GGX Schedule for Wednesday, Dec.16:
                                                 AM: Pilates (Valerie) -8:30am-9:30am
                                                 PM:TRX (Ferleen)-5:00pm-5:30pm;5:30pm-6:00pm
                                                 Spin Bike (Beth)- 5:30pm-6:30pm
                                                 Tone and Sculpt (Bel) - 5:30pm-6:30pm
                                                 Zumba (Nats)-6:30pm-7:30pm

“Top 5 Reasons to Hire a Pro Personal Fitness Trainer (at least once)” By Robert Reames, (‘RR’) Celebrity Trainers.

Folks today want the best value for the time and the money they put into an activity bottom line. When it comes to fitness and exercise you are an individual. And your needs, goals, present capabilities and personal vision is unique and yours. So it's vital to implement for yourself an appropriate, safe yet challenging and doable workout program that will fulfill you and keep you moving to where you want to be and in the right direction for maintenance, progression and overall wellness. A qualified fitness professional trainer/coach or physical therapist can teach, guide, motivate, formulate a plan for you. You may or may not have the funds to be able to work with a trainer/coach on a regular basis. However, it's well worth it to at least once and then for periodic follow ups work with a pro to enhance and make this part of your life the best it can be. Here are 5 really good reasons to hire a professional personal trainer at least once:

1: Streamline Your Time: As I said above we are all looking for the best value and results for the time we put in to anything in life. Folks can have tendency to put in extraneous time and include unnecessary exercises, duration of workout and volume non-productive towards the goal. This potentially wastes precious time when you can be streamlining an overall plan to achieve your goals appropriately and efficiently with guidance, instruction and construction of your individual plan put together for you based on the consultation of a pro trainer. This then leaves more time for work, family, friends and enjoy life reaping the benefits of your efforts.

2. Proper Evaluation: You may be doing exercises or fitness endeavors that are not only anti-productive but inappropriate and possibly unsafe. A pro trainer/coach can give you a comprehensive evaluation of your goals, abilities and needs to put together the right plan for YOU. This includes what to do, how to do it and when.

3. Will Show You Proper Form and Execution: A pro trainer/coach will show you the proper and safe form for all the exercises and activities recommended for you from your evaluation. One of the primary ways to get injured or to over time create impairment is executing a given exercise with poor form, moving to quickly and using excess load. You'll benefit greatly from the guidance here as safety is always the #1 aspect of any workout program.

4. Overall Lifestyle Guidance: Much of what you need to do to accomplish goals or maintain the fitness and wellness level you desire will happen outside the gym or workout area. A pro trainer/coach can advise you on other aspects of your wellness plan like proper rest and recovery, additional flexibility or foam roll work, medical pro referrals if necessary, nutrition (if they are qualified to talk nutrition) and possibly point you in the right direction for other aspects you'll benefit by including in your overall plan.

5. Safety and Progression: Again I'll mention safety here as this is vital to your program and your longevity. If you're hurt or impaired your workout plan is limited plain and simple. The idea is to be stronger and better for your next workout. And as you move along in your program a trainer can guide you in future follow ups for appropriate progression for you, your overall plan and new discoveries and questions you'll have moving forward.

Happy and Safe training everybody!
RR

he Fitness Fads Hall of Shame

To celebrate our 50th Anniversary—and 50 years of real results—we tracked down the most outlandish trends from the 20th and 21st centuries for your enjoyment.

THIGHMASTER

Born: 1980s

Suzanne Somers is still the face of this franchise from the brain of Joshua Reynolds, the man who also brought the mood ring into the world. For 25 years, Somers has insisted that you can get perfect inner thighs by putting this bright neon tool between your knees for a squeeze.

Success or failure? You can still purchase one.

THE BELT MASSAGER

Born: 1920s

This device claimed it could eliminate fat by shaking it free with a vibrating belt that went around your waist. Shockingly, it didn’t work, but that didn’t stop the machine from being popular for more than half a century.

Success or failure? These are definitely a “vintage” item now.

THE FLEX BELT

Born: 1980s

Can’t shake it free? Then shock it off—that’s the message of The Flex Belt. It claims to help you get toned by sending a mild electronic shock to the nerves in your abs that cause them to contract and relax. Apparently you can see changes in just a few weeks! Though that is probably because the belt also comes with a diet and exercise plan that suggests lowering your calorie intake to 1400 – 1800 calories.

Success or failure? It is still available. That is all.

DYNA-BAND

Born: Mid-1990s

The multicolored rubber bands appeared during the neon-fascinated years of yore, pitched as a simple, portable system for toning and firming your body. Watch out for the snap back, though!

Success or failure? You won’t get a great workout, but these are great for stretching.

 

REEBOK SLIDE

Born: Mid-1990s

Olympic figure skater Nancy Kerrigan and decathlete Dave Johnson endorsed this product that mimicked a speed skater’s push from side to side. It’s fun in a “what am I doing?” type of way.

Success or failure? Lucky for you they are still available.

Knife and Fork Lift

Born: 2009

Communications maven Tom Madden liked to eat. Why not combine doing what he loved to do with working out, he thought, which led to the development of this 1.5-pound combination dumbbell/fork or knife.

Success or failure? They are currently sold out on the website and Madden is “seeking investors.”

IGALLOP

Born: 2006

When we think of great abs, we think of horse riding. (What, you don’t?) The iGallop claimed that it mimicked the motion of sitting on top of a horse, which apparently works the abs like no other workout.

Success or failure? You can still purchase one, but why?

FREE FLEXOR

Born: 2011

This Shake Weight knockoff claimed a super-sick workout in just 10 minutes, thanks to something called “circular strength technology” and proclaimed itself “the world’s first flexing dumbbell.” The reality was closer to a big, wobbly pack of lies.

Success or failure? Fail. It was essentially DOA.

THE GAZELLE

Born: Mid-1990s

Ex-bodybuilder Tony Little developed the Gazelle after a car accident left him needing a way to work out with limited stress on his joints. The elliptical-like device briefly caught on, thanks in part to Little’s devotion to manic infomercials, with sales of more than 60,000 on New Year’s Eve in 1997.

Success or failure? Amazon.com still offers the Gazelle, but it also offers an inflatable party sheep. Do you want either?

TRIM TWIST

Born: 1960s

Stand on a small plastic or metal platform and twist, twist, twist to your heart’s content. Sure, you’ll burn a few calories with the effort, but you’ll look ridiculous doing so. Also, is a ball-bearing-loaded piece of plastic or metal really necessary for this motion?

Success or failure? Failed. Are you surprised?

BIG WHEEL SKATES

Born: 1990s

The thinking was something along the lines of bigger wheels would make a harder workout for your average inline skater. The science was even less clear. Needless to say, these did not catch on, but they are still available.

Success or failure? You can still buy a pair.

THE ABDOMENIZER

Born: 1984

Canadian chiropractor Dennis Colonello saw an opportunity to harden abs around the globe (read: get rich quick) and produced this piece of plastic that was supposed to help you “rock your way” to awesome abs. It would go on to sell a remarkable 3 million devices while producing next to nothing in terms of results.

Success or failure? Spectacular fail. From a Wired review: “A symbol for TV shopping channels everywhere, a cheaply made, overpriced widget that is destined to be unpacked, tried exactly once, and consigned to the basement.”

SKECHERS SHAPE-UPS

Born: Based on a company’s press release, these came into being in 2009

These rocker-bottomed sneakers claimed to help you tone up your buttocks, legs and abdominals just by walking in them. One ad claimed, “Get in shape without setting foot in a gym.” The FTC went after the company when it learned that the husband of a Skechers executive conducted the clinical studies behind the fitness claims.

Success or failure? Skechers agreed to pay $40 million to settle the charges.

GGX Schedule for Thursday, Dec10
AM: Spin Bike (Kanae)-5:45am-6:45am
Pilates (Valerie) -8:30am-9:30am
PM:TRX (Ferleen)-5:00pm-5:30pm
TRX/Abs (Ferleen)- 5:30pm-6:00pm
Spin Bike (JP)- 5:15pm-6:15pm
Boxing Circuit (Jasper) - 5:30pm-6:30pm
Zumba (Elly)-6:30pm-7:30pm

Pilates
By Kara Mayer Robinson, Reviewed by Hansa D. Bhargava,
How It Works
Pull out your gym mat and get ready to do a series of movements that will stabilize and strengthen your core.
The exercises are usually done in a specific order, one right after another. The movements have names, like "The 100," Criss-Cross," the "Elephant," and the "Swan."
The moves may look simple, but they take a lot of precision and control. It's not like doing a bunch of crunches; there's a strong emphasis on technique.
You can do Pilates on an exercise mat, either in a class or at home, using a DVD. Or you can go to a gym or studio that has special equipment, in a class or with a trainer supervising you.
Pilates classes typically take 45 minutes to an hour, but you can do fewer moves in less time.
You’ll get stronger, more sculpted muscles and gain flexibility. You may also have better posture and a better sense of well-being.
Plan on doing this workout a few days a week, in addition to cardio, since Pilates isn't aerobic.
Intensity Level: Medium
It's demanding, but it's not the kind of workout that will make you hot and sweaty. It’s all about concentration and breathing. But you’ll definitely feel it in your muscles during each exercise.
Areas It Targets
Core: Yes. Your core is the main focus of this workout.
Arms: No. This workout doesn't specifically target your arms.
Legs: Yes. You’ll use your upper legs to help engage your core.
Glutes: Yes. You’ll use your glutes as you work on moves that stabilize your core.
Back: Yes. This workout focuses on stabilizing and strengthening your back as you strengthen your abs.
Type
Flexibility: Yes. The exercises in a Pilates workout will boost your flexibility and joint mobility.
Aerobic: No. This is not a cardio workout.
Strength: Yes. This workout will make your muscles stronger. You’ll use your own body weight instead of weights.
Sport: No.
Low-Impact: Yes. You’ll engage your muscles in a strong but gentle way.
What Else You Should Know
Good for beginners? Yes. You can start with basic exercises then try advanced moves as you get better. If you’re starting out, opt for a class or private lessons so an instructor can keep an eye on your form to prevent injury.
Outdoors: No. Expect to go to the gym or be in a room with a TV for this workout.
At home: Yes. Pull out your mat and press play on your DVD player for a convenient at-home workout.
Equipment required? Yes, you’ll need a mat. Some gyms have special machines for Pilates, called a Reformer. You can get a modified version for your home, but you probably don’t need it.
What Dr. Melinda Ratini Says:
If you are looking to strengthen your abdomen and pelvis as well as maintain good posture, then Pilates is for you. It also has a strong mind/body connection, so you may like it if you enjoy yoga but need a more intense core workout.
Pilates is great for strengthening and toning your core and for increasing your flexibility, but it’s not a comprehensive strength building program. You will need to supplement it with some other exercises if you want to build up your arm or calf muscles. Talk to your trainer to see what would be best. And don’t forget your cardio!
Pilates involves precise moves and specific breathing techniques. It’s not for you if you prefer a less structured program. It also won’t fit your needs if you are looking for an aerobic workout.
Pilates can be very demanding, so start slowly, it’s best to get recommendations before selecting one.
Is it good for me if I have a health condition?
You can tailor Pilates to your individual needs, so it can be a great addition to your aerobic workout, even if you have health issues like heart disease, high blood pressure, and cholesterol. Check with your doctor first.
If you have diabetes, you may need to make some adjustments in your diabetes treatment plan, since adding muscle mass helps your body make better use of glucose. Your doctor can tell you what changes you need to make. Tell your instructor that you have diabetes and particularly if you have any complications such as diabetic retinopathy. You may need to avoid certain Pilates moves.
If you have arthritis, a strength-training program such as Pilates is a very important part of your exercise program. Research shows that a combination of aerobic exercise and strength training can help curb symptoms, maintain balance, keep joints flexible, and help you get to and keep an ideal body weight.
If you have had a recent back or knee injury, put off Pilates until your doctor clears you. Pilates strengthens the thigh muscles (quadriceps), and this may help prevent arthritis and knee injuries. It may also help prevent greater disability if you have arthritis.
Pilates may also be good if you have chronic low back pain. It will help strengthen your weak core muscles that may be adding to your pain. For the best results, seek out a Pilates instructor who has at least several years of experience working with people with low back pain.
If you are pregnant and are already doing Pilates, check with your doctor. She will probably let you continue as long as your pregnancy is going well. There may be some changes needed as your belly grows. For example, after your first trimester you shouldn’t exercise while lying flat on your back because this reduces blood flow to your baby. There are also special Pilates programs for pregnant women that you can try.

PILATES IS BACK!
with Valerie on Wednesdays and Fridays 9:30am-10:30am

   

NUTRITION

DECEMBER 2015

The New Way to Conquer Cravings

The latest research says you can actually rewire your brain to keep temptation at bay. Health.com explains how to do it.

You’re sitting at your desk going about your workday when suddenly, out of nowhere, you’re overcome with the desire—no, need is more like it—to devour a giant sticky bun. Your mouth is watering just thinking about the gooey-sweet glaze, the ribbons of butter and cinnamon. Is it your imagination, or is your heart beating faster?

WILLPOWER, SHMILLPOWER

That’s when the bargaining begins: I’ll have just a bite and freeze the rest. Or maybe I’ll eat half of it—I’ve been good today—no, all of it, but I’ll skip dinner tonight…

Cravings. Research is only just beginning to shed light on why so many of us succumb to them. Although scientists are still piecing together the puzzle of what exactly happens when you’re in the throes of a craving, this much they know for sure: Every craving begins with a cue. The cue for a sticky bun may be something as simple as getting a whiff of its buttery aroma as you walk past your favorite bakery, or catching a glimpse of a TV commercial featuring one.

“Any cue that’s repeatedly associated with high-fat and/or sugary foods can trigger a craving,” explains Ashley Gearhardt, Ph.D., a psychologist and food addiction expert at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University.

In other words, if you like to celebrate the end of a workweek with margaritas and Tex-Mex, eventually a craving for those things will automatically kick in every Friday afternoon. If you grew up equating, even subconsciously, your mother’s homemade chocolate layer cake with comfort, you’ll likely crave some version of that whenever you have a bad day.

The cue activates your brain’s pleasure center, causing it to release dopamine, a neurotransmitter that pushes you to seek out the very thing you’re lusting after, explains Gearhardt. Over time, this feel-good experience rewires the brain so that you’re more likely to crave the food again in the future.

What’s more, when you’re in full-on craving mode, your brain convinces you that you are famished, making the food more difficult to resist. “Your brain starts pumping out the hunger hormone ghrelin, and your insulin levels drop, making you even hungrier than usual,” Gearhardt says. As a result, it’s very difficult to satisfy the craving with just a taste.

It almost seems unfair that cravings can increase feelings of hunger. You assume you’ll satisfy a longing for sticky buns by eating one, but research suggests just the opposite will happen: Instead of paying attention to the physical cues of hunger and fullness, you’re driven by the rush of dopamine that’s telling you to find and scarf down a sticky bun (now!). And then another.

This also helps explain why you may be powerless in the presence of a dessert tray—even if you polished off a steak, two sides and a roll only moments before. “The dessert tray, as well as the spoons and forks that are put in front of you, are all cues that you should eat,” says Mark Gold, M.D., chairman of the department of psychiatry at the University of Florida and a specialist in addiction medicine research.

It doesn’t help that the dopamine signal occurs immediately when you come up against a cue, while the satiety signals—those telling you to stop eating—are much slower, taking 12 or more minutes after you eat to kick in. “Your brain can always find more room for food, and for a while after eating, so can your stomach,” adds Dr. Gold.

YOUR BRAIN ON BROWNIES

Believe it or not, cravings originally served a useful purpose, namely to keep our loincloth-clad ancestors alive. “They had powerful urges for energy-dense foods and were driven to get their hands on them in order to survive and reproduce,” says Eric Stice, Ph.D., a senior scientist at the Oregon Research Institute.

Of course, our predecessors didn’t face high-cal temptations at every turn. Today, we’re bombarded by food cues (we view, on average, 7,000-plus food and beverage ads on TV per year). And we don’t need to put our lives on the line every time a craving strikes. We just open our pantry, hit up the office vending machine or take a lap around our favorite drive-thru.

It’s not just that these high-fat, sugar-filled and sodium-laden foods are convenient—it’s that they’re actually engineered to make us crave them. “These foods have an effect on the brain that’s much stronger than those produced by foods that you could hunt or grow,” Dr. Gold says. “Eating fast food french fries, for instance, yields a greater dopamine release than if you were to eat a tomato picked fresh from your garden.”

The complexity of tastes, flavors, and textures in processed foods is simply more stimulating for the brain than something that comes from the earth, he explains. Plus, you get a hit of dopamine each time you try a different flavor—making you crave not just one, but a variety of treats so you’ll get that feel-good experience again.

“The fact that you could have a burger one day, a burrito the next and orange sesame chicken the day after that means we live in a sea of dopamine-releasing triggers,” says Dr. Gold.

BORN TO LOVE CHIPS

That explains part of the puzzle, but not all of it. New research suggests that your food preferences—and thus your cravings—may be formed not just in childhood, but in utero. “One theory is that pregnant women begin teaching their children what’s safe and good to eat while they’re still in the womb,” says Annie Murphy Paul, author of Origins: How the Nine Months Before Birth Shape the Rest of Our Lives. So if your mom ate lots of potato chips and cheesy fries, you may be programmed to crave the same kinds of fatty, salty foods.

What’s more, if you equate certain foods with feel-good moments from your childhood, you’re likely to turn to them for an emotional pick-me-up. That’s because often it’s not the foods that we crave as much as the emotions we associate with them. In other words, it isn’t just your mom’s chocolate cake you’re wanting, but the warm feeling you had whenever she gave you a slice.

“Pairing foods with particular feelings or situations can imprint an association between an experience and a food,” explains Michelle May, M.D., author of Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat. “What you might really want is to feel safe or to remember a time in your life when things were simpler.”

Emotional cravings tend to sneak up on us since we’re often not aware of the correlation between what we’re eating and what we’re feeling. For instance, if you experience a longing for a glass of wine and a bowl of pasta in the middle of a hectic workday, you may not realize or even care that what you really want is to feel relaxed and carefree—the way you do on a girls’ night out at your favorite Italian bistro.

MANAGE YOUR MUNCHIES

If you can identify the emotions behind the craving, you can try to find ways to fulfill those needs that are more productive than sinking your teeth into a 500-calorie sugar bomb. For instance, you might send an email to schedule a meeting with your boss to discuss your workload and the unrealistic deadlines you’ve been given.

“If that seems impossible, then maybe what you really need is a vacation to look forward to in order to make the work more bearable,” Dr. May says. “In some small way, take steps toward meeting that need, such as making a list of the top 10 places you’d like to visit, putting in a request for time off or taking 15 minutes to browse websites of locations you want to travel to. Even closing your eyes and taking a mini beach vacation in your mind while you breathe deeply can help short-circuit the emotions—and the craving.”

A SMART STRATEGY

No matter the source of your craving (whether it began with an environmental cue or an emotional need) there’s another tactic that helps derail the chemical cascade: Focus on your short- and long-term health goals.

In a recent study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers examined participants’ brains in an MRI scan during a craving and found that paying attention to a goal, such as getting in shape, activates the prefrontal cortex—a part of the brain that can inhibit the reward region.

The technique provides a one-two punch. In addition to dulling the craving, it also increases your ability to resist temptation. It may even keep you from rationalizing or bargaining with yourself.

Here’s how to make it work for you: Write down a detailed list of health goals you’d like to achieve. If you’re trying to slim down, list your current weight and how much you want to lose. “Being specific is crucial because it offers you more details that help you to say ‘no,’ ” Dr. Gold says.

For instance, when you know you need to cut 500 calories a day in order to lose a pound a week, and that eating an ice cream sundae will prevent that from happening, you’re already engaging the prefrontal cortex and dampening the dopamine release. As soon as a craving strikes, think back to those numbers in order to fight off the urge to give in to that sundae.

Also important: Jot down everything you eat throughout the day in a food journal—especially if you’re trying to lose weight. Often when we’re motivated to eat by cravings, we tend to inhale the food and quickly forget about it, adds Dr. Gold.

Knowing that you’ll have to come back to that food journal may reduce your desire to eat it in the first place. “With practice, your ability to resist temptation becomes stronger over time—like a muscle,” Gearhardt says. Your prefrontal cortex will kick in more quickly to disrupt the dopamine release and, of course, your craving. Sweet.