Six Pack Abs

DID YOU KNOW...

70% of the population today is overweight or obese which leaves just

30% in the normal or lean weight range... within this 30% of lean people only

2-3% have a low enough body fat percentage to be able to see visible abs.

Dispite such low percentages of people who ever actually accomplish developing a set of six pack abs, our culture continues to admire and consider the abdominals as the centerpiece of the human physique and try all sorts of strange things and spend all kinds of money in their obsession to be one of the 2-3% of the population with great abs. As a trainer, most clients I see ask about how to work to develop asthetically pleasing abdominals. Most expect to hear answers involving performing exercises that specifically target the abdominals, and even though I do recommend doing abdominal strengthening exercises it is not the exercises alone that will help develop the ab area. You can do all the crunches you want but if you don't also include the following suggestions chances are you will never see the results you hope for.

The information shared here for each suggestion could actually take up enough space to fill an entire book! I love researching this stuff but because I am limited in space here and time in my busy, crazy life my ideas will be brief but hopefully helpful in kick-starting you on to better habits for health and wellness.

The reason most people fail to achieve fitness goals or any goal for that matter is they ignore the most important starting point. It involves the power of your thinking... How you think is most likely how you live out your life... Do you believe you can achieve your goal??? Mine is to be one of the 2-3% of the population who can see visible abs! (not my only goal or my most important goal in life but just for fun I want to see if I can achieve it... and I believe I can... so far I'm still working on it and have seen some progress!). When you fail to believe you usually fall into procrastination, laziness, and poor mental attitude. A few steps to take to overcome your unbelief...

1. Decide exactly what you want... (tighter abs, more energy, more confidence etc...)
2. Document goals and what you will do to achieve them.
3. Visualize your achievement.
4. Take massive action to begin.
Don't underestimate the importance of this step and taking time to motivate yourself to go for it and to frequently re-visit this step as needed.

Another reason most fail to achieve their fitness goals is because they fail to understand the overwhelming importance of their diet! If your goal is to lose stubborn body fat, exercise alone will not be enough. The truth is just about everybody already has a set of six pack abs... the problem is there are layers of fat hiding them... If we could burn off that fat then we could reveal our own aesthetically pleasing set of abs too! I feel sad when I see people training like crazy but because they do not change poor dietary habits they never reduce body fat (this was me for many years). Why bother with all the work if you do not decide to combine exercise with good nutrition? Not only do you need the right foods to burn fat but when you are a very active person your body needs power packed nutrition as part of your overall workout regime... it needs the nutrients found in a good diet, so like a potent elixir it can be delivered to your muscles and bones so they have the ability to repair, rebuild and become stronger as a result of the hard work you do and therefore reveal a more beautful body composition.

Changing dietary habits is hard work I know! But I think the key (it's really helped me) is educating yourself and again having the right mindset about what we are actually doing to our bodies when we mindlessly eat a doughnut or down a pack of greasy french fries. Find out what different types of food are actually doing inside your body. Actively think about the negative cellular processes and you will stand a better chance of being turned off by junk food. I have found the better I eat over time the less I crave junky high processed food and instead go for an apple or raw vegetables for snack options... the great thing about health food is you can have as much as you want with no guilt or regret!!!... and you can feel good about pressing on with your goal! (If you want more suggestions for a specific diet to try... check out my last post).

After you set yourself up with a right mindset and find a sustainable healthy way to eat, be sure you evaluate your training routine. People fail to reach fitness goals due to ineffective training routines. For example if you are aiming for a tighter ab area (like most people) and all you include are crunches in your workout routine it will most likely be ineffective. Instead most of your focus when working out should be centered on a full-body workout strategy. Full body workouts involving multi-joint exercises elicit a strong fat-burning and muscle building hormonal response as well as a metabolic rate increase... whereas just training your abdominals or doing less intense single-joint exercises will not deliver the same response.

What do I mean by multi-joint exercises? They are exercises that move through a larger range of motion using mainly large muscle groups. For example a "clean and press" is a multi-joint exercise that moves a weight from the floor to an overhead position as opposed to a single-joint exericse like a "leg extension" which moves through a smaller range of motion from the floor to only the knee level. Obviously the clean and press forces you to perform a greater quantity of work than a leg extension resulting in more calories burned, more muscle groups worked, which more effectively creates the metabolic environment that stimulates change.

Unfortunaltely the way most people train involves single-joint exercises for selected muscle groups in addition to 30-40 mins of moderate-steady cardio work. Better than nothing, but a better way to workout will deliver a residual metabolic elevation for hours even days after the workout is over. You want to put the WORK back into your workout! You want to work hard enough using large range-of-motion exercises so that your body will have to do a lot of work to recover and therefore burn calories even while you sleep. You want to go away knowing you worked every muscle in your body as opposed to just a couple small muscle groups. If you work out 3-4 days a week at this intensity you essentially increase your resting metabolic rate 24/7. The result of all of this is you get leaner quicker!

So go for multi-joint exercises than require a greater range of motion and use larger muscle groups. Some examples are... squats, deadlifts, pull-ups, push-ups, shoulder press... or even better, try combining some of these exercises together, like a pull-up then going right down into a push-up and then powering back up into a pull-up. That's a huge range of motion! Try a set of ten of these and see how hard your whole body has to work! Whew!... I'm tired just thinking about it!

I have so much more to say but I will have to save "all things cardio" (which is another important key to saying goodbye to a mushy middle) for my next post... for now remember... a right mindset, a sustainable and nutritious diet plan that helps burn fat (see last post), and an effective multi-joint exercise workout strategy will begin to help you see your body composition line up the way you want it to... including becoming part of the 2-3% of the population with visible abs!

If you'd like some help designing your own multi-joint exercise plan... visit me on Facebook! I would love to give you some ideas!

Try this for Fat-Loss~

Ever hit a plateau in your fitness pursuit? I have... many times. I workout and sometimes see nothing new, no new results, no new strength and begin to get bored with my workouts.

Recently I have been working a little harder to try new eating habits to see what happens. I have to be honest and say I emphasize working out more than I do diet when it comes to my own health and wellness, not that I am a junk food addict or anything... but I don't put tons of thought into what I eat, and I do eat my share of whatever I feel like maybe a little too often. I like what one fitness professional said... "Try new things... and evaluate how it's going. If you don't see results try something else until you find what works." So I have decided to get a little more serious about my eating habits.

I would categorize myself as an ectomorph when it comes to body type... small frame, and unfortunatley not much shape but pretty boyish looking... oh well, we work with what we have and are thankful we are healthy and have 2 arms and 2 legs. Anyway, part of my boyish looking frame stems from my belly. Every bit of anything gained goes straight to my belly.... never anywhere else... just my belly. The rest of my body is skinny and not really in a good way. I work to build up some shape in my arms and legs but it's the belly that always suffers the most. So with this in mind when I think about dieting I cringe because I dont want to lose anything anywhere but my belly, but unfortunately that is the area that the weight comes off last. So I have to decide, do I want a skinny belly and risk losing any shape I have in the rest of my body or do I want some shape in the rest of my body and deal with a little more around my belly? I know... pretty ridiculous huh? ...just trying to be real here.

Well, I have finally realized, looking into diets more closely recently, that the diet I need is not a weight-loss diet but a fat-loss diet. Maybe you already knew the difference but to be honest I didn't. I am not a dietician.

My new fat-loss diet is finally giving me the results I'm looking for. Keep the muscle I work hard for and burn the excess belly fat! So you wanna hear about it? Keep reading....

What I like most about it is it's SIMPLE!

Drink a protein shake in the morning... include a raw egg (don't say gross, you know you eat cookie dough... that has raw eggs), spinach leaves, greek yogurt, almond milk, blueberries, oatmeal, a scoop of whey protein which you can get at a vitamin shoppe and a packet of Stevia sweetner. Use a blender to mix it up... we have the Montel Williams blender... it works great!

For snack have nuts... but only a handful about 2 hours after breakfast.

For lunch have one apple...

For dinner have a lean source of protein and tons of veggies with olive oil drizzeld gernerously.
If you get hungry between meals... eat veggies!!! or a few more nuts...or another apple.

Now here's the best part... every other day you can have whatever you want for lunch! So for me... today is my burn day... I had an apple for lunch and yes I am a little hungry right now... I have nuts on my nightstand and will have a few to tie me over before dinner. But tomorrow I can have whatever I want for lunch as long as I have an apple a half-hour before I eat and finish whatever I decide to have within a half-hour time frame. For lunch every other day be sure to get an adequate amount of carbs. In feeding yourself a larger calorie meal every other day you are ensuring that your body does not go into starvation mode and instead keeps your metabolism high and burning fat adequately. If your body thinks it is in starvation mode it will hang on to fat stores for dear life... so be sure you eat enough on your feed days so you trick your body from believing lies.

So it's...
Shake (breakfast)
Nuts (snack)
Apple (lunch)... or whatever you want if it's your feed day!
Protein and Veggies (dinner)
More veggies if you get hungry at any point... that's it!

Another great thing about this diet is that it is sustainable because you don't really deprive yourself of anything. You can still enjoy your favortie foods on your feed days and you can decide to adopt this way of eating for a lifetime... where other diets are just not sustainable for the long-haul and you end up gaining everything back as soon as you quit your diet. Try it and see if you too begin to shed a little more around your middle! I would love to hear how it goes or if you have any questions let me know...

Blessings!
Donna

Inspire me!

As I walk through the club most mornings on my way to teach fitness classes the loud and steady humming of treadmills and eliptical machines remind me how crowded the gym is at this hour... this insane hour at 5:30am. I climb the stairs continuing on my way. Turning the corner I smile anticipating what I will see... from the balcony I witness a huge room packed out with avid and dedicated fitness enthusiasts, all huffing, puffing and sweaty, well on their way into their workouts and already full force into their day! Something about it, no matter how may times I see it, inspires me and I even imagine myself grabbing a bull horn and yelling out to the crowd... "Hey... way to go everyone... way to peel yourself out of bed, to fight the urge to sleep and instead to start your day in such a dedicated way! Nice job! Don't give up!"

I'm inspired by their dedication to push against the tide!

There are other things that inspire me... my son Joe... even from an early age he has hyper-focused on what he wants to master and become good at. He used to love watching Robin Hood videos. One morning at the age of 4 he asked if he could have a bow and arrow, "Just like Robin Hood Mom!"... I remember him saying. I gently explained that having a bow and arrow would be dangerous and that there was not enough space between our neighborhood homes to safely use it outside. Robin Hood lived in a forest and the forest was a safe place to play with a bow and arrow. However, that didn't discourage him from the idea of having a bow and arrow. Immediately, his wheels began to turn as he hunted for a plastic hanger and wooden pencil, attempting then to launch the pencil as an arrow off the plastic hanger. I felt bad as I watched and thought to myself there is no way he would ever make it work, but I did not discourage or interrupt him from trying. Two hours later, with undying determination, he was still trying to make the thing work. Ouch... it was painful to watch! BUT... as you might have guessed... later that day he came bounding into where I was and announcing he made it work!.. something I would have to see to believe. Not only did it work but it flew all the way across the room! Way to go Joe! I was so proud of him for not giving up. We celebrated with ice cream sundaes! Presently he has used this same determination to become a very gifted and passionate piano player.

I am inspired by Joe's stick-to-it-ness!

My husband inspires me... He assumes a leadership role in his job... He is a Pastor. I believe a pastoral leadership role is the hardest kind of leadership out there. In his leadership he endures a lot of critism. But he hangs in there... a lot longer than I ever would have. He can do it beause he genuinely loves our church and the love he has stems from his love for God and the love he knows God has for him. He has a deep strength that can only come through God's Spirit and an assurance that nothing can separate us from His love. He has an enduring peace regardless of circumstances and stands like an unmovable rock in the storms of life. I love to watch what he will do next... His example helps keep me grounded in the things I know are good, right and excellent.

I am inspired by his deep grounding and unmovable resolve.

My daughter can draw! WOW... can she draw! When she draws she seems to lose herself in her creativity, beginning with a doodle yet finishing with an expression of something deep inside, similar to the way a simple flower bud emerges into a fantastic display of beauty and reveals something of it's creator if you take the time to notice. She doesn't yet realize how talented she is. She has a humility about her drawings and likes to keep to her gift to herself, to be used as self expression and exploring rather than for displaying. She even insists she doesn't draw well... Very frustrating for me to hear her say, but I so appreciate and respect her humility about it.

I'm inspired by her ability to express hidden beauty in creative, humble and beautiful ways.

Here's a sample of my daughter's talent... :O)

Stop today and take time to look for gifts of inspiration. What is it in the people, places or circumstances around you that can bring inspiration, encouragement and a smile to your face? You might create an "inspiration" journal and ask God to increase your awareness of what's been divinely placed in your life to help you re-gain a better perspective and inspire you to purposefully press on.

Say... "I Love Me" this Valentine's Day!

You might be thinking about how you want to dish out an extra measure of love to special people in your life this Valentine's Day... that's great, that's needed... I applaud you! But have you considered yet how you might show yourself some love too?

When it comes to self-love how would you rate yourself? Do you beat yourself up allowing negative self-talk to bring defeat or do you remind yourself of what is true, right, noble and excellent? Do you worry about things, agonizing over issues that are out of your control or are you content knowing you did all you could? Do you allow yourself to eat junkie food just because it's there or do you think carefully before you put just anything into your body? Do you lash out at loved ones, then scratch your head as you wonder "what is wrong with me" or are you relieved you were able to practice self-control during a frustrating interaction? Do you easily blow-off spending time filling up with spiritual truth and being thankful to God in prayer or do you long for more time to pursue deeper spiritual understanding? Do you skip your workout too many times in a row because you just don't feel like it or do you remind yourself that mentally you'll want to give up everytime and you instead choose to push against that? Some mornings do you wish you could climb right back into bed and stay there for 4 days or do you remind yourself that each day is a gift?



If I'm honest I have chosen the negative examples above probably more times than I'd like to admit... except staying in bed for 4 days... thank goodness... not saying it isn't beyond possible for me though. None of us are beyond anything. But If I allow these tendencies to continue without stopping long enough to evaluate what's going on and taking action to turn it around... that's when habits slowly begin to become a way of life until I wake up one day and wonder how in the world did I arrived at such a place.

Stopping, evaluating and taking action is self-love. It involves taking preventative measures to ensure we maintain a healthy lifestyle in every area of life... physically, spiritually, emotionally, relationally etc... so we can be the best "ME" possible. The ME God made us to be... fully alive, respecting ourselves and the nature of the way God made things to work best. I want my life to work out as best as it possibily can... it involves trusting that God's ways are best! How can I seek to be fully alive?

God says we reap what we sow... what are you sowing physically, spiritually, relationally, or even intellectually? How are you investing in a practice that will help you become a whole, healthy balanced person?

Here are some ways you might say "I Love Me" this Valetine's Day...

Go take a brisk walk (or run) outside in the fresh air... even though it's cold that fresh air will do wonders for you physically... or at least take deep, long, full breaths anytime you happen to be outside... like when you are walking from your car into the grocery store etc...

As you are out running or walking try filling your mind with everything you are thankful for and begin to cultivate an appreciation for so many things God has blessed you with... Being thankful is healthy and helps you let go of bitterness and gives you an ability to look on the brighter side of life.

If you begin to become more active you will feel hungry more often. Decide now to grab healthy power-packed nutritious snacks and eat noting but healthy food for a whole week and then take note how it affects you.

Compliment each person in your family every day and watch their faces light up. You have the power to love!

Read Scriptural truths everyday to help realign your thinking... I have a great devotional called "Morning and Evening Daily Bible Readings" by Charles Spurgeon. I love his insights and it always encourages me as I start and end each day.

Write down all your loved ones names in a journal and list 5 things you can pray for each of them everyday... Take 5 minutes to bring the list before God each day... I have been consistently doing this everyday in 2011 and have been blown away by how specifically God has been answering my small, simple prayers in unimaginable ways. He is that good and is waiting to hear what's on your heart.


The Bible says..."We have not because we ask not..." Try asking him about what's on your mind. We have God's permission to cast off every thing in our lives that weighs us down. Cast it all off by talking to him about it and letting him carry it for us. He is able and nothing is too difficult for Him. Stress is a killer... God knows how it weighs us down and he wants to be your outlet for stress... Give it to Him and feel the tension lift off your shoulders.

You might think of other ways to say "I Love Me" this Valentine's Day... add to your list regularly and catch yourself when you start to neglect self-love so you can keep pressing on to become healthy, whole and balanced.

Big Thinking

Since thinking is something you do everyday you might as well decide to "think big".

When is the last time you did some big thinking? Why do we tend to fall into small thinking, keeping us in the same places in life... doing the same thing without new growth or change because we limit our thinking and allow it to become so conditioned.

Ever envision yourself beyond the realm of possible, dreaming of living life in the realm of the nearly impossible? What does your heart speak of? What have you always wanted to do or become? Dreaming about these things is fun and takes us to places out of the ordinary ruts we settle for.

If you can dream it you can do it!... Walt Disney

Thinking big equals going big, thinking small equals staying small... you decide. Be outrageous-- let your imagination fly for a while... allowing yourself to stretch and believe in the beauty of your dreams.

Allowing yourself this kind of freedom is healthy and brings new life where there once might have been stagnation, negative thinking and/or unhealthy patterns. I believe we were made for much higher purposes than we allow ourselves to believe or experience and it's so easy to digress into the lowest of the low and feed ourselves negative destructive thinking patterns. If we don't push and fight against it... like everything in existence... we will suffer decay and live life below our God-given potential. Phillipians 4:8 says... "Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovley and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise." I love that because it reminds me how powerful our thinking is and how it is the catalyst that guides our actions and therefore the reality of our lives.

Today is my day off... I'm sitting here... allowing myself space to dream a little... I'm dreaming about my kids and the lives I hope for them... praying they allow God to work in their lives to will and act according to His good purposes... I'm reflecting on all the ways God is answering my prayers for them. One of my specific prayers for each of them is that God would develop a great love of learning in their lives... that they simply enjoy learning and that it comes easy for them in this season of their lives. Just yesterday Abbie, my youngest, shared with me in great detail the tradgedy of the Great Chicago Fire. She shared it with great interest and concern for such a horrible time in history. As I listened I remembered my specific prayer for her to develop a love of learning and my heart burst with thanks that God would delight in answering my prayers! You must understand Abbie never shares much about school other than "it was BORING!"

Why do I share that? I'm not sure... other than to share some ways you might create space for yourself too to dream, pray and believe bigger than you might currently be allowing yourself! Refuse to think small and stay in ruts of discouragement... you were meant for more, so go there and live bigger, better and according to God's great purpose for you!!!

The Eye of the Storm

The week after Christmas is like the eye of a storm... I love it and have decided it is my absolute favorite time of the year. The weeks leading up to Christmas are a frenzy, producing stress as we scatter around to finish shopping for everyone on our list and as we plan menus, bake cookies, attend parties and send off christmas cards to all our cherished friends. As the New Year rolls in, it too is a busy time as we pick up speed, go back to work and switch to high gear determining to succeed in new years resolutions made. But.... ahhhh ...the week between Christmas and New Years... there's nothing quite like it. The kids are home, we are off work a few more days and we relax and settle into our own quiet little world at home together.

Over the years our family has developed a pattern during this week... we spread a big puzzle out and sit down together at our leisure and work on it as we talk about idle topics. We choose novels to read... this year I'm reading "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett. GREAT BOOK! Each morning before I drag myself out of bed I give myself the luxury of reading my novel for 2 hours or as long as I want. We also enjoy sitting down to eat together for as many meals as we can... I especially love when Rick makes pancakes in the morning for everyone. We also keep a variety of board games purchased as family Christmas gifts under the tree... from time to time one of us will pull one out and suggest we play it together. We watch movies or GO to the movies together... this year we went to see "Voyage of the Dawn Treader". Most of the week we also keep a fire burning in the fireplace to add to the warm, homey, safe and welcoming feeling that just seems to ooze all over the place this sacred, special week of the year.

This week, tucked between Christmas and New Year's, is a gift indeed as it gives us margin to re-group before we begin yet another year in this thing called life. I believe the sacred week was made for rest! In the context of rest healing can happen... relationships can deepen, decisions can be made, new directions can be pursued and life becomes richer as we begin another year.

As you rest take some time in the last few days of this sacred week to make a date with yourself. Write down thoughts about last year... jouney back and record the big events that happened each month. Include your hopes, regrets, joys and emotions and then dream a little about the future. No need to make guilt producing promises just be honest with yourself and free yourself to dream. I plan to use what I have written as a prayer to meditate on everyday for 2011. It includes lessons learned, dreams I long for and love I hope to share to help others grow.

I hope the next few days, before 2011 comes charging in, you give yourself the gift of stopping to fill up with new thoughts to move you forward into your best year yet!

TRX... Total Resistance Exercise

Getting bored with your 2010 fitness routine? Are you in a rut or have you hit a plateau in your fitness level? Thinking about how you can challenge yourself to new levels for 2011 but not sure how? I can feel these same things at times. Beginning January 2011 I plan to shake it up a bit for myself and my clients by introducing the TRX system...

TRX stands for TOTAL RESISTANCE EXERCISE

I don't just share this new exercise program with you because it's the latest certification I have under my belt or because it's one of the latest fitness fads... instead it's because after experiencing it myself, getting great training from an expert TRX trainer, and studying about it on my own I am convinced it just might be a better way to train. Although I still believe weight training most certainly has it's place the TRX system trains with a whole different dynamic!

With it's origins rooted in the Navy SEALs TRX offers a functional training component. Functional training emphasizes a transfer of the fitness that is gained from the program into everyday activity or specific sports performance. Although traditional weight training is useful for gaining strength by isolating muscles, what it can't offer that TRX does deliver is an integrated approach of gaining not only strength but also balance, movement, coordination, stability, power, flexibility and cardio endurance... life skills we use in everyday life or to improve our performance in the specific sports we enjoy.

HOW DOES IT WORK? A suspension training technique adopts the concept that the body knows movement not muscles and it engages the body as a single coordinated system. It takes movement patterns of everyday human activity and recreates them into movement patterns in suspension training. Loading and repeating these movement patterns enhances performance in life and on the playing field.

TRX understands that life demands free bodily movement through space... our bodies work to produce movement. We do not move in everyday life within one dimension or within the confines of a machine or restrictive pattern so our exercise should also reflect more than one dimension in movement. TRX trains your body to move in every direction possible, in every plane of motion. If we limit our training routines to only one dimension or to only one motor pattern, like so many strength training routines do, it can lead to strength imbalances and movement deficiencies in neglected planes of motion.

While teaching a zumba class not so long ago I noticed a beautiful, buff body builder come into my class. I kept watching her out of the corner of my eye and noticed she really struggled to catch on to the moves to the point she visibly became frustrated and left class early. I felt bad and wondered why it was so difficult for her. I realize there are some who just don't have a knack for rhythm but in her case I sensed it was something more. After taking the TRX training I have to wonder if her inability has anything to do with muscle imbalances she may have incurred due to her intense training in one plane and dimension of movement. It reminded me that I want to be sure to be training my body to do more that just yield a aesthetic looking physique. I want to improve my ability to move freely through space. The TRX is a training device that works with the nature of how our bodies have been created to move.

I was also reminded that it's important to shake things up a bit in our training routines. Don't get so stuck doing one type of training. Try new things that will challenge your body to move in new ways. That's why I believe dance classes, no matter how much you may lack a natural ability to dance, should be a part of everyone's routine. In dancing you move in every plane of motion and send your muscles messages of confusion which they need to help you improve your ability to move freely through space, seeing new gains in your balance, coordination, stability, flexibilty, power and cardio endurance.

So what will it be for you in 2011? I say shake it up and try the TRX system of training. I have 3 new small group classes starting up in January! As soon as the dates become public knowledge I will update my teaching schedule at the bottom of my blog page! JOIN ME and we can train our bodies together in new ways for 2011... or call me for your own personal training sessions and we can work one-on-one for a more "focused on YOU" workout plan!

Watch the TRX in action... go to http://www.fitnessanywhere.com/