Look Good and Feel Great by Summer!

The official start of Summer is only 3 months away! You can start now and make a real difference in you weight and shape.

Here are some facts:

Determining your maintenance BMR (basal metabolic rate) and then adjusting the number of calories you eat as well as when you eat can make a healthy weight loss difference in as little as 30 days!

Your body likes consistency. Diet, cardio, weight and resistance training and core work will bring results.

Our recommendations for the fastest weight loss and toning results:

• Use BMR analysis, meal diaries and complete nutrition reports and then adjust your diet accordingly. Do weekly weigh-ins with your personal trainer.
• Do cardio 5-6 times per week for 20-30 minutes and after each personal training session. Cardio includes cardio equipment like treadmills and ellipticals as well as jogging, biking , swimming and taking a class like boxing, kickboxing or spinning.
• Train either three 1-hour sessions or 4-5 1/2-hour sessions per week. Our trainers will focus on weight loss, conditioning and toning.
• Stretch every day to help maintain your aggressive weight loss and conditioning scedule and be sure to get enough sleep.

In the next few weeks we will discuss specific types of exercise we use in training for maximum toning, body shape and weight loss results.

Vacation is Over: Back to Basics, Part 2

Vacations are wrapping up, you will soon be sending kids back to school. Time to spend time on yourself! Many of our clients return after Labor Day, so get yourself on our schedule!
Conditioning is one of the 3 Key Areas we train, also including Strength, and Core.

Conditioning uses most of your large muscle groups, keeps you moving while using resistance or weight to speed up the effect.

Weight loss and overall muscle toning are expedited with conditioning.

Here are 3 examples of exercises that use large muscle groups:
Body Squats--we start with your own body weight, and then graduate to using a body bar, dumbbells, then heavier bars with weights.

Lunges--(pictured) we start with stationary lunges and then move ahead to walking lunges, and then walking with hand weights.

Lateral Slides--progressively more difficult bands and tubes are used to increase the muscle resistance.

When you are moving with weight, form is key. Our personal trainers demonstrate, watch, give feedback, and then record your progress after each exercise.

Vacation is Over: Back to Basics, Part 1

Vacation is winding down for many, school has started for some...

How did you spend your summer? With vacations and beach weekends, it's easy to let your workout routine slide a bit...or a lot. BodyByGeoff will help you get back to basics with our next series of Health & Fitness Tips on strength training.
You may have done some walking, biking or jogging on your vacation, but did you do anything to maintain or build strength?

Strength training is necessary for women & men as it helps to build connective tissue, ease arthritis pain and increase bone density.

Center on Disease Control studies show that strength training is also beneficial for balance, lowering blood sugar and getting a better night's sleep.

If you are trying to lose weight, remember, strength training is an important part of the overall equation.

Three to four hours after a strength-training workout, you're still burning calories.

When you lose weight, up to a quarter of the loss can come from muscle, which slows your metabolism. Strength training helps you rebuild any muscle you lost by dieting -- or keep you from losing it in the first place.

Vacation Exercise Part 2

Ok, we know some of you are still on vacation, so here are some more simple things you can do to help stay fit and flexible. And to counteract the number of drinks with little umbrellas...

BACK, HIP AND LEG STRETCHES

Take a yoga belt or a simple canvas belt (the strap to your luggage or duffle bag works well) and take equal ends into each of your hands. While laying on the floor--

* Grab both ends of the belt, holding equal length in each hand. Put the belt around your foot and gently pull down, toward you.

* Now, take the same grip on the belt and move your leg to the right, and then to the left--try to reach the floor each time. Switch legs.

MUSCLE TONING WITH TUBES

Hopefully you brought some simple exercise tubing with you. These are easy and light to pack in your suitcase.

* Place the tubing under your feet. You can do 3 arm exercises in the same position.

Take the tube handles in each hand and curl up (underhand); next curl up holding the tubing with your fists (hammer-curl); and finally, take the tub and curl it directly in front of your with your palms up. Rotate these, do 12, 3 sets.

Tubing can used for a variety of things, look for a solid door handle and you can do several things from that position.

These are just a few things you can do while on vacation. Your BodyByGeoff Personal Trainer can give you exercises that compliment your ongoing training. BodyByGeoff also has a 6-video series of exercises. All are very easy to follow. If you would like one, $10 for training clients, $19 for non-training clients. (plus shipping). Downloads available soon. Have a great vacation!

Vacation Exercise

Hopefully, this health & fitness tip finds you on vacation with friends or family, in your favorite place--the beach, the lake, the mountains or the city you always wanted to visit. While you relax, don't forget to keep your body in shape. Here are few things you can do with little or no equipment until you come back to see us.

STRETCH
You will probably be sleeping in a different bed. This is actually the number one short-term reason for backaches. Place your hands behind your hips, make a big chest, breathe in & then out. Get on the floor on your hands & knees and arch your back up & then down, like a cat.

WALK or JOG
Discover new places by walking or jogging briskly for 20-30 minutes each day. Beach sand is fine to walk on, but not the best place to run because of the uneven surface.

SIMPLE BODY WEIGHT EXERCISES Upper Body
* Planks--get in a push-up position, but rest on your elbows and forearms--count to 10, repeat 3 times.
* Pushups--toe or knee, do 5-10, repeat 3 times. Keep your back level.
* Tricep Dips (pictured)--find a sturdy sitting chair. Position your hands on it facing out, dip to about 1 foot off the floor. Do 8-10 repetitions, 3 times.

Lower Body
* Bodysquat--legs further apart than your shoulders, butt out, head up, squat down as if you are sitting on a chair. Repeat 10 times, 3 sets. If you have a cable band, place the band under your feet and hold the handles, repeat the same motion as above for increased resistance.

Core and Abs
* Using a chair or a bed, place your feet & legs up. Support your neck by lacing your hands behind your neck. Come straight up 12 times, repeat 3 times. Be careful of your neck and lower back. If these are ok, try reaching to your opposite ankles, 12 times, repeat 3 times.
* Advanced ab--side plank ab twist--lie on your side, support yourself with your hand and bring your body up to a star. Reach down with your upper hand and back up. Repeat 10 times, try the opposite side. Do 3 sets on each side.

These are just a few things you can do while on vacation. Your BodyByGeoff Personal Trainer can give you exercises that compliment your ongoing training. BodyByGeoff also has a 6-video series of exercises. All are very easy to follow. If you would like one, $10 for training clients, $19 for non-training clients. (plus shipping). Downloads available soon. Have a great vacation!

Coordinating Health & Fitness Services

Do you Feel you Run all over Town trying to stay healthy, fit, trim and pain free? Do you worry that what a provider tells you may be in conflict or be based on incomplete information?

Our concept has always been to offer complete health & fitness services under one roof, with professionals communicating & coordinating together in your best interest.

Personal Training
an individually-based service that provides you exercise programs that are the safest, most effective and motivating for your goals, lifestyle and overall health. Age-appropriate programs including Active 65 for Seniors, Performance Club for Youth and Take Control for Women.

Diet and Nutrition
custom-order supplements, cost effective plans like Diet-toGo, Free ongoing nutrition analysis with personal training, and Dietitians to provide in-depth nutrition guidance. Coordination with your training goals.

Massage Therapy
pre- and post-event muscle massage. Complement to chiropracticf or spinal adjustments. Complement to physical therapy. And, just relaxing...

Physical Therapy
to regain movement, strength and range post surgery or injury. Re-learn normal movement.

Acupuncture
an alternative to medication to treating ongoing pain such as arthritis. Can complement massage therapy and chiropractic.

Chiropractic
an alternative to pain relievers for spinal & neck pain caused by trauma or injury. Complements personal training, acupuncture, and physical therapy. Back pain is the number one ongoing reported pain.

Training & Tracking

How often should you train? How important is it to track your training, fitness and nutrition results? These are two of the most common questions we are asked by clients.

How often should I train?

* Your training frequency should depend on your goals, but normally 2-3 times per week for 1 hour will obtain the best results for strength, toning and weight loss.

* If you are trying to lose weight, you will want to add in 15-20 minutes of cardio 5-6 times per week.

* Athletic training for marathons, triathlons, etc. require more frequent, specific training up to the event.

* Seniors and those with health limitations are probably best with 30-minute sessions.

* If you are trying to lose weight, you first want to know how many calories you need to maintain. Then log your food and adjust your diet based on exercise and weight-loss goals.

At BodyByGeoff we measure where you are starting from a health, fitness, nutrition and body image perspective. Our Personal Trainers record each training session so you can see your progress.

Our exclusive Personal Fitness Diary allows you to track your diet and nutrition, your training sessions and your cardio workouts.

We schedule regular weekly and 30-day re-assessments of your progress.

Can Water Weigh You Down?

Water is essential for hydration, skin, joints, can help reduce body fat and curb your appetite, but it might also weigh you down. How? Read your Health & Fitness Tip to find out!

Take a Test:
1) Weigh yourself at the beginning of the day, before drinking water or weigh yourself before strenuous exercise.
2) Weigh yourself about mid-day, after drinking about 8 oz of water hourly or after the exercise.
3) Weight gain may show you are over-hydrating. Weight loss may show you are under-hydrating. This assumes you keep your food intake normal, that you don't introduce new meds, etc. A loss of about 1 pound = 16 oz. of water.

When you are jogging and sweating in the hot sun, weigh yourself before & after exercise. 1 pint of sweat = 1 pound lost. Aim to replace only the fluids you have lost.

Drinking too much water will make you dizzy and disoriented. Self-monitor by how much you sweat and urinate. If it is extremely hot and you are exerting yourself, tie a cold, wet bandanna around your neck or head.

It's not too late to look and feel better this summer!

Here are some facts:

Determining your maintenance BMR (basal metabolic rate) and then adjusting the number of calories you eat, as well as when and what you eat can make a healthy weight loss difference in as little as 30 days!

Your body likes consistency. Diet, cardio, weight and resistance training and core work will bring results.

Our recommendations for the fastest weight loss and toning results:
* Use BMR analysis, meal diaries and complete nutrition reports and then adjust your diet accordingly. Do weekly weigh-ins with your personal trainer.
* Do cardio 5-6 times per week for 20-30 minutes and after each personal training session.
Cardio includes cardio equipment in the studio, jogging, biking, swimming and taking a class
like boxing.
* Train either three 1-hour sessions or 4-5, 1/2-hour sessions per week. Our trainers will focus
on weight loss, conditioning and toning.
* Stretch every day to help maintain your aggressive weight loss and conditioning schedule
and be sure to get enough sleep.

Accept that your body is a continuous work in progress. Find ways to exercise while on vacation: swim, bike, jog, golf. Come back and continue your progress with us after your vacation.