lose the Weight
I wish I was clever enough to have thought up that headline, because it’s so TRUE.
For the past 17 years I’ve been a personal trainer, one of the biggest issues I’ve faced with my clients is eating too little. Excessive caloric restriction will completely sabotage your well intentioned weight loss goals. Telling someone to eat more and lose weight doesn’t go over so well. It’s quite a psychological barrier to overcome.
From a logical standpoint, it makes sense that if you want to lose weight you should restrict your calories, right. Think again. Restricting your calories can be the worst thing you can do to lose weight. When you eat too few calories not only will you not lose weight you will probably gain weight. I know it doesn’t make sense, but let me break it down for you.
Eating too few calories or severely cutting your calories too quickly will bring your metabolism to a screeching hault. When you eat too few calories you send an urgent message to your brain that you are in a starvation mode. As a protective mechanism your body starts slowing down your metabolism for preservation purposes. Your body starts to see every calorie like its the last one it will ever see.
Your body’s ultimate fuel source is fat. You might be thinking great when I cut my calories back, my body will be forced to use fat as it’s primary fuel source because there won’t be anything else to use. Once again, logic can be your worst enemy. Your body doesn’t use logic. When your body triggers the starvation mode due to caloric restriction, it will hold onto your fat cells with a vengence. Your body will start using muscle and other important tissues as a primary fuel source. I know it sounds counter intuitive, but it’s totally true (I have science on my side). Your body will burn fat cells for emergency purposes, only after it’s depleted available muscle will it even think of using fat as a fuel source. Then guess what? Now that you are burning muscle for a fuel source, you are losing valuable lean body mass. Less lean muscle means your metabolism slows down even further. It’s a double whammy.
All the hype created about low intensity cardio burning more fat is total crap (pardon my French). Low intensity cardio less than 65% of your Maximum Heart Rate does use fat as a fuel source, however it is not burning stored fat in your adipose tissue (jiggly bits) it’s using the fat in your blood stream as a fuel source. That’s a huge difference. Fat circulating in your blood stream doesn’t necessarily get turned into fat cells (adipose tissue). Don’t get me started.
So how do you know if you are eating too few calories or you are cutting your calories too quickly. Well I’m glad you asked. To accurately determine your daily caloric intake is a rather complex task. First you need to determine your Basal Metabolic Rate or (Resting Metabolic Rate RMR). It takes some really hi-tech equipment to accurately measure your RMR. Your RMR is the amount of calories your body burns each day just to exist (respiration, circulation, etc). Your age, weight, height, activity levels, job, all effect your RMR. Click here for a kool little RMR Calculator, it’s great for getting a rough guesstimate http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm .
Remember that hi-tech piece of equipment I was talking about before that measures your RMR. It’s called the Korr metabolic Analyzer and it’s totally awesome. I spent an arm and leg for it, but it’s absolutely necessary if you want to lose weight. If you do not know how slow or fast your metabolism is then you have absolutely no idea how many calories you should be taking in, not to mention you will also have baseline data so you can re-evaluate your RMR 1-2 months later to make sure your metabolism is increasing with your workout routine.
All you do is breathe in a tube for about 10 minutes then it does the rest. It computates your RMR based on your oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange (real techie stuff). Once I have your RMR, then I will create you a registered dietitian designed 7 Day Meal Plan and Grocery List. I’ll tell you exactly what, when, and how much to eat (including carbs, fats, protein, vitamins/minerals, and supplements if necessary). Meal plans are based on your likes, dislikes, food preferences, dietary restrictions, and goals. We also give you an online food journal account that ties in with your meal plan so you can track your calories and weight loss.
It only costs $85 for the 60 minute metabolic evaluation and you get everything I just mentioned. Stop shooting in the dark and find our your specific metabolic blueprint so you’re not guessing about your weight loss and metabolism. Call me at 856-751-0033 or visit www.cherryhillbodyiq.com for more info.
So how do you master your metabolism and fire up your fat burning furnace ASAP?
1. You should never eat below 1200-1300 calories (EVER!!)
2. Cut your calories by 300-400 calories for 3-4 weeks. Allow your body and metabolism 4 weeks to stabilize itself before you drop anymore calories
3. Try to burn approximately 300-400 calories/day with endurance/cardiovascular exercise
4. You must strength train 3-4x/week to increase lean muscle mass therefore firing up your metabolism
5. Eat 5-6 small meals every 3-4 hours to stabilize your blood sugar levels
6. You MUST eat breakfast within 30-60 minutes of waking up. The reason you’re not hungry in the morning is because your metabolism is all screwed up. Your blood sugar levels are all over the place and your brain doesn’t know when it’s really hungry anymore. Drink a meal replacment shake if eating in the morning makes your stomach turn.
7. Aim to lose 1-2 lbs per week.
8. If you do all of these things and after 8 weeks you still don’t see any results you might have a slow metabolism (hypothroidism). Here are some other symptoms of Hypothyroidism
•Fatigue
•Weakness
•Weight gain or increased difficulty losing weight
•Coarse, dry hair
•Dry, rough pale skin
•Hair loss
•Cold intolerance (you can’t tolerate cold temperatures like those around you)
•Muscle cramps and frequent muscle aches
•Constipation
•Depression
•Irritability
•Memory loss
•Abnormal menstrual cycles
•Decreased libido
Consult with your doctor. A simple blood test will let them know. They have great drugs to get your metabolism back on track.
Schedule your Metabolic Evaluation for $85. Give me a call if you have any questions or visit www.cherryhillbodyiq.com
Kevin Hensel, President Fit-4-Life, Inc.
856-751-0033
Cherry Hill Personal Training Studio Located Just Minutes from Mt Laurel
