But It's Not Berry Season

Today we have a guest blogger, Chris Rosenbruch. Chris is a client of mine and during a recent session we were discussing the perception that it is hard to eat fruits and vegetables during the "off-season". I quickly realized that Chris is an expert in this area. Here is her advice for buying produce over the winter months. Also, check out the resources she lists at the end of the article. 

BUT IT’S NOT BERRY SEASON!

Last week I stopped in the local supermarket.  It was a clear, crisp fall day.  As I approached the store, I admired the colorful display of some of nature’s bounty of the traditional autumn harvest; pumpkins, gourds, and cabbages surrounded by chrysanthemums. My expectation was to find the continuation of that bounty inside.  Instead, front and center of the store’s produce section, I found….Berries? Yes, a full display of strawberries, blackberries, and red raspberries! They were labeled, ‘Made in USA’. Well, at least they didn’t say ‘Made in China’.  Even though the presentation was beautiful, I was suspect. How would they taste? After all, it isn’t berry season.  Not here anyway, in Bucks County. As it turns out, they had been shipped from California so there really was no telling just how fresh they were.  I hesitated only long enough to consider that their purchase wasn’t worth it.  I was confident that they wouldn’t taste like the ripe, sweet berries I had eaten this past June when they were abundant at the local farmer’s market.

The new government food pyramid guidelines suggest we now load our plates half with fresh fruits and vegetables…preferably locally grown. Why? Mainly, because fresh picked produce means the fruit or vegetable is ripe and ready for eating.  Ripe means not only will it taste and smell good, it also means that the plant food, picked at its peak, is the most nutrient dense.  

We now have access to a global multitude of produce. ‘Variety’ has greatly expanded to the point where we need a mobile dictionary to identify some of the uniquely shaped and textured food forms with the gourmet names found in the produce section of our supermarkets. It’s easy to get lost in the ‘cornfield’.

We live in an agriculturally rich area with an abundance of fresh, ready-to-eat produce grown by farmers who are happy to share their knowledge of each variety of fruit and vegetable. In our area, there are over 60 farms, orchards, and markets cultivating more than 45 different plant foods!

Even though we’re nearing the end of the 7-month fresh fruit and vegetable growing season here in the Northeast, don’t panic.  There are still plenty of choices.   Here are some of the delicious options:

Fruit:  Apples, Cranberries, Grapes, and Pears

Vegetables:  Beets, Broccoli, Cabbage (including Brussels Sprouts), Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Kale, , Mushrooms, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Radishes, Spinach, Squash (including Butternut, Buttercup, Delicata, Kaboucha), Swiss Chard, and Turnips (including Rutabaga).

ENJOY!

Sources:

USDA’s MyPlate – www.mypyramid.gov

BucksCountyTaste.com – great website for foodies interested in supporting local businesses

Fresh from Bucks County Farms- A guide to roadside Markets and PYO Farms – call 215-345-3283 for your free brochure.

Winter Sun Farms CSA – offers frozen produce during the 5-month winter season. www.wintersunfarmsgp.com

Cascadian Farms organic frozen produce – www.cascadianfarms.com.  Their produce is frozen 3 hours after it’s been picked!

In Defense of Food – an eater’s manifesto – Michael Pollan

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle – a year of food life – Barbara Kingsolver

Paleo Part 3 - The Good, the Bad and the Great Bonk

Paleo – The Good, the Bad and the Great Bonk

It’s been about two months since I began eating Paleo. Eating what?? If you missed the first two blog posts about this, check them out here.

I’m Going Paleo: What, How, Why?

Paleo Eating: The First 10 Days

So how is it going? I’ve been getting this question a lot from clients, boot campers and friends.

Let’s look at this in terms of the good, the bad and the ugly (or the Great Bonk).

The Good. Always start with the good stuff. I switched to Paleo and immediately saw significant positive changes in my body composition, physical appearance and energy.

• I dropped 9 lbs in the first few weeks. It was all fat loss. My body fat % dropped from about 13 to around 8.5%. Most of it was in the lay around my gut.
• That change in body comp led to a leaner, stronger look that was noticed by my colleagues and friends. It was without a doubt the leanest and strongest I’ve ever looked.
• My energy level improved as did my sleeping habits. No more late night carb binges and no more bloated feeling throughout the day. I woke up ready to go.
• And without getting into too much detail, my digestive system profoundly changed for the better.

The Bad. Any significant change to your eating habits is accompanyied by challenges. For me, the nutritional changes were not too bad. I thought giving up sweetened drinks would be hard but it wasn’t. Unsweetened iced tea became my drink of choice. Eliminating dairy was easier than I thought as well. I replaced milk with almond or coconut milk. No problem. My grain and processed carb consumption was also low.

But there are challenges that have made it tough to stick to Paleo.

• Weight loss is not a goal of mine. Losing the 9 lbs put my under 200 for the first time in 20 years. There is something about being under that number that concerns me. Even though I felt fine I thought I needed to eat more or add more carbs to up my weight.
• My friends are not necessarily eating Paleo. I have determined that keeping granola and ice cream in the house for my girlfriend when she visits is not something I can do. If those two items are around I eat them, plain and simple.
• It can be expensive to buy whole foods all the time. I found about a 25% increase in my food budget. I believe it is worth the investment but it is something to be aware of.
• Meal prep takes time. My schedule permits me time to prep meals on some days and no time on other days. I have friends who do all their meal prep on Sundays for the week. I have not gotten to that level of nutritional organization yet. Still working on it.

The Ugly (or The Great Bonk). I tend to do a lot of endurance events. 5+ mile runs and 50+ mile bike rides can be weekly things. On one of my first Paleo-fueled training sessions I learned an important lesson.

I was prepping for a Run/Canoe/Bike/Run event with my training partner Michelle. One of our early training sessions was a 40 mile bike ride followed by a 3 mile run. The ride started well. We did the first 25 miles at a strong pace. I had fueled up on bananas and other fruit in the morning but I was not taking any energy bars (lots o’ carbs) or energy gels (even more simple carbs) because they weren’t Paleo.

Michelle challenged me to do the last 8 miles at race pace. That’s where the trouble began. We rode hard and with one mile left I felt some weakness in my legs. I stopped at a grocery store and grabbed two pears and quickly downed them to get me through the run.

The start of the run was ugly. I was slow and had no rhythm. A mile in Michelle recognized there was a problem and suggested we turn back. “Nope, let’s keep going.” Bad idea. I bonked (athletes term for running out of energy) bad. In one fell swoop I got light headed and the world began to shimmer like an impressionist painting. I slowed to  a walk. Michelle stuck with me. And for the two miles back to the car I was walking slowly. Any effort to jog lasted only 10 seconds. My body was desperately looking for my energy to burn and I had not been giving it enough. I had never experienced a bonk like that before. I knew that going forward if I expect to do long efforts I need to change up my Paleo plan.

The Bottom Line. I have made some tweaks to my Paleo eating. I keep a supply of natural energy bars on hand and take energy gels with me on longer events. I also have become less rigid with my Paleo eating to help stop the weight loss. I am not opposed to an occasional pasta meal or some desserts. However, that has led me to be a little too laxed lately. I am still trying to strike a balance.

Look for more updates in the future. 

Join Me in "The Rice Experiment"

This week's fat loss tip of the week has to do with the messages and energy we put out to the world.

Ok, this is going to be fun. Fun for me, fun for you, fun for your whole family. Start it today.

A couple of colleagues of mine have done "The Rice Experiment" at their homes and offices and replicated the results. I am skeptical. But I am going to try it and you are going to try it with me.

It is simple to replicate and the results are astounding. All you need is rice (make it white rice because you shouldn't be eating it anyway) and some patience. Here’s how it works:

1. Place 1 cup of Cooked Rice into two separate containers. Place a lid on each.

2. Mark one container with a positive phrase. I used “Happy Rice”

3. Mark the other container with a negative phrase. I used “Stupid Rice”

4. Place them in your kitchen (not the fridge) at least 12 inches apart.

5. Once or more every day say aloud to the rice container the phrase written on it. I know this sounds nuts but just try it. For example, every time you go into the kitchen say “Thank You Rice” to one bowl and “Stupid Rice” to the other. Try to say it from a place of gratitude (thank you) and a place of anger and frustration (stupid). And don't be afraid to really let loose with praise or pent up anger. But direct it to the correct bowl.

Do not open the containers for 21 days.

I am not going to reveal the expected results to you. I'll let it be a surprise.

Remember, focus positive energy and phrases to the Happy Rice and negative energy and phrases to the Stupid Rice.

You fat loss tip of the week is to use positive energy and phrases when talking about your weight loss and fitness for the next 21 days as part of The Rice Experiment.

Rather than:

"I can't lose weight" say "I am having a hard time losing weight." (One of my clients has a family rule that "I can't" is not allowed.

"I can't run a mile" say "It is a challenge for me to run a mile."

Now don't get me wrong. I am not an advocate for "The Secret" or just say positive stuff and life will be great. My experience is that a positive attitude helps but working your ass off is far more beneficial when it comes to getting the life you want.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz

Active Personal Fitness

www.ActivePersonalFitness.com

"Work harder, get stronger, go faster....everyday."

267.626.7478

I’m Going Paleo – What, Why and How?

Your reaction to me saying “I’m going paleo” probably falls into one of four categories.

“Really, that’s interesting, tell me more.”

“Why would you want to do that?”

“What or where is a paleo?”

“Who cares?”

This series of blog posts are aimed at all of you. The “who cares” contingent probably won’t read for long but might learn something when they do read. The rest are likely to have your questions answered while you learn about the how’s and whys of choosing to eat paleo.

I will be learning along with you, in real time, while experiencing what if any impact it has on my health, strength, mood, endurance, stress, speed, outlook on life and many other factors. My intent is to share with you what it means to eat paleo, from shopping to cooking to the inevitable 'cheating'. I hope you enjoy the read and, if it is right for you, join me.

Let’s get the first question out of the way. What is paleo?

It is a way of eating that mimics our hunter-gatherer ancestors based on the notion that humans have, over the millenia, genetically adapted to eating meats, fish, vegetables and fruits. Our modern diet, just a blip on the historical timeline, based primarily on grains, legumes, dairy products, processed foods and refined sugars predispose us to sickness. Basically, our bodies are used to us eating like a caveman/cavewoman so we should do so.

Why am I choosing to go paleo?

In February I will be going to the C.R.A.S.H. B World Indoor Rowing Championships in Boston. My goal is a top 100 finish in the Open category and a top 10 in the Masters Division.

Primarily paleo is an experiment for me. Some of the fittest people I know are strict paleo followers. They choose it to stay lean and fit but they probably would be that way anyway given the amount of effort they put into their workouts. More importantly to me, eating paleo improves their results. Whether it is strength, cardio capacity, or race times…by most measures they get better, stronger and faster.

I believe eating paleo will give me greater capacity to go faster and finish better at the event. As a by-product, I want to see and feel the health benefits of paleo eating.

In upcoming posts I'll discuss my pre-paleo nutrition and let you know how I got started. This isn't the first attempt, just the first serious attempt at "going paleo". Wish me luck.

Oh no, this is going to be my toughest client yet

It can be unsettling when a routine doctor visit produces a stern warning. That's what happened last week. The problem: the patient is overweight. The doctor said "overweight", I heard "chubby". The patient needs to lose 2 pounds and he's not happy about it.

My dog Lou is a 10-year-old bichon-frise (see pic attached). He's about 14" tall and weighs in a 27 lbs (I'm not sure what his BMI is or if that even matters for dogs). Bichons are normally under 16 lbs but he and his brother Armstrong were always bigger than the rest of the breed. But Armstrong, named after Lance, is the athlete. His 27 lbs is muscle. Lou....not so much...I'll admit he's a little squishy.

We offered all the normal protests:

"He's just big-boned."

"We really don't eat too many treats."

"We watch our portion sizes."

"Maybe that scale is wrong."

But, alas, the vet saw through our excuses. She stood firm. Lose 2 lbs.

The advice from the doctor is pretty straight-forward. You have heard this before. Reduce the number of treats and get in more walks. Basically, reduce calories in and increase calories burned.

I love Lou and I want him around for a long time. As a family member I know he needs my support to get trim.

Here's the plan:

- Reduce his treats to two per day.

- Make sure he is not getting more than his prescribed portion at breakfast and dinner.

- Increase the frequency and length of his walks.

If you have someone in your family who needs your support to make a positive change in their health then step up and help make it easier for them to achieve their goal. We offer in-home personal training programs with male and female trainers. We also conduct a great boot camp in Chalfont for all ability levels. Check us out at www.ActivePersonalFitness.com or call 267.626.7478.

We'll keep you posted on Lou's progress.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz

Active Personal Fitness

www.ActivePersonalFitness.com

267.626.7478

"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

Me and Serena Williams

On Wednesday Serena Williams tweeted “bad day” to her Twitter followers.

Serena has won 13 major tennis championships. She is a successful business person in the fashion industry. Her endorsements contracts are huge. What could be so bad?

“It’s a blood clot in your lungs.” That’s what they told me in the spring of 2006. The medical term is pulmonary embolism but at the time it didn’t register in my head. It should have. My father-in-law had died from a post-operative pulmonary embolism ten years earlier.

For me, it started with what felt like an upset stomach at noon on a Friday. It was uncomfortable enough that I left work early that day (I was a corporate cubicle dweller at the time). By 6pm I thought I had pulled a muscle in my left rib cage. It was plausible; I had worked out that morning and could have strained something.

By Friday evening I had tied the pain to my breathing. Deep breaths equaled searing pain in my ribs. Shallow breaths meant the pain wasn’t so bad. Being the stubborn, indestructible guy that I think I am, I went to bed.

By morning, at the urging of my wife, I headed to the emergency room. Every moment ratcheted up the pain level. In at 10am, put through a battery of tests including x-rays, blood tests, physical exams, more x-rays and finally six hours later a CAT scan.

Even after the CAT scan the nurse came into my room and prepared to release me. They hadn’t found anything. It must be a muscle strain.

Then 30 minutes later things changed. A small embolism was found in my lung on the last scan. Quickly I was put on a blood thinner and whisked up to a hospital room where I spent the next 5 days bed ridden while the Heparin dissolved the clot.

“Bad day” indeed.

Serena was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism last week and is likely to face a minimum or 6 months on a blood thinner, perhaps a lifetime. This is not good news for an athlete. The regular intense workouts, the hours spent on a hard court surface and the occasional scrapes and falls that go with it are not great for someone who, once cut, can’t form a clot due to their medication.

Add the endless travel of a pro athlete and she has many obstacles to overcome to regain her footing as a great tennis player. (Airline travel was likely the cause of my clot. If you don’t move around regularly your blood will pool and the risk of a clot increases.)

However, I'm proof that a fully active lifestyle is possible. Six months of blood thinners and I was allow to stop taking them. I had no family history and no risk factors for forming clots. I get up and walk around on any flight that lasts more than an hour. I ride my bike fast, mix it up on the tennis court occasionally, hike with the dogs and stay moving like I did before. That clot changed my life in other ways.

That small clot is largely responsible for a dramatic turnaround in me. I used that bad day as a wake up call. My life changed significantly over the next several months. I chucked my corporate career, re-committed to be fit and healthy, and started my personal training business. I’ve never felt better and never loved what I do as much as I do today.

Hopefully Serena's bad day is just that, a single day that she will fully recover from.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
www.ActivePersonalFitness.com
267.626.7478

The Cycle of Quitting

I ran across an article yesterday by Suzanne Evans, a business coach. I don't know Suzanne but her article resonated with me. Her "Cycle of Quitting" doesn't just apply to the business world. It also applies to people trying to lose weight, get lean and get healthy. I've gently re-written her article below to talk specifically about fitness but the crux of it is hers. You can see more of Suzanne's articles here.

There are two types of quitting:

1) Giving up

2) Walking away from something harmful or hurtful

I get a bird's eye view of - THE QUITTERS. I know some would say we should talk about the winners, but I must say I probably learn more from the quitters. The winners show up, suck up, cry, stomp, celebrate, and then rinse and repeat over and over. Every successful person who has lost weight or gotten fit that I have EVER worked with, mentored with, or been a colleague to has had the exact same formula.

The quitters are a bit more interesting. They are very creative and it is interesting where and how "quitting" shows up. Now remember the #1 reason exercisers fail is they stop- yep-stop. I have been watching the 'quitters cycle' for a long time and I know when it starts to creep up on people and kick in. I think it would be useful for people to see a lineage of how it starts and how they might stop themselves, as well as see the difference between something needing to come to an end and just quitting.

It usually appears like this...

Second guessing ~ fear ~ blame ~ projecting ~ overwhelm ~ blame ~ action ~ (the quitting) ~ relief ~ second guessing ~ fear and over again

Fascinating, right? I am using it as a paradigm for myself to catch me and where I am falling into the cycle - you can honestly use it for anything - the gym, your business, a relationship, etc. So, I don't want you to be a quitter...frankly, seeing people give up on their dreams daily can sometimes overwhelm me and blind me to the people actually living theirs, but I know you are out there. I know you are striving and working and living your gifts.

Here are a few tips to stay in the game, even when you would rather throw in the towel:

1) Have a clear vision of exactly what you want - relationship, money, freedom, environment, and spiritual. If you have a clear vision in writing and in your view, it is harder to let that vision go or the dream die.

2) Get real. One of my mentors says... "It is simple, but it is not easy." Success is hard work. No one ever won the Oscar, Gold Medal, Nobel Peace Prize, or lost 50 lbs by half ass showing up. And don't fool yourself....are you thinking you are working hard or are you spending a lot of time around thinking about succeeding and processing your next step.

3) Get good advice. The people around me won't let me quit. Surrounded yourself with a circle of influence. I have a tribe of tough and loving go-getters who want the same goals as you and will hold you accountable. When you want to stop, take a moment and remember that giving up on yourself is also giving up on them.

4) Care. I know you have gifts to share. Your life experience has value and people are meant to be transformed by your connection and your talent. Care enough to keep going. Care enough to share and keep going.

If you do what you love and you love people while you do it there is no reason to quit. Stopping is not an option. See you at the finish line!

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
www.ActivePersonalFitness.com
267.626.7478

10 Most Important Things for Establishing a Healthy Lifestyle (Part 2)

I was asked by an author this week to submit the 10 things I think are most important to a healthy lifestyle for a book he is writing. Earlier this week I shared the first 3 tips. Here are numbers 4-6. Stay tuned next week for the final four.

4. Good health begins with nutrition. Even if you exercise religiously, failing to eat foods that offer usable energy from proteins, complex carbs and, yes, healthy fats will prevent you from achieving optimal results. Choose your foods wisely. Lean toward meats, vegetables, fruits and nuts and away from starches and sugars.

5. Followed closely by exercise. Similar to #4 above, if you eat pristinely but do not move you will not achieve optimal results. Make a list of 10 exercises you like and 5 that you don't. Include body weight and strength training exercises along with traditional cardio (walk/run, bike, row, jump rope). Intermix these exercises in different sequences as often as you can. Very often people don’t like an exercise because they are not good at it – yet.

6. Regularly evaluate where you are in relation to your goal. Setup some simple fitness tests and perform them regularly to provide accountability and motivation. Here are some examples.

- Maximum number of pushups (elbows come to a 90 degree bend and no more than 3 seconds of rest between pushups)

- 100 box jumps (10" step) as fast as possible (two foot jump or step up and down)

- Move your body (walk, jog, run) 1 mile as fast as you can

- Row 2000m as fast as you can

- Maximum number of jump ropes in 2 minutes

Check in next week for tips 7-10.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz

Active Personal Fitness

www.ActivePersonalFitness.com

267.626.7478

"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

February Fitness Challenge

It's time to dust off your jump ropes. This month's fitness challenge is all about the age-old piece of rope that has been used by fitness enthusiasts and little kids for decades.

Don't have a jump rope? Go get one. They cost less than $10 at your local sporting goods store. Avoid the cheaper plastic ropes and go with the beaded or leather options. Since the chart at the bottom of this post to determine what length you should use.

Why Jump Rope?

Jumping rope is an excellent total body exercise. It strengthens your legs and builds muscular endurance in your arms while provide an elevated heart rate. It is easy to learn and you will get better at it every time to do it. I have countless clients who couldn't jump at all when they started and now they are easily doing 200+ in 2 minutes. Our Boot Camp record is 296 in two minutes if you want something to set an aggressive goal.

Where to jump rope?
Don't let the excuse of cold weather stop you. You can jump rope 1) at your gym, 2) in your garage, 3) in your living room (if you want to protect your carpeting put a small throw carpet down), 4) in your basement.

The Challenge
Here is your month-long Jump Rope challenge to get you to be a superior jumper.

Feb 1 - Feb 4
Tuesday - Do as many jumps as possible in 2 minutes. Record your result. A jump only counts if the rope passes under your feet. If you catch the rope on your toe and it does pass under your feet it doesn't count. I don't care if you jumped.
Wednesday - 10 rounds or tabata jumps. Do as many as you can in 20 seconds then rest for 10 seconds. That is one round. Repeat for a total of 10 20sec/10sec sets.

Thursday - Maximum jumps in 2 minutes. Record your results. If you are under 100 you are a beginner, under 200 you are intermediate, and over 200 you are advanced.
Friday - Beginner - Do 100 jump ropes, Intermediate - 250 jump ropes, Advanced - 500 jump ropes.

Feb 5-6 - off days
Feb 7 - Do as many jumps as you can in 5 minutes. Record your total.
Feb 8 - 5 minutes of Jumping Jack Jump Ropes. Move your feet out and in like a jumping jack alternating your landing on each jump.
Feb 9 - 10 rounds of tabata jumps. Record the fewest number you get in any one round as your score.
Feb 10 - Do as many as possible in 2 minutes. Record your total.
Feb 11 - Beginner - 150 jump ropes, Intermediate - 400 jump ropes, Advanced - 750 jump ropes

Feb 12 and Feb 13 - Off days
Feb 14 - Happy Valentine's Day. Do as many jumps as you can in 5 minutes. Record your total.
Feb 15 - 5 minutes of single-foot Jump Ropes. Jump on one foot for 25 repetitions then switch to the other foot.
Feb 16 - 10 round of tabata jump ropes doing the odd numbered rounds on your left foot and even numbered rounds on your right foot.
Feb 17 - Spend 5 minutes trying to do cross overs or double unders.
Feb 18 - Beginner - 200 jump ropes, Intermediate - 500 jump ropes, Advanced - 1000 jump ropes.

Feb 19 and Feb 20 - Off days
Feb 21 - Do as many as you can in 2 minutes. Rest one minute. Do another 2 minute test.
Feb 22 - 5 minutes or single-foot Jump Ropes. Jump on one foot for two repetitions then switch smoothly to the other foot for two repetitions and continue.
Feb 23 - 10 rounds of tabata jump ropes using the alternating two repetition method from the previous day.
Feb 24 - Off day.
Feb 25 - Beginner - 250 jump ropes, Intermediate - 600, Advanced - 1200

Feb 26 and Feb 27 - Off days
Feb 28 - Do as many as possible in 2 minutes. Record your result. Compare to the Feb 1st result and celebrate your awesomeness!!

What Size Should You Use?

Under 5 ft tall = 7' jump rope

5' to 5'6" tall = 8' jump rope

5'6" to 6' tall = 9' jump rope

Over 6' tall = 10' jump rope

If you have questions, email me at paul@activepersonalfitness.com.

Happy jumping,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
www.ActivePersonalFitness.com
267.626.7478

Why a stopwatch is the most important piece of fitness equipment you can own

Your workout.

If you pay any attention to my blog and Facebook posts you already know what you need to do. Learn how to do squats, pushups, pullups, deadlifts and sit-ups and then run, row, jump rope and bike. When you master these movements then learn some of their advanced variations. Do these at a high level of intensity.

Intensity. It's in bold so it must be important. Why? Because speed equals intensity and intensity equals results.

How do you measure intensity?

That's where the stopwatch comes in.

Regardless of your fitness level, you can do some form or squats, pushups, pullups, deadlifts, sit-ups, running, rowing, jump roping and biking. If you need ideas on how to pick an alternative that you can do just visit my website (www.ActivePersonalFitness.com/videos.html).

"Running" a mile can look many different ways. As can doing a defined number of squats (let's say 1 set of 30). Moving your body a mile is a defined amount of work. Running that mile in 12 minutes is a different level of fitness than running it in 8 minutes. Covering the distance in less time indicates better fitness for that event. Basically, doing the same amount of work in less time means you are more fit.

That is why the stopwatch is so important to your workouts. My pet peeve is hearing people say they worked out for an hour but when I watch them I see them resting half the time. The BEST way to improve your workouts is to limit your rest time!!

For some people 1 set of 30 squats comes easy. I know people who can do 30 body weight squats in 30 seconds. For others, the set may need to be broken up into sets of 10 with a short rest in between. The people doing 30 in 30 seconds are more fit. They can do the work in less time. The key to improving your fitness is to constantly try to do the exercises FASTER WITH PERFECT FORM.

Here are three straight forward workouts you can use to measure your fitness. Use the stopwatch. Try to get better every time you try it.

Workout #1

15 squats

15 pushups

25 jumping jacks

10 lunges on each leg

15 dips

Workout #2

4 rounds of:

Move 0.25 miles

25 squats

Workout #3

50 sit-ups

40 walking lunges

30 squat jumps

20 pushups

Set your stopwatch. Record your time. Do it again in a few days...faster.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz

Active Personal Fitness

www.ActivePersonalFitness.com

267.626.7478

"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

Healthy Holiday Plan

It’s here....mid-December. The two week stretch leading into Christmas and New Years. Where did the year go? How am I going to get ready for the holidays? How much weight am I going to gain? We all ask ourselves these questions every day.

Stop. I have the answers.

The year moved along at the same speed it always does. You’re going to get everything ready for your holiday season, you always do. And no, you’re not going to gain any weight at all. Here’s how. Below is a simple suggestion that you can implement and follow. It will let you enjoy the holi"days" and still stay on a fitness plan.

Be realistic with your expectations. The holidays are filled with obstacles to healthy eating and exercise. Food is plentiful, we are surrounded by a gluttonous mentality, we are forced to make changes to our regular routine due to travel or bad weather. This is simply the reality.

Think maintain, not gain. By gain I mean, making progress toward your fitness goals. We want you to maintain your fitness level and your weight through the holidays. Leave December with the same fitness and weight you had at the beginning and everything will be ok.

Create a Holiday Calendar <<===== Do this right now!

Part of the difficult with avoiding holiday weight gain is the mentality that the entire month is one big holiday. How many times have you said “Oh, I can eat this cookie, it’s the holidays.” The key is to learn to enjoy all the treats of the season while keeping in mind there are only a few holidays. Take a moment right now and circle every day that you know will be a “bad” eating or exercise day. Include days where you have parties, big family dinners, travel days, etc. Try to limit the list to 4 or 5 days between now and New Years.

These will be days you set aside to enjoy all the food and fun of the season. The key to your success is sticking with your healthy eating and exercise on all the other days. Commit to those workouts, commit to avoiding the treats, commit to working harder at staying healthy on all the other days so you can sit back, relax and enjoy all of your favorites.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
www.ActivePersonalFitness.com
267.626.7478
"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

Change is gradual but SOOOO worth it

Here is some motivation for your day.

Constantly varied functional movements done at high intensity -- huh?

Doing constantly varied functional movements at high intensity is the key improving fitness and getting the healthy feeling and looking body you want.

Notice I said it is "the key", not "the secret". There is nothing secret about constantly varied functional movements at high intensity.

But you may not understand what I mean.

In this blog we will break each phrase down and give you a basic understanding of how to approach your exercise. Future blogs will dig deeper.

Let's start with functional movements. Functional movement has been a buzz word in fitness for the last 5 years. Functional movements are natural body movements performed on a daily basis in the course of living your life. The classic example is a squat which is an exercise that mimics sitting down into a chair and standing up from that chair. That is an activity you perform 50 times daily without thinking about it. Similarly, when you drop a pen and bend down to pick it up you are performing another functional movement, a deadlift. Learning how to perform functional movements efficiently with weight improves your ability to move on a daily basis.

What does it mean to constantly vary these functional movements? Traditional strength training programs prescribe a set of standard exercises with a fixed number of sets and repetitions performed in the same sequence with slight increases in weight over a 4-6 week period. I believe this is not optimal if you want to be fit as you face your daily life. Is there any part of your life that remains constant and unchanging over a period of 4-6 weeks? I didn't think so.

Your workouts will be more effective if they exercises, sets, repetitions, and sequences are randomized to a degree. If you could envision a PowerBall lottery machine where the numbers on the ball are replaced with a exercise and you pulled out random balls and executed those exercises as they appeared you would improve your overall fitness and prepare your body for living daily. Will talk about how the randomness can be given some structure to improve it's effectiveness in future blogs.

The results you want are driven by high intensity. How much work can you do in given period of time? The more work (weight moved) you can do in given period the high your intensity level. The intensity of your workout should be constrained only by your physical and psychological tolerance. Try to lift 40lbs over your head 100 times and you will likely hit a physical limit (you have to rest because your muscles are fatigued) or a psychological limit (oh my God I have 60 more to go!!).

Combine functional movements with constant variation and high intensity and you will achieve the level of health you want and get all the fringe benefits (lean and lovely body) that go along with it.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
www.ActivePersonalFitness.com
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer
NASM - Certified Personal Trainer
267.626.7478

Can you really get a good workout in 5 minutes?

Monday was crazy busy for me. Starting with an adult boot camp at 5:45am and ending with my last one-on-one session at 8pm with all sorts of sessions and meetings in between, I literally had 10 minutes to get in a workout. But you can't really get a workout done in 10 minutes so why bother, right?

Wrong.

I warmed up for 5 minutes with body weight squats, lunges, jumping jacks and jump ropes. 2 rounds of about 30 seconds each just to get my blood flowing, muscles warm (not hard on a 90+ degree day) and lungs open. Then I hit it hard.

Here is the workout I did:
3 rounds of:
100lbs barbell ground to overhead - start with the weight on the ground and end with it overhead using any method you choose (snatch, clean and press, clean and jerk, squat/reverse curl/press, etc)
200 yard shuttle sprint (50 yards out, back, out and back)

5 minutes and 15 seconds.

Is this really an effective workout? Really, what can be accomplished in 5 minutes?

Yes, it is a great workout. Here's why:

1) Something is always better than nothing. Raising your heart rate and contracting your muscles will always have a health benefit over not using them.
2) The exercises chosen utilize all of your muscles. As a general rule, the more joints moving during an exercise the better that exercise is. Multiple joint exercises are called compound exercises. Moving a weight from the ground to overhead requires movement at your ankle, knee, hip, shoulder and elbow joints. You can't get more compound than that. Compound exercises are the most efficient for getting a total body workout. Use them frequently and definitely when you have limited time.
3) Short workouts done at high intensity (repeat....high intensity) will improve your anaerobic conditioning. You know when you're in a rush and forget something at the office and the elevator is taking too long? You have to run up 4 flights of stairs and you're out of breath at the top. You are likely using your anaerobic system. Your body is operating in oxygen deficit. It can only do so for a short period but the more you train in your anaerobic zone the longer you can sustain a high intensity effort.
4) The workout establishes a benchmark for you to try and beat the next time. I recorded my time so that when I do that workout next I have a time to shoot for. Always try to better your best on benchmark workouts.

Here is another suggestion for a short workout. Use the Tabata method. Choose an exercise. I suggest body weight squats, lunges, pushups, pullups, situps or running sprints. Perform as many of that exercise as you can in 20 seconds then rest for 10 seconds (just 10 seconds) and repeat that sequence 10 times. That is a 5 minute workout. Remember, when doing the exercise don't sacrifice form for speed but do focus on doing as many reps as possible. I can hold at 21 body weight squats for 10 rounds. I can start at 24 pushups but my numbers tail off as the rounds get higher.

I guarantee you will feel a Tabata workout the next day.

Be well,

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
http://www.activepersonalfitness.com/
267.626.7478
"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

Should I do [fill in the blank] exercise? YES

I get this question all the time, asked in many different ways. What exercise should I do to lose weight? What exercise should I do to get toned? Should I do Pilates? Should I do Spinning? Should I use dumbbells? Should I use machines? Should I....?

The answer (almost universally) is YES, DO THEM ALL!

Varying your exercise routine is essential for getting results, avoiding boredom, improving total body health, and losing weight. The first thing I do when I meet with avid runners or cyclists is to get them focused on other activities (swimming, body weight exercise, yoga). This mix of activities will help them run/bike faster than if they simply ran or biked more.

Challenging your body in a different way each day helps you avoid plateaus in your results. A plateau is a leveling off of your progress which happens when you perform the same exercises in the same way over an extended period of time. Many people talk about their "workout routine". If you have a "routine", it's time to break it.

I recommend creating a master list of types of exercises that you will do. Not just the ones that you like, but also include ones you don't like so much. Your list might look like this:

Yoga, Spinning, TRX suspension training, Dumbbells, Elliptical, Machines, Play Basketball/Tennis/Soccer, Jog or Run, Swimming, Abs, Kettlebells, Boxing, Pilates, Step Aerobics, Fitness DVD, Walking....you get the picture.

Write each of these on a piece of paper and place them in a bowl.

Determine the number of days you can exercise each week. Make this a realistic goal that you know you will work to achieve.

Pull a slip of paper out of the bowl and that will be your focus for that day. I workout 3 days in a row then take one off so I usually workout 5 days a week. If those days are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday then I would pull a slip out for each day at the beginning of the week to set my schedule. It could look like this, Monday - Spinning, Tuesday - Play Tennis, Wednesday - Dumbbell workout, Friday - Run, Saturday - Dumbbell workout.

Of course you may have to place restrictions on some of the slips of paper. For example, you can't take a step class unless there is one offered that day. In that case, just draw another slip of paper out of the jar.

Variety is the key to total body wellness. Start to mix it up and keep your exercise exciting!!

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
www.ActivePersonalFitness.com
267.626.7478
"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

Victoria checks in with GREAT Results!!

I started working with Victoria in April 2008. At the time she was 205lbs and barely keeping herself in a size 16. Her goal was to reach 175 lbs and get down to a size 8 again while making exercise a part of her life's habit.

We worked out twice a week for some time with slow steady progress. It wasn't until Victoria took my advice and began "doing her homework" that the results really popped. Her homework was to add two additional workouts per week when I was not there, workouts which I provided to her based on exercises and intensity levels we used in our one-on-one sessions.

Where is she now? 162lbs and into a size 6. She just came back from 7 weeks away in Houston and not only kept up her workout routine but lost additional pounds. Awesome results, Victoria!!

Before - 205lbs, size 16


After - 162lbs, size 6-8

Do you want to remake your body, improve your health, feel better and more energetic? Contact me at 267.626.7478. More picture testimonials on the way.

Paul

Paul Dziewisz

Active Personal Fitness

www.ActivePersonalFitness.com

267.626.7478

"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

Active Personal Fitness Pushup Challenge

Join us for our first fitness challenge of the year.

Every day in January do a number of pushups related to the day of the month. You do not need to do them all at one time. Break them up throughout the day as you need to.

Beginners (new to doing pushups)
The number of pushups equals the day of the month. For example, January 5th is 5 pushups.

Restarters (have done pushups before but it has been a while)
The number of pushups equals 2x the day of the month.

Former jocks (it has been a while but you think it hasn't)
The number of pushups equals 3x the day of the month.

Avid Exercisers ("I do pushups while I brush my teeth")
Add a "0" after the single digit days and do 4x on the two-digit days. For example, January 5th is 50. January 17 is 68.

Personal Trainers ("You call this a challenge")
Do the following using the avid exercisers prescription above.
Pushups
Body Weight Squats
Dips
Walking Lunges

Ready, Set, Go!!

Paul

Paul Dziewisz
Active Personal Fitness
www.ActivePersonalFitness.com
Elevation Boot Camp
www.ElevationBootCamp.com
267.626.7478
"You give us the effort...we'll get you the results."

Developing Your Healthy Holiday Plan

Having a Healthy Holiday Plan is more than just about avoiding weight gain. For most of us this coming month is about avoiding bad habits. Bad exercise habits and bad nutritional habits. There are several studies that suggest creating a habit and making it stick as part of your life can be done in 21 days; just 3 simple weeks of repeating a behavior and it will be part of you. The sad thing is that those studies are talking about how to create a positive behavior (things like doing weekly and daily planning, getting into an exercise routine, or quitting smoking). Those are habits that take some effort to establish.

Bad habits are much easier to establish. From now until January 1st we have about 5 weeks of time. And for a lot of us it is a time where we typically create bad habits. You know what they are; eating too much, eating too often, skipping exercise, making bad food choices.

Five weeks. 35 days of temptation. 35 days of people not judging you for taking a second piece of pie. 35 days of there being a second piece of pie just hanging around.

For many people it is that time between now and New Years Day where they not only disrupt their healthy lifestyles for a month but they set themselves up for continued struggle into the New Year. And we all know that once you have taken a step back in your progress it becomes very difficult to get your healthy habits back. The key is to set yourself up for a healthy holiday by having a plan, not a plan that prevents you from enjoying time with family and friends or a piece or two of pie. I am talking about a realistic, sensible, simple plan for approaching the holidays. You need to establish a mindset that will guide you into the New Year.

I need you to start by asking yourself 4 simple questions.
- Are you having company to your house or are you travelling?
- How many people will be at your destination?
- What is on the menu?
- Where will everyone be exercising?

It is not unusual to have no answer to that last question. You know where you will be, who will be there and what you will be eating. But you have not thought at all about where you will exercise. Most of us want to avoid weight gain and loss of energy over the holiday season. But what happens is we spend hours planning all the details about how we WILL gain weight and no time planning the details of how we will AVOID weight gain. If you have a plan for gaining weight and no plan for not gaining weight, guess what is going to happen. You’re going to execute on your plan and your going to gain weight.

Keep an eye open over the next week for the remainder of my Healthy Holiday Plan series. The next blog posting talks about setting realistic expectations, determining your “cheat days,” and creating the PLAN. Stay tuned….

Will You Go “All-in” to Get What You Want?

The last two World Series are near and dear to my friends here in Philadelphia. In 2008 the Phillies prevailed over Tampa Bay in five memorable games. And this year the Yankees took the title. Both series turned on a single memorable play made by an outstanding player who took a moment and decided they were going to make a difference…THE difference.

The recent popularity of professional poker has made many of us familiar with the term “all-in.” That one moment, faced with an opportunity to win a big poker hand, when the player chooses to bet all of their money. Win the hand and collect your riches, lose the hand and you are not only out of the game but flat broke.

Chase Utley and Johnny Damon chose to go “all-in” at a key moment. Their split second decision could change the series in their favor or turn the tide against their teams. We’ll discuss the result of their decision in a moment. The point is their mindset at the big moment. They choose to go for it, push in all their chips, and make the difference for their team.

For Damon, he stepped to the plate with the score tied in the crucial game 4 of this year’s series. After a fantastic at bat Damon reached first base with two out in the top of the ninth. But it is what Damon did next that turned the tide of the series. In the process of stealing second base Damon realized in a split second that no one on the Phillies was covering third. With the player holding the ball only one foot away from him, Damon went “all-in” and began running to third. If he made it the Yankees would have a great chance to take the lead. If he made an out the Phillies would come to the plate with the game tied. One moment, one decision, be a hero or be a goat. Damon outran Feliz and was safe at third. He scored shortly after. The first of three runs the Yankees would score in the top of the ninth on their way to a decisive game 4 victory.

http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?content_id=7113113

Last year it was Utley in the spotlight in game 5. In a tie game with two out in the 7th inning Utley fielded a difficult ground ball up the middle. He could not get the runner at first, but rather than settling for stopping the ball he decided to fake a throw to first. The runner coming around third base went for the fake and ran home. Utley unleashed a perfect throw to get the runner at the plate. There should have been runners on first and third with two out. Instead, Utley got the third out and the Phillies took the lead later in the game and went on to win the World Series.

http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?content_id=3653322

Most of us are satisfied to steal second base. Most of us would be happy with just stopping the ground ball. And most of us won’t be world champions because of it.

These lessons apply to your exercise and fitness as well. I’ve talked a lot in the past about people who “mail it in” during their workouts. Their intensity level is low; they are going through the motions; they are satisfied with just being at the gym. They are okay with stopping at second base. They wouldn’t think to throw the runner out at home. Why would they when it is so much easier to only bet a few of your chips?

The problem is that the less you put into it, the less you get out. Damon and Utley made THE difference, not just for one play, but for the whole championship. They put themselves on the line; they pushed in all their chips; they reaped the greatest reward.

You can do the same, you should do the same. When you show up at the gym, make the decision to go “all-in.” Put in the most effort you can. Seize the moment and burn more calories, run faster, lift more, reduce your rest time, learn a new exercise, up your intensity, go to third base, throw the runner out at home. Give yourself a chance to get great fitness results.