Staying Motivated

A post courtesy of our personal trainer Lesleh, some of you have asked for some help here, this is worth a look:

Sure, it's more difficult to get back into an exercise routine after a long layoff--or even start one when you've never worked out regularly before. Once working out is a regular part of your life, it's easy to stay in the habit of keeping fit and healthy. But the battle's not over. Even the most diehard fitness buffs occasionally fight workout burnout and boredom.
There are several reasons. First, most people focus on a short-term approach rather than approaching exercise as a lifelong commitment. Once they achieve their initial goal, such as losing 15 pounds, they lose interest in the program.
The second reason is physiological. As time goes on, the degree of improvement we see becomes smaller. Anyone can get off the couch and see tremendous gains at the outset. But as you keep going the changes become smaller, and it takes more effort to achieve smaller increments of success.
And finally, many exercise programs are simply boring or don't offer sufficient physical and mental challenge to keep people interested. Throw in work schedules, family responsibilities, illness or injury, and an ever expanding to-do list, and it's not surprising that many fitness routines get derailed.
What's in it for you?
The good news is that it's relatively easy to get back on track. First, realize that your reasons for working out may change over time. People are frequently unaware of the various pros and cons of working out, and over time there can be a shift in the balance of those pros and cons. The reasons people started an exercise program may change over time as their lives change. They may have new responsibilities at work or family or relationships of one sort or another.
If you want to stay motivated, take a closer look at the benefits you get from working out. Be honest with yourself about the reasons you want to do something, and the reasons you don't want to do it. You have to know yourself. What's your primary reason for making time to exercise? Is it the way you feel afterward? Is it the fact that you handle stress better?
Remember, what motivates you to hide the weights may do nothing for your best friend, and vice versa. I think we all have different levels and different reasons we're motivated. Some people have the desire for success. For others it's vanity. Some are in it for health reasons. When it comes down to it, it does have to be something that comes from within, and it certainly will vary from person to person.
Regardless of your personal reasons for working out, here are a number of techniques that will help you maintain your enthusiasm even when the going gets tough.
Commit to the long haul.
You can't approach exercise as something you do just to get in shape for swimsuit season. e have to realize that working out and staying fit is a lifetime event, we all need to be in it for the long haul. For example, if you have a bad day driving your car, you don't walk tomorrow--you get back behind the wheel and keep on driving. If you have a bad day at work, you don't quit work. You go back. Realize that you'll have ups and downs with your fitness program as you will in every aspect of your life, and commit to seeing it through.
Set new goals.
When you first start working out, you probably have a goal in mind. Maybe it is to lose weight, have more energy, or simply look better in your clothes. Once you've achieved those initial goals, you need to develop some new ones to keep you motivated. Set higher or more specific goals. Don't say, 'I want to lose weight.' That's nebulous. Say, 'I'm going to lose an inch off my waist in six weeks.'
Set new challenges for yourself. Before it was just the one goal, always challenge yourself to complete something higher to stay motivated. Reaching new goals will help to keeps you motivated and fresh.
Be a social butterfly.
Do you look forward to exercise as a chance to spend some needed time alone, or do you enjoy working out more when you're with a partner? Consider what you like to do, and look for ways to make exercise more fun. If you're looking for more social activity, consider taking classes or joining a running or biking club. Or ask a neighbor or friend to commit to a regular walking schedule with you. You're more likely to stick to your program.
Hire a trainer. (Here's where I come in!)
If you've gotten bored with your routine, consider hiring a personal trainer for a few sessions. A trainer can help you break through a fitness plateau. If your body has adapted to a program, you need help to take it to the next level. Sometimes coming to a trainer for two or three workouts to re-evaluate and answer questions can give the variety, motivation, and spark you need.

Burn Baby Burn!

A post from our personal trainer Lesleh:

Rome wasn't built in a day and neither is the perfect body. If you make sure your exercise nutrition programs are formulated properly, you will be on the road to acheiving your objectives and start seeing imporvements in your figure. Patience is the order of the day.
Fat is accessed rather slowly, so a good strategy is to attempt to lose no more than 1-2 pounds per week. Of course, no one wants to hear that because everyone these days wants a quick fix. I am here to tell you there are none. None that last at any rate. It is time to take a different look at your body. I like to think of mine as an engine. An engine requires fuel and it needs to be used regularly in order for it to run at it's maximum capacity. This all comes down to metabolism.
Supercharge your metabolism. Take a good multivitamin (which has already been suggested...bravo) Pump up your protein intake. Making sure that you are getting enough protein is the next best way to raise your metabolism. It takes more energy to digest protein because you burn more calories during its digestion than you do after eating other types of foods. It also stimulates the production of glucogon, a hormone that tells bodyfat cells to give up their stanglehold on fat. This is a key reason why studies have shown that higher protein intake leads to faster wieght loss, even when calories are the same among study groups. Good protein options include eggs, fish and poultry along with vegetable sources such as nuts and whole grains.
The six meal a day rule....it isn't a secret that eating smaller more frequent meals leads to a more efficient metabolism. Herein lies my body as an engine theory...digestion takes energy; you use calories to digest, absorb and assimilate food. So, the more often you eat the more calories you burn through digestion. That doesn't mean however that you are allowed to eat more calories throughout the day, you should split your proper planned food intake into smaller more frequent meals. Munching on snacks like baby carrots or a protein bar is a good way to avoid overeating at breakfast, lunch and dinner and incorporate more low complex carbohydrate meals into your diet.
By the same token the fastest way to slow down your metabolism is to follow extreme unbalanced diets.Starvation diets (500 calories or less) can slow down your metabolism by up to 50 percent. Even the most physiologically sound diets will gradually lead to a slow decline. That is why I encourage a spurge meal once a week to prevent that metabolic decline from happening.
Of course the number one way to supercharge your metabolism is to exercise. Not only do you burn 300 to 500 calories per hour during intense workouts, but you also build much needed calorie burning muscle and increase cardiovascular health and efficiency which leads to even easier bodyfat loss. Consistent, daily exercise is a key variable in long term metabolic management.
So there you have it. The foundation to metabolic health will be laid solidly by your committment to living out these four habits. Be patient, move your body, eat lean and healthy, and enjoy life... you will keep your engine running effeciently for a good long time.
(Refererence Fit for Life for a simple 6 meal a day guide.)

***Please remember, if you have any exercise/training questions for Lesleh, please post them and/or email directly to the Pool email and she will answer as soon as she can. No question is dumb, it's better to ask than do something unhealthy or get an injury.***

Meet Our Personal Trainer

This week the focus is on exercise. Some of you "old timers" are stalling out on your moving. For you new swimmers, one of the best things about the Pool is that you have a personal trainer available to you regarding your exercise routine.
She will answer questions and offer suggestions on your overall health plan.
I'm reposting her introductory post so you can get a little background. If you do have any questions, you can make a comment (so everyone can see it, then also send an email to the Pool email and we'll get it sent to Lesleh so she can answer any specific questions you might have. It may not be a same day response, be patient.
Without further ado...

Lesleh
Member Canadian National Rowing Team
1977-1987
Position - Coxswain
Olympic Team Member 1980 and 1984
It is very difficult to ramble on about being a National Team Athlete. It was something that while I was in High School, you just kind of did and shut up about. Kind of like the celebrity kid who goes and makes movies then tries to fit back into this bizarre world of peers and clothes and school work. It wasn't easy but it was the road I travelled. The benefits were enormous, I travelled the world, I raced at the highest level of competition. I made the Olympic Team. When I first saw the Olympics on tv, it was the 1968 games in Mexico. I was 7. I looked at my Dad and said "I'm going there some day." My goal was set. I am pretty much a point A to Point B kind of gal. Skip the details, get to the point. Which in itself made rowing a great sport for me. While in high school, I actually rowed in an eight and a single. The Single event, allowed me to participate as a coxswain on the National Team. I actually came in 2nd in Canada at the Nationals in the Women's Single but I was just way too small to actually row internationally at the time. I came second to a world champion and member of the crew I was coxswain for. Now there is lightweight rowing, but back then the sport required you to be 5'10 and 175 pounds or more. As a coxswain (essentially the coach in the boat) I had a weight requirement of 88 pounds and it was my job to keep the crew together and get them to the finish line straight, and successfully. I was actually pretty good at it. I had been a rower, so I understoon what it took to push yourself hard. I also understood the sport better than most other coxswains. Truthfully, I think I was exactly where I was supposed to be when I was in a rowing shell (boat) telling a bunch of bigger people where to go and what to do to get there. To this day I am still blessed with the opportunity to take part in the sport. Because of years of weight management issues, I miraculously still fit in the seat (pretty good after 5 kids). Last year I raced in one of the largest regatta's in the world in Boston Mass. The Head of the Charles. Fun 'cause I got to race with old friends, former National Team Members and best of all my older brother Scott who also rowed for Canada on the National Team. I can't tell you how stoked I was when Chris Cookson said "That was the best race I have ever had at the Head of the Charles". Chris is also a former World Champion. So - after 18 years of not racing very seriously it was pretty cool to see that I could still get the job done. This year we are making a return appearance...and I can't tell you how excited I still get at the opportunity to get into a boat and race. Last year, I sat drinking beer with some former U.S. Team members and one of the U.S. coaches who is a good friend. To sit with Christine Wilson, Carrie Graves (now head coach of the Texas Longhorn Crew) and former U.S. National Team coxswain Holly Hattin and just talk about life, and kids and rowing's evolution was such a treat.
I kind of get that same joy out of fitness training these days. I love the women and their willingness to work hard and sweat. I love how funny some are and how serious others. We are so incredibly blessed to be female. Blessed to have these phenominal bodies that can produce babies and feed them, and then bounce back into these beautiful mature bodies that come with that transformation from child to adulthood. I heard a great line the other day, Jane Fonda said - it is time for all of us women to own our faces. Relish in the lines and the life we have lived to get to this point. I agree. I am empowered by the mere fact that I am alive.I teach four classes on Monday and Wednesday, one on Thursday and one on Friday. A total of 10 classes through the week. I am 45 years old - I say that so that you understand that you can work hard no matter what the age. I teach a Pilates class with a good friend of mine. We call it Pilates to the Core. It is an hour long class, and the focus is primarily pilates based. I teach a class at a facility for adults with learning disabilites. I have a number of people in the class with Down's Syndrome. The group that I teach are such a blessing to me. It is a 45 minute class, we use weights and we dance and laugh and work hard all at the same time. I always get a hug when I leave from just about everyone. I would call that class cardio/dance fun. I teach a Men's Class at the Rec Center, it focuses on the core muscle groups, as well as about 15 minutes of lower body conditioning. My favorite class at the moment is a Cardio Mix class. I teach it 3 days a week. It is 1/2 hour of grueling work. The class has grown considerably over the past 6 months or so, we kind of got into a good groove so word of mouth is working to increase the class size.
My toughest workout is being a mother of 5: Eric 19, Kendall 15, Eden 14, Rae 12, and Delaney 10.
By the way, I love to eat, I learned a long time ago that if I wanted to eat everything that I like...I needed to work it off. So......step one. Put your body in motion.I went to the Cornell University Training Camp last January and assisted in coaching their women's crews. The gal beside me is Christine Wilson, former Yale University Head Coach, U.S. Olympic Team Coach and now the head of the women's program at Cornell which is an Ivy League University in New York State. (Lesleh is the short one in the center, red jacket)

Move Your Ass

Sound blunt? It is! But, it's simple. Move, every single day. Period.
Today's mission, if you have a pedometer, wear it. If you don't have a pedometer, they're cheap. Go buy one. The cheapest and most simple ones will measure you steps all day long. The fancy ones can do extra things like tell you calories burned and whatnot. Just get one.
See how much you are stepping in an average day. Our first goal is not the usual 10,000. We're taking baby steps, girlies! Get your average. Then, our goal is to add 2,000 to that average. Evidence shows that most people will see improvement in their energy level, strength, and lung capacity if they increase by 2000 steps per day. That's about a mile or approximately 15 to 20 minutes of walking, something that almost everyone can do.
And that includes you, my flabby little flock! We will get this gushy midsection and these dimpled thighs to slowly melt away with our baby step of adding 2000 steps! So, what are you doing sitting on your hind parts wasting away hours at the computer. Get up! Move your ass!

PS) You do NOT want to know what I've gone thru trying find a picture of a butt to put up, then I wasn't sure if I should put up a "before" butt or an "after" butt. Let's just say, there are way too many butts out there, do your best to make yours smaller!