Working it Out

Exercise, eat healthy, die anyways. This is the mantra that can be heard so often in American society. The sad state of humanity is evidenced by so many people overweight and out of shape. I confess, I’m not perfect by any means. But, I still like to get outdoors and enjoy myself and I work hard to stay in good enough health to do the things I want to do. Yet we seem to dive deeper and deeper into the commercial, fast-food, processed nutrient world. Dennis Leary once made a joke about cigarettes saying “You could call them tumors and we’d still smoke them.” I would expand on that by saying we could call it pink slime and people would inhale it all day long. Come to think of it, I believe they do.

To advocate for an active lifestyle is something that is at the heart of what SkinFlint Outdoors is all about. A day in the woods can cleanse your soul like nothing else. However, if your day in the woods is overshadowed by a sharp aching in your legs and constant wheezing then you’re probably going to be easily convinced to go back to the house and watch that dreaded television. Thus the cycle continues. The more you stay off your feet the more you’ll fall into a state of physical disrepair. The more you fall into a state of disrepair the more weight you’ll gain. The more weight you gain the more your back and legs will hurt, feeding the burning desire to return to your favorite program.

Anyone who has struggled with weight will tell you there is no shortage of people, products, and programs who want to “help” get your weight under control. In my own effort to see as much of this green Earth as I can before I am planted under it I have tested or studied many of these. I have made efforts to gain weight in the form of muscle and I have put forth a major push to lose weight. On that journey one thing became apparent. The sad truth is most of what is out there is crap. When I say crap, I mean it is crap that is well packaged and marketed so to get hopeful souls to give away their hard earned money. Once you realize there is so much useless or ineffective products out there it becomes important to consider your fitness goals and create your own plan.

First, I am not a certified trainer. I am not a Doctor. I am not a nutritional specialist or medical professional by any stretch of the definitions. I am a simple person who has struggled the same as so many others. I’m not writing from the perspective of a person selling a product or service. I’m simply sharing my experience, that is all. My point is to show some products and ideas to either give a chance or stay away from.

The simple fact of the matter is we as human animals are not designed to carry such an excess of fat on our bodies and if we are to live our lives to the fullest we must make the personal decision to reject the commercialized world that makes us overweight and promises to make us better. Some of the stuff I will write about may have worked for some folks, while other people had absolutely no success. There is no right or wrong here. If you’re willing to take the risk and use a diet pill or spend a ton of cash on a fancy machine then the results will be yours to own. What didn’t work for me may be the holy grail of your weight loss efforts, or vice-versa.

Let’s start with some products. I don’t need to single out everything on the market but I can give some blanket examples to demonstrate how products either work or are simply clever ways to take your money. So, my first tip is to look at the fine print. While working in a gym for a short stint I was commonly assaulted by advertisements for machines that were supposed to be fat-burning miracles. They commonly had some gorgeous model, majestically and gracefully demonstrating how this machine will make you a sexual icon in little to no time. Then there was the fine print at the bottom of the screen. You were probably so wrapped up in bikini-clad bodies and rippling abs you missed the fine print. Shame on you.

But the fine print is what really tells you what the product is about. Whenever you see a product that promises significant weight loss, but is supported through a diet/exercise plan then the machine is nothing special. The price is high, and the potential weight loss are the result of a specific diet, rather than the awesome power of the machine. The company marketing the product overloads your senses with sex, tricks your mind with a desire to change, and takes your money through your hope for results. Those twelve easy payments of $29.99 is simply money you don’t have to spend. The machine was made in China, the diet plan is a basic program anyone can write, and there is no support for you when you need it.

The same can be said for the weight loss pills on the market. There are a very few that work, but a majority of them are pure crap. Some, in point of fact, can be rather dangerous. Again, when you go to a store that sells these pills you may be bombarded by images of models, glistening in sweat and showing their most seductive smile. Then there’s the reality that is on the inside of the bottle. Most of the pills are made of more fillers rather than active ingredients. Some of the active ingredients can wreak havoc on your liver and kidneys.

Still others are super-charged caffeine pills that can be dangerous depending on your physical health status. I was pretty sure I was going to have a heart-attack the first time I tried Hydroxycut. I’ve also seen a number of clients who have had crazy side-effects from using some of the over-the-counter growth hormones. Night-sweats, tremors, rashes, zits, constipation, frequent urination, spasms, blurred vision, and erectile dysfunction are just a few of the wonderful conditions I have had clients explain to me after taking any of these products I’ve outlined. Naturally, you’d never see this information marketed. The folks making money from these sales want you to think you’re going to have that six-pack by the weekend.

Many supplements can be just as hard on your system. There is no shortage of protein powders, Creatine supplements, growth pills, shakes, pre-workouts, post-workouts, or fat-burning powders on the market. It’s easily a multi-billion dollar industry. There are so many and they are in all different stores that choosing one can be a daunting task. To make things more complicated, there are volumes and volumes of information on how to use these supplements that is simply wrong. If I had a nickel for every person I’ve encountered who told me they were replacing a meal with a dose of protein powder I could retire tomorrow, on a tropical island. Not only are these products misused, nobody really takes the time to read the label and tries to understand what they are taking into their bodies. Simply put, many of these products have a lot of ingredients that are really not too good for you.

You could write volumes about the health concerns with supplementation. Creatine, for example, was discovered in 1832 by French chemist, Michel Eugène Chevreul. It is a compound that is mostly stored in skeletal muscle and is made up of three amino acids: L-arginine, glycine and L-methionine. Creatine is largely used by athletes for high intensity training, but it is also being considered for treatment of several other conditions, such as muscular dystrophy, depression, arthritis, and congestive heart failure. Creatine has mild side-affects, such as stomach cramping, nausea, muscle cramping, and diarrhea. However, Creatine use can turn dangerous if you have undiagnosed diabetes or kidney problems. The same can be said for any supplement in the fitness world. It’s important to always talk to your Doctor before starting any supplement regimen.

One other money-leaching service I want to discuss is the mail-order food plans. You’ve seen these on television, no doubt. They show some celebrity who supposedly lost a proverbial ton of weight eating only these pre-packaged meals that are delivered through the mail. They will tell you the food is specially formulated to cause your body to burn calories. This all leads to one question. What the hell is in that food that it causes you to burn calories? What’s the catch? If you google “food that causes your body to burn calories” it doesn’t give you an answer. Therefore, there are two obvious conclusions to this proposition. One, there’s an additive in the food that isn’t natural. Or two, the advertisement is another smoke-and-mirrors ploy to con a skinflint out of their precious dollars.

This turns into another of those moments where you want to read the fine print. You can spend extra money from meals delivered to your door, but if you have to support the meal plan with an exercise regimen then you are simply throwing away dollars. The food is nothing special. That is to say it is nothing more than you could get from your local supermarket, but you gave away extra money to someone because they managed to convince you this was the way to reach those illusive fitness goals. Though I have never been willing to part with any Jacksons to pay for one of these fancy meal-plans, I have read the fine print and am convinced there is a cheaper way to lose weight.

I’ve talked about what doesn’t work, but there is a lot of products out there which are very effective. Shake weights, stretch bands, dumbbells, kettle weights, exercise balls, jump ropes, ab rollers, and high energy exercise videos are all products that be crucial to your efforts to lose weight and het heart-healthy. These products are simple, very effective, and significantly less expensive. Further, they are portable and convenient for the travelling skinflint. A portable piece of exercise gear will allow you to workout consistently, which is one of the most important elements to successful weight loss.

The simple products you can use in place of expensive machines should assist you in elevating your heart rate for a good cardio workout. They should also allow for an adequate workout so to tone muscle. They can be used in combination with a healthy diet plan, the same as the unnecessarily expensive equipment. The diet plan will support the exercise and will help you reach your fitness goals. The important part is to think simple and stick with it.

There still aren’t a huge number of pills that are both effective and trustworthy. If you are determined to take something to help with fat loss you should do a ton of research. When you’ve done your homework you will hopefully see how viscous some of the products on the market are for your system. I had tried some of these mainstream products and didn’t lose an ounce of weight. However, in the pharmacy section of your supermarket you can find a product called CLA. This is a natural product that can help fat-loss without the harsh side-effects of the caffeine laced pills.

We also need to look at the more gentle side of the money-grabbing-weight-loss-scam. Despite one example of a product that works, there isn’t a lot of alternatives that will help someone lose weight safely. Health food stores and online vendors may sell “all-natural” products but they can be as equally ineffective, even if they are safer than their mainstream counterparts. The best bet and practice is to talk to your Doctor and ask what products he or she will recommend to help you in your efforts. Some products to improve circulation and other functions that will make your workout more productive. That being said we can see where the exercise is the benefit from the pill rather than the pill having any actual fat-burning properties.

There’s also an upside to supplements. If you can find one that doesn’t clump in your mixing vessel and doesn’t have any plastic in the powder itself you will be off to a good start. Yes, I said plastic in the powder. You’ll need to do some research to find the best product for you based on your fitness goals. The more important part is to use these products correctly. Protein powders are a supplement, not a replacement. When you use a protein powder as a meal replacement you are in the beginning stages of developing a bad eating habit. This will eventually turn into a series of bad eating habits that will destroy your efforts.

A protein shake between meals, before or after bed, or immediately before or after a workout can be beneficial. A protein shake in place of a meal is setting yourself up for a disaster. In place of making healthy and well portioned food choices you will be starving, which could in turn make you or your body do some fairly out-of-control things. Protein powders can be used in weight gain or loss, despite popular belief. The name of the game is providing fuel for your body. If you can do that without taking in a lot of fat you will have more productive workouts that will burn more calories. Or, you can take in that extra protein to build muscle. It’s all just a matter of doing some research and using the product you chose in the correct manner.

There’s also an upside to food plans. The trick to using a food plan is knowing it doesn’t technically do much for you. There is no magic food that will make the pounds melt away or muscle grow. The food plans making this claim are more of waste of hard earned money. However, some plans do provide a stable platform to help develop healthy eating habits. Pre-packaged meals can engrain important habits, like portion control and balance in your diet.

85% of your weight loss or muscle gains will happen in the kitchen. If you know you’re the kind of person that needs to learn restraint in the kitchen you can lamentably spend the money for meal plans to support you while you gain control of your diet. The catch here is you need to stick to your meal plan. If you go and spend several hundred dollars on Rich Piana’s 5% Meal Plan (www.5PercentNutrition.com) then you need to stick to the plan and support it with a consistent exercise program. If you don’t then you are basically throwing away money, and that doesn’t make most people happy. While I’m not a fan of spending money needlessly, I am a fan of getting results. There is no shame in using whatever reasonable means necessary to support you in your efforts.

If you want to get or stay healthy the main focus will be on the ideas and themes surrounding your efforts. Again, I wish I had a nickel for every client I’ve had who has quoted a big name bodybuilder. Many of the biggest names preach calories, calories, calories. The sad truth is most average, working, people don’t have the time they need to spend in the gym to support a four-thousand to five-thousand calories per day diet. Another point that is overlooked is four-thousand calories of healthy, clean food is a lot of food to eat in a day’s time. Another point is most working skinflints out there can’t treat their body the same way as a bodybuilder or model. Some of the greats, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, would do 3 hours or more cardio per day to chisel their frames. I don’t know about you, but I can’t fit that in my daily routine at this stage in my life.

The point is it’s not realistic to base your diet and exercise program on the tips and tactics of most of the big name people in the fitness industry. Get the kids to school, feed the cat, run to work, do the laundry, cooking dinner, mandatory overtime, pick the kids up from school, mow the lawn, pay the bills, clean the house, and on, and on, and on, prevents the average person from living the lifestyle which allows for perfect physique. That’s not to say it can’t be done, but it has to be done in a reasonable and realistic way. This is the part that’s up to you. Talk to your Doctor, do your homework, assess yours physical health honestly, and build a plan to help you be successful. While I always took it a self-help brain droppings, the reality is the only person stopping you is you.

Once you have that positive mind-set and determination to succeed at any cost you’re ready to start training. A gym membership is far more valuable than any fancy machine seen on television. There are plenty of free apps you can put on your cell phone to help you track your calories and exercise. The internet is full of resources for food options that will be healthy and clean. I often suggest for people to watch Jamie Oliver’s Food Tube channel for a lot of healthy and tasty cooking ideas. Better food will make you happier and more likely to stick with it. If you try to do a bland diet to lose weight you could eventually lose interest and stray from your diet.

One myth that stands in people’s way is its more expensive to eat healthy than it is to eat processed food. This is another trapping of the processed food industry. Start with a comprehensive food cost analysis of your household. Basically, break down the number and you’ll more than likely find you can feed your entire family for the same, if not less, by buying and cooking fresh. A stalk of celery and bag of carrots will set you back about $4 and will stretch a long way when put in sauces and stews with a little meat. You can literally stretch that $4 out to three or four meals. Add meat and maybe a diced potato, rice, or pasta and you can feed a member of your family fresh, healthy food for under $2 per serving. The same portions of pre-made, pre-canned food will set you back as much as $6 or more per portion.

 Decide what foods you like and build from there. Replace mayonnaise with plain yogurt. Make your plain yogurt interesting by mixing in herbs. Use steam to cook your food rather than butter. Avoid soda, and sugar in general. Make a menu for the week to control portions and food cost. Avoid excessive salt, it causes you retain too much water. Flip over the package and read the label. Incorporate leafy greens and calorie negative veggies in your diet. Stay away from cigarettes and recreational drugs. Don’t abuse or use alcohol to excess. Trim the fat from meats, and avoid a lot of oils when you cook. Know your body and avoid carbs and fat as you need to. Take your own food for work to avoid making unhealthy choices at lunch time. Pre-cook and freeze healthy food so you have a healthy options that can be made quickly. There’s literally hundreds of ways to create, improve, control, and support a healthy diet.

I wanted to take a moment and talk about carbs. For years I’ve never had a good answer on what they were and what they do. The sad truth is there is no simple answer. Carbs can be good (vegetables) or bad (donuts). Good carbs provide the body with much needed energy, while bad carbs will often be converted to stored energy (fat) if not burnt off promptly. Add in a case of diabetes and a person can have a true mess on their hands. According to Utah based Dietician, Paige Smathers, carbs are, in a nut-shell “macronutrients, meaning they are one of the three main ways the body obtains energy, or calories.” As with all foods, you need to know your body and moderate how much you consume accordingly. Carbs can be very beneficial if monitored, or they can cause serious problems.

Additionally, the Pritikin Longevity Center put out a checklist for deciding if a carbohydrate is "good" or "bad."

Good carbs are:

• Low or moderate in calories
• High in nutrients
• Devoid of refined sugars and refined grains
• High in naturally occurring fiber
• Low in sodium
• Low in saturated fat
• Very low in, or devoid of, cholesterol and trans fats

Bad carbs are:

• High in calories
• Full of refined sugars, like corn syrup, white sugar, honey and fruit juices
• High in refined grains like white flour
• Low in many nutrients
• Low in fiber
• High in sodium
• Sometimes high in saturated fat
• Sometimes high in cholesterol and trans fats

When you start training and eating healthy you have to be ready to commit. A former gym-goer I knew comes to mind when I speak of this. She went to the gym a few times per week in a three week period, set her treadmill on the shamble speed, didn’t change her diet, complained she didn’t lose any wait, and promptly quit. If you’re going to be successful you need to start, track your progress and increase your efforts progressively, and stick to it for the long run. Three months, nine months, two years, five years, as long as it takes, you have to be determined and religious about your workouts. If you commit to four workouts per week then that’s what you do. This is your body, your life, and your health. Know your limitations, develop your routine, and do whatever you have to so you’re motivated to keep going.

It’s important to remember that most of us aren’t bodybuilders, models, or fitness gurus. If you were there’s a good chance you wouldn’t have read this far. So if you’re not a model then stop trying to train like one. Get serious about your health, figure out what is safe and manageable for a fitness plan, get support where you need it, and don’t quit working until you get to where you want to be. When you get to the fitness level you want to be at then you keep going. There’s so much to be seen and done, which you may never experience if you don’t take care of yourself. Most people who were asked stated daily activates became easier as they progressed in their training. Still other people stated they did things they never thought they could do when they lost weight and got healthy.

In the 1991, Highlander 2 movie, Sean Connery as Juan Ramirez said “Most people have a full measure of life…. And most people just watch it slowly drip away. But if you can summon it all up, at one time, in one place, you can accomplish something glorious.” Who wouldn’t want to be healthier to have a better quality and quantity of life?