That One Fitness Guy

Some Tips On How To Pick The Perfect Personal Trainer For You!

Some Tips On How To Pick The Perfect Personal Trainer For You!

It may be a bit self-serving to create an article about the best way to pick a personal trainer on a site about personal training, but part of this business is helping people so offering this kind of advice may actually be more beneficial than some may expect. In fact, how many times have you heard from a friend “My personal trainer is such a jerk, he never listens and by the time I get home, I can’t even walk the next day!” While this is of course not a horrible problem, training should not be a 3 to 4-hour session 5 times a week unless you happen to be going to the Olympics or something of that caliber. A smart trainer will always know what your limits are and make sure that you can still live your life the following day. Here are a few tips I’ve learned to really help out when looking for a personal trainer that will fit your needs.

How To Pick The Right Personal Trainer For You!

Convenience

Surprised? This is actually one of the key components when picking someone to train you. Sure, there are times when you can find someone willing to travel to your location of choice and train you either at the gym or the local park; a lot of the time, though, they also increase their charges for the travel expenses. While looking for a trainer, think about how close you are to them and them to you as once you finish a workout, an hour drive back home is not the best motivation to keep going. In fact, imagine planning to go to your PT and you realize it will take an hour to get there to work out for an hour, get dog tired, then turn around and drive ANOTHER hour the other way. Finding a trainer that is relatively close to you and a breeze to drive to and from will actually help boost your willingness to go to training. It’s a simple psychological trick but it works!

Experience

One thing that the Body Master Fitness Studio in Houston, TX is familiar with is experience and what exactly that entails. With the ease of starting just about any profession in our current digital age (I mean is every YouTube star really a great actor?), there are more and more personal trainers popping up as the position is viewed as an “easy job”. Let me tell you that this is the wrong way to approach it as it involves a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes and any good trainer will know this. The primary role of any PT is to make sure that you are motivated, taken care of, and your needs are met. This doesn’t just mean taking you to the gym and forcing you to lift weights until you “feel” like you’ve had a good workout. Rather, this comes in the form of listening to the client and actually hearing what they say.

When picking a personal trainer, have a talk with them and ask directly how they will help you if you happen to injure yourself during a workout. Will they keep pushing you on that hurt shoulder or will they adjust the workout to keep your other parts going until your shoulder recovers? A lot of so-called professional trainers will pick the former or instead, just send you home for a few weeks until you recover while keeping your deposit. That doesn’t seem fair though as you, the client, may want to keep working out but as I mentioned, sometimes trainers will not listen and that separates those with real experience from those who dabble.

Experienced, well-trained trainers will know what to look for and most of the time not even let your shoulder reach the point of complete discomfort. Not only that but when something happens in your life that may negatively affect your energy and drive, they are there to listen as well as push you forward. Naturally, we all want a trainer who knows their stuff but when real experience shines through and they’re able to help you beyond just lifting weights, you know you’ve found a great trainer.

Value

While some personal trainers give you a monthly non-refundable charge that you have to use it or lose it, there are still some that offer a package deal. You pay for the sessions you would like and use them as you are able to within your schedule. These are rare and few between but most of the time, when these packages are offered, it’s because the trainer is looking to really improve you and fit your schedule rather than just trying to make a sucker out of you.

Be upfront about what you want to pay and see if there is a plan you two can work out that will fit your budget, schedule, and everything else.

In closing, the three core components of finding a great personal trainer are someone that is located a reasonable distance from you, someone that is experienced and reliable, and finally, someone who gives a fair way to arrange your sessions rather than trying to slight you of your hard earned funds. Finding a personal trainer in Houston, TX is a difficult task but with this extra knowledge, should prove a bit easier the next time you begin looking.

Until next time, think healthy, be healthy!


Sugar Free Sundays: Comforting Protein Filled Meatloaf

Sugar Free Sundays: Comforting Protein Filled Meatloaf

In the south, we put a lot of things in our mouths that most places would immediately classify as unhealthy. Whether you’re in Houston, TX, or Lousiana though, nothing beats the warming fullness that great comfort food can provide. Most comfort food gets its name from a high level of carbs, sugars, or simply an exhausting amount of starches included. There are however some foods that can still be comforting while helping your diet along the way. That’s why today, I’d like to go over a great recipe I found for a great tasting Protein Filled Meatloaf!

Sugar Free Sundays: Comforting Protein Filled Meatloaf

 

Protein Filled Meatloaf

Ingredients

  • 1 and a 1/2 pounds of ground beef (the leaner the better!)
  • 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 and 1/2th tablespoon of chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon garlic salt (optional, keep in mind the pork skins have salt as well)
  • 1 tablespoon garlic pepper
  • 1  4-ounce can of tomato sauce
  • 1/2 cup crushed fried pork skins (for texture and holding mostly)

Instructions

  1. While preheating the oven to 375, mix together the Worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce, eggs,  pork skins, and ground beef.
  2. Next, season them with your chili powder and garlic salt/pepper. Mix until well blended then form it into a loaf in a greased loaf pan or glassware.
  3. Bake uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes and prepare your taste buds.
  4. Let sit 5 minutes after removing to ensure the loaf stays firm and does not budge.

When it comes down to it, this recipe actually should make about 6 servings with each slice coming down to around 400 calories each. Never though comfort food could be so good for you right? Either way, this is just one of many recipes I’m looking forward to making the next time I just need that warm feeling in my stomach!

Until next time, think healthy, be healthy!


Obesity And A Higher BMI May Be Linked To 11 Forms Of Cancer

Obesity And A Higher BMI May Be Linked To 11 Forms Of Cancer

Eating poorly and neglecting activity has always been known to cause certain health problems as well as increase your susceptibility to them. In a recent literature review published in the BMJ (British Medical Journal), the link between this neglect leading to obesity and cancer is actually stronger than professionals once thought.

Obesity And A Higher BMI May Be Linked To 11 Forms Of Cancer

The journal covers a group of over 200 cases that focused on the links between cancer indices and mortality. From these, it showed that an increased BMI had an extremely strong link to the development of esophageal, pancreatic, colorectal, and other forms of cancer. In fact, over half of all cancer in these 200 meta-analyses were linked with a higher BMI. The researchers went a step further and discovered that there may also be a relationship between waist circumference and postmenopausal breast cancer. [Kyrgiou M, Kalliala I, Markozannes G, et al. Adiposity and cancer at major anatomical sites: umbrella review of the literature. BMJ.]

While this may sound super scary and reads like anyone that is even slightly overweight is at a much higher risk of cancer, this is not exactly true. The research shows a link between the two but did not dive into exactly how obese each person was or what their other medical conditions were outside of their weight. To really keep this monkey off of our backs, especially as we continue to age, making sure we correctly handle that issue is a smart move. Obesity can also lead to other things and while cancer is certainly the worst of the bunch, diabetes and a lack of any real energy and push can be just as life-threatening.

Luckily, there is a semi-challenging way to prevent this and that is with proper regular workouts to help balance things out. Regular exercise has been proven to combat obesity and improve health overall on an internal level. Especially if you push yourself to always sweat every workout which will, in turn, increase your cardio activity, begin to burn fat, and also adjust your cholesterol levels accordingly. I would never say working out 3 – 4 times a week is an easy habit to develop but that’s why there are personal trainers waiting to help us with their own techniques to make each workout exciting and engaging. Until next time, think healthy, be healthy!



Sugar Free Sundays: Protein Rich Low-Calorie Ice Cream!

Sugar Free Sundays: Protein Rich Low-Calorie Ice Cream!

On this Sugar Free Sunday, I wanted to dive into something a little different this time around. Sadly, I haven’t the foggiest on how to make my own amazing Ice cream that isn’t full of hard pieces, however, I am a connoisseur when it comes to this dairy treat. One of the biggest struggles with beginning any sort of diet is giving up the things you love and for me, it was ice cream and baked goods. While baked goods that fit well into any diet are still few and far between, I did find two brands of protein rich low-calorie ice cream that are not as bad as their full flavored counterparts and in moderation can easily be eaten while on a diet.

Sugar Free Sundays: Protein Rich Low-Calorie Ice Cream!

Halo Top Ice Cream

As far as protein rich low-calorie ice cream goes, Halo Top is a great brand to begin with. On average, their flavors range from about 240 – 360 calories and 24g of protein per pint! If you think about it, a pint of ice cream is quite a lot to have in one sitting but it is good to know that once you complete one, you haven’t ruined your intake completely for the day.

Their main boast, however, is that they use organic stevia instead of regular sugar which is a good alternative to sugar but also makes their ice cream have a slightly different flavor. But with the sheer amount of flavors, Halo Top is a great choice for people on a diet. If you’re looking to try one of these out in Houston, TX, they are readily available at Randalls, Kroger, and even Whole Foods.

Artic Zero Ice Cream

While Halo Top is the more decadent on the list, Arctic Zero is where we start seeing far lower calories. Arctic Zero ice cream comes in both pints and bars so you can find what your heart desires. One pint of Arctic Zero has on average 200 or fewer calories and around 28g of protein which, in my opinion, puts most of its flavors leagues above Halo Top.

The main issue I have with this ice cream is because of its different calorie goals, the flavors tend to be a little untraditional with flavors like “A Touch Of Mint” instead of mint chocolate and so on. While this could turn off some dieters, the flavors are just as rich and come in plenty of variety to help crave your ice cream cravings.

In Houston, you can find this brand at just about any grocery store including H.E.B. & Walmart.

Next time you’re with your personal trainer, why not surprise him by saying you ate a pint of ice cream last night and see how they react before you reveal how healthy each ounce you consumed actually was!

That’s it for this Sugar Free Sunday and until next time, think healthy, be healthy!


Workout Wednesdays: A Look At The Back To Basics Workout Trend

Workout Wednesdays: A Look At The Back To Basics Workout Trend

While working out with weights is a tried and true way of achieving bigger gains, we typically have used the body weight exercises as a way to maintain or tone rather than the core of the workout. This is actually for good reason as the bodyweight exercises only give you as much push as your body has weight and is very easy to become accustomed to. However, in the past few years, a back to basics workout movement has started gaining steam and I wanted to put my two cents in on exactly what to consider when deciding to try it.

The back to basics workout is exactly how it sounds. Instead of using weights or resistance provided by a machine or bands, you use the body you currently have and try to incorporate both cardio and strength exercises into one complete workout. This also coincides with the HIIT workout we mentioned a few weeks back that is high intensity and helps your body with its irregular intervals. In fact, if we look at one of the common circuits you can find online, you’ll be surprised how similar to HIIT these workouts actually are.

Basic Circuit Example

1) Quick Feet

2) Burpees

3) Jumping Jacks

4) Bear Crawls

5) Prisoner Squats

6) Plank Jacks

7) Mountain Climbers

8) Push Ups

This constitutes one circuit and once you complete one, you’re done! For a higher burn, it’s recommended to do this circuit up to three times in a row which isn’t too bad. One of the primary sites I found that recommended this exercise actually said to do each one of these for a minute each, which if you’ve ever tried any of these for a full minute, is a kind of harrowing proposal. Not to say that it isn’t doable, but as a beginner, I would recommend you to do them for at least 30 to 40 seconds each with a 10 – 20-second rest in between. The course of the circuit itself will tire you out to the point that when you hit pushups, you may not actually get even a few in during that 30 seconds due to fatigue. We want to work out, not pass out.

However, the interruption in movement does remind me a lot of the HIIT philosophy of muscle confusion and quick sprints – long reps. Done correctly, this kind of circuit is perfect for one of your off days to keep your cardio and body toned until the next heavy strength or cardio day. I would not, however, recommend it as a complete replacement.

While the back to basics workout is relatively inexpensive and you can do it on your own, after just a few weeks of doing this exercise circuit three times a week, your body will get used to it. Our bodies are flexible and adaptable machines that can adjust and change given the stress put upon it. However, with a body weight exercise, there comes a point where it just becomes ineffective. If you’ve ever known someone who did pushups daily, after a while, they begin to have to set aside a whole hour of time to do their pushups because anything less would do absolutely nothing for their progression. While this is to the extreme, the same goes for every other body weight and cardio based exercise not requiring weights or resistance.

Once you hit that level of comfort with body weight where you stop perspiring, you feel like you could easily do it for another ten minutes, and your heart rate no longer climbs, the exercise just became ineffective for growth. There is nothing wrong with that as a maintaining exercise or a source of conditioning but to really continue to lose weight and build muscle, you have to push your body forward by pushing it with higher weights and requirements that it has to then struggle to adjust to and will lead to bigger gains in all departments. In fact, this is exactly the reason you should hire a personal trainer to keep you moving forward.

That’s my two cents on this back to basics workout and for those who have tried it and love it, that’s great! This is just my opinion on what I believe works and doesn’t work as effectively for what most people are looking for in a workout. Until next time, think healthy, be healthy!


The Mediterranean Diet May Help Protect Your 'Aging Brain'

The Mediterranean Diet May Help Protect Your ‘Aging Brain’

This is one of those stories that caught my attention and was reported by none other than NBC News. The reason I’ve decided to include it here, however, is simply because of its general knowledge that just about any health enthusiast can benefit from. The story ran similar to many diet fads by mentioning how it was a brand new thing however, we’ve known the benefits of a diet similar to this for years now. The Mediterranean diet they are referring to is your basic fruits, vegetables, olive oil, beans and grains that everyone consumed throughout their lives. However, in the study conducted, a thousand of older citizens showed a reduced loss in brain volume as those that strayed from the diet during the lives.

The Mediterranean Diet May Help Protect Your 'Aging Brain'

To quote Dr. David Knopman who was featured in the video:

“Reduced loss in the people who adhered to the med diet would in general be expected to protect them from developing dimentia.”

While eating right and keeping a fixed diet is commonplace nowadays, hearing scientific proof of a diet actually effective brain function is very interesting. In addition to these dietary additions, we also know that fish and omega3 fatty acids play a key role in keeping your mind running as sharply as they can be. What they didn’t mention about the diet, however, is how it keeps all the things necessary for your body to operate right there with you. Your body needs good healthy fats, fiber, and good cholesterol which every item mentioned on the list is rich in. Especially the vegetables and grains!

This “expose” was definitely informative but for anyone on the path to healthy living, you can expect to receive these benefits and more as you continue down the road of proper fitness and nutrition. To see more of the NBC news story, check out this link here!

Until next time, think healthy, be healthy!


Sugar Free Sunday : Super Bowl Style Black Bean Dip

Sugar Free Sunday : Super Bowl Style Black Bean Dip

Football season may be winding down but that isn’t going to stop us from making today a great one. While it’s easy to forget our diet’s during “America’s Holiday”, being able to indulge while staying on track is extremely rewarding. Looking at it though, most of the items eaten during the Super Bowl typically are high in calories, protein, and other great things.

Sugar Free Sunday : Super Bowl Style Black Bean Dip

Not counting the potato chips and various dips, I know my family will often grab a platter of chicken wings, a veggie tray, and pizza to top it all off which is always stock full of meat. While the pizza is definitely the worst of the bunch, the other two aren’t as bad as they could be. However, going back to the potatoes and dips, this is where your diet gets WRECKED!

Potato chips are basically just air, salt, and empty carbs / calories. Sure you can get the “good” potato chips or kettle chips but the amount of carbs / calories stays just about the same. Plus, we can never eat just one can we?

While chips have always been the main opponent to a nutritious diet, those five layer dips or jars of Frito Lay ranch that we use to dip, well, everything into, are actually a far more scary proposition.

That’s why, this Super Bowl Sunday, I want you to give a healthy and still delicious dip a try! This is a Super Bowl Style Black Bean Dip that’s low in fat and high on flavor!

Ingredients

  • 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 Tablespoons of feta or cotja cheese
  • 1 small handful of chopped cilantro
  • A 1/2 to 1 cup of water depending on what kind of consistency you are looking for.
  • 1/4ths a Teaspoon of ground chili powder
  • 1/2 a Teaspoon of ground cumin
  • 1/4th a cup of fresh corn kennels (frozen works as well)
  • 1 Chipotle pepper (or whatever fits your fancy)
  • 2 Tablespoons lime juice
  • 1 15 OZ can of black beans (drained)

Instructions

  1. This recipe is pretty straight forward. Take all those ingredients except the water and mix them together in a food processor or blender.
  2. Add water to the mix until it reaches your desired consistency.
  3. Enjoy!

It’s really just that easy to get everything you need for the big game without destroying your diet in the process!

That’s it for this Super Bowl edition of Sugar Free Sunday and until next time, think healthy, be healthy.



Workout Wednesday: Learning The Right Way To Take A 'HIIT'

Workout Wednesday: Learning The Right Way To Take A ‘HIIT’

No, that isn’t misspelled. HIIT is a training regime that has become very popular as a way to burn more fat. Before gaining this title, it used to not have a name but would often be described as “muscle confusion” where you would interrupt the flow of movement with a brand new, higher intensity one.

Workout Wednesday: Learning The Right Way To Take A 'HIIT'

HIIT stands for high intensity interval training and flows in a way you’d expect. Depending on the exercise, you can do it in just about any way but the best example is using body weight or weighted exercises.

So let’s look at a sample HIIT workout plan and see exactly why it works so well!

If we wanted to focus on our lower body, instead of doing a 100 squats you can actually use this to add definition and increase your cardio gain.

Lower Body Workout circuit: 

-Sprint for 30 seconds

-Perform Squat Jumps for 45 seconds

-Perform lunges 20 for each leg

-Perform Calf raises -40 reps

Do this four times with a minute rest after the calf raise portion. 

While this may be a little intense of a workout, added up, should take less than 15 minutes to complete and give a cardio and leg workout almost equal to 2 hours at the gym. But why is this so effective then?

In a few studies, this regime has been shown to burn adipose tissue far quicker than low intensity exercise. Almost 50% as much. It also speeds up your metabolism to help burn more calories. While this is true for just about any exercise if done correctly, the short period of time needed to achieve this is where the real draw comes in.

The main target of a workout like this would be people who are already in shape and desperately need to add cardio into their workouts. This won’t help you build mass because you’re not pushing your body to really use heavier weights than you’re used to, but it will help slim or cut down on what you have since it’s more activity in a shorter period of time than you’re used to.

Another great way to use HIIT for anyone looking to burn weight, is to begin your diet and alternate days between a high intensity workout and light jogging. Every other night when you get home or even in the mornings before you leave for work, find a workout you can do comfortably and quickly and knock it out. You’ll sweat and gasp for air but the regularity of the extra pressure will prove extremely beneficial in the long run.

High intensity interval training is not for everyone but for those looking for yet another great way to stay in shape, this routine (and the others you can find online) will be your new best friend. Better yet, why not speak with a personal trainer about it and see exactly how you can get this routine implemented into your workout!

Until next time, think healthy, stay healthy!