Good Morning fellow fitness enthusiasts : ) I am in such a good mood this morning because its warm outside (40 degrees), the sun is shining (as much as it does in Pittsburgh in January) and I have sooo many exciting things on the horizon that I just cant stop thinking about! What are those things you ask?? WELL.. let me enlighten you!
I started classes last night for my LAST SEMESTER of my MBA : ) In just four (hopefully short) months I will be able to proudly put the letters MBA in all caps at the end of my name. Its going to be stressful because I am taking four courses at once to finish but when May 5th rolls around and I am taking my final final.. I will feel so amazing!
I am also moving once I graduate and get a job to much sunnier climates in the southern half of the United States to move in with my boyfriend. We've been doing long distance for over a year and a half now and so I am so pumped to not have to wait 3-4 weeks between visits but instead just walk into the living room.. haha : )
and speaking of that man O' mine.. Him and some friends are coming to visit this weekend! I am so excited.. the Steelers game this weekend is a big one and he is coming up to watch it with me. I cant wait to see him and to watch the game!!
ok, so onto the nitty gritty of this post. I posted a question to my facebook friends asking them what their favorite Starbucks drinks were in an effort to understand the good and the bad of the company. Americans get a larger percentage of their calories from drinks nowadays than they did 30 years ago. The invention of the fast food milkshake, 100 different types of soda and the emergence of a Starbucks on every corner has made it difficult to be able to weed through what is really harming your health. I would theorize that people are less likely to think of calories drank of a deterimental health move than calories eaten but this is a slippery slope my friends!
Restaurants in some states have now been forced by law to show their nutritional information in plain site of their customers. Places like McDonalds, Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks have their nutritional information available to show the good, the bad and the ugly. So I asked some of my friends what their "go-to" drink usually is at Starbucks... so lets take a look shall we?
I went to http://www.starbucks.com/ and clicked on the Menu tab ..this is where you will find the link to the "nutrition section"
Here is the list that my friends so graciously provided! Thanks Guys!
Skinny Vanilla Latte - 110 Calories, 12 Carbs/ Sugars
Hot Chocolate - 230 Calories, 37 Carbs/sugars
White Chocolate Mocha - 470 calories, 78 Carbs/sugars
Black Coffee - 5 Calories
Carmel Machiatto - 240 Calories, 34 carbs/sugars
Soy Chai Tea Latte - 250 Calories, 36 carbs/sugars
Carmel Apple Spice and Frappacino- Calories and Carbs werent listed? suspicious
So as you can see, if you keep it on the skinny side you will be ok and it could be a nice little treat on a cold wintery day here in the burgh. Stay away from the drinks with heavy cream, added sugar, and whipped cream because they could pack a whole meals worth of calories and half your days worth of carbs.
Remember to think smart even when youre on the go! A coffee with a shot of flavor can be just as delicious as a sugary drink, it will give you more energy instead of crashing from sugar overload and you can feel good about the choice you made!
I give Starbucks and any other company that puts nutritional information at the fingertips of their customers a little kudos because you are at least giving people the tools to be able to make an informed decision. Whether they choose to use the tools or not is up to them but I strongly suggest you look up your favorite drink and see what you are really putting in your body!
Speaking of giving people the tools... Did anyone watch the show "Heavy" last night on A&E? I suspect it was the season premier and because I got out of class early (thanks pburgh freezing rain) I caught the majority of it. I have to admit I always get disappointed and a little angry when I see people come so far with their trainers and then when they are on their own, their addiction to food takes over. I would love to hear what other people have to say about this! Does it make you disappointed or angry? Do you wonder why they just cant stop doing it if its killing them?
Hmm.. maybe a post about this is in order!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
TBL Syndrome
Good Morning everyone..
Happy Monday to everyone! Today's blog is about a real problem that I am noticing having to do with people attempting to lose weight. Its something that I have talked about with my fellow bloggers and I have decided to name it TBLS an acronym that stands for "The Biggest Loser Syndrome."
Ok so let me explain how this all got started. I have a friend that is slightly older (Late 50's) who did the New Years resolution thing and decided that she wanted to lose weight. She asked for my help since she didnt really know how to exercise and I agreed even though the thought kind of terrified me. I have never had to create a work out plan for someone who was older and I get nervous about causing her to over exert herself or cause injury.. but anyway..
We went to the gym about 4 times last week .. I had her doing 30 minute hill walking drills on the treadmill and very light (2-5 pounds) lifting exercises during lunch. I answered her questions about portion sizes and what not. On this snowy Monday morning..she comes into my office first thing.. looking like she is about to cry and says "I am so discouraged.. I only lost two and half pounds last week." I was floored and even a bit angry at the thought that the triumph of losing over two pounds in one week wasnt enough.
After digging a little bit deeper she was citing that on "The Biggest Loser" there are women that lose 6-7 pounds in a week. AH HA! The mystery was solved.. Alrighty folks... lets get this all settled.. right here and right now.. The Truth about the Biggest Loser.
1. Those who are on The Biggest Loser are morbidly obese and have not exercised or eaten healthy for years of their lives..possibly ever.. they arent jumping back on the fitness train after a few months off. Therefore any immediate and strict change in their diet or exercise plan is going to cause them to lose a lot of weight quickly because they have been so stationary for so long and their bodies are used to consuming 3000-5000 calories a day that has now been restricted to 1500 while they are burning much much more than that. For example.. if I (at 130lbs) run 1 mile at a ten minute pace I burn 100 calories. If someone who was 3 times my weight ran that same mile at the same pace.. they would burn closer to 300 calories bc it is harder for their body to move.
2. The amount that they exercise is unsustainable in real life situations. Come on folks.. when you watch the show you only see 30 minute clips of their exercise routines.. but in actuality .. their job is now to be on that show and lose weight so they exercise with the help of nationally renowed certified personal trainers and thousands of dollars worth of equipment for up to 4 hours or more a day. Do you have the time between work, kids, friends, significant others to exercise for that long everyday? or thousands of dollars to spend on fancy exercise equipment? If you do.. then I feel badly that you dont have more to fulfill your life.
3. They enlist the help of nutritionist, chefs, personal trainers and space that the average american couldnt even fathom having the money to be able to utilize. Do you know that the average personal trainer at a gym will charge you between 50-150 dollars an hour depending on where they are? So imagine for 4 hours every day of the week.. just to be trained would cost more than 1400 dollars. And thats for a regular no name trainer.. I promise you .. you couldnt afford Bob Harper or Jillian.
4. Last but not least, the reality of the biggest loser is that the way in which these people are taking weight off (while inspiring) is not healthy or realistic. To be 400-600 pounds and try to run on a treadmill after not exercising for years.. is unsafe. It could put a strain on your organs and especially your heart that could cause stroke, heart attack or even worse medical conditions. Thats why shows like this have top physicians on hand at all times. Also, for a person to lose more than 3 pounds a weak is too much of a shock to your system.. your body is in starvation mode and you are hurting yourself in the long run.
Unfortunately, our society has become one of extremes.. extreme portions, extreme eating, extreme diets, extreme weight loss...and anything thats normal and realistic is shunned. You dont see any commercials for products stating " Take Xenadroxylin.. it a vitamin that will help your bones stay strong and joints stay loose so you can exercise more and take off 1 pound a week!" .. people wouldnt buy it because they'd be running for "green tea extract" that promises to help them magically have a 6 pack in 3 weeks.
Of course people will be discouraged at losing 2 pounds if they were expecting to lose 7.. but that is just not going to happen. So accept that if you are serious to lose weight.. you have to make a life change and you have to know that it will take time but love yourself for making good decisions everyday and when you know that you worked hard for it.. it will be that much more fulfilling.
Happy Monday to everyone! Today's blog is about a real problem that I am noticing having to do with people attempting to lose weight. Its something that I have talked about with my fellow bloggers and I have decided to name it TBLS an acronym that stands for "The Biggest Loser Syndrome."
Ok so let me explain how this all got started. I have a friend that is slightly older (Late 50's) who did the New Years resolution thing and decided that she wanted to lose weight. She asked for my help since she didnt really know how to exercise and I agreed even though the thought kind of terrified me. I have never had to create a work out plan for someone who was older and I get nervous about causing her to over exert herself or cause injury.. but anyway..
We went to the gym about 4 times last week .. I had her doing 30 minute hill walking drills on the treadmill and very light (2-5 pounds) lifting exercises during lunch. I answered her questions about portion sizes and what not. On this snowy Monday morning..she comes into my office first thing.. looking like she is about to cry and says "I am so discouraged.. I only lost two and half pounds last week." I was floored and even a bit angry at the thought that the triumph of losing over two pounds in one week wasnt enough.
After digging a little bit deeper she was citing that on "The Biggest Loser" there are women that lose 6-7 pounds in a week. AH HA! The mystery was solved.. Alrighty folks... lets get this all settled.. right here and right now.. The Truth about the Biggest Loser.
1. Those who are on The Biggest Loser are morbidly obese and have not exercised or eaten healthy for years of their lives..possibly ever.. they arent jumping back on the fitness train after a few months off. Therefore any immediate and strict change in their diet or exercise plan is going to cause them to lose a lot of weight quickly because they have been so stationary for so long and their bodies are used to consuming 3000-5000 calories a day that has now been restricted to 1500 while they are burning much much more than that. For example.. if I (at 130lbs) run 1 mile at a ten minute pace I burn 100 calories. If someone who was 3 times my weight ran that same mile at the same pace.. they would burn closer to 300 calories bc it is harder for their body to move.
2. The amount that they exercise is unsustainable in real life situations. Come on folks.. when you watch the show you only see 30 minute clips of their exercise routines.. but in actuality .. their job is now to be on that show and lose weight so they exercise with the help of nationally renowed certified personal trainers and thousands of dollars worth of equipment for up to 4 hours or more a day. Do you have the time between work, kids, friends, significant others to exercise for that long everyday? or thousands of dollars to spend on fancy exercise equipment? If you do.. then I feel badly that you dont have more to fulfill your life.
3. They enlist the help of nutritionist, chefs, personal trainers and space that the average american couldnt even fathom having the money to be able to utilize. Do you know that the average personal trainer at a gym will charge you between 50-150 dollars an hour depending on where they are? So imagine for 4 hours every day of the week.. just to be trained would cost more than 1400 dollars. And thats for a regular no name trainer.. I promise you .. you couldnt afford Bob Harper or Jillian.
4. Last but not least, the reality of the biggest loser is that the way in which these people are taking weight off (while inspiring) is not healthy or realistic. To be 400-600 pounds and try to run on a treadmill after not exercising for years.. is unsafe. It could put a strain on your organs and especially your heart that could cause stroke, heart attack or even worse medical conditions. Thats why shows like this have top physicians on hand at all times. Also, for a person to lose more than 3 pounds a weak is too much of a shock to your system.. your body is in starvation mode and you are hurting yourself in the long run.
Unfortunately, our society has become one of extremes.. extreme portions, extreme eating, extreme diets, extreme weight loss...and anything thats normal and realistic is shunned. You dont see any commercials for products stating " Take Xenadroxylin.. it a vitamin that will help your bones stay strong and joints stay loose so you can exercise more and take off 1 pound a week!" .. people wouldnt buy it because they'd be running for "green tea extract" that promises to help them magically have a 6 pack in 3 weeks.
Of course people will be discouraged at losing 2 pounds if they were expecting to lose 7.. but that is just not going to happen. So accept that if you are serious to lose weight.. you have to make a life change and you have to know that it will take time but love yourself for making good decisions everyday and when you know that you worked hard for it.. it will be that much more fulfilling.
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