LET YOUR HEAD LEAD YOU

Never take the people in your life for granted. Appreciate them, help them, care for them, but most importantly make them FEEL SPECIAL. Each of us has a life filled with choices, and sometimes we can make a choice that could hurt someone we care about or help someone we love. 

I believe that each moment of our life is so special...and the people that are in those moments become very important and special to us. Some people will have a positive impact in your life and others will have a negative impact in your life. I have always believed in the people that are in my life, no matter if they have loved me or hurt me. I allow my heart to lead me in every aspect that I do in my life. I just think it is important to respect, love, and help everyone that enters your life...NO MATTER WHAT!

Passion and love comes from your heart. Understand what your heart tells you. Believe in the power of your heart. Never give up on the passion and the love your heart knows! "When the heart is touched, chemicals responsible for good health and a sense of well-being are released in the body.

Research has found that when a person is a recipient of an act of kindness, his or her serotonin levels increase, strengthening the immune system. But interestingly, the serotonin level also increases in the person PERFORMING the act of kindness, strengthening his or her immune system as well."-Jennifer Hawthorne

So be kind to everyone...don't take anybody for granted. Let love lead you in all the directions possible in your life. You only get one life, so GO FOR IT/BELIEVE IN IT/LOVE IT!

Heart Rate Reserve Formula

The Karvonen Formula

This is a heart rate reserve formula and it’s one of the most effective methods used to calculate training heart rate. The formula factors in your resting heart rate, so you will need to determine your resting heart rate by doing the following:

• Prior to getting out of bed in the morning, take your pulse on your wrist (radial pulse) or on the side of your neck (carotid pulse).
• Count the number of beats, starting with zero, for one minute. If you don’t have a stop watch or a second hand in your bedroom, you can measure the time by watching for the number to change on a digital alarm clock. Find your pulse and start counting when the minute number changes the first time, stop counting when it changes again.
• To help assure accuracy, take your resting heart rate three mornings in a row and average the 3 heart rates together.

The next important element in finding your training heart rate zone is determining the intensity level at which you should exercise. As a general rule, you should exercise at an intensity between 50% - 85% of your heart rate reserve. Your individual level of fitness will ultimately determine where you fall within this range. Use the following table as a guide for determining your intensity level:
   Beginner or low fitness level . . . 50% - 60% Average fitness level . . . . . . . . 60% - 70%
High fitness level . . . . . . . . . . . 75% - 85%

The Karvonen Formula: 220 - Age = Maximum Heart Rate

Maximum Heart Rate - Rest. Heart Rate x Intensity + Rest. Heart Rate = Training Heart Rate

For example, Sally is 33 yrs old, has a resting heart rate of 75 and she’s just beginning her exercise program (her intensity level will be 50% - 60%.) Sally’s training heart rate zone will be 131-142 beats per minute:


Sally's Minimum Training Heart Rate:
220 - 33 (Age) = 187
187 - 75 (Rest. HR) = 112
112 x .50 (Min. Intensity) + 75 (Rest. HR) = 131 Beats/Minute


Sally's Maximum Training Heart Rate:
220 - 33 (Age) = 187
187 - 75 (Rest. HR) = 112
112 x .60 (Max. Intensity) + 75 (Rest. HR) = 142 Beats/Minute

Try to take your pulse, periodically, during your exercise session to gauge your intensity level. Typically, the easiest location for taking a pulse is on the side of your neck, the carotid pulse. Be sure not to press too hard on the carotid artery or you’ll get an inaccurate reading. Count the number of beats, always beginning with zero, for 6 seconds (then multiply by 10), or for 10 seconds (then multiply by 6) to get the number of times your heart is beating per minute. If your pulse is within your training heart rate zone, you’re right on track! If not, adjust your exercise workload until you get into your zone.

PUMP UP Those Legs

A Great Exercise Round To PUMP UP Your Legs

My client is on one of my favorite exercise machines...Vertical Leg Press. She had just completed a round of lower body boxing drills...I then made her stop and get on the leg press machine. She has a soft ball that goes between her legs, which makes her have to stimulate those inner thighs as she is pressing. Her round consists of a ladder drill.

BEGINNING WITH:
2 mini press (starting from the bottom you will come up a little below half way and then go back down to your starting position) + 2 full presses
* 4 mini presses + 4 full presses
* 6 minis + 6 fulls
* 8 minis + 8 fulls
* 10 minis + 10 fulls
She then took a 45 second break went back to her lower body power boxing drills...now remember what goes up must go down...so after her boxing drills she went back to leg press and began at 10/10 and worked all the way down to 2/2.
Be creative when you train....your muscles won't know what's coming and you will definitely see the results you have been working so hard for.
~ Dofitness

POST WORKOUT PROTEIN INTAKE SPEEDS TISSUE REPAIR

After a hard workout in a gym or on a track, your body must repair damaged tissues using amino acids from protein. Exercise speeds the use of amino acids as fuels, which puts them in short supply during recovery... the time the body repairs and restores itself. 

Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers did a sophisticated study showing that feeding protein (10 grams) and carbs after endurance exercise increased whole body protein synthesis after exercise compared to a placebo. All athletes should eat a high-protein energy bar, protein shake, or a high-protein meal within 30-45 minutes of an intense workout. This practice will speed recovery and build muscle faster. 

Your post-workout meal is one of the most important things you must do in order to recover and in order to see the results you are working hard for. If you are not doing this already, be sure to start, you will see an overall increase in recovery, performance, and body change (results achieved). Thanks for checking out my blog article. Have a good day and HAPPY TRAINING AND DON'T FORGET YOUR POST WORKOUT MEAL! :)

Med. Sci. Sports, 34: 828-837, 2002.

DO AND BE

Success in life comes in cans, and failure comes in cant's!

Round One:
1) Elliptical- 10 minutes/Resistance- 7-9;increase every 2 minutes/Incline- 8; increase every 2 minutes/Strides Per Minute- 165-185 (If you can keep this pace for 10 minutes great...if not, please set your work load and incline for your specific fitness level. Try to make this a challenge that you work toward).
2) Body Weight Squats (no rest/continuous motion)- 100x
3) Push-ups- 10x
4) Body Weight Alternating Lunge Steps In Place (Stepping Forward)- 50x
*Make sure it is continuous without stopping
5) Push-ups- 10x
6) Body Weight Alternating Lunge Steps In Place (Stepping Backward)- 50x
*Make sure it is continuous without stopping
7) Push-ups- 10x + Sit-ups- 25x + Bicycle Pumps (2 pumps on each side)- 50x
8) Step-Mill- 10 minutes/Resistance 8-10; increase resistance every 2 min/For each minute that you are stepping, you will do the following: 1st-30 sec step on each stair; 2nd-30 sec. skip each stair. (If you can keep this pace for 10 minutes great...if not, please set your work load for your specific fitness level. Try to make this a challenge that you work toward).


Round Two:
1) Body Weight Walking Lunges- 1 lap around the track or 200 Lunge Steps
2) One Crunch + One Sit-ups (2=1)- 15 times
3) Core Plank- 1 minute
4) Six Laps around the track- on every 2nd lap- do 10 squat jumps at each corner
*For example- Run 1st lap regular/On 2nd lap do 10 squat jumps at each corner of the lap/3rd lap-regular…
*If you don't have access to a track- Run in Place 30sec + 10 squat jumps after each 30 sec mark (do this six times. You may also decide to create your own cardio challenge for this round. Always be creative! :)5) Core Plank- 1 minute
6) Roman Chair- (knees-to-chest)- 15x
7) On Bench- Reverse Crunches (roll knees-into-chest)- 25x
*keep your heels close to your butt/lead from your belly button not your legs
8) Wall- Sit- 30 sec + 10 Squat Jumps/Wall-Sit- 40 sec + 15 Squat Jumps/Wall Sit- 50sec + 20 Squat Jumps/Wall Sit- 60 sec + 25 Squat Jumps (watch your form/make sure you are sitting in an L (legs form an L-shape on your wall sit; Squat low and jump from the bottom and land in the bottom on squat jumps).
*ABSOLUTELY NO REST! Your rest time is when you are sitting on the wall.

Nice Work...You Did It! Way To Get After It! :)

BURN CALORIES BY DRINKING WATER

Many diet books recommend drinking plenty of water to cut hunger and create a feeling of fullness. But did you know that , drinking water also increases metabolic rate slightly and burns more calories. German researchers found that drinking 500 milliliters of water (about 1 pint) increased resting metabolism by 25 percent- so about 20 extra calories for 60 minutes. Drinking 50 milliliters of water or 500 milliliters of saline (mildly salty water) had no effect on metabolism.

Water increases calorie burning by diluting the blood going to the liver (portal circulation) and by turning on the sympathetic nervous system (the body's fight-or-flight system). The cells have very sensitive methods for regulating fluids in blood, cells and the space between cells. Water intake activates this system, which increases caloric expenditure. Drinking extra water has little effect on weight control and could be dangerous...just like anything. You must find the right balance that works for you and how water plays into your everyday activities. The 20 calories you expend processing the water is equivalent to jogging for two minutes. But again...don't forget, excessive water intake can cause hyponatremia (water intoxication), which can be deadly.

So remember to stay hydrated each and every day...do not go overboard on your water intake especially if you are not active. Water has and will always be vital to your survival. It participates in almost all the chemical reactions in your body, it helps cool you, and moves vital fuels and hormones to your muscles and tissues. Just be aware that just like anything else...there have been known cases of people drinking too much water and dying from these decisions. BALANCE IS THE KEY TO EVERYTHING IN THIS LIFE! So be ACTIVE and DRINK YOUR WATER!!

Journal Clinical Endocrinolgy Metabolism, 92: 3334-3337, 2007)

AMAZING Jumping POWER

This video shows a series of different box jump challenges at the end of each round of legs. There were single jumps on the high box, then on to two-motion jumps (start at the lowest point come up from your squat less than half-way up, go back down to your starting position and then jump on the box from the bottom of your squat...very tricky jumping style). Then a plate was added to the high box...then two plates to the high box...and finally ending with three plates on the high box. This was an amazing accomplishment and a huge challenge that was mastered. Mainly, because she is about 5'1 and she was ending each round with a variety of Intense Challenging Box Jumps. AMAZING JOB!!!!

A Passion For The Process

FITNESS is a way of life rooted in the deeply held conviction that physical, psychological, and spiritual health are inextricably related. *When you wake up at dawn and EXERCISE it is like an act of devotion. It CENTERS THE MIND for the day to come.*

"Beauty is superficial and fleeting, but health is profound and lasting."

The pursuit of FITNESS is the pursuit of WHOLENESS that can empower each of us to cope with the overwhelming pressures of our day-to-day existence.

Fitness is a lifelong pilgrimage and you must commit yourself to the journey. And those who do will find long-lasting results. Athletes fall into two groups: the believers and the nonbelievers. The nonbelievers just want to win the race, but never seem to enjoy training for it. And the sad thing is that nonbelievers seldom last in the world of fitness. The glory of winning is short-lived. 

You must have STAYING POWER and that is exactly what separates the believer from the non-believer. The believer has A PASSION FOR THE PROCESS. They enjoy winning, but they CHERISH THE LIFESTYLE even more.

**The irony: To achieve physical beauty you must LOOK BEYOND IT. If we keep our eyes focused on a particular short-term goal we may achieve it, BUT the victory will only be temporary. YOU MUST BE TRANSFORMED FROM THE INSIDE OUT.

You must have faith and when it comes to fitness, you must make the leap of faith. Trust and recognize that THERE IS NO GROWTH WITHOUT COMMITMENT, and NO COMMITMENT WITHOUT BELIEF. You must keep the FAITH. 

"There are no shortcuts."

One morning a young man in his twenties came in and enrolled at a local gym. Looking around, he saw an older man across the room, working out. His face and physique didn't seem to go together. His gray head was that of a well-kept septuagenarian, but his body seemed grafted on-impossibly young looking. In his sweatpants and tank shirts he exposed arms and shoulders that revealed full, deeply defined muscles covered with smooth, tight skin. There wasn't an ounce of fat on him. Awestruck, the young man walked over to him and said, "You look great, how long have you been working out?" The old man gave him a fierce look and replied, "All my damned life- you are looking at a LIFETIME of working out!"

With the long-term pursuit of fitness, however, weight loss, or fat loss, takes care of itself-automatically. Again, to achieve it you must not pursue it! The object is not to lose weight but to BECOME FIT. You must commit yourself to the journey of fitness, which will bring you rewarding results for a lifetime. You must stop wanting immediate results or a quick turnaround.

"We seldom make the connections between our physical health and our spiritual well-being."

You must BELIEVE that if you are on the journey toward fitness, your own lifelong pilgrimage, you will lose fat and gain muscle.

"Our bodies are, to most of us, an inconvenient appendage to our head."

***Always keep in touch with everything that surrounds you...The journey to fitness keeps us in contact with nature. The sights, smells, and sounds of land and water-reminds us of our true relationship to the material world.

"A sensory delight-the sound of your heart beating, the feel of muscles working, and the smell of nature around you confirm your existence as a living, breathing, physical being."

Three Words- IMPROVE, INCREASE, CONSISTENT
You have the power to have: improved body chemistry, increased strength and lean muscle mass, consistent weight control, improved cardiovascular health, improved psychological health, improved quality of life.

One problem many face is having an ingrained, deep-seated discomfort with their bodies. We make our living by reading, writing, speaking, and thinking, but seldom by physical labor. The nature of our work is written on our physiques, and the imprint of our sedentary lifestyles can be read in our posture, gait, and carriage. Unfortunately our neglected bodies often serve only as a repository for stress, depression, and illness. 

We must seek to restore a sense of INNER PEACE through the pursuit of health and wholeness. Fitness has all the necessary tools to help improve a person's sense of well-being, reduce their stress levels, and make them more productive.

It is important that you have the right mindset in order to achieve and live a healthy life. You can know all the theories in the world, but if you do not have the right mindset, it will do you no good. You need to have FAITH and you must BELIEVE in the intrinsic value of health if you hope to achieve it. If you haven't seen the light, if you're not a convert, you will fail. I BELIEVE IN YOU AND I BELIEVE THAT YOU CAN ACHIEVE ANYTHING YOU SET YOUR MIND TO. Never give up and don't give in. You are stronger and nothing should stand in your way. And when you face challenges and obstacles you have a hidden power rooted in your inner self to overcome. 

Like I have said before, YOU are the one, YOU are the captain of your ship, YOU lead the way, but most importantly, YOU ARE THE FOOTPRINTS THAT LEAD YOU ON YOUR JOURNEY. 

Kybartas, Ray. Fitness Is Religion. Pgs. 19-34.

CAMERON'S HEAVEN DAY- Gracious Offerings

In Loving Memory of Cameron Averitt Bobbitt. 
Keep Faith, Awake To Grace, And Always Have Hope.

Incorporate the LOVE and POSITIVENESS of MIRACLES into your thoughts and actions. Appreciate all the BEAUTIFUL AND TRUE MIRACLES that surround you. ALWAYS EXPECT A MIRACLE. MIRACLES have always existed and they are just waiting for you to discover them. Cameron was and still is an ANGEL...AN ANGEL OF MIRACLES, WHO IS ALWAYS WITH YOU- ALWAYS ready to give you PEACE, LOVE, and HOPE. 

Cameron is in the CLOUDS, which mirror images of HEAVEN that INSPIRE YOUR SPIRIT. The clouds ECHO the many different parts of our makeup that can at any given MOMENT, cause YOU to experience a BEAUTIFUL GIFT-ONE THAT IS MEANT FOR YOU! LOVE is never lost. LOVE WILL FLOW back to soften and purify YOUR HEART. LOVE IS CAMERON AND SHE IS ALWAYS WITH YOU! 

Know True Love And True Peace

The MIND- what a powerful tool, but yet a tool that has the power to work against you. The more and more I experience and the more and more I read...the more the message is about trying to have a MIND that is attached to nothing. Your attachments could be leading you in the wrong direction and could be the source of many of your problems. For instance, the NEED to be right, to POSSESS someone or something, to WIN at all costs, to be VIEWED by others as superior...these are all attachments that may seem to be okay on the surface but problematic within.

It is important to understand that in order to release attachments, you must make a shift in HOW YOU VIEW YOURSELF. For example, if your primary identification is with your body and your possessions, your ego is the dominant force in your life. Now this is where it is important...if you can tame your ego sufficiently, you'll call upon your spirit to be the guiding force in your life. As a spiritual being, you can observe your body and be a compassionate witness to your existence. Read the next paragraph and embrace the thought process.

If you think peaceful thoughts, you'll feel peaceful emotions, and that's what you'll bring to every life situation. If your attached to being right or absolutely need something in order to be at peace or to be successful, you'll live a life of striving yet never arriving.

Now understand, it is possible to have a burning desire yet not have attachments. "Infinite patience produces immediate results." Understand that infinite patience implies an absolute certainty that what you would like to manifest will indeed show up, in perfect order, and exactly on time. The immediate result you receive from this inner knowing is a sense of peace.

So say you have been given a choice between TWO MAGIC WANDS. The first wand gives you the power to have any physical thing you desire (guarantee of stuff) by simply waving it. The second wand gives you a sense of peace for the rest of your life regardless of what circumstances arise.

I want you to really take a moment and think about which wand you would choose. This is not a trick question, just be honest with yourself. Remember, there is no wrong answer...this question is just giving you an outlook on every possibility. Like I said there is no wrong answer, but the difference between the two magic wands is that the second wand simply allows you to have a mind that is open to everything but attached to nothing. It allows you to let it all come and go as it will. It is important that you enjoy it all (everything around you), but never make your happiness or success DEPENDENT on an attachment to any thing, any place, and particularly, any person.

They say that in all your relationships, if you can love someone enough to allow them to be exactly what they choose to be-without any expectations or attachments from you- YOU WILL KNOW TRUE PEACE IN YOUR LIFETIME. TRUE LOVE means you love a person for WHAT THEY ARE, NOT FOR  WHAT YOU THINK THEY SHOULD BE....and this is AN ABSENCE OF ATTACHMENT!

Dyer, Wayne. Secrets for Success &  Inner Peace. ppgs. 14-17.

An All-Time Favorite Recipe For A Cold Winter Season

The All-Time Favorite, Turkey Chili, is brought here by popular demand.

1 pound lean ground turkey

1 cup red pepper, coarsely chopped

1 onion, coarsely chopped (3/4 cup)

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chopped plum tomatoes in juice

2/3 rib celery, coarsely chopped (2/3 cup)

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/2 cup chicken stock or low-fat, low-sodium chicken broth

1 bay leaf

Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat a 3-quart, nonstick saucepan over high heat and coat with cooking spray. Add the turkey and season to taste with the salt and pepper. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, breaking up the turkey into pieces, until browned all over. Remove to a bowl, and cover with foil to keep warm.

Reduce the heat to low, and add the peppers, onion, celery, and garlic. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften. Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin, and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Increase the heat to medium, and add the tomatoes, stock, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes, uncovered.

Add the browned turkey, and simmer for 5 minutes more. Remove and discard the bay leaf before serving.
Makes 4 servings.

For YOU with LOVE!

Kirsch, D. New York Body Plan. ppgs. 206-207.

Practice Makes Permanent

A WORKOUT is 25% PERSPIRATION and 75% DETERMINATION...One part PHYSICAL EXERTION and three parts SELF DISCIPLINE. Doing IT is easy, once you get started.

A WORKOUT is a personal triumph over laziness and procrastination. It is the BADGE OF A WINNER- the mark of an organized, goal oriented person who has taken CHARGE of their DESTINY!

 A WORKOUT is a key that helps unlock the door to OPPORTUNITY AND SUCCESS. Hidden within each of us is an EXTRAORDINARY FORCE.

 A WORKOUT makes you better today then you were yesterday. It STRENGTHENS the BODY, RELAXES the MIND, and TOUGHENS the SPIRIT. When you workout regularly, your problems diminish and your confidence grows.

 A WORKOUT is a wise use of time and an investment in EXCELLENCE. It is a way of preparing for LIFE'S CHALLENGES and PROVING TO YOURSELF that you have what it takes to do what is necessary.

Preventive Solutions

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." 

We all know about intensity and we all know what comes with that intensity...muscles that are tight, tired, and sore.  It is important that you are aware of the things your body is facing and do the little things to prevent yourself from getting injured. 

One of the best preventive solutions is gradual stretching. Stretching involves the entire muscle/tendon complex, lengthening it so that the chance of an exercise movement's suddenly stretching these structures past their limits and causing damage is reduced.  Another preventive solution is warming up before you workout. Warming up pumps blood and oxygen to the area and literally raises the temperature of the muscles involved, allowing them to contract with greater force.

DID YOU KNOW???

Endurance Training Helps Cells Release Fat
Losing body fat and keeping it off is extremely difficult and only about five percent of dieters are successful after a year. Many studies suggest that the only way you can lose fat permanently is to diet and exercise at the same time. People who only diet usually gain back all the weight they lost and then some. Part of the problem is that fat cells in obese people like to hold onto their fat. French researchers discovered that endurance training made fat cells more responsive to the hormone adrenaline, which made the fat cells release fat into the blood more easily.
Int. J. Obesity, 26: 1371-1378, 2002.

Potassium Accurate Measure of Nutritional Health
Canadian researchers found the urinary potassium is a good measure of the quality of the diet. People with the highest levels of potassium were most likely to eat a well-balanced diet that met the United States Department of Agriculture Nutritional Guidelines. These people were also leaner and had lower blood pressures and resting heart rates. Low potassium levels suggests a diet high in fat and low in fruits and vegetables. Urinary potassium is a simple test that doctors can do in the office or patients can do at home. Good food sources of potassium include sweet potatoes, tomato paste, beets, white beans, yogurt, clams, prune juice, carrots, bananas, soybeans, halibut, and tomatoes.
Paper presented at the American Society of Nephrology annual meeting, Dec. 2006.