Apr 17

Intermittent Fasting Guidance & Tips

by Vikki in Nutrition, Tips 0 comments
By Karlee Burmaster Should I try intermittent fasting? I often get this question from clients that I work with. It’s the new, latest and greatest trend! Reported benefits include weight loss, better hunger regulation, reduced inflammation, and more. By that logic, you should try it, right? Not so fast. WHAT IS INTERMITTENT FASTING First, let’s talk about what intermittent fasting is. Intermittent fasting is a meal timing schedule where you voluntarily go between periods of fasting and eating. There are different methods of intermittent fasting which I will go over later. But why intermittent fast? Well, it is a weight loss tool and that is the most common reason people want to try it. WHAT INTERMITTENT FASTING DOES IN OUR BODY Intermittent fasting has a direct effect on your hormones and cells, such as growth hormone, insulin levels and cellular repair. Growth hormone increases during fasting which is great because GH helps increase muscle gain which in turn helps with fat loss. With fasting, your insulin sensitivity improves, and your insulin levels tend to drop significantly. When this happens, it makes the body fat that is stored in your body more assessable. As far as cellular repair goes, when you […]
Mar 02

Best Protein Powders: How to Find the Perfect Protein for You

by Vikki in Nutrition, Tips 0 comments
Protein is the “it” macronutrient right now. Wherever you look, you’ll find pills and powders proclaiming a high protein content and promising strength gains. But with no regulation for supplements and a wide variety of protein types out there, it can be overwhelming to figure out what will work best for you, your lifestyle, and your goals. In the guide below, we break down the way proteins are classified, the different types of proteins available, and how to pick the best one for your needs. Let’s get jacked! Protein Classifications There are two key classifications that you’ll find on protein supplement labels. If you’ve ever been confused by a container of protein powder, read on for some clarification. Protein Concentrate and Protein Isolate The terms protein concentrate and protein isolate refer to how much of the product is made up of protein. All protein powders start out as one thing (milk, peas, soy, etc.) and are stripped of most of their carbohydrates and fats to create a supplement that’s mostly protein. Products labeled protein concentrate are 70 to 85 percent pure protein, with the remaining 15 to 30 percent being carbohydrates and fats. Protein isolate uses additional processing to further […]
Oct 16

[Coach Ari] The Importance of Hip Mobility and Core Strength for Golfers

by Ryan in Blog, Fitness, Nutrition 0 comments tags: athlete, become the athlete within, exercise, fitness, golf, performance, sport
The execution of the golf swing is a “feet to fingertips” athletic action- the entire kinetic chain is utilized. In order to perform proper movement throughout the golf swing requires certain levels of joint mobility and core stabilization. If certain joints (i.e. hips) are limited in terms of mobility or certain parts of the body are “weak”, executing an efficient swing without compensating form will be very difficult. The hips are a necessary joint in the golf swing. That said, if limitations are present in terms of mobility the body will compensate proper form which leads to trouble down the road. Both on the scorecard, and your long term back health. For example- the last golf lesson, or “tune-up”, I had approximately two months ago was because of that exact reason. My body wasn’t moving properly in the backswing because of poor hip mobility, and in turn that caused me to have a flawed swing with lost yardage and accuracy. Looking from a spectators point of view at normal speed, you would never be able to tell there was any sort of mobility issue. In fact I got compliments of how great my swing looked. But I felt that something […]
Jan 15

[Coach Christina] 7 Steps To Reading Nutrition Labels…..PROPERLY

by Ryan in Blog, Nutrition, Tips 0 comments tags: coach, diet, fat loss, label, nutrition, nutrition label, nutritionist, personal trainer, training, utica
Nutrition Labels: What They Mean   Nutrition can be overwhelming.   What to get enough of, what to avoid, how much to consume, what to look for.   The majority of people are unsure how to read a nutrition label which ultimately means they are unsure of what their nutrition consists of.   Here is a simple, quick, and easy breakdown of how to navigate through a nutrition label.   Step 0: Avoid them.   Ideally, you are consuming foods that don’t have a nutrition label because they are organic or naturally sourced foods. E.g. tomato, spinach, banana, potato etc. Eat naturally and you won’t have to worry about reading a label.   Where to start in reading a nutrition label:   Step 1: Serving Size.   At the top of the nutrition label it will state the serving size and servings per container. This is an important step because if you consume an entire box of something that contains 3 servings, the calories and all the nutrients need to be tripled.   Step 2: Calories (Energy)   The word “calorie” comes with some a negative stigma. “Cut your calories,” “there are so many calories in that,” “too many calories […]
Dec 07

The No B.S. Breakdown of Everything You NEED To Know About “Fat Loss Diets”

by Ryan in Nutrition 0 comments tags: diet, exercise, fat loss, nutrition pyramid
I imagine at some point you have heard that old saying “You can’t put the cart before the horse.”  In case you weren’t sure what that means, it just means that there is a certain order for how things happen.  Case in point, horse pulls cart which means if the cart is in front of the horse it can’t pull it . . . .ahhh genius I know! Well, the same concept apples to your nutrition! Especially when it comes to nutrition that is geared at decreasing body fat and gaining lean muscle.  What I’ve found after almost a decade in the fitness industry is that many people start by “putting the cart in front their horse” so to speak. What do I mean?  Well, what I mean is that when we start the conversation about nutrition they ask the wrong questions and focus on the wrong points (..for that given point in their fitness journey). They start with questions like: What supplements should I be taking? Should I eat carbs after 5pm? How many grams of protein should I have in each meal? Will organic apples help me lose weight? I think you get the point . . . […]
Aug 18

33% Of Female Athletes Show Symptoms Of This . . . . .

by Ryan in Blog, Fitness, Inspiration, Nutrition, Uncategorized 0 comments tags: anorexia, athlete, eating disorder, female athlete triad
As I laid in my bed, eyes wide open, the haunting thoughts raced around my head again….. “What if I get fat while I’m sleeping” “I ate way too much today, I know it” “I’m going to wake up before school and run around the neighborhood” I couldn’t take it anymore, the thoughts became too much so I peeled myself out of bed and creeped through my house and out the back door (careful not to wake my parents in the middle of the night). I wasn’t going to stop until my pedometer said I burned at least 700 calories. As soon as my feet hit the grass I began to sprint…..Up the hill and right back down, as soon as I got back to where I started back up again I went. No way was I going to be FAT! The next day I didn’t eat as punishment for what happened the day before. What could have possibly happened you ask? I ate lunch. All throughout my childhood, I was the skinny girl. Everyone in my family was bigger than me, most of my classmates, friends and teammates were often bigger than me.  I would look at my teammates […]
Jul 26

3 Ways To Get Better Results In LESS Time

by Ryan in Blog, Fitness, Inspiration, Nutrition, Strength, Tips, Uncategorized 0 comments
In today’s world it has never been more true that Time really is of the essence. . . This especially hits home in our “American” culture.  In America, We don’t like to wait.  We want everything NOW.  We need instant gratification otherwise we will complain about it. Faster Food. Faster Travel. Fast Lane Checkout. Faster Shipping You name it and we have created a way to get it Faster and often we will pay for that decrease in delivery time.  I mean shit, people actually pay money so they don’t have to wait to upgrade their team in that Clash of Clans iPhone game.  Each and every day we get taken advantage of because of our obsession with immediate gratification. So it’s safe to assume that when it comes to our own health and fitness we feel the same way.                 What’s the best supplement for me to take? How can I drop 40 pounds in 1 month? What diet gets the fastest results? These are all questions that I get asked on a daily basis. The sad truth is that there really is no short cut. You can try the pills, try the […]
Jul 21

The EASIEST Way To Change Nutrition Habits

by Ryan in Blog, Inspiration, Nutrition, Tips, Uncategorized 0 comments
I’m going to level with you – Nutrition is hard. Some days it’s really hard. Everyone wants to eat healthy and be fit but it’s not easy to learn a whole new way of eating.  The cravings can be torturous and the reality is that you’ve been doing it a certain way for years. You’re always on the run and never have enough time to make a real meal.  Between the kids, work, sports, and all of the other family actives it’s hard to find the time to change.  It’s simple – Your eating habits fit your current lifestyle.  It’s not easy to change. It’s overwhelming. It’s frustrating. It’s complicated. It’s stressful. So how do you successfully change the way you eat? Take it slow. Set yourself up for success. How? Tackle ONE habit at a time. When you’ve got that down and are 100% confident that you can do it every day THEN you can tackle a new one.  But remember, that takes time.  Some habits take longer than others but let’s assume just to be safe that it is going to take at least 2 Weeks to make a habit part of your everyday life.  So sit back, relax, […]
Mar 06

3 Ways To Avoid Emotional Eating

by Ryan in Inspiration, Nutrition, Uncategorized 0 comments tags: eating, emotion, fitness, stress, tips, training, utica
7 years ago I had a 6 month old that NEVER slept! She was such a bad sleeper. She would sleep when I was holding her or rocking her, but as soon as I put her down she was back awake. She would fall asleep in the car, but as soon as we hit a stop light she would wake up. We lived in Brooklyn. There were a lot of stop lights. SOoooo, I decided to do the “Cry it Out” method. This is a controversial method where you let your child cry for a certain amount of time before you go in and comfort them. And eventually they fall asleep on their own. I don’t want to get into an argument about the merits and downfalls of this method – I’m not really sure I would do it again, but at the time I was desperate and sleep deprived. Every night I would put my daughter down to bed and she’d cry. And I’d go into the kitchen and stuff my face. Then I’d go into her room and comfort her. Then she would cry. And I’d go into the kitchen again. Rinse and repeat. I didn’t even realize […]
Dec 07

Kristy’s Story: See How She Lost 10% Body-Fat……Doing ZERO Cardio

by Ryan in Blog, Fitness, Inspiration, Nutrition, Strength, Tips, Uncategorized 0 comments
Why do women have an image of themselves looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger when they think about lifting heavy? How many women do you see walking around looking like Arnold? I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen one. Sure, you see the pictures of the lady body builders who have their muscles and veins popping out – but guess what?  It’s not natural.  These ladies have to take testosterone and other illegal substances, not to mention work REALLY hard, to look that way. Before I share the benefits of strength training, let me be vulnerable and share my pre-lifting/post-lifting pictures: That’s one year between the two pictures. I have lost body fat, belly fat, toned up, improved my posture and erased my chronic shoulder and neck pain.  How did I make these amazing changes in just one year?  It wasn’t by running 20 miles a week, doing intense boot camp classes or by starving myself. All I did was lift heavy weights three times a week and focused on getting enough calories to maintain my workouts (usually 1700-1800).  I had goals and my Coach helped me reach them.  My goals weren’t even to lose weight or get toned.  Some of my goals over the […]
Recent Posts
Archives
Categories