Personal Trainer in Jackson Reveals Why Interval Training is Effective

Leave a Comment

A personal trainer in Jackson will tell you that you can exercise day in and day out and still not see the weight loss results you want. If it’s time to get more from your effort, looking into interval training makes a whole lot of sense. This precision workout can provide the calorie-burning push you’ve been lacking in your routine.

Understanding Interval Training

Interval training involves a precision workout that combines intense, but brief, bursts of activity with less intense physical measures. The idea is to blend an aerobic and anaerobic workout into a single training session with a personal trainer in Jackson to maximize overall metabolic demands.

Let’s say a runner does great at 4 miles per hour on a treadmill, but starts to tire at 5 mph. An interval session might include a normal warm up period, several minutes of that runner working out at 4 mph and then a minute or two at 5 mph before the workout goes back down to the 4 mph range.

Essentially, an interval workout pushes the body farther, but not for extended periods of time. A short, but effective sprint in the case of the runner can maximize workout time and increase metabolic requirements significantly.

Does It Work?

The simple reality is interval training does work and can produce a number of benefits. While that 4 mph run does burn calories and helps trim the body, that burst of energy expended during the one-minute run can increase the overall effectiveness of the same amount of workout time without overextending the body in the process.

The benefits of interval training include:

  • Decreased chance of injury – It’s okay to push the body to its limits or near them, but not for too long. Interval training sessions help reduce the chance of injury and undo wear and tear because the burst of energy in the extreme range is very short and occurs after a person is properly warmed up.
  • More effective use of time – Where it might take 45 minutes to gain results running at a single pace, an interval training session with a personal trainer in Jackson can shave time off the routine. Basically, interval training makes for a more effective workout.
  • Increases fat burning – Interval training sessions put the body to work in the fat-burning sense. Studies have shown that interval sessions improve efficiency of mitochondria. These are tiny cells that use oxygen to help create energy. This more efficient use of them can increase fat burning properties of a workout.  And your peak metabolism rates will stay elevated significantly longer than the lower intensity steady state training will.  That’s calories burned for hours after the workout!

Interval training is a great way to get a bigger bang out of your workout time. Before starting a program, however, it’s a good idea to make sure you work with a personal trainer or check with a personal trainer in Jackson at your gym for assistance. This type of workout isn’t for everyone and you want to make sure you are working out appropriately for your fitness level and goals.

Read even more articles on this and other related topics by a personal trainer in Jackson…

About the Author

Clint Barr is the owner of Raising The Barr Fitness, Ridgeland’s premier private and small group fitness training studio. If you’re ready to begin your fat loss journey please call 601-414-3536 right now to receive a complimentary nutrition and fitness consultation (valued at $87).

If you’re not yet ready for our free consultation offer, download our free report “The Truth About Weight Loss” where we reveal the secrets the weight loss and fitness industry don’t want you to know.

Fun Aerobic Ideas

Leave a Comment

If you think beneficial aerobic activity is limited to hours at a gym working out on a treadmill, think again! Exercises that produce excellent cardiovascular results abound and they don’t all call for equipment or even a trip to the gym.

While regular trips to work with a Jackson personal trainer are always smart, there are some fun things you can work into your routine on off days, when you are away from home or just don’t have time to make the trip. Chances are if you talk to the pros at your fitness center, you’ll even find your club has lots of options to offer that you might not have even considered.

To vary your routine and increase your enjoyment level, consider mixing up your aerobic exercise lineup with such things as:

  • Cycling – Get a bicycle, a helmet and hit the open road. Stationary bikes do produce results, but the scenery can get boring fast! If you want to work cycling into your routine, it’s a great exercise that can even benefit your entire family. On off weather days, by all means, use the gym equipment. When the sun is shining, hit the open road for more enjoyment.
  • Swimming – This is one of the best holistic cardiovascular activities going. Swimming works the heart and lungs while also toning the muscles. If you don’t have access to a pool at home or in your neighborhood, take advantage of your health club’s if one is available.
  • Skiing – This is a great cardiovascular activity that can be a ton of fun, too. Cross country is the way to go to build up endurance and boost muscle tone and calorie-burning efforts. If it’s not possible to take the activity outdoors, cross country training machines are fun to mix into an overall cardio program. Check with your trainer for advice on getting started.
  • Sports – There are many sports that can serve very well in place of more structured cardiovascular exercises. Tennis, basketball, football, boxing and even baseball are fun to play and they can most certainly add diversity to your workout routine.
  • Dancing – Just get up and dance if you want to work your cardiovascular system and have some serious fun, too. Thirty or so minutes of moving to the beats of your favorite songs can really get your heart pumping and assist in cardiovascular conditioning.
  • Taking a class – Aerobic classes, dance classes, Zumba and other organized activities can increase the fun of cardio exercise and even add to the camaraderie level. Check with your trainer to see what classes are offered at your club or keep your eyes open for fun activities offered at neighborhood recreation centers.

While exercise machines will get the job done, a successful exercise program is one that offers room for flexibility and fun. If you want to increase the variety in your program, talk to a Jackson personal trainer for other fun ideas to mix things up a bit.

Myth: Thigh reducers and ab equipment can spot reduce body fat

Leave a Comment

Let’s face it!  You know this to be true.  Doing only crunches to reduce your waistline simply DOES NOT work.  So why do so many people still fall for the late night infomercial touting sexy abs by using their new and improved abdominal trainer, fat melting creme, or fat eliminating pill?  Answer: desperation, convenience… and a lack of complete understanding of how the body actually works.

Think about it… you didn’t gain the body fat you currently have in just a few short weeks.  And you definitely didn’t tell it where you wanted it to be distributed when you gained it.  The opposite is also true.  It’s not going to go away in just a few short weeks from doing crunches or using a thigh trainer, nor will the body just burn abdominal fat while leaving all the rest to be used up another time.  Your body distributes fat evenly over the body and it burns it off evenly over the entire body.  Now… you may have more body fat in one area over another, but that trouble area is not the only place you have body fat.

The key to burning large amounts of body fat is working all the major muscle groups with complex, multi joint movements in a total body resistance training routine to dramatically change and effect your metabolic rate.  Combined with a good, healthy supportive nutrition plan and high intensity interval training cardio plan, total body resistance training done in this fashion will not only help improve the overall metabolic demand of the workout, but will also help build and maintain lean muscle tissue that will result in a higher resting metabolic rate (calories burned at rest).

Complex, multiple joint exercises are exercises that work more than one muscle group in the same movement.  In the video above, Drew demonstrates a squat press using resistance tubing which works the legs, glutes, abdominals, shoulders, and triceps.  That exercise is far more effective, and efficient, than working each of those muscle groups separately.  Supersetting that exercise with the pushup jackknife exercise and alternating each of them in a circuit fashion will help you complete a workout in far less time as well.

So, get up off those machines in the gym that isolate each body part and start exercising more effectively, more efficiently and more functionally!  If you need more help with designing your total body resistance training routine, request a consultation with a certified Jackson Personal Trainer today.

Myth: A Regimen of “Cardio” Will Burn the Most Fat

Leave a Comment

Cardiovascular exercise is essential for overall health and fitness, but just doing “cardio” alone as part of a weight loss program will NOT produce the fat loss that most individuals expect. Long term, your ability to burn calories at rest by just doing cardiovascular exercise for fat loss will be greatly decreased.

As a fitness professional I have worked in various fitness centers and witnessed hundreds of people spend countless hours on a treadmill, elliptical, or stationary bike week in and week out, and never see any changes in their body composition. Why? Because cardiovascular exercise doesn’t do anything to build, or even maintain, lean muscle tissue which is a metabolically active tissue. In other words, by just doing “cardio” you will have essentially trained your metabolism to become slower.

Have you ever experienced a plateau effect in your weight loss? You work diligently for about four weeks and see some okay results. But as you continue over the course of several months you see less and less progress. Inevitably frustration sets in and you end up quitting all together. The problem is not that you weren’t working often enough, rather you were not forcing the body to adapt to any new form of stimulus. Over time the body adapts and becomes more efficient at performing tasks…that’s what we call “getting in shape.” So day in day out doing the same thing produces a smaller metabolic effect because the body is more efficient at performing the work.

Now, not only are you training the body to burn fewer calories at rest due to loss of muscle, but you are also preventing the body from being challenged to it’s maximum potential. Furthermore, in order to continue to see results from steady state cardiovascular exercise you have to either run/walk/bike faster OR longer. And unfortunately, there are not enough hours in the day. I think you will agree that spending more time exercising is not exactly what you had in mind when you set out to reach your health and fitness goals.

Quite the contrary. So instead of committing several hours a day to the same old boring “cardio” routine, incorporate the following to maximize the amount of body fat you want to lose:

  • Cross Training – use different kinds of stimulus for your cardiovascular conditioning days that will continue to challenge your energy system to produce maximum results.  Incorporate running/jogging, biking, swimming, playing basketball/volleyball, etc.  This will prevent your body from becoming accustomed to any one type of training stimulus
  • Resisitance/Strength Training – you absolutely must perform exercises that will challenge the muscle so you can build, or maintain, lean muscle tissue.  This becomes even more important as we age and our metabolism slows down.  Remember, one pound of muscle can burn up to 50 calories per day at rest.  Whether you’re male or female it’s essential to your overall fitness and weight loss goals.  You can even do resistance training in a way that is highly beneficial to your overall cardiovascular health.
  • High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) – performing high intensity bursts of maximal effort exercise followed by periods of rest cycled over and over has been shown to be the most effective form of cardiovascular conditioning for weight loss, and more importantly fat loss.  You’ll get maximum calorie burn, and what’s better is that it takes half the time!

It’s not about the amount of calories you burn during a workout…far from it.  You have to focus on what effect the workout has on your overall metabolic rate for several hours after the workout.  Research shows that combining high intensity resistance training with HIIT produces a very high metabolic demand where the metabolism operates at peak levels for up to 4-6 hours after the workout and doesn’t return to resting levels for up to 36 hours.  I’ll tell ya…working hard for 30-40 minutes a few times per week and seeing incredible results sure does sound better than busting my tail everyday for 60-90 minutes to accomplish far less results.

When planning your workouts, assess your goals and determine how much time you are willing to commit to your exercise program.  If you’re like most of us, including me, than time is usually a factor so make the most of it!  If you need help determining what kind of program is right for you just click here to request your fitness and nutrition consultation with a certified Jackson personal trainer today!

To your health and continued success,

Clint Barr

Fact or Fiction: “Dieting” Will Eliminate Body Fat

Leave a Comment

Fiction!  “Dieting” will not eliminate body fat.  In fact, long term it will do just the opposite.  Let me explain…

The term “dieting” that I am referring to here is what most individuals call it when they say they are “on a diet.”  I’m referring to restrictive calorie dieting.  This is where you calculate the number of calories you are currently taking in on a daily basis and drastically reduce that amount to produce your desired weight loss goal.  You will initially lose weight implementing this strategy, but unfortunately it’s the wrong kind of body weight.

You see… the body cannot decipher between intentional calorie deprivation and starvation.  Rather than the body adapting to make up for the lower calorie intake by burning fat, it will actually slow the metabolic rate (the rate at which we use energy) and hoard any calories that are being ingested to store as fat to ensure survival.  Due to the lower caloric intake causing the body to hoard and store the calories taken in, the body needs alternative fuel sources and adapts by breaking down muscle tissue for immediate energy.

The overall effect of this is a slower metabolic rate because muscle is a metabolically active tissue.  Lean muscle tissue burns up to 50 calories per pound at rest each day.  If you were to add, and maintain, just two pounds of lean muscle in the course of a year, that would be the equivalent of ten (10) pounds of body fat in calories.  So, by restricting your diet it will effectively cause you to burn fewer calories at rest, making it harder for you to maintain a lean body weight.

Not only that, but because you are taking in less fuel for your body, you will become lethargic and lack energy.  Energy that you need to have effective metabolic enhancing workouts, and energy that you need to stay active. It’s a formula for failure, and one that many try to implement all to often.

The lower energy levels also lead to uncontrollable cravings.  The body senses that you need energy so it relays messages to the brain that you need high energy dense foods and fast absorbing foods.  Therefore, fats and sweets become foods that you crave.  This adds to the body’s natural hormone response to store these calories as fat.

So what do you do if you’re not supposed to “diet”?

Remember, the use of the word “diet” in this article refers to restrictive calorie dieting.  Diet by definition is simply the food you eat on a daily basis.  In order to lose body fat you need to combine an effective exercise regimen, including resistance training, with a supportive nutrition plan that will produce a positive change in your body composition.  But for time sake, let’s cover some simple and effective tactics you can start applying to your diet right now to see results…

1) Increase meal frequency – in simplest terms, eat more often.  Studies have shown that eating 5-6 small meals each day is the most effective method for producing a lower body fat composition.  By eating every couple of hours you are preventing your blood sugar from dropping below levels that cause you to crave high energy dense foods (refined sugars and fats).  You also prevent yourself from overeating at each of those meals because you’re not as hungry due to the fact that you ate just a few hours earlier.  So, you’ll not only eat fewer calories at each meal, but it will be much easier to avoid the foods that are primarily stored as fat rather than used for energy.

2) Drink a lot of water – dehydration can slow your body’s metabolic rate by as much as 50%, making it difficult for you to burn significant calories at rest.  Water is calorie free and can make you feel more full as well.  Make sure you are drinking water throughout the day and especially when exercising.  To know whether or not you are drinking enough water, simply monitor your urine color.  The more concentrated (dark) your urine, the more dehydrated you are.  Conversely, the more diluted (clear) your urine, the more hydrated you are.

3) Eat Your Vegetables – research shows that individuals who consume vegetables regularly each day are significantly leaner than individuals who do not consume vegetables regularly each day.  The reason is because most vegetables are low energy dense foods with a high nutrient value.  Example: 2 cups of steamed broccoli is just 87 calories.  In contrast, just one glazed donut can be as high as 350 calories.  Moreover, the donut is composed of simple, refined carbohydrates that break down quickly and don’t sustain you for very long.  Broccoli is a complex, fibrous carbohydrate that takes significantly more time, and more energy, to be broken down by the body.

You don’t have to restrict your calories and starve yourself to get the lean, tone body that you’ve always wanted.  Quite the contrary.  Eat healthier foods more often and combine that with a structured exercise regimen that includes resistance training, and your goals can be achieved.

If after reading this you are still struggling to connect all the dots, you can (and should) seek help.  Reach out to us, that’s why we’re here.  Submit your questions in the comments section below and we’ll gladly respond as soon as we possibly can.  And feel free to request a no obligation health and fitness consultation.  You can also pick up a copy of our “True Success: Nutrition for FAST Fat Loss” DVD by clicking on the banner at the top right hand corner of this page.

To your success,

Clint Barr

Fun Strength Training Ideas

Leave a Comment

Lifting weights is an excellent and proven way to increase muscle tone and strengthen the body. The problem is the routine can wear thin rather fast. If you want to enjoy your workout time even more, consider working with your trainer to come up with a plan to incorporate fun options into your routine.

If it’s your goal to increase muscle tone and strength, but not necessarily bulk up like a bodybuilder, there are tons of options at your disposal that do not call for barbells and dumbbells. When you work with a trainer or other professionals at your health club, chances are you will find it is easy to work some variety into your strength training routine.

When it’s time to set aside the weights for a while, you might want to consider such things as:

  • Pilates – Take a class or get a video that shows you the ins and outs of a pilates program. This type of exercise routine involves gentle resistance training that focuses on building flexibility and core strength. While it might not result in pumped biceps, it can help you tone muscles and boost overall strength. Plus, it’s a fun alternative to sitting on the bench!
  • Water aerobics – This is an unusual exercise routine that blends a bit of cardio along with some strength training. As you work through aerobic routines, the water adds resistance to your movements. This, in turn, helps with muscle development and toning.
  • Swimming – Just plain old swimming can help with strength training courtesy of that resistance just mentioned. Mix in a few laps a week to help with toning and strengthening. This activity does tend to impact most major muscle groups, so it provides a fun and refreshing change of pace away from those standard weights.
  • Yoga – Take a yoga class if you want to add an interesting twist to your strength training routine. This ancient art does involve muscle toning movements along with intense flexibility training. It’s a unique and fun way to address health through mind, body and spirit.
  • Boxing or kickboxing – This particular sport strikes a nice balance between endurance and strength training. Kickboxing classes can be particularly fun if you are tired of typical routines. If your health club or gym doesn’t offer these classes, check with your trainer on how you might work this activity into your program.
  • Kettlebells – Although similar to weights, this type of training can mix things up while also helping to improve endurance and flexibility. Kettlebells are fairly cheap to buy and they can offer adjustable weights so they grow with you as your body strengthens.

Strength training doesn’t have to call for chaining yourself to a weight bench. There are a variety of ways to mix things up and still realize some incredible results. If you’re ready to add fun to your routine, talk to your trainer about incorporating unusual and enjoyable activities into your routine.


The Benefits of Whole and Organic Foods

Leave a Comment

If you’re working on losing weight and getting into shape, chances are you’ve heard a great deal about the need to eat right. After all, a balanced, low-fat diet that is calorie controlled is an essential component in any well-rounded weight loss plan. While you may need to reduce overall calorie consumption to shed pounds, you also want to think about making the foods you do eat count for more. This is where whole and organic foods can come into play.

Jackson personal trainers here at Raising The Barr Fitness, as well as other fitness professionals, will often recommend the consumption of whole foods and organic products to our clients. The reasons for this are not because they are trendy and fashionable. The reality is both types of food tend to be a lot better at fueling the body with the nutrients it needs without cluttering the system with unwanted junk.

If your trainer has recommended incorporating whole and organic foods into your diet, you need to know how to spot these items. They are not always one in the same.

A Look At Organic Foods

Organic foods are simply those that are grown or produced without the use of chemicals. This means harsh fertilizers, chemical pesticides and even growth hormones are not used in the production of fruits, vegetables, dairy and meat products that bear organic labels.

Organic foods can cost more than conventionally produced products, but many people feel the increase in price is well worth the benefits. While studies have shown that organic foods do not necessarily contain more nutrients than conventionally produced items, they are free of chemical residues and unwanted hormone levels. Although these things have been proven “safe” for human consumption by government agencies, many people worry about the cumulative, long-term effects of consuming food even with trace amount of chemicals and pharmaceuticals.

Finding organically grown foods is not difficult. Just look for organic labels in regular grocery stores or shop at organic or whole food markets.

Whole Foods Are A Little Different

Whole foods are those that undergo no or very little processing prior to their sale. While many whole foods are organic, as well, this is not a requirement for a food to be considered whole.

Whole foods include a variety of standard fare, including fresh fruits and vegetables. Other options include whole grains, unprocessed meat and milk that are not homogenized.

There are a number of benefits to consuming whole foods. This type of food product will not have added salt, sugar, fat or preservatives. This means there is nothing in the way of enjoying the full benefits of the food’s natural nutrients. Essentially, whole foods provide all the nutritional perks without any of the downsides of additives.

If your trainer has recommended incorporating organic and whole foods into your routine, you will find options on both fronts are readily available. They can give you an edge on weight loss by providing you with the nutrients you need, without the additives and chemicals you don’t.

 

Tips For Making Good Food Choices

Leave a Comment

You’ve made up your mind to lose weight. You know you need to eat healthier and smarter to make it happen. Unfortunately, knowing and doing are two very different things. Temptations do lurk around practically every corner.

Can you resist and put yourself on a healthier path? You bet you can! These tricks and tips can help you navigate around temptations:

  • Make your home a haven – It’s probably not feasible to put yourself out of the path of temptations all the time. You can, however, give yourself one “safe place” where sweets and other treats are not found in abundance. Get rid of the junk food in your own home by giving it away or tossing it out.
  • Change cooking habits – Eating right doesn’t mean having to give up on flavor. When you opt to grill, broil, boil or bake your favorite foods instead of frying them, you can make a big difference in your eating habits. Replace heavy sauces and tons of butter with spices and healthy side dishes. Be creative on this front and you are likely to find making good food choices tastes quite good.
  • Don’t skip meals – Skipping meals and even planned snacks is bad for your metabolism. It can also make you so hungry at mealtime that you’ll be more likely to select faster, less healthy choices. Eat throughout the day and your hunger level won’t get out of control.
  • Order wisely – Even if you have to eat out, try to look for healthier choices on a menu. Even fast-food restaurants do offer alternatives to fried, calorie-laden foods on their menus.
  • Stock up on healthy snacks – Replace those bags of chips and chocolate bars with healthier snacks. Fresh fruits and vegetables, low-fat yogurt and other options can fuel your body and satisfy cravings, too.
  • Cut out sugary drinks – Don’t overlook the need to stop drinking sugary sodas or juices when losing weight is the plan. Opt for lower-calorie choices and your body will thank you for it.  Water is always the best option.  Feel free to add lemons or cucumbers to make it a bit more palatable.
  • Think before you eat – Before popping a doughnut or other unhealthy choice into your mouth, stop and think. It’s also a very good idea to read labels when shopping to make sure you know exactly what you are buying and putting into your body.

Making healthy food choices isn’t easy, but it can quickly become a habit. Be creative in your food choices, vary your menu plans and seek advice from your trainer and you are likely to find that eating healthy never tasted better. Changing lifestyle choices doesn’t mean giving up on flavor or going hungry.

 

Lifted Spirit

2 Comments

All to often I get caught up in the busyness of the day.  I am constantly swatting away whatever comes at me next.  Whether it’s the numerous emails I receive on a daily basis, or trying to meet my self imposed deadline on the current project I’ve outlined for myself or the business.  In all that, I fail to see things for the absolute blessing they really are, and in the process lose out on what is really important… LIFE!

And more so than that are all the little things in life that I find simple enjoyment in… my family, my exercise, time with my dogs, my quiet time in the morning with devotional in hand and heart steeped in prayer.  Those are the things I can lose sight of when I get caught up in the world that is rushing to and fro around me.

Last night I got home early (well earlier than I normally do) and for the first time in months I put on my running shoes and decided to go for a run.  It hadn’t been since before my hip surgery almost 11 months ago that I’d been on the road…alone…with iPod in ear and nothing to think about.  I felt a little awkward on my first couple strides.  Literally had to re-train myself how to jog, but before I knew it I was striding smoothly and consistently with a nice rhythmical cadence.

At first I felt invigorated.  I was moving at a relatively fast quip, but my time away from running on the road soon became apparent.  About a mile into it I started to struggle and my pace dropped off dramatically.  I was considering just walking the rest of the way back to the house, but I decided to press on.  I didn’t like the song that was playing on my iPod so I started surfing through the songs.

I landed on one of my favorite Mercy Me songs…”Sanctified”.  It’s such a powerful song that speaks an even more powerful truth.  As I was crossing an intersection in my neighborhood the song was building to it’s crescendo.  The music, gradually building in intensity, comes to a pause when Bart Millard (lead singer) sings the following: “Sanctified….I have been set free!”  The instrumental comes blaring back right at the point of ‘I have been set free’.  Powerful.

At that moment I could feel my spirit lifted, and it was as if my feet were not even touching the ground.  I felt a rush of warmth come over me and all I could do was smile.  A BIG smile!  The car that drove past me at that moment was probably wondering what was wrong with me…I mean, how can anybody enjoy running enough that it makes them smile?  Well, I’ll tell you I wasn’t smiling because I was running.  I was smiling because of who I was running with.

Wait a minute Clint…weren’t you running alone??

True.  I did start out on my run alone, but at that moment someone joined me…actually he’d been there the whole time.  GOD.  His Spirit came over me right there, right when I was about to “cash it in”.  He met me right at that moment and reminded me that He is always with me.  Sometimes we just have to step away from the world we get caught up in so we are aware of His presence.  After all, our time here in this world is merely a vapor in the wind…a wave tossed in the ocean.  Just a “blip” on the radar.  In the grand scheme of things, and I need to be reminded of this as much as anybody, circumstances in our every day lives are an even smaller speck on the map of time.  That project that seems so crucial… it can take one more day.  And you know what… work will be there tomorrow.

The rest of the run was a breeze.  Heck… I could have probably kept going, but my hip would not be happy with me today if I had.  I’m gonna go for another run tonight, and probably the night after that.  And I don’t expect to have the same experience every time, although that would be nice.  I know that when I take the time to “shake off” everything the world throws at me… I feel better, I act better, and I love better.  That is all the reason I need.

I hope you find that ‘something’ that lifts your spirit.  And I would love to hear your comments about that, or this post.

God bless,

Clint Barr

Super Foods for a Healthy Body

Leave a Comment

We’ve all had days when we didn’t feel like we were ‘on our game.’ And as we age, both our bodies and our brains grow old as well.  By making smart food choices though, we can preserve our precious gray matter longer and improve brain function.  Here are some brainy choices for keeping our noggins in tip-top shape.

- Blueberries have been shown to shield the brain from stress, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease.   Research has also shown that diets rich in blueberries significantly improved both the learning capacity and motor skills.  They go great with a steamy, hot bowl of oatmeal too!

- Avocados contribute to healthy blood flow and decreased blood pressure, lessening the chances of developing hypertension, which can lead to a stroke.

- Deep-water fish, such as salmon, is abundant in omega-3 essential fatty acids, which are essential for healthy brain function.  Plus, research shows that individuals who consume fish are have 9% less body fat than those who don’t eat fish regularly.

- Nuts and seeds are good sources of vitamin E, an important vitamin needed by your brain to stave off declining cognitive functions. Cashews, peanuts, walnuts, sunflower and sesame seeds and almonds are all great choices.

- Whole-grain breads, brown rice, and oatmeal also contribute to a healthy brain by reducing the risk for cardiac disease.  By promoting a healthy heart and improved blood flow, the brain is sure to thrive via excellent oxygen and nutrient delivery through the bloodstream.

Complex carbohydrates also supply the brain with a steady stream of glucose that enhances brain function. It’s important to avoid simple carbohydrates often found in junk food because the glucose gives the brain a short-lived sugar high, often followed by a crash that makes you feel hungry and tired.

- Freshly brewed tea also has potent antioxidants, especially the class known as catechines, which also promotes healthy blood flow. Since black teas do contain caffeine it’s important to use it sensibly.

- Dark chocolate has powerful antioxidant properties, contains several natural stimulants, which enhance focus and concentration, and encourages the production of endorphins, which helps improve mood. Again, moderation is the key.

Exercise and Stress

Leave a Comment

Even though exercise may not be the most exciting word in your vocabulary, it sure is a word with a lot of benefits.  Participating in daily exercise will not only make you healthier in general, but it can also diminish the effects of stress on your body as well.

Think about all the times you have heard someone say “the doctor says it’s stress related”.  Normally people will laugh it off, concluding that doctors say that when they don’t know the real answers or diagnosis.  The truth of the matter is that too much stress will play a role in many diseases.

Consider exercising as a safe and effective way to help “boost” your immune system and decrease your stress level.  It can be as simple as stretching and walking.  The whole idea is to get moving!

There are several different exercises that you can do to help you eliminate the stress in your life.  Walking is by far the best, as you can easily lose yourself and your troubles by walking.  Even if it is just around the block, walking can do wonders for your health as well as stress.

If you enjoy sitting around watching television, consider buying a jogging board.  These padded boards will make running, jumping, or walking in place less stressful on your knees and joints.  They are easy to store as well and also very portable.

In many people’s opinions, jogging boards are the best pieces of equipment you can buy.  They are also far cheaper than bulky treadmills and stationary bikes.

Another option for you to consider is joining your local fitness center.  Working out then sitting in the sauna is a great way to relieve tension.  If your gym has a pool, you may find swimming to be very beneficial as well.

One of the best ways to reduce stress and get healthy is to work directly with a Jackson personal trainer.  It may sound scary at first, but working with a fitness professional in a small group training program or one-on-one has been shown to get people fit and healthy faster than doing it alone.

Whatever you decide, the over all idea is to get moving!

Three Diet Success Keys to Maximize Your Fat Loss

Leave a Comment

You’ve probably heard about how important diet is to the overall fat loss equation. In fact, it is just as important as your workouts. The combination of both proper nutrition and exercise ramps up the body’s ability to burn fat. So, what are the most important factors to focus on in order to maximize your fat loss? Three simple things:

1. Increased Meal Frequency

Recommended 5-6 small meals a day.

Every time you eat, the food you ingest has an effect on your metabolic rate. This process is called the Thermic Effect of Feeding (TEF). What this means is that your body has to expend energy to chew your food, swallow, move the food through the digestive system, etc. The amount of energy used comes nowhere close to the amount of calories that you are eating at a given meal, but it does “spike” your metabolic rate.

Why is that important?

Because your resting metabolic rate is responsible for 80% of the calories you burn on a daily basis. So anything you can do to keep that elevated will benefit you. Furthermore, the more often you eat the less you will eat for each meal, which will keep the total number of calories ingested each day at lower levels.

2. Consume Low Carbohydrate Foods

Be aware of the high starch foods that you consume. You should continue to eat non-starchy carbs in the form of green vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, spinach, bell pepper, tomatoes, etc.). Please don’t confuse these statements with the “Atkins Diet.” I am not saying that you eat just protein and fat. Carbohydrates are still important to your diet and supply you with much needed energy to maximize your efforts during a workout. You simply must discontinue consuming foods that convert to sugar rapidly in your body. The main reason for doing this is insulin.

Whenever your blood sugar is high, insulin is secreted by the pancreas to remove the sugar from the blood. It does this primarily by converting the sugar to fat and storing it in the adipose tissue. More importantly, insulin inhibits the body’s ability to use stored fat as an energy source. Thus, when you consume a high carbohydrate, starchy diet your body is storing excess sugar as fat, and preventing you from burning that stored fat. In other words, you could be exercising daily and still not seeing any results from your hard work.

3. Eat More Fish or Use a Fish Oil Supplement

Recent studies show that individuals that consumed fish oil lost significantly more body fat than those that were given a placebo. Researchers have not determined the mechanism that facilitates accelerated fat loss, but all the evidence supports the fact that it does improve the amount of fat loss in those individuals that consume fish or a fish oil supplement. It is important to note that both groups in all studies also exercised. They made sure that all subjects did the exact same amount of physical activity. Remember exercise combined with proper nutrition is still extremely important for reaching your goals.

Start implementing these three simple steps to improve your diet and you will start seeing some visible results. The ball is in your court now. Remember that exercise is equally important to your goal, and especially resistance training because it helps promote lean muscle gain and increases your metabolic rate. If you’re not currently exercising or using resistance training in your exercise routine a fitness professional can help you design a safe and effective resistance training program.

What to Look for in a Fitness Instructor in Jackson

Leave a Comment

You’ve decided to improve your health and lifestyle with a fitness instructor in Jackson. Congratulations! You’ve already made an important first step. The next one is to find a personal trainer that can help you achieve your goals, but where to start? Don’t make the mistake of hiring the first personal trainer you come in contact with, because he or she might not have accredited certification and make you dread showing up for exercise sessions. In this article, we’ll take a look at three important things to keep in mind when looking for a fitness instructor in Jackson; certification, your comfort level and how your potential personal trainer looks.

Certification

Thanks to the rise in popularity of personal trainers, more and more inexperienced fitness enthusiasts are seeking out certification from unlikely sources, such as the internet. Don’t be fooled by a fancy looking certificate or an impressive sounding certification body. There are a handful of accredited certification bodies that offer personal fitness certification and it is worth the time to learn about them before your search – not only because you’ll be able to separate the good from the bad, but because each certification has a different focus on fitness.

Any fitness instructor in Jackson worth his salt will also be certified in first aid and CPR, so be sure to ask about these issues as well.

Comfort Level

Just as every fitness instructor in Jackson is different, everyone seeking a personal trainer has different needs as well. The idea of a drill sergeant as personal trainer may be what you need to keep motivated, or it might ensure that you never show up for a session again. The purpose of hiring a personal trainer is that he or she will push you to work harder than you would by yourself, but the way they intend to push you will make all the difference in the world.

Even in the interview stage, don’t be afraid to ask the fitness instructor in Jackson how he or she intends to encourage you to go on. Also, is this a person that you’ll feel comfortable asking questions to in the middle of a session? Don’t disregard your initial feelings on meeting a potential personal trainer, because if you don’t feel comfortable with him or her, the less likely you’ll be to continue showing up to work out.

How Does the Trainer Look?

Just like the old saying goes, you should never judge a book by its cover, but let’s be honest – don’t you want a personal trainer that practices what he preaches? While you may never know for sure that the trainer achieved a healthy looking body by following a healthy diet and exercise program, you’re more likely to respect and follow the training if he looks like he does. He doesn’t have to look like he just stepped out of last week’s fitness magazine, but wouldn’t you find it difficult to respect a fitness instructor in Jackson if you looked better than he did?

Exercise In A Pill — Don’t Believe The Hype!

Leave a Comment

At least that is what researchers are calling it. But is it really exercise?

The drug is called AICAR. It is a drug that they are calling the ultimate workout for the couch potato. You’re going to be hearing a lot about it, if you haven’t already.

AICAR was originally developed as a means of preserving blood flow to the heart during surgery. To date, it is only one of two studies that testing has been done in human trials relating to the drug. The other was a diabetes study in England.

The current study, recently published in the Journal Cell, showed that sedentary mice increased their ability to run on a treadmill 44% farther when administered AICAR. The doses were significantly higher than those in the human studies.

The drug appears to change the physical composition of the muscle transforming sugar-burning fast twitch fibers to fat-burning slow twitch fibers. This leads the researchers to believe that the drug possesses fat burning qualities which could help reduce weight, ward of diabetes, and prevent heart disease.

Don’t believe the hype!

Look at what Dr. Ronald Evans, the lead researcher said about the drug— “It’s tricking the muscle into ‘believing’ it’s been exercised daily.”

Let’s put it this way. One expert said, “believing that you’ve exercised using a pill is like being placed on third base and thinking you hit a triple.” It doesn’t add up.

Why?

Because exercise not only involves skeletal muscle, but the muscle we depend on most, the heart. The actual act of exercise helps improve cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, reduce stress, and build strong bones. Exercise in a pill cannot do any of that.

As far as the fat reducing properties the drug may or may not have. Fat requires oxygen to be used as an energy source. Therefore, you must exercise to get oxygen in the body and muscle. This process is known as fat oxidation which occurs during the recovery process. Exercise requires recovery, and it is during the recovery process that the body adapts and uses stored fat as an energy source.

Think of it like this: if you went to the gym to see how much muscle you build during a workout and measured immediately after that workout, you will have gained absolutely no muscle. That is because the body must recover and adapt to see the effects of the exercise.

It’s no different when we talk about fat loss. During a workout the goal is to create such a metabolic disturbance that your body takes up to 38 hours to recover. During that time you have an elevated metabolism in which you are burning calories at a higher rate. This process done consistently is the only tried and true method for long term results.

Exercise in a pill cannot simulate this process!

Look. It’s HUMAN NATURE to seek the path of least resistance. But, if you want lasting, permanent health and fitness results, exercise is still the only proven method.

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”

Robert Frost

Rather than taking the path of least resistance, take the path less traveled. That path requires hard work and consistency. There is no substitute for a sweat drenching, muscle fatiguing workout. It does wonders for your health — physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Clearly the benefits of exercise can not be packaged in a convenient pill. Get up, get moving, and most of all have fun!!!

Eat More Fish…Lose Body Fat!

Leave a Comment
Baked citrus orange roughy and fresh green beans

Baked citrus orange roughy and fresh green beans

Orange roughy is definitely my favorite white fish.  Great flavor and texture, with little to no “fishy” scent.  Tonight I combined my fish with some fresh baked green beans….  Mmmm!  Another easy, clean, and healthy meal.  Won’t you join me?!

To your health,

Clint Barr

Raising The Barr, Inc.
103 W. Washington Street #B4
Ridgeland, MS 39157

Baked Salmon and Asparagus…Clean eating at it’s finest!

1 Comment

My Sunday lunch... clean eating at it's finest!

My Sunday lunch... clean eating at it's finest!

Ingredients

  • (2) 3 oz Salmon fillet
  • 3 cups of fresh asparagus
  • Juice from one half freshly squeezed lemon
  • 2 tbls extra virgin olive oil
  • Sweet basil
  • Ground pepper
  • Sea salt

Preparation

Preheat oven 400 degrees.  Place salmon fillets in a baking dish.  Drizzle 1 tbls of olive oil over the salmon, season with basil, pepper, and sea salt.  Set aside.  Place the asparagus in a separate baking dish, drizzle with the other tablespoon of olive oil and season with pepper and sea salt.  Bake the asparagus initially for 5-10 minutes before you put the salmon in the oven.  While the asparagus is cooking, prepare the salmon by cutting 1 lemon in half and squeezing the juice from one half over the fish.  Place the salmon in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.  The asparagus and salmon will finish at the same time. Remove from oven, serve with a lemon wedge.

Enjoy!

Servings: 2-3

Calories: 300 per serving

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.

Change, The Secret to Your Success

Leave a Comment

Have you ever noticed how you pick up on things in the most unexpected places?  This past weekend I had to make a trip to Orlando for a business conference.  It was fabulous! (Orlando’s not so bad either.)

The conference was held in a brand new Hilton in Point Orlando right next to the convention center.  I was just a few short miles from Disney World, but unfortunately didn’t take any time to go see my good friend Goofy…

…that’s right, I said Goofy.  Mickey is great, but Goofy’s my “dawg”!  Haha.

disney_characters_goofy_a

The weather was as near perfect as it could get (70 degrees, dry and breezy).  But I only know this because of my morning routine of watching The Weather Channel… I love that channel, and all they do is repeat the same thing over and over.  I like ESPN’s Sportscenter too.  Huh! Go figure, they’re both on repeat.

Anyway, enough about the weather and the different TV programs I like to watch.  One of the presenters at the conference was talking about current trends in the fitness industry and something he said resonated with me.  He said, “If you want to see a change, you have to make a change.”  A pretty obvious statement, but it got me thinking…

…It doesn’t matter whether it’s your personal life, your work, or your health and fitness.  Everything comes down to these two choices–you can either make excuses or you can start making changes!

Finding a reason NOT to do something is no way to live, trust me I’ve been one of the best at doing this in the past.  And I bet if you examined your life there are areas where you too have made excuses for why you couldn’t do something or make the change you wanted.  Fact is we all do it.

So I’m issuing a challenge, not only to you, but to myself as well.  I want to challenge you to make the change.  Look at the things in your life that you want to change, take a step forward, and make the necessary changes to get the result you want.

A positive approach to life and a “CAN DO” attitude can take you far in life.  Just look at my good friend Goofy.  No matter how tough the obstacle or impervious the task, he attacks it with zeal and exuberance.  He never makes excuses.

Start saying I Will and let that empower you to bring about real life change.  You may just find that you had it in you all along.
To making the change,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr Fitness
103 W. Washington St #B4
Ridegland, MS 39157
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

P.S.  If you’re ready to start making changes with your health and fitness but need some direction I would be glad to help.  You can schedule a no-obligation fitness consult by calling me at 601-201-3823 or visit www.JacksonFitnessConsultation.com.

The Benefits of a regular stretching routine…

Leave a Comment

The Benefits of a regular stretching routine…

Whether you’ve trained with me in that past or you are currently training with me then you know that I don’t put you through a lot of stretching exercises during our workouts.  What I like to do is put you through the full range of motion of an exercise so that we can increase the mobility of a joint.

But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stretch!

Stretching your muscles regularly can give you many benefits and should be a part of your daily exercise routine.  Some of those benefits include:

  • Improved circulation
  • Better posture
  • Relaxation and stress relief
  • Enhanced muscular coordination
  • Reduced risk of injury

There are several ways to incorporate more stretching into your physical fitness program including yoga and pilates, which will also strengthen the muscle.  At a minimum you should be stretching at least 3 days per week, and especially after a strenuous resistance training session.

Take 30 minutes every day to stretch your muscles and see how much better you feel.

Need help with a stretching routine?  Give me a call at 601-201-3823.  I would be glad to answer your questions.

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

Healthy or Not? Do your research!

Leave a Comment

hl_grilledHave you seen the commercials for KFC’s new “grilled” chicken? If not, you must not watch that much television because they are running spots on almost every channel.

One of my clients asked me if the new grilled chicken was healthier than the fried chicken, so I did a little research. Here’s what I found:

  • The Original Recipe Breast (1) has 370 calories, 21 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 1050 mgs of sodium, 7 grams of carbohydrate, and 38 grams of protein
  • The New Grilled Breast (1) has 180 calories, 4 grams of fat, 1 gram of saturated fat, 440 mgs of sodium, 0 grams of carbohydrate, and 35 grams of protein.

So, as you can see KFC’s new grilled chicken is a healthier choice. But did you know that there is an even healthier choice right at KFC. And this is a very simple way of reducing calories and fat from something that might otherwise have been harmful to your goals.

  • If you remove the skin from the Original Recipe Breast you will only be taking in 140 calories and 2 grams of fat, while still getting ample enough protein.

What’s my point?

Do your due diligence! Don’t take everything for face value. Marketing is supposed to make you think and act a certain way, so make sure you do your research.

Another valid point that I want to make here is that you must exercise portion control. If you were to get the two piece meal grilled, with coleslaw and a biscuit you would be taking in 680 calories. And that is not counting a soft drink if you get one, which can run anywhere between 240 and 800 calories alone. This includes the lemonades and sweet tea as well.

A better meal would be one Original Recipe Breast with the skin removed, a side of green beans, and water.  Just 205 total calories.  Plus you get the combined thermogenic effect from eating a protein and a green vegetable together. BONUS!

Now, I am not saying that we should all go on the KFC diet. Ultimately, I would rather you buy fresh boneless skinless chicken breasts and fresh green beans from the grocery and cook it yourself. This is just one example of how you can make better choices when your “choice” is limited. All it takes is a little research on your part.

Exercise more, make smart nutrition choices, and watch your body shape transform.

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjackonpersonaltrainer.com

Swine Flu (Is your immune system up for the challenge?)

Leave a Comment

Well if you’ve been listening to the news lately then you know that everyone is talking about the Swine Flu.

One of two things will occur. Either it will disappear over the next couple months, which would be the best case scenario, or it will turn into the pandemic that all the news stations would make you believe it is already.

Could this thing get bad? Of course. So don’t misunderstand what I am about to say.

Of the 27 million people that live in the world’s most populated city, only 149 deaths have been reported as of yesterday. And there have only been 2,000 reported cases.

That’s not even 0.00001% of that cities population that have either died or been infected.

Now I know what you are thinking, because the media is using the exact same reason to fuel this ratings fire already…

…you’re thinking that because it’s Mexico they’re not equipped to handle all the cases, therefore all of them could not be reported yet.

A valid point, but let’s not go empty the shelves at the super market just yet.

Right now you should just be keeping an eye on this thing.

And in the mean time ask yourself this question?

Is your immune system up to the challenge?

Well just in case it’s not, here are a few tips that you can use right now to start bolstering your immune system and making it stronger:

  1. Wash Your Hands. This is quite simply the easiest thing you could be doing to prevent the spread of communicable diseases. If you’re in a public place without the capability of washing your hands, make sure you don’t rub your eyes or nose, and keep from touching things and putting them in your mouth (i.e. Food) until you’ve had the opportunity to wash your hands.
  2. Make Sure You Are Getting Plenty of Sleep. You should be getting on average about 8-9 hours of sleep per night for optimal health, but at the very least you should be getting 6-7 hours every night.
  3. Start Eating Healthier. Try getting more immune boosting foods that contain Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and Beta Carotine like fresh fruits and green vegetables. You also want to be getting your daily dose of Omega-3′s from things like fish and nuts.
  4. Exercise On a Daily Basis. Did you know that moderate intensity exercise in the form of resistance training can actually increase your immune system function? Combining 3 days per week of resistance training with 6 days per week of cardiovascular training can have your immune system functioning at optimal levels and almost ensure that you can fight off even the nastiest of “bugs.”

Now, although I can’t help you with the first two on this short list, I can help you with the last two with your very own nutrition plan and exercise program.

Contact me today to schedule a no obligation, complimentary nutrition and fitness assessment so we can determine the best course of action for your immune boosting plan and ultimately YOUR HEALTH!

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

P.S. Do you know whether or not your immune system is equipped to handle this impending flu outbreak? Contact me today so we can get started bolstering your immune system so you never have to wonder!

My Top 5 Snack Foods

Leave a Comment

Do you ever find it difficult to get that mid morning or afternoon snack between your regular meals to help curb cravings and keep metabolism stimulated?

If you’re like me than, yes, you do all the time. I usually don’t have much time to eat between meals due to my client schedule, but have recently found several snacks that work very well and are very healthy.

So today I am bringing you my Top 5 snacks that I like to have on hand for when I need a quick burst of energy or when I am trying to fight off the craving monsters.

My Top 5 Snack Foods…..

  1. Ziplock Bag of Fresh Veggies. Probably one of my favorites because the vegetables and the combination of vegetables can change everytime you bring it along with you. Try bell peppers (all colors), sliced cucumber, and grape tomatoes!
  2. EAS Advant Edge Protein Shakes and a Fuji Apple. The EAS shakes are ready to drink, contain 1g of sugar, 17g of protein and fit conveniently in a small cooler or a small refrigerator at work. The combination of the low glycemic apple combined with the protein shake gives your metabolism and your energy levels a significant boost!
  3. Almonds and Grapefruit. Just a handful of almonds and 1/2 a grapefruit can give you energy for the entire day. Remember, nuts are a high calorie food because of the high amounts of GOOD fats, so limit yourself to just a handful a day.
  4. Carb Master Yogurt. This is a new addition to the Kroger brand of yogurts. It has only 3g of sugar compared to 13g of sugar in regular yogurt and also contains 12g of protein compared to just 8g in regular yogurt.
  5. 1/2 Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich on Ezekiel Bread. Wait a minute! PB&J? Yes, I do PB&J. Here is my secret…use Skippy Natural PB (less sugar), Reduced sugar jelly, and of course, Ezekiel Bread which is made with lentils and spelt, and is considerably lower on the glycemic index than whole wheat bread. You can cut as much as half the calories by doing this, and it tastes good too. Plus its only 1/2 a sandwich!

There you go. My Top 5 Snack Foods! Give them a try and if you have some that you like to use email them to me at comments@bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com. I would love to share some of your ideas with everybody else.

Stay healthy!

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

Want a Quick, Healthy, Nutritious, and Energizing Lunch?

Leave a Comment

Try this!

Recently I posted a video of me teaching you how to make Spaghetti Squash.

Well the response was overwhelming!  And I plan on bringing you many more healthy, “real world” recipes straight from my own kitchen in the near future.

But it got me thinking that maybe I could share other types of meals that I like to eat, as well as ideas that others share with me. Like the lunch I had just the other day.

One of my clients told me that she had found a great vegetable spring roll that is made fresh everyday at Fresh Market. It sounded good to me so I went to check them out.

When I got there I headed straight for the produce section and found some fresh pre-cut bell peppers of all colors. And since I really like bell peppers I got some.

After that I found the spring rolls and while I was over in the deli section found some fresh hummus. So I decided to get the hummus for dipping my bell peppers.

What an amazing lunch! Quick, easy, nutritious, and it supplied me with energy the whole rest of the day.

Once you have the chance to experience the powerful benefits of eating a healthy lunch like this I know you won’t ever go back to the fast food drive thru lane again. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

When Life Gives You Lemons…Make Lemonade

Leave a Comment

As a professional athlete I was at high risk of injuring myself.  The thing is, for the 2+ years that I spent playing in the New York Yankee farm system, and four years of college, I merely had minor injuries.

By minor I mean a broken thumb, broken ring finger, broken hand, 10 stitches in my chin, and two concussions… Whew!  Maybe I was more injury prone than I thought.

But none of those injuries were serious in the sense that they required surgery.

Little did I know that during my years as both a college and professional baseball player I had a developing injury all along that wouldn’t rear its ugly head until now.

In just 9 days I will be having arthroscopic hip surgery to remove a bone lesion on the neck of my femur and repair a torn labrum.  And I have to tell you…I’m worried sick about it.

Recently a client of mine asked me if I was excited to finally get my surgery and have the pain in my hip gone for good.

I can’t say that I’m enthused about the actual surgery itself, nor would I say I’m excited that I am having surgery.

But she reminded me of something that I teach all my clients which is when things such as these present themselves you have the choice to decide how you are going to react to such obstacles.  Your attitude towards how you approach “road bumps” in life can be all the difference in turning them into a spring board for making you stronger.

The Student becomes The Teacher!

And I am forever grateful that she reminded me of this very important fact.

You see, no matter what obstacles life puts up in front of you, you have the power to make the best of it.  Your attitude and outlook on every situation can make or break you.

You can sit on the sidelines and sulk…or you can get your butt in the game and rise to the occasion.  Its simple!

“Nothing worthwhile ever happens quickly and easily. You achieve only as you are determined to achieve… and as you keep at it until you have achieved.”–Robert H. Lauer

So when life gives you lemons…make the sweetest tasting, most refreshing, and outright BEST lemonade you can!

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

Why Exercise is GOOD for The Brain!

1 Comment

My neighbor was so proud to tell me all about his regular aerobic training on the elliptical trainer the other day.  It’s an interesting phenomenon but I’ve noticed that when people know you as a fitness professional, they almost feel obligated to inform you about their pursuit of peak fitness.

This particular gentlemen admitted that though his elliptical training was regular, it was not nearly enough to counteract his beer drinking. Apparently, he loves beer, especially dark beer. As a result, his waist size is more than adequate, and as a professional I can tell you with 100% certainty that eventually, if this trend does not change, the health problems will begin and continue for the rest of his life.

We are all aware of these problems…heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, etc, but there is another one I was reading about the other day that I felt you should know about.

Researchers followed 6,500 members of Kaiser Permanente for 36 years and found that the risk of dementia was triple for those who had larger mid-sections in middle age. It turns out that a big waist can boost insulin, which not only increases your risk of developing type II diabetes, but also may prevent enzymes from breaking down Alzheimer’s plaque.

You see that spare tire that men love to pride themselves around is made up of what is called visceral fat. And though that name might sound a little funny, and men might like to joke about that big old belly protruding from just above their belt (which is moving lower on their waist all the time) the truth is that what they are really doing is manufacturing a deadly organ that will ultimately kill them and that is costing our country lots and lots of money.

The visceral fat that develops in the waistline is an active organ that produces it’s own hormones that ultimately cause those higher levels of insulin. And as I noted before, as you are likely already aware, higher levels of insulin leads to more weight gain, and eventually type II diabetes.

If the process continues, heart disease also develops and ultimately, it appears, you are that much more likely to lose your mind – literally!

So, if you’re lucky enough to live through the problems noted above, here is what you have to look forward to if you continue to swim in a sea of beer (or any alcoholic beverage for that matter) and denial…

An estimated one out of four people in their 80s (and 1 out of 3 over 90) has dementia. Many more have cognitive impairment, which means that dementia is on the way. And most are simply losing their edge.

The good news is that just as with so many other diseases, exercise is your best bet. Aerobic exercise in particular is the best medicine for brain function. It reverses the shrinkage of the memory regions of the brain. And of course, helps prevent type II diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease from ever taking hold. Even people who already have dementia and Alzheimer’s will benefit.

You see, you simply can’t ignore the beneficial effects of exercise. It really is like a miracle drug. All of which continually leaves me wondering how much better the country, and the world, would really be if we all just went for a walk for an hour a day…

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

What's for Dinner?… (follow me into my kitchen)

1 Comment

Spaghetti Squash a.k.a. “Squaghetti”

  • Cut in half lengthwise and remove the seeds from the center
  • Place face down in about a 1/4 inch of water in a baking dish
  • Cook at 350 degrees for 35 minutes
  • Remove from oven, drain water and turn squash over
  • Fill with your favorite marinara or meat sauce
  • Sprinkle with some fresh Parmesan cheese
  • Put the squash back in the oven at 350 for about 15 minutes or until the sauce is warm and cheese is melted
  • Remove and serve!

To eat just take your fork and start to scrape the squash away from the rine.  You can eat straight from the rine or scrape your squaghetti straight into a bowl.

Enjoy!

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

Top 5 Resistance Tubing Exercises (Home Gym Series #4)

Leave a Comment

Alright everybody.  Today I am here to share my top 5 Resistance Band Tubing exercises.  This is a great piece of equipment.  It is very versatile and its resistance profile matches the strength profile of your muscle tissue.

What do I mean by that?

Well, when you are at your weakest, or when the muscle is at its maximal length, the tubing is at its shortest length.  Conversely, when you are at your strongest (muscle fully contracted), the tubing is fully elongated and thus has more tension or resistance.

You can use this tubing to create different types of adaptations in the muscle than you could with a dumbbell.

OK.  Let’s get to the Top 5:

  • Squat & Press
  • Standing Y
  • High Pull with a Side Shuffle
  • Resistance Band Push Up
  • Squat/Lift/Twist

You’ve seen the video and learned the exercises.  Now you have to take action and put them to use or they just don’t work.  Get to work and have fun!

Yours in health,
Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

Why You Should Ignore All The Government Warnings About Exercise

Leave a Comment

Hi Everyone,

Today I want to communicate to you the truth about exercise. I want to explain to you why you need to ignore all of the gvernment warnings about how much you should be moving. As MD Henry Lodge states in his powerful and provocative book, “Younger Next Year” the government’s recommendation to exercise 3 or 4 days per week is only a bare minimum. A desperate plea from the medical profession to a nation of couch potatoes.

Remember this…

Your body literally craves the daily chemistry of exercise. Henry Lodge also puts it this way…”When you get in shape, when you exercise, when you dance, you are sharing the ancient chemistry of movement with every other animal on the planet.” Think of how happy a dog is when he is set free from the leash at the park. You can almost see him smiling. He will run for days if you let him. When you find this universal instinctive truth, there will be no stopping you.

Nature’s rule is simple, do something every day. It doesn’t have to be the same thing over and over either. And really, it shouldn’t. A new stimulus on the body means new adaptations, a new you every day.

You absolutely MUST connect with this truth and this reality. Yes, I know, you might be saying right now that you are busy, life is crazy and “I just don’t have enough time or energy to exercise that often.” These are only excuses and a confusion of priorities. Exercise at least 6 days a week is no longer an option. Especially when you reach the age of 50. Because at that point you literally have two choices. You don’t exercise, grow old and wear out, or you start moving on a regular basis and live a long, healthy, fit and energetic life into your 80s and beyond. I know which one I’m choosing.

Believe me, I’ve heard all the excuses and misconceptions about why people can’t exercise on a daily basis. Helping people work through these is a big part of my job. And regardless of whether or not you ever consult with me on how to make it happen in your life, I want to communicate something very clearly…

Making excuses about how you are too tired, busy, or unorganized to exercise reguarly is just denial. It’s thinking about the whole thing backwards. You are tired and lethargic during and at the end of your day and even in the morning, because you don’t get enough exercise and are not eating well and taking your vitamins.

People become mentally, physically, and emotionally drained from being sedentary. Yes, it’s true. And I know how that can sound to someone who is sitting right now reading this passage. But it really is true, even if it sounds to you like an oversimplification. Arriving on your doorsetp exhausted every night is not living. It is merely surviving, and a really really long way from thriving. I choose to thrive!

Remember, as Deepak Chopra puts it, “Your body’s natural state is to be healthy.” When you are worn out, put out, and stressed out, feeling as though you don’t have the energy to physically move every day and love it, something has gone terribly wrong. The good news is that you can do something about it.

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

Top 5 Stability Ball Exercises (Home Gym Series #3)

Leave a Comment

Welcome back for video #3 in the How to Build a Home Gym for Under $300 series.  Here are my top 5 Stability Ball Exercises.

  • Stability Ball Crunch
  • Big Ball Push Up
  • Stability Ball Jackknife
  • Stability Ball Leg Curl
  • Stability Ball Cobra (Low Back Extension)

If you don’t want to wait for your stability ball to arrive by mail you can always go to your local sporting goods store like Academy Sports or even the sporting goods department in Walmart.  The link provided above is going to direct you to a much higher quality ball than the ones available in your local store, but those will still get the job done.

Pick up yours today and get started!

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

My Top 5 Reasons That It's More Important Now Than Ever Before to Exercise And Eat Right – A Bad economy is bad for your health…

Leave a Comment

At this point, you simply can’t ignore the current state of the economy. And while everyone is focused on how it’s affecting the financial bottom line, they are missing a much more important impact. Many of us right now are faced with some of the toughest challenges of our lives. As a business owner myself I know that that I’m having to work as hard as ever to take good care of clients while also making sure to keep my business healthy.

Now more than ever it is essential that people are exercising and eating right. This is for many reasons. Here are my Top 5 Reasons that now more than ever, people need to make sure they are eating right and exercising.

1. Mental and Emotional stress are at an all time high, and exercise is one of the best medicines for this ailment.

A landmark Gallup-Healthways poll was published this week. As reported by USA today writer, Marilyn Elias, it’s one of the largest of its kind. It was performed nearly every day in 2008 and is still ongoing. The survey of more than 350,000 people is believed to be the largest, longest, and most thorough poll showing how emotional well-being shifts with economic changes.

The survey produces a so-called Emotional Health Index (EHI), which is a measure that weighs problems such as depression, worry and stress against the positive feelings a person experienced the day before the survey.

The results?

As reported in the USA today, A state’s EHI correlated with high rates of death from ailments such as heart disease. States with a lot of open space or sunshine – Hawaii, Alaska, Wyoming – had some of the best emotional health even as the economy sank. Many poorer and Rust Belt states: West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky – were worst off.

It turns out that people’s moods are ultra-sensitive to economic news…

2. Levels of depression have increased, and this means more drinking, smoking, and other unhealthful habits. Depression also discourages exercise. And once again, exercise is one of the all time greatest cures for mild depression.

3. People can’t really afford to get sick and be unproductive right now. Job markets are tight and competitive, and it is essential that we are all maximizing productivity in our work. If you’re not operating at full capacity, your productivity suffers, which hurts your bottom line, and ultimately may leave you looking for a new job that doesn’t exist!

The Gallup survey shows that those of us in our prime earning years between the age of 30 and 55 are suffering the most from bad economic news and bad economic times. This means that once again for those of us who are busier than ever with our careers, raising families, and working hard to thrive, the challenge of maintaining our health is even greater. At the same time, the amount of time energy or space in our lives to exercise and plan meals is probably limited or almost non-existent.

pill-bill

4. Job markets are tight and health care costs are rising. Like it or not, or legal or not, if you’re employer thinks you are a greater health risk to the company than other candidates competing for the same job, who do you think they will ultimately hire.

5. Taking just a little time for yourself every day to nourish the body with good healthy food, exercise, yoga, stretching, and stress management is a choice you can make every day to grant yourself a quick and healthy dose of positive energy. This will help not only help you feel better, but will also likely spill right over into your life so that your kids, your wife, your colleagues and everyone else around your can share in this wealth. Because exercise will not only help you fight stress, depression, anxiety, and all of the other ailments described above and that you might already be experiencing, but it will make you rich in spirit in a way that money can’t!

Essentially, exercise and good nutritional habits will not only make you feel better, but also prevent you from having ailments later in life due to the stress of our current economic situation.  Which can add up to even higher health care costs for you in the future.

So grab a buddy, or a family member to hold each of you accountable and get moving!

Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

Top 5 TRx Exercises (Home Gym Series #2)

Leave a Comment

As promised here are my Top 5 TRx Suspension Training System exercises.

Here they are:

  • TRx Bulgarian Split Squat
  • TRx Push Up
  • TRx Body Weight Row
  • TRx Jackknife
  • TRx Body Weight Leg Curl

If you haven’t picked up your TRx yet just click here to be directed to the only place where these are available.  Get yours today and get your home gym started.
Yours in health,

Clint Barr
Raising The Barr, Inc.
www.bestjacksonpersonaltrainer.com

« Older Posts