Exercise is good. . .but

“Sure, weight is lost in the kitchen,” says Dr. Freedhoff. “But health is gained in the gyms.”

I have been involved in the fitness industry for over thirty (30) years and one thing I find to be true and that people have a tendency to overlook:  A good exercise program without a sound nutritional plan is counterproductive.  I’m not saying you should eat less and exercise more.  What I am saying is that with any exercise plan you should incorporate a good sound nutritional plan for your exercise level and weight loss goals.

I work in a college atmosphere and many students come into the gym to workout.  They spend hours and hours per week on the treadmill, in aerobic classes and even participating in some of our intramural sports.  Later those same students can be seen ordering pizza and soda in the student union.  Some will share with me their disappointment in their inability to accomplish their health goals.  They believe that their exercises will compensate for the bad foods they are eating. 

According to Campbell, the food and drink industry has misled people into thinking that physical activity and sports will prevent them from being overweight. The primary cause of obesity is not lack of exercise. “A healthy lifestyle will include both a balanced diet and exercise.”  If either one of those elements are missing, health issues are sure to develop. 

One could safely say that weight loss is primarily dependent on calories consumed and used over a period of time.  It takes about 3,500 calorie burned to lose one pound of fat.  It doesn’t matter whether or not you lose those calories by eating less or buy exercising more.  In a study referenced by Talens, participants had to exercise 77 hours to lose 1kg of fat.  Not many people I know can sustain that much of exercise to lose such a small amount of fat.

There are several reasons why exercise is relatively ineffective when it comes to weight loss efforts:

• Calories burned through exercise are small when viewed through the overall process
• People do not properly estimate calories burned and calories consumed.

We fail to consider how many calories are required just to stay alive.  We need about 30% of the calories we consume just for the body to function.  An additional 10% is needed to make the food we eat usable by the body for digestion and 10% for simple movement.  That means 50% of our calories are consumed before we even get out of bed.  Exercise as we saw above doesn’t burn that much fat.

Also, even with calorie counters and diet bands, people have a tendency to underestimate how many calories they consume or burn.  They often forget that extra slice of cheese or toasted bun they had in the office meeting. They usually err on the side that’s most favorable to them.

We don’t realize how much more effective it would be to pack a healthy lunch and to eat one less bite than to exercise for 10 more minutes.  Parking further away from the building isn’t going to help you lose that much weight, if weight loss is your goal.  

A good exercise program should also start in the kitchen.  Talens stated that a third of the time that you are willing to spend on exercising should be spent in the kitchen preparing healthy meals and snacks.   There’s no standard amount of time to state as enough exercise for everyone.  Each person must base that on his or her desired lifestyle and start building from there.  Often we want to start at the end instead of the beginning.

This information is important for my career because it is extremely important to help clients realize that even though they are exercising, they may not see the results they desire unless they adopt healthy nutritional habits.  Exercise and nutrition should always go together if you want optimum performance.

Selecting a Summer Camp!

In a few months, many parents will be breaking a nine 9-month routine that started at the beginning of the school year.  Yes, school will be out and youth sports camps will begin for children of all ages.  Prior to this time, I often get the question: “Do you know of any good camps?”

Some parents send their children to sports camp because the child is interested in competitive sports or they just want the child to be active and not sitting on a couch watching TV and playing video games.   Also, the child may be interested in increasing their sports knowledge or meeting new children with the same interests.  No matter the reason, there seldom is a shortage of camps to choose from in Tallahassee.  

Normally, the primary factors a parent often considers when selecting a camp are time and location.  According to DiDmonenico, these are some major factors that should also be given consideration:

• What are your child’s interests?
•  Are the children involved in the camp selection?
• Have questions prepared to ask such as:

Ø  Who is in charge and what is their experience?

Ø  What is the student to teacher ratio?

Ø  What level of background checks are performed on workers?

One of the most important things a parent can do is to allow their child to be involved in the camp selection process.  Parents have to make sure camp is convenient and affordable, but more importantly the child needs to have ownership. This is another opportunity to help them learn decision making skills.   Hopefully, by helping with the process they will be more eager to attend.  

One of the worse decisions a parent can make is to put a child in a camp that he or she does not like.

When I was growing up, most camps were sponsored by churches.  Today, children are more privileged to attend professional camps following guidelines established by the American Camp Association (ACA).  The ACA consists of camp professionals that “work to preserve, promote, and improve the camp experience.”   Under their guidelines, camps must meet over 300 accreditation standards for safety, health and quality of service.  This should give parents some assurance that their child is in good hands.

The ACA has five (5) primary objectives that they want to accomplish through camps:

1.       Health and Wellness

2.       Environmental Stewardship

3.       Team building and Leadership

4.       Workforce Development

5.       Academic Enrichment

Sports, in general, provide opportunities for children to develop all five skills.  The primary reason it is so important during the summer months is because without the outlet summer camps provide, many students would live sedentary lifestyles during the summer.  The obesity rate is already quite high due to children being inactive.

Of the five objectives above, number five (#5) may seem to be out of place.  In preparing children to be productive members of society, they need to learn the same skills that are required on a job.  They need to learn how to set goals and monitor them to fulfillment. They must have great interpersonal skills to work well with others and value others’ opinions.  Everyone on a team has a purpose and contributes to the goal of the team.

If you have more questions regarding camps, please feel free to contact me or submit a message through the comment box.

Are You Getting Ready For A New Season?

by Robert B. Meeks, Jr.
"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven ...." Eccles. 3:1

Well, March Madness has just ended and Duke has prevailed as number one for the 2015 NCAA college basketball season.  The excitement of the game is still in the air, but there is no time for the teams or players to relax.  Coaches have already started recruiting for 2016 basketball season.  Practices and new routines have already begun.  While head coaches are recruiting, assistant coaches and trainers are getting returning players into shape.  It's a never ending saga.

My question for basketball athletics and all athletics matter of fact is:  Are your getting ready for a new season?

A player must always be concerned about the game.  He or she must consider themselves as a professional.  Like any professional ---- you have to study, practice, train, and identify your strengths and weaknesses.  Some players make the mistake by trying to continue into next season with the same routine.  Not really taking the time to make self assessments.  No professional does that.  In order to get better, you have to be constantly making personal assessments.

It is not easy for one to fairly assess him or herself.  Therefore, if you need help in accomplishing any of these tasks, contact me and let me help you with your A-game!