Top 5 Ways To Avoid The Muffin Top

The Muffin Top: Fashion Craze Who’s Time has Past?

Why do women wear shirts that expose their midriff?  Why do they wear pants that are so tight that their flesh comes over the top?  “Muffin-top” is a generally pejorative, slang term used to describe the phenomenon of overhanging flesh when it spills over the waistline of trousers or skirt in a manner that resembles the top of a muffin spilling over its paper casing. This generally occurs when an individual wears low-rise, hip-hugger pants, or midriff-baring tops that are too small. Read the rest of this entry »

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Overindulging? - 5 Tips For Getting Back On Track

Almost everyone overindulges at one point or another. Vacations and parties are part of life. There will always be social occasions where we find ourselves falling off the wagon, eating too many chips and drinking a little more than usual.   A Sweat365 member recently commented, after returning from France, “I’ve gained 3.5 lbs, but it was worth every croissant!” Enjoying food and wine is part of experiencing life. Restricting yourself takes away from the full experience.

We all want to be healthy and feel good about ourselves. We want to fit into our clothes and be content with our bodies. Balance is the key. You can be social and partake in festivities without ruining your training.

Restaurants portions are not only huge, they contain way too much salt and butter. The extra sodium will cause your body to hold fluid, leaving you feeling puffy and bloated. Overindulging can sometimes lead to falling off your training program. How can you turn the situation around and get back on track? Every day is a new day to re-start and focus on being healthy.

5 Tips For Getting Back On Track:

1. Throw Out The Scales - Don’t constantly weigh yourself. Weight fluctuates depending on hydration etc.

2. Wear Clothes That Fit - Don’t try to fit into your skinny jeans after a week in Mexico. You’ll be disappointed if they are snug.

3. Go To The Gym - Get back into your fitness routine. Consistent exercise is part of a balanced healthy life. Get moving!

4. Eat Healthy - Don’t skip meals or starve yourself to make up for overeating. Be sensible and take care of yourself.

5. Drink Lots Of Water - Drink at least six 8 OZ glasses per day, more if you are active. Water will help return your body to balance. You will know you’re hydrated when your urine is pale.

There are times when we feel a little out of balance and need to get back in sync. Nurturing yourself by eating healthy, and exercising regularly will help you get back on track. We all occasionally fall off the wagon. The trick is to get back to your normal routine as quickly as possible.

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Sticking To Your New Fitness Goal

It’s easy to get excited about resolutions. Everyone wants to make changes to improve their health or accomplish a new fitness goal. We start out with great intentions. So, why is it difficult to stick to your plan?

Often our goals are vague. When setting a new goal you need to be as specific as you can. If you want to run a race, sign up for it. Make the necessary arrangements if travel is involved. Buy the appropriate gear that you need, i.e. shoes, shorts, etc.

1. Set Realistic Goals - If you want to run a half marathon, pick a race that’s 6 months from now if you are a beginner. If you have time goals, make sure they are realistic.

2. Break Your Goal Down - If your half marathon is in 6 months, you’ll want to be able to run a 10K in 3 months. You’ll want to be able to run a 5K in 2 months.

3. Get Expert Advice - Find a training plan or hire a coach or personal trainer. Make sure your trainer is experienced and certified. American College of Sports Medicine (A.C.S.M.), National Strength and Conditioning Association (N.S.C.A.) or American Counsel on Exercise (A.C.E.) are reputable certifying organizations.

4. Get Support - Find others who are doing the same thing. Seek out people who have similar goals. Use them for support. Maybe you can schedule work outs together.

5. Map out Your Training - Now that you have a plan to get to 5K, 10K, and half marathon put your training into a calendar. Refer to your calendar daily so that you can know what you are doing and when you are doing it.

6. Track Your Training - Track what you actually do. When you track your progress it’s easier to stay focused.

7. Be Accountable - Once you’ve declared your goal tell your friends and family. Share with them what you are doing and when. Ask them to support you by asking you how it’s going.

8. Be Flexible - Sometimes things happen that are beyond your control. You may need to change your schedule if something important comes up. Stick to your plan as much as you can, but know that if you miss a work out or two it’s not the end of the world.

9. Listen To Your Body - Your training plan may have you scheduled to run 5 miles, but if you aren’t feeling up to it because you haven’t gotten enough sleep or you haven’t recovered from yesterday’s work out, skip it. Rest is equally as important as training.

10. Think Positive - Visualize a positive outcome. Imagine yourself accomplishing your goal. There will be good days and days where you don’t feel as strong. Everything you do is bringing you one step closer to achieving your goal.

Remember to enjoy the journey. Every day is an opportunity to improve and be healthier. Take it one day at a time. Celebrate your success. Be patient and know that the more you put into the process, the more you will appreciate the end result. Health and fitness is not a short-term goal, but a lifelong journey. When you reach your goal, start thinking about what you want to do next.

Good luck!

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Secrets of Long-Term Weight Loss

The National Weight Control Registry (NWCR) was established in 1994 by Him Hill and Rena Wing. Members (4,000) in the registry are 18 years or older and have lost at least 30 lbs. and kept it off for at least a year. Most members have lost 72 lbs and maintained this weight loss for an average of 5.7 years. The members of NWCR are volunteers, which means that they aren’t compensated for their participation. They are recruited by television, radio, magazine and newspaper advertisements. Each member must apply, fill out a consent form and a detailed questionnaire. The questionnaire includes questions about lifetime maximum weight (dates for this weight) current weight, gender, age, education, ethnicity, exercise habits, and weight loss methods used. All the members are tracked to annually to determine weight changes that have occurred because of modified behavior. 95% of the population are caucasian, 64% are married, 77% are women, and 82% are college educated. 50% were overweight as children and 75% have one or two obese parents.

55.4% of the registry lost their initial weight with a commercial diet program, physician or nutritionist. 46% lost their weight on their own. 89% used diet and physical activity to lose weight, while 10% used diet only. 1% used exercise only to lose weight. The most common interventions were a combination of restricting food (87.6%), limiting food quantities, (44%) and counting calories (43%).

Successful Strategies For Long Term Weight Loss

Research shows three common strategies that were successful among the current registry.

1. Doing high levels of physical activity

3. Weighing themselves frequently

A fourth common strategy was (78%) members report eating breakfast (typically cereal and fruit) every day. Also current members eat 2.5 meals/week at a restaurant, and .74 meals in fast food establishments.

Successful members weighed themselves daily (44%) and (31%) weighed themselves once a week. Successful dieters continue to monitor their weight frequently.

How Much Physical Activity Are The Members Doing?

1. About an hour a day of moderate intensity activity

3. Women burned about 2,545 calories per week

76% of members reported that walking is their main activity. Other activities that were reported included cycling (20%), resistance training (20%) and aerobics (18%). When physical activity decreased to below 800 calories per week, members regained some of their weight.

Those who kept the weight off for 2 years had greater chances of maintaining their loss.

Winning At Losing: Secrets of Long-Term Weight Loss, Len Kravitz, PhD.

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The Key to Staying Trim

The key to staying trim is to remain active year round, year after year, and to avoid seasonal and irregular exercise patterns.  This is according to a study conducted by Paul Williams of Berkeley Lab’s Life Sciences Division.  The study concluded that not only is the weight gained during an exercise hiatus hard to shed, but quitting exercise for a period of time may a contributing factor to the nation’s obesity epidemic.

Williams was quoted as saying, “We are getting fat because we don’t exercise sufficiently and consistently.  The real solution to the obesity epidemic is getting people to exercise before they think they need it, and to stick with it.”

The study, “Asymmetric Weight Gain and Loss From Increasing and Decreasing Exercise” is published in the February 2008 issue of the journal Medicine & Science in Sports and Exercise. It was supported in part by grants from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.

Read more here.

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