by Cheryl Broughton,CPFT,NASM,ACE,AFAA
We’ve all heard the saying:”I-N-S-A-N-I-T-Y IS Doing the same thing and expecting different results!”
You’ve been exercising and eating right –so you think. And you’re not getting the results you expected with your fitness program. What’s going on? Why are you hitting a plateau?
Here are just a few “Insane”fitness habits that once corrected,can help you get the results you’re after.
- Stop skipping breakfast –even if you are not hungry! Eating breakfast encourages your body to start using the food as fuel vs. storing fat. It kick-starts your metabolism,ignites your energy level and keeps you from over eating later in the day. Remember –you’re not saving calories by skipping breakfast –you’re actually slowing down your calorie burning potential.
- Stop drinking alcohol every night! Alcohol contains empty calories –basically sugar. Your body can only do so much with all the sugar and the rest gets stored as fat. Being that you never get the sensation of fullness from drinking alcohol,you’ll have a tendency to keep drinking till you’ve consumed more calories than in a bowl of past with Alfredo sauce. Three white Russians = 880 calories!!
- Stop eating just 2 or 3 meals a day! You’re not saving calories –you’re forcing your metabolism to slow down. Eating 5 or 6 small meals tricks your body into thinking it will get fed often. If your body is getting fed often –it will use/the food more for energy vs. storing it as fat.
- Stop doing the same exact workout routine! Plateaus often happen after performing the same workout routine over and over. Turn up the intensity,lengthen the workout or vary the routine. Just keep shocking your body so that it has to keep adjusting (i.e. keep burning calories).
- Stop drinking soda instead of water! Drinking water helps your liver metabolize fat. Not drinking enough water encourages your body to actually store fat. Water also fights fatigue and is an appetite suppressant.
- Stop eating the same amount of food and doing the same amount of exercise as you did in your 20′s! From about age 30 –35,your metabolism naturally starts to slow down because you’re losing muscle (about 3% every year). This means you’ll need to exercise more/eat less calories in order to create or maintain a “fit physique.”You can combat this condition by building muscle with resistance training. Your body requires more energy to hold onto muscle than it does to fat. So,the more muscle you develop throughout your body –the more calories/fat you will burn.
Just like in other areas of life,if what you are doing is not getting the results you want,you need to do something different. Even changing one of these things can make a big difference and get you going again in the direction you desire.
© 2007 Fitness Edge/Cheryl Broughton 1-888-671-6500 or www.FitnessEdgeBootCamp.com
Cheryl Broughton is an author,speaker,Fitness TV Show Host,Director of The Fitness Edge Boot Camp,producer,writer and host of Cheryl Broughton’s Secret Weapons. You can reach Cheryl by calling 1-888-671-6500,or visiting www.FitnessEdgeBootCamp.com .