Fitness & Wellness

What’s the best type of exercise to help you lose weight? Some people say cardio is the best because it burns tons of calories, but new schools of thought contradict that, saying cardio is really making you fat. Which one is right? Which one is right? There are valid reasons to suspect that cardio alone isn’t the best route to take if you’re trying to shed those extra pounds, but at the same time you can also use cardio in ways to boost your weight loss endeavor.

Your body becomes more efficient the more you do cardiovascular exercises.

The human body was built for becoming more efficient. The harder your labors are, the more muscle you build. The more you run or do aerobic type of activities, the more efficient it becomes at conserving calories and using oxygen and lung capacity more efficiently. While that’s great for survival, it’s not great for weight loss, at least the calorie conserving part. It means the more you do of a specific activity, the less fuel you’ll need to do it. You may have burned hundreds of calories from running five miles initially, but that amount is cut substantially the more you do it. You need more variety since your body adapts.

You can stress your body with too much cardio.

This is a bit confusing, since exercise is supposed to be healthy and burn off hormones of stress, like cortisol. The problem is, rigorous cardio also causes the body to stress, releasing even more cortisol. If you don’t have a problem with stress, daily runs or other cardio won’t be a problem. However, anyone already under stress with high cortisol levels actually enters a “fat trap.” The more intense the cardio, the more potential for weight gain. It increases insulin levels and can boost your cravings for sugar.

You’ll be burning calories, but the source of those calories doesn’t matter.

When you burn calories, it can come from either fat tissue or muscle tissue. Aerobic exercise—cardio—doesn’t differentiate which one. It burns lean muscle mass for calories and fat tissue. It also can make it harder to build muscle tissue. Strength training tends to burn more fat tissue and build muscle tissue. That’s important since the more muscle tissue you have, the more calories you burn. Muscle tissue requires more calories than fat tissue does.

• There are several studies that show that people who run often eat more calories. In fact, most people eat about 100 calories more than they burn, so they gain weight by adding cardio.
• How fast you run makes a difference. If you run at top speed or run at a slow jog, almost walk, it is beneficial. It’s using a constant middle of the road pace that adds weight.
• While cardio isn’t the best for weight loss in the long run, it does take off weight initially for the sedentary. It can get you ready for other cardio workouts that involve strength building like kettlebells or high intensity interval strength training.
• Including all types of training in your workout is not only good for weight loss, it’s imperative for good health. That’s why we focus on a balanced workout at the Worx by Maia to help you lose weight more efficiently.

For more information, contact us today at The WorX by Maia

I believe in the importance of exercise too much not to share some tips for workouts for stay at home moms. Whether you come into the Worx in Alexandria, VA, for private session, workout in groups or can’t get out of the house because of toddlers, helping you stay fit is my prime objective. I can help you directly at the gym and with some tips for those stay at home moms, especially those with babies or toddlers who are constantly on call. Here are some quick exercises you can do in those brief moments you have to yourself.

You can start with a workout while you work.

Any busy mom will tell you that the days seem to fly by with very little time for anything else but housework and childcare. That’s when I suggest they make the work a real workout. Every mom knows about multitasking, whether you stay at home or not. Do you need to pick up laundry or toys, do squats as you do? Vacuum with extra effort doing lunges with each push. Vigorously clean windows by turning to the side and reaching for the window with the outermost arm. Leg and calf raises are doable when you’re at the sink and putting folded clothes in a basket can be completed with a squat.

Combine all three types of exercises with circuit training.

Are the kids napping and you have limited time? Try circuit training. You’ll get more benefit in less time when you increase intensity, lifting more or resting less between exercises. With circuit training, you do several sets of different exercises in a row, rest and repeat. One of my favorites starts with one minute of jumping, followed by a minute of butt kicks for a warm up. Complete the workout circuit with a minute of each: mountain climbers, burpees and a minute plank. Rest a minute and repeat three to four times until you reach a twenty minute workout.

Strength training is important and you don’t have to have weights.

There’s no need to buy a set of weights that take up a lot of room when you have the option of spending a few dollars on resistance bands or go even cheaper with homemade weights, like milk jugs, laundry jugs or other bottles filled with sand or water. You can use soup cans, too. As you get stronger, add more water until you fill it to the top. Warm up with a minute of jump rope, then do ten of each, pushups, bicep curls, tricep kickbacks, lunges, squats and finish with a one-minute plank. Rest a minute and repeat. If you have time and/or energy, do a third time.

• Just dashing up and down the stairs is good exercise. When you have an extra minute, do a few laps up and down the stairs. You can mix it with your daily chores by taking fewer items from the laundry and making more trips.
• You don’t have to make sure your child is in bed when you include them in the workout. I’ve seen mothers build incredible strength just by lifting their child. As they get heavier, you lift more weight. Combine that with some extra moves, like squats while you’re holding them.
• If you’re a brand-new mom and have the doctors okay, take the baby for a walk in the buggy or stroller. Just getting out and walking on nice days is good exercise for you and the fresh air is good for both of you.
• When you want more than a solitary workout, come to The Worx by Maia. There’s a program that is sure to fit your schedule and both group and private training.

For more information, contact us today at The WorX by Maia

If you’ve been considering getting into shape, losing weight and getting healthier, but haven’t started, it’s time to start your fitness journey. How many times have you gone to the couch after a meal just to relax a minute before cleaning up the kitchen, only to find that minute extends to an hour or longer. You have two options at that point. The first is to put off the task of cleaning up for the next day and the second is to do it. If you decide to do it, the first thing you have to do is get off the couch and go into the kitchen. In order to get anything accomplished, the process always starts the same way, take the first step.

Whether you’re trying to complete the last set or get started on your workout, the process is the same.

How many times have you thought about working out and decided to wait until later, even if you’re already in an exercise program? Near the end of a workout, how many times have you thought of quitting or actually quit before the last push-up, jumping jack or squat was completed? If you managed to do your workout even though you wanted to put it off or did that last squat, you pushed yourself to do it. Sometimes, wanting to work out doesn’t come naturally and you fight it, so you simply have to push yourself to get started or continue to the end. Once you do, the actual workout is easier than you imagined.

Start by holding yourself accountable.

If you’re ready to get fit, do as much as you can to hold that feeling of readiness. Of course, I’m talking about committing to working with a trainer, signing up for a class or working out with a friend. All of those things will hold you accountable and keep you on track when you want to quit. Just saying you want to workout, or even signing up at a gym without a commitment to a schedule, won’t get the same results.

Have a goal and a plan on how to achieve it.

The first thing we ask at the Worx is about your goals. Not everyone wants the same things. Some people just want to lose weight, others want to get a beach body and still others want to regain the energy they once had. Once we know that person’s goals and other information, we help create a plan for them to reach it. Know what you want to accomplish and then identify how you’re going to reach that goal.

If your fitness desires seem overwhelming, break them down to smaller, easier to reach ones. Rather than trying to focus on losing 100 pounds, focus on losing two pounds every week. You’ll get more celebrations as you reach each goal and won’t be as apt to quit because it seems impossible.

• If you’re not ready to start a full workout program or a complete healthy diet, take baby steps. Start walking more, take the stairs or substitute unhealthy snacks with fresh fruit. Some people start by giving up soft drinks and replacing it with water.
• Confusion and lack of knowledge can block some people from starting. That’s when working with a fitness professional is best. You don’t have to get private sessions, group sessions are affordable and you get the same help.
• Make sure you really want to get fitter. Some people say they’re going to get fit and that’s where they stop. It’s as though saying it was all they needed to do. Before you utter those words, make sure you really mean them and then do something about it.
• If you’ve chosen to start slowly, like taking daily walks, schedule a time specifically for those walks or before you know it, that part of the program will end, too. Add a few minutes of walking every day to the schedule.

For more information, contact us today at The Worx

There’s a lot of talk about the benefits of fasting for health benefits, both longer term and intermittent fasting. When you fast, you are often lower in energy, especially if you’re doing a fast that’s a day or longer. That’s not necessarily true of intermittent fasting, which can be as simple as eating all your food in an eight-hour time frame and fasting the other sixteen hours. Should you skip your workout on those days when you’re fasting? There are reasons to believe that it isn’t necessary to give up all activity, as long as you follow some rules.

When you’re working out, your body uses the stored carbohydrates in the form of glycogen.

If you haven’t eaten in a while, you might have depleted those glycogen reserves. There’s a good and bad side to that. The body needs to find another energy source, which could be fat. Some studies show that the body burns more fat if you eat after working out, rather than before you do. However, there’s another source of energy the body might use and that’s protein, which means you’d lose more muscle tissue. The less muscle tissue you have, the slower your metabolism works and the less effective your workout will be.

If you’re intermittent fasting, schedule your workout to mesh with your fast.

Rather than risk a slower resting metabolic rate, it’s smarter to plan your workout to mesh with your fast. If you’re simply eating in an eight-hour window, workout after you’ve eaten, that’s especially true if you’re doing high intensity training. You’ll have the glycogen available that you need and keep your fire burning strong, while also reducing the risk that you’ll end up with low blood sugar levels.

If your fast is longer, stick with lower intensity workout while you’re doing it.

What’s a low intensity workout. For cardio, it’s one that you can talk while you’re working out. A walk, light jog or some easier exercises at the gym will keep your body moving without drawing too much energy. Your body will tell you if the exercise is too much. You’ll feel dizzy or light-headed during your workout. Remember, your body is already struggling from deprivation, you don’t want to add to the burden.

• A full meal right before a workout isn’t good either. If you’re headed for a workout, break your fast for the first meal of the day with a high protein style snack or light meal at least a half hour before you workout.
• Snack on protein throughout the day during your window when you eat. It helps build the muscles. Don’t forget a protein snack after a strength training workout. That’s when your muscles desperately need it for repair and growth. Don’t forget to hydrate frequently, either.
• You’ll probably find that eating snacks frequently during the window when you eat will help you feel better and have more energy. Make them a combination of protein and carbohydrates, like peanut butter and apples.
• Save a full meal for after a tough workout. It should be within a half hour of the workout. Make sure it includes at least 20 grams of protein to help boost your muscle maintenance.

For more information, contact us today at The Worx

While sugar and products made with sugar, have a sweet taste, it doesn’t mean they’re sweet for your health or body. In fact, they may be ruining your health. Man has always had a taste for sweetness. It’s obvious when you feed a baby and find they love applesauce or pudding far more than green beans. One anthropologist hypothesized that man was created to love sweetness, since sweetness in fruits and vegetables meant they were safe to eat. While that may be true, manufacturers of food have taken that love to a whole new level and put sugar in almost all food we eat.

Just because it’s natural, doesn’t mean it’s healthy.

You hear a lot about healthy sugars, like honey, can sugar or corn syrup. While honey does have some health benefits, like its antioxidants, heart healthy benefits and aid with healing wounds, consuming too much is extremely unhealthy. Remember those commercials for high fructose corn syrup—HFCS—it’s natural so it must be healthy. No matter what type of sugar you’re discussing, too much increases your risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and impairs your immune system and accelerates aging. Not all natural things are healthy. Tobacco is natural and so are many poisons.

You might be surprised that fat isn’t the enemy.

While it’s not healthy to eat too much fat, especially trans fat, it’s not the enemy that it’s been made to seem. In the 1950s a mega study by Harvard scientists were conducted. Mega studies take all the available studies and compare the results for an overall conclusion. They found that fat caused heart disease. What wasn’t explained is that the sugar industry paid for the study and provided extra money to the scientists for that conclusion. They only used those studies that leaned toward fat and ignored the problems of sugar. While trans fat does contribute to heart disease, most fat, which includes the fat in avocado, coconut oil and the fat in nuts actually add to good health.

Science has taken it a step further with HFCS.

Check the label of those processed food and you’re bound to see a lot of sugar added. Some of the sugar comes from high fructose corn syrup—in fact, a lot does. It may be called natural, but it’s not. It’s removed from corn stalks by using a chemical and that product is even worse than normal beet or cane sugar. It’s a combination of glucose and fructose. The body doesn’t process fructose well. It doesn’t suppress your appetite, plus has all the negatives caused by sugar, insulin spikes, metabolic problems, increased risk for heart disease, dementia, fatty liver disease, obesity and damage to the stomach lining.

They’re different chemically and how they react in your body. Fructose causes all the same problems as regular sugar, but also adds more. It goes into the blood stream rapidly, can cause fatty liver, spikes insulin and creates metabolic problems. It boosts your appetite, increasing the risk of weight gain. It increases the risk of heart disease, dementia and can even cause damage to the stomach lining.

• HFC is cheaper to make, so it’s in many processed foods. That means you’re eating it even when you aren’t aware of the sweetness, making it easier to eat more than you thought and overwhelming your body with it.
• Sugar is addictive. It affects the same receptors as cocaine. It also alters the sense of taste to make naturally sweet fruit taste less sweet.
• While doctors may focus on salt as an offender in high blood pressure, sugar plays a big role in making the numbers rise, too.
• If you’re reading labels to see how much sugar is in a product, you might be surprised to find that manufacturers use several types of sugar in a product and when listed individually, are lower on the list. However, when added together creates a product high in sugar.

For more information, contact us today at The Worx by Maia