Understanding and Creating Your Own Wellness Plan

Creating your own Wellness Plan is an important step toward claiming responsibility for your own body. But. There is much to be confused over in the fitness and diet world. The old adage "Eat Less To Lose More" is no longer true, and has been disproved through science. The different parts of fitness are sometimes only understandable by industry professionals - and yet not everyone can afford their own personal trainer. The following break down your wellness plan into pieces of Fitness and Diet. Please remember to consult with your physician before beginning any Wellness Program. I have not seen your body to ascertain its level of fitness. The following is meant to be educational not a Plan of Action.

Fitness Plan:

Cardio Respiratory Training -
Cardio training is essentially working many muscles at once. We burn calories (fat) in the muscles, so by using many muscles you burn many calories. Endurance training (using a moderate intensity over prolonged periods of time) will also strengthen the heart and expand the lungs, thus improving your Cardio-Respiratory system. Cardio exercise is commonly thought of as using the "Cardio" equipment - Treadmill, Elliptical, Cross (X) Trainer, Step-mills, Rower & Bike. But, you can get the same muscle activity (thus fat burn) through repetitive "reactive" exercises. Reactive exercises are commonly thought of as stop/start exercises. Think of a jumping jack - you START with your feet together then propel your feet wide while swinging your arms overhead. Then you have to STOP all motion to reverse directions. A well rounded Cardio Respiratory program takes both Endurance training and Reactive training into account. On average Endurance training is continuous activity for a minimum of twenty minutes, three to seven days a week. Reactive exercises are done two to four times a week with minimal repetitions of five to fifteen with a high number of sets (how many times you come back to an exercise) of three - five.

Strength Training -
Strength exercises focus on engaging one or more muscles at a time. It is an essential part of a fat burning workout program. There are two reasons to include a good strength training in any program. Since we burn calories in the muscles during cardio exercises - we need those muscles working at top efficiency. Therefore, by CONDITIONING each muscle, it will be better able to work efficiently during high caloric burning activities - essentially, having more muscles allows for more caloric burn. The second reason for strength training is to shape or SCULPT the muscles. This is all about changing the surface (and internal) shape of the muscle. You can have a little fat on the body and still not have the grooves and dips we all envision as a beautiful body. This being said a total body workout program includes one or two exercises each fort he lower body (legs, butt), upper body (arms, shoulders, chest), core (abs, back, hips), So that your strength program includes roughly seven exercises. If you're focus is on decreasing body fat percentages and on increasing lean muscle mass, then you want to have a high number of reps and sets, generally twelve - twenty reps and two - four sets. To judge the amount of weight that is good for you and your goal. You should just be able to complete the full set. You should not be able to do another rep more without sacrificing your form. Conversely, you should not be panting and weaving only half-way through the set.

I can not stress the importance of having good form throughout your workout, but especially during strength training. If you do not watch your form, you risk injury. Typical set position starts with feet shoulder width apart, shoulder rolled back (sticking out the chest), elbows glued next to your ribs, chin slightly tucked and knees soft. From there you can perform any activity. Also don't forget to maintain a contracted abdomen (sucking it in like trying on a tight pair of jeans). This will support your spine and work toward a flatter tummy.

Core Training -
Just about every motion starts in the core. This is the dough-nut around our midsection. It comprises the abs, butt, hips and low back. (Ironically most of our "trouble" spots). These are also among the largest muscles in the body - therefore capable of burning a lot of calories (fat). Strengthening the core will have many effects, some of which include: making all movements more efficient, aiding in preventing & decreasing low back discomfort, shaping the midsection, etc. Therefore it is an important part of your workout program. Learning the proper tilt of the hips, especially for women, is immensely helpful in decreasing low back discomfort.

Flexibility Training -
This is probably the most neglected part of most peoples' workout programs. It is important to stretch your muscles for several reasons, two of the most important are: to help alleviate muscle soreness post workout, and to help prevent muscle injuries. Another important role of flexibility training is stretching the body back to its natural height by correcting posture. Correcting posture is a fabulous way to 'stretch out" the fat. Think about it...we all look 'skinnier' if we push our shoulders back and contract our abdomen into a proud posture. Flexibility training will help you maintain this position throughout your day.

The Nutrition Part of your Wellness Plan, understanding your metabolism:

1) It is a battle against your bodies natural instincts to lower your BMI (BMI=Body Mass Index or the ratio between healthy body materials - bones, organs, muscle, etc and Fat). I always tell my clients one thing: Your body is in a constant state of preparation for being stuck on a desert island. What I mean is this: if you were to be stuck on a desert island you may not be able to locate food and water. Therefore your body will need to dip into its reserves - the fat - in order for you to survive. Because of this survival instinct your body will not want to get rid of the fat. It tries to hoard it. The way your body will accomplish this, even while you workout regularly, is by decreasing an exercises effectiveness each time you repeat it. Think of it this way, the first time you go on a trail hike - you feel like you are going to die. Your muscles burn and you are out of breath. But, the second time you repeat the same trail you aren't nearly as tired. Did you grow an amazing amount of muscle after one hike? No. I call this body response the "Oh Crap Factor" ;D Essentially your body sees each new exercise as a threat to its health - will you get hurt? Dehydrated? etc. So, to prevent injury your body recruits 100% of its muscle mass to complete each motion - burning tons of calories, but making you really tired. The next time you complete the same set your body goes -"Hum, we didn't get hurt the last time...so maybe we can get away with only 75% of our muscle mass working, that way we won't burn up all our reserves of fat we need for that survival instinct." Each time you come back to the same set it's a little less effective...after about 6 weeks the exercise will use the bare minimum amount of muscle to complete the motion without injury - but making it completely ineffective as a calorie burner. That's why most people get disgusted with their progress after about 6 weeks of working out. Too much work without enough change. To counter act this problem - each week we will need new workout programs, slight adjustments to your workout program using the Time, Type of exercise, Intensity level of exercise, or the Frequency. For instance, if you think of walking on the treadmill. I would adjust either how long they were on the machine, switch to an elliptical or other cardio equipment, increase from a walk to a jog, or if they were walking three days a week I would increase their workouts to five days a week. This should help jump start the caloric burn again.

2) Water & Calories. Our water retention system is a reverse process. Meaning the more you drink the less you retain and visa-versa. This goes back to that desert island theory. If you are stuck on a desert island and water is sparse - your body will hoard every molecule of water to prevent dehydration. But, if you routinely give your body adequate amounts of water - it will see no need to retain as much, because it knows it will be getting more soon. Calories on the other hand will be hoarded no matter what you do. I always tell my clients - "You must first burn through today's calories to get to the ones stored from yesterday." That's why keeping an eye on your caloric intake is so important. If you are eating 2500 calories a day, but only burning 1200 through exercise and bodily function - then your body will store 1300 calories as fat.

Carbs - Our body needs a constant influx of carbohydrates to "feed" the muscle - since carbs are the fuel your muscles burn in order to burn calories (think of it like the gas you put in your car...without it the car won't go anywhere).

Proteins - Protein is used to build and rebuild tissues - this means healing after workouts and keeping your skin young. (Think of it like the transmission fluid in the engine of your car...if you get low the engine will start to destroy itself).

Fats - I know it seems like we want to eliminate fat from our diet in order to eliminate it from our body - but these are two different entities. Fat in food keeps us full for longer, therefore making us eat less. Fat in our bodies is nothing more than energy. (Think of Fat like the oil in your car. It allows your engine to burn the gas most efficiently - without waste.)

This is why Carbs tend to be higher in fat. Each "meal" should be about 60%carbs, 20% proteins and 20% fats - this is the most balanced meal plan, but it's not set in stone. Physiologically speaking we each need different ingredients for our bodies to work efficiently - women usually require large amounts of carbs while men usually require larger amounts of proteins. My advise isn't to stress about % and #'s too much. Keep an eye on portion sizes (try eating every 4 hours or so) and try eating the more complex carbs (wheat, natural sugars - fruits & veggies, etc.). Keeping your portions smaller than your palm. The higher the caloric and fat content the smaller the serving should be.

3) Low-Carb Diets: These are not really a healthy option for anyone who is not a diabetic. A diabetic who has a difficult time evening out their blood sugar can benefit from decreasing foods that turn into sugars in the body. BUT - for a normal, healthy, metabolism, decreasing glycogen (the sugars the muscles use for food) will result in a decrease in energy, and will eventually result in illness. You need all macro-nutrients so the body can work like a well oiled machine. So, yes you can lose a little weight on these diets, but you can also lose weight by being anorexic.....and we all know how healthy that is.

Don't worry, if you know the right way to approach a Wellness Plan it's not so hard.

So - Here's an example of a Wellness Plan:

Month : November
CardioRespiratory Training: Treadmill starting with walking Monday, Wednesday and Friday for twenty minutes. Each week increase time by two minutes until I walk forty-five. Then begin increasing intensity.
Strength Training: Squat - Over Head Press, Lunge-Curls, Stability Ball Pullovers, Stability Ball Crunch, Ball Bridge Leg Curls, Lateral Raise-Twist, 1-Arm/Leg Row. Weight 5 - 8 lbs, Reps 12 - 15 Sets: 2
Flexibility Training: Total Body, with a focus on the butt, hips, chest, holding each stretch for a minimum of ten seconds.

Nutrition:
*Take Daily Vitamins
*Increase meals to Four times a day
*Be mindful of my portion sizes
*Drink Plenty of Water.
*Increase complex Carbs and decrease Complex Carbs