Day 3 of Balance

Day three of Balance

By this time if you have followed along you may be feeling a little more solid with your balance.

There are a few secrets to balancing (You're thinking, "GREAT, now she tells us".

Secret number one.  Keep your core tight.  meaning "hold in your belly"....

Secret number two.  Keep your glutes tight.  meaning, "squeeze your butt"....

Secret number three.  Envision a pole running from the top of your head all the way to your feet, right through the center, that stableizes.

Secret number four.    Ground your self.  Feel the energy of the earth moving up through your legs, empowering your body.  Spread out your toes and imagine your feet spreading out onto the floor giving you more of a platform to balance on.

Secret number five.  Move slowly between moves, if you feel a "wobble" stop for a moment and stableize before you move on and make sure and breathe.

Here is your balance video for today.  Happy Balancing

Day 2 of Balance

Welcome to day two of Balance.  Today's track will involve a bit of flexibility but if that is something you don't have a lot of, we can modify your pose, I will show you how.  Today will find you holding your balance poses longer for a bit of a challenge for you.

Happy Balancing

Balance for Life

Balance is way under rated.  Here is our first video in our series of balancing this week.  Each day you will find a different combination of balance moves for you to follow along and try.  Some will be easier than others.  Touch downs are legal but not worth any points and you can giggle all you want but I think that may be what causes the touch downs.  Try following along this week and see how your balance is.  I promise that with practice you will be able to increase your balance.  I will have some little tips every day to help you realize better balance.

Enjoy

Amino Acids, How They Can Benefit You.

So What's the big deal about Amino Acids?  They are an excellent way of getting the body you want.  Not only that they can give you aditional energy during your work out, spare your muscles from being used as fuel and fight mental sluggishness.

You will realize faster improvements in muscle tone because BCAA's (branched chain amino acids) will encourage faster recovery times after weight lifting and heavy work outs. 

Let's look a little closer.

There are about 20 to 22 amino acids in all and they are involved in various processes in the body.  BCAA's refer to Leucine, Isoleucine and Valine collectively.  These are three of the eight essential amino acids that can be found in the human body.

During Exercise all three of these amino acids get depleted and that is what makes you tired during your work our and ready to "bag it early".  Where do you find the energy to keep going, because that is what you need.  Because our bodies will not be denied it will seek other sources of fuel, namely the muscle because it is readily available.  The only problem is that most people are trying to build muscle tissue, for a more toned and "buff" look.

So what's a person to do?

BCAA's that's what.  having some about 30 minutes prior to work out and just after will go a long ways in keeping your body from devouring the muscle you are trying to build.

Unlike other amino acids that you ingest these three amino acids are directly metabolized in your muscle.  This is great because it doesn't pass through the liver and is redily available as fuel for your work out.

These are some of the ways that BCAA's can help you.

If you are trying to build muscle tissue or just tone, they will help you get there quicker.
You will notice increased endurance
You will burn more fat and raise your metabolism
It will help to reduce cravings and stave off hunger
Noticable improvement in strength
BCAA's protect your muscle from being broken down and used as fuel during work out.

So now you want to know how much you should be taking.

This is the key.  You should have three doses a day.  One in the morning to get your body kick started and give it immediate fuel for the day about 3 to 5 grams as stated by experts.  Then again about 30 minutes before a work out and then again within 30 minutes after.  The thing to remember is that if you are working out regularly with weights and aerobic exercises it is not possible to over dose on BCAA's because they will be used in your body as fuel and to deliver the benefits listed above.

The great thing about BCAA's is that have come a long way and are now easier to ingest.  No longer do you have to choke down "horse pills" and tons of water.  Today you can even get it in gel and powder form

here are all eight Essential Amino Acids and what they do for you

Isoleucine:  Hemoglobin formation, muscle recovery, sugar level regulation, blood clot formation
Leucine:      Muscle recovery, regulation of blood sugar & hormones
Lysine:       helps triglycerides, antiviral, hormone production, bone growth, collagen formation.
Methionine:  assists in breaking down fats, antioxidant, aids production of creatine.
Phenylalanine:  Aids in depression (along with B-6), suppress appetite, gives a feeling of fullness
Valine:            Maintains nitrogen balance, muscle recovery
Tryptophan:  aids serotonin production
Threonine:  helps stabilize blood sugar, helps collagen production.

WARNINGS:
Although BCAA's are quite safe there are a few simple rules to follow if considering using them.
First of there is little known about BCAA's  effect during pregnancy and during breastfeeding, best to avoid their use during that time.  If you are facing surgery stop taking BCAA's 2 weeks prior to help with blood sugar regulation during that time.  If you are a chronic alcohol user or dring alcohol, avoid mixing with BCAA's.  If you are on medication for Diabetes check with your physician first also if you are taking Thyroid medication or being treated with corticosteroids for inflamation you should not take BCAA's.

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Where Do Those Extra Pounds Come From?

We often ask ourselves where the extra pounds come from. They can sneak up on you if you don’t weigh in at least once a week. I personally keep track of my weight each day, the scale is my friend and it needs to be yours too. If your scale is not your friend and you hate to hop on the thing, I’m sure there is a reason.

You see the scale does not work like a fortune teller. It may not tell you what you want to hear but it does give you the facts and sometimes that is hard to swallow. Especially if you have a scale that not only tells you your weight but your BMI , fat and water content.

So let’s take a look at where those extra pounds come from. Whether you are aware of it or not approximately 3,500 calories equal one pound. It is possible to burn up to 350 calories per hour with a hearty work out and as you can see this doesn’t come anywhere close to being a pound.

So now we have established what it takes to gain that extra pound so let’s look at what we might consume in one day.

Breakfast:                             calories                                             fat

8 oz glass of OJ                      456 (57 cal. per oz.)                        0
Biscuit w/ eggs & sausage       581                                                38.7
1 cup of hash browns              302                                                 9.2 (fruit would be better choice)
                    Total                  1,339                                             47.9

Let’s move on to lunch:
16 oz soda pop                       208                                                  0
Burger w/ condiments              608                                                36.8
Small fry (double large)            291                                                15.7 (you should never eat fries)
                    Total                  1,107                                               52.5

Heading off to dinner:
8 oz of beer                              96                                                    0
Or
8 oz of wine                            168                                                    0
Chicken Fillet                          515                                                  29.4
Baker w/ butter & cheese        393                                                  22.3
1.5 cup salad (no dressing)      102                                                    5.8 (includes eggs & cheese)
                  Total                    1,082 or 1,010                                  57.50


If this looks like a normal day to you, let’s see how you did.

Total calories for day depending on your dinner beverage: 3,528 total fat: 157.90

I’m sure you can see where the extra pounds are coming from. Even with an hour of a hard work out you could still gain a pound per day.

Are you ready for the really scary part of the story? A healthy adult with a 2,000 calorie a day diet has a recommended 65 grams of fat in it. As you can see the amount of fat in the diet above almost triples that amount, that is where all the heart disease and clogged arteries come from.

The good news is that you can absolutely do something about it. There is help everywhere, paid help and free help all you need to do is seek the help and get on the path to healthy eating and living.

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