Getting older, Not fatter

Getting older gracefully is something many aspire to do.  Some people, however, want more than that.  Flying into our 90s is the dream... right? Look at Olga up there -- she's flying!!  She wants to age with speed, agility, and athletic achievements in age-group competitions.  But getting to the top of "masters" divisions or the "senior games" isn't as easy as it used to be for the Olgas of the world.

Nowdays instead of ever-shrinking 65-70 and 75-80 year old competition brackets, they're growing...  more about that in a future article  But first, the bad news remains:  we lose 10% of our lean muscle every decade.  Only strength training and regular exercise can prevent muscle loss.  Left unchecked, the lost muscle is replaced with fat.  

So for a woman who starts out in her 20s or 30s with a relatively healthy 80% lean, 20% fat body she'll enter her 40s with a 70% lean, 30% fat even IF her weight stays the same.  Her sizes will go up ever so slightly and it may "not matter much" at first, but there are consequences:   

Everything feels pudgy.  Energy levels drop.  Life gets harder.  

People already in their 40s and 50s folks know that losing weight gets harder as we age, and why is that?  It's because the metabolic engine that is our lean muscle mass is getting eaten away.  Like termites gnawing away at wood, fat creeps in to replace our muscle as our own bodies only naturally conserve and build strength in youth but atrophy with age.  

Hormones have a role in this process, no doubt, but rather than hitting the needles and popping pills... why not use the muscle you have to conserve the metabolism you need to age gracefully and healthfully.  

As reported by the NY Times, there is inspiration to be found in the 80-year olds who stay fit with good, old-fashioned work.  Consistency is the key.  And researchers learning more about aging every year:  

Some researchers now see aging itself as a kind of mitochondrial disease. Defective mitochondria appear as we get older, and these researchers say that they rob us of endurance, strength and function. There’s evidence that for young patients with mitochondrial disease, exercise is a potent tool, slowing the symptoms. If that’s true, then exercise could also potentially be a kind of elixir of youth, combating the ravages of aging far more than we thought.

Sunny and SunnyDayFitness training sessions can help you, Olga, or anyone interested in aging gracefully.  Why don't you e-mail Sunny for a complimentary session today?  

Small meals and Your appetite

Appetite tells us when to eat, and when working well, how much to eat or when to stop. It works well when we eat natural, filling foods at a slow and measured pace. But it doesn't work so well when processed and calorie-dense foods rather than nutrient-dense foods take center stage. Given today's culture and conveniences, in just 10 minutes you could scarf down a variety of foods to satisfy hunger. For example, it's easy to feel full after eating two whole carrots (150 calories) or you could get a similar satisfaction from eating a jumbo-sized box of fries (1,150 calories). Either way, the appetite is satisfied but with a very different calorie and nutrient content.

Meal timing also plays into appetite. Eariler and frequent smaller meals are easier for the body to use as fuel during exercise. It makes sense for most people dieting to lose a weight to 25% of their daily calories in a larger breakfast. This controls appetite and reduces hunger throughout the day, resulting in lower overall calorie intake. Meals every 3-4 hours will also require more energy to digest than the traditional 3 meals per day format. There is also evidence from weight loss studies that suggests that people usually eat less overall when they eat often, so it's a win-win.

Finally, developing a healthy appetite using frequent, small meals should be easy and appetizing. Consider a few high-nutrient, very satisfying appetizers. This list of 5 foods have at least two high-satiety foods that can fill you up on healthy combinations. Eat one about 10 minutes before your next meal to fill up early, or have 2-3 as a meal combination for fullness. These recipes were recetnly published in Triathlete Magazine (See triathletemag.com article by M. Fitzgerald from May 2009).

These all come it at about 150 calories. Try a few!

Spinach & Avocado/Tomato Salad

1 cup Spinach + 1/4 cup Avo's and Tomat's

with 1 tsp olive oil dressing

Crackers & Low-Fat Cheese

4 whole wheat crackers + 1 oz. cheese

Lentil Soup

1 cup as prepared by Amy's Organics or homemade

Asparagus & Almonds

4 spears steamed + 1/8 Almond slivers and Parm Cheese

Baked Fries with Rosemary

1/2 cup of potato slices baked at 450F for 30 mins

with olive oil spray and rosemary and S&P before baking

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Sunny's Top 5 Nutritional Tips

I check labels and make informed choices about what and when I eat. But nobody's perfect, and sometimes I slip up ... a lot. See my Saturday log and how bad it got? I used to log my diet daily, even hourly to see what my hunger triggers and relievers are. Now I think a little longer term and have come up with 5 tips for better nutrition.

Here are my top 5 tips to drop 5 pounds with fewer calories and minimal hunger:

1. Drink water. 2 liters daily, at a minimum. Start with a tall glass 12oz before every meal and another glass with snacks. Add more water by drinking every 5-10 minutes while working out whether with cardio or with strength. Yes, you'll pee more but you'll also feel full more quickly and feel hunger less often.
2. Get green. Rethink snacks and look for veggie options like cucumbers with s&p or mustard, leafy green salads, steamed broccoli with a sprtiz of lemon. These are not on the shelves at CVS or Shaw's so you'll need to use pre-pack your snacks. Invest in ziploc baggies which microwave easily and small plastic boxes that won't leak.
3. Grains keep giving. Complex carbohydrates are slow burners that are perfect workout fuel. Whole grain bread and barley or whole grain couscous salads will leave you full for hours, especially if eaten with a tall glass of water. The darker, chewier, and less processed grains are best. Try cooking a new/old grain like quinoa today!
4. Nix sugary snacks. Fruity yogurt, begone! Unless you add the blueberries yourself, you're getting more corn syrup and sugar than goodness from fruit-included yogurts. And check the labels on so-called diet or nutritional bars also. Rice and cane syurp are common additives that only add quick-burn sugar to your diet. Use sparingly if at all.
5. Keep one treat. In all things, balance -- if you too strict, you'll likely really fall off the wagon quickly. Follow the above guidelines 90% of the time and indulge a little, daily with your free 10% of the time. If you allow for a little 100-200 calories "fudge" factor you can more easily keep the rest of your diet squeaky clean.

That's the recipe for contentment and success! I use this to drop 5 pounds almost every summer and usually within just a few weeks. It takes cooking and packing meals, plus snacks, and several large water bottles, but it's very doable. You don't need to write it all down, but it helps -- just keep it real and honest. It's that hard look in the mirror that makes us able to see what's real, and grow from it.

Drop me a note at sunny@sunnydayfitness.com if you want to know more about a nutritional lifestyle for weight loss or healthy weight maintenance. I look forward to hearing from you!

Good press on Trainers after the Boston Marathon

"Mr. Gordon found that training, if done right, is the ultimate performance enhancer, with effects that can dwarf those of illegal drugs, like the blood-boosting drug EPO, as well as legal stimulants like caffeine. Still, it seems, too few amateur athletes take it seriously and fewer still do it right. Exercise physiologists and coaches say most people who want to run, swim, cycle or row faster or improve in almost any sport do not appreciate what can be accomplished with training nor how to do it."

It's true, folks. The average person stands to gain a lot of fitness by becoming moderately active. The amateur athlete can boost performance and success while racing by knowing when to go hard at training vs. when to take it easy.

As a trainer of several marathoners, many half-marathoners, and some very tenacious triathletes, I know how eager amateurs can be to "stick with the plan" and run through pain. But this isn't smart training. Instead, I can come in with a "big picture" perspective to say which training days really count, and which can be missed. I can also look at injuries in the making and head them off before the dull ache becomes a driving pain. Best of all, I can see how healthy training brings improved times and better races overall. This helps the athlete come back for more racing, more training, and more years of healthy competition!

Source: NY Times "Want to Go Faster? You Need a Trainer" article, 4/23/2009

Fresh Pond run and mini-bootcamp

So as you can see, I've gone back to logging workouts. It's a simple act, but a powerful discipline. I have logged triathlon training workouts for years. Seeing the build-up of hours and miles gives me confidence for most any race.

Fri, Feb 27 Run ~3.5 miles in 35 minutes. Also gave a Mini-boot camp in 10 minutes for two friends, immediately post-run. Drills included 2x10 pushups, 2x15 squats, 2x20 walking lunges, 2x20 side squats, 1x10 tricep dips. My running pal told me she was sore for days afterwards. Yay!