Total Body Wellness

I have had to be at the doctors office three times in the 3 or so weeks. The first time I weighed 120 lbs. Too much for me but figured it was probably right. The following visit, about a 10 days later I weighed 125. Wow didn’t feel as though I gained 5 lbs. Wasn’t my time of the month and my clothes felt the same. Yesterday, about 1 week and a half later, I weighed 117. Which figure was right?
Well of course I choose to believe the last one but this kind of fluctuation is not right.
I’m sure that I was put in a different room every time. Once I was at a different office.

I often hear clients say that they weigh differently on their scale at home and at the doctors office or at the gym and we always tend to believe the one at the doctors office or the gym.

The truth is that every scale can be a little different and what we really need to pay attention to is how our clothes fit and how we feel.

Use the number on the scale as a guideline and weigh yourself on the same scale everytime so that whether you started at 125 or 117 if you are losing or gaining weight on that same scale then it is probably true.

Filed by Jeanette at 7:06 am under Pilates
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Just thought I’d reprint this from my New Year’s Newsletter
Jeanette’s 10 steps

1.)Challenge yourself to do Pilates, Yoga or GYROTONIC or a combination of both 2-3 times per week.

2.) Get in no less that 30 minutes of aerobic exercise 4-5 times per week!

3.) Take on healthy habits; Drink plenty of water, Sleep at least 8 hours a night, eat whole grains, plenty of fruits and vegetables and cut out those things you know are not good for you.

4.) Supplement your diet with good quality health products.

5.) Use only non-toxic products in and around your home.

6.) Make it a daily habit to feel gratitude for everything.

7.) Say yes to only the things you know you can do.

8.) Listen to your
body and slow down when it tells you to.

9.)Make a conscious choice to “Feel Good” no matter what!

10.)Be of service to somebody, somewhere, everyday!

Filed by Jeanette at 8:00 pm under Pilates
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Pilates is definitely a strength building exercise and because those who have weight trained before know that they should take a day off between weight workouts, I often get the question; Can we do Pilates everyday?

The answer is a resounding yes. You most definitely can. Because Pilates focuses on the mind/body integration and lengthening as well as strengthening the muscles, it is a different mind set than weight training. We are not working the muscles to exhaustion (however a challenging Pilates workout can break down muscle and promote stronger muscles ). We are also adding in things like breath, coordination and functional awareness which gives us the ability to vary the workout a bit everyday.

Now you don’t have to do a long Pilates workout everyday either. Joe Pilates actually believed 4 workouts 30 minutes each were just as good as 10 minutes of Pilates a day. Most of us can manage 10 minutes. I personally do about 20 minutes of matwork a day and I think that 20 minutes is pretty easy to get in. I do it in the mornings and if I miss one morning, I feel it right away.

So go ahead do Pilates everyday as long as it is done safely and as long as you are enjoying it. If it becomes a chore then you are definitely overtraining. Have fun!

Filed by Jeanette at 4:29 pm under Pilates
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Did you know that 20 percent of Americans daily calorie intake comes from beverages. That is twice the World Health Organizations recommendation of 10 percent.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutriiton has put together the following guidelines for Healthy Beverages.

Level one (which has the highest value based on caloric and nutrient content, and related health beefits and risks.) is Water - up to nine servings for women and up to 13 for men. 0 calories

Level Two is unsweetened coffee and tea both iced and hot. Up to eight (8 oz)servings a day of tea and up to four servings a day of coffee. 0 calories

Level Three is nonfat or lofat milk and fortified soy beverages. Up to two (8 oz) servings per day. 100 calories per serving

Level Four is diet beverages with sugar substitute. Up to 4 servings. 0 calories.

Level Five is 100% fruit and vegetable juices, whole milk, sports drinks. up to one serving. 115 calories a serving

Level Six is calorie-rich beverages without nutrients. Up to one serving and less if trying to lose weight. 110 + calories.

So with this in mind you might want to cut out the grande mocha drink with extra whip. Stick to water, unsweetened tea and non-fat milk.

Info from ACE FitnessMatters May/June2006

Filed by Jeanette at 7:02 pm under Uncategorized
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Recently I spoke to yet another person who was told by a medical professional to perform a certain exercise to help this person feel better. The exercise looked a little difficult and this persons first instinct was that it probably would not be the exercise for her and that in fact it might be too dificult and probably would not feel so good. However, this person was assured by the medical professional that it would be great and help tremendously.
As suspected the exercise was difficult to do and brought about even greater pain than what was being experienced prior to doing the exercise.

The other day a client came in and told me that she had seen a doctor on TV demonstrate an exercise that everyone should do every day. She demonstrated the exercise and I just couldn’t believe that someone who is a medical professional and watched by millions of viewers would make such a blanket statement. The exercise was pretty basic but many many people should not be doing it at all much less the second they jump out of bed as this Doc prescribed.

Remember that you know your body better than anyone and if something looks funky to you, it probably will be funky to your body. In fact unless you have a fitness professional standing right next to you to help you out with a new exercise, be very very careful. Listen to your instincts, you are most likely right.

And when selecting a fitness professional to help you with your exercise, make sure they are certified by a reputable agency and have experience with your kind of injury or issue. Never be afraid to ask questions. It’s your body and you have to live in it.

Filed by Jeanette at 5:47 pm under Fitness & Training
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I am back from my final GYROTONIC ® training in Miami and I am so excited to teach. Now more than ever do I understand how this work makes you feel. The strength, flexibility and overall feeling of peacefulness that it achieves is unbelievable. I can’t wait to show it to all of you.

Filed by Jeanette at 5:45 pm under Pilates
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