Female Fitness Blog

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

 

Louis & Cida white water rafting in Iguacu Falls, Brazil

If you are one of my current or past personal training clients or have purchased my e-book “Build A Better Body,” you now have access to the MAPS Inventory Questionnaire in my Exercise Library.

The MAPS Inventory Questionnaire is designed to help you find a fitness program that meets your physical, psychological, and social needs. Through this questionnaire, you will have the opportunity to see which activities best match your profile. In addition, you will have a chance to review recommendations for activities that may help you develop new skills for living. The recommendations resulting from this questionnaire need to be understood in relation to your current physical condition. Discussing these results with a fitness professional who has information about your health, body composition, aerobic capacity, and other relevant variables will give you optimal results for designing a program that you will enjoy and profit on all levels.

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

Louis & Cida white water rafting in Iguacu Falls, Brazil

If you are one of my current or past personal training clients or have purchased my e-book “Build A Better Body,” you now have access to the MAPS Inventory Questionnaire in my Exercise Library.

The MAPS Inventory Questionnaire is designed to help you find a fitness program that meets your physical, psychological, and social needs. Through this questionnaire, you will have the opportunity to see which activities best match your profile. In addition, you will have a chance to review recommendations for activities that may help you develop new skills for living. The recommendations resulting from this questionnaire need to be understood in relation to your current physical condition. Discussing these results with a fitness professional who has information about your health, body composition, aerobic capacity, and other relevant variables will give you optimal results for designing a program that you will enjoy and profit on all levels.

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

Louis & Cida white water rafting in Iguacu Falls, Brazil

If you are one of my current or past personal training clients or have purchased my e-book “Build A Better Body,” you now have access to the MAPS Inventory Questionnaire in my Exercise Library.

The MAPS Inventory Questionnaire is designed to help you find a fitness program that meets your physical, psychological, and social needs. Through this questionnaire, you will have the opportunity to see which activities best match your profile. In addition, you will have a chance to review recommendations for activities that may help you develop new skills for living. The recommendations resulting from this questionnaire need to be understood in relation to your current physical condition. Discussing these results with a fitness professional who has information about your health, body composition, aerobic capacity, and other relevant variables will give you optimal results for designing a program that you will enjoy and profit on all levels.

read comments (0)

Submitted by Fit and Female Blog

 It was once believed that pregnant women were fragile creatures, who should avoid exerting themselves during those 9 months.  However, now many studies have established that exercise actually helps the body deal with the stresses of pregnancy with benefits for the: aerobic system,  respiratory system and cardiovascular system. 

That said there are some basic guidelines to keep in mind to keep both mama and baby safe while breaking a sweat.  ALWAYS check with your doctor before beginning (or continuing) a workout program, while pregnant to see if you have any special needs or restrictions.

• Workout with the goal of maintaining fitness, rather than training for competition.
• Avoid exercising in hot, humid environments which challenge the body’s ability to cool itself.  Your body temp should stay below 100 degrees.
• Stay well-hydrated, drink (preferably water) until your urine runs light in color
• Have a light snack before to avoid low blood sugar
• Keep energy bars, fruit and juices on hand in case of low blood sugar
• Do longer warm-ups and cool-downs
• Reduce the frequency, intensity and time of your workouts as your pregnancy progresses
• Try to exercise on flat even surfaces, balance and joint laxity is challenged during pregnancy, increasing the risk of ankle sprains
• Wear supportive footwear
• Work at an intensity you would describe as “somewhat hard”.
• Avoid situations which could result in abdominal trauma (roller-blading, kick-boxing, mountain biking, downhill skiing) especially as the pregnancy progresses
• Avoid breath-holding during exercise
• Avoid rapid changes of position between exercise or prolonged standing as these can result in dizziness or fainting from blood pooling in the legs and feet.
• Avoid lying flat on your back after the first trimester, as the weight of the baby can impair blood flow back to your heart and brain, making you feel dizzy, faint or uncomfortable
• Keep your pelvic floor strong by doing Kegels both during your workout and during the day (some experts recommend as may as 50 reps, 10-20 sets every day — Geez, that’s A LOT of Kegeling!!).  For directions on how to Kegel check out this link to The Mayo Clinic

Again, this list is just a guide and women with certain medical conditions and/or a high-risk pregnancy may need additional modifications.  Unfortunately, in some cases women may not be able to exercise at all.   Be sure to talk to your doctor and make sure he/she is okay with what you are planning to do.

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

Water Fitness Classes

I added 2 more water fitness classes to my schedule this week at the Alief YMCA on Wednesday and Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m.  Click here to see a current listing of my classes. 

Come out and have a great workout and have some fun!

read comments (1)

Submitted by Fit and Female Blog

, like many people, saw a news item this week that said that a recent study showed that an “Atkins-type” low-carb diet was shown to be more effective in terms of weight loss and raising HDLs than low-carb or mediterranean diet.  Sounded fishy… so I did some digging. 

Hmmm…surprise, surprise…turns out this study was sponsored by “the Dr. Robert C. and Veronica Atkins Research Foundation” but that the researchers reported “no potential conflict of interest”…oh, Geez, my bad…I thought it might be.

Here’s a few of the other little details that didn’t make it onto the newswire:

• The researchers encouraged the low-carb folks to find VEGETARIAN  sources of protein….last time I checked that wasn’t the classic Atkins diet (e.g cheeseburger no bun).  And last I checked vegetables where carbohydrates. It may be that the researchers were measuring the effect of a hybrid semi-vegetarian diet against the other two.
• The “Atkins” diet had the poorest adherance of the three.
• Both systolic (the top number representing the effort of the heart during contraction) and the diastolic (the bottom number representing the effort of the heart during the filling phase) were reduced the most from the Mediterranean diet.  High blood pressure is a major cause of heart attack and stroke.
• Women actually lost more weight on the Mediterranean diet
• Levels of “high-sensitivity C reactive protein” (aka CPR) were reduced MOST with the Mediterranen diet.  High CRP levels are thought to be related to sudden ruptures in arterial walls and blood clots — both of which can cause a heart attack
• Of those with diabetes, only those on the Mediterranean diet had a significant decrease in fasting blood sugar levels
• The “Atkins” diet participants did have the highest level of ketones in their urine.   I’ll let the folks at  Northwestern University  explain the significance of that:“If your body does not have enough carbohydrates and has too much protein, it enters into a state known as ketosis. Ketosis is the accumulation in the blood of ketones (byproducts of fat oxidation) and represents the body’s adaptation to fasting or starvation. The theory behind low-carbohydrate diets is that inducing a constant state of ketosis cause people to lose weight regardless of how many calories from protein and fat are consumed because it causes the body to eventually burn fat for energy. Ketosis increases insulin resistance and glucose intolerance. Insulin resistance is a major risk factor for the development of coronary artery disease, and glucose intolerance has been linked to hypertension and dyslipidemia. Maintaining a state of ketosis can also result in mild dehydration because the kidneys are burdened by having to rid the body of excess nitrogen. This can cause dizziness, headaches, confusion, nausea, fatigue, sleep problems, and worsening of kidney problems.”

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

Greek-Style Potato Salad

Chunks of tender potato are tossed with scallions, capers, olives, feta cheese and fresh dill, then coated in a yogurt and lemon dressing to create a mouthwatering potato salad with the classic flavors of Greece.

Directions:  Cut the potatoes into bite-size pieces and boil in a large pot of boiling water until just tender. DRAIN the potatoes, then allow to cool while you prepare the other ingredients. IN a small bowl dissolve the sugar in the lemon juice and mix together with the olive oil, yogurt, salt and pepper until well combined. PLACE the cooked potatoes in a large bowl. SCATTER the scallions, capers, olives, feta cheese and dill on top then toss gently to combine. DRIZZLE the yogurt dressing over the top and mix through to evenly coat the potato.

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

Twin Lab Endurance Fuel

Lately I’ve been drinking another orange looking drink during my workouts and water fitness classes besides the Twin Lab Choline Cocktail — the Twin Lab Endurance Fuel.

It helps me to teach water fitness classes in the extreme heat with no shade and have super intense workouts, like sprinting.  It’s way better than the typical sports drinks, such as Gatorade and Powerade.  It has more of the things you really need to energize and recover, especially when you are seriously sweating a lot.

I use it also because I don’t want to burn muscle while doing intense workouts.  You see, at a certain point in time during intense workouts (usually between 40 - 50 minutes), your body no longer burns carbs or fat.  It turns to muscle as the energy source and this is not good because it sabatoges your metabolism and can cause weight gain.  This is the last thing I want to accomplish with my workouts because it’s going backwards.  Therefore, proper fueling is necessary with a reputable endurance drink and eating well with whole foods before and after workouts (this is critically important).  Make sure you eat a healthy meal within 30 - 45 minutes after your workout to recover with complex carbs and lean protein.

I don’t recommend this product for light workouts, such as walking in the park.  Water works just fine.  This is only for super, intense workouts or working out in the extreme heat.

The Twin Lab Endurance Fuel is a serious multi-stage formula that anticipates the body’s needs for pre, during and post-exercise nutrition.  It’s based on 3 stages to give your body maximum performance.

Stage 1 Defense Complex: Fusion of antioxidants combine to protect muscles during exercise.

Stage 2 Endurance Blend: Beta-alanine supports muscular endurance, power and output; a powerhouse carb blend releases energy faster (waxy maize, glucose), sustains it (maltodextrin), and acts as an energy reservoir to help you finish strong (isomaltulose); electrolyte blend aids proper hydration and helps you overcome heat stress.

Stage 3 Recovery Matrix: Time released whey and casein proteins, at a 4:1 carb-to-protein ratio, help prepare muscles for faster recovery even during activity.

Result: sustains optimal performance, enhances endurance and speeds recovery.*

There are no artificial colors - zero fat - clinically tested ingredients.

read comments (0)

You’ve got to admit it, women are definitely more conscious about the way they look than men. They spend hours putting on makeup, trying out clothes and shopping for the latest fashions. That’s why I consider it a shame that the fairer sex is cursed with being genetically endowed with large hips and buttocks and thighs to match – at least the unlucky ones like me. Call it a gift from nature so that childbirth is easy or rue the fact that those jeans just don’t fit the way they should, anyway you look at it, fat deposits around the lower half of your body is just not attractive at all.

Contrary to my strong belief that my thunder thighs were not willing to give up even an inch of flab, I found a fitness trainer who managed to convert me from bottom heavy to buxom, a huge difference in someone my age. So here I am, sharing the secrets to reducing weight around the buttocks and thighs for those women who share my angst:

• The first and foremost thing to do is get active. Or more crudely put, get off your butt if you want to lose it! There’s nothing like being on the go all the time to get your metabolism working and reducing the fat around your thighs and buttocks. The longer you sit, the bigger your behind gets. So find some activity to keep you on your toes all day long, with the only time you rest being the time you hit the sack every night for at least 6 hours of beauty sleep.
    • Get involved in aerobic exercises that work every part of your body. Unfortunately, there’s no single exercise that you can do to spot reduce the fat from the area around your hips and thighs. Getting involved in something as vigorous and active as aerobics makes you work up a sweat and lose those excess pounds.
    • Strength and weight training exercises like abdominal crunches, squats, leg lifts and lunges all help in defining the muscles around your buttocks, stomach and thighs. While these routines do not reduce your weight, they improve the tone of your body and make you look and feel better, which is your ultimate goal anyway. Muscles help do away with that flabby look which is a killer when you’re wearing tight jeans and a cute top to try and catch the attention of the new guy on the block.
     • Eat sensibly, and by that I mean don’t go on a starvation diet that leaves you craving for food and giving in to binges. Never go hungry, instead, fill up with fruits and vegetables that are low on calories and filled with vitamins and nutrients. Limit your intake to a certain number of calories per day so that you don’t undo all the hard work you’ve done with your exercises by eating too much.
    • And last, but not least of all, give yourself time to lose weight. It’s not magic that’s done with the snap of your fingers, so stick to your schedule and diet no matter how long it takes. Some people have a slower metabolism and tend to lose weight more slowly than others, so don’t get disheartened and give up. And even after you’ve lost weight, stay the course so you don’t end up putting it back on!

This article is contributed by Heather Johnson, who regularly writes on Louisiana nursing schools. She invites your questions and writing job opportunities at her personal email address: heatherjohnson2323 at gmail dot com.

read comments (1)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

Rafael Nadal

Last Sunday my workout was not my typical cardio workout.  I actually did a cardio workout for 45 minutes, compared to my usual 20 minutes or less aerobic workouts. 

You see, last Sunday Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer played in the Wimbleton Championship Match that took place for most of the day.  There were a few rain delays, but for the most part it was an extremely long match to watch (but well worth it). 

I started the day early in the morning watching this match around 8:30 a.m. and thought for sure Nadal was going to win everything after the 3rd set, but somehow Federer had the mental power to stay in the game and extend the match.

I left after lunch to go to Lifetime Fitness to do my workout and figured I would see the highlights on ESPN.  While I was doing the strength part of my workout, I couldn’t believe the match was still going on.  Federer was not only still in the match, but had a very good chance of winning it all.  At this point, I really didn’t know who was going to win.  So, I decided to start my cardio workout on the treadmill while watching the tennis match and figured it would end within 20 minutes by the time I finished my workout.

Didn’t happen.  Federer somehow stayed in the match and extended the match beyond belief.  It was incredible to watch for all tennis fans, but it caused me to seriously make my cardio workout much longer than usual.

After my 5 minute warm up, I did a very fast sprint (Incline 4.0 and Speed at 9.0) for 30 seconds and then adjusted the Speed down to 4.0 for a recovery period of 3 minutes.  I followed this cycle for 30 minutes and then finished with a 10 minute cool down. 

When I finished, I was really exhausted.  But the only reason why I exercised on the treadmill for 45 minutes total was to watch the Nadal/Federer Match.  I was hooked and couldn’t stop watching.  In my opinion (and I’m sure by many others), this had to of been the best tennis match in the last 25 years or so.  Very comparable to Jimmy Connors vs. John Mckenroe back in the late 70’s and early 80’s.  Wimbleton matches with Borg were pretty exciting too.

Nadal and Federer displayed the game of tennis at its highest level of competition, fitness and integrity.  Both of these athletes are in incredible shape and played the game with amazing technical skills, power, agility, and endurance.  Also, they played with exceptional emotional control and didn’t let the pressure of the game affect them.  In my opinion, Federer has got to be one of the most level headed athletes who knows how to use his mental skills to achieve success.  Brady from the New England Patriots is my next favorite athlete for mental skills.

As I was telling my good friend Sal at the YMCA today, Nadal and Federer represented the game of tennis well in this match by playing with great sportsmanship, style and class.  Not once did you see any kind of immature or vulgar behavior that are commonly displayed in other professional sports, such as basketball and football.  Yes, the NBA needs to take some serious lessons from tennis to change their image.

I hope you enjoyed the match as much as I did. 

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

Martin Strel Swimming the Amazon

I came across this fascinating post written by Tim Ferriss on his blog (which I highly recommend you check out) about the only man to swim the entire Amazon River. 

Last year on April 8th, Slovenian marathon swimmer Martin Strel became the first man to swim the entire length of the Amazon River from headwaters in Peru to the Brazilian port city of Belém: 3,274 miles. It took him 66 days with a support crew of near twenty people following him in a boat for protection.

Read the article on Ferris’ blog site and especially pay attention to his interview with Matin Strel about his eating habits and mental/physical preparation for this amazing project. 

Read more . . .

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

read comments (0)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

read comments (0)

Submitted by Fit and Female Blog

Years ago there was a book on the shelf in the gym that I worked at called, Your Fat Is NOT Your Fault.

I always found this title fascinating (and amusing) because as a trainer I know how few people are really honest with themselves about the amount of control they have over their own bodies.

I often joked with my clients that I should come out with a book called, Your Fat Is MY Fault. Because in the personal training field, some clients really wanted to pay for their 2-3 sessions a week and then not take ANY personal responsibility for the lifestyle choices they make the other 165 hours per week. And (file this one under the category of “life’s not fair”) the fact is that just doesn’t work!

Here’s a perfect illustration of this… Years ago I briefly trained this woman who I had seen at the gym for years. She always seemed to be working out very hard (sweaty, red in the face) and she was pretty consistent. But she never looked particularly fit — and always had a significant amount of extra body fat. People in the gym would comment about how hard she worked out and wondered why she didn’t appear to be in better shape.

Anyway, because I worked there occasionally she would ask me questions about fitness and eventually she asked me to train her.

As my client, one of the first things I asked her about was her diet. She was insistent that she ate
“very well, low-fat, lots of fruits and veggies, lean proteins, etc.”. I was highly doubtful that this was the case, given how hard she exercised and how deconditioned she looked.

So I encouraged her to keep a food diary. I asked her to just track two weekdays and one weekend day in a given week. This is a usually a powerful tool to reveal trends that can sabotage your weight loss efforts. (Incidentally, a study released this week showed that folks who kept a food diary lost 2x as much weight as those who didn’t!). But she was very reluctant. She always had an excuse as to why she didn’t keep the diary. She was insistent that her diet was not the problem.

One day about four weeks into our training she told me how frustrated she was with her lack of progress. She had been coming to her sessions, doing her cardio program three days per week on her own. So again, I asked her about what she was eating. She became very defensive, insisting that her diet was excellent and that “this exercise stuff just doesn’t work for her”. I knew there was a lot more to the story, but ultimately a person needs to get real with themselves and own up to what they are (or aren’t doing) that’s responsible for their lack of progress.

Fast forward about a month later I was leaving a crowded brunch place one Sunday AM and bumped into my client and her husband seated at a nearby table. I greeted her and then looked down casually. I couldn’t believe what I saw. Both she and her husband were eating a “king’s breakfast” (eggs, buttered toast, hash browns, bacon — the works) . But that wasn’t all — in between both of them sat a giant plate of onion rings AND a giant plate of french fries. Hmmmm…..”Houston, we have a problem”…

I knew she was really embarrassed that I “busted” her. She looked very uncomfortable. I didn’t say anything about it at the time and I didn’t give any outward indication that I was on to her, but she knew. I decided to speak to her about it in person at our next session. But I never got the chance…. she rescheduled her training about 2-3 times after that and then dropped out entirely.

She wasn’t ready to take responsibility for her part of her health and well being.

Sure , all of us want to look great, but how many of us want to make the sacrifices that entails?

There’s a great scene in the TV show Nip/Tuck (Session Three) that details this exactly. There is an episode where Mario Lopez plays a young plastic surgeon who is in amazing physical shape.

Christian (on of the protagonists) a handsome, 40-something aging Lothario who is very vain is staring at an Adonis-like Mario Lopez as he showers in the gym locker room (BTW that’s not why I loved this scene, although it IS worth watching for that alone).

Anyway, Lopez’s character assumes that Christian is gay (he’s not) — and that he’s coming on to him. So finally he gets annoyed and asks him what he is staring at. At which point Christian says, in a completely non-sexual tone, “Hey, how’d you get your ass to look like that?” At which point ..both of them start having a serious conversation about working out and diet…all while standing there showering buck naked…it was very,very funny.

The point is that Lopez’s character doesn’t pull his punches with his reply…he basically says, “I look this way because I kill myself every day working out hard and watching my diet — AND YOU DON’T”…and he then goes on to detail exactly what those sacrifices look like on a day-to-day basis, “while you’re sleeping in, I’m running 5 miles”…”while you’re eating Joe’s Stone Crab, I’m having steamed chicken and broccoli”…”while you’re on your third glass of Cabernet, I’m in the gym hitting the weights” (I’m paraphrasing but you get the point) and on and on…

It was very powerful because it underscores the fact that he just didn’t turn into this by accident. He’s not just some genetic freak. This is important to him and he’s willing to make sacrifices that most of us wouldn’t — and it shows.

It was a great reminder that our results are always directly proportional to our level of commitment, our sacrifices and our persistence. So the next time you are bemoaning your lack of progress in terms of a fitness, weight loss — or aesthetic goal, ask yourself honestly….how badly do you want it? And what sacrifices are you willing to make to get it?

If you’re not willing to make major sacrifices, that’s fine (I’m not a big believer in extremes myself — not giving up some wine and chocolate in my life), just realize that THAT is a choice…be honest about it, embrace it and know that it is directly connected to your outcomes.

read comments (1)

Submitted by Louis Moore’s Build a Better Body Blog

read comments (0)