What would you do if you were given a second chance at life?

Being overweight doesn’t actually kill you; it’s the side affects of being overweight that will do it. Our bodies do not like it and they retaliate. (Mine included) It may take years – a silent killer – but it’ll catch up. Diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart attack, gastrointestinal disorders, cancer, fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, emotional disorders, and the list goes on and on.

When we have to actually look at our own mortality it puts you at a different vantage point. Have you ever had to fight for your life? How would your family react? Most people put their heads in a hole like an ostrich and don’t look or refuse to face reality. “Nothing will happen to me,” they tell themselves. It’s what I lived by for years. Remember this is still a choice and you are choosing to ignore it. So again, what would you do if you had to choose?

I know how hard it can be to put everything in place and start to change you, your diet, your life, your family… but when you look at the alternative, isn’t it worth it? We all want to see our kids walk down the isle, we all want to see our grandkids one day, (way down the road for me!) we all want to be able to live our lives to the fullest and be as healthy as possible. It’s in us, we are a species that is meant to socialize, move, play, and take in everything life has to offer us. What are you missing?

It’s time to take the bull by the horns, scream in its face, and take it down… quickly! It can be done and the best part is it’s not as hard as you may think it is. Now is the time to take action… its time for a healthy, happy, and skinny you! If you need support, like I did, then please contact me I’ll be MORE then happy to be part of your support group!

Working out on an Empty Stomach
The old theory used to be that you should train on an empty stomach in order to burn more fat. There are conflicting studies on whether this is true, but I’m in the camp that believes you should give your body fuel before you push it to the max. In fact, your body needs some glucose (blood sugar) for fuel in addition to what it can use from fat stores when you’re working out. If you don’t have any blood sugar available, your body can eat it’s own muscle tissue to get glycogen for fuel once it runs out of available blood sugar or glycogen stores. Low blood sugar will also make you tired and sluggish — and maybe even dizzy — during your training session.

Most studies show that working out on an empty stomach will make you perform worse and keep you from having an intense workout. I suggest you eat something 45 minutes to an hour before training — you’ll have more energy and endurance to work harder, burn more calories, and improve your muscle tone. Quick healthy low-fat yogurt with chia seeds, a protein shake, or spread a few tablespoons of natural almond butter on celery sticks. These are quick, healthy snacks that will provide your body with the fuel it needs for a hard-core workout.

Skipping Your Stretches
We were taught years ago to sit or stand and stretch one muscle group at a time before we train. Contrary to popular belief, that type of stretching is best saved for AFTER your workout, when your muscles are warmed up. To warm up the right way, perform 5-10 minutes of cardio (jog, elliptical, stationary bike, etc.), then some form of dynamic stretching.

Dynamic stretching is basically stretching with motion, so your body gets a chance to warm up the muscles slowly and in a functional way. Think arm circles, leg swings and so on, but be sure not to bounce the stretch as you risk injury when you ballistic stretch. One of my favorite methods of dynamic stretching is butt kicks — here’s how you do them:

Butt Kicks
Purpose: To stretch your quads.
The stretch: This can be done walking or jogging. As you walk or jog, exaggerate the knee bend so that you are trying to kick yourself in the butt. You want your knee to point straight to the ground as your heel comes toward your butt. Keep your arms pumping in the normal running motion.

Key point: The higher you get your heel and the more you keep your knee toward the ground (instead of coming up in front of you with hip flexion), the more of a quad stretch you’ll get.

Avoiding Strength Training
Don’t get me wrong, cardio is GREAT for your body. It gets your heart rate up, burns a lot of calories, and works a lot of muscles. But it’s not the most effective way to burn the MOST calories. I’m a huge advocate of high-intensity circuit training. A circuit is a series of exercises performed one after the other (about four to five) with little or no rest in between. For example, if you’re doing push-ups, you’re incorporating your shoulders, triceps, chest, and abs, and then you can go straight from your push-up set into a set of lunges. You’ve changed the muscle groups you’re working, but you haven’t stopped exercising.

Then you add high-intensity training (HIT) into the mix by throwing an intense cardio interval into your resistance-training circuits. For example, you add a minute of jumping rope, sprinting, or doing jumping jacks to jack up your heart rate and burn a ton of calories, and then you go back into the resistance-training sets. This way, you maximize BOTH your time and your calorie burn. When a set of these moves are done, you go back to the beginning and do them again before moving on to the next circuit.

A typical circuit-training workout will get your heart rate up and impact a variety of muscles — not just one body part. Then, you can constantly switch up your circuits to hit different areas of the body. Ladies, don’t be afraid to add free weights into your routine! Women are hesitant to use weights because they’re afraid of bulking up. Lifting weights is a critical way to boost your fat-burning potential and you won’t bulk up unless you are lifting EXTREMELY heavy weights and eating far more calories than you are burning. I recommend you start with a weight you can lift with good form for 12 to 16 repetitions.

Getting Stuck in a Workout Rut
Often people have a routine that they do in the gym every time they go. This is bad for many reasons, most importantly of which your body will stop progressing. Your body adapts to the stimulus you subject it to. If you don’t constantly change up your workout then you cheat your body of opportunities to get more fit. Think about it, you haven’t trained in months and you do 20 squats. Well, the next day you’ll be sore, but if you do 20 squats for 10 days in a row, by day 10 you won’t be sore. That’s because your body has adapted to it.

So, make sure that at least every two weeks you change your routine. Try changing the types of exercises you are doing and playing with the amount of sets, reps, and weights you are lifting. Also, try adding new classes to your regimen like a spin class at Flywheel, boxing, CrossFit, bar method, dance, yoga, kettlebells etc. By training in different ways, your body becomes more efficient, well rounded, and less prone to injury. Break out of your comfort zone and try something new.

Phoning It In
The intensity of your workout is crucial to burn fat. If you want results you need to give it your all. You give what you get! Forget about the “target fat burning zone”. As I mentioned earlier, to get results fast intensity is key.

Get your heart rate up and working at 85 percent of your maximum. To calculate your maximum heart rate, if you’re a woman, subtract your age from 220. If you’re a man, subtract your age from 226. That number is your maximum heart rate in beats per minute. The ONLY time I give you permission to decrease the intensity is if you feel that you’re working too hard to maintain proper form, which is a sure path to injury.

Not Knowing Your Limits
On the flipside of underperforming, is pushing yourself too hard. You always need to understand and be aware of your limitations. Injuring yourself can put you out for weeks! Make sure to take the time to use proper form. If it’s a really hard one, try a modification of the exercise.

If you injure a part of your body, you can still work around the injury (after consulting a doctor!), but there are some key points to remember. Generally speaking, if you have sustained an injury in your upper body, such as a rotator-cuff injury or torn biceps, for example, you can most likely do high-intensity, lower-body cardio like running, step, jump rope, elliptical, spinning, and so on. You can also continue to do exercises for your lower body, such as lunges, squats, leg presses, or dead lifts.

If your injury is in your lower extremities — knees, ankles, feet, shins, or calves — try low-impact forms of cardio such as swimming, recumbent biking, rowing, and shadow boxing with light weights in each hand. Again, generally speaking, you can also continue to do resistance-training moves for your upper body, such as back, chest, abs, and arm exercises.

Brussels Sprouts

Now that we’re kicking off 2012, brussels sprouts are the veggie of the year. A cup of sprouts is just 55 calories and provides 4 grams of filling fiber. I love them roasted (use oil spray and season with a dash of salt and pepper); they’re crispy, crunchy, and totally delicious. They’re also rich in plant compounds that have cancer-fighting ability and boost memory, so you really can’t go wrong.

Pumpkin Seeds

Nuts are so 2011! Seeds are catching on big time, and food companies are now adding them to all sorts of products: crackers, tortilla chips, cereals, oatmeal, granola, and even cookies. Pumpkin seeds have it all — heart-healthy fats, protein, fiber, and an array of vitamins and minerals. They’re especially rich in iron, which helps blood cells deliver oxygen to all parts of the body, and magnesium, which helps keep your bones and heart strong. Pumpkin seeds are also one of the best food sources of zinc, a mineral that plays a vital role in immunity, wound-healing, and skin health. Whole pumpkin seeds (shell on) are great for snacking, but the shelled kernels (also called pepitas) are more versatile: You can sprinkle pepitas on yogurt, cottage cheese, cereal, or oatmeal, or make your own low-fat granola with pumpkin seeds in the mix.

Chia Seeds

Another super-seed, chia seeds (yes, they’re the very same ones used to grow Chia Pets) are especially rich in plant omega-3 fats, like the more popular flaxseeds. And ounce for ounce, chia seeds contain more fiber and calcium than flax. You can pick up a bag in health-food stores or order them online. Use chia seeds just as you would other seeds or chopped nuts; try them sprinkled on oatmeal, cereal, yogurt, or cottage cheese, or mixed into dips or salad dressings. Unlike with flax, you don’t need to grind them first because they’re completely digestible in whole form. Consider adding chia seeds to pancakes, muffins, and other baked goods too. Mixed with water, they make a great vegan egg substitute.

Protein Powders

There’s no question that protein wins hottest nutrient of the moment — research shows it helps you lose weight and ramps up energy, maximizes strength, and balances blood sugars. Though it’s easy to get all the protein you need from food, if you’re looking for a fast, no-fuss way to inject more into your meals, consider one of the many protein powders on the market, most of which provide 20 to 25 grams of protein per serving (what you’d get in 3 ounces of grilled chicken). Whey protein powder is the most popular variety, but you can also find egg-white powder and vegan varieties like pea, brown rice, soy, and hemp. Combine a scoop with skim milk and fresh or frozen fruit in the blender to make a protein-packed smoothie, or stir some protein powder into your favorite whole-grain pancake batter for an energizing and filling breakfast. Keep in mind if you have any sensitivity to sugar substitutes that most brands are sweetened with sucralose or stevia.

Tart Cherries

Tart cherries (aka sour cherries) are the next superfruit to follow goji berries and acai — and, unlike exotic fruits, most are grown right here in America! New studies suggest that just 2 tablespoons of concentrated tart cherry juice a day (or a handful of dried tart cherries) can help athletes relieve aches and pains after a workout and speed muscle recovery. In addition, there’s preliminary evidence that tart cherries may also help with arthritis and possibly even reduce gout attacks (the more common sweet cherries may have similar benefits, but the research so far has been done only on the tart variety). That’s because tart cherries are especially rich in antioxidants that fight inflammation and reduce oxidative damage in muscle tissue. Fresh are in season only for a short time in certain parts of the country, but they’re available year-round frozen, dried, or as juice concentrate. You can also order dried tart cherries or concentrated 100% tart cherry juice online from retailers like Amazon.

Mini Desserts

Portion-controlled treats will continue to be a major trend this year, both on store shelves and in restaurants (we’ve moved way beyond the 100-calorie pack!). When your sweet tooth comes calling, take advantage of the new “mini” desserts many restaurant chains and coffee shops — like Olive Garden, Applebee’s, Pizzeria Uno, and Starbucks — now offer. They’re rich (just like the chain’s regular-sized desserts) but served in small portions, so you get a taste of the real thing without the full calorie overload. Most but not all are under 400 calories (check calories on the menu).

Edamame Hummus

This year, be on the lookout for new, interesting varieties of hummus. Chickpeas (the traditional base for this Middle Eastern dip) are old news; now, innovative varieties made with edamame, lentils, and white beans are stealing the show. Edamame (young, green soybeans) are extremely rich in protein and fiber, a dynamic duo of nutrients that curbs appetite. Pair a scoop of edamame hummus with plenty of veggies for dipping and you’ll have a filling, energizing snack that will stave off hunger for hours. If your local store doesn’t yet carry packaged edamame hummus, it’s super simple to whip up a batch at home: In a food processor combine 2 cups frozen shelled edamame (thawed), ¼ cup water, ¼ cup tahini (sesame-seed paste), ¼ cup rice vinegar, and 1 clove garlic (minced) until smooth. Season with kosher salt and pepper to taste.

Black Lentils

In the world of nutrition, black is the new brown. Black quinoa, black rice, and black lentils are all über-trendy these days, and their unusual color offers more than just intrigue. These grains get their deep, dark hue from high concentrations of anthocyanins, the very same antioxidants found in blue-purple fruits like blueberries, plums, and cherries. Anthocyanins are potent compounds thought to fight cancer and boost memory. Black beluga lentils, which earned their name because the small, shiny beads resemble caviar, are rich in protein and fiber like all varieties of lentils. Just a half cup of cooked black lentils packs in about 12 grams of protein and 9 grams of fiber, a powerful nutrient combo that helps keep you full and energized. And, unlike starchy beans, dried lentils don’t require presoaking and cook up in just 15 to 25 minutes!

Greek Frozen Yogurt and Frozen Kefir

“Going Greek” is still all the rage in the yogurt arena, and now several companies are creating Greek frozen yogurt — with a higher protein content than regular fro yo and ice cream. Because it’s made with Greek yogurt, this frozen treat has a terrific tangy flavor and luxuriously creamy texture, and it’s so healthy, you can eat it for breakfast! Another big innovation is frozen kefir. Kefir is a cultured milk drink that’s thick and tangy (sort of like a drinkable yogurt) — and like other dairy products, it crams a lot of good nutrition into a small package. One cup of plain, nonfat kefir (90 calories) provides 11 grams of high-quality protein, along with 30 percent of the daily value for calcium and a blast of tummy-friendly probiotics. Plus, it’s low in lactose, which means it’s generally a safe dairy option for people with lactose intolerance.