The idiots guide to fad dieting

The Atkins Diet, the Cabbage Soup Diet, the No Fat Diet, the Dr. Phil Diet (How’d your diet work for you, Doc?), the Hollywood Diet……I could keep going but I don’t have 6 weeks to list all of the ridiculous diets that have bombarded our country for the past 15 years. What’s next?  The All Beer Diet?  We can only hope.  Ok, now let’s get serious.

In the past, you may have had moderate or temporary success on a fad diet- losing 5, 10 or even 20 pounds- but chances are you probably gained it all back and then some. Why am I so confident that your results were short-lived? Have you ever wondered how we can have access to countless gyms, have entire sections of Barnes & Noble overflowing with diet and exercise books, have “how to lose your belly” magazines on all of the racks at the grocery store, and yet we continue to gain weight in this country?   There’s actually a simple solution to this problem, and once you commit and buy into this breaking news you can officially put your yo-yo dieting problems behind you.

Here’s the scoop: Fad diets generally require unreasonable calorie restrictions, and some even cut out entire food and/or nutrient groups just to produce that short-lived drop in weight- a process that is actually harmful to your health.

Fad diets also often ignore one major component to staying in shape: exercise.  Studies consistently show that a combination of balanced eating and a regular exercise program is key to maintaining a healthy body weight.  This information is not new. Fitness professionals have been preaching this for years.  But don’t listen to your fitness professional, listen to your local newscaster….right? 

By restricting the type and amount of food consumed, the fad dieter usually sees an immediate drop in weight…..and nutrients…..and energy…..and brain power……and muscle mass…..get my point?   And it doesn’t stop there.  Life continues, and the fad dieter (who is generally starving to death) returns to her pre-diet eating habits with one major difference in her body. Her calorie requirements have lowered, and metabolism has slowed.  This is exactly OPPOSITE of what should happen to someone who eats a healthy diet and exercises regularly. 

In practical terms this means that the dieter will begin gaining weight even though she is eating her normal pre-diet portions. And since exercise hasn't become a part of her routine, the unneeded calories will result in pounds gained. So what's a dieter to do? Find a brand new diet to follow? Go on the Zone Diet for the 16^th time? Say heck with it and grab a cupcake?  How about eating a plastic-tasting ultra-processed Nutrisystem meal? All wrong!

There is a way to drop pounds and firm up your body, but you won't read about it in the next diet book and you won’t hear in on the news. You won’t pick it up in the medicine aisle, and you won’t find it in one of your next crystal therapy meditation courses. The solution?  Ask your local meathead at the gym.  (I’m joking!) No, really, the solution to your fad dieting nightmare is a lifestyle change.

What is a lifestyle change? You’ve never heard that before?  To change your lifestyle means to replace unhealthy habits with healthy ones, and to do so consistently (this is a key word throughout this article- notice the bold lettering). It isn't something you do for a week or two, only to revert back your old ways.  A lifestyle change redefines YOU.   How you look and feel is a direct result of your lifestyle.  If you don’t believe me, let me introduce you to my 57 year old father who can still run, bike and swim circles around most people in the area.  No, he is not superman or some genetic freak…..he lives an active and healthy lifestyle and commits to being good to himself. 

So how do you change your lifestyle?  First, identify your unhealthy habits.  This is important.  Next, stop pointing fingers, stop making excuses, take pride in yourself, and change.  This is also important.

If you’re having trouble identifying some unhealthy habits, here are a few common ones to get you started:

• The habit of inactivity. Failing to exercise on a consistent (there’s that word again) basis will self-destruct your health and your figure.
• The habit of overeating. Consuming calories in excess of your daily caloric needs is one of the main reasons that more adults and children are overweight today than ever before.
• The habit of eating pointless foods. Filling your diet with foods that hold little to no nutritional value is a great way to expand your waistline. Don’t pollute your body with unhealthy sugars, fats, and alcohols.  Eat fresh, natural, unprocessed foods that your body WANTS. 

Simply put, you want to be comfortable.  You want to stop fighting the Diet battle.  So take this opportunity to put down the “diet book” and take a look in the mirror.  You will continue to fall into the same habits until you permanently change your old ones.  No time is better than the present to start making yourself healthier.  Start today.  In fact, START RIGHT NOW!

Bag Swings

Bag swings are a great way to warm up your body before your workout. They initiate the nueromuscular connection that gets your butt muscles firing so that you can work out effectively!  Bag swings can decrease low back pain, strengthen your core, and reduce knee pain because they create stability in the core and reduce stress on the other joints.

So, are you like Crossfit?

I’ve heard this several times and every time my answer is, No! We are better!  Now, don’t get me wrong, Crossfit can provide great workouts for specific populations and definitely has its place in the fitness world.  But most fitness professionals certified through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) (as we at Phoenix are) refrain from singing Crossfit’s praises.  At the national NSCA conference last year one of the presenters summed it up perfectly when he asked, “What is Crossfit? Just hard exercises? Where’s the science?”  And that is what makes Phoenix Training Studios different.

Training effectively involves more than just training hard.  Exercise is a science, and one must have a strong understanding of the body in order to effectively design, integrate and safely execute training programs.  One absolutely cannot take a weekend certification course and become an exercise expert.  At Phoenix, our instructors have studied exercise science for over 4 years, each! 

Our group fitness classes and personal training programs integrate High Intensity Interval Training. Several studies from the NSCA Strength and Conditioning Journal have analyzed and praised the effectiveness of these programs in building lean body mass (muscle), burning fat, and increasing overall aerobic fitness levels.  These types of workouts incorporate strength training with cardiovascular exercises. These workouts are also designed to stimulate the release of growth hormone which is the body’s best fat burner and muscle builder. 

So, at first glance, our workouts may seem Crossfit-like. But upon closer inspection you will find that each workout is designed to fit into general periodization model relying on only the best and most recent research findings in the industry.  We promise you that you will receive just as an intense workout at Phoenix as you would at a Crossfit location, but with more results, less injury, more education and fun! Trust us, and we guarantee results!

Wake up your hips!

Here's a great exercise to do at your desk, first thing in the morning, and before any workout! It opens up your hips and torso and can prevent low back pain.

I can’t exercise because I have bad knees…

I hear a lot of excuses as a personal trainer.  One of the most common things I hear is, “I have bad knees.”  While I do recognize that some people do have legitimate knee issues (torn ligaments or menisci, or arthritis) the majority of people who complain of knee pain do not actually have “bad knees”.  Knee pain is usually the result of faulty body mechanics.  Imagine I tie a rope around your waist and pull at it aggressively.  Even though pain is present in your waist, it is my pulling that is causing you discomfort. We can apply the same theory to the knee: knee pain indicates that something is usually wrong somewhere else in the leg. 

The lower limb is composed of three joints (ankle, knee, and hip) and many connective tissues and muscles. Imagine it as a very complex chain, with different segments that work together to produce movement and provide stability.  If there is a malfunction at any point along that chain the overall function of the system is compromised and pain develops.

Knee pain can usually be fixed by making simple changes to exercise form and adding some specific hip extensor strengthening exercises.  First and foremost, exercise form must be perfected.  I’ve had several clients express apprehension when I tell them just how many squats and lunges their workouts will consist of.  They usually ask, “Isn’t that bad on the knees?” I respond by telling them that if done wrong, yes, but since I’m a stickler for form that will never been an issue.  Form is very important because it affects where the forces act through the joints.  Simply improving your squat form will move the forces from acting through the knee to acting through the hips.  What is good squat form? Imaging you are going to sit on a dirty toilet: shift your weight to your heels, stick your bottom behind you, lean forward and keep your chest up! This position makes sure that most of the work is done at the hips and not at the knees.

Knee pain can also be a result of weak gluteus muscles, specifically the gluteus medius.  How can you tell if you have a weak gluteus medius? Simple: do a squat as described above; if one of both of your knees collapses in at any time, you have a weak gluteus medius.  Strenthen it by doing squats (with good form!) with a band around your knees to remind you to keep your knees straight forward. 

Sometimes knee pain is a result of a tight iliotibial (IT) band. The IT band extends from the hip to the knee.  When this band gets tight it pulls on the knee causing pain.  You can relieve this pain with a tennis ball.  Lay on your side with the affected knee.  Place a tennis ball at under your leg at your hip and roll your body up and down the ball, from hip to knee.  If it hurts, it’s working!  Do this several times a day and the pain should significantly decrease. 

Finally, the knees are subjected to many forces acting through many different planes of movement.  Being overweight increases these forces and pain may simply be your body's way of telling you it can't support your weight.  The solution: lose weight.  Listen to your body, but understand that you may have to push yourself out of your comfort zone to eventually reduce knee pain. 

Knee pain can be very complex or very simple. Always check with your physician to rule out other, more serious causes of knee pain.  If he/she gives you the go ahead, stop by Phoenix and let me help you become pain free!