Fitness is 80% Kitchen and 20% Exercise ... NOT

What does it mean to "improve one's fitness"?

Certainly, weight loss or weight control generally is recognized as an element of fitness. Improving one's cardio-vascular health is a NECESSARY element of a fitness plan also. Improvement in measures such as blood pressure, triglyceride levels, resting heart rate, body fat percentage are also indicators of improved fitness.

There has been a growing level of attention paid to the role of "what goes on in the kitchen" as it relates to health. We often hear sayings that state "80% (or some other percentage) of our health efforts should be focused in the kitchen. And this attention is a very good trend. However, there have been some growing misunderstandings, I believe, as it relates to food, "clean eating" and, for example, calorie ingestion.

Calorie reduction alone, can be counterproductive, when addressed in isolation of all other factors. A key element in obtaining better physical health is an increased metabolism. An increased metabolism basically means that your body, among other things, is burning more calories. Being overly attentive to calorie reduction however as a method of losing weight and thus improving health can actually be counterproductive.

Reducing calorie intake "too much" will actually slow down one's metabolism. It can also rob your body from rebuilding itself from exercise. Being overly focused on doing hours and hours of cardio with little or no attention to weight training, can and does result in a condition called "skinny fat". This basically means that you may well be losing weight, but you can also be losing critical muscle mass in addition to fat, which fires your metabolism. (Do you see the vicious circle you can get into?)

Getting the kitchen "right" involves attention to calories, portion control and feeding the body with what it really needs, nutrition.

So what is more important then; what goes on in the kitchen or exercise?

You can NOT exercise your way out of bad eating habits. Bad eating habits refer to a combination of one or more of:  poor nutrition intake, too high of calorie intake (lack of portion control), poor mix of calorie categories (carbohydrate, protein, fats and including a poor mix of carbohydrate sources).

However, it is EQUALLY TRUE that you can NOT attain overall fitness without attention to exercise.  In fact, without an appropriate mix of cardio-vascular based exercise and weight training, your exercise programs may be offering very little benefit to you. (Do you feel like you are not making the progress you think you should based on the exercise you are getting?) Without weight training, your bones are not stimulated to grow or maintain. Without adequate nutrition, your body will steal nutrients from your muscles and bones in order to simply function. Likewise, without cardio-vascular exercise (defined generally as periods of high-intensity exercise at or near 85% of your maximum heart rate), you will NOT develop cardio-vascular fitness at any appreciable level.

So while it is true that you can not exercise your way out of poor eating, likewise, you can not eat (no matter how clean you eat) your way to overall good physical fitness without strenuous exercise. There simply are no shortcuts. (As a side note, what most people view as clean eating is far from it. Additionally, you can eat much of good food; thus the importance of portion control.)

Nutrition, portion control, calorie awareness (which also means fueling the engine), weight training and cardio-vascular exercise are ALL necessary to good overall fitness. Attempting to assign a percentage of importance to any or all of these masks the priority of ALL of these elements of a good health and fitness plan.

As with all things in life, a healthy balance usually leads to optimal results.

Their Connection

He was handsome for the way he looked at me; with desire yet respect. He was handsome because of his intelligence yet hiding it with humility. He was handsome because he made me laugh but always let me have the light. He was handsome because he was kind, never ever seeking attention yet knew what he wanted. He was handsome because he was willing to share this and everything else ... With me.

How to Choose a Personal Trainer

When engaging on a plan and then decision to improve one's health, the very first step is to determine "why" you are doing this. Your "why" is unique to you. That "why" must be the reason that you are changing your habits, your priorities and your motivation. As such, your "why" must be well understood to withstand the challenges that you WILL encounter.

Once you have made that decision, then you need to decide on your modality; going to a gym, working out at home, having a personal trainer come to your home or hiring a personal trainer at a gym, YMCA or community center. Perhaps you are interested only in group training classes; P90X, Insanity, Spin, yoga or similar group classes. 

Your number one key to success (as it is in any endeavor) is consistency. Whatever you decide, you are making a commitment.

I am a Beachbody coach where I coach and mentor my clients using home-based programs, as well as mentoring my clients in nutrition, meal planning, and providing support and accountability. I am also a personal trainer and a group trainer; certified to lead P90X, Insanity and PiYo classes. I choose and combine modalities based on client preferences: budget, time allotted to training, and need for 1-1 contact with client.

Whatever health and fitness professional and in this case a personal trainer you are hiring, here are some guidelines that I would suggest you consider or questions to ask. Determine which are important to you. Some might be red flag issues whereas some may not matter all that much. Some are industry-wide "best practices" while some are very specific to nuances or priorities of a given trainer and your needs.

• When you meet for the first time, are they professional in their manner and yes, dress. A personal trainer is a relatively large financial commitment. You want a professional.
• Does the first meeting involve an assessment (written) and a release.
• Do they have liability insurance?
• Do they keep written record of your progress?
• Have you had the policies and procedures fully explained without you asking, concerning schedule, cancellation policy, rates, discounts, possible referral discounts?
• Is your trainer knowledgeable and expert in her field?
• Or does your trainer try to dazzle you with terminology?
• Does she have appropriate certifications and specializations? What about continuing education? 
• Does your trainer share some of the latest trends in fitness health with you?
• Does your trainer have an online presence of any sort?
• How EXCITED is she about her job and seeing you?
• Is your trainer able to effectively communicate to you about different training modalities such as HIIT, balance training, use of foam rollers, etc.
• Does your trainer understand and make part of your training experience discussions about nutrition, portion control, how to recognize and avoid fads?
• Does your trainer "bad mouth" other training modalities? (above and beyond comparing and contrasting "facts" of different training approaches)?
• Does your trainer explain how to recognize and address the concept of "plateauing" and how and why the body gets into this kind of state?
• Does your trainer have any specialties? (e.g. senior fitness, TRX, golf fitness, lower body training, bodybuilding training)?
• Does your trainer both understand and implement a training plan that is consistent, challenging but yet understands the importance of changing things up?
• Does your trainer understand the role of balance and flexibility training as part of an overall fitness and exercise plan?

• Finally, does your trainer give you straight talk when needed? That is, for example, if you are not attempting to modify your eating habits and focusing on nutrition and portion control, does your trainer reinforce with you that your process is going to be extremely hampered? Are you getting value for your time and money investment?

Remember, ultimately YOU own your success of failure. Not your trainer.

You and your personal trainer/fitness specialist must be of a good working relationships where you both understand each other's goals and motivation. In other words it needs to be a good relationship.