When an injury occurs, our body responds with an immediate immune response.  White blood cell proliferation  leads to inflammation at the injured area.  General guidelines recommend RICE  (rest, ice, compress, elevate) immediately after an injury.  Something as simple as a sprained ankle demands immediate attention to keep swelling down; stop the activity, ice the area with a cold pack or ice wrapped in a towel and finally elevate and apply compression.

It is also important you differentiate between  when an injury needs “rest” or immediate attention.  In the case of a sprain, if the area is still painful one week later or swelling lasts for more than a two weeks, you need to visit your doctor.  On the other hand,  if you hear a “popping” noise at the time of the injury, experience severe pain, notice a change in color, or feel numbness or tingling, you should see a doctor immediately.

As you injury begins to heal, you may be tempted to jump right back to your previous activity level.  The problem is, the muscle may spasm if challenged too soon leading to further inflammation and formation of adhesions around the injured area.  The adhesions may impede movement in the injured area forcing other muscles to compensate.  Over time new neuromuscular connections develop that can permanently alter posture and alignment. These muscle imbalances increase risk of future injuries.  This process is known as the cumulative injury cycle.

So what is the proper recovery time after an injury?  Certainly that will depend on the extend of your injury but a good rule of thumb for minor injuries (sprains, muscle impingements, ligament inflammation) , is to completely rest the area for one to two weeks.  If the swelling has gone away and you remain pain free after a light workout, you can gradually increase your intensity and duration to pre-injury levels.  If pain or inflammation returns following activity, repeat the RICE process.  If pain still continuos, a trip to the doctor may be necessary.  More serious injuries will require immediate attention by a doctor, a significant period of inactivity in the injured limb and a post-rehab program developed by a licensed physical therapist.  Physical therapist undergo extensive training in muscle and ligament mechanics, muscle imbalances and neuromuscular connections.  They will design a program specific to your injury and needs.  Once a physical therapist clears you for exercise, they will release you to a personal trainer or let you know of any activity restrictions.

Injuries that don’t heal properly or are challenged to soon, can lead to permanent muscle imbalances and limited range of motion.  About 20 years ago I personally suffered from a hairline fracture in my wrist that never healed properly. Like many of you, I still struggle with certain weight bearing exercises and often invent my own modifications.  As frustrating as being sidelined may be, your best bet is to listen to the experts and take a breather when experiencing joint or ligament pain.  Many physical therapist and personal trainers can offer supplemental exercises that will still keep you active but won’t stress your injured limb.  In the long run, the extra care will allow you to play harder in the future.

Any True Blood fans out there?  If your out of the loop, the character Jason Stackhouse (Ryan Kwanten) gets a bit of attention for his physique.   It turns out my fellow bootcampers and Kwanten have a bit in common, we have the most effective fitness routine on the planet,  ”real world” fitness!  Kwanten is proud to admit his famous physique does not come from a gym.  Rather, he focuses on functional fitness, performing basic exercises such as push-ups, pull-ups, jump-roping and playing team-sports, competing in triathlons, and practicing yoga.

The idea behind “real world” or “functional” fitness is simple.  It focuses on full body movements that require only your body weight.  No gym or machines are necessary.  ”Real World” fitness is about playing in the world around you.  Functional exercises strengthen muscle chains, not individual muscle groups.  This allows our bodies to optimally move and function in the real world.  In turn, we are able to safely enjoy and further strengthen our bodies through outdoor play–biking, team sports, kayaking, surfing, etc.

Let’s break down an example of two different exercises.  The traditional stationary seated shoulder press and the functional “woodchop”.   In the seated shoulder press, we isolate only the muscles around the shoulder joint as we push weights above our head and back to shoulder height.  There are very few instances we would ever use this movement in our daily lives.  On the other hand, the woodchop, or lifting a weight from the ground, across our body and overhead, requires a chain of muscles that extends from our heels, to our hips, to our core, to our shoulders, to our head.   This movement is repeated several times a day as we load and unload our car, pick things off the ground, and put away clothes and groceries.  This movement is also used in almost every sport from golf, to basketball to surfing.

In essence, traditional weight-lifting revolves around simple movements that isolate small muscle groups.  But in the “real world” these movements are rarely used.  You would need to do about 10-15+ individual exercises to hit all your major muscle groups with traditional weight training.  Meanwhile, functional training strengthens chains of muscles that are used over and over again in our daily activities and “real world” play.  As few as 3-7 functional exercises will hit every muscle in your body.

Not only does functional training make us more agile, quick and strong but the mix of cardio and strength movements keep us trim and add definition to muscles (think David Beckham) in a short amount of time .  Our bodies quickly become a fat burning machines, which keeps us strong and healthy well into our 80′s and 90′s.

The caveat to functional training is the learning curve.  It takes some time to figure out and perfect the exercises that train our major muscle chains.  In addition, form is important.  If we don’t engage the right muscle groups, other muscles may overcompensate or try to take over.  By properly performing functional exercises, we can work out a lot of the muscle imbalances that come from a sedentary lifestyle or over training a particular muscle group. It is not uncommon for chronic knee or back pain to diminish or disappear altogether once people begin to move the way our bodies were designed.  Participating in a class such as bootcamp is a great way to learn  and properly execute the most effective “real world” exercises out there.

Challenge.  Commit.  Conquer!

Ensuring you follow through with change is often the hardest part.  There are several steps you can take to be successful.

- Make a plan.  You know you need to change but how are you going to do it.  Map out the steps.  You need to be very specific.  If your committing to exercising more, when will you do it?  What days, what times, what mode?  Be realistic.  If you are going to be too tired at the end of the workday to attend a class, you better get it done first thing in the AM.  Studies show that people who work out first thing in the morning, are much more consistent and successful than those that work out later in the day.  At the same time, if there is no way you could ever get up at 6 AM, be realistic and figure out what time is going to work best with your schedule.

- Maintain structure.  Almost everyone does better on a regular schedule.  Certainly there will be times you may have to rearrange your day, but try to stick to the same general patterns.  Simply going to bed and getting up at the same time every day can make a huge difference in stress levels.  If you decide to attend a yoga class on Fridays, do it EVERY week.  If you eat healthier with a more structured menu, go ahead and make the same dinner every Monday night.

- Journal.  Journaling not only helps you be more accountable, but it also can reveal truths you may not have otherwise discovered.  Perhaps you thought your diet was pretty good but when you actually write down everything you eat, you realize you splurge much more often then you thought.  Journaling can also be extremely motivating.  Documenting the amazing results of a workout or your overall lower stress levels can give you that extra push on days you are completely unmotivated.

- Find a Partner.  People are much more successful when they have a support system.  Join bootcamp with a friend.  Change your entire family’s diet.  It can be hard to stay on track after a vacation or slip-up.  By having others to encourage you along, you are much more likely to get back on track.

-Be confident.  New Year’s resolutions can be overwhelming and one huge goal may seem unattainable.  By setting small short term goals, you are much more likely to feel confident and succeed.  Want to lose 40 lbs?  Set a goal to consistently eat more fruit and vegetables and attend bootcamp for 2 weeks.  Document not only your weight loss but how you feel.  How are your stress levels?  What changes in temperament do you and your family notice?

The new year is a perfect time to set new goals.  Take a moment today to sit down with a friend, family member or journal and document your resolutions.  Decide what small achievable steps you will take in the next two weeks to achieve your goals.  In two weeks, REFLECT on these changes and then make plans for the next month.  Be confident and strive to become a better you!

Challenge.  Commit.  Conquer!

- Karla G

At the Office

- Don’t let food be the focus of work parties. Rather than organizing a cookie exchange or holiday lunch at work, try doing a Secret Santa Swap or ornament exchange. We are around enough food and sweets over the holidays; support your fellow employees by not sabotaging each other’s weight loss efforts. Make a commitment with each other to “maintain not gain” over the holidays by promising to not bring in leftover cookies, pumpkin rolls and other sweets. A recent client of mine decided to ban her office’s “Friday Potluck”. Instead, she organized a “coffee social”, offering several gourmet flavored coffees every Friday rather than unhealthy food. Everyone in the office appreciated the change (and I imagine the caffeine buzz upped productivity).

- If you can’t convince people to stop bringing in their baked goods for months during the holidays, AVOID the break room altogether. Pack your lunch, and include lots of healthy snacks such as 100-calorie snack packs, high fiber cereal bars, and fruit. Keep your snacks nearby so you can eat regularly. If you let yourself get too hungry, it will be nearly impossible to keep yourself from stopping by the break-room for a quick cookie pick-me-up.

- Chew gum or have a few mints after your meal. This may help prevent the urge to grab another cookie or two from the holiday tray.

- Find alternative ways to pass the time. If your day is dragging, you may be tempted to grab a handful of M&M’s while you catch up on emails. Instead, drink a cup of decaf coffee, tea, or flavored water. We often mistake boredom for hunger and turn to food for something to do. Often, a simple zero calorie drink will distract us enough to realize we weren’t really hungry in the first place.

At the Party

- Chose your holiday drinks wisely. When attending holiday parties, avoid the fancy cocktails and stick to a basic martini, glass of wine or light beer. Each has about 90-120 calories. Meanwhile, eggnog has anywhere from 200-350 a glass while a a margarita has about 250 calories. The worst choice, a Mudslide tops the charts at 800 calories (equivalent to two large slices of greasy pizza)! A surprising holiday treat (and one of my personal winter favorites), a Guinness Draught with only 126 calories a bottle.

- NEVER go to a holiday party hungry. The chances of finding something healthy are slim. It is better to grab a healthy snack or meal beforehand and have a drink and a few of your favorite treats at the party. Overall you will consume far fewer calories and have less post-party guilt.

Finally, stick to your regular workout routine. By maintaining your muscle mass and scorching through calories during high intensity cardio, you can prevent holiday sabotage all together.

Tabatas are changing the way we think of working out and redefining the fitness world. When it comes to weight loss and improving performance, nothing works as efficiently, effectively and fast as tabata training. What’s the drawback? For those of you who have experienced this type of training firsthand, you know the problem is tabatas are downright HARD. Not everyone can safely perform tabata training but for those that can push themselves to their limits, this type of workout can provide quick results.

Tabata training is named after Dr. Izumi Tabata, who led a team of researchers at the National Institute of Fitness and Sport in Tokyo. Tabata compared the effects of moderate intensity endurance training and high intensity intermittent training (tabatas) on VO2 max (the body’s maximum ability to uptake and transport oxygen to working muscles) and anaerobic capacity (the ability to produce maximum power in a short amount of time). They found the moderate intensity training group improved their VO2 max score by 10% but had no changes in anaerobic capacity. Meanwhile, the tabata interval training group improved their VO2 max by 14% and anaerobic capacity by 28%!. In addition, the tabata trained participants burned approximately 9x more fat per calorie expended during exercise than the moderate intensity group due to EPOC (excess post oxygen consumption). The bottom line, tabata training is one of the most effective tools for weight loss and improved performance.

A tabata consists of a 2o second sprint followed by 10 seconds of rest repeated for 8 cycles for a total of 4 minutes. Normally, the same exercise is repeated the entire cycle. In order for tabatas to be effective, the sprint interval must be performed at a person’s maximum intensity. The small amount of rest between each hard interval makes tabatas very intense. Therefore, they are not for people just starting an exercise program or for people with cardiovascular disease risk factors. Longer intervals with longer rest periods are more appropriate for these individuals.

In order for a tabata exercise to be effective, it needs to be a powerful, simple exercise that incorporate many muscle groups. Examples include running or cycling sprints, burpees, jump roping, kettlebell swings, stair running and plyometrics. Exercises such as bicep curls or leg presses won’t cut it. Tabata training should only be performed 2-3x per week on non-consecutive days. Your muscles need a few days to recover and replenish after this type of high intensity training.

You can do your own quick and efficient tabata workout at home by choosing 3-5 of the exercises above. You can either do the entire 4-minute tabata using the same exercise or you can mix up 2-4 different exercises. Just remember, your rest interval is only 10 seconds so your exercise transitions need to be fast. Allow yourself at least 1.5-2.5 minutes rest between tabatas. Enjoy and good luck (as my bootcampers know, you’ll need it)!

NBC’s The Biggest Loser is a formula of extremes. Extremely overweight contestants + extremely strict diets + extremely tough workouts = extreme weight loss. Although the means are somewhat controversial, the formula doesn’t fail….until last week. If you missed the episode, the contestants spent the week at Camp Pendelton. They completed bootcamp with marine drill sergeants and probably experienced the most grueling week of their lives. The results were a little astounding to the audience but I wasn’t surprised. The contestants experienced the worst weigh-ins in Biggest Loser history. Most either lost a mere pound or two and many gained…up to 4 pounds. What happened?

Nutrition went out the window. The contestants ate rec hall food for the entire week. Many of them assumed the grueling all day activity level made up for their poor nutrition as they cleaned their entire plates of buffet style food. Obviously it did not. I liked this particular episode of the show because it emphasized the importance of nutrition tracking. A few days of not paying attention to the nutrients going into their bodies; regardless of their full day of grueling exercise, destroyed their weight loss goals.

Although we emphasis it over and over again, people continue to underestimate the importance of nutrition. Even the educated Biggest Loser contestants competing for $250,000, couldn’t resist the temptation of filling up their plates up with unhealthy food as they went through the buffet line. The lesson: First, DO NOT even contemplate going to a buffet if your trying to lose weight. Second, proper nutrition and serving size is vital to weight loss. With all the resources available, there are really no excuses. Here are some of my favorite:

Weight Watchers – it requires accountability and uses a point system that is fairly easy to follow. Many research studies support the success of these small group weight loss programs.

Mypyramid.gov – This government sponsored site is no frills. It does not support any “diet” and doesn’t get paid to advertise supplements and powders. It is simply no-nonsense nutrition tracking and advice that is reliable, healthy, and free.

Sparkpeople.com – Another free on line site that also offers the support of the on line community. On line tracking and charts can help you reach your nutrition and fitness goals.

I admire my bootcampers. Their ability to “bring it” day after day is highly commendable. For many people, dragging themselves out of bed at the ghastly hour of 5:30 AM borders on torture. For others, squeezing in a workout at the end of a long workday is impossible. Yet, my bootcampers manage it 2-3 days a week, with smiles on their faces (most days). How do they do it? By not giving themselves the option to not.

Study after study shows that unless your workout plan becomes a routine, you will not follow through. Any regular exerciser will admit they have many days where they simply don’t want to workout. Perhaps they had a restless night, they aren’t feeling 100%, or maybe they had a glitch in their schedule. As impossible as the “thought” of exercise seems, these people still manage to get their sweat on and end up feeling all the better for it. Let’s face it, very few people regret a workout once it’s complete.

There is a learning curve to committing to exercise. Here are a few tips to get you started:

- Schedule in your workouts! Block out time for your workouts just like you do meetings and doctor appointments. Remember your health should be your number one priority so prioritize this time!

- Follow a pattern! Once you figure out the “when” of exercise, you need to decide on the “what” and “how”. Decide which days you will walk, bike, play a sport, go on a family active outing, or participate in a fitness class. Do the same thing each week.

- Stop thinking! Many people value exercise classes and personal training for that reason alone. With all the thoughts running through our brains each day, deciding on a workout can be cumbersome enough to prevent you from exercising. By signing up for a class or personal training session, showing up is the hardest part of the workout.

- Prepare yourself. Make sure you have everything ready for your workout the night before. This decreases the likelihood you’ll suddenly change your mind.

- Protect your time. If you get up at 5:30 AM to workout, don’t schedule something for 10PM the night before. Schedule around your workout time! Trust me, between toddler triplets and a busy job, my day-to-day life is hectic. However, I value my health and the “all about me” attribute of my workouts; therefore, I don’t let anyone or anything interfere!

- Always follow through. If you have an important meeting, chances are your not going to let it slip through the cracks. The same should go for exercise, it is important!

I always say the hardest part of working out is putting on your shoes. Unless you commit to showing up, your never going to conquer your goals. Once you decide on your exercise routine, stop thinking and take action. You won’t regret it!