Pretty in Pink

The ten Warriors who braved the cold and the dark this morning to start their day off with a metabolic workout were rewarded with a bright start to their morning.  Jerry once again showed that he is secure with his manhood by sporting not only his pink shoes, but his new pink shorts and shirt. Those of you who know Jerry, know that he LOVES his blue shorts and shirt so much that we are afraid they are going to literally fall off his body someday.  We know we can take partial credit for his trimmer waistline but clothes can only withstand a finite number of washings before they simply disintegrate.  Thank you for starting our day with a smile.

Sabrina and Jeanne are pretty in pink...  you too Jerry!

Our favorite cheerleader!

Survey Reveals Top Fitness Trends for 2015

If you have been holding your breath to find out what the upcoming top trends in fitness are...hold no more, they are here! According to a big survey done by the American College of Sports Medicine, word for word, the top ten of twenty are....

1. Body Weight Training: Body weight training uses minimal equipment making it more affordable. Not limited to just push-ups and pull-ups, this trend allows people to get “back to the basics” with fitness.

2. High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT): HIIT involves short bursts of activity followed by a short period of rest or recovery. These exercise programs are usually performed in less than 30 minutes.

3.  Educated and Experienced Fitness Professionals. Given the large number of organizations offering health and fitness certifications, it’s important that consumers choose professionals certified through programs that are accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA), such as those offered by ACSM. ACSM is one of the largest and most prestigious fitness-certification organizations in the world.

4. Strength Training. Strength training remains a central emphasis for many health clubs. Incorporating strength training is an essential part of a complete exercise program for all physical activity levels and genders. (The other essential components are aerobic exercise and flexibility.)

5. Personal Training. More and more students are majoring in kinesiology, which indicates that they are preparing themselves for careers in allied health fields such as personal training. Education, training and proper credentialing for personal trainers have become increasingly important to the health and fitness facilities that employ them.

6. Exercise and Weight Loss. In addition to nutrition, exercise is a key component of a proper weight loss program. Health and fitness professionals who provide weight loss programs are increasingly incorporating regular exercise and caloric restriction for better weight control in their clients.

7. Yoga. Based on ancient tradition, yoga utilizes a series of specific bodily postures practiced for health and relaxation. This includes Power Yoga, Yogalates, Bikram, Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Kripalu, Anurara, Kundalini, Sivananda and others.

8. Fitness Programs for Older Adults. As the baby boom generation ages into retirement, some of these people have more discretionary money than their younger counterparts. Therefore, many health and fitness professionals are taking the time to create age-appropriate fitness programs to keep older adults healthy and active.

9. Functional Fitness. This is a trend toward using strength training to improve balance and ease of daily living. Functional fitness and special fitness programs for older adults are closely related.

10. Group Personal Training. In challenging economic times, many personal trainers are offering more group training options. Training two or three people at a time makes economic sense for the trainer and the clients.

 The above article also notes that over previous years Body Weight Training has moved up the list to number one this year. HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) is also high on the list. The market is flooded with Trainers vying for their piece of the pie while the trend is hot as you may have noted in the growing number of infomercials. Only passing years will determine if these really are passing fads or permanent features in fitness.  How about Zumba? Most people have participated in the dance exercises class but Zumba didn't make the Top 20 list last year or this year, so it may be time to acknowledge that while Zumba continues to show up on many fitness clubs schedules it is not the craze it once was. Also in the bye bye pile is Pilates, Indoor Cycling, Stability Ball Training and Balance Training, Mixed Martial Arts Training, On-line Training, Unsupervised Fitness Facilities, water workouts and a few more. Not to say that these programs are not still being used and having success, just that the participation in them has declined while the popularity of the top 10 has stayed strong.

What does this mean for you? If you are one of our Metabolic Warriors it means that you have had available to you 9 of the top 10 Fitness Trends for the past 3 years! And most of you have utilized, and benefited from, the Trainings we offer.  So  throw your hands in the air as we do jump squats and let out a warrior yell for another year of Fitness Success!!! 

-Thank you from Your Personal Trainers

The weight of the world

"I’m on three diets. ..Well, you don’t get enough to eat on just one, do you?"   ~ Unknown

The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don't want, drink what you don't like, and do what you'd rather not. ~ Mark Twain.

If you have been one of our Warriors for any length of time you know that we HATE the word DIET.  We dislike the term so much because rather than using the word as it is most commonly defined in dictionaries which is "food and drink regularly provided and consumed", most people use the word to describe a low calorie, food restricted regimen of eating.  Never mind that as an active individual you need to fuel your body for exercise, every person needs adequate fuel just to breathe and think!

When we ask clients what their goals are when they begin an exercise program, the most frequent responses are to lose weight and/or lose the gut.  Exercise definitely plays a role in weight loss but it is not a one-stop shop.  We would rather have someone tell us they want to be able to do a full body push up.  We can get them there!  Or how about bench press their body weight?  We can get them there!  Or maybe run their first 10k race.  Yep!  We can do that too.  But lose 20 pounds or the belly fat?  Ugh!  Why is it that losing weight is so hard?

Years ago my answer to the weight loss puzzle would have been simple.  Eat less and workout more.  It's all about calories in versus calories out.  Years of research and experience have taught me otherwise.  It is one part of the puzzle but we now know that there are many other pieces that need to fall into place to form the whole weight loss picture.  And after all these years the only thing I am absolutely sure of is that each person's key to achieving their ideal weight is as unique as their fingerprint.  We now know that in addition to how much a person exercises and how much they eat, their hormones, sleep patterns, stress levels, the kinds of food they eat, gut bacteria, and possibly even genetics play a large role in their ability to lose weight.

Further reinforcing the fact that everyone is unique, we have seen participants begin metabolic training and the body fat has melted away right before our eyes.  At the opposite end of the spectrum we have seen participants struggle with losing weight after being with the training for a year or more.  So what gives?  All of the above.  In order to lose weight, and maintain that weight loss, each person has to figure out their own unique map to getting there.  And we know that road can be filled with a lot of wrong turns and dead ends that lead to feelings of frustration.  And another frustrating fact, no matter how hard we work we are not all predisposed to being 5' 8" tall and weighing 125 pounds.  Or, for our male Warriors, 5"10" and 170 pounds of solid muscle.  Many times those ideals or goals that we strive for simply are not attainable for us.

So what is the point of this posting?  If your primary goal with exercise has been weight loss, we want you to look beyond that goal and see all the positive things you are doing for your health that carry much more weight, ahem, than weight loss.

By participating in a program that includes resistance training you have changed your body composition.  So perhaps you have not seen the weight loss you were hoping for, but we guarantee you that you have changed your body composition, trading many pounds of body fat for muscle.  That is why those shorts that fit you fine when you started training are now falling down.  And that extra lean tissue, or muscle, will serve you well.  You are at less risk for osteoporosis, and you have a stronger body that is more resistant to injury.  Strength training has also been shown to help normalize blood sugar levels.  Your cardiovascular system is stronger and you have reduced your risk of heart disease and stroke.  Many doctors and fitness specialists now recognize that declines that were once attributed to aging are actually the result of inactivity.  If you keep up your fitness program, the declines you see will be slow and gradual.  If you stop, the declines are rapid and lead to escalating health problems.

So if one of your goals is to lose some weight, we are not telling you to give up on it.  Just know that it comes down to more than calories in versus calories out and that you are an experiment of one.  You will need to look at factors beyond food and exercise.  And if you have the dirty diet word floating around in your head, replace it with the idea of making healthy food choices that fuel your activity. Also know that what has worked for your friend may not work for you, and a low calorie or fad diet is nothing more than a short term solution because as soon as you stop it the weight will come back on.  Long term success with weight loss or any other change requires permanent change that can be maintained for a lifetime.

So although sometimes it seems that we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, and our butts, or thighs, or guts, step back and look at how far you have come instead of comparing yourself to that unrealistic ideal.  One of our Warriors (name to be withheld) has had weight loss as one of their goals.  And this Warrior has lost weight, but has realized greater results in other areas such as body composition change, and more muscle definition and strength.  On a recent vacation this Warrior left this little bubble that we exist in here in Sedona and ventured out into the real world.  This Warrior's reality check was something like, "WOW!  I feel pretty awesome when I see how I actually compare to my peers!".  Use the progress you have made as motivation to maintain a healthy lifestyle and keep chipping away at those other goals, be it weight loss or something else.

“If diets actually worked, we wouldn’t have to go on so many of them.”   ~ Alexis Conason

A solution that works in the short term, but not in the long term, is not a solution at all.  ~  Dr. Jade Teta

Bio of a Metabolic Warrior: Merenna

Montana Merenna is my first memory of Merenna!  Back in 2001 my husband and I moved into the same neighborhood as Merenna and her husband and quickly got acquainted. They were some of the first people we met here and they made a lasting impression because we found out that they were from the same tiny town in Montana that we were from!!! So that immediately made them special in our eyes.  But beside that, Merenna is easily recognizable with her beautiful smile, trade mark blonde hair, quick wit and glow of health. This vibrant woman in no way personifies or resembles her age. She exudes youthfulness from the inside to the outside. Read on to learn more.

Date of Interview: 10-16-2014

What is your age? 72...there, now you know:)

What is or was your career? Owner of Rader & Morrow Health Concepts, a nutrition business we have had since 1967. Owner of Marigolds here in the Village and various real estate ventures which keep accumulating.

What is your history of activity/fitness? Exercise has always been very important to me and my family. At a very young age I started in dance and because of that, exercise has always been a part of my life. When our boys were young, we always inspired them to be active in sports. We played tennis. I was on a softball team with several New York Yankee wives (that was fun) when we lived on the East Coast. We are original members of the Hilton Spa, long before it was ever called that. Because of my interest in nutrition and exercise, Smart Fitness was a natural progression.

What prompted you to start Metabolic Training? At the time Sherry and Katie started this training I was bored with my training schedule. I would see them come to the spa and do their training in the exercise room each week. I thought to myself that it looked like something I would like to participate in. When I found out the classes were 30 minutes long my interest was really peaked and after my first week or two in their training, I was hooked!

How long have you been working with SMART Fitness/Metabolic? Three years in January.

What expected benefits have you gained from Metabolic? I wanted to be physically stronger when I joined Metabolic. Hiking mountain trails with my sons at 5-8,000 feet plus is not an easy thing to do for someone who is not in top physical condition.  They give me no slack and don't wait for me to take a rest. I wanted to be able to keep up with them on the family outings-I can do that now. They love being able to give me the 'high five'!

What unexpected benefits have you gained from Metabolic? The greatest benefit I have received from the class other than the obvious of being more physically fit is the positive reinforcement I get from my family. They are so happy that I continue with the classes and love being able to come to class with me they are in town. SMART Fitness has actually gotten our son, Tim, to enroll in classes in Scottsdale and it has gotten our daughter-in-law, Pauli, to aspire to greater training. She now does a similar class at 5:30 a.m., goes to work and cares for our two little grandsons. I am impressed.

What keeps you going or inspires you with Metabolic/SMART Fitness?  I am always inspired to come to class-I really love to see if I can personally meet the weekly challenge; I love to see my fitness friends each week. I think we inspire each other to do better. I like that. Everyone is positive and happy, I like to be with happy people.

What hurdles have you had to overcome to succeed in consistently attending Metabolic? I pretty much knew I was going to consistently attend SMART Fitness trainings after the first few classes. I knew I had aches and pains when I left but I could also feel the benefits of the class. I was bored with my trainings at the Spa and knew I needed to do more. Sherry and Katie push me to my limits, I like that. That is something I find hard to do for myself. Coming to class for me is challenging but fun; I find it a bigger hurdle for me to get over mentally when I have to miss a class.

How do you successfully manage to make fitness a priority two times a week or more? Fitness has always been a part of my life; it is something I schedule into my day, just like having lunch. It is good for me and I simply make it part of the day. It is that important. I find that Metabolic Training with SMART Fitness fits into my schedule easily. I love the 30 minute time frame it takes to optimize my needed fitness program into my schedule. My boys consistently remind me, "Mom, use it or lose it! It is up to you!"

How has working with SMART Fitness impacted your life, point of view, changed your outlook on fitness? SMART Fitness has had such a positive impact on my life. I feel stronger, I am stronger! I don't feel challenged when my boys say "lets go for a hike, Mom" I know I can pretty much keep up with them now! That makes me smile.

What message do you want the reader to take away from your story? You are as old you mind tells you. If you keep a positive attitude about life, "I can do it attitude" and never give up, you will reap great rewards. SMART Fitness is a wonderful tool to keep you motivated and on track with your fitness goals no matter what your age may be. It is all about the mind and spirit. I hope to continue with SMART Fitness for many years to come. I may eventually have to do less but I will never give up. I will continue with SMART Fitness as long as I can.

Thank you Merenna for your inspiring story. Keep on conquering those Colorado Mountains with your boys and pumping out full body push ups like a GI!

Arizona Fit Kids 5k 2014

Once again we had some of our Warriors participating in the annual Fit Kids 5k in Cottonwood.  This is a great event that encourages kids and families to get out and do something active and fun together.  As the emcee looked around at the crowd gathering before the race he noted that "he didn't see any adults present".  Thank you, from us "older kids".

Stacey had her game face on and was ready to run!

This was Kate's first Fit Kids 5k and she said she ran "way faster" than running by herself.  

I challenged Calvin to show me his "fast feet" to the finish line and the race was on!

I verified the research that says that as you get "older" you can't transport quite as much oxygen to those working muscles.  But if you keep pushing your limits, it's not that much less :-)

TEN MILLION STEPS & STILL COUNTING (or how I learned to love my pedometer)

Since Janelle bounces between the morning and evening Metabolic Trainings based on her schedule, you all know her.  In case you have a hard time remembering names, Janelle is the woman you may have seen walking all over the Village at all times of day.  Janelle is the woman who runs around like the energizer bunny during cardio intervals in our trainings so that her pedometer will record her steps.  But most of all Janelle is the Warrior who makes us smile because one year ago she set out to achieve a monumental goal and not only did she succeed, but she transformed herself along the way.  Here is Janelle's story in her own words.

My pedometer and I met on 11/4/13. We started out slowly building our relationship for the first few months and then guess what? It gave me 1 Million Steps and a great badge to prove it. I was hooked. I wanted that 10 Million Step badge in the worst way. Together we figured out a plan to achieve that goal before one year - 1 Million steps a months should do it.
By July, we decided we needed to build a buffer of 200K steps in order to balance out the September out of town trip where 30K+ steps per day just could not happen, especially on the 3 days of airline flights. By September, we designed an Excel spreadsheet and were now tracking daily steps to ensure success (anal...most definitely). We prefer the words like commitment and dedication.

Still in good shape and ahead of schedule in October, we could smell that badge or maybe it was something else! We had blisters, calluses and quad burn as constant companions. Spent lots of moolah on Epsom Salts & bubble bath. Not to mention how many shoes we were wearing out.

While money might have been the initial motivator ($100 per quarter when minimums are met - and I've got them all), the 18 lbs that are lying out there on the streets of VOC somewhere was a benefit as well.

So just how did we accomplish this? 15K steps in the am (sometimes as early as 4 am - your headlamp is your friend, even if you only hold it in your hand); 3K steps taking the back way to Weber's for more supplies; 5K steps to/from work each day; 10K more after work. Double that on my days off. Kinda crazy, huh? And I still had time for Metabolic / TRX classes!

To end this tirade, let me just say that 10M was achieved on 11/1/14 with 3 days to spare. Two critical things kept me going on this journey, my workout buddy & friend, Lori and heavy carbo loading with my other friend, Mr. Tequila. Sherry asked me what the next goal was going to be but we were too overwhelmed to think about that. So from 11/1 to 11/7 we crashed, floundering & barely making 15K steps per day. With the help of some crazy ladies in Jerome on 11/8 we have decided upon a new goal....the Brian Mickelsen 1/2 marathon in April. Kinda crazy, but it just might be what's next for me and my pedometer. I'm still working on Lori.

Bio of a Metabolic Warrior: Jackie

Anyone who has been a Warrior for even a short amount of time probably knows Jackie, and knows that Jackie is all about extra credit or bonus points.  I have "known" Jackie since I moved to Sedona in 2005.  Looking back I have to concede that I would have given her many bonus points for her fitness, even prior to becoming a Metabolic Warrior.  I first came to know Jackie through a local gym where she consistently showed up morning after morning, week after week, year after year.  Score some bonus points Jackie!  I am not sure how long it was before Jackie asked a few questions about some exercises she would see me doing in the gym.  She clearly was looking to try some new things and challenge herself.  Score some more bonus points Jackie!  Then Jackie got to witness Katie and I doing metabolic training in our own workouts for about a year before we formally offered it.  Jackie asked more questions and then eventually tried the training.  Score major bonus points Jackie!  We are still working on finding something that Jackie can cash in those bonus points for, but until then here is Jackie's story.

More bonus points for a great speed skater Jackie!

1. Career? Writer

2. Age? 52

3. History of activity/fitness?

As a kid I was always outside playing sports with the neighborhood boys. The only girl around played with her dolls and never went outside, but I played basketball, football, rode my bike, skateboard and motorbike. I was a tomboy. In high school I played all sports until I injured my knee. However, all my adult life I tried to stay active, going to the gym, windsurfing, biking, etc.

4. What prompted you to start Metabolic?

I had known Sherry and Katie from the gym – they are early birds like me and I saw them experimenting with the concept of metabolic at the gym. They’d get on the elliptical machine for just a few minutes, going real fast and hard, then do some dumbbell exercises, go back to cardio, etc. When they started the class I figured it would be a good way to challenge myself.

5. How long working with Smart Fitness/Metabolic?

I honestly don’t remember, but a couple of years I would guess.

6. What expected benefits have you gained from Metabolic?

I’m not sure it was expected, but I’m a lot stronger, I can see muscle definition in my arms and I’ve lost weight.

7. What unexpected benefits have you gained from Metabolic?

I can now do a push up….grudgingly.  Actually, I’m not sure that is a benefit…

8. What keeps you going or inspires you with Metabolic/Smart Fitness?

What I enjoy the most are the participants. I had done some fitness classes when I was California, but the people were so competitive with one another that it wasn’t that much fun. It was very intense and I swear, no one smiled. Here, it is a joy, there is a lot of joking and a great camaraderie with everyone. It isn’t so serious that you can’t laugh, but it is still a very tough and challenging workout.

9. What hurdles have you had to overcome to succeed in consistently attending Metabolic? (emotional, physical, mental)

For years I’ve had a serious problem with low blood sugar and the first time I went to the class, it was early in the morning and I had eaten a half a banana before class. And I really suffered. It was scary with my blood sugar dropping way too much and I thought perhaps it just wasn’t for me. Then I attended the afternoon session and I was fine, so that gave the encouragement that I could participate. 

I also consistently attend since I know that if I miss a class, Sherry will make me make up for it with more push ups. That keeps me on the straight and narrow. J

10. How do you successfully manage to make fitness a priority 2x’s a week or more?

Since I thoroughly enjoy it, I make a priority. Actually, it’s such a priority now that my family and friends all know not to ask me to do something social on Monday or Wednesday nights, and they know that if that is the only time to get together, that I’m going to be late meeting up with them.

11. How has working with Smart Fitness impacted your life, point of view, changed your outlook on fitness?

UGH. Let me think….The dogs suffer on Monday and Wednesday summer nights when they want to go for a long walk at dusk and I tell them it has to be a short walk. I just want to chill. So it has adversely impacted them, but the trade off is that I’m more fit. I guess another benefit is that they’ve come to realize that they don’t get everything they want.

12. What message do you want to share with the reader as a take away from your story?

I’ve tried to get friends to join, or at least try it, but they tend to think the group is super fit and they wouldn’t fit in. So I would say to anyone that is reluctant to join because they think it might be too hard, that everyone goes at their own pace and there is no pressure from the trainers. I mean they definitely push us and that’s for our good and we are challenged every week, but there is no condemnation if we don’t quite keep up or we need an alternate exercise so we don’t adversely impact a tender joint. I think that’s what helps make it so enjoyable.