and all the Best in 2011!

Corporate/Employee Wellness, Health promotion, Personal training, Fitness Classes and Functional Bootcamps, Presentations and Events. Member of the Manitoba Fitness Council. Training and instruction in Martial Arts: Self Defense and Jiu Jitsu. Located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Here’s some smart eating tips:
Aim for 5 or 6 evenly spaced meals a day. This isn’t just for the holidays. Not only is this the best way to burn fat but helps to maintain muscle.Eat a good portion of vegetables and stay away from the processed foods, white bread & pasta.
Limit the booze. Alcohol intake can quickly add hundreds of calories. Try and cut back on those special drinks and sodas (regular or diet). You’d have to do 2,100 Jumping jacks just to burn off one 8 oz glass of eggnog – that’s 35 minutes worth!
Drink water. Drinking a glass just before the big meal will help to curb your appetite. Besides, water optimizes kidney function and maintains skin and heart health.
Wait a good 20 minutes before going for a second helping. It takes your brain about 20 minutes to realize that the stomach is full.
Remember – all things in MODERATION. If your Aunt keeps hounding you to grab seconds – politely decline. Offer to take a goody bag home instead.
Eating is contagious so hang out with talkers rather than eaters. You'd have to jog for 5 miles to burn off one quiche or fried pork dumpling!
Weight loss doesn’t come in a bottle so don’t rely on over-the-counter weight-loss supplements – they do NOT work. Your wallet/purse is already drained so don’t waste your money!
Stick with your exercise program. Don’t fall into a rut. This is a good time to take a bit of time off so you don’t overtrain. If you been procrastinating, it’s time to start a fitness plan.
The point of holiday gatherings is to celebrate good food and memorable times. Mingle with friends and loved ones instead of pigging out. If you do overdo it, don’t stress. Try and catch up on your sleep, go get a massage, go for a skate or ski.
This is a special time of the year. Enjoy it with your friends and family.
Wishing you all the best this Holiday Season!
With a new school year upon us, homework, school activities, computer and alone time seem to take precedent. With 16% of school children now classified as overweight, regular exercise is more important than ever. It’s surprising that current guidelines recommend that children engage in at least 1 hour of physical activity daily but only 6% to 8% of primary and secondary schools provide daily physical education (PE).
Did you know that;
- Fewer than one in four students gets at least 30 minutes of daily exercise?
- School-age kids and teens spend an average of 4.8 hours per day on the computer, watching TV, or playing video games?
Yikes! I’d like to share with you an interesting article that the CBC news (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) put out about a High School in Saskatoon that put treadmills and exercise bikes into a math classroom. Students did 20 minutes of cardio before class.
An interesting point is that this school is for those with learning difficulties, with over half the students having ADHD. They couldn't sit still, many had behavioral problems, and couldn't learn. With the cardio equipment in the classroom, most of the kids had jumped a full grade in reading, writing and math in one semester. Plus their attention span increased from 10 minutes to 3 hours!
The exercise altered their brain chemistry enough to make learning possible, AND it greatly improved their behavior. Exercise is food for the brain,” says Dr. John Ratey of Harvard University. Studies show that exercise builds new brain cells in the part of the brain that helps with memory and learning, he added.
If you want to hear more about the CBC report on exercise and the Saskatoon school’s pilot project click here Brain gains.
As a teenager, many students are overworked at school and overstressed at home. They engross their spare time on facebook, television and video games. Encouraging exercise helps to overcome the stress of growing up and adds energy, confidence and makes you feel good.
Exercise is just one part of maintaining a healthy body weight and a fit mind. Nutrition plays an important part. Did you know that certain foods help your grey matter? Eating fish helps prevent stroke. Eating steak helps to reduce brain shrinkage. Blueberries helps shield your brain from stress. And kids of all ages should stay away from diet soda – the aspartame is linked to headaches – which may increase migraines and have no nutritional value.
The best results come from a long-term strategy involving a permanent change in both eating and activity habits. It is important to make physical activity a priority for both you and you children. The more active the exercise the better. The human body was meant to move and physical activity should be part of your life.
Strive for an overall plan to increase your health, fitness, well-being and quality of life. Creating an exercise habit starts with you!It is with a heavy heart that I announce the peaceful passing of long-time friend Brian Cava on June 2nd, 2010 after a short but courageous battle with ALS. Brian was diagnosed with ALS - Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease) last year and became a patient of the Brummitt Feasby ALS on his birthday – January 15th.
The ALS Society of Manitoba will be having it’s annual Walk for ALS Saturday, June 12, at 10:00 a.m. at Assiniboine Park. Money raised in the Walk for ALS not only goes towards research to find a cure for ALS, it also helps to provide support services to families affected by ALS.
Winnipeg's walk is a family and pet (on leash) friendly event that includes clowns, face painters and much, much more. Don't miss your chance to support this very worthy cause while having a great time of family fun. For more information check out the ALS Website: Walk for ALS
LEG EXTENSIONS
Leg extensions are an isolated exercise that can cause uneven compression between the kneecap and thighbone, inflaming the tendon that connects the kneecap to the shinbone. In addition, if fully extended this puts heavy load on the ankle.
Alternative: Squats: Done properly this is one of the best exercises not only for your glutes, hips and legs but core as well. To squat safely, place the bar across your shoulders (not your neck) or use a Manta Ray accessory. With your back straight, bending slightly at the hips through the squatting motion, push up with your heels but don’t lock out the knees. Don’t lean forward - focus on keeping your ears in line with your ankles. Knee angle should be between 60 and 90 degrees.
FULL SIT UP
Sit-ups is an in-effective abdominal exercise. It actually strengthens the hip flexors more so than the abdominal muscles. There is a risk of back strain due to sheer force on the spinal discs and possible neck injury. When your feet are fixed, a powerful leverage advantage is created and the use of the hip flexors take over from any abdominal tension. Twisting (right elbow to left knee and vice versa) at the top of the sit-up movement is not only useless but risky. Twisting places tremendous rotational stress on the lower back that can lead to injury.
Alternative: A Crunch or Curl-Up is a safe alternative. If you prefer to do a Sit-up focus on the following cues: Fully flex the spine prior to full sit-up. After curling the spine the hip flexors can take over when the torso moves towards upright full sitting position. Allow your feet to be free so that the trunk can flex and remain neutral. Do not use a straight-leg as this arches the back and creates overextension and strain.
STRAIGHT BAR BARBELL CURLS
Straight Bar Curls are stressful on both the elbow joints and on the wrists.
You will notice that when you let your arms hang loosely by your sides, you'll notice that your palms face inward. When you face your palms forward your hands will vary on the witdth from your side. With a Barbell, the arms will lock into an unnatural palms-up position, which can lead to tendonitis.
Alternative: E-Z Bar Curls or Dumbbells. An E-Z bar is angled so that your thumbs are higher than your pinkies (pronated) and is not only easier on the wrist but puts your elbows in a more natural neutral position. Dumbbells allow your hands to return to their natural position.
SUMMARY
Not all of the exercises I’ve mentioned are necessarily “wrong”. The idea is to train smarter.
The idea is to reduce pain and injury while getting the most out of your exercise session.
Hey, if you want to do dumbbell presses on a Swiss ball go right ahead. Just realize that substituting a ball for a bench will greatly reduce the focus on your chest and shoulders.
If you want to do sit ups or leg raises, just realize that the prime movers are your hip flexors and not your abdominal muscles. Done wrong it’s a waste of time and even harmful. Care must be taken to maintain a neutral lumbar spine and include the modifications explained above.
A good rule to follow is “Keep your hands where you can see them”. If you are using your hands during an exercise and lose sight of them you are at a mechanical disadvantage. At the extreme end of the range of motion your joints are vulnerable to heavy loads and destabilizing forces stretch ligaments, strain muscles and inflame bursa (synovial sac around joints).
With leg exercises it is important to maintain a neutral spine. Any type of standing hip extension exercise strongly challenges the low back muscles as stabilizers. The depth of the exercise is dependent on hamstring flexibility and the ability of the back musculature to stabilize lumbar neutral.
SIMPLE RULES TO FOLLOW:
- Always warm-up before starting a training session
- Don’t lock out the knees or elbows during an exercise. Keep tension on the muscle at all times.
- Keep you heels on the floor to generate power.
- Do not use momentum during your rep cycle.
- Squeeze your shoulder blades together to help stabilize your core.
- Train smart – set goals, have a plan and write it down.
After a workout session you should feel refreshed and rejuvenated, not tired and sore. You have your whole life ahead of you so stay positive and have fun !
Did you know that the most popular New Year’s resolutions is starting to exercise? This is followed by eating better. Losing weight and getting in shape has always been at the forefront of resolutions. If you were one of the majority that gained weight during the holidays, well it’s time to take action. But before you spend your valuable time, energy and money on the latest diet fad, let me tell you that Diets do NOT work.
Diets have almost a 100% failure rate.
A July 2007 UCLA study concluded that most efforts at calorie restriction result in only very short-term weight loss, and, could even ultimately lead to weight gain.
Diets are dangerous to your health.
Diets put a strain on your body. Cutting calories results in depression and low energy levels.
Diets slows down your Metabolism.
By cutting calories and skipping meals, your body can’t differentiate between deciding not to eat and real famine. Your body believes it is starving and slows down in order to maintain every critical calorie it has.
Diets create fat.
When your metabolism slows down, it is more like to store fat. Then, when you do eat, your body realizes it is now getting the food it needs to survive and stores it as fat.
Diets lead to eating disorders.
It is very easy to binge or overeat when you are on a diet. Most dieters become part of the chronic or Yo-Yo dieters. Others become obsessed with controlling what they choose to eat.
Diets are Negative thoughts.
People dieting are more critical of themselves and become more miserable eroding confidence and self-respect.
Diets result in muscle shrinkage.
Muscle helps burn fat. Diets creates water and muscle loss.
Any person that loses weight rapidly (faster than 1-2 pounds a week) is mainly due to water loss.
Diets are synonymous with Weight Loss.
Focus on FAT LOSS rather than weight loss. Rather than thinking of your weight, focus on your body composition. Your body fat percentage and hip to waist ratio are two of the best indicators of your lean body mass.
Losing fat is not easy. Your body wants to stay the way it is and requires hard work and willpower to succeed in a person’s quest to become leaner. There are no magic pills or fads that are effective in the long run. Models and Movie stars that endorse products are there to make money. Don’t waste your hard-earned money.
It is important to realize that weight is meaningless as an index of fitness or health. It is best to focus on FAT LOSS rather than weight loss.
Rather than Dieting do the following:
Focus on Calories in vs Calories out.
Exercise - Burning off the fat is much healthier and effective than starving the fat.
Nutrition - Proper nutrition is 60% of the effort in building a healthy strong body. Follow a properly balanced eating schedule. Eat 5 or 6 meals of fruits, vegetables and lean cuts of meat per day. Stay away from processed and fast foods.
If you’ve made losing weight your New Year’s resolution do NOT diet. Remember, the reason why we are so fat is because we eat improperly and exercise too little! Your ultimate goal should be to improve your energy levels, be free from illness, and achieve your personally desired body composition. ie: Body Fat (lean body mass) and Body Fat distribution (waist circumference). So stop focusing on “losing weight”. Scales belong on a fish!
I hope you do not fall in the Diet Trap and become part of the yo-yo phenomenon. Besides, you can’t stay on a diet forever. It is important to find a lifestyle that works for you. The best results come from a long-term strategy involving permanent change in both eating and activity habits.