With so many weight loss and weight management plans on the market why are so many people struggling to lose weight?  Because we cannot just go on a diet, lose weight, and expect to keep it off.  We need to find a way to integrate weight loss, fat loss, building muscle and weight management into our everyday life. We need a healthy plan.

At its most basic, losing weight is about burning more calories than you eat. Sounds simple right? If it were that simple, we wouldn’t be overweight. The real secret to weight loss is to make small, lasting changes. The key is to forget about instant results and settle in for the long run.

To lose one pound of fat, you must burn approximately 3500 calories over and above what you already burn day to day. That’s a lot of calories, and you can’t burn 3500 calories in one day. But if you take it step by step, you can do it.

Obviously, exercise is a key component in any weight loss program. The best way to lose weight is with a combination of cardio, strength training and a healthy diet. But how do you pick an exercise that will maximize calorie burn? The best cardio exercise for weight loss is one that you will do regularly.

• Impact cardio exercise like walking, will boost your heart rate quicker than no-impact exercises like swimming or cycling.
• High impact cardio exercise like running or jumping, burns more calories than lower impact cardio.
• Whole body cardio exercise, exercises that involve the upper and lower body, like step, group kick and group groove make it easy to get the heart rate up, and keep it up. This is a great way to burn excess calories.

 Contact Answer is Fitness in your area for more information on a weight loss program.

It has happened to plenty of people, maybe even to you. Diet and lose weight, come off the diet and gain the weight back. But who wants to diet forever? There is a way to lose weight without a special diet plan, books, or medicine.

Do you want to lose 5 lbs, 10 lbs or 50 lbs? How much weight your lose and how fast you lose it is determined by only one set of principles. We learned that principle when we learned first grade math. Our body weight is determined by the amount of energy that we take in as food and the amount of energy we expend in our daily activities.

Calories are energy. So if you do not gain weight, it isn’t that you do not or cannot gain weight. Rather, you are probably taking in the same amount of calories that you burn each day. If you're slowly gaining weight over time, most likely your caloric intake is greater than the number of calories you burn throughout the day.

Our intake of calories in any given day is completely within our control through the amount of food we eat.  To a large degree, we can control the number of calories we burn each day. The number of calories we burn depends upon the number of calories our body burns just being alive, and our physical activity.

Our weight does determine how much energy (or calories) we burn at rest. Keep in mind that muscle mass burns more calories than fat. So while many say cardio, cardio, cardio is the path to weight loss, a strong muscular body burns more calories, so you should have a plan for both cardiovascular exercise and weight bearing exercises in your fitness program.
 
Lifestyle and work habits partially determine how many calories we need each day. For people who do not have jobs that require intense physical activity, exercise or increased physical activity can increase the number of calories burned.

An average woman 31-50 years of age who leads a sedentary lifestyle needs about 1,800 calories per day to maintain a normal weight. A man of the same age requires about 2,200 calories. Keep in mind this is a very rough estimate. Participating in a moderate level of physical activity (exercising three to five days per week) requires about 200 additional calories per day.

Click "weight loss program" for more information from Answer is Fitness.

There are a lot of reasons to tell yourself why you shouldn’t join a gym. But with the Answer is Fitness 6th Anniversary Special, you can cross the cost of a membership off of your list.

So let’s go through some other reasons:

You don’t have the energy to exercise. Well if you exercise you will have the energy. Exercising actually increases your energy level; sitting around doing nothing is exhausting.

You don’t have the time. Well, if you are exercising at home, even sporadically, you can find the time. But, more importantly, you need to find the time. You should make exercise part of your lifestyle so it becomes a habit. You should exercise like your life depends on it, it does!

You can exercise at home. In a gym, using cardio equipment, you can keep a track of your progress easily by seeing how long /what pace / what level you can sustain on different machines. It really gives you such a good feeling to see that you’ve made strides in the right direction.

You just don’t have the motivation. In a gym, when you are greeted by name and welcomed it feels good. There are other like-minded people there who are able to help motivate you. A gym becomes a community where you meet people you would not have otherwise met. Once you start going to exercise classes, you’ll get to know and become friends with others in the class.
 
Additionally, you may discover exercises that your really enjoy which you may have never discovered before. Finding a type of group exercise, like yoga or cycling, that you really enjoy, it is easy to get motivated.

Answer is Fitness has an extensive group exercise schedule, personal trainers to help you with a personalized training program specifically for you, and cardio equipment and weights.

Contact Answer is Fitness for more information on how we can help you help yourself become healthier, more physically fit, and lose weight. Together, we can help you meet your personal fitness goals.

Did you know that exercise will give you more energy? Are you tired of being tired at the end of the day? Let exercise energize you.

You just need to motivate yourself to take that first step out the door. You may think you’ll never make it, but chances are you’ll continue and you’ll notice a difference very quickly. Tired adults who exercise three times a week for 6 weeks, show a remarkable increase in energy levels. And those doing low-intensity exercises saw the most benefit!

Maybe your having troubles thinking about exercising because you think it isn’t fun. Researchers found that when people think about exercising they tend to think about the first few minutes, which is the hard part. After a workout, those participants rated exercising positively. So find a better way to start out, put your favorite songs at the beginning of the playlist, or grab a friend.

Many people don’t like to navigate a gym on their own. Sign up with a personal trainer. This way you’ll meet someone, get introduced to others and receive your own personal training program. Or, grab a buddy; everyone has more fun working out with a friend.

Stay healthy and keep exercising this summer. Along with cardio exercise and strength work outs, you should eat healthy too. To help stay on your diet, here are few of our favorite snack recipes that have an extra healthy boost. And they are tasty too.

Morning boost:
Mix 1/2 teaspoon instant coffee with 6 ounces low-fat vanilla yogurt until coffee is dissolved. Spoon half the mixture into a bowl and add 1/3 cup sliced strawberries. Top with remaining yogurt, and garnish with 1 tablespoon low-fat granola. (150 calories)

This snack is great because granola provides a healthy dose of fuel to help jump-start your morning. And, calcium-rich foods increase fat loss.

Stress reliever:
Spread 2 tablespoons hummus evenly over 5 whole-grain crackers. Top with 2 tablespoons diced red bell pepper. (150 calories)

This snack is great because red bell peppers contain vitamin C, which helps lower levels of the stress hormone.

After work out pick-me-up:
Combine 1 cup low-fat milk, 1/4 cup frozen blueberries, and 1/4 cup frozen pineapple in a blender; puree until smooth. (140 calories)

This is great because the protein and carbs in the milk help repair muscles and replenish cells' energy stores after a workout. You should eat dairy within 45 minutes of exercising, when the recovery process is at its high. Also, pineapple contains bromelain, a natural anti-inflammatory compound, which may reduce post-workout pain.

Night time snack:
On 1/2 toasted whole-grain English muffin add 2 teaspoons almond butter and slices of 1/4 pear. Sprinkle with a pinch of ground cinnamon. (150 calories)

This is a great snack because according to recent research, the carbs in English muffins may help you get to sleep more quickly. Almonds are great for your health and your brain.

Many of us sit a lot at work, in the car and at home on the couch.  That’s probably true for a lot of regular exercisers. I used to think that exercising for an hour or more a day would negate all that sitting.

Now, a growing body of evidence says that’s not true.

That’s disheartening. But it’s also a wake-up call for everyone with an office job, even avid exercisers.

We’ve all been told for decades how much exercise we should get daily or weekly, with most recommendations now saying at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week or an average of 30 minutes for five days. If it’s vigorous, it can be less.

Now, the latest research says that even people who do significant and regular exercise still increase risks of serious illness from hours of physical inactivity. In other words, you can’t just exercise for one hour and sit for eight or more without incurring some health risks.

The American College of Sports Medicine, just came out with new recommendations on the quantity and quality of exercise for adults. The bottom line is everyone needs a balanced program of cardiovascular, strength exercise, flexibility and neuromotor or functional fitness training (balance, agility, coordination).

But the ACSM further notes that “sedentary behavior for long periods of time is distinct from physical activity and has been shown to be a health risk in itself. Meeting the guidelines for physical activity does not make up for a sedentary lifestyle.”

Carol Garber is the lead author of the new guidelines. In a release from the ACSM, she says, “It is no longer enough to consider whether an individual engages in adequate amounts of weekly exercise. We also need to determine how much time a person spends in sedentary pursuits, like watching television or working on a computer.”

So, we need to figure out ways we all can work in movement during the day.

Here are a few things you can do, in addition to exercising daily:

• Walk in the office while reading reports or research.
• Stand up while on the phone.
• Do more exercises at the desk, such as pumping legs up and down.
• Move for at least 15 minutes during lunch.
• Take a quick walk after work on some days.

All personal training clients may bring a buddy in to Answer is Fitness to train with them, FREE. And, all members that refer a buddy to personal training will be entered into a raffle to win a free year membership and 5 free one hour personal training sessions.

Whether you are new to fitness, regularly exercise or are a competitive athlete, personal trainers assist you in achieving your goals. At Answer is Fitness, our personal trainers can assess your current fitness level and then design a customized personal fitness program based on your fitness level and your goals.

Motivation is the key to fitness and regular exercise. Personal Trainers coach you through your work outs, keep you motivated and focused on your goals, and teach you new training techniques.

To better reach your goals our personal trainers perform a personal fitness assessment. This is not a diagnostic tool, but rather a tool to gather purpose information related to your current level of physical fitness. This information is used to establish an exercise program specific to your needs, evaluate progress in your current exercise program, establish goals and provide motivation and identify possible health injury risks.

The results of each assessment can be used in two ways. The first, comparing the results to data collected on the general population who has taken the same test. The second is to establish your own personal baseline to use as a tool for measuring improvement in each area. This is a great method for measuring personal fitness goals.

To schedule your personal training sessions, contact Answer is Fitness in Springfield and North Attleboro.

The official start of summer begins this weekend. If you have put off your “get in shape” plans, now is the time to start. Answer is Fitness, with locations in North Attleboro and Springfield, can help. With a 30 day fitness pass, see what we have to offer to help you reach your fitness goals.  With personal training and an expansive group exercise schedule, you will surely find an exercise program that is exciting, challenging and fun; which is exactly what you need in an fitness routine. Here are just a few examples:

Group Power:
Group Power is an hour of power! This 60 minute barbell program strengthens all your major muscles in an inspiring, motivating group environment with fantastic music and awesome instructors. With simple athletic movements such as squats, lunges, presses, and curls. Group Power is for all ages and fitness levels. Discover results, Discover Group Power.

Group Kick:
Group Kick brings it on! This electric 60 minute fusion class of martial arts and boxing movements will kick your cardio fitness to the next level while defining and shaping your body and self confidence! Energetic music, awesome instructors and a group environment will keep you punching, kicking and smiling! Group Kick will knock you out!

Cycling/Spinning:
The Cycling program is the original and most popular group cycling class. And it's not just because Spinning is an unmatched way to make your fitness goals a reality. With no complicated moves to learn, top-notch instructors and music that begs your legs to pedal, getting into the best shape of your life has never been more fun.

National Women’s Health Week is an effort to raise awareness about manageable steps women can take to improve their health. The focus is on improving women's health and the importance of incorporating simple preventive and positive health behaviors into everyday life.

Women are the caregivers: for spouses, children and parents, and they often forget to focus on themselves. However, research has proven that when women take care of themselves, the health of the entire family improves.

Maintaining regular health checkups is one of 5 health habits that can improve women’s health. The others are physical activity, a healthy diet, not smoking and engaging in safe behavior.

For regular health appointments, a bone density scan is very important. Having healthy bones is important at any age, but as we age our bones get thinner. Healthy eating habits, regular cardio exercise and a strength training routine are imperative to healthy bones. Osteoporosis is a concern for women, as women are four times more likely to develop this disease than men. To limit the risks of Osteoporosis, women should definitely engage in weight-bearing exercises. Eating healthy and possibly taking calcium supplements also aids in prevention.

What are those weird-looking weights with handles? They are kettlebells and they are worth meeting on a weekly basis. It has recently been discovered that people who did an intense 20-minute workout with kettlebells burned, an average of 400 calories, or 20 calories a minute.  If you need help with the math, that is like running a six-minute mile. Most likely, this is because kettlebell workouts combine cardio and strength training and use several muscle groups at once.

Using a kettlebell burns 70 percent more calories than a typical strength routine. There certainly is a lot of strange looking exercise equipment, but kettlebells you've gotta try. A 20-minute kettlebell workout is worth about an hour on the treadmill! They sculpt every part of your body. Most exercises with them involve swinging the kettlebell up or across the body. All of the weight is below the handle, so your core has to work hard to counteract the momentum. So as a result you will lose inches and while getting stronger and leaner.

If you want to learn how to use kettlebells, work with a personal trainer who can help you design a workout to achieve the goals you want, in a realistic time frame. A trainer at Answer is Fitness can help you get a feel for using kettlebells and burn about 400 calories while you can sculpt your entire body with a fun and different routine.