Don't Get Discouraged

Life changes don't happen over night. As we embark on a new 6 weeks of classes I have to remind everyone that these changes won't happen in a few hours days or sometimes even weeks, but they will happen. Don't lose sight of the goal. This 6 week class is only the beginning, this is just to get you on your way. You will probably see the biggest results the last 3 weeks because your body is finally getting in the "mode" of exercising and it is starting to respond accordingly.

If you keep the end in mind it will be much easier on you. Keep fighting one more day and if you can make it just 1 more day then you will reach the end and your results will be noticeable.

Let's do it better this time !!!!

We just successfully ended our first class for weight loss and fitness. We had 2 winners. One person lost 12 pounds and one lost 15 1/2 inches. That is a BIG loss in 6 weeks, and they are not done. They signed up for our next class. They plan on winning again too. With this next class we are going to have more people than we did in the first one. We will expect more out of our class and we are going to push the students even harder. We are going to require a greater commitment because we want to see even BIGGER numbers this time.

Our next class starts tomorrow night (7/14) and we plan on having even bigger losses and we are expecting a real running for the prize this time.

Congratulations to our students and Welcome to a HEALTHIER LIFE! Good Luck!!!

Answer to your question......

FROM THIS--------->

Thank you Caryn (not KAREN) for asking this question and here is my answer (except Alisha stole my thunder). Sorry it took me so long, you know finals and stuff.

She is right though, targeting abdominal fat alone is very difficult. I do know one way to target abdominal fat but it involves anesthesia and a knife.
Your body puts fat where IT wants it NOT where you want it. The abdomen, thighs, hips, and buttock are the best place for it to store fat because that is the easiest place for your body to carry it. Meaning it takes less energy to carry fat in those areas than it does other places.

On the opposite side of the coin, the body will eliminate fat in the areas that IT wants to as well. So if you expel energy and your body burns fat it will burn it from the place that it wants to.

Are you wasting your time doing abs and should you spend that time doing cardio?
NO -

All those crunches and Turbo Jam Abs that you are doing are going to allow your body to burn fat, but maybe not in the areas that you are targeting that day. Chalene is right when she says "Muscle burns fat" (kind of). Basically building muscle burns fat. The energy that is needed to build muscle can come from fat storage in our body. Strength training is very important to weight loss. It allows you to burn fat long after you are done, because of the process your body is going through to rebuild the muscles. So don't quit targeting those areas, targeting is good and it allows your body to pull energy from your whole body and keep fighting after you are done exercising.

However, I do believe in the principle of cross training. Your body can get used to one exercise and if you do that same one over and over again you WILL plateau in your weight loss and your fat blasting. If you change up your routine it will force your body to use different fat storage from different areas (not targeting but incorporating the whole body).

IF you lose that weight through cardio and strengthening your arms and legs you will never have a tight waist. You have to strengthen the core and tighten the abs. Again, on the flip side, you can crunch and crunch and crunch and never see your abs unless you have cardio, and a healthy diet.


Basically, If you do you not get your heart rate up. The fat is going to stay around.

I hope this answers your question if not let me know and I will try again.

Thank you all for reading, please click white button on the side to "FOLLOW" this blog.
TO THIS--------------->

Is Obesity GENETIC? (Who do you get to blame?)

I know I am going to ruffle feathers with this post and you know I am TOTALLY ok with that. As a physician I talk to people about their weight everyday and I often hear "that it is just the way that I am", or "My mom and dad are obese, my brothers and sisters are obese so there is nothing I can do it is genetic in my family." Those are just excuses.

I am here to give my opinion about the subject as well as discuss some legitimate research about this topic. If you are one of these people using this excuse as a crutch then this post will probably make you angry (but maybe for good reason).

Here it is......IS OBESITY GENETIC?...........in my opinion .............. NO!!!!

Now for the literature I have read. I read one article that said that adopted people grow up to have similar body types as their BIOLOGICAL parents. So that would suggest that it is genetic right? Well there is no GENE that has been identified as an Obesity gene so the rationale of the article as well as what I have thought about that is that there are some things that are genetic. Addictions, cravings, depression, and other things that can lead someone to overeat or not exercise.

According to the CDC (center for disease control)

"However genes do not always predict future health. Genes and behavior may both be needed for a person to be overweight. In some cases multiple genes may increase one’s susceptibility for obesity and require outside factors; such abundant food supply or little physical activity."

So genes lead us to having condition that restrict our physical activity or require a higher caloric intake but they are not a direct lead to obesity. The direct link has not been found and so as it sits now the answer by the authorities is that they don't know and that it might have an effect but they don't know how.

Here is my opinion on the subject. I believe that there is a "hereditary" component to obesity but not a genetic one. I know they are basically the same thing. But what I mean in this situation by "hereditary" is something passed down from parent to child. And here is my list of things that may be passed down from parent to child that aids in this epidemic.

1) Disinterest in exercise
2) Poor eating habits
3) Creating excuses for behavior
4) Love for candy, sweets, or other unhealthy foods.
etc. etc. etc.

Those are the kinds of things that we get from our parents that can lead to this pandemic. I am happy to say that I am proud of the way that my parents raised me. My mom ALWAYS had a balanced meal for me to eat. They taught me the importance of moderation in all things and when it is ok to eat NACHOS (BYU football games). I was never pushed into exercise as a child but because of the example of my father and older brother they taught me that playing basketball outside was fun and also made us feel good (besides the broken wrists that may or may not have happend, right Derek?). I am proud of my family and would not be in the health, profession, or lifestyle without their help. I am happy to say that our family genes are great we have very little hereditary health issues so it makes me run out of excuses quickly.

Thanks Mom and Dad.