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Life Fitness Academy puts a premium on digestive health. Ensuring the health of your gut is one of the best things you can do for your overall health–it is the cornerstone of your body’s health. If you have frequent stomach problems, bowels problems, or conditions like Crohns, colitis, or IBS, then this is the workshop for you. This workshop will help provide you with a foundation for dealing with and recovering from digestive health issues, as well as giving you direction for further learning.

Come join Life Fitness Academy for our next workshop–Digestive Health Workshop. Join us on Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 12:00pm. The workshop costs $20 and will be at the gym (1200 Villa Place, suite 406, Nashville, TN 37211). Contact us to RSVP

I’m going to make a bold statement straight away. You can lose weight and never count a calorie. This seems like health-nut blasphemy, I know. Counting calories can make you into an insane person. In some cases it simply doesn’t make sense. Eating natural, whole, nutrient-rich foods is the best way to a healthy, active and slimmer lifestyle.

The general principal behind weight loss is a simple one: you have to burn more than you consume. This totally works- its only logical, but it could be completely unhealthy. Take anorexia for example. It works, too, but is obviously not the way to go about things. This is my main problem with only counting calories. You could fill an entire day of “100 calorie packs” of cookies, crackers, etc, and never consume any real nutrients you need. So you could essentially be filling your belly with calories,but not supplying your body any of the things it needs to run properly. What is good about those diet foods anyway? You can justify all you want and say they taste “pretty good for 50 calories” or whatever, but we all know most of it tastes like cardboard. I realize I recommend some less-than-scrumptious foods, but there is a reason for eating them. Maybe you don’t want to eat that pile of roasted vegetables, but you know they contain tons of vitamins, minerals, fiber and protein (yes, some veggies have protein ie: leafy greens). I happen to enjoy a big mess of veggies. Most low calorie processed foods don’t care about anything except keeping that calorie number low, not what nutrients (or anti-nutrients) they contain. Bottom line is they don’t DO anything for you.

Counting calories is very imprecise, unless you carry your kitchen scales around with you everywhere. There are many sites to look up calorie count, but you may not know what they used to measure the count. Calories are different in raw chicken and cooked chicken. Your pasta sauce may have olive oil in it, while the website you check measured a pasta sauce without oil and will result in totally different calorie numbers and fat grams. There are simply too many variables in life to make counting every calorie realistic. Restaurants do not make every single dish exactly the same with exactly the same amount of ingredients, so how do you know that meal is only 550 calories? You can’t.

But guess what. Vegetables and fruits are naturally low in calories! On Weight Watchers, they allow you to eat as many fresh fruits and vegetables as you want. They usually don’t even factor into their point system- they’re freebies, if you will. Doesn’t it make sense to eat a majority of foods that are low in calories and high in nutrients? Your body is fueled by what it needs, without being weighed down by what it doesn’t need. I’ve talked before about the importance of good fats, and that’s where many of your calories will come from. Again, it’s illogical, to me at least, to compare an avocado and some Snackwells cookies based on calories. You know how good avocado is for you, but it is probably higher in calories than those cookies because it is high in fat.

Get your priorities straight. Eat what you need to live your best life. Think about when you eat a bad meal. It makes you tired and want to lay around which is clearly not conducive to weight loss or an active lifestyle. When you have proper fuel, you will be properly energized for whatever your day may have in store for you. Read the ingredients on everything. If the list of ingredients is longer than your arm and looks like another language, PUT IT DOWN. Know that you are eating real food and not fillers and preservatives.

By: Ashley Dance

We frequently get the question of how to work fitness in when you have a desk job. The desk job can pose some challenges especially to the back, neck, and wrist areas. In the video below, Terry shows some simple isometric and tension exercises you can do to increase strength, circulation, and help fight some of the problems of being sedentary most of the day. Taking walks and standing up frequently are other great ways to mix it up while at the office.

Let us know any ideas you have or ways that you incorporate working out at your desk!

Since weight loss, working out or “getting healthy” are the most common New Year’s Resolutions, I feel the need to have a rant. Obviously I, and all of us here at Life Fitness Academy, think that health is super important—I made a career out of it because it consumes my thoughts most of the time. Which brings me to my first point: If you are serious about getting healthy, you need help.

We have time to think about workouts and food and recipes ALL DAY LONG. You have a job and families and friends to also think about. A trainer can give you direction, help you make a plan, set goals or just kick your butt when you need it. Trainers will save you valuable time ruling out things that don’t work. You don’t want beach season to come around and realize that “switching one thing a day for a Yoplait Light” isn’t cutting it. Nutrition is beyond crucial to whole health and weight loss or gain. Lucky for you all, we are obsessed with food and will talk all day about the benefits of certain foods and how to best prepare them, saving you hours scouring the internet for “healthy recipes.” If nothing else, a trainer will keep you accountable. Which is point number two: Don’t quit.

Unfortunately, there isn’t one easy, fast miracle weight loss solution. It is simple, though. You have to train hard and eat better. The other unfortunate thing is that it takes time. You aren’t going to healthily, safely, and permanently lose weight in a matter of weeks. On numerous occasions clients have commented on my legs and how they want their legs to look like that. Well they didn’t happen overnight. You might forget that I was a competitive gymnast my entire young life. I was in that kind of gym four days a week for three hours a day until I was 16. Then I ran track for nine years, a couple of those years overlapping. I’m not encouraging that kind of craziness for the normal population, don’t worry. What I’m saying is that for your best body, you need to give yourself time.

Don’t stress about losing three pounds exactly every single week or whatever. Don’t even bother with a scale for a few weeks–or months even. The first weeks feel the worst and you don’t need any negativity slowing you down. Instead pay attention to how your clothes are fitting and how you feel. With exercise and the right food you won’t be worn out, you will be more energized! It’s not only that energetic people are trainers; the lifestyle leads you in that direction naturally. Which brings me to my last point: don’t get bored.

So many people who resolve to get healthy think they have to go and jog on the treadmill for an hour, then stair climber for half an hour and then fart around on the bike for two hours. Kill me now. You don’t need to waste that much time on your fitness. A trainer will help you find the most effective way to use your free time to reach optimum fitness. Whether it’s a 30 minute lunch break workout with me, and I suggest a 2 mile run the next day after work, or an intense hour long boxing class with Russ or whatever insanity Terry has cooked up for you, make it work with your life. I know you’re busy and have tons going on, but in the grand scheme of things, what’s a couple of hours a week to focus on your body? Your body is what keeps you running around to all that other stuff you have to do, ya know.

Make 2012 your healthiest year yet! Ask for help, give yourself some time, don’t give up and make it fun! Reward yourself when you reach goals. When you accomplish something, take a day off and relax, get a massage, buy some smaller pants–anything! Your couch and Taco Bell won’t miss you, I promise. Get in the gym now so you can rock that bikini or speedo (yikes! just kidding!) this summer!

By: Ashley Dance

Our clients know that we have high standards for the type of food we eat and recommend. It is hard enough to find decent offerings on most menus–so when we see a restaurant that we feel is doing a great job, we want to bring it to your attention.

The Silly Goose in East Nashville is just such a restaurant. We love that The Silly Goose strives to find local, organic, sustainably produced, minimally manipulated food. They are all about high quality ingredients and so are we. Some of their suppliers include Delvin Farms, Kenny’s Farmhouse Cheese, Noble Springs Dairy, and Provence Breads.

They have so many great options, even sans pork (since we don’t do pork) and it is always hard to pick, but here is a sampling:

Spalding
Roasted almond couscous, sundried tomatoes, lemon,
sage, red pep. goat cheese, and grilled port. mushrooms

Papa Mace
organic quinoa, sweet potatoes, dry, cherries, pistachios,
grilled onions, manchego, carmelized orange vinaigrette

Simple
Baby greens, avocado, shaved fennel, tart apple
pumpkin seeds, and a chili-grapefruit vinaigrette.

Dorothy Bailey
Roasted beets, goats milk feta, sweet onion jam, local
arugula, sherry garlic vinaigrette, flatbread crackers

Zipper
Smoked salmon, honey black pepper goat cheese,
caramelized onion, baby arugula on toasted marble rye

Saylor
Grilled eggplant, roasted red pepper, avocado, basil,
arugula, lemon-kalamata olive aioli on grilled ciabatta

Citrus, Mint, and Ginger Green Tea

Not only is the food great, but the atmosphere is great as well. The decor is earthy and rustic, with distressed tables and mason jars–yet at the same time it is very clean and tidy with a modern touch, provided by the metal chairs and red chairs that pop in color. So if you get a chance, head over to The Silly Goose and you won’t be disappointed.

It seems to me that many people in this country have an eating disorder to some degree. Even if it’s only when you eat a huge bowl of ice cream and say something negative about how fat you feel now, or how much you’ll have to run tomorrow.

I recently heard someone say they ate poorly because it was the easiest route and they would just feel guilty about it afterward, not to mention sluggish, cranky and overweight. I understand that everyone else has regular jobs and doesn’t spend all day thinking about food like I do usually. But if you eat food that is good for you, you won’t feel guilty about it, and you can even eat a lot of it! The aforementioned guilty eater was concerned about portion size, and I told him, “You can’t overeat on vegetables. You just can’t, try it.” I dare everyone to try it. You can certainly get full on them though! You should actually eat quite a lot of vegetables to get all your vitamins and other nutrients, so why not get full on them and not eat the junk that makes you pudgy?

This is why it’s so important to know what you’re eating. When you know what your body needs, you can make good choices by default, almost. Plan meals around a nutrient you need for the day. For instance you might notice you haven’t had any greens that day. Pick two (or three!) green veggies that you like and figure out what to add to them to make a meal you’ll be satisfied with. Using that same example, you could grill asparagus, steam broccoli and bake kale chips. Add some grilled chicken, salmon, or a grass fed steak and a sweet potato to those and you’ve got a nutrient packed and satisfying dinner. It is not hard to cook any of those things and could probably be done in about 40 minutes depending on your culinary skills.

You have certain foods you know are good for you and that you should use. Get creative! Use the tools you know about (veggies, good fats, fruit, etc.) and create anything you can within our guidelines. It’s like “Chopped” on Food Network (it just so happens to be one of my favorite shows). They give the chefs a basket of ingredients and they have to make something delicious using those ingredients and what is in the pantry. Well that’s all you do. Enjoy your healthy food; make it taste good! Eating well doesn’t have to be a chore or something terrible that you can’t wait to be done with. Make a lifestyle change to eat better when at all possible. If for some reason you eat poorly, your body will probably let you know about it in the way of some digestive discomfort, then it will pass and you won’t have to feel so guilty about it.

If you would like to learn more about how to prepare great foods ask us here at LFA. We all love to cook on some level and can give you the skills you need to take your cooking to the next level. If that doesn’t help we can even cook for you but only until you learn how to do it for yourself.

By: Ashley Dance

Sale on midday training!

For new clients – Get 30% off if you book training between the hours of 10:00am-2:00pm. Available with any trainer and for as long as you train consecutively (without an extended break). Contact us to schedule or with any questions! Offer expires September 30, 2011.

Buy some get some FREE

For training with Terry, buy two sessions and get the third for FREE! You can book at any available time slot! For training with Ashley or Russ, buy four sessions and get the fifth for FREE! Contact us to schedule or with any questions! Offer Expires September 30, 2011. View pricing.

Last week, I talked about the importance of fats to transport vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to your cells. This time, I’ll be sharing a way and get these nutrients: with kale! I’ll even tell you a scrumptious way to eat it.

Kale is not a very common vegetable in most people’s diets, but it should be. It is a dark leafy green that is one of the most nutrient-dense vegetables out there. It is a wonderful anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory food. It is not a new or exotic vegetable. It has been in the same form for over 2,000 years. Records exist of Greeks and Romans eating kale.

It has a high content of calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B6, folic acid, vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene), vitamin K, potassium, manganese, copper and the plant form of omega-3 fatty acids (alpha-linolenic acid). In addition to the carotenoid beta-carotene, kale contains other very important carotenoid molecules called lutein and zeaxanthin and a variety of others.

Extensive research is being done with kale in cancer prevention and treatment because of its anti-oxidants, mainly the carotenoids and flavonoids. Specifically lutein and beta-carotene are the antioxidants that are so beneficial because they work to protect against oxidative stress in the body. Oxidative stress is what happens when oxygen is not properly used by cells, and it can cause cataracts, atherosclerosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and of course, cancer. These antioxidants are prime examples of what fight the free radicals running rampant in our bodies.

So how do you prepare kale? I’ve seen tasty kale salads, which can just be a nice change from spinach and lettuce. However, it does sometimes have a kind of bitter flavor, so a lot of people don’t like it raw. I have found the most enjoyable form of it is kale chips! It’s so easy to prepare and really and truly delicious!

The stem is pretty tough, so pull the leaves off of it and tear them into smaller pieces, not tiny, though. Spread them out on a baking sheet and drizzle melted coconut oil over the leaves. Lastly, sprinkle them with sea salt and stir them around to coat them evenly (if you’re a little OCD like me). Then pop them into the oven at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes. Oven times and crispness preferences differ, so just watch them. You want them to be crunchy and dark green in color. I usually let the edges turn black so I know they will be crispy. If you’re feeling really adventurous try sprinkling some garlic powder on them before you cook them. Everyone I’ve made them for are amazed at how good they taste. What a nice surprise–enjoying healthy green food! Another easy way to include kale is to throw a leaf in your smoothie. Be sure to include plenty of berries so you don’t get a bitter smoothie, and blend really well or you’ll get kale chunks in your teeth!

By: Ashley Dance

You are what you eat is a truer phrase than most people realize. This is another one of those common sense things people forget to think about logically. Nutrition is a wonderfully complex and interesting study, but there are a few things that are just so simple. And again, there is a lot of bad information out there. Understandably, many people won’t know what Kombucha is (or how delightful it is), or how to make cauliflower taste like mashed potatoes (it can!), but to think you can eat doughnuts every day for breakfast and not have some physical consequences is ridiculous.

I know a lot of people don’t, or don’t every time, but think about how many people feel sick after eating fast food. My dad (who does love them) calls Krystal hamburgers, “gutbombers”. I don’t think he’s the only one who calls them that, either. You eat food because you need the energy to fuel your body to live and move around. Why would you put bad fuel in? Indigestion is a clear-cut sign that your body didn’t like what you just gave it.

Back to the you-are-what-you-eat part. So many friends in high school would eat a greasy fast food meal and say, “ugh, I’m gonna break out so bad because of this.” Without processing it, teenagers realize that greasy food makes for a greasy face based on their experiences with it. So why continue to eat it, when you know it makes your insides greasy too? Rather eat fresh food as close to its natural form as possible. Cheez-Its do not grow on any tree, or in the ground, nor do most of the ingredients that make them. Natural vitamins and minerals are more readily absorbed and used by the body. Just eat what is natural, pure and nutrient-rich. You will have what you need for your body to effectively provide energy for itself, and not anything extra weighing you down. You feel better and are less tired when you eat the right things because your body doesn’t have to spend all its resources on digestion. It will spend hours and hours trying to pull usable energy from those bad foods and store what it can’t do anything with. You’re body is weighed down by stored uselessness and tired from digging around for the good stuff.

By: Ashley Dance

It seems to me in a world where everyone is so obsessed by looks, appearances, body image etc., there would not be such an obesity problem–because you can change what your body looks like. You can’t do much about your face; if you’ve got an ugly one, you’re out of luck. Your body, however, can be shaped to your liking. So as I’m wondering why there are so many obese people, I realize it must be because they just don’t know. It boggles my mind that people are unaware that eating fast food is so terribly unhealthy for you, or that you have to get off your butt and move around a little!

Granted, there is a lot of bad information out there and a lot of people get confused and go wrong. How do you know which information is correct, and which is gibberish? I say look at nature and how things naturally occur. For instance, with working out, say you want to have nice shapely legs like a sprinter or jumper in the Olympics (maybe not to that extent, but you know). It makes sense to me that if nearly all sprinters have nice, muscle-y legs, you should work out like a sprinter;even if you aren’t one. They do bursts of powerful motion. They jump. They work their fast-twitch fibers. Next, look at cross country runners or long distance track runners. I know there are exceptions, but generally those dudes (and gals) are super skinny, with less muscle than the aforementioned sprinters. So, if your goal is to use up a lot of energy and lose weight, you should run long distances. And I mean long. Those guys are crazy, going for hour(s) long runs all the time.

The trick is to find the balance, because most people want both. And there are a lot of different ways to go about it. Obviously running isn’t the only way to loose weight or build muscle. Although it is one. Again thinking about nature, animals that run are lean–cheetahs, lions, gazelles, etc. But when perusing other options think about it logically and compare it to what you know based on your own observations and experiences. Have an open mind about trying new things, but be wary of programs that seem too good to be true. Use your common sense, people forget about it too often.

By: Ashley Dance