Posts Tagged ‘Lakeland Boot Camp’
Jan19
It’s all about being fit, feeling strong and leading a healthy, authentic life!
What exercise will get you there the fastest?
My personal opinion is the bicep curl that brings the fork to your lips
BUT, if I had to choose only ONE physical exercise to do the rest of my life?
It would be a Squat or a Lunge.
If you’ve spent any time with me personal training or in our Strategic Boot Camp program, or our newly begun Lean Out Lakeland, you have experienced this exercise in every workout session in some form or another with me.
I have three quotes I use a lot:
“The Squat is King!”
“Squats and Lunges are a girl’s (and guy’s) best friend.
“The squat and deadlift are the only two exercises you need to build a beautiful body.”
And I mean it.
These exercises use more muscle groups under a heavy load than any other weight bearing exercise known to man,
This, in turn, affects your hormones (growth, testosterone, etc.) in a great way that helps you lose fat and build muscle.
Many university research studies have been done that show the inclusion of squats into a training program increases upper body muscularity and strength even though those joint movements were not specifically targeted when performing the squat.
Pretty amazing.
Squats are the basis of building a lean and strong body. Get away from the long, boring cardio session and add some into your workouts for 2 weeks. You will see a major difference in your physique.
Squats can simply be done with your body weight if you’re a beginner. In fact, I suggest you support yourself by holding onto a wall or a rail to support your weight as you lower yourself slowly to a position that remains comfortable, reaching back with your rear as if you were going to sit in a chair. You may even choose to lower yourself into a chair to begin your squat training.
My suggestion is that you utilize any free-weight object such as a dumbbell, kettlebell, sandbag, milk jug, suitcase, or even your family pet. It’s important that your body follow a natural biomechanically correct path.
Avoid the machines. Make your body function the way it was designed. You’ll end up working harder and getting better results.
Go for it!
Tags: healthy eating, Lakeland Boot Camp, Lakeland Personal Trainer, lunge, Nutrition, Squat, ultimate hard body exercise
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Dec19
Are you desperate to lose fat?
Have joined the ranks of the insanely bored, yet focused cardio worshippers?
Do you feel guilty if you have not spent your hour a day rocking the elliptical machine?
Is your whole workout ruined if someone beat you to the only functioning, coveted
“revolving stair case” ? (Otherwise known as the death mill)
If so, then allow me to be sac-religious for a moment:
“Endurance Exercise is NOT a necessity for fat loss.”
Yes, I said it.
If you don’t like doing endurance work, stop doing it!
You can lose fat rapidly either WITH it or WITHOUT it!
You choose.
Exercising is about being healthy. And we all know that if we don’t like something, the chances of us continuing to do it after the novelty has worn off, is nil, and we NEED to continue doing it for our health’s sake.
Don’t you have anything you’d like to spend those extra hours doing besides ‘penance’ for eating an extra cookie at the office Christmas party? (We’ll talk about your unhealthy relationship with food at a later date.)
Now, I realize there is a place for endurance work. You may be training for a distance challenge, or possibly even really ENJOY the exercise itself. But this indeed would be a rarity. Most of us just either want to get in shape, or stay that way.
So, how can we lose fat rapidly without doing copious amounts of cardio?
Simple: Incorporate a nutritionally dense eating style and learn to implement anaerobic exercise. (The kind that leaves you gasping for breath!)
It’s not a single answer. You can’t lose your fat and keep your muscle without making changes in your diet, AND building some sweat equity working with weights.
So, here’s the bottom line:
Get a plan, a strategy together to make these two things happen in your life.
1. Eat a nutrient rich diet with 90% of your foods coming from plants. (Soups and Salads are a GREAT way to get this accomplished.)
2. Learn to perform High Intensity Interval Training.
If you are new to the concept of eating clean, and eating for nutritional excellence, I’d like to introduce you to Dr. Joel Fuhrman who is providing an important catalyst for a much needed paradigm shift in our approach to healthcare and weight loss.
Purchase any of his books, or even his audio book, Eat for Health (my personal favorite) as a gift for yourself for Christmas and spend the holidays becoming educated in what it will take to implement the most effective weight loss and disease prevention and reversal method ever.
But beware of the side effects!
Incorporating a Nutrient Dense Eating Style may cause unintentional reversal of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes, arthritis, IBS, wrinkling skin, allergies and many other annoying and life threatening issues.
As for Learning to perform High Intensity Interval Training, let’s start very simply:
As applies to any exercise prescription, please check with your doctor to be sure this will be a safe activity for you. I know very few doctors who wouldn’t want their clients to walk…so don’t use this as an excuse to delay beginning your wellness journey. 
Lace up your tennis shoes, grab a watch with a second hand and walk out your front door.
Step One: Walk for 5 minutes just to warm up your joints. Easy does it.
Step Two: Walk as fast as you can (and I do mean fast) for 1 full minute.
Step Three: Walk slowly to recover for 2 full minutes.
That’s Round One.
Repeat Step Two and Three 4 more times for a total of 15 minutes of Interval Training.
Step Four: Walk for 5 minutes to cool down.
That’s it.
Now, for those of you who are much more advanced and accomplished. Implement this same protocol, but utilize a more strenuous approach:
Jumproping (Fast Jumping 1 minute/Slow jumping 2 minutes)
Treadmill running (Sprint speed 1 minute/Jogging speed 2 minutes)
Cycling: (Fast and difficult gear for 1 minute/Slower and easier gear for 2 minutes.)
You get the idea. Anything that will bring your heart rate up will suffice.
I will post other HIIT workout ideas utilizing weights and cardio throughout the holiday season. Stay tuned.
Spend your holiday season getting prepared for a Fit and Fabulous 2010. Read, practice eating with nutrient density in mind and practice some HIIT.
If you live in Lakeland, Florida and you’re looking for some guidance in holistic dramatic fat loss utilizing the principles I mention here, you will want to check out this opportunity:
Here’s the Website with all the information you need to participate in the premiere weight loss and educational event in Lakeland, Florida.
Lean Out Lakeland
Beginning January 18th, 100 Lakeland individuals will be participating in a Team Weight Loss Contest geared to educate and empower their health and wellness. We have a few places left.
Are you ready to change? We’re here to help you make the permanent lifestyle change you know you need. Stop the endless treadmill cycle. Get it done! Lose the fat and improve your health!
It’s time for your own personal Wellness Revolution.
Tags: Florida, healthy eating, HIIT, Joel Fuhrman, Lakeland, Lakeland Boot Camp, Lakeland Personal Trainer, Lean Out Lakeland, Nutrient Dense Living, Strategic Boot Camp, Whitney Cabrera
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Nov19
You’ve got to be kidding!
I’m not much of a TV watcher. Besides nightly re-runs of “King of Queens” and an occasional ever-perplexing episode of “Lost”, I really have no idea what’s going on out there in TV land. Truthfully, I’m really not interested. I want to experience my own life, not get caught up in someone else’s drama.
Last week however, the TV really did catch my attention. I was making my bed between Boot Camps (you know, as neat as my hubby is, in our 25 years of marriage, I think he’s made it twice) and turned on the TV to try to catch up on the news.
While putting my favorite terry-covered body pillow on the bed, I heard the most blatant deception I have ever experienced in a commercial:
“There is nothing wrong with High Fructose Corn Syrup. It comes from corn and can actually be good for you.”
I nearly tripped on a slipper and passed out.
No wonder we are all confused in America! We’re getting
bombarded on every side with conflicting information.
How about these claims:
1. “Cheerios can help lower your cholesterol”
You’ve got to be kidding. Eating processed grains can actually make your cholesterol rise! Cheerios only has 1 gram of soluble fiber per serving. Ditch the box! Eat the oatmeal, not the highy processed cereal made from oats. Yes, oatmeal is GREAT for you…but the kind God would recognize.
2. “Milk does a body good”
You’ve got to be kidding. Check this link out for some very interesting ideas on milk consumption.
The Milk Letter
Our bodies are not equipped to digest conventional milk. Many of us are intolerant and have no idea that many of our health issues are tied in with pasteurized milk consumption. Did you know that a calf will die after 30 days of drinking pasteurized milk?
If you have to drink milk, organic is a must and raw is a much better choice. My suggestion is to try Lite Almond Milk that has no sugar added.
Commercials are responsible for one thing: Selling us their product. Deception that is duping the public into believing that they’re living a healthy lifestyle is rampant. Sharpen your Baloney detector! Be an informed consumer.
Now, about that High Fructose Corn Syrup.
“There is nothing wrong with High Fructose Corn Syrup. It comes from corn and can actually be good for you.”
You’ve got to be kidding!
The latest stats say that new cases of diabetes have increased by 90% in the last 10 years. That means that diabetes or pre-diabetes will now strike 1 in every 4 Americans!
Scientists have clearly linked, time and time again, the use of HFCS to the epidemics (yes, epidemics) of obesity, diabetes and metabolic syndrome in America.
But despite all of the hard scientific evidence, the industry persists in claiming these findings are untrue. They feel that HFCS is the same as sugar.
Am I the only one, or does this remind you a bit of the tobacco companies fervent denial of the link between lung cancer and smoking?
Here’s a great video for you to put in your arsenal:
High Fructose Corn Syrup Deception
So, how much High Fructose Corn Syrup is in YOUR diet?
Start reading the labels of the products you have in your home right now. You’ll be shocked to see that it can be found in every type of processed, pre-packaged food that you can think of.
Trying to lose body fat? Check out this research done by Dr. Elizabeth Parks from the UT Southwestern Medical Center.
“Our study shows for the first time the surprising speed with which humans make body fat from fructose. Once you start the process of fat synthesis from fructose, it’s hard to slow it down. The bottom line of this study is that fructose very quickly gets made into fat in your body.”
Trying to improve your overall health? It’s really quite simple. To lose weight and decrease the risk of developing cancer, diabetes, heart disease and many other life-altering illnesses, drink pure water, (distilled is best….but not from the plastic jug), stop drinking soda and processed fruit juices and eat whole foods.
And by all means, refine your baloney detector!
Now, go shut the TV off, will ya?
Enjoying the journey,
Whitney Cabrera BSN, RN
Tags: boot camp, Florida, Lakeland Boot Camp, Lakeland Personal Trainer, Strategic Boot Camp, Strategic Wellness, Whitney Cabrera
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Jul17
I hope all of you are following our meal plan template to the “T”!
That’s what it’s for…a sure fire way to do what you say you want to do:
“Lose at least 10 pounds.”
Just follow the plan…all you have to do is make sure the food is in your home and then eat them!
You know, you should NEVER have any waste of the veggies you buy every week. If you haven’t tried the “go to” menu quick veggie soup, give it a try! It’s a really easy way to use up those veggies. And, if you haven’t put this together yet, you could drink that soup ANY time you want during the day and not sabotage your weight loss efforts. It’s only veggies and broth. Free foods
The goal I have for you this week is to load your life with greens! I hope I’ve been getting this across to you all, but want to take a few minutes to focus on why.
Clearly science says the following through numerous studies:
Following the plan will help you:
“Achieve optimal weight, eliminate chronic health problems, dramatically
reduce disease risk, regain energy you may have lost years ago, and enjoy a
newfound positive attitude and outlook on life! ”
Now who doesn’t want all of that…and just by changing your eating habits to include more veggies!
At the end of our 8 weeks together, you will find the following daily regimen quite easy to incorporate, but you STILL have to plan for it. It won’t happen on it’s own.
1. 2 lbs. of vegetables, 50-70 percent raw, half of them above-ground greens
2. 3-5 raw fruits
3. 1/2 -1 cup whole grains (cooked and/or sprouted)
4. 1/2- 1 cup legumes (cooked and/or sprouted)
5. 3-6 Tbsp. of fats found in vegetables, nuts, seeds, and the highest-quality
oils that are antioxidant- and lignin-rich, with omega fats (3, 6, and 9)
and essential fatty acids
6. Moderate amounts of lean, free range or organic protein sources.
This list is simple and straight forward. But here’s the adventure: You get the opportunity to learn to make these lifestyle changes in the company of MANY other delightful personalities. It’s more than a lifestyle change towards optimal health; it is a move to an adventure for your taste buds!
You’re going to have an opportunity to adopt a whole new repertoire of main dishes, snacks, salads, breakfasts and even smoothies. You will also learn to develop a new set of skills that will
enhance your family’s wellness.
Start eating those salads and green smoothies! Get your 2 pounds of veggies in today!
Tomorrow’s workout will be based on the Bosu’! Nothing like a little balance training!
Come ready to work!
Bring a green smoothie!
You will be receiving your first “challenge” in our competition tomorrow. Hope you’ll be able to get it done!
Enjoying the journey,
Tags: boot camp, bootcamp, circuit training, Lakeland Boot Camp, Lakeland Personal Trainer, Nutrition, Strategic Boot Camp, Strategic Wellness
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Jul12
This article is written by John Berardi, one of my mentors, and leading brilliant minds in physiology and nutritional research. Enjoy!
“Exercise Without Diet
A few weeks back I shared with you an article called “When Exercise Doesn’t Work.” And in this article, I reviewed some fascinating new research demonstrating that, without a dietary intervention, exercise doesn’t have much of an impact on body composition.
Even to the tune of 6 hours per week…Even when it’s high intensity exercise….participants following an exercise plan, without being cognizant of their nutritional intake, only tend to lose an extra pound of fat vs. those folks who do nothing for the same 12-16 weeks.
Disheartening, I know. But oh so true. Especially when supported by this new information I’m going to share with you today.
More Support For the “No Diet Hypothesis”
Just yesterday, I received an interesting email from Dr Gary Homann, a faculty member at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, MO. (Some of you may recall that we collaborated with Dr Homann a few years back and came up with some interesting insights, spotlighted here: Long Haul Training). Gary, intrigued by my last article, shared with me the results from a very telling study he completed back in 2003. Here’s what he found.
Two hours a day and they still got fatter!
In Dr Homann’s study, 56 girls between the ages of 14 and 17 – all of whom were in a program run by the South Dakota Department of Corrections – volunteered to get involved in a 4-6 month wellness program. The idea was to have the girls exercise for about 14 hours per week (2 hours per day consisting of various activities such as hiking, running, circuit training, step aerobics and basketball) while following the USDA Food Guide, as it appeared in 2003.
At the beginning of the study and again at the end, a host of measures were recorded, including:
* A step test and timed mile for cardiovascular fitness
* Height, weight, body mass index (BMI), skinfolds (for % body fat), waist and hips circumference for body composition
* Shuttle run for agility
* Standing jump, sit-ups and bench press test for muscular strength and endurance
* And sit-and-reach and straddle tests for flexibility
So, what happened? Well, as expected, cardiovascular fitness, muscular strength and endurance, agility, and flexibility all improved. That’s great!
What’s not so great is that body composition measures worsened. Instead of losing body weight and fat, these girls, on average, gained 6lbs, increased their waist circumference by 1/2 and inch, increased their hip circumference by 3/4 of an inch, and increased their body fat by over 1/2 a percentage point.
Now, I don’t know about you. But this isn’t exactly what I’d expect to happen if I went on a 14 hour per week exercise binge!
Exercise + The Food Pyramid
As you’d imagine, I’m kinda disappointed to learn that it’s actually possible to gain body fat when exercising 2 hours per day, every single day. You’re probably disappointed too. However, what’s even more disappointing is the fact that it’s possible while actually following a nutrition plan!
Remember, participants in this study were following the recommendations of the USDA – you know, that famous food pyramid that everyone talks about. The one that dietitians across the land recommend that we follow. The one recommending 6-11 servings of breads, cereals, and pastas each day.
(Now, it is true that the USDA has since changed their recommendations – for the better. But can you blame me if I’m a little gun shy on backing their new recommendations? Especially after the checkered history of the last food pyramid?)
Questions
Now, you might have some questions about the study design…as I did when first reading it.
After all, maybe the girls didn’t follow the USDA plan to a “T”…
Or maybe they were going thru puberty at the time of the study and that explains the fat gain…
Or maybe being put in a detention center isn’t exactly conducive to fat loss in the first place.
Well, after speaking with Dr. Homann, I’m pretty confident that these factors can’t really explain away the fact that these girls exercised for 2 hours every single day, while following the USDA’s guidelines, and got fatter.
For starters, the girls were living in a detention center and they were provided all their meals. So there wasn’t much room to cheat.
Further, the girls were starting out quite over fat. Indeed, their average body fat was just over 30% to begin with. So they did have fat to lose. And their fat gain can’t be explained by simply “getting older” or “puberty”.
Let’s Bottom Line This
I could probably go on and on here…but I’ll spare you that. Instead, I’d like to simple say the following. The data are pouring in.And they paint a pretty clear picture. If you want to look better, feel better, and perform at the top of your game, you definitely have to exercise…(although 14 hours a week probably isn’t necessary).
But, even more importantly, you’ve got to look after your nutrition – specifically what you eat, how much you eat, and when you eat it. Indeed, without the right nutritional intake, you simply can’t expect inspiring, noticeable results. Heck, in some cases, you might even expect to get worse! So don’t leave your nutrition up to chance.”
I hope you enjoyed this article. This is what I do for fun Anyhow, in Strategic Boot Camp you are leaving nothing to chance. Your exercise, homework and nutrition have all been carefully planned to bring you the best results. All you need to do is follow it. 100% compliance is NOT necessary to obtain great results, but 90% is.
It’s going to be a great week! I can hardly wait to see all of the success tomorrow night at our 7:30 weigh in!
Tomorrow’s workout is called “Excuse Me!”
Probably due to all of the Burpees.
See you early or on time!
Enjoying the journey,
Whitney
Tags: Lakeland Boot Camp, Lakeland Personal Trainer, Nutritional Importance, Rapid Fat Loss, Sunscreen Dangers
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