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I am trying to lose a few pounds. It is no secret:  I exercise regularly but sometimes slip up with my eating habits. At times, I find myself eating for the sake of it:  I am bored, tired or upset. My worst offense comes during a good Baseball game. I can sit on my couch with a snack intending to only 'eat a few.' Three innings later I have finished my chips and I am still looking for more. Why do … [Read more...]

We are starting to see every major sport shoe manufacturer producing and advertising de-constructed shoes. After decades of innovation, improvement and inspiration utilizing every new bit of technology available all in the quest of making the most supportive, cushioned, shock absorbing shoe possible every shoe company now has a "barefoot" shoe. What's going on? Should we dig out our old Converse … [Read more...]

Happy Fourth of July! With our 7th week of the Your Best Body Challenge rolling into the long weekend, it is time to start becoming AGGRESSIVE. Be in it to win; fight for your personal goals.     "Failure is not an option." -Unknown … [Read more...]

Yesterday I took my first yoga class ever. It was great! I am not the most flexible guy and my left knee is perpetually swollen like an over-sized melon, so I was not expecting too much success with yoga. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I was able to do. Now my poses didn't look very much like the ones our instructor, Brandy, was demonstrating, but she was supportive, calm and gave us … [Read more...]

Every morning I skim through CNN's headline news articles to maintain some knowledge of the outside world. This morning's streaming updates left my usual bowl of oatmeal look a little grayer than normal. Words like 'despair,' 'protest' and 'unrest' ruled the main posts. Although largely removed from the strikes in Greece or the turmoil in the Arab world, I could not help but feel uneasy with the … [Read more...]

The key to weight-loss is replacing foods that are unhealthy for you with lower-calorie, nutrient-rich foods. Instead of starving yourself thin, eating these healthy alternatives will make you feel full without the additional fat and calories. This means that weight loss, alongside an active lifestyle, can be both realistic and manageable with a few, simple changes. Emily G. W. Chau's article … [Read more...]

"Regret for wasted time is more wasted time." -Mason Cooley   … [Read more...]

I found this study from Princeton University. It is called "A Sweet Problem:  Princeton Researchers Find that High-Fructose Corn Syrup Prompts Considerably More Weight Gain" by Hilary Parker. Click here to read the rest of the article or read below for highlights: "In the 40 years since the introduction of high-fructose corn syrup as a cost-effective sweetener in the American diet, rates of … [Read more...]

The Tabata workout is an intense cardio workout designed to burn fat quickly. Its simplicity is key:  interval training, 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off. It is essential, however, to go a maximum intensity at the "On" intervals. Check out the video below to get a glimpse of the workout or check out this website for a more detailed explanation. … [Read more...]

This excerpt comes from Dr. Brian Wansink's book Mindless Eating:  Why We Eat More Than We Think.  Wansink writes: "In every beverage study we conduct, people underestimate the calories they drink - usually by about 30 percent. It doesn't matter whether it's soft drinks, milk, juice, or wine, although fountain machines pose the biggest danger. My lab developed a '10-20' rule of thumb for … [Read more...]

The American Heart Association recommendation is that salt intake should not exceed 1500 mg of sodium daily. Table salt is NaCl, sodium chloride. Sodium, potassium and chloride are electrolytes. An electrolyte is an ion that is required by the body to regulate the electric charge and flow of water between the cells and the bloodstream. Sodium is the body's main extracellular cation. A cation … [Read more...]

Happy Friday! Our dose of inspiration for Week #5 of Your Best Body Challenge is about pushing through challenges. As we near closer to the halfway mark for our challenge, evaluate where you are and where you want to be in the next six weeks. Then, take action! Remember, every goal will have some struggle attached. See you Saturday! "Pain is just weakness leaving the body." -Unknown … [Read more...]

When my boys were young I frequently found myself at the dinner table polishing off the remnants of dinner they left on their plates. And then that last scoop of mashed potatoes still in the bowl somehow exerted a mystical, hypnotic pull compelling me to finish it off. It was hopeless to resist, I was under the power of an evil voodoo mashed potato spell. At least that is how I explained my … [Read more...]

 Jack Lalanne is called "the godfather of fitness." This forward-thinking, fitness guru preached the importance of diet and exercise leading America into a fitness craze. He opened one of the first gyms in the United States and ran a 36-year exercise television program. In fact, doctors warned against Lalanne's methods preaching that "Lalanne was an exercise 'nut,' whose programs would make … [Read more...]

Our weight is constantly fluctuating, mostly due to hydration. During any given day, we can fluctuate 3 to 5 pounds, morning to evening from water-weight alone. So, how do you lose the FAT? What we do know is that fat is added on in layers called subcutaneous layers. You can compare these layers to an onion. As you begin to gain fat, you will put on weight in different areas. When you lose … [Read more...]

In honor of the Stanley Cup Finals, this inspirational speech is our Friday motivation. Play it before our Saturday morning workout at India Point Park and be ready to work hard!   "It's never too late to become what you might have been."  - George Elliot … [Read more...]

Doing strenuous exercise or unaccustomed exercise is when we usually experience Doms. We use to think this was caused by a buildup of lactic acid in the muscle. We now know that next day muscle soreness is caused by damage to the muscle fibers themselves. Scientists can tell how much muscle damage has occurred by measuring blood levels of a muscle enzyme called CPK. CPK is normally found in … [Read more...]

Slow, concentric lifting depletes more muscle glycogen than fast-paced lifting. When you deplete glycogen during resistance training, you build up the lactic acid levels in your blood. Increased lactic acid levels cause increases in growth hormones, powerful fat burning hormones. In sum:  lift slowly to burn more fat. Stay Strong and Healthy, Peter Holmes … [Read more...]

I am frequently asked about vitamins and whether they are worth taking or not. After all, do they really work? Vitamins are micro nutrients that act as catalysts for enzymatic reactions in our body necessary for life. So, they are important. You should be able to get all or most of what you need from the food that you eat. Unfortunately, we don't always eat completely balanced meals every … [Read more...]

"I have missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions I have been entrusted to take the game-winning shot . . . and I missed. I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that's precisely why I succeed." -Michael Jordan, NBA player … [Read more...]

Less nutrients will remain in food the longer it sits on a shelf, in a package or in a truck. The nutrient quality of food is directly related to how long it hangs around before it is consumed. Buying as much of your food as possible from local farmers makes sense on a lot of levels. It supports the local economy, your food is fresher, it tastes better and it has a higher nutritional … [Read more...]

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Most of us have a tough time with breakfast. We either eat a horrible nutritionally weak, sugar-laden, processed-carbohydrate, fat-promoting mess or nothing at all. Typical excuses for these breakfast choices are:  "I don't have enough time," "I'm not hungry in the morning," or "I just do coffee (with fat-free creamer and artificial sweeteners) to get me going." What's wrong with this picture? … [Read more...]

Hi guys, Are you ready for tomorrow's workout? Don't forget that Your Best Body members will be meeting Saturday morning. So, in honor of the long weekend ahead I have decided to dedicate this Friday to all-things inspirational. Stay motivated! "The dictionary is the only place that success comes before work. Hard work is the price we must pay for success. I think you can accomplish anything … [Read more...]

Hi Paulette, Great question! Here is how to figure out how many calories you should be eating: We first have to determine your base metabolic rate (BMR). This is the amount of calories required to sustain necessary biologic functions such as breathing, circulation, cell repair, etc. Then we have to add in activity calories and this tells us how many calories you need to sustain your current … [Read more...]