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The Washington Post ran an article yesterday about Wellspring Academy of the Carolinas, a boarding school for obese children.

First there was fat camp and now there is fat school. The tuition is $6250 per month, which according to the article, is more expensive than a year at Harvard. One mom mentions that the school will “bankrupt” her, but when it comes to her son, “we were looking at that — or his life.”

One of the students came to the school weighing 558 pounds. How on earth does a 15 year old get to be 558 pounds?!

The article mentions that these kids are living in “obesogenic” environments and that unless their families change, the kids are going to gain the weight back once they return home.

The story just made me very sad, both for the kids and their parents. I cannot say it enough–we MUST be a positive and healthy role model for our children. Their lives depend on it.

Check out the full article here and let me know what you think.

Help save John from the Oreos!

John, from John is Fit, has decided to give away his pedometer and is running a contest for us.

Why do you need a pedometer? Because chances are you are not taking as many steps as you need to be taking. I talked about the importance of taking 10k steps per day here. The average middle-aged women takes less than 5000 steps per day. That is not enough! The goal here is to move more, so you need a gadget like this to help remind you when you are moving less!

It’s very easy to use and wear, and by the end of the day you might be surprised at what your total step count really is.

I’ve had one for awhile now and it is a great motivator. If I haven’t reached my goal of 10,000 steps by the end of the day, it gets me up and moving (either on the treadmill or just walking around the house) until I reach my goal number.

John has threatened to start eating Oreos until he gets enough participants, so run on over to his site now and help him step away from the Oreos!

Here is an interesting idea, have someone pay you to lose weight!

Michael Rosenwald, a writer for The Washington Post, writes about the bet he has made with his wife. For every pound he loses, his wife will pay him $5. He has apparently tried every diet in the book and believes that only money is going to motivate him to lose weight.

The article writes about how some companies are starting this pay-for-loss trend as well, offering financial incentives to employees who shed extra weight. This makes me wonder though, what about the employees that do not need to lose weight? Do they offer any financial bonuses to them as well?

Another suggestion for motivating weight loss is to take a picture of yourself in a bikini (or Speedo). If you fail to lose the designated weight, then you have to hang the picture in a public place, like your office. This one I might be able to get on board with. Apparently I am motivated by public humiliation and not money!

Click here to read the entire article.

Would any of these methods motivate you?

Almost all of my female training clients used to tell me they didn’t want to lift weights because they were worried they would get too big and “bulk” up like a man. This is not possible!
Here are some of the common myths about women and strength training and the reality behind them.

Myth #1: Strength Training using weights is bulking me up!
Reality: This is the most common misconception that women have when it comes to strength training. Bulking up your muscle requires high levels of testosterone and, therefore, women are not hormonally able to build as much muscle as men. The reality is that muscle takes up less space than fat, so you may not notice a huge weight loss, but you will lose inches when keeping a consistent strength training routine.

Myth #2: Women need different strength training exercises than men
Reality: Men and women have the same muscles and therefore need to do the same exercises. You might see men at the gym doing different variations of exercises, but this doesn’t mean you can’t do them either! There is no exercise that is gender specific, so get out there and start lifting!

Myth #3: All exercises serve the same purpose.
Reality: There are different types of exercises which use different techniques, such as sport specific exercises, rehabilitative, strength training, power lifting, and athletic training exercises. Each type of exercise will have a different program design and use a different technique.

Myth #4: To tone my muscles I should use lighter weights and do more reps.
Reality: Using lighter weights for higher reps will help you increase muscular endurance but that lean, defined look comes from losing body fat. You need to choose a weight that will challenge you and allow you to do no more than 15 reps. Ideally, you should only be able to complete 8-10 reps with good form. If that is too easy, try a heavier weight and start from there.

Myth #5: Strength training will get rid of the cellulite on my legs and give me 6 pack abs in only 8 weeks!
Reality: Unfortunately, there is no such thing as spot reduction. Only aerobic exercise can burn fat. Combine regular cardio activity with consistent strength training and you will burn fat while increasing your lean muscle mass. This will turn your body into a calorie burning machine all day long. Eventually those 6 pack abs will shine through, but there is no quick fix!

Myth #6: I’m too old or too overweight to start strength training.
Reality: No one is too old to strength train! In fact, research has shown that even seniors in their nineties can and do make strength gains. Researchers have discovered that we start to lose about 3-5% of our muscle mass after the age of 40, so it is crucial that everyone, especially seniors, have some kind of safe strength training routine.

Myth #7: My muscle will turn to fat when I stop exercising!
Reality: Muscle and fat are two different metabolic tissues meaning it is not possible for one to turn into the other. With the loss of muscle comes a commensurate drop in metabolism. The body then begins to store more excess calories which will result in an increase in fat.

So, now that you know the reality it is time to start pumping some iron! No more excuses!

I recently re-discovered one of the best fitness devices out there.
It’s not my treadmill nor my Spinning bike.
It’s my $10 jump rope!

This is an excellent calorie burning device that every mom (and dad) must own! Fifteen minutes of jumping rope burns about 200 calories, with some give and take based on how much you weigh and how fast you are jumping.

Talk about bang for your buck! You don’t need to schedule out an hour+ time to drive to a gym, workout, drive home, etc. Just drag out your trusty jump rope and burn some serious calories!!

Here are a few tips for the jumpers who haven’t jumped in awhile:

• make sure you are wearing quality cross training or running shoes that are well cushioned. Jumping rope is a high impact activity, so your footwear should be built to absorb the impact.
• on that same note, you should be jumping on a soft surface. (like level grass, cushioned mats, or carpet) Avoid jumping on concrete.
• make sure your rope “fits” you. When you step on the middle of the rope, the end sections should fit comfortably in your hands and reach the middle of your chest.
• take small jumps. You don’t need to be a high jumper for this exercise…small hops off the ground are best.
• focus on landing on “light, quiet feet”. You should not have to worry about the pictures falling off your walls when you are jumping rope! Always land softly and quietly when jumping rope.
• Relax your shoulders
• turn the rope with your wrists, not your arms. Keep your elbows by your side as you are jumping. (If your arms are flailing about, you are not turning with your wrists!)
• Start out slowly and take brief breaks when necessary
• Be consistent!!! The more you jump rope, the easier it will get
• Remember that jumping rope is fun!

The bonus is that jumping rope is something you can do with your kids and they will LOVE it!!

Mine are a little too young to actually jump with me, but my son thinks it is hilarious to watch me jumping. (which it probably is!)

The bottom line is that we are getting fit, being healthy, and having fun!
Life doesn’t get any better than that!

Do you know how many steps you take each day? I didn’t really think much of it until I came across this article. Research now indicates that walking at least 10,000 steps per day will cut your risk of developing certain diseases/conditions. I’ve always been more of a runner but after having a baby and then knee surgery, I decided to spend more time on low impact activities. When I heard about the 10k steps per day guideline I saw it as kind of a challenge. (I’ve always been a numbers nerd!) I thought to myself, I won’t just get 10k steps per day, I’ll get 15k! I purchased a nifty pedometer (like this one), clicked it on my waist and discovered that taking 10k steps per day is a lot more challenging than I thought!

Now, I’m a pretty active person and spend a lot of time chasing a toddler around the house all day long. In addition to that, I try to walk my dog at least one time per day and take a long walk by myself at night. Even with all of this, I was barely hitting my 10k mark! No wonder it is so hard for the average person to meet this goal. In a study by the American Institute for Cancer Research, middle aged women had an average step count of less than 5000 per day! This is just the average—imagine how few steps most sedentary woman are getting?

So where do you rank?

Your first step (no pun intended!) is to get yourself a pedometer. Chart your daily steps for at least three days and then challenge yourself to increase your steps each day. Keep a notebook or a running tally of what your steps are for the week so you can make sure that you at least average 10k per day.

Here are my numbers for the past 3 days:

Tuesday: 6588 (need to get in another walk tonight!)
Monday: 12788 (yay!)
Sunday: 7892

As you can see, I didn’t meet my goal on Sunday, so therefore I am going to make sure to exceed my goal today, even if that means hopping on the treadmill tonight after the kids go to sleep.

Here are some ideas to help you increase your daily steps:

• park your car in the farthest corner of the parking lot
• if possible, leave your car at home and walk to work or the store
• skip the elevator or escalator and take the steps whenever possible
• don’t use the remote control, get up and change the channel instead
• walk the dog at least once a day. Not only is it good for you, it’s good for the dog too!
• find a walking buddy and make a date to walk each day
• if the weather is bad, go for a walk at your local mall. Just don’t get distracted by all the sales!

These are just some of my ideas, do you have any to add?

Challenge yourself and your friends to get 10,000 steps per day!

What are you waiting for? Put those shoes on and get walking!