Workout Videos for your home

If you like a lot of variety and you would like to workout at home, I found a great website that will help you do just that. My Pypeline is a great website for accessing and downloading videos that you can use anytime you want. It is probably cheaper than joining a gym and you can repeat or select a new workout whenever you want. The great thing is that it is on your schedule. Use it whenever you want.

Stop Smoking

It's so important to quit smoking if at all possible. The biggest problem I face with smokers is that their healing process is slowed down after an injury. Let's talk about what happens to a smoker's body after they quit smoking.

Your Body's Healing Process
Within an hour of the last cigarette you smoke, your body will start to get healthier and will continue to heal over time.
As your body begins this healing process, however, you may actually feel worse for a while! This will pass. Remember that withdrawal symptoms are actually signs that your body is recovering.
Within 20 minutes of your last cigarette...
Your blood pressure begins to drop, your pulse rate returns to normal, and your hands and feet warm up to normal body temperature.
8 hours
The oxygen level in your blood increases and the carbon monoxide level drops.
24 hours
Your chance of heart attack may be reduced.
48 hours
Your senses of smell and taste are enhanced.
72 hours
Your lung capacity increases.
2 weeks to 3 months
Your circulation improves and your lung function may increase up to 20 percent.
1 month to 9 months
Coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, and shortness of breath may decrease noticeably as your overall energy level increases. Your lungs begin to work more efficiently.
5 years
The average (one pack a day) smoker’s chances of contracting lung cancer decrease.
10 years
Your chances of contracting other tobacco-related cancers (mouth, bladder, esophagus, pancreas) decrease.
(These are general measures that will vary according to the individual and her smoking habits)
©1996 American Lung Association® of Washington

Fat Loss Secrets - Revealed - Newsletter from June 15th

Those of you who know me real well, know that I don't sit still very long. I've been working hard, and I have some things I really want to share with you. I've been really struggling for a while with the fact that people can be active and just not lose weight very easily. On March 14th of last year I wrote on my blog that I was determined to find what it will take for more people to lose weight. Well, I've been researching, and I've stumbled upon something that I never expected. Many of things that we talk about in the fitness industry is wrong. At least that's the way it appears right now. I really don't know how to say it any other way. There is research that completely contradicts some of the beliefs we hold dear to. Let me give you some examples:

• Low Carbohydrate vs. Low Fat diets. Which one really works the best?
• Aerobic Exercise. If you do aerobic cardio 5 days a week for 6 months, how many pounds can you really expect to lose?
• Calories in, Calories out. If 2 people consume the same number of calories and burn off the same number of calories, could they expect to see the same results?
• Either lose fat or gain muscle. Can you lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?
• Spot Reducing. Is it possible to lost bodyfat in just one part of the body?
• Fishy Results. Can eating more fish show a significant change in your waistline?
• Supplements. Are they a big waste of time, or do certain supplements really give you better results?
• "Fat Burning" Zone. This one will probably get me in trouble, so let me present it with the research to back it up.
• Strength Training vs. Aerobics. Which one will help you lose weight the fastest?
• EPOC. Don't know what it is? It could have a major role in your results.
  

I realize that some of the things I am going to say in the upcoming e-mails may contradict things that I have told people in the past. However, I am willing to open my eyes to new research results as long as they are credible studies. That's why each e-mail will only cover one topic, explained in full, and have sources to back up everything I am saying. So I apologize that I'm not giving you the answers to all of the topics above, but I have to do this the right way.
In the meantime, have a great week, and watch for my next e-mail.

If you are not a member of my newsletter yet, sign up at the top, right hand corner of my blog. I will never sell or give away your e-mail address and you will only receive tips from my newsletter 1-4 times a month.

Houston is among the top Walk Friendly cities in the United States

It's interesting how we always hear that Houston was one of the fattest cities in the United States, but here is something a little easier to swallow. Houston was #21 on the most Pedestrian Friendly cities in the US.


METRO-AREA RANKINGSA Brookings Institution survey ranks the 30 biggest metropolitan areas according to the number of "walkable urban places" relative to the area's population:
1. Washington
2. Boston
3. San Francisco
4. Denver
5. Portland, Ore.
6. Seattle
7. Chicago
8. Miami
9. Pittsburgh
10. New York
11. San Diego
12. Los Angeles
13. Philadelphia
14. Atlanta
15. Baltimore
16. St. Louis
17. Minneapolis
18. Detroit
19. Columbus, Ohio
20. Las Vegas
21. Houston
22. San Antonio
23. Kansas City, Mo.
24. Orlando, Fla.
25. Dallas
26. Phoenix
27. Sacramento, Calif.
28. Cincinnati
29. Cleveland
30. Tampa, Fla.
— Associated Press


More Information

Pedometers will encourage you to walk further

Sometimes it amazes me that there are stories that state the obvious. Pedometers are designed to encourage you to walk more, and it turns out.......it's true. Two published articles explain a little more about it. The New York Times and the San Francisco Chronicle.

The stories state that they found that people walked an average of 2,000 steps more when they wear a pedometer than when they don't. It's basically about accountability and pedometers are a great way to keep yourself accountable. I have one that I wear every day and it's fun to see how you do. Take a look at the stories, and if you get a pedometer, I highly suggest the accusplit. It's been extremely reliable, sturdy, and doesn't fall off or move around a lot. If you are looking for a way to be more active, this is a great for you to get started.

The order of doing exercises. Is it important?

There are so many people that don't realize that the order in which you do physical activity makes a big difference on the success (or lack thereof) of your results. Take for instant something like posture deviations in our body, which occur over time causing/resulting from incorrect movement patterns. So I always suggest people start with a foam roller, followed up by stretching, some basic corrective exercises, and then a warmup. This is so important because if you start warming up before you have stretched the proper muscles, it could cause you to use the wrong muscles the entire workout, thus limiting your desired results.

To make this more simple....let's say you are doing a normal workout and have a desire to tone up and lose weight. The best solution is to begin with a simple warmup, followed up by your strength training. Begin with the large muscle groups and work down to the smaller muscle groups. Follow that up with your cardio and use that to focus on your fat burning. Taking it out of order can make it harder to see your results over time.

I'll try to do an article on this on katyfitness.com in the near future.

Workouts Delivered to Your E-mail Address

There are a lot of people around Katy that have great ambitions and strive to workout to get results, but all too often I watch people workout using incorrect form. I've been thinking a lot about the project I'm working on to help people get in better shape and how I can help do my part. I thought I would start by creating workouts that I could send to people that have safe, effective exercises that could easily be done at home. I don't have a real easy way of doing it, but I will put together pictures, descriptions, and videos that you can view anywhere you have internet access.
View an Example.
I'll e-mail new workouts to you monthly, and provide some fitness tips to you, as well as alert you about health and wellness events going on around Katy that particular month. If there is anything else I can provide to you, let me know and I'll do my best to include it.

Just add your e-mail address to the Katy Fitness Newsletter box, and I'll send you an at-home workout that you can do in your own living room.

Weight Loss Drugs.....For Your Canine?

Everyone wants a magic pill to lose weight, well now there's one for your pet dog. It turns out that it's not just the owners of the pets that are overweight, but that habit has now been passed on to the pets, and now 40% of pets are overweight. The pills cost $1-2 a day but they also suggests that you exercise the pets and also alter their diet. It's amazing how we are now turning to quick fixes for even our pets now. If we would just alter our pets food and exercise habits, they would be in better shape and so would we. Maybe if we took our pets for walks we could get in better shape ourselves. It's amazing how our society has changed so much over the years. Read More

What will happen next? stay tuned.....

A New Year and a New Mindset

I don't know why, but we tend to avoid stretching when we go to the gym. Actually, let me rephrase that, we don't stretch if we go to the gym or not. Take a look at the people you are around. Do you see people's heads leaning forward, their shoulders rounded, maybe you see their feet turned out when they walk? Maybe you should take a quick look in the mirror too. I know I personally have my right foot turn out simply because I don't stretch the calf muscle and do individual single leg calf raises. There are so many simple things you can do to correct your posture and avoid some of the neck pain, back pain, and even knee pain that you have. Paul Chek recently wrote an article about stretching and mentioned two excellent books:

• How to Eat, Move, and Be Healthy! - This is a book for the general population that discusses eating habits, stretching prescription based on posture deviations, and some general workout principals. The nutrition is based on eating by metabolic type. It's a good book that I've looked through. I haven't applied it to anyone's routine yet, but it does have some great information. I do recommend this book. He gets a little weird in some parts of it, but you have to overlook that. Paul Chek is new age in his thinking. In some ways I would consider him a genius, in other ways I completely disagree with him. His principals are solid though and could be followed by the average person, which is often missing from a lot of other diet books I've read.


• The Golf Biomechanic's Manual - To be honest, I know some personal trainers that can't understand this book. It has the most detailed posture assessment I've ever seen, and I use it all the time. I can't wait until I can fly out to California and go through his golf certification class (based on the principals of this book). If you don't know the names of your muscles, you will have a hard time getting through this book. He goes through posture deviations in magnificant detail, explains what to do stretch by stretch, and how each stretch will improve your golf swing. I fell in love with it just from the technicality of it.

Going back to his article though. Take a look at it and learn the importance of stretching, and if you have trouble understanding it......that's what I'm here for. Just let me know.

Weight Loss Buddy

I ran across an interesting website called Weight Loss Buddy. It helps you find other people in your area with the same goals as you that can help you stay accountable. I have always felt that the two most important things in helping someone achieve results are education and accountability. That's the reason I started the Katy Group Meetings a while back. I want to use it to educate the residents of Katy, and then have them hold each other accountable.
Anyway, I'm not completely sold on this program just yet until I hear from someone that's used it before and has had success with it. It sounds like a great concept. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Obesity: Exercise or Diet?

Considering there are billions spent on diets and weight loss pills every year, this article might surprise you. There was a study done recently that had obese individuals start adding some exercise into their daily routine, cut down on portions of food, and they saw results at the end. It wasn't a dramatic change in weight, but there body responded really well. Blood pressure, heart rate, and cholesterol all improved with just some small changes. Take a look at the article. You might be suprised at how easy it was for people to see changes in the body.

Small Steps

Have a big goal, and realize you have a big goal? Big goals are often overwhelming, and you have to readjust your mindset and focus on a small goal instead, suggests Madison Chase Fitness. When you focus on a small goal, you can stay more motivated than if you focus on the bigger picture. A beginning program they came up with looks like this:

Level A

Step 1: Begin by setting realistic fitness goals. (2 pounds per week)

Step 2: Find a partner who will help you meet your fitness goals. (A
positive friend, co-worker, boyfriend/ girlfriend, or spouse.

Step 3: Establish a reward that both of you are interested in.

Step 4: Set a realistic time frame to achieve your goals

Step 5: Come up with your program: (Walking 2 times per day for 30
minutes)

Step 6: Increase your fruits and vegetables and decrease your
sugar, sodium, cheese, fried foods, and juices.

Step 7: Get Started.

I think this is a great plan! It has small goals, changes in nutrition, changes in lifestyle habits, and accountability. It's very basic, but the basics are everything. For more detail visit the article.