The Fitness Guru

Don’t fret, whether they tell you about it or not, every woman’s stomach looks like a pouch without the papoose after having a child. It took 40 weeks for it to get that way, give it at least half that time to come back- and that’s if you really bust your butt with the exercise and watch your diet carefully! Most doctors say you must wait 6 weeks after having a vaginal birth and 10 weeks after a C section to exercise. Always check with your Dr. first before you begin exercising again. I know it’s a pain, but be a grown up- you have a child now so you’re forced to behave.

After you get the green light start back slowly doing only 75% of your pre-baby workout. As your strength builds you’ll be able to get back to your normal routines. A healthy mixture of cardio, strength and flexibilty work will yeild results. Pilates is a must if you want your abs back. I recommend starting with some private sessions on the Pilates apparatus with an instructor who has experience dealing with post pregnancy. It may sound like a splurge, but you can drop to down to taking Pilates Mat classes with so much more information and understanding of your body which translates to results! Everything, including your cardio and strength sesssions will be more effective and have a deeper mind/body connection. You just had a baby, you’re worth it!

Lawson

We are always trying to impress that staying healthy doesn’t have to be time consuming. In this little video, Lawson whips up a healthy snack in just SECONDS. Watch the crazy knife work…….

Click Me

Didja know that if you Google “diet” you get 22.8 million different answers? This time of year, I feel there at least that many magazines on newsstands, all with the same bold headline—if you take part in this one Hollywood-glitzy-megastar- supermodel-fantastic-and-oh-so-practical diet, you are GUARANTEED to lose the weight you want to lose in a matter of DAYS!! It’s perfect time of year for all of this press. Everyone wants to lose a few pounds, and wouldn’t it be great if it were painless and simple?

Didja know that the word “diet” has its roots in the Greek word meaning “to lead one’s life?” But somewhere along the way (and I think it was with the advent of all the glossy magazines) the word diet has taken on a new meaning: a diet is that strange way that you eat for a brief period of time so that you can lose the extra weight that you have gained because of the way you normally eat.

I hate the word “diet.” Hate it. There are other words I hate more, but not many. Some clever writers say, “’diet’ is a four letter word.” Yeah, maybe, but there are other four letter words that I will let my two daughters use before I let them use “diet.” I think that diets set people up for frustration and failure. It instills a belief that health is based on losing 12 pounds in 12 days and that is a big problem from a health point of view. The first big problem is that once those 12 pounds disappear and you go back to your old habits, it is only a matter of time that the 12 pounds will return, and, more times than not, their going to be bringing some friends. The second issue is that the word divides life into two different periods—the time that we are on a diet and the time when we are not. And all the time when we are not on our “diet”, our habits are probably not all that great.

But you know that you have been up to no good for at least the last month or two, if not the last year or two, and its time to make some changes, feel better and possibly lose some pounds. Here are the two things you are going to do to start the year off right:

• Make one healthy choice per meal. If they say, “fries or salad?”, you say “salad.” If they say, “and to drink?” you say, “water, thank you.” You know the healthier choices. Fried or steamed? Apple or donut? Right. You get the picture. Make one healthy choice per meal. Before you know it, you can start making two or three, and then, ha ha ha, you will be eating healthier.
• Cut down on your portions. We eat far too much and all those extra calories lead to extra pounds. I switched to eating off of salad plates. The dinner plates that we use these days are huge compared to several decades ago. Consequently, we are huge compared to several decades ago. Use a smaller plate. Fill the plate once. Eat. Clean the plate. Meal is over. Done.

That is not it when it comes to food. But it is a really good place to start. And save the money and skip the glossy magazines.

Michael

Welcome to 2009 and welcome to the First Annual Fitness Guru Webolution!  Our brand new site is going to be dedicated to helping you achieve your New Year’s Resolution by offering workout ideas, tips, recipes, pod casts and video demonstrations. Each day for the next month we will be offering new information to keep you motivated and involved in attaining your goal. More than that, we are working to bring the tremendous spirit that thrives in our Studio to the Internet. We are expanding our Guru Community into the Web so that, if you should happen to stumble, you will have a place to turn to in order to get back on track. And if you are getting bored or lost, you have a place to turn for inspiration and answers.

A couple of things about our new site: right now, I sort of feel like David Byrne at the beginning of Stop Making Sense (for those unsure of the reference, see below for a visual aid.) I am standing on an empty stage with nothing but an acoustic guitar and a boom box. Slowly, the band grows around me, the music gets bigger, until finally, I am surrounded by a couple dozen musicians and I’m wearing a suit five times bigger than normal and the house is rocking like nobody’s business. OK, so maybe Psycho Killer is not the best theme to get this particular health and well-being party started……..

…..but you get the idea.

As you explore the new site, you will see the foundation of what we have built. All our studio information is on the left hand side of the page, and all our web info is on the right. You can easily ask any questions you like using the Ask The Guru feature, and we can get an answer back to you very quickly. We will be offering both video and audio segments on the pod cast page. And you can keep up with all things Guru on the events page.

If you’re new to the Guru, here is how we work: we never preach from the mountaintop; we are down in the trenches. There is a tremendous amount of health and fitness information out there and many people are willing to try to force that info down your throats, especially this time of year. We are here to help explain all that gobbledygook, and to help you find he path that’s right for you. “8 Minute Brazilian Funkilicous Abs” may not be the best choice for you, but it may work perfectly well for someone else. Think of it this way: in fitness, all roads lead to Rome. The Fitness Guru is your Mapquest. So take advantage of the opportunity. If there is a question plaguing you, be it about cardio-vascular work, weight loss, snacking on the go, post-exercise stretching, whatever, go ahead and ask. I guarantee you that there are probably dozens of people who have the same question, so by asking, you are helping the entire community.

Now let’s discuss the Resolutions. It’s the first of the year. Let’s keep it simple. Your goal for today is to clarify your Resolution for yourself. The clearer you can be, the easier it will be to stay true to your commitment. Here are some quick tips:

• Don’t overstep reality! If you are used to waking up at 10 am every morning and quietly reading the paper with a cup of coffee, then resolving to wake up at sunrise and run 10 miles probably is not the quick road to success. Try to find a path that works with your schedule and your lifestyle.
• Many of us make a resolution to lose weight. This can be a tough one psychologically. We don’t have all that much direct control over our weight. We do have control of various factors that contribute to weight gain. So if I say, “I want to lose 15 pounds”, my focus will be on the needle on the scale and whether or not I can get the damn thing to move, even a little. If that needle doesn’t move, or even if it does move but moves VERY slowly, that can be discouraging, especially if I am putting all this resolve into dropping pounds. And then, if I do lose the weight, the focus becomes “can I keep it off?” It’s a very tough dance to maintain. HOWEVER, if I focus on eating healthier on a daily basis and becoming more active, my weight will start to shift as a natural part of that process. Keeping track of weight loss is a fine gauge of success, but it is only one of several that we will discuss in the next couple of days.
• Create small steps for success. You can’t lose fifteen pounds without losing one first, and you can’t “eat healthy” without going meal-by-meal making better choices. Let’s face it: we spent December in a feeding frenzy and now we see this big mountain of HEALTH in front of us. It can be a little overwhelming. So start small: if you haven’t exercised since fourth grade gym class, don’t start by locking yourself on an elliptical machine for two hours at a time. You will burn out very quickly and you’ll be visiting Godiva.com by January 17^th. Take things day by day and seek out attainable goals that fall within your resolution. “I’m going to have a healthy breakfast” is attainable. “I’m going to go for a 20 minute walk during my lunch break” is attainable. And all these things will lead you to your goal.
• Take advantage of the community around you. Some of us believe that a resolution is like a dirty little secret. We don’t want to let anyone in on it in the event we seem weaker or in the event, God forbid, we should stumble and fall. But our Resolutions are just the opposite: they are commitments that we make to ourselves to improve the quality of our lives. And, right now, everyone around you is trying to make that commitment in ways both big and small. Reach out to your friends, family and the Guru community for support, understanding and inspiration.

That’s enough for now. If you have friends who are about to battle the Resolution, invite them into the community. There is room for all. This is a very electric time and we at the Guru are very excited about what is to come. Thanks for joining us.  It’s going to be a fantastic ride.

Rock on!

Michael

Bob, Pace yourself. You don’t want to overdo it, especially when you are under the weather. If you are lifting weights, I would cut the weight by about twenty percent. It may not seem like the usual challenge, but you are not up to your usual strength. As for cardio, it really depends how bad you feel and how much you are planning on doing. One time, I had bad congestion on the day I was supposed to appear in a friend’s exercise video. We ended up doing a great deal of cardio that day, and I ended up with sinus, throat and bronchial infections. Good times! If you feel like you need to get going again, then by all means, go. But take it easy at first and see how your body reacts. Make sure that you stay hydrated and don’t go wandering out into the cold winter air while you’re still sweaty.

In the end, go with your instinct: if you feel that you are pushing the edge of the envelope, back off. He who fights and runs away…..you know the rest.

Michael