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Fitness, Health, Salt Lake City

The Realization that Excuses are Worthless

June 23, 2015

I have been feeling very proud of myself lately. For the past 2 weeks, I have been waking up at 6am on weekdays, at least twice a week, and going to the gym to workout. I recently started a full-time job which means that the only time I can workout is before 8:30am or after 5pm. Since the gym is PACKED in the late afternoons and evenings, this really only left the mornings as a viable option.

Realizing that your excuses are worthless

excuses worthless

Let me just clarify; I am not saying that excuses aren’t valid, I am just saying that there is no point making excuse after excuse to avoid something that is hard (but not impossible) to do. At first, I really resisted the idea of waking up at 6am to workout. I haven’t had to wake up regularly at 6am in years! The first day of forcing myself to just get up and go was seriously hard. It is not easy to wake up that early, but you know what? Sometimes, you just gotta do what you gotta do. And you can make things easier for yourself as well. I will put my gym clothes out the night before and make sure all my meals for the previous day are ready, so that all I need to concentrate on in the mornings is to get to the gym, workout, come home, shower and go to work. Continue Reading…

Fitness, Health

5 Ways to Accelerate Your Weight-Loss Safely

June 19, 2015

5 Ways to Accelerate Your Weight Loss Safely

Losing weight and getting into shape is often relatively easy at first. Taking regular exercise and controlling calorie consumption can deliver relatively quick results during the first two or three weeks of a health and fitness plan. Unfortunately, weight loss often plateaus – and that can leave people feeling de-motivated and ready to quit.

If your weight loss has ground to a halt, don’t lose faith. There are five simple strategies you can adopt that will accelerate the rate at which you burn fat and leave you with boundless energy.

1. Snack more

While this may sound counterintuitive, it is true that eating little and often throughout the day will help you to lose weight more quickly. This is because snacking on the right foods will ensure you never succumb to hunger pangs.

People who are exceptionally hungry at meal times are far more likely to overeat than those who aren’t. If you starve yourself before your meal, it might take more calories before you feel satisfied. And if that’s not bad enough, you’re far more likely to eat quickly when you’re exceptionally hungry – which can also lead to overeating.

It’s a good idea to keep fruit, almonds, low-fat cheese, whole wheat crackers and raw vegetables at hand for snacking. These foods will stave off hunger pangs without piling on the calories. Continue Reading…

Fitness, Salt Lake City

Orangetheory Fitness Salt Lake City

June 9, 2015

I first heard about Orangetheory Fitness when A Lady Goes West, a fellow fitness blogger friend, became an instructor at one of their studios in the Bay Area, California. I went to their website to find out more and was intrigued; I couldn’t really get a clear sense of what the workout involved as it seemed to involve everything! TRX, rowing machine, treadmill and etc. Luckily for me, there is a studio located in Salt Lake City which lets you try out your first class for free.

The Orangetheory

 The staff at Orangetheory Salt Lake City were very helpful, which helped make a great first impression! They explained to me that they give everyone a heart rate monitor for the duration of the class to track their heart rate and calorie burn. There are several different heart rate zones that the instructor encourage you to push to. 

orangetheory fitness salt lake city

“The physiological theory behind the Orangetheory workout is known as “Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption,” or EPOC. By providing you with a heart rate monitor and POD, we can monitor your 5 zone interval training sessions that we call the Orange 60. During the 60 minute workout, you will perform multiple intervals designed to produce 12-20 minutes of training at 84% or higher of your maximum heart rate, which translates to Zones 4/5. This program design produces EPOC, which is the workout “after-burn” effect, meaning that our interval training design produces a 200-400 calorie increase to your metabolism 24-36 hours after your workout.” Continue Reading…