A GUIDE TO SUMMER FITNESS

Summer is here and it’s time to celebrate your hard work, family time and maybe even take a little vacation time to rejuvenate.

Whoa! Now I don’t want to put a cloud over the summer celebration, but many of us have forgotten or neglected ourselves during the winter and may actually be in poor shape.

I want to do my part to bring health and fitness to you and your family, so here are a few quick fitness and diet tips to get you on track to really enjoy your summertime with health and wellness.

Get some professional fitness advice – I know, you were an athlete in your younger years, you have watched videos, and you know how to workout, and you don’t need anybody’s advice.  I get that, and I thought the same until I really got into studying physiology and fitness. 

Is your image the one you want?  Is it the same one that you had in your younger years?  Is your program working? Think about it…all of your favorite sports teams, actresses, and athletes have trainers.  Its time to maximize your workout efficiency and get into boot camp or get a couple friends together with a trainer for some accountability and get that body back to the shape you want.  Even just once a week to stay on track will really help.

Include more than just your upper body “beach” muscles - If you really want to kick in your metabolism and develop overall fitness, include your lower body muscles during your workouts.  The largest amount of muscle is in your lower body.  This translates to a higher calorie and fat burn when you include them in your workout.  You can kick it in gear with variations of squats and lunges to name a couple.    

Dial in your eating habits – You can out eat the best training program.  Again, have a professional review your daily food intake to ensure that you are doing everything possible.  A couple basic tips – eat at least 2 hours before bedtime.   Eat 5-6 smaller meals everyday (too few meals is the most common mistake by my clients).  Add protein to every meal.  Drink 80 oz of water daily. 

Reduce the brews and the sweet cocktails - The short line is that Alcohol is a toxin.  Your body can process .5-1.0 oz per hour.  Not very much when you consider beer is .6 ounces of alcohol. 

Drinking 5 beers stops fat metabolism for about 6 hours.  Yikes.  You could make a harsh dent in your hard workout results from a binge day or two.  Add in a mixed drink with high sugar content and you have a Fat Bomb!

If you choose to drink, choose light beer, hard liquor, or wine and keep it to 1-2 days per week and 1-2 drinks max. 

Keep in mind, your body will either detoxify the alcohol or burn fat - Not Both – which will you, choose?

Put these into action and enjoy yourself this summer. Remember…You only get one body.