my 30 minute workout

3 sets
- 20 burpees to alternation front lunges
- 10 body rows

- 20 bench step-ups (each leg)
- 20 military presses

- 20 stability ball hamstring curls
- 10 stability ball leg raises

today's workout

I'm getting a bit bored of the gym these days so I decided to stay in and burn it off quick and hard:

TRX:
- Push-ups (legs suspended) 10x5
- Very Low Rows 10x5

- Dumbbell swings (just replace a kettlebell with a dumbbell) 20x10

Done in 20 minutes!

On To My Next Mission

Well, if you have and idea of where 2010 has gone, let me know! I can't believe 2011 is already upon us. I've had an incredible year that saw so much personal and professional growth - I've met so many wonderful people and am thrilled have helped them tap into their deeper potential to achieve healthier, happier lives...and of course fitter, stronger bodies!
On that note, I'd like to share with you my new journey into 2011. As I continue to grow with YouFit Health Clubs, I will be transitioning away from much of my personal training projects. As of January 1st, I will be de-activating my personal training Facebook page. That said, I will continue to share my thoughts/workouts/insights on this blog - I plan on re-vamping it (yet again!) so that it can fully encompass total health and wellness.
I realize many of you have been incredibly committed to the daily fitness missions I have posted on Facebook. I would be happy to post workout ideas on my blog once a week, if you are interested. Please let me know. Further, I will always be happy to answer any fitness-related questions you may have- simply email me at nazmina1@hotmail.com or add me to your Facebook http://www.facebook.com/nazminamk

Also, I encourage you to join my friend Rebecca Ingham's personal training page http://www.facebook.com/BodyPowerFitness - she offers a ton of great knowledge about health and fitness!

THANK YOU for sharing your passion for health and fitness with me! I am excited and honored to be a part of your journey. I know you will continue to make yourself a priority and make healthier choices in life. And if you need a kick in the butt...give me a shout!


Sincerely,
Nazmina

Trimming the Fat this Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving, we are going down to South Florida to visit the in-laws. I'm really looking forward to seeing them...I've missed the family and have felt itchy to escape town for a minute. I, like everyone else, am already excited about eating some delicious turkey and his yummy side-friends!

I'm all about indulging once in a while and I do think occasions such as Thanksgiving are acceptable times to 'cheat'. But there's that fine line between savoring and devouring and I know I'll be aware of it. I definitely plan on avoiding the gluttony that runs rampant every Thanksgiving! Will you? Here's a game plan to help trim the fat from our Thanksgiving meal.

1. Choose the protein, the veg, then the carbs, in that order. This should be easy for me because I'm always hungry for protein. However, is green bean casserole really considered a veg with all that creamy mushroom soup and dehydrated onions? Go for the roasted veggies and salad first. I hear my mom-in-law is gonna make a sweet potato casserole (without the marshmallows), so that will be a healthy, delicious carb option.

2. Savor the flavour. With reasonable portions, I'll make a point of savoring each bite rather than shoveling through to the next round. Remember, it can take 20 minutes for your stomach to register being full but only 5 minutes to finish your plate. Then you're on to the next. And then you have two servings of dessert before the 20 minutes is up. By then, you're wishing you wore sweatpants and feeling ready to bust open. I'm definitely gonna avoid that feeling and take my time, enjoying conversation with my family instead.

3.  Hide the plate when you're done. The longer you hang on to it, the more tempted you'll be to get another scoop of mashed potatoes. Either put your napkin on top, or leave it in the kitchen.

4. Walk it off. It doesn't necessarily mean you have to put your shoes on and leave for a half an hour, just keep moving. Mingle or throw on the Wii and play a game with your family. Make it easier for your food to digest!

5. Remember, it's not just about the food! Thanksgiving is about family, friends, and of course, being Thankful for what we have. Enjoy the moment and remember everything you are thankful for. I'm thankful for being healthy, having people whom I love, my amazing job, and living in safety and freedom...amongst so many other things. This will be my reminder when I start to get lost in my plate! :)

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

PS - This game plan can also be applied to the rest of your holiday feasts!

Today's workout

This was tough!! I've switched from high-reps/low weight to higher weight/lower reps for a shock to the system. It definitely is a shock lol.

CHEST/TRIS

-Incline chest press 3x12
- Dumbbell flys 3x12

- Seated chest press 3x10
- Cable flys 3x12

- Inside grip seated chest press 3x10
- Dumbbell pullover 3x10

- Tricep dips 3x12
- Overhead cable extension (with rope) 3x12

- Single Arm cross-chest extention 3x10
- Rope press down 3x10

Arms were jello by the time I got to triceps...but overall it was an awesome workout!

Workouts yesterday and today

Cranked up the weight!!!

Yesterday - LEGS

Superset

- Squat to shoulder press 12x3
- Weighted walking lunge 15x3

- Plie to upright 12x3
- Weighted side lunge 12x3

- Close-stance leg press 12x3
- Leg extension 10x3

- Deadlift 12x3
- Hamstring curls 12x3
- Weighted kickbacks 10x3

Today - BACK/BIS

Superset

- Assisted pull-ups 10x3
- Seated cable rows 10x3

- Reverse-grip lat pulldowns 10x3
- Low cable rows 10x3

- Single-arm high-back cable rows 12x3
- Bent over reverse flys 10x3

- Bar curl 10x3
- Hammer curl 10x3

- Concentrated curl 10x3
- Outercurl 10x3

Wednesday's workout

Back/Chest

Compound sets
- Lat pulldown 3x15
- Dumbbell press 3x15

- Seated cable row 2x15, 1x10
- Incline dumbbell flys 2x15, 1x10

- Assisted chin-ups 3x10
- Bosu push-ups 3x15

Abs
- Standing side-bends 3x15
- Standing twists 3x15

Tuesday's workout

Yesterday - LEGS
This was the first time in a couple weeks I trained legs - trying to rest them as much as possible while I go to Chiro. So I took it easy...and barely walking today!

Supersets
- Basic squats, 15 lbs, 3 sets of 15
- Walking lunges, 5 lbs, 3 sets of 30 steps

- Leg extension machine, 55 lbs, 3 sets of 15
- Plie squats, 25 lbs, 3 sets of 15

- Deadlift, 30 lbs, 3 sets of 15
- Abductors, 100lbs, 3 sets of 15
- Adductors, 100 lbs, 3 sets of 15

6 am Workout

Back:
3 sets/15 reps

• assisted pull-ups
• seated cable row

---

• single-arm cable pull-down
• reverse-grip low bar row

Core:

• back extension with 10lb plate, 3 sets 12 reps
• cable wood-chop 3 sets, 12 reps 

Shoulders:
3 sets/15 reps

• bent-over reverse dumbbell flys
• low-cable deltoid raises

Bis:

• bar curl 3 sets 15 reps
• alternating hammer curl 3 sets  10 reps

November: Stopping Diabetes Over the Holidays

Just in time for the Holidays....November is National Diabetes Month and I'm glad the awareness is spreading during a time when many people put their health on the back-burner while enjoying the holidays. Don't get me wrong - I LOVE Thanksgiving and Christmas...but gone are the days when I celebrate weeks in advance with cookies, chocolate, and eggnog on a daily basis. It can be tempting - but the statistics (and my job) provide me with enough education and motivation to focus on being healthy and saving the indulging for the actual holidates.

Did you know that 51% of the annual weight gain across the U.S. occurs during the 6 week holiday season? Let's think about the significance of that statistic - if you gain 5 lbs in a year, half of that is gained in just a month and half!

Or, say you worked hard to lose 8 lbs over the last few months, you could be potentially sabotaging your hard work by entitling yourself to 'letting go' over the holidays....and then you become one of the several people who feel guilty in January and make all sorts of weight-loss resolutions.

Now for the link to Type 2 Diabetes. Along with genetics, lifestyle factors largely affect a person's risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes. Proper nutrition, an active lifestyle, and a healthy weight can help manage or even prevent Type 2 Diabetes. The statistics for diabetes also give incentive to keep it clean:

• every 20 seconds, someone is diagnosed with diabetes
• over 24 millions children and adults are living with diabetes
• 57 million have prediabetes and are at risk for developing Type 2 diabetes
• 1 out of every 3 children will face a future with diabetes if current trends continue
• since 1987, the death toll from diabetes has climbed 45%
• it doubles the risk of heart attack and stroke
• the leading cause of blindness, amputation and kidney disease

I'm hoping I can help motivate and inspire people to keep their health a priority over the next couple of months. I am going to continue being active and eating well and I hope you join me in this challenge! I'll save my treats for the actual holidays themselves and work on healthier versions of holiday recipes in the mean time.

If you'd like to learn more about American Diabetes Month, visit http://www.stopdiabetes.com/. Check out your local listings for community events to support the cause.

I'll also be posting tips and tricks on keeping it clean over the holidays on my Facebook page. Feel free to share your wisdom too!

Today's workout

Split in two:

- 45 minutes of cardio

- 200 push-ups

Scaring Away Temping Treats

I'm not embarrased to admit that I've been excited about Halloween for weeks...maybe months. I always am - I love the costumes, the creepy decorations, trick-or-treaters....EVERYTHING! Yes, that includes the candy. But would you believe that I haven't had a single bite of Halloween treats leading up to Halloween? Not a small Snickers, candy corn, or a tiny rocket. I'm shocked with myself - how have I been able to resist??? Well, it helps that I haven't purchased any Halloween treats in advance, I'm a big believer in keeping goodies out of the house to help scare away cravings.

But what's Halloween without a few treats, right? I'm gonna choose a few of my all time favorites to have this weekend and I'm so looking forward to it! Until then, I'm gonna continue exercising and eating clean!

Did I Just Get Beat Up??

Cause it sure feels like someone did a number on my body....I am TENDER today, following my chiropractor appointment yesterday! It half feels like I got my butt kicked and also that I had an intense workout - so I'm not in pain, just super tender. I'm thinking it's a good sign...or so I hope!!

I've had acupuncture, athletic therapy, massage therapy, physiotherapy...and have tried to keep the Chiropractor off that list. I dunno why, I guess I've just heard so many horror stories that I've wanted to avoid having someone cracking up my spine.

However, my sciatica has been an issue for a solid 2 weeks now. My piriformis is so wound up - I have to ice it every night and deal with the aching all day long. I've stretched it to death but it hasn't helped...so I finally got a referral from a client to a chiropractor she really likes. She assured me the Dr is organic and not sketchy at all - as in, she doesn't want you to visit her 4 times a week so that she can get paid.

I saw her today and it was a trip! I'm always amazed to learn about other professions - and no doubt about it these chiropractors know stuff that I definitely don't. After some tests that involved pulling, pushing, and rotating certain limbs, she confirmed that my sciatica isn't stemming from a lower-back issue. My massage therapist also mentioned this before so it was good to get a second, expert opinion. It is, infact, my pesky pirifomis muscle which has gotten so tight that it has pulled things out of alignment and really affected my sciatic nerve. It is so wound up that all stretching in the world will not help it until everything is aligned again.

So she first used ultrasound which was the most comfortable part. Then, she pushed and pulled some parts until we heard a crack which definitely made me less relaxed then she wanted me to be. She kept saying "relaaax, let it go..." until I finally eased up and she could do her thing. I think the most nerve-wrecking manipulation she did was to my neck. I have this irrational, silly fear of breaking my neck (don't judge me!) so hearing my neck pop was a bit scary. But I did trust her and I did feel so much looser after the appointment. I will go back in a week to see how it progresses. Thank goodness for my husband's healthcare plan!

I really hope this works. All I can really do is be positive. I will jog again one day!!

Nourishing the Heart

 "The key to healthy eating is learning how to change your state of mind." - Ronna Kabatznick



I borrowed "The Zen of Eating" from the library about two months ago and have FINALLY finished reading it! It's not a difficult or tedious read at all....I just couldn't find a consistent time to really hanker down and get reading. This morning, I was not only able to sleep in, but I finished the rest of the book and felt the immense satisfaction I experience after reading something good.

"The Zen of Eating" is a non-fiction piece examining our relationship to food, our relationship to ourselves, and how to satiate our emotional appetities from within. I've learned only recently that emotional eating is more common than we may think. Fixation, or even disgust, in eating is voiced every day. The writer, Ronna Kabatznick, takes a Zen approach in identifying our cravings and desires and discusses how to find freedom from the eating issues that results from them, whether it be over-eating or restriction. It teaches you how to be more mindful of these desires and to understand everything really is always changing. That happiness and comfort is not actually found in food. On the flipside, we learn how restriction also feeds desire so much power. Finally, we understand that there is a middle way, and the book explains how.
 
Kabatznick does this by sharing a ton of stories about all sorts of people - their struggles with food, their identities with food, their belief systems, health status, etc, as well as a few 'tales' that are meant to illustrate a strong message. I think that the diversity of these stories would make it easy for any reader to relate to, whether you believe you struggle with emotional eating or not.

I found this book to be thought-provoking and mind-opening. I already am aware of certain Zen principles discussed in the book which made it easy for me to relate to. However, this book is NOT specifically for Zen Buddhists, or any religion for that matter...in fact, Kabatznick at one point covers beliefs regarding food in various religions. It's just interesting and has made me more aware of my own eating habits, and those of my clients.

Here's an example of a small learning from the book:

1. When my mind strongly desires a particular food, the power is in that food rather than in me.

2. By being mindful, I am realizing this strong desire and accepting that it is there.

3. By accepting the desire, it is easier for me to let it go.

This by no means is an easy feat, nor is it something I hardly think should be strictly applied to every situation in life. I do think that it's effective when we can't think of anything else but that food. For example, ever get so hungry that ALL you can think about is cheesy garlic bread?

Let me know your thoughts on emotional eating....and if you've had the chance to read the book, I'd love to know what you thoughts!

My workout today

Circuit 1: 3 sets
Stability Ball Chest Press
Assisted Pull-ups
Seated Shoulder press

Circuit 2: 3 sets
Seated Cable Rows
Cable Flys
Lateral Raises

Followed by 15 mins on the stairclimber.

The Efficient Workout

What's your reason for not exercising?

As a trainer, I hear a couple of the same excuses over and over again. One of the most popular reasons is lack of time. Take the business executive who sees 12-hour days in the office, then drives home to do more work. Or the mother of 3 who spends most of her day coordinating the schedules of her kids. These people find it hard to commit to what they think must be at least an hour in the gym. However, what many people don't realize is that you CAN fit some exercise in, no excuses, by introducing Circuit Training to your program.

We're talking about a combination of high-intensity cardio and resistance training with minimal rest time and maximal results. In the gym, an example of circuit training would be going through a series of different machines, one after the other and resting at the end of one round (or not). Or, you can do a variety of bodyweighted exercises, cardio drills, and weight training to keep the heart rate high and your muscles burning.

An example would be:

• run 20 yards
• do 20 squats
• run 20 yards
• do 20 push-ups
• run 20 yards
• do 20 sit-ups

Just one round of that sounds challenging, right? By minimizing the rest time and adding variety to your workout, you are maximing your calorie burn...PLUS saving time! It's why so many fitness experts recommend it - we're all about efficiency and less about monotony. And an added bonus - circuit training keeps the calorie burn high throughout the day.

So the next time you're looking at the clock, wondering whether you can burn some calories in 30 minutes...think Circuit.

My workout

Friday - Upper Body

3 sets
20 Kettlebell swings 15lbs
15 Kettlebell single arm stork rows 15 lbs

3 sets
15 incline chest press 10 lbs on the bar
15 dumbbell chest flys 10 lbs

3 sets of shoulder/bicep/tricep (I changed the exercise each set)

3 sets
20 incline leg raise
20 plank pushes
30 s side plank

Saturday - Legs

3 sets
15 single leg squats 8lbs
25 walking lunges 8 lbs

3 sets
15 close-stance decline leg press 45 lbs
15 plie squats 30 lbs

3 sets
15 deadlifts 30 lbs
15 seated hamstring curls 60 lbs

3 sets
15 seated abductors 100 lbs
15 seated addcutors 100 lbs

Get Your Stretch On

Okay, I'll just say it. I'm addicted to stretching. And any of my clients will tell you that I absolutely harp on the importance of stretching. "How are your workouts? Are you stretching?" And I gotta tell ya, most people I talk to either don't stretch or don't spend nearly enough time doing it.

What is the point?

• improves flexibility and range of motion around the joints
• aids in increasing muscle relaxation - ever tried stretching when you're stressed out??
• enhances circulation of blood to the muscles - bringing nutrients to the muscle and disposing waste byproducts 
• improves balance and speed of certain movements
• can reduce injury in certain activities
• improves posture

I'm sure there are a few more benefits that can be added to this list - but I'd say even this should be a good indication that implementing a stretching program is essential.

Ever had a tight, sore lower back? I often do, especially as a sciatica sufferer and someone who is on my feet most of the day. When I was first getting my lower back issues dealt with, I was told by my athletic therapists that my hamstrings were extremely tight. Albeit they were strong, but the muscles were very short. I spent so little time lengthening those muscles that it contributed to the stress in my lower back. Now you can bet I spend a lot of time stretching all my muscles, including my hamstrings.

However, there is definitely an appropriate time to get stretching. You may have heard from many people that holding stretches before exercises can cause injury. Certain stretches certainly can - this is because stretching 'cold' muscles can increase the risk of accidentally pulling a muscle. It is when there is increased blood flow to the muscles and they are 'warmer' that you can achieve maximum gains from holding stretches.

So, simply put, warm up and stretch your muscles pre-exercise with light, active movements that will decrease tissue stiffness and get the blood flow going. Post exercise, grab a mat and spend at least 30 seconds holding each stretch. Do what I do, and treat it as the reward to an awesome workout and you will look forward to it! :)

Has inflexibility ever hindered your athletic performance? How does stretching help you in day-to-day movements?

Back on Track

Alright, I'll be the very first to admit that this weekend consisted of MUCH indulging. I'm a football fiend (not quite fanatic) and also had the opportunity to 'unwind' with a good girlfriend. Two occassions that brought on a lot of not-so-clean eating practises.

I knew last night that I had to get back on track  - so today I'm pre-making brown rice, veggies, hard-boiled eggs, chicken...and also gonna buy some more whey protein. This is all typical stuff that I do at the beginning of the week...it helps keep me focused and motivated.

And I'm SUPER excited to start training again!!! I went in for a light workout today:

3 sets of assisted pull-ups, dumbbell presses, and walking lunges, followed by some light cardio. I kept the weight and intensity light. This is SO challenging for me, it's funny how keeping the workout easy is more challenging than completing a very difficult workout. Anyway, I felt good being back at the gym. I'm gonna keep it light for a few more days before getting back in to a solid routine.

PS - do you know what tumeric is? I cook it in my brown rice all the time! It's considered a 'super food'...I guess it's more of a super spice - with a ton of amazing health benefits. Check out this link to read more about it!