The Blindside

by Kris Pitcher

No one sees the blindside coming. That's why it's called a "blindside". If you're a Survivor aficionado you are very familiar with all sides of the blindside (BS).

Now, I've been on both sides of the BS and frankly it's no fun to be on either side of it. Having seen lots of Survivor episodes, you might even be able to sense or smell the BS coming...but you're never really prepared for what's about to hit you.

So, the other morning I decided I was going to step on the scale. Sure I'd enjoyed the holidays. Quite a lot actually. I knew what was coming. I wasn't about to be blindsided by the number. And hey, my pants were a little loser even in just a week of clean eating.

But when I stepped on there! Wow! Was I shocked. Blindsided like your worst tribal council nightmare. I looked down at my feet and back up at the balancing weight. Yep, there it was right in front of me. The naked truth.

Caught off guard yet knowing what's coming? How does that happen? Well, I hadn't stepped foot on that scale in at least six weeks. And like I said, I enjoyed the month of December in all it's glory.

If we aren't paying attention, things creep up on us. And we shouldn't really be surprised when they do? Right? Right. It might be smart to step on the scale a little more frequently, to touch base with where we're at.

Don't get BS'd by slacking off your program when things start going well. As you begin to make progress this is the time to be even more vigilant. It's the time to keep doing all the right things and stay on top of your plan.

Congratulations on the progress you're making in 2012! Keep your eyes open and your feet moving!

The Stress Diet

by Kris Pitcher

With the first week of the New Year coming to a close I thought you might be starting to feel stressed out about the changes you've been working on in your life. As I was thinking about this, low and behold...I came across "The Stress Diet"

Breakfast:
1/2 grapefruit
1 piece whole wheat toast
8 oz. skim milk

Lunch:
4 oz. lean broiled chicken breast
1 cup steamed zucchini
1 Oreo cookie
Herb tea

Afternoon Snack:
Rest of the package of Oreo cookies
1 quart Rocky Road ice cream
1 jar hot fudge

Dinner:
2 loaves garlic bread
Large mushroom and pepperoni pizza
Large pitcher beer
3 Milky Way bars
Entire frozen cheesecake, eaten directly from the freezer

Now I KNOW you haven't thrown in the towel quite yet! So much of how we deal with stress is learned behavior and that certainly goes for comfort food. Managing your stress with regular exercise, clean eating, and a positive outlook will have you on your way to success this year.

Replacing learned behaviors like eating, with other enjoyable things is the key. Whether it's a hobby, reading, painting your nails, writing poetry, working in the garden, or taking a bubble bath...you need to replace one behavior for another. Make a cup of tea and relax into the New Year!

Perfection Rejection

by Kris Pitcher

Your success this year relies on many things. Throwing out some of our ideas about ourselves would be a good place to start. So this year, we're starting with perfection rejection.

For those of you who have been reading my blog for a while this isn't news. But for the rest of you...you're not perfect. None of us are. I know this may come as a shock to you. We'll wait while you calm down...

The trouble with trying to be perfect is it sets us up for failure and constant disappointment. The first thing we need to let go of is our all or none thinking. When we work toward something, there needs to be a point where it's good enough. A project can't be perfect. Perfect isn't achievable.

Often, good enough is darn great. Being able to identify that middle ground helps us accomplish more things in the long run, and allows us to be happy with the outcome. A lot of times it's our all or none thinking that has us doing everything ourselves because no one else can do it good enough. Hey, if the dishwasher is loaded...it's loaded. It doesn't matter if it's exactly the way you'd do it.

Next we need to get rid of our critical eye. This goes for how we see ourselves, and how we see others. If you've ever been in a pack of women at the mall you know what I'm talking about. Let go of it. Focusing on imperfections is negative and feeds on unrealistic standards. Again, we're not perfect.

Allow yourself to have flaws. We all have flaws. Constantly pointing them out to ourselves or apologizing for them publicly just sends the wrong message. Focus instead on the things that you are happy with, the things you like about yourself.

Perfection rejection means letting go of the disappointment over every unmet unrealistic standard and goal. Knowing that you are not perfect will help you set realistic goals. As you reach your goal successfully you'll feel confident and happy about setting new goals.

Rest assured that this year you don't have to be perfect. You can give up the perfectionist things that have been holding you back and disappointing you. Give it up for perfection rejection!

Exercise Induced Amenorrhea

by Kris Pitcher

I'm not bragging, but I'll turn 42 next month. And with approximately 30 years of experience...I thought I knew a lot about my period. Cue crickets... Well, as it turns out that film strip in sixth grade didn't teach me everything I needed to know. Not exactly.

A lot of female athletes and figure/fitness/bodybuilding competitors especially deal with interruptions in their menstrual cycle. Guys, don't leave just yet. You might learn something here.

Secondary amenorrhea is the absence of three or more consecutive menstrual cycles. Yeah! I can't wait, right?! Well, maybe, and maybe not. Amenorrhea happens in between 2-5% of the general population, and in up to 44% of exercising women.

Some of the things associated with causing exercise-induced amenorrhea are low percent body fat, rapid weight loss, sudden onset of vigorous exercise, nutritional deprivation, disordered eating and energy imbalance. It can also be brought on by psychological and physical stress.

Sounds a bit like contest prep to me. One interesting thing, which I did not learn in the film strip, is that normal menstrual cycle functioning requires regulated feedback systems involving the hypothalamus, the anterior pituitary gland and the ovaries. Everything needs to be in working order and sending the right signals. Makes perfect sense, I just never thought about it.

So what if you miss a few periods? The primary concern is that this situation mimics menopause due to low estrogen. Estrogen is important for increasing our absorption and uptake of calcium. It helps us deposit calcium into our bones. So, the idea is prolonged secondary amenorrhea may result in premature osteoporosis.

I can tell you from experience, because I know you want to hear all about my period, that post competition within one month of eating healthy fats, increased energy intake, and decrease in exercise...that girl was back in action. And this has pretty much been my experience with each contest prep I've done. The key is getting your healthy fats back in - you need fat to make hormones.

The good news according to Constance M. Lebrun, M.D., FACSM is that many of the earlier thoughts about detrimental effects of excessive exercise on the female reproductive system have been largely dispelled.

It's widely agreed the health benefits associated with regular exercise outweigh the potential risks. There are a number of ways to treat secondary amenorrhea and you should always consult your physician for care. Now you know a little bit more about it. Period.

Muscle Soreness, DOMS

by Kris Pitcher

Did I forget to mention this was going to hurt a little bit? Now that we're back in the swing of things I can see by the way you are waddling down the hall and holding the handrail as you navigate the stairs that you are experiencing something...wonderful!

Delayed onset muscle soreness, or DOMS, is exactly what it sounds like. The first two days following your workout you feel localized pain, soreness, and/or stiffness in the muscle group/s you worked.

Some of us LIVE for this feeling. While others could just as well live without ever feeling this sensation again. Ever! You can have it either way. And you don't have to experience such tremendous DOMS that you can't get up or down from the toilet to indicate you've had a "good" workout.

We typically experience DOMS when we are new or returning to exercise, when we change what we're doing, increase the duration, or the intensity of our exercise. DOMS is caused by micro tears, or trauma, during the eccentric portion of a movement.

The eccentric contraction is a forceful contraction while the muscle is lengthening. For instance, in a dumbbell curl as you curl your biceps bringing the dumbbell up this is the concentric contraction, and as you lower the weight back down this is the eccentric contraction. The muscle is lengthening during the eccentric portion.

The way to prevent DOMS is to work a program which is slow in progression, and one that works in the 10-12 repetition range. Knowing whether you are motivated by the feeling of DOMS, or not, is important for you - and your trainer - and your program should be built around that.

We can do some things to reduce the soreness. We can employ RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation), we can use gentle stretching, active recovery massage, and foam rolling. I love foam rolling for this.

The important thing is to understand you don't have to feel DOMS in order to have had a good workout. If you don't like that feeling, there is nothing wrong with you. There's also nothing wrong with you if you love not being able to walk down the stairs two days after leg day. You're OK.

You might remember "super slow" sets. This has sort of gone out of fashion because people really couldn't stand the intense DOMS created by the slow eccentric movements involved. But if you love DOMS, this is one way to make sure you experience it.

There you have it. That's why you're in pain. Stick with it though because your muscles will become accustomed to the input, the soreness will reduce and then it will be time to change things up! Happy lifting!

Losing Weight by Washing Dishes

by Kris Pitcher

I stood at the sink full of dirty dishes and I had an epiphany. No one was going to do this for me. I couldn't wish them away. The cat wasn't going to wash the dishes and they weren't going to disappear.

I could do them with resentment, feeling angry at the world. Or, I could wash the dishes, which I had dirtied, for the sake of having a clean kitchen...for me.

The way we approach our health and fitness goals is like washing dishes. If we have weight to lose we cannot wish it away. And no one is going to lose the weight for us. We can't close our eyes and reopen them to have the weight disappear from our thighs. It doesn't work like that.

We can go about the process with an attitude of entitlement and resentment. We can be angry at the world that somehow "they", "it", made us this way. Or we can take responsibility and do it for ourselves. It's the only perspective that makes sense to me.

It's the only perspective that makes this work. One of personal responsibility, doing it for yours truly. So, roll up your sleeves and get ready to do the work. You're finally ready to face your fears, to get your hands dirty and uncover the person you want to be.

Each action you take is one you have to take for yourself. You can look around and see if anyone is looking. But don't expect praise for doing what you're supposed to do. You're going to do this because it's the right thing to do...for you. Look for praise from within. That is where your strength lies.

And I'll be here to cheer you on. You have more support than you know. Now, roll up your sleeves the dishwater is getting cold.

Simple Gym Etiquette

by Kris Pitcher

Happy New Year! As we get ourselves geared up to hit the gym this New Year I thought we should cover some simple gym etiquette issues so you fit right in. One of the big fears is that you'll stand out like a sore thumb, and we don't want that.

First of all, it's important to note that legwarmers are back in fashion. You don't have to inhabit a cold climate to rock this fashion either. Guys, you need a strong attitude to pull this one off though.

Your style is important and shouldn't be over looked as you make your way back into the gym this year. It would be nice if you'd splurge for some things that fit you...now. Not at your goal weight. Just a suggestion.

Next, when you are staking out your treadmill it's critical you have all your technology handy. You're going to need your phone, your e-reader, your i pad, your water bottle or workout drink, your towel, and the news paper. Having all these items indicates to all the other members that this treadmill is yours. Whether you step away for a drink of water, a trip to the bathroom, or to chat with your neighbor...it's still yours.

In the weight room you're going to want to blend in. So, first of all hit that leg press. There is after all only one, and you want to look like you know what you're doing. Load that baby up with at least eight plates on each side. Oops! It's at its highest setting and you're a shorty. That's OK, just ease it down. Oh! Thank goodness for those safety stops.

Well, that was a little heavier than you thought but you can just walk away from this mess. And just leave those plates on there, you'll be doing the next guy a favor. Maybe you'll try your hand at some of those machine weights.

You see the abdominal machine and hone in on it. A few sets there and your six pack will be back, right? But you're only three sets in and some joker wants to "work in". What the heck? "Sure," you tell him, "I only have 3 more sets." Why is he looking at you like such a confused jerk, doesn't he know how this works?

After all that you're pretty spent, so you head back to your treadmill to get your stuff but it's gone and some lady is walking on it. When you ask her where your stuff is she says she turned it into the lost and found. This is where you start yelling and screaming about how that is your treadmill. You're fitting right in!

Now it's time to go to the front counter and talk to the manager on duty. But they start talking to you about policy and monopolizing equipment. Don't worry though, those rules aren't for you. And another manager will be there tomorrow...you can talk to them about it.

See when you're at the gym it's easy to blend in, to go with the flow of what everyone else is doing, and to follow simple gym etiquette. It's OK to spit in the drinking fountain, or in the hallway by the bathroom. It's cool to leave your weights all around, or just put them where ever. It's no problem to monopolize equipment, or to leave equipment all over the weight room. It's fine to hide all the handles to the cable machine so that only you know where they are. It's cool to leave your sweat on machines and benches for the next person to deal with, and to not wash your hands after you use the toilet.

The rules are for everyone but you. You don't have to clean your machine after you use it. Those towels and spray bottles aren't for you. And there are people to put all the weights in order after you use them.

The gym is about to get real busy people...it just takes a little bit of common sense to play together. There aren't "people", there's just you. Help us help you fit in. *smile