Want to Lose Weight? You Need a Game Plan

So often, we say we want to lose weight, tone up or get in better shape—-but we don’t really have a plan to do so, and therefore action never takes place.  I’m not sure who said it, but there’s a quote that goes something like this:  “Fail to plan, plan to fail”.  All too true when it comes to weight loss.

So, what’s a boomer woman who wants to lose weight to do?  Stop talking, and start doing!! Yes, I know–easier said than done!

To move from the talk mode into the action mode, you need a plan.  In my last post and video I told you how writing down your goals was a great first step toward better fitness this year.  A game plan is the second step.

In your game plan, you map out the actions you’ll take to achieve the goals you wrote in step #1.

I made a little video for you explaining how to go about setting up a game plan.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

I kid you not when I say that the boomer women who put together a specific game plan are the ones who are achieving higher levels of fitness and better weight loss progress.  This stuff works.

If you need a copy of my goal setting handout, you can grab a copy HERE.

What’s YOUR game plan for making 2010 your fittest, leanest year yet?  Share your plan here at the blog.  Your ideas may just be what another boomer reader needs to get a jump start on her fitness program!

Yours in health,

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

1 Comment

Your Secret Weapon for Weight Loss Success

Okay, boomer gals, it’s the third week in January—-how are those “I’m going to lose weight and get in shape” New Year’s resolutions going?

I’m already starting to see some resolutioners lose focus and fall off the wagon, so I made a little video for you in which I reveal a secret weapon you can use to increase the likelihood you’ll stick with your program this year.

This “secret weapon” is a household item you probably have within 4 feet of you as you read this!  Put it to use as I suggest in the video below—and your resolutions are more likely to come to fruition!

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be filming a few more videos for you to help you get in the best shape of your life.  If you have experienced set backs in your effort to lose weight and improve your health, please leave a comment below.  I’ll try to give you ideas in a future video on how to avoid those set backs this time.

Need accountability in order to stick with your plan?  I’m here for you!

Leave a comment below and let me know what your specific goals are and when you plan to achieve them.  I’m happy to keep you accountable and offer suggestions when I can.

If you’d like to get more focused by using a goal sheet, I’ve made the goal sheet I use for my personal training clients available to you.  Download your goal sheet HERE.

Committed to your success,

Becky

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

3 Comments

We’re halfway through the year!

Three days ago on June 30th we hit the “half way” point of the year. Geez…..where did the time go?? Half of 2009………gone! Time flies.

I know we’re smack in the middle of summer and many of us can get out of our normal routines and fall off the fitness wagon due vacations, family visits and who knows what else.

However, this “half way” point is a great time to take stock of where you are with regard to your health and fitness. Are you where you want to be weight-wise and health-wise? If not, what have you done (or not done!) in the first half of the year that you need to change in order to improve your health and fitness or drop some body fat? Would you like to be in better shape in December than you are now?

Well then, DO something about it! Don’t wait until the holidays this year to realize you’re still overweight, out of shape and needing to make some massive New Year’s Resolution in January. Take some action NOW. Take some steps right now to improve how you look and feel.

I’ve got a little freebie for you here that can help you focus and re-start your efforts towards feeling and looking better. It’s a page from my soon-to-be-released book, “Ready for Prime Time in Less Time: The Ultimate Get Slim Guide for Boomer Women”.

Remember a few posts ago I talked about that fact that what you focus on grows? Well, my little gift to you today is something I give all my San Jose personal training clients when they start with me. I included it in my book for boomer gals because it’s the best way I know how for getting you to focus on what you DO want! I’m giving it to you here, as it’s my way of nudging you to get focused and take action.

It’s a simple goal sheet that will help you organize your thoughts (what you want) and your actions (what you’ll do to get what you want). If you’re not sure what to do to get what you want, leave a comment here and I’ll do my best to help you!

You can download it by clicking HERE.

Now, get to it! What changes are you going to make in the second half of 2009 in order to arrive at 2010 looking and feeling younger, leaner and more fit????

Leave me a comment below and share with your fellow boomers what you’re going to do!

Committed to your success,

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

No Comments

The Power of Focus

A few months ago, I started something new at my FitCamp for ‘Boomer’ Women here in San Jose. I choose a “theme” for each month. During classes, I mention the theme and how it relates to my campers improving their fitness and getting the results they want from camp. Then it dawned on me……I should be sharing these monthly themes with YOU!. Sometimes I’m a little slow on the uptake.

From now on (or at least until I run out of ideas for themes!), I’ll be sharing my monthly theme with you to give you ideas on how to continue on your path of feeling good and looking terrific.

The theme for June is FOCUS.

I believe that what you focus on grows. I’d like you to focus on what you DO want. Sometimes we tend to focus on what we don’t want (e.g., “I don’t want to be out of shape”, “I don’t want to continue binge eating”). This can be counterproductive. By focusing on what you DO want, you will subconsciously begin to change your behaviors and actions. What you want will be at the “top of your mind”. Remember, what you focus on grows–if you focus on what you want—you’re way more likely to get it!

Change your negative, “don’t want” stuff into positive stuff. For instance, I can take the two negative statements above and change them into positive ones on which to focus:
-I want to be fit and healthy
-I want to work on healthier eating habits

See, that was simple!

What will YOU focus on this month??

Committed to your success,

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

No Comments

What can “Boomer” women learn from Oprah’s weight gain?

I believe we’ve learned that weight gain can happen to any of us if we allow ourselves to get lost in the shuffle of life and end up at the bottom of our own priority list.

We’ve learned that even a very wealthy woman who has access to “gurus” of all sorts, “people” to do various things for her to free up her time, and has (or had) a personal trainer and a personal chef at her disposal, still can lose focus and gain weight. It can happen to any of us. Even those of us who appear to “have it all”. We truly are responsible for our own bodies when it comes right down to it.

If you are currently lean and fit–well, it’s because of choices you’ve made. If you’re overweight and out of shape–same story. It’s due to choices you’ve made. The buck stops with you.

I have to hand it to Oprah for the very open, honest and compelling story that she wrote about her situation in the January issue of her magazine. She makes no excuses. She even had a medical problem that certainly must have played a part in some of the weight gain–but she didn’t use it as an excuse and I applaud her for that.

She explains that the weight gain was a slow process. There were medical problems and medication problems that exacerbated the issue. She may not have realized what was really happening as it was happening (perhaps because she was too dang busy getting through the day and paid little attention to her health and well-being!).

Bottom line, as Oprah puts it “I don’t have a weight problem. I have a self-care problem that manifests through weight”.

So, what can boomer women learn from this very public weight gain that Oprah has lived through?

Hmmmm…….perhaps that a little “self care” and “life balance” might need to be on our priority list this year??

I’ll leave you with a quote from Oprah’s article
“….every last one of your choices–from the food you put in your mouth, to the commitments you put on your calendar–moves you toward the life you want”

So, my boomer friends, what kind of life do YOU want this year???

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Tags:

No Comments

Baby boomer weight loss tip #2

Many of us “boomers” have tried a lot of hair-brained diets over the last few decades. There have been some doozies! Remember the grapefruit diet?

Unfortunately, a lot of us are still tied up in the “diet” loop and go through periods of trying to live on a near-starvation diet to lose weight. I really do understand why women do this, but my baby boomer weight loss tip #2 for you is: STOP DIETING.

First, let me define what I mean by “diet”. I’m referring to a restrictive way of eating (usually very restrictive in calories) that isn’t really something you can live with for the rest of your life. Sometimes I’ll use the word “diet” to refer to a way of eating. I don’t mean that here. What I mean by “diet” in this post are things like eating only 800 calories a day, or eliminating a whole food group (bread, for example) or a macronutrient (dietary fat, for example) from your eating plan.

All of the above are examples of things you really can’t live with the rest of your life. The problem with dieting like this is that we lose muscle when we go too low in calories, and when we eliminate a whole food group or macronutrient, well, is just isn’t realistic. Very low calorie dieting really comes back to haunt us when we go back to “regular” eating (and we always do!).

Muscle IS our metabolism! If we lose some muscle due to severe dieting (because our body has had to break down some muscle for energy), we end up with a slower metabolism. This is bad for a boomer body. Really bad. We’ve got hormonal issues to deal with, bone issues, skin and hair that is changing (and, heck, some of us have teenagers at home!). We don’t need to add muscle loss to our list of issues! We have enough things to keep us busy. Let’s not let lost muscle mass be another thing to add to the list!

So, how does a boomer lose weight and maintain muscle? One way is by eating regularly. Here’s a fool proof plan for you:

• Eat small meals about every 3-4 hours. I suggest most women aim for 3 small meals and 2-3 small snacks throughout the day. This keeps you full, keeps your blood sugar steady and keeps your metabolism slightly elevated several times during the day, as your body burns a few extra calories during digestion.

• Include some lean protein, a little healthy fat and some produce in every meal or snack. Protein and fat take longer to digest and therefore keep you fuller longer. Healthy fats include olive oil, walnut oil, avocados, almonds, and nut butters.

• Aim for an eating plan that is 80-90 percent “goal oriented”, and don’t sweat the other 10-20 percent.If you restrict yourself and create a forbidden food list, the other shoe will eventually drop and you’ll over indulge. If you want a little treat, have it. Make it little. Make it really good. And then move on.

• Eat breakfast! Get a jump start on your day and a little boost to your metabolism with this very important meal. Research shows that women who don’t eat breakfast tend to have more weight problems than women who do eat breakfast. Make sure you’re in the right group here :-) .

• Drink enough water. Sometimes when we reach for food, we’re really just thirsty. So, drink a glass a water before you have a snack. I suggest women drink about 1/2 oz. of water for every pound they weigh. The bigger you are, the more body mass you have, the more water you need to hydrate yourself.

As you can tell, I’m not a fan of “diets” for weight loss , as the word usually refers to something restrictive, unrealistic and hard to follow (not to mention temporary). That said, I should to tell you about one “diet” that really isn’t a diet in the true sense of the word. If you need some help planning your food, and really want to learn what a balanced diet looks like, I recommend you take a look at The Dress Size Reduction Diet, by Registered Dietician, Jayson Hunter. It’s a great eating plan (notice I didn’t say the word diet??), and really shows you how to plan out your meals with healthy fats, lean protein and lots of produce. It teaches you how to eat well as opposed to how to “diet”. It’s good, sound nutrition advice from a Registered Dietician who knows his stuff. You can click on the Dress Size Reduction Diet book cover in the right hand column to learn more about the book. Keep your eyes peeled for more from Jayson Hunter here on my blog. I’m hoping to interview him soon, or have him write an article here just for us boomers!

So, there you have it. Weight loss tips that will help you shed weight and maintain your muscle. We boomers really do need to work on keeping muscle on our frame, so I’ll be addressing another way to do this in my next weight loss tip. Stay tuned for tip #3!

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

1 Comment

Should we work out with Salvatore Ferragamo?

I was at the gym early this morning doing a cardio interval workout on the stair climber and saw something really interesting. I see a lot of interesting things at the gym, and from time to time, I’ll pass them along to you to illustrate a point.

In front of the stair climbers at my gym is a row of treadmills. In front of me on one of these treadmills this morning was a woman who appeared to be in her early to mid-sixties. I don’t know this woman. I’ve actually never seen her before. She appeared to by in good health, was perhaps 25 pounds overweight at most, and did not walk as if she had any type of physical disability.

First of all, kudos to her for being at the gym and moving her body. For all I know, it could’ve been her first day at the gym. Any movement at all is better than nothing.

Now for the reason for this post: This woman was wearing a nice pair of black patent leather flats (with about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch heel) while she walking on the treadmill. I’m no shoe expert, but they looked a lot like Ferragamo shoes. Maybe Cole Haans. In any event–nice shoes. Really nice shoes (like, about $300+ nice). This caught my eye. So I kept observing her.

I was able to read the speed display on her treadmill: 1.9 miles per hour, which she increased to 2.0 mph a little later on (FYI: When we are “strolling”, most of us are walking at about 2.0 to 2.6 miles per hour). She had on a nice pair of capri pants and a shirt with collar on it. They looked to be made of a breathable fabric, so I give her points for being dressed somewhat appropriately with regard to clothing. She also wore beautiful, large gold earrings and a lovely, thick (probably an inch wide) heavy gold bracelet as she worked out. She looked just great. Definitely has nice taste in jewelry. She looked very put together and very comfortable (except for the shoe part–I could see her heel being rubbed by the back of the stiff leather shoes).

So, what’s the problem?

First off, the shoes. The shoes she had on, although very nice shoes (really nice shoes), were absolutely wrong for a workout. Her shoes had no right to be on a treadmill! Good, supportive athletic shoes and quality absorbent socks are a must. The only place we should see a “loafer” type shoe in a gym is in the locker room for after your shower. Never, ever, on a treadmill or anything else in the gym. Never.

Second, the workout intensity. Again, I don’t know this woman. It’s possible she’s just getting back into the gym after a health issue. If so, bless her for getting herself to the gym and for exercising. But assuming no health or mobility limitations–the 1.9 miles per hour is just not going to effect change for her with regard to her fitness or fatness level (could be beneficial for stress reduction, though). Granted, any exercise is better than none. But we need to break a sweat and exert ourselves to some degree to force our body to adapt and change.

Frankly, the speed at which anyone walks on a treadmill isn’t my point. The point is–how hard are you working when you exercise? A good cardio workout should get you to the point where your breathing is somewhat rapid and you’re breaking a sweat. Whether it takes a treadmill speed of 2.5 miles per hour or 8.5 miles per to do that is irrelevant. This woman in front of me on the treadmill today just looked too comfortable. As my friend and fitness colleague, BJ Gaddour, in Wisconsin says “If you work out comfortably, you’re gonna look comfortable” (think soft and squishy).

My third and final point: Leave the bangles and dangling earrings at home. I don’t own a lot of fine jewelry. But what I do own doesn’t go to the gym with me (except sometimes my wedding ring). Heavy, cumbersome fine jewelry doesn’t belong in the gym. You’re there to work, sweat and move your body. Your shoes and clothing need to be up to the task.

We boomer women are very busy women. We need to use our time wisely. When you exercise, make your time count for something. Burn some serious calories. Lift some weight that really tires out your muscles. Ladies, we may be older, but most of use aren’t that fragile.

Get into it with your workouts and break a sweat. Get a little breathless. This is how we keep the “middle age” inches from creeping up. We don’t do it by walking on a treadmill at a terribly slow pace wearing designer shoes and solid gold jewelry.

Committed to your success,

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

1 Comment

Lose weight in middle age? Yes, we can!

Whether you were an Obama supporter or not during the election process, I’d like you to consider adopting one of the phrases used during the campaign: “yes, we can”. In listening to his acceptance speech, and hearing the chant “yes, we can” over and over, I realized it’s a great one for us boomer women to stick in our heads (along with all the other thoughts running around in there!). It has nothing to do with politics, though, and everything to do with creating better fitness outcomes for ourselves.

We tell ourselves “we can’t” a lot:

• We can’t lose weight because we’re older now
• We can’t run anymore because we don’t have the lung capacity
• We can’t wear sleeveless shirts because of flabby arms
• We can’t touch our toes because our muscles have gotten too stiff
• We can’t exercise because we don’t have the time

Let’s change that self talk. As 40, 50 and 60 year old women today, we’re a LOT younger than our mothers and grandmothers were at our ages. Although we may not have the body of a 20 year old anymore, we certainly shouldn’t put ourselves out to pasture (verbally speaking!). Statistically speaking, there’s a good chance we’ll be around a long time.

So, let’s adopt the mantra, “yes, we can”.

Okay, all together ladies………….

• Can boomer women lose the weight that’s crept on over the last 10 years? Yes, we can!
• Can boomer women enjoy a fit active lifestyle, unencumbered by stiff muscles ? Yes, we can!
• Can boomer women touch their toes (and stand back up again!)? Yes, we can!
• Can boomer women do things to make them feel and look younger? Yes, we can!

Just like anything worth getting in life, these outcomes take COMMITMENT. They take a PLAN. They take CONSISTENCY.

Can we look and feel better next month than we do today? Yes, we can!

I’m committed to your fitness success. Are you?

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Tags:

1 Comment

Why do women over 40 struggle with weight loss?

Some women tell me that it gets harder for them to shed unwanted weight as they get older. There’s no doubt that pre- and post-menopausal hormonal changes can put a wrench in a woman’s weight loss efforts. However, getting older isn’t a good reason to allow ourselves to get fatter. I believe that many women over 40 struggle to lose weight because we’re approaching it all wrong. Sometimes we just need to “tweak” the program a bit.

Many of us “boomer” women have lived through some amazingly horrid diets and preposterous exercise programs over the years. Remember the ladies “spas” back in the 1970’s that had machines with belts that were supposed to jiggle the fat off of our rears? Remember the grapefruit diet? If only they had worked………

But I digress. My point today is we boomer women have been brought up with a lot of misinformation about proper nutrition and exercise for weight loss. Even today, I hear my personal training clients and boot camp participants say that their doctors are recommending they add several hours of moderate cardio to their week in order to lose weight. That’s a huge time commitment. Now, I don’t think there is anything inherently bad with long, moderate cardio workouts, per se. But boomer women need to understand one major flaw in the “do tons of cardio to lose weight” mantra. Cardio does indeed use calories while you exercise. And then you’re done. Muscle, however, uses calories while you exercise AND all day long. Muscle is your metabolism.

Women of a certain age should do strength training exercises to lose weight! Did I just say that?? Yep. I did. Many women cringe when they hear me say this, as they believe they will “bulk up”. They cringe again when I show them how to do a proper squat (”won’t squats make my butt bigger??”). No, they won’t. They will make your butt stronger, and they will help you burn more calories all day long, when combined with other full body strength training exercises.

Should you ditch cardio workouts? Absolutely not. Cardio workouts should be part of a well rounded exercise program. I prefer short cardio interval workouts over long, steady-state cardio workouts, though. I’ll share some tips on cardio interval workouts in my next post. For now, hit the free weight section of your gym and pump some iron to keep the post menopausal body fat from creeping onto your body!

Need some help getting started?? Look up in the right hand corner of this page–there’s a workout there for you. Just fill in your first name and your primary e-mail address and I’ll send you a quick upper body workout you can do at home or at the gym!

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

No Comments

San Jose lady “boomers” will be getting lean!

If you’re in the San Jose, CA area, please make sure to check out the press release below that announces my newest camp for “boomer” ladies:

Baby Boomers. They’re not planning to “get old” without a fight. But how does a Baby Boomer battle a slowing metabolism and an expanding waistline? Not through long, moderate cardio workouts and extremely low calorie diets according to local fitness expert, Becky Williamson.

“Women from the Boomer era have grown up with the idea that hours of moderate intensity cardiovascular exercise and eating as little as possible is the way to stay trim. I think we actually screwed up our metabolisms by following that advice” says Williamson, an Exercise Physiologist and Baby Boomer herself. “Women have sacrificed a lot of calorie-burning muscle by chronic low-calorie dieting and staying away from strength training due to the fear of “bulking up”.

Frustrated with seeing so many over-forty women do all the wrong things in order to get slim, Williamson has created a fitness camp for women over 40 to train them to do exercises that will boost their metabolism. “Muscle IS your metabolism”, Williamson explains. I’ve created a format that pairs strength training exercises done in rapid succession with short bouts of cardiovascular exercise. One of the best things about this format is that I can give women a strength AND cardiovascular workout in about 40 minutes. That’s a lot better than an hour and a half at the gym! “

Recent studies have shown that bursts of higher intensity exercise followed by brief recovery exercise may indeed be more advantageous for body fat loss than longer, more moderate intensity exercise. Short bouts of higher intensity exercise isn’t for everybody, but Williamson believes that with proper form and by building up fitness slowly, just about anybody can benefit from this type of training.

Women over 40 in the Bay Area will get their first chance to experience Williamson’s unique program this November in Willow Glen. The “Fit and Fabulous Fit Camp for Women” will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays in November from 6:30-7:15 am November 4th through November 20th at St. Francis Episcopal church located at 1205 Pine Ave. Tuition for the 6 class camp is $90 and includes handouts on nutrition and weekly email support from Williamson.

Those interested in learning more about the program can log on to www.lifesportfitness.net/FitFab/index.html for more information.
####

Okay, there you go ladies! If you’re in my neck of the woods, I’ve got a special class coming up in November just for YOU!

Committed to your success,

Becky

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

1 Comment