The Clean and Lean Is Back

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I’m relaxing in Tahoe right now after a hectic first week of our Your Best Body Challenge. (I say relaxing because there is no snow so we decided to watch the 49ers kill the Saints) It is the last quarter and my friends are going nuts but it’s looking good for San Francisco!

Our challengers have been doing great getting their workouts in and Boot Camp is packed! Now it’s time to start addressing the issue that holds most people back from their ideal figure…. Nutrition.

Tomorrow night (Tuesday Jan 17th) at 7:15pm (901 Minnesota St),  we will have one of my favorite speakers, Audra Baker come to talk about Nutritional Myths and how most people have weight loss resistance and don’t even know it. If you feel like you have tried Everything and your weight is not budging, it is highly possible there is something going on in your body that is holding you back and I’m sure you are ready to take care of it once and for all! Audra has a plan that has helped over 45 of our boot campers lose at least 10 lbs of fat in the first 30 days. It is called her Clean and Lean Nutrition Plan.

Our instructor Missy Bunch and her boyfriend decided to to change their diets when she first joined our team back in August. Missy wanted to share her story and results with you all today about her experience taking part in Audra’s Clean and Lean Nutrition Plan:

Missy’s Story

Clean and Lean?! That sounds like dance move! Well let me tell you what the Clean and Lean challenge really is (although I do wish it was a dance move). My experience with the 30day Clean and Lean challenge provided by Kristen Nolan and Audra Baker was in a period of my life where I knew I wanted to change something about my diet. I had no idea what it is was, I just heard the words clean & challenge in the same sentence and said, what is that? I want that, I am doing it no matter WHAT it is. I have tried everything! Pills, shakes, powders, south beach diet, Adkins, you name it.  I ate “pretty well” and I ate healthy…so I thought.

Before this challenge I didn’t REALLY know what food was. I know it sounds funny, but I had no idea what I was doing to my body. I didn’t know what gluten was and what the craze was about. I didn’t know I was sensitive to dairy. I also didn’t know how FUN it would be to eat healthy and cook for my boyfriend and myself.

The knowledge and education that I received from the weekly coaching calls were SO beneficial to my life and I will forever be grateful for the information I received. The first couple weeks were interesting. I had headaches, I was lazy and doing everything “right.”  Little did I know that I was severely addicted to sugar and caffeine. I mean who isn’t?? I never knew how important water was either. I mean you always hear it, “ drink a lot of fluids” and I never knew why my mom always told me that. Well there is a reason! And there are plenty of reasons SHE didn’t even know of. Water actually impacts the cell production in your face. So if you are dehydrated you literally will not have the “glow” you would if you were hydrated fully. Water is also vital to transporting essential nutrients and vitamins throughout your body. (Much like a fed ex truck) And of course, water cleans your body of waste. There is a laundry list of benefits but those were a couple that really woke me up from my dehydrated slumber!

As far as results? I am 4’ 11” and lost 7 pounds and for my small stature this is a BIG deal. My boyfriend lost 16 pounds in 3 ½ weeks by committing to this challenge. My boyfriend had been dealing with stomach issues for the past 16 years of his life and THREE days after the challenge the stomach pain and bloating was GONE. It took this challenge to realize that he was extremely sensitive to gluten and had no idea his entire life. He had lived with it so long that being uncomfortable, gaseous and in pain was normal. This challenge literally changed his life. We have never had more energy in our entire lives and never lost weight so quickly by just buying fresh produce more often, removing a couple types of food that are detrimental to the human body and drinking a ton of water. The 30 day challenge was easy, interesting and most of all it was FUN.

Here’s the thing folks, it’s NEVER the “right” time to change old habits and dedicate yourself to the body you want. You actually have to choose the life you want and the body you want. Someday is NOT listed on the calendar, there’s only Monday-Sunday.

To eat clean and lean really means to eat how the human body was designed to, to go back to before fast foods and processed foods that take 3 years to expire. It means to take out all the ingredients you can’ t pronounce and EAT REAL FOOD. You’re a real person right? So eating real food makes sense…

If you all want to come out and learn more about our Clean and Lean Nutrition Plan, get out to 901 Minnesota street tomorrow night at 7:15pm! See you all then!

12 Ways to Avoid Holiday Binging

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I just stopped by my good friend Paul’s incredible Semi Private Training studio called the T Spot in Huntington Beach. He has decorated his facility to look outstanding this month and his wife Caroline was busy making her yummy protein cookies (I will let you know once her cookbook comes out. They are fantastic!) These two have worked so hard to achieve all of their goals together and I can’t wait to build something similar in San Francisco for our amazing clients.

While I was there I did some brainstorming with a couple of their most successful clients. We chatted about things they were doing to stay in shape throughout the holiday season. They shared some great tips with me that I wanted to pass along to you, so enjoy!

12 Ways to Avoid Holiday Binging:

1) Plan out your month – Put all parties you have been invited to in your calendar and plan your weekly menu around them. This way you can spread your caloric intake throughout the week and not overload on carbs or sugar 2+ days in a row. Recording your parties on a calendar makes it easier for you to see where you will want to splurge a little. Plan eat clean around the event.

2) Keep your exercise consistent – It is so much harder to put something bad in your mouth when you know how hard you just worked to keep your waistline slim. You will end up making better choices to avoid participating in additional hard workouts.

3) Make your shopping trips a workout – take the stairs when you can and park your car farther away than normal. Challenge yourself by carrying heavy bags. The more movement you get, the more calories you burn.

4) Don’t feel like all efforts are lost – if you do eat a little more than you should at your office holiday party, don’t feel like all your efforts have been lost! This can be extremely de-motivating and is another reason why planning out your month is so important.

5) Practice a 2 drink maximum – The influx of alcohol in your diet can really add up around the holidays. Drink slowly and cut yourself off after 2 max! Also, if you are going to drink, try to stick with red wine, gin or vodka with soda water and don’t use sugary mixers.

6) Shift your mindset to maintain your weight around the Holidays and not feel pressured to lose weight.- Save that for our Janurary “Your Best body Challenge” (more info coming soon! It’s going to be bigger than ever and a great way to get back in shape!)

7) Do something active with your friends and family – enjoy winter activities like the ice skating rink downtown or taking a day trip to Tahoe for some fun in the snow.

8) Write out your New Years goals so you are all set to go on Jan 1.  Start to think about how you will make good changes in your life to stay healthy in the new year.  Writing this out early will program your mindset to be health focused so you will avoid over eating.

9) Do some winter cleaning and decorating -  Getting your house festive for the season can be a great workout – lifting trees, boxes of decorations, climbing up and down ladders to put up lights – all of these can provide a great day of activity.

10) Don’t let yourself get to the “super crazy hungry Point” – make sure your meals are well rounded so you won’t be tempted by the bowls of candy and cookies at the office.

11) Keep yourself occupied – work can get slow during the holidays but if it does try not let yourself get bored. Go on a walk, start planning out your new year, make more time for you so you won’t be tempted by the office snacks.

12) Just say yes! Don’t deprive yourself all the time. Holidays are a time for food, friends and fun. It is not worth isolating yourself over. Practice Portion control and enjoy everything in moderation.

Bonus Tip!! – Think about any health goal you would like to achieve by the end of 2011 (remember this does not have to be weight loss related). It could be anything – doing 5 more push ups, taking a long hike, getting to workouts 3 times a week every week this month- If you write this down and stay focused on it, you will be less likely to over eat around the holidays.

Top 5 Tips to Avoid Overindulging on Halloween Candy

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I decided to keep this post short and to the point. If you know you are someone who has trouble staying away from the office candy, these tips are designed for you, enjoy!

1) Refuse the Office Candy! – If you work in an office there are bound to be some Halloween treats hanging around. To avoid eating them, especially when you get hungry make sure to keep some healthy and tasty
snacks at your desk. Snacks such as fruit and nuts can still fulfill that sweet craving without destroying your waistline.

2) Buy Candy You Don’t Like - If you have trick- or -treaters coming to your house, the last thing you want is a pantry full of sugar filled snacks that are easily accessible. Purchase candy that doesn’t temp you to eat the whole bag.

3) Manage Your Hunger – Make sure to eat a healthy breakfast with protein (eggs), whole grain carbs (steel cut oats) and healthy fat (yolks of eggs). This way you can keep yourself from having a carb-fest  because your
body will feel more satisfied.

4) Get Out and Take a Walk – Instead of being at the house with all the candy in the pantry, go and do something active with your friends or family to keep it out of site, out of mind.

5) Count Your Wrappers - If you do start indulging, keep your wrappers in front of you so you can keep track how many pieces you are eating. This may hold you back from having that 3rd or 4th piece.

One Ingredient Adding More Lbs to Your Waistline

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I recently watched a 1 hour 30 min video on 2 ingredients that our society has been totally hooked on for the past 30 years. These ingredients are majorly adding lbs to your waistline as we are all eating them in abundance, a lot of times without even knowing it…

Sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup

The Video is Called “Sugar: The Bitter Truth” By Dr. Lustig.

Now, the average American is consuming around 141 lbs of sugar per year. And it turns out that Americans are eating between 197-335 more calories per day than they did 40 years back. Which seems very strange because most people are way less active than they were 40 years ago…

So what’s going on with the increased caloric intake and what is the cause?

If you ask Dr Lustig from UCSF, he has a very interesting take on the matter.
In his video “Sugar: The Bitter truth,” he talks about fructose as being a “poison” to the body and discusses the adverse effects of fructose which opened my eyes to a very scary situation we have going on in America and around the world.

He explained that back in 1982, the American Heart Association, the USDA both told Americans to decrease calories from they consume and increase calories they consume from carbohydrates. That is why low fat desert products like Snack Wells became so popular. Because they were Fat free. The problem was that they were loaded with calories from sugar. But contrary to what our government was telling us, as our calories from fat went down, obesity, heart disease and risk of metabolic syndrome rose significantly.

The main type of sweetener that is now used in foods is fructose. You can find it in sodas, fruit juices, snacks, chips, cookies, crackers, even Nutra Grain bars.

Here are 4 major problems with fructose:
1) Fructose does not suppress your hunger hormone ghrelin. So if you are drinking a soda with with fast food, it is harder for your body to determine when you are full. Kids do it all the time which is probably why kids are getting fatter by the minute. It’s not just that they have a sedentary lifestyle. And the more they eat sugar while they are young, the more they will crave it later on in life.
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2) Fructose does not stimulate insulin in your body. If insulin does not go, up, your hormone leptin which tells your brain that you are full is not activated. In other words, your brain has no idea when to tell you to stop eating! This is probably why Americans are consuming more calories now than 30 years ago.

3) Your liver does not process fructose in the same way it processes sugar because it does not recognize it. When too much fructose enters the liver, the liver can’t process it all fast enough for the body to use as sugar. Instead, it starts making fats from the fructose and sending them off into the bloodstream as triglycerides. Why is this bad? This is bad because high blood triglycerides are a risk factor for heart disease.

4) Fructose consumption changes the way your brain thinks of energy. Your brain thinks your starving and gets the signal that you are staving when your fat cells are in actuality overwhelmed by the amount of sugar they have to process.

After watching this video, I did some research at Safeway myself and found some type of sugar and fructose are in practically every packaged food. In fact, to be honest, I didn’t come across 1 loaf of bread, box of crackers or snack food that did not have some type of sugar or high fructose corn syrup in it.

The worse of the 2 evils, high fructose corn syrup was in most kid’s snacks, low fat snacks, kid’s breakfast items, and inexpensive snacks and junk foods, probably because it tastes sweeter than sugar itself.

So how can you limit your consumption of these or avoid eating them all together?

  1. Shop on the exterior of the grocery store. This is where all your non-packaged healthful foods live.
  2. Don’t eat foods with bar codes (this one is straight from Audra Baker, our nutrition educator.)
  3. Eat whole foods – fruits, vegetables, proteins, healthy fats
  4. Snack on something you would eat for lunch or dinner (veggies with chicken, veggies with hummus)
  5. Make your kids fun snacks like apples with almond butter or celery with almond butter and raisins.

That’s all I got. Please hit the like button at the top and share it with your friends so they can avoid this too! Also, when you have some free time, check out this video for yourself by clicking here.

 

 

 

My 5 Day Vegas Diet

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I think we can all admit that bathing suit shape is different from normal San Francisco cloudy -weather shape:-). You can hide behind clothing living in this city pretty easily with all the fog and wind.

But this means when an opportunity arises for some fun in the sun, most people go on a rampage to get in shape quickly.

Even I like to drop those last couple pounds before heading anywhere I have to rock a bikini and skimpy dress for a few days!

 

I will be heading to Vegas this weekend with all my friends, so my diet and workouts are my #1 focus right now.

 

Many of my ‘secret’ dieting techniques I steal from my friend Audra’s Clean and Lean Challenge.  And they work without fail Every time! (BTW We are starting another 30 day Clean and Lean Challenge on September 20th so if you want to beat the rush and learn how our clients are dropping between 5-20 lbs in 30 days, register for our Free Nutrition Seminar here. )

Okay, onto my meal plan for the week:

Sunday

  • Breakfast – 2 eggs with sauteed spinach
  • Lunch – chicken on a bed of of mixed greens, tomatoes, cabbage, onions
  • Dinner – salmon with broccoli, mixed greens

Monday

  • Breakfast – 2 poached eggs with mixed greens and salsa
  • Lunch – avocado and chicken spinach salad
  • Dinner- asparagus, mushroom, onion stir fry with greens and sirloin steak

Tuesday

  • Breakfast – 2 eggs scrambled with sauteed kale
  • Lunch – walnut broccoli with carrots, greens and halibut
  • Dinner – Left over from Tuesday night

Wednesday

  • Breakfast – 2 eggs sunny side up with spinach
  • Lunch – southern greens chicken wraps with carrots, cabbage, greens and onions
  • Dinner – same as lunch

Thursday

  • Breakfast – 2 eggs with mixed greens
  • Lunch – spinach and salmon salad (that was my plan. I ended up losing all will and cheating due to Dan Martin’s amazing sandwiches he had for us post workout at our Coyote Point KB club – turkey, cheese, avocado, arugula- just the yummiest sammies! But you all should stick to the salmon with spinach:-)
  • Dinner – chicken and veggie stir fry

** On all of these days if I have to snack, I will snack on something I cooked for lunch or dinner (eg. making a little extra in case I get hungry mid day)

Friday – Off to Vegas baby! (No dieting here:-)

Seriously, anyone can do this for 5 days.

But if you have some real  poundage to lose, you can actually use this diet for a longer period of time. This is why our Clean and Lean Challenge is so effective. You have the support and motivation of an incredible nutrition coach and an actual plan of action to help you get through the 30 days and beyond. That way when weekend outings come up you can be ready in a flash!

Tune in next Monday when I share my 2 week Vegas Workout Plan!

You should try out this meal plan with me and let me know how you feel by leaving a post on the blog below!

I’ll talk to you when I get back.

How Many Carbs Should I Eat To Lose Weight?

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Are you a person who is certain you are eating healthy most of the time but cannot seem to drop weight to save your life?

Most of the time clients I start to work with come to me thinking their nutrition is spot on, but the problem is that they can’t seem to lose a pound of weight on their own.

And I don’t blame them.

With all the conflicting information out there about what you “should and shouldn’t” eat, how is anyone suppose to know how to eat well nowadays?

During my new client consultations, I always ask for a sample menu of what they ate yesterday. 90% of the time I know what my clients are thinking and it goes something like this…

‘Well, yesterday is a bad example…. I usually eat really healthy and try not to eat too many carbs…’

But when I look at the menu they write out, the number 1 thing I see are carbs!

  1. Breakfast: Oatmeal or Cereal with Dried fruit – TRANSLATION= Carbs, a little dairy and More carbs
  2. Lunch: Sandwich – TRANSLATION = Carbs, some protein
  3. Dinner: Bowl of pasta for dinner – TRANSLATION = Carbs with tomato sauce carbs and maybe some protein. Not to mention the Glass or 2 of wine which is even More Carbs

Even if you are practicing portion control and are an avid ‘whole grain eater‘ this menu is probably not going to aid you in your weight loss efforts.

So what does a low carb diet look like?

A low carb diet typically consists of filling up on proteins, healthy fats and non-starchy veggies.

And when I present this idea to clients and let them know that I think it’s best to cut out grainy type carbs for the most part or even completely, they are shocked! They will always ask me how they will have enough energy for their days or their workouts if they cut out all carbs.

But notice how I didn’t say all carbs, just the grainy ones.

When we think of carbs, the following items come to mind:

  • Breads
  • Pastas
  • Crackers
  • Oatmeal
  • Rice
  • Chips

Rarely do we think about carbs also coming from the vegetables. And this along with eating enough protein is the #1 thing that has helped me and my most successful clients lose weight.

So my answer to the question above is you can actually eat crazy amounts of carbs, I’m talking 8, 10, 12 cups a day or between 2-4 cups per meal! As long as they are from non-starchy vegetables. :-)

In terms of eating grainy carbs, I usually recommend trying to eliminate them completely or trying to limit the amount you are eating substantially if you are trying to lose weight. And here is my reason: During digestion, your body converts carbohydrates into sugar. As your blood sugar level rises, so does your insulin level. Insulin drives blood sugar into your cells to provide energy. Extra sugar is stored in your liver and muscles as glycogen. But with all that extra sugar in your system, it is important that you actually use it! Most of the time, we are stuck working in an office with little movement for 8-10 hours a day. You really don’t need all that extra sugar in your body. It’s just not necessary. In addition to that, many types of grains cause inflammation in the body which can further inhibit your ability to drop or maintain weight.

So let’s re-cap. Eating a ton of non-starchy vegetable carbs will help you lose weight, grainy carbs will not.

I hope you found this helpful! If so, click the “like” button at the top and leave a comment;-).

 

 

Top 10 Foods I Eat (Most:-) Days

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We all have staples in our diet that we love to eat. I have been getting a lot of questions regarding the foods I eat on a daily / weekly basis so I decided to go all out with this post and show you my favorite, easy foods items I eat to stay healthy.

Here they are:

1) Mixed Baby Greens – I try to eat about 6 cups a day of this (3 cups at breakfast, lunch and/or dinner). I am lazy so it helps me get my veggies in when I’m in a rush. High in vitamin A, iron and Vitamin C. The calcium in greens is also more bio available to your body than milk!

Mixed Baby Greens - Spinach, Arugula, Swiss Chard, radicchio

 

 

2) Kombucha – an amazing fermented drink. Fermented foods aid in healing your digestive system, is cleansing to your system, rich in vitamins and minerals and is a great fizzy alternative to sodas. Note: If you’ve never had a Kombucha, try it at least 3 times! That’s when I started enjoying them. It is probably the healthiest beverage you can drink. Make sure to chose brands that are low in sugar (less than 5g per serving).

Synergy Kombucha is my favorite

3) I take prograde vitamins everyday. Their wellness package rocks! In this package you’ll find a multi vitamin with 25 whole fruits and veggies, the highest quality krill (fish) oil, and an antioxidant to fight off free radicals. This is an absolute staple of mine!

Prograde Vitamins I take

 

4) Eggs – One of my nutrition teachers said “Eggs need a facebook page!” And I totally agree. They suffered from a bad reputation for a long time but people are finally coming around! Eggs are super high in omega 3s, are great to eat in the morning to help balance out your blood sugar, have 13 essential vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. I eat 2 every morning with the yellows and it keeps me full and satisfied.

Eggs

5) Apple Cider Vinegar -  is an effective natural bacteria-fighting agent that contains many vital minerals and trace elements such as potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous to name a few. I take 2 cap fulls of it before most meals. It aids in digestion of all foods and is alkalizing to the system.

Apple Cider Vinager

6) Fish – one of the best types of omega 3s for the body are found in fish. Fish is high in protein, contains healthy fat, help sfight heart disease and the list goes on. I try to eat fish 2-3 times a week.

7) Kale – one of the most nutritious foods for the least amount of calories. Kale is high in vitamin a, c, k, contains antioxidants, combats cancer, aids in detoxification. Kale is great sauteed with garlic, red onions and olive oil. It also tastes great as a chip!

Kale


8) Healthy Fats – I think it’s good to eat about 2 thumb sizes of healthy fat per every main meal you consume. (Eg breakfast, lunch and dinner). Since I usually get this from eggs at breakfast, for lunch and dinner I rely on olive oil, coconut oil, avocado almonds or walnuts.

Healthy Fats

 

9) Sauerkraut – This tastes amazing with sausage and salads. Sauerkraut contains tons of healthy and healing bacteria for your gut.

sauerkraut

10) Meat – I am a huge carnivore and love eating meat – chicken, steak, turkey, pork, really anything that is available in my house. Eating 2-4 ounces of meat for lunch and dinner helps me stay full and focused during my day.

 

 

If you have any foods you eat on a regular basis to stay healthy, post them below. The more ideas the merrier! Have an awesome week.

xo

Kristen

 

Myth about Calorie Burning

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I was in Orlando at a fitness conference a week ago meeting with professionals in the industry from all over the world. One of them, who I truly respect named Dan John (he’s actually a bay area local) got up to speak about the state of fitness programming in America. One of the facts he stated really emphasized how important diet is when it comes to getting in shape.

He said that if an elite athlete runs an entire marathon, they will only burn around 2600 calories!

Wow, that’s it? 2600 calories?  Not very much if you ask me…

Time and time again, I hear people around me talking about going to the gym for 2 hours to “burn off the huge meal, dessert and drinks from the night before.” Seems like this will actually take a lot more work than what they are thinking. So let’s evaluate how many calories are in some food items to put this in perspective:

  • 1 Glass of wine 150-200 calories
  • 1 Beer 150-250 calories
  • Bagel with cream cheese – 600 calories
  • 1 piece of cake – 350
  • 1 bowl of pasta with cream sauce – 600 calories
  • starbucks mocha – 400 calories
  • brownie – 300 calories

The most shocking:

  • Cheese Fries (appetizer size), 3,000 calories, 217 grams fat and 90 grams saturated fat
  • Pizza Hut Sausage Big New Yorker, per slice, 570 calories, 33 grams fat, 14 grams saturated fat
  • Starbucks Venti White Chocolate Mocha with whipped cream, 600 Calories, 25 grams fat, 15 grams saturated fat.
  • Starbucks Scone, 530 Calories, 26 grams fat, 16 grams saturated fat

And just when you thought you were being healthy:

  • Tuna Salad Sandwich, 830 Calories, 56 grams fat, 10 grams saturated fat
  • Chicken Caesar Salad, 660 Calories, 46 grams fat, 11 grams of saturated fat

If the average workout you are doing on your own will only burn about 200 calories, you are hardly able to out-train some of those less than optimal food choices in one hour at the gym. I’m not actually an avid calorie counter myself but some of these numbers are pretty shocking. This means that to burn off a tuna salad sandwich, you better get yourself to the gym for about 4 hours!

One of my biggest goals as a fitness expert is to get our clients to understand just how important your mindset needs to be around your training and nutrition when it comes to weight loss. The two go hand in hand and our most successful clients realize this straight away.

And trust me, I am not trying to take anything away from working out because there are a Ton of amazing bennefits to exercising:

  • Toning your muscles
  • Getting you stronger
  • Increasing serotonin (the feel good hormone)
  • Decreasing stress
  • Decreasing risk of heart disease
  • Decreasing pain
  • Decreasing stiffness in joints
  • Decreasing risk of arthritis and osteoporosis
  • Giving you more energy
  • Helping you age more gracefully
  • Yes, burning calories if you are doing effective workouts, but still not as many as you may think!
  • And the list goes on…

I just think it’s important that people know and understand how necessary it is to combine both the nutrition and the exercise components when trying to get healthy, lose and maintain weight.

If you’ve had experience with this or have any questions about this blog, leave a comment below! We’d love to hear from you..

 

Myth about Calorie Burning

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I was in Orlando at a fitness conference a week ago meeting with professionals in the industry from all over the world. One of them, who I truly respect named Dan John (he’s actually a bay area local) got up to speak about the state of fitness programming in America. One of the facts he stated really emphasized how important diet is when it comes to getting in shape.

He said that if an elite athlete runs an entire marathon, they will only burn around 2600 calories!

Wow, that’s it? 2600 calories?  Not very much if you ask me…

Time and time again, I hear people around me talking about going to the gym for 2 hours to “burn off the huge meal, dessert and drinks from the night before.” Seems like this will actually take a lot more work than what they are thinking. So let’s evaluate how many calories are in some food items to put this in perspective:

  • 1 Glass of wine 150-200 calories
  • 1 Beer 150-250 calories
  • Bagel with cream cheese – 600 calories
  • 1 piece of cake – 350
  • 1 bowl of pasta with cream sauce – 600 calories
  • starbucks mocha – 400 calories
  • brownie – 300 calories

The most shocking:

  • Cheese Fries (appetizer size), 3,000 calories, 217 grams fat and 90 grams saturated fat
  • Pizza Hut Sausage Big New Yorker, per slice, 570 calories, 33 grams fat, 14 grams saturated fat
  • Starbucks Venti White Chocolate Mocha with whipped cream, 600 Calories, 25 grams fat, 15 grams saturated fat.
  • Starbucks Scone, 530 Calories, 26 grams fat, 16 grams saturated fat

And just when you thought you were being healthy:

  • Tuna Salad Sandwich, 830 Calories, 56 grams fat, 10 grams saturated fat
  • Chicken Caesar Salad, 660 Calories, 46 grams fat, 11 grams of saturated fat

If the average workout you are doing on your own will only burn about 200 calories, you are hardly able to out-train some of those less than optimal food choices in one hour at the gym. I’m not actually an avid calorie counter myself but some of these numbers are pretty shocking. This means that to burn off a tuna salad sandwich, you better get yourself to the gym for about 4 hours!

One of my biggest goals as a fitness expert is to get our clients to understand just how important your mindset needs to be around your training and nutrition when it comes to weight loss. The two go hand in hand and our most successful clients realize this straight away.

And trust me, I am not trying to take anything away from working out because there are a Ton of amazing bennefits to exercising:

  • Toning your muscles
  • Getting you stronger
  • Increasing serotonin (the feel good hormone)
  • Decreasing stress
  • Decreasing risk of heart disease
  • Decreasing pain
  • Decreasing stiffness in joints
  • Decreasing risk of arthritis and osteoporosis
  • Giving you more energy
  • Helping you age more gracefully
  • Yes, burning calories if you are doing effective workouts, but still not as many as you may think!
  • And the list goes on…

I just think it’s important that people know and understand how necessary it is to combine both the nutrition and the exercise components when trying to get healthy, lose and maintain weight.

If you’ve had experience with this or have any questions about this blog, leave a comment below! We’d love to hear from you..

 

7 Tips for Eating Well When You Travel + Fast Dumb Bell Circuit

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I was in Orlando this past weekend for a very informative business meeting with fitness professionals from all over the US. We just finished writing our new book called “3 Steps to Your Best Body in Record Time” which will be released in a few weeks. (more on this later…).

I was staying in a hotel that was not close to many healthy restaurants. So, I had to find ways to eat well between meetings and resist the free happy hours at the hotel! (That was probably the most challenging part of course, but I found a way:-) See step 3 below..)

Here’s how I did it:

Breakfast

  • Luckily the hotel had an omelet station for breakfast which I know is not usually the case. So, I had a 2 egg omelet with a heap of spinach, mushrooms, peppers and tomatoes. If that was not there, I would have had either 2 hard boiled eggs with a piece of fruit or scrambled eggs and a piece of fruit (since veggies don’t usually make the breakfast list unfortunately).

Lunch

  • They had some standard and very small mixed green lettuce salads, chicken sandwiches and burgers. So, I ordered 2 side salads to get my greens in with dressing on the side and a chicken sandwich with no bun. Put the chicken on top of the salad and it was perfect!

Dinner

  • Sirloin Steak with steamed veggies. This happened to be a menu option so I was good to go. I did ask them to not add any butter to the veggies and not over-steam them so I could still get some vitamins in!

Saturday I had a true cheat night all in moderation of course! (That is a huge trick with cheat days). We went out to a Spanish Tapas Bar and had wine, paella and peanut butter pie for dessert. But Sunday I was right back on it with the Same healthy foods I had Friday. I’ve learned that keeping my cheat days to one max per week will not make me gain weight if it is in moderation.

Here are 7 Tips for Eating Well While you Travel + A Fast Dumb Bell Exercise Circuit You Can Use on Your Trip:

  1. If you know where you are going, plan ahead. Check out the menus and combine the healthiest veggies and meats on them, then stick to your plan. Leave the buns off burgers and sandwiches, order a big salad with dressing on the side, tell the kitchen to leave heavy sauces off your meats, avoid white carby meals. This is especially important when you are sitting all day in meetings. Carby meals and heavy foods like pastas, big sandwiches, or meats with thick fatty sauces will just get you tired and run down. Oh and avoid fried foods but that was probably a given..
  2. You’re on vacation so of course you’ll have at a cheat day. Try to Plan it out and resolve to only eat poorly on this day or even better for one meal and in moderation of course.
  3. During happy hours or nights out, try to stick with soda water and lime instead of drinking a bunch of alcohol. This way you can keep yourself social without drinking 1000 calories.
  4. Keep a piece of fruit and nuts with you during long meetings so you don’t get too hungry and gorge yourself at lunch or dinner time.
  5. Modify meals on the menus to fit your healthy eating plan.
  6. Keep your food journal going on your trip so you can hold yourself accountable.
  7. Schedule in a 20 min workout to get yourself moving and get your heart rate up. All you need is dumb bells for this one:

** 15 reps each back to back, 3 rounds after a warm up

  • Squat + Shoulder Press (hold dumb bells at shoulders, squat and press overhead)
  • Decline Mountain Climber Plank (face down, balls of feet on bench, cross knees to elbows in front of your body. Don’t do this one if your core is not as strong. Just hold a plank for 30 sec to 1 minute instead)
  • Rows (flat back, pull dumb bells back and squeeze shoulder blades
  • Dumb Bell Raise over Head with Squat (hold your core, squat and swing a dumb bell over your head with slightly bent elbows. You should feel your abs engaged and your upper back muscles pulling the dumb bell over your head)

Hope this helps you on your next trip. If you have more things that you do to stay healthy on your travels, leave a comment below!

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