What are some of the important upcoming fitness trends? What does the latest research indicate is the “best” way to get and stay healthy? Can someone really give you a cold or are you taking the cold from them? And what do menopause and HIIT have in common?

At the recent IDEA Personal Trainer Institute, which Kymberly and I attended (and spoke at), we covered a variety of topics relevant to you and your fitness goals. At past fitness conventions we’ve listened to speakers who are so cutting-edge that they are called quacks…until their information turns out to be accurate and helpful.

So put on your “duck” shoes and let’s waddle through some of the information and posts we gathered from a number of presenters and colleagues. Read the linked posts so that you can be fully ahead of the rest of the gaggle (is that what they call a group of ducks?).

From “Boosting Your Immunity” with Teri Mosey, PhD
* For every thought you have, you release a chemical that goes to the rest of your body. What do you think happens to your body with repeated thought?
* Ninety percent of your thoughts today are the same as yesterday’s.
* We have a second brain, called the “enteric” brain.
* We have more brain cells in our stomachs than in our neo-cortex.
* Every 7-10 years we are physically a new person.
* You are the age you think your body is (I’m 39. I’m 39. I’m 39. I think I can. I think I can.)
* Most of us are too acidic and need more alkaline. Cancer cells grow in acidic space.
* Habitual coffee drinkers are more prone to osteoporosis and have become too acidic.
* You know what the Standard American Diet is – S.A.D.!
* 3-minute or poached eggs are anti-inflammatory; once the yoke is hard, it’s pro-inflammatory.
* Our emotions are not from the brain, but produced at the cellular level.

Kymberly wrote a post about falling – fears and injuries – from a full-day session she attended, which has some very helpful information.
* Thirty-three percent of older adults fall every year.
* Women break arm bones; men break their heads.
* People use the A.S.H. strategies to maintain balance (you have to click the link to know what ASH stands for)
* You need more core work.

Getting brekkie with fitness colleague Pamela Hernandez at IDEA PTI West

Our FitFluential colleague Pamela Hernandez wrote an excellent post entitled Fit Tips from IDEA Personal Trainer Institute West about two philosophies she sees in the fitness industry – one is to stick to traditional, government-recommended standards, while the other emphasizes just getting people to move a little more. As a person who embraces technology, Hernandez welcomes its further blending with fitness. Oh, and she liked our session on social media. Twitter Shout Outs to her for that!

In the post Breaking the Barriers to Exercise, Jacquie Scarlett expounds on the need to make exercise more approachable to the average person. In one section she states, “The fitness industry is not designed to meet the needs of the sedentary population because the fitness industry’s idea of exercise is too high.”
Jacquie’s post really makes us wonder what it would take to get you to like exercise if you currently don’t.
* Is rolling a ball across the floor considered exercise?
* Do you think exercise is different than daily movement?

Hayley Hollander gave a workshop on programming for peri- and post-menopausal women.
* When our hormones are out of balance, we end up with excess cortisol.
* Excess cortisol causes us to eat more (among other not fun things).
* We need to do exercise that doesn’t exacerbate the amount of cortisol in our system.
* Meaning…High Intensity Interval Training
* High Intensity does not mean High Impact, so jumping until your uterus falls out is not necessary!

On an unrelated note, while you’re not jumping (unless it’s for joy), exercise your right to help me with a water awareness campaign I’m participating in please. BLANCO America is supporting a “Water for People” campaign via Pinterest. I believe water inequality is one of the most reprehensible and avoidable human conditions in the world today. Everyone deserves access to potable, pure water. Feel free to Like my pins while you’re there. That’s the spirit!
Oh, if you view this video before May 30, BLANCO will contribute a dollar for every view to “Water for People.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

Have a Clicky, Fit day!

After 3 decades’ teaching fitness on 4 continents in 4 languages, Alexandra and I have been asked a lot of interesting fitness questions. As you might suspect, people all over the world have similar concerns and workout goals. And many of the questions repeat. Over time, generations, and borders. Over and over.

Can you guess which questions are the most common? Is the fitness question that often flits across your mind on our list of FAQs? Did you know that baby boomers ask basically the same questions as college students?

To be totally honest, one of the following questions is made up. A plant. A bogus item inserted to pique your curiosity.  Can you figure out which one is not like the others? (Remember that game from childhood?)

Drum roll and envelope please for the Top Workout Questions asked of Kymberly and Alexandra and probably many other fitness professionals. For some answers, click on the accompanying links:

1. What’s the best way to lose weight? (Answer: Lose Weight or Maintain Weight Loss? )
2. How do I lose these last 10 pounds? This month? (Answer: Lose 10 Pounds in 4 Weeks)
3. How do I lose the pudge/muffin top around my middle? (Seeing a theme thus far?)
4. What workout shoes do you recommend? (Answer: The best shoe for you depends on many factors and several footwear posts)
5. What’s the best cardio activity? (Answer: Walk or Run to the Best Cardio Workout)
6. Is it better to walk or run? (Answer: Walk or Run to the Best Cardio Workout)
7. What music did you just play as I loved/ hated it. So please play it never/ again. (Answer: The Ultimate Playlist of Your Fit Life)
8. How do I get to be more like you? (Answer: Who are we really? Telling Twins Apart
9. Which should I do first: strength training or aerobics? (Answer: Weights or Cardio – Who’s On First?)
10. Am I doing (this exercise) correctly?
11. Why does it hurt when I do (this)?
12. What’s the best exercise to address (this area)?
13. What do you recommend for someone starting out with a fitness program? (Answer: I Want to Lose 100 Pounds)
14. If my knee hurts, what activities do you suggest I do/ avoid? (Answer: The Knights Who Say “Knee”)
15. Do you know the way to San Jose? (Is that tune now in your head? To quote Stephen Colbert, “you’re welcome”).
16. What do I have to do to get a 6-pack? (Answer: Want Washboard Abs? One 6 Pack to Go)

Admit it, did you get to question #8 and think you’d spotted the imposter? Until you got to #14 then doubt set in? True story – the former is a real and oft-asked question. Ok, so we were asked it a lot more when we were in our 20s and 30s. It still counts.

Was your pressing question in the list above? If not, stick it in the comments section below.

As you work your way down to enter your nagging active aging question, please enjoy a few photos from our trip to Thailand with our mom.  Unrelated (the pics to this post, not us to our mom) and gratuitous, these photos are just a few of our faves.

Reclining Buddha

Wat (temple) towers- Thailand

Thailand temple with Chinese influence

Temple roof and columns in Thailand

Buddhist Bells at Thailand Wat

Jewels and Detail from Royal Barge in Bangkok

The most common question on our minds: Why not subscribe to our YouTube channel to get video that will improve your fitness status? Have you subscribed yet to our blog? (Our second most common question).  Please also follow us on Twitter: AlexandraFunFit and KymberlyFunFit and Instagram: KymberlyFunFit and AlexandraFunFit. Or click now on the icons above. You’ll be especially happy to do so if you like seeing our Thailand pics as we share more of them there.

Do you like organic, fresh ingredients? Do you like to bake or cook? And please say you like Thai food.

Fruits of Thailand

In March we spent 3 days at the Natural Products Expo West, then went to Thailand for 3 weeks. We should just rename March as “Delicious Food Month.” We want you to have a delicious April, so we have some pictures and recipes of a few of the sweet dishes.

Thai coconut pancakes w/ veggies on top

Coconut Pancakes (not the same as U.S. coconut pancakes)

2 cups coconut milk (we like Native Forest from Edward And Sons)
2 eggs (we can’t all shop at my son’s chicken coop, so we recommend Happy Egg Co. and Pete and Gerry’s Organic Eggs)
1 ½ cups rice flour
3 Tbsp. glutinous rice flour (available at Asian markets)
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
½ cup corn or green onion

Mix the flours, salt and powder. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, coconut milk and sugar. Pour the batter into the dry ingredients and whisk together. Heat a poffertje pan (also known as abelskiver pan to medium high, then add just a drop of oil to each depression. Pour in batter and drop a pinch of the veggies on the top of each pancake. Unlike poffertjes, Thai coconut pancakes do not get flipped. When the center looks cooked (they should be a bit soft), remove the pancakes using a chopstick.

* If you don’t have this type of pan, you can use a crepe pan and make these crepe-style.

Fresh coconut pancakes

Sticky Rice with Mango and Coconut Milk

Fresh sticky rice with mango and coconut milk – 40 baht (less than $2)

1 cup sticky (glutinous) rice
1 cup coconut milk
1 mango cut into bite-size pieces

Don’t use a rice cooker, as the result won’t be quite right. You can use a steamer, but I’m going to share the quicker version using a microwave. Soak the rice in a glass bowl in warm water for 10 minutes. The water should come just over the rice. Cover and microwave for about 3 minutes. Stir fully and cook another 3 minutes. If it’s done, all the rice should be translucent. Pour ¾ cup of the milk over the rice and stir just to mix. Put the mango on top and pour the remaining ¼ cup over the top.

Coconut Crusted Peanuts with Kaffir Lime Leaves
We discovered this snack at a local market and became big fans. As we didn’t have a chance to get the recipe, we will turn you over to a wonderful version by chef Robert Danhi, a Beard nominee for his Asian cuisine cookbook.
 

Thai Iced Tea and Iced Coffee

Identical twins are NOT the same – Alexandra prefers vanilla; Kymberly, chocolate. And we both spent a lot of time taste-testing the Thai versions of iced tea (Kymberly) and iced coffee (Alexandra).
The tea is a combination of black spiced Thai tea, condensed milk, evaporated milk and sugar. We found out that the recipe changes as you travel around Thailand, but this is essentiallly it. As to the coffee, just switch out strong coffee for the tea, and eliminate the sugar! If you want to take the easy route, Taste Nirvana makes a bottled version of both, and they use coffee beans from Chiang Rai (we saw those for ourselves) and tea leaves from Chiang Mai (we went there too)!

We worked hard to find the best Thai iced tea and coffee

Thai food is enjoyable in many forms!

If we wrote about ALL the great food we found in Thailand or at the Natural Products Expo, this would be a book, not a blog post, so we’ll stop here for now.

Kob Kuhn Kah which means “thank you” in Thai (this is the female version, which we happen to be). Koh Hai Cha-roen Ar-harn – Enjoy your meal.

Show your good taste by subscribing to our YouTube channel and blog. Please also follow us on Twitter: AlexandraFunFit and KymberlyFunFit and Instagram: KymberlyFunFit and AlexandraFunFit. Or click now on the icons above. Then go have some salt fish or shrimp in a leaf or a blue sweetpea drink. 

She’s small and mighty — mighty inspiring! Today’s guest post comes from a baby boomer friend we call “The Golden One,” Jody Goldenfield. You can trust her to share truth about what she admits women may not want to hear: “Menopause sucks!”  But it can suck less if you follow Jody’s story and advice.

At 55 years old, I have had 7 plus years of experience with the “change.” Women can begin having hormone changes from the early 40’s into the 50’s with numerous symptoms from irritability to night sweats to hot flashes to depression to anger to hair growth – just to name a few! I KNOW – aren’t you all looking forward to this if you are not there yet?

As much as all of the above symptoms are a pain in the arse, I think the one part of changing hormones that drives women crazy the most is the dreaded weight gain! We are minding our own business and living a healthy life when all of a sudden our bodies decide to fight us!

I started perimenopause in my late 40’s. It was not too bad then. Once I hit 50, well, all hell broke loose! I could do a whole other post on symptoms beyond weight gain, which come and go and come and go and come and go for years. For this guest post, I am going to focus on weight gain and what we can do to manage and reverse it.

Experts’ words of advice most often are:

1. Start resistance training/weight training if you have not done that already. I HOPE you are already doing this because it is so important beyond weight management for aging  Bone health is on top of that list! Muscle burns more calories when your body is at rest so make it a fat burning machine by lifting weights. If you need help, find an accredited trainer. There are also fitness professionals specific to the aging population – like the twins here!

2. Up the intensity of your cardio sessions. Try to do more in the same amount of time or you may have to add in a couple more sessions per week. I know this is not what many want to hear but you may have to do this depending on your goals.

3. Manipulate your food intake to find what works best for you regarding FOOD! 75% to 80% of weight loss and weight maintenance is all about the food. Unfortunately, you can’t out-train a bad “diet.” As we age, the same amount of food can now be too much food due to changing hormones.  You most likely will have to reduce how many calories you consume depending on your current intake. Managing weight gain will be a mixture of food swaps, calorie intake, and exercise.

• Be careful about the types of carbohydrates (carbs) in your diet. Carbs are not the enemy as some say BUT the types of carbs are crucial to weight loss and maintenance. Vegetables, sweet potatoes and complex carbs are great.
• Protein fills you up so add in lean sources of protein at each meal.
• Healthy fats also help fill you up. Do not be afraid to eat your healthy fats. This was a mistake of mine as a young woman. I learned my lesson once I started to add them to my diet.

Now, let me tell you what I did so you can get an understanding of someone that has been through this and is still going through this change.

For me, I was already doing all of the above. I was weight training with intensity. I was doing cardio sessions with intensity. I was already eating very cleanly – lean protein, healthy fats, the carbs that the experts were saying to eat to manage the weight. It was frustrating to know I was already doing everything I was supposed to do and still gaining weight, so I had to find a way to make it work for me.

1. I was already a person in tune with my body. I like to say I “listen” to what my body tells me in terms of how exercise and food affect it. I make sure to notice how my body changes when I eat certain foods. Learn to get more in tune with your body rather than going through the motions.

2. I started to SLOWLY change some of the foods as well as the ratio of protein to carbs to fats. I reduced the calorie intake – SLOWLY – I would say every 6 months or so starting at age 50. Sometimes the changes were less than every 6 months and there were times it was more than every 6 months. This is where that “LISTEN TO YOUR BODY” comes into play – so important!

3. There were times when absolutely nothing I did mattered & the body just refused to change. PATIENCE is your friend! Don’t give up and work through this!

4. Also, pay attention to how your body looks and how your clothes fit. The scale, if you do weigh yourself, may not move but your clothes may fit tighter. The weight on your body starts to shift to different places during perimenopause to menopause so be aware of this otherwise the scale and/or your clothes are going to provide a rude awakening one day!

5. You are going to have to decide what is most important to you in terms of how hard you are willing to work to maintain your pre-perimenopause/menopause body. From experience, I can tell you it is very very hard to keep the weight down and the same body appearance as we age. Only you can decide how hard you are willing to work to keep the weight in a range that is comfortable for you.

I know this all sounds depressing and you want to say, “screw it all”! This is life for women. Some have it worse than others but we all will go through it. All you can do is accept it for what it is and decide what you are willing to do, how hard you are willing to work and honestly, how important it is for you to stay at your pre “change of life” weight. It is hard to stay there so it is not a bad thing if you decide that 5 pounds’ extra is OK. Everything in life is relative to what works for you long term

I have found a couple wonderful sources of information I would like to share with you.

1. Ellen Dolgen at http://www.shmirshky.com/ is an expert in this field. Her website has resources to help you through this along with a directory of doctors specific to “the change”. She has also written books that will make you laugh out loud while still giving you the information you need to manage this time in your life.

2. If you are looking for sleepwear to help you through the night sweats & hot flashes, check out Dry Babe at http://www.drybabe.com/.

I am open to questions if any of you want to email directly at jody@truth2beingfit.com. I could have written another 5 pages on “my life during perimenopause & menopause” but I am sure this has gone on way too long already!
Bio: For those who don’t know me, my name is Jody Goldenfield & I blog at Truth2BeingFit, http://www.truth2beingfit.com. I am 55 years old and have been working out for over 30 years. I love to weight train but I also do my cardio! I admit to having done many things wrong when I was younger but I learned from those mistakes. My motto is “always learning” and “always a work in progress.” I plan to continue to challenge myself each and every day no matter what age. Age is just a number!

You can also find me on Twitter at @truth2beingfit, Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/jody.goldenfield and Instagram at truth2beingfit

Thank you to Kymberly & Alexandra for allowing me to guest post here today!

We hope and suggest that you check out Jody’s blog. You’ll start each week out positively with her “Gratitude Monday.” You’ll end your week pumped up by a woman whose enthusiasm for resistance training will motivate you. Hop over now!

Take no more pauses. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and blog. Please also follow us on Twitter: AlexandraFunFit and KymberlyFunFit and Instagram: KymberlyFunFit and AlexandraFunFit. Or click now on the icons above.

“Get rid of carbage – those calories that go in the trash can, not your mouth,” advises today’s guest and fitness expert, Nicki Anderson. We can never get enough of Nicki, who is an award winner, all around smartypants, and wise woman. Once you read her, you’ll also want more. And you can get more in the radio interview we had with her on this critical subject. Yes, she’s that good!

The dieting world is a multi-billion dollar industry enticing you at every turn to invest in miracle weight loss program. Unfortunately for about 95% of the population these diets rarely work. This leaves dieters feeling frustrated, perhaps a bit betrayed, and most detrimental, like a failure.

To start on the road to a healthier you, discover the 5 nutrition mistakes you need to avoid in order to reclaim your health and body!  No more diets, just a healthier, happier you!

We can all agree that diets for the most part do not work. Typically they are short lived as few people can sustain the type of deprivation that many diets require. Or if results don’t happen as quickly as we’d like the diet ends.

Weight loss is not an enigma if approached correctly. Believe enough in your ability to make the right call when it comes to what you put in your mouth. You know what’s healthy and what isn’t. You know what enhances your health and what detracts from it.

Mistake #1: Jumping on a “Miracle” diet fad. Get back to basics.

If diets worked, obesity would be eliminated. Today with so many options, food is confusing. But if you think about the way our grandparents ate it was pretty simple. They didn’t have the abundance of junk food, fast food, and processed foods that we have today. So why not eat like your grandparents? Include more fruits and veggies. Get rid of snacks, especially processed ones. Make sure your grains are whole grains and your proteins are lean. Watching portions with all food groups is vital for your success!

Mistake #2: Skipping breakfast. Start the day by stoking your fire.

I’m still amazed with the number of people I meet who skip breakfast. In all my years of training, the clients who struggled the most with weight loss were the ones who didn’t eat a morning meal. I know you’ve heard this a million times, but it bears repeating: when you skip breakfast it wreaks havoc with your metabolism. When you eat breakfast, it’s like throwing wood in a fireplace; it ignites the fire (metabolism). Eating breakfast also keeps your body working efficiently, i.e. burning calories versus storing them. If you want to drop some weight, eat breakfast and skip the fancy latte.

Mistake #3: Thinking sugar free means healthy. Question sugar free foods.

Sugar-free products continue to grow and share space in Americans’ cupboards. Between soda pop, yogurts, cookies, etc. sugar free does not mean healthy. In fact, very often the calories can be higher in sugar free items because they have to kick up an ingredient like fat to make it taste better. The best thing you can do for your body and weight loss efforts is to review #1. The body doesn’t like processed foods which many of the sugar free products are. If you’re looking for sugar free, you’ll be able to find plenty of whole, fresh foods that are void of chemical flavors with a whole lot more nutrition.

Mistake #4: Believing a “free” lunch (or breakfast, or dinner) will do the trick.

No mistake! This healthy dish tastes even better than it looks!

Watch out for trends. Fat-free, sugar-free, gluten-free, carb-free and on and on. What’s a woman to do? Whenever there is a trend that promises to be the latest answer to weight loss, people jump all over it. Though there are certain people with pre-existing disease who need a special diet, most of us don’t need to go gluten-free or carb-free to get healthy. Again, trendy foods can be processed and full of things your body doesn’t need. So the next time a trend hits a magazine cover, remember it isn’t the answer to your weight loss woes.

Mistake #5: Setting unrealistic expectations. Make one small change at a time.

This is probably the most important part of the weight loss puzzle. Be realistic about what you want to attain. It’s unfortunate that so many women want desperately to lose weight yet just can’t seem to find what works. Lofty goals are frequently set and rarely met. Start off with eliminating one unhealthy food. Once you’ve mastered that, move on to the next. That’s realistic! The best thing you can do for yourself is to honor your body by giving it whole, fresh foods as often as possible. Giving up certain foods can be very hard, but once you start eating better the craving for less healthy foods dissipates. Trust me. As someone who lived on fast-food, the idea of giving it up was tough.

Solutions 1-5

As women we have everything we need to be a healthy weight and it starts with trust. Trust yourself enough to know that you have the ability to make the right choices for your body. Diets don’t know you or your lifestyle; only you do. Take it slow, make gradual changes and I can guarantee that a year from now you’ll be better off than you’d be if you had been through a series of diets. Take charge of your health and nutrition mistakes will be a thing of the past!

Nicki Anderson entered the fitness industry over 25 years ago after losing close to 50 pounds. Fast forward to 2008/2009 when she was named IDEA Personal Trainer of the Year, after succeeding as a business owner, fitness pro, and club customer service consultant.  Learn more from her about reaching your fitness goals via her books, the most recent of which is, Nicki Anderson’s Single Step Weight Loss; 101 No-Nonsense Tips for Healthy Living, Weight Loss and a Diet-Free Life. But why stop there when you can enjoy her blog, Thoughts on Health, Family, and Life After 50.  You can also find and friend her on Facebook. We warn you – she’s funny!

Make no mistake – subscribing to our YouTube channel and blog is a fulfilling move. Please also follow us on Twitter: AlexandraFunFit and KymberlyFunFit and Instagram: KymberlyFunFit and AlexandraFunFit. Or click now on the icons above.