My weight loss journey

Thank you for joining me today as I discuss my weight loss journey. We discuss the process I went through, along with the education, planning and commitment required for anyone to succeed on their own personal weight loss journey.
In my late twenties/early thirties, I was a competitive athlete. Everything was working out for me except my career. I sat for many hours at a desk and I also spent a lot of time sitting in airplanes. As the years progressed, I got out of the habit of exercise and fitness, and I continued to gain weight.

Around age 37 I decided I needed to focus on myself and lose the weight, but it slowly began to come back. Typically, I made a New Year’s Resolution but was not successful in seeing them through. Sound familiar? It wasn’t until I was about 47 years old that my mindset changed. It was when I met my wife Tammy.

So what was different? It comes down to one word – commitment. It is key. The commitment – and the reason behind it – solidified my quest to lose weight and become healthy and fit. Yes, it also took planning, eating better, moving more and making the right choices, but your commitment is critical to a successful weight loss journey.

Thank you for listening to my weight loss journey. Health and fitness is a continual process, but one with great rewards. I hope you join me on this journey too, as I want you to be equally successful on your personal weight loss journey.

If you'd like to work with me on your health and fitness, join me at Forever Fitness Personal Training.

Music used for the podcast Intro and Outro: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

Your brain on exercise

What happens to your brain on exercise?   Scientists and doctors have long speculated the relationship between physical fitness and cognitive function.   Recently published studies helped to clarify the relationship between physical fitness and its impact on long-term cognitive function.

As you age, improving cardiovascular fitness is critical and if you are not taking steps to improve it you are selling yourself short in many ways.   A part of your lifestyle as you get older is your ability to function mentally, so by improving your cardiovascular fitness, you will also support a healthy cognitive state.

One way to get started is with a walk.   A simple walk where your heart rate is up but yet you can still talk is a great place to start. As you get more fit, you may need to increase the intensity or volume of the work, but you will see consistent improvement with consistent effort.

Also, test your current cognitive level with puzzles or using opposite hands for simple daily tasks, taking into consideration how easy or difficult it is for you. For example, if you normally brush your teeth with your right hand, try doing it with your left hand.   These mixes will help your cognition but will also help you understand where you are today. and then you can take the steps necessary to make improvements.

The studies have shown that you will benefit your brain on exercise. This concept is life changing, and as we get older, we want to be able to maintain our mental faculties and I encourage you to get out there and get moving and adding cardiovascular work such as walking to your daily health and fitness routine.

Music used for the podcast Intro and Outro: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

Easy way to diet

In this episode we interview Doug Newberry, President of RightStyle Living, which is a place for where you can get a healthy nutrition program, designed for both being healthy and losing weight. It is an easy way to diet, in that their plans are tailored to individual goals and are designed by registered dieticians.

RightStyle Living is a six month program that is very comprehensive and includes meal planning, coaching, consultations, shopping lists as well as apps for logging your nutrition and fitness and track against goals. The goal of the program is to help you eat healthy and delicious foods.

We discuss the two types of success stories that are often seen as a result of the program. Often there is quick and dramatic results from folks who haven’t taken care of themselves for a long time, and turn to the program after a health scare. The second type of success that is seen is from the folks who started taking care of themselves, but they hit the wall, the inevitable plateau, and the program has been able to help them pass through the plateau and take it to the next level.

There are many pieces to the robust program which is based on the science of change. It is an easy way to diet and explore a healthier lifestyle, as there is advice on meal planning, shopping lists, recipes, consultations with registered dieticians, help for navigating the grocery store, and lots of other educational information. All of this information is available to you through your computer or phone.

Music used for the podcast Intro and Outro: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

Working with a personal trainer

Today we meet Sandra, a 54 year old ex-Marine and grandmother, who is looking to make healthier habits part of her lifestyle. By working with a personal trainer for the next ten weeks, Sandra is hoping to improve her health, fitness and activity levels so keep up with her grandchildren in the years to come.

Sandra describes herself as never being a “fitness person” and exercise was “never her thing.” Then when recovering from a significant heart health issue, she now eats healthier and limits fast food, but she loves to drink sugary soft drinks throughout the day.

Before Sandra embarks on this fitness journey with her personal trainer, we discuss goals and the core concepts of her personal training program. She will need to examine how much sugar she consumes on a daily basis. We also discuss the correlation between fat loss and the food and drink we all consume. Her personal training program will be designed with accountability, such as logging all of her food intake. Sandra will also need to have patience and a positive attitude as we approach changes in small, incremental steps.

Join us weekly as we follow Sandra for the next ten weeks (Tuesdays) as she navigates the experience of working with a personal trainer.
Music used for the podcast Intro and Outro: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

Working with a personal trainer

The secret to successful weight loss and fitness

What is the Secret to Successful Weight Loss?   Why is it that we often don’t succeed in our fitness and weight loss journey?   Perhaps we should consider the words we use and emotional connections we experience on the weight loss and fitness journey.

We have all been there before.   We make a resolution and run out of the starting gate with great resolve and strength, only to fail after a few weeks. Do you know that 92% of resolutions fail? The link below takes you to a Forbes article that tries to help you be in that 8% but these are slim odds. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiamond/2013/01/01/just-8-of-people-achieve-their-new-years-resolutions-heres-how-they-did-it/#2a0a15c4304c)

Often we blame ourselves for failing the fitness journey, saying we are weak or have no willpower. Yet willpower is finite and the more we rely on it, the more we are destined to fail. Here is a link to a recent article in Wired on willpower

http://www.wired.com/2012/10/mf-willpower/.   And why can’t we stay motivated to work out and exercise?

Consider the word “commitment”.   A commitment comes from an emotional base and it is an internal, deep feeling which is felt deep within our hearts and soul. Getting healthy and fit is 10% physical and 90% emotional. Connecting with the emotion behind your commitment is the secret to successful weight loss.

Commitments often have anchors which set us up for success and accountability.    Anchors are things like ceremonies, rituals or symbols, such as wedding rings, Valentine’s Days, births and family traditions.   Setting personal anchors in which you are emotionally bound and make sense for you is key to weight loss success.

Commitment is what transforms us, and the emotional binding to that commitment is the secret to successful weight loss.

https://40plusfitnesspodcast.com/3-ps-health-fitness/

Motivate Me | Lynette Renda

Music used for the podcast Intro and Outro: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

Introduction to the 40+ Fitness Podcast

In this episode, we discuss the launch of the 40+ Fitness Podcast. You'll be introduced to the host, Allan Misner. Allan is an NASM Certified Personal Trainer with specialization in corrective exercise and fitness nutrition. He focuses his practice on older adults.

We hope you'll join us at 40+ Fitness Podcast for each episode as we work to be the difference maker in your health and fitness journey. Whether your goals are weight loss, to get more fit, or both, we will be there for you.

Have a happy and healthy day!
Music used for the podcast Intro and Outro: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music