The Fitness Guru

Okay. Here we are. 2012.

What’s your Resolution?

I’m not going to bore you with the statistics on Resolutions and how many people drop their health and fitness Resolutions before the end of January. There really is no need: you all have friends who you have watched make and break those promises. You may have made the promises to yourself, only to decide in the first few weeks of the year that life was better without being burdened with all those chains.

But the start of the New Year is a brilliant time to turn over a new leaf. Here’s the catch: the leaf is delicate and if you turn it over with a big iron fist, it’s going to tear (oooooh imagery!). Most of us will come out of the gate way too fast and burn up just as quickly. We try to change everything we are eating, we try to workout far beyond our personal capacity, and the reward at the end of the day is exhaustion and a sense of defeat.

So enter Zen. We all know Zen. It’s that thing where you sit and stare at a stream.

Well, yes, but a little bit more. Zen is a school of Buddhism and the word itself is a derivation of the Sanskrit word for “meditation”. Part of the Zen practice is a voyage of introspection, discovering the nature of oneself. It is a slow and patient journey, one that leads the practitioner to enlightenment. Here’s the catch: there is no time line for enlightenment. If you wanted to enroll in a 12-week course in Zen meditation because the teacher promised enlightenment at the end of 12 weeks, I’d say stay away. That’s not the nature of the beast.

So how does that relate to your Resolution? We tend to attack our Resolutions like a hungry animal. We are driven by some sense that we are lacking something, some quality (think “thin”) and assume that if we take all our energy and throw it in some direction, we will attain that missing element. It’s firing a shot gun at a target while blindfolded. Some people who are patient enough will keep firing the shotgun and eventually hit something. But most of us lose our patience.

I had an interesting talk with a young woman the other night. She had just had a baby eight weeks ago and she and her husband decided to sign up for personal training sessions at their local gym in order to get in top shape for parenthood. Her husband wanted to take off a few pounds around his middle (let’s call it his sympathy belly) and put on some upper body muscle. She wanted to 1) recover from the physical exhaustion of pregnancy and childbirth and 2)prepare for her first half marathon she is going to run in May. Excellent goals for both of them. The trainer had them doing exactly the same workouts, which consisted of heaving around lots of weight.

What?

Yup. So she is tired and sore and ready to throw in the towel, while her husband, somewhat less frustrated, is hoping that he will get the results that he is paying a great deal of money to have.

This is a situation where the trainer is blindfolded and firing a shotgun at the clients, hoping that his particular pattern of training will help them achieve their goals.

Ain’t going to happen.

Back to Zen. The first step is patience. It doesn’t take any sort of thought or plan to get out of shape. We can do that very easily. But to get yourself in shape takes a great deal of thought and knowledge, both of the science itself and of your own body. You don’t have to enroll in any sort of graduate program, but you do have to become more introspective. Most people will say that they eat healthy, but when pressed, have no idea how many calories they consume daily; rarely get their recommended intake of fruits and vegetables; miss out on all the joys of fiber; and tend to snack as though the snacks don’t count. Workouts are an all-or-nothing affair that leave them depleted and drawn to all the wrong foods when they sit at the table.

So the three steps to the successful Resolution:

1. Journals. Keep track of what you eat by writing it down. Yes, there are apps you can use to track your food, but most of us will never open the app as often as we open our mouths. Go the old fashioned way and write it down in a notebook with a pen. Then seek the advice of a nutritionist who can help you sort out the patterns you have created and give you a little guidance as to how to change course. Don’t get involved in someone who wants you to visit every week for the next 400 weeks. That isn’t necessary. What you need are some simple steps to get you on the right track. It’s all about a little education.

2. Spend some money on a skilled trainer. And buyer beware. You know that uneasy feeling you get when someone is trying to sell you a car and it just doesn’t seem right? Do you buy the car? Well, just because someone has pumped up biceps and a wash board stomach doesn’t mean that they are a quality trainer who can help you with your personal situation. Ask question, take a trial session. And if it doesn’t feel right, speak up or move on. Otherwise, you’ll end up deflated and depressed like my new mom friend.

3. Patience. I can’t stress this enough. It took you a while to get out of shape. It’s going to take a while to get into shape. Don’t expect huge changes in a few short weeks. In fact, if you have huge changes in a short period of time, you are far more likely to snap back like a rubber band and find yourself in exactly the same position next January. Create a three month fitness schedule for yourself. Try to vary the workouts across the board: take a class, throw a frisbee…..it’s not just logging mindless hours on a treadmill. Place the workouts at times when you know there is little chance you will have to reschedule. But set it up for yourself in advance, so you see the path that you are going to follow. This is going to make it far less likely you will consider each workout an all or nothing event.

And if you have questions, hit me with them, sooner rather than later. Nothing worse than fitness frustration. michael@fitnessgurunyc.com

Rock on!!

I know, I know……I keep harassing you about this New Year’s Resolution thang. “It’s the middle of December!! Why is raining on the holiday parade!?!”

Because like a condemned prisoner choosing the menu for a final meal, most of us plow into the holiday season with such abandon, eating and drinking and eating (repeat), because we KNOW the inevitable Resolution is just around the corner. January 1st we are going to get it together and– LOOK OUT, WORLD– we are going to kick some ass!!

Okay, try this on.

One simple way of increasing your fitness level is by simply getting a little more active throughout the day. Your quest does not simply have to take place by logging hours on the elliptical machine. If you simply increase the number of steps that you take throughout the day, the end result is that you will boost your metabolism.

Like everything else I suggest to you, I think it is best not to leave this to chance– chance is what got us into this problem to begin with. The best way to make sure your more active is to track just how active you are. And the best way to do that? A pedometer.

Studies have shown that by taking 12,000 steps through the course of your day, you will be far more able to maintain your weight and fitness goals. More than 12,000 steps, and you actually start to make improvements. And, flip side, fewer than 12,000 and you are behind the eight-ball. And I will bet that, if fitness and weight loss are at the top of your Resolution list, you are probably taking far fewer than 12,000 steps. Why should you? You have a computer, you have a cell phone. In reality, you probably don’t have to go anywhere through the course of the day to accomplish everything you need to do.

So make the small investment now– buy a pedometer and track your steps. See just how active you are through the course of the day. Keep a log from day to day so you can see just how much more you’ll have to move to help the Resolution cause.

AND– they make great stocking stuffers!!

Here’s a great little pedometer that is so sensitive you can carry it in your pocket or bag, the Omron HJ-112 Digital Pocket Pedometer! Get yourself one now and take the first step toward conquering that Resolution this year!

Rock on!!

It’s December 1st. That’s one full month until the New Year. 31 days of partying and celebrating and kicking up a storm. Then, you know what happens?……..The New Year’s Resolution…….all those promises that you make to yourself. All those dollars flowing right into the fitness industry. All those blog entries that I re-publish about being patient and pacing yourself and blah blah blah.

Why January 1st?!? Really?!? Why?!? Why do we want to start a year with the anxiety of raising the bar higher RIGHT AFTER a month of eating and drinking and eating some more?

The New Year dates back to the Roman calendar that started the year in January and finished it in December (December at that point was the 10th month– one of the little jewels I took with me from 9th grade Latin class). The Romans put this calendar into effect in 700 BC– that’s a lot of years and, oy! countless resolutions. But many other cultures celebrate the New Year according to different calendars, calendars that do not begin on January 1st.

That is why I have decided that the Fitness Guru New Year will be celebrated TODAY, DECEMBER 1st!! Raise your glass on high!!

So, as it is the New Year, now is the time for resolution. Make your plan, set your schedule, focus on your goals and start to make progress NOW!! If you have the goal in mind, standing next to the dessert table at the office party is going to seem far less appetizing. You will be able to personalize your goals and make headway without the sense that you are either keeping up or, worse, falling behind everyone else who is making a resolution.

And the economics of it?…….

Did you know that most gyms are far more willing to cut a deal with you at the end of the year, so they can meet their goals of membership? You can go in and hunt for discounts– waived initiation fees, extra months added on– and most gyms won’t blink. PLUS when you actually go to the gym, the place will be empty because EVERYONE ELSE IS OUT PARTYING AND WAITING FOR JANUARY 1ST!! And January 2nd, trust me, it will be nowhere near as easy to find an empty elliptical machine during the post-work rush hour.

So come! Celebrate the New New Year with me! Let’s take December by the horns and wrassle it to the ground! Kick some ass and take some names and everyone will be telling you how great you look at all those parties on December 31st!

Rock on!!

YEA! HAPPY NEW YEAR!! WHOOO-HOOOOOO!!……YES!!!…… FIRST DAY!! NEW YEAR!!…. NEW DECADE!!!………YEA!!!!…… HAPPY….. NEW….. year……whoooo……hooo…. yes….. ya……. hmmm…..

With any luck, you are waking up this morning (or this afternoon) without a hangover. Food. Food will be on the list of things to do. And some stores and some restaurants may be open. But it is a holiday, so you can’t be sure. By Sunday, you’ll be a little discombobulated because it’s the second long weekend in a row and now all your internal clocks are way off. Monday: gather ’round the water cooler with all the NYE war stories and comments about “amateur night” (note: as my friend, Tom, was the only person I know who went to bed at 11:30 last night, he is, by default, the only “professional”). Within two weeks, you will have stopped screwing up every time you have to write the date on something. In four weeks, any reference to the New Year or New Decade will have gone the way of Tiger Woods jokes. And within six weeks, 80-95% of you will have given up on your New Year’s Resolution.

That’s right. By Valentine’s Day, the National Hallmark  Day of Chocolate and Cards, only a few Resolutionaries will be left standing. The reasons are simple: we create goals for ourselves without creating an effective strategy for attaining those goals. Sure, it seems like everyone has a strategy to help you, but, for the most part, that strategy is “Happy New Year……now let’s change”. The desire to change isn’t a strategy. It has to be met with a thorough play-by-play so that you understand the ups and the downs of the process.

So here are the five things to keep in mind to help you succeed this year and every year with your resolution. Now, I am the Fitness Guru, so I am going to help specifically with fitness and health related goals. But this ideas can work just as effectively with all your resolutions, personal or professional.

1. Take smaller bites. Yes, your grandmother was right. You take too big a bite and you’re going to choke. You have 40 pounds to lose? Start with the first 10. What the hell– start with 5. If you focus solely on the 40, and the weight doesn’t come off fast enough, that will lead to frustration, dissolutionment, and closing the door on yet another year’s resolution. That leads us to……
2. Patience. My god, if I had a dime for every person who walked through my door and thought that they were going to get it done in two weeks, I would be retired to an island in the Pacific by now. You have to understand that your train has been traveling with a great deal of momentum in one direction. In order to slow  down and change direction, you will have to patiently redirect your path. And the more momentum you have in a particular direction, the more focus and time you will need to redirect yourself.
3. Do not change direction too quickly. Ok, follow me on this one: your driving a Ferrari at 110 miles per hour down the highway. You want to make a hard, 90-degree left turn. My suggestion: slow down or your going to crash. You haven’t exercised in 10 years? Why on Earth are you going to go to the gym for two hours at a stretch, 6 days a week starting the day after the heaviest eating/drinking period of the entire year. Start slow and methodically. Go to the gym for half an hour, stretch, do a little cardio, maybe try a class. See how your body feels, how it reacts to the stimuli. If you feel good, up the ante. If you are sore and tired, keep it easy for the first week or two as you ease into it. You have time (see suggestion #2).



4. Don’t spend a fortune. Health clubs love this time of year. They see the panic in your eyes and they thrive on it. They will get you to sign up for 18 months of direct withdrawal from your checking account, knowing full well that by Valentine’s Day you will have forgotten you had a membership. Buy a month’s membership. They’ll sell it to you (they just want your money, after all). Make sure the gym is for you, that it is effective and you enjoy it. Then make the big purchase in February. Same goes for meal plans, exercise equipment, shoes, clothes, gizmos, late night infomercial products– the whole enchilada. The industry loves January because everyone throws their money at problems. Don’t be one of those people. But……
5. If you do spend money, spend it and spend it wisely. Spending money on your health and well-being is the wisest investment you can make. But, like financial investing, you want to be sure you are putting your money into an investment that will reap dividends. I am a trainer and I believe that an educated trainer is the Resolutionary’s best friend. Exercise is a science, not a crap shoot. I have yet to meet someone who couldn’t achieve their goals with the proper information and persistence. The problem is that the information is usually faulty. So Buyer Beware! Go about finding a New Year’s trainer the same way you would shop the rest of the year: get referrals from friends, interview the trainers, ask questions, find out specifically what they would do to help you, not simply someone who walks through the door to be “trained”. And keep in mind that most quality trainers have full schedules. You will need a little flexibility to find time in their schedules. If a health club is quick to offer you their “top trainer” who happens to be free five days a week during peak hours, take a good, long look at that person, their education, their work experience and their success rate.

This isn’t the end. This is the beginning. I wish there were only five things to keep in mind. This would be so simple if that were the case. But if it were that simple, the success rate would be higher than 10%. And it isn’t.

So buckle up and stay tuned. Let’s make this the best year ever! Whoooo-Hooooo!! Happy New Year!! Yea!!!!

It’s the calm before the storm. Do you feel it? That quiet expanse between Christmas and New Year’s. Friday? Very exciting! All sorts of new things happening with the Guru to celebrate the New Year– wonderful things that are going to help get all of us in the best shapes of our lives!

In the meantime, go out and have a very happy and healthy New Year. Take a few minutes to reflect on all the good things that happened for you in the past 365 days. And contemplate where you want to be 365 days from now.

This is not a New Year’s video. I love Cirque de Soleil and thought I would share one of my favorite pieces of theirs. Of course, it’s tough to capture the experience on video but it is amazing nonetheless.

Thank you all for being part of the Guru community for the past year. It has been a fantastic time and we are all looking forward to 2010!

It’s almost 2010, and for a lot of people that means New Year’s Resolution! And, though we try and be high-minded about it (“this year I will strive for Green Living and world peace…..though not necessarily in that order…”), most of our Resolution tend to focus on changing our health, well-being and fitness. Consequently, the gym industry makes a killing in January. And most of us end up frustrated that we have been unable to achieve the goals we set for ourselves.

So we have a plan– The First Annual Fitness Guru Makeover.

We will take one lucky person (though, who knows, maybe others) and we will help them hit the ground running in 2010– personal training, Pilates, yoga, fitness classes, weight training, nutrition– anything and everything that will help this lucky person achieve the goals that he or she sets for him/herself– all for FREE! The catch (there has to be a catch, right?): the whole process is going to be captured on film and video so that all the members of the Guru community can take part in the transformation, learn from it and become inspired by it. This way, we will all be working toward making 2010 the most successful Resolution year ever!! EVER!!!!

Still interested? Here’s what you need to do: first, read over the Rules and Regulations; next, write 150 words on why you feel you should be the winner of the Makeover. Try to be specific but not too long-winded, because, honestly, in an age of Twitter, do any of us have the ability to focus for more than 150 words? Finally, email your entry to makeover@fitnessgurunyc.com. That’s all ya have to do!

The deadline is December 30 at midnight and the winner will be announced on January 5th, 2010.

You may only enter for yourself and you may only enter once, so if you have a friend or loved one whom you think might like this, pass along the info and get them to write a little something.

Spread the word!

And Happy Holidays!!!

In just a few short days, we will be getting a brand new president. And because all the media outlets seemed to have changed course and are now reporting on important matters, like the economy and the Middle East, I thought I might share a few two-dimensional thoughts with you.

In between holiday announcements regarding staff and economic recovery, we as a people were given a brief glimpse of the POTUS-to-be’s torso as he frolicked in the surf in Hawaii. His abdomen made several glossy magazines as well as several papers. Editors seemed excited. Not only was this President bringing new hope for society, but perhaps he was also bringing new hope for the physique of America. In all honesty, when was the last time you got excited over the athletic achievements of a politician? Sure, John Kerry had his brief fling with a wet suit during his presidential campaign, but no one reflects glowingly on that. Clinton had a few brief moments as a jogger, but I seem to remember the Secret Service running to McDonald’s more often than not. W cleared brush (‘nuff said.) Aside from maybe Teddy Roosevelt who probably could have wrestled bears and Abe Lincoln who gave up a career as a power forward for the Bulls to follow his love of the law, very few presidents have ever presented athletic personae.

So now we have a president who is stepping up and showing off the fact that he works out several times a week. And given the fact that two out of every three adults in this country are overweight or obese, that’s a fantastic message to be sending out to the electorate. Does that mean that if we workout like the Prez, we too can have six-packs?

Yes, we can.

Well, actually, no we can’t. It’s not that easy. Most of us think that the six-pack is just a natural bi-product of an intense exercise regime. The truth is that for the abdominals to become so prominent that you can grate cheese on them, you need an eighth of inch or less of fat over your abdomen. Anything more than an eighth of an inch and its almost impossible to get that kind of definition. Now, we all have a certain number of fat cell and those are fixed in adolescence. As we get heavier and lighter throughout adult life, we are simply expanding and shrinking a certain number of cells. If the cells covering your abdomen are thicker than an eighth of an inch, all you can do is shrink the cells themselves, but you can’t make them disappear (well, ya can, but that’s a different entry.)

But I will GUARANTEE you that the President-to-be is not exercising so that he can be the first Chief Exec to make the cover of Men’s Health. He keeps up his fitness routine because that is what keeps him sane. Regular exercise is all about staying happy, healthy and focused. There is no way he could get as much done if he didn’t stay fit. Quite the opposite is true: he would become overwhelmed and lose focus.

As we move through the January Resolutions, its important to remember that the whole “getting back in shape” thing isn’t just about getting back into those jeans—its about getting stronger and healthier physically, mentally and emotionally. The media keeps reminding us that these are incredibly difficult times (like we need the media for that.) Strength in all its many layers is crucial. Perhaps the lesson, even before inauguration, is all about preparation. I had a wonderful friend years ago whose battle cry was “Strength and Faith.” We have learned a lot about Faith in the past several months. Now it’s important to stay strong.

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