Last Friday we signed on to completely change our business and expand. We are opening our new 4200 sqft fitness studio in the fall, called 360fit at the corner of Akerley and Windmill Road in Dartmouth.

360fit won't be your average gym. I've never wanted to own a gym because they aren't really about getting anyone in better shape. For most gyms the best clients they have are the ones who pay their bills and don't come. For a personal trainer though, the best client I can have are the ones who come to their appointments and I help to get in the shape they want to be in.

That's the whole aim of 360fit. When you join our studio it's not about coming in and working out on your own. That works for very few people and everyone knows it.

Instead 360fit will be about going to a class, a personal training session, or a group personal training session. Every time you come in the door you will be coming for something. At 360fit you'll always know there will be someone there to push you harder and make sure your working to get where you want to go. 

We will offer everything, bootcamps, Yoga, Stability Ball,  Zumba, TRX classes, group personal training up to five people, spin, spin circuits and even my old favorite, Fried Legs and Abs. I haven't taught that one in a while and I can't wait to get back at it!

So keep an eye out for us. We'll have a membership pre-sale coming soon!

Gatorade isn't a sports drink. It may be marketed as one but it's not. It actually is a soft drink.

For those of you who don't believe me just check out the label. There are 35 grams of sugar in that one bottle. That's more than some soft drinks and even more than an Arrow Bar.

Of course we see Gatorade everywhere on the sidelines of pro sports games. When coaches win they get that Gatorade bath right? So it must be good if the pros are drinking it right?

Not so much. Those huge Gatorade buckets are actually filled with ice water. Take a look next time you watch that coach get soaked. It's not Gatorade coming out of there. It's water.

Now Gatorade does have it's newer G2 drink which is much better and has only about 8 grams of sugar. But that old stuff is just a soft drink which isn't good for you.

Skip it and drink water. You'll be in better shape if you do.

It doesn't sound like it makes much sense but you need to eat if you want to lose weight. Many people have a hard time with that concept but it's true. If you're not eating, you're gaining fat.

This is because your body is set up for you to eat every few hours. If you don't your blood sugar levels drop, and your body will think it's starving. Remember your body doesn't know you can go down the street to a Sobeys. It thinks you're dying and starts taking steps to make sure that doesn't happen.

So it begins to burn the muscle you have and store fat. The next time you eat after waiting a long time, your body takes that food and turns it into fat right away so you have something to fall back on the next time you don't get food. 

But if you eat every two to three hours something different happens. Your body sees you're getting food and aren't hungry. So it doesn't turn as much of the food into fat, since it's not in a starvation mode. Instead it uses that to help repair muscles, and get you in better shape.

Next time you think skipping some meals or not eating regularly will help you get thin, think again. If you eat more often, you'll get in much better shape.

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So I’m on my treadmill today watching Jillian Michael’s new show called Losing it with Jillian Michael’s.

I was impressed. It isn’t often that you watch a show that actually puts a new spin on weight loss but this one does.

The show focuses on a family that needs to lose weight, get in shape and basically change their lives. It adopts a very holistic approach.
Even Devin liked it!

Not only does she get the whole family on board, but she goes to their workplace, friends, etc. It’s something I’m always saying…it takes a village!
You absolutely have to have a support system in place in order to lose weight and get in shape. I’ve had clients tell me that they find it hard because while they’re eating an apple they’re spouse is sitting there eating a bag of chips! Sound familiar?

When you make the commitment to lose weight and get in shape you have to change your lifestyle. And that means everyone in your life has to get on board. If you don’t have the support of those closest to you…you will fail.

You need to take stock of how you live your life and what you’re going to change to help you reach your goal. Tell all of your friends and family what you’re doing and ask for their support. You’ll be amazed at how many people will jump in to help you on your journey.

Gina

We all get nicked up from time to time, if you're active. It's just something that happens. But it's how you deal with the injury that really matters.

Injuries come in all shapes and sizes. But you need to treat them all like they are serious and take it easy. I really can't stress that enough. 

If you're anything like me you want to get out there and get going again right away. Pushing through the injury is something we all think we can do. But it doesn't help and in most cases makes the injury worse than it was in the first place.

The first thing you want to do with an injury is either heat or ice it, depending on how bad it is. One with lots of swelling needs ice. One without swelling and is ongoing needs heat. After that put up your feet and relax. Just don't do anything. 

Get lots of rest, drink lots of water and let you body heal itself. And it will heal a lot fast if you let it have the time. If it isn't healing anything else it will have more resources to heal the injury you have. 

So go give your body a break. Get healed up and you'll be good to go in no time.

I've always thought there was nothing I couldn't do with my body.  I could throw anything at it, train as hard as I wanted, and it would bounce back and give me  more. Well maybe not so much.

For about the last five years I get blood work done once a year. I think of it as a yearly check-up, like putting oil in my car. This year I've been really tired for about two months. So when I went for extra blood work I figured it was just me not getting enough sleep.

Apparently that wasn't it.

My doctor called me and informed me that my testosterone levels were low. And not just a little low. A lot low. Average for men is between 8 and 20. Mine were 2.1. That's not good.

But looking back at all my other blood work of the past few years we could see a trend. In Oct 09 it was 8.1, Sept 08 it was 8.6, and Sept 07 9. So basically I've been low and getting lower for a long time.

But without the blood work each and every year we never would have known there was a problem, or that it has been getting worse for a while. That's why you need to get blood work every year without fail. Think of it as a check-up for your car. You need it or you won't run all that well.

And if you don't think it's important think of me. My whole job is to be healthy and I have problems! It's worth the peace of mind.

d

I'd thought I'd repost this so people could follow it.

d

Choose one of the three options for each meal and snack.

Meal 1

Option 1
Oatmeal, Protein powder and fruit

Option 2
4 Egg whites and one yoke, fruit and 1 piece of multi-grain what wheat bread (no butter)

Option 3
Protein shake with fruit, 1 piece of multi-grain what wheat bread (no butter)

Meal 2

Option 1
Protein shake, fruit, and 10 almonds

Option 2
Rice cake with tuna, and veggies

Option 3
No fat Cottage Cheese, no sugar yogurt, and fruit

Meal 3

Option 1
Chicken breast pita wrap with veggies (whole wheat pita)

Option 2
Tuna pita wrap with veggies (whole wheat pita)

Option 3
Veggie burger on pita (or rice cake) with veggies

Meal 4

Option 1
Protein shake, fruit, and 10 almonds

Option 2
Rice cake with tuna, and veggies

Option 3
No fat Cottage Cheese, no sugar yogurt, and fruit

Meal 5

Option 1
Chicken breast, salad

Option 2
Fish, Salad

Option 3
Beef, Salad

Meal 6

Any kind of protein (half of normal size) and veggies.