Here's another reason some women may want to hit the gym and watch what they eat.

A new study says even moderate weight loss could help reduce breast cancer risks.

Researchers in Seattle used data from sedentary post-menopausal women who were overweight or obese. They say even a 5% weight loss can reduce the levels of circulating estrogen which is known to be a risk factor for breast cancer.

The women dived into four groups: a diet-only group, an exercise-only group, a diet and exercise group and a no-intervention group.

“The biggest effect was through diet plus exercise”, Anne McTiernan, the study's author, said in a statement.

The results of the studied showed that the groups with the most weight loss were the diet and exercise group with women in those groups losing an average of 10 percent of their starting weight, according to the study.

Additionally, the women in the diet only and diet and exercise groups also experienced the largest drop in estrogen and other hormones linked to breast cancer.

Researchers say a healthy diet and exercise is key, and that it's never too late to make lifestyle changes.

The study results suggest that weight loss of just 5% or more could cut the risk for the most common, estrogen-sensitive breast cancers by a quarter to a half.

To begin a weight loss and exercise program, contact Answer is Fitness.

KKTV News and Christian Post

Most people understand that you need help with getting and staying motivated in order to exercise and lose weight. You also need to keep it fun and mix it up. As the weather turn nicer, we all want and many of us need to lose weight.

Exercising with people you enjoy is a perfect way to stay motivated. Get a group of friends together who have similar schedules and can work out when you can. It has long been proven that exercising with friends is a great way to get healthy and lose weight.

Signing on with a personal trainer works well for people too. When you spend money on a personal training program you are more inclined to keep your appointments. Many find that the motivating nature of personal trainers help keep them motivating and working hard.

If personal trainers are not what you are looking for, many trainers encourage those who want to lose weight to join a gym. The social and community aspect of belonging to a gym is a great motivator for many. Being greeted as you enter, seeing friends, taking exercise classes that you enjoy can keep you coming back to the gym getting healthy.

Of course, as the saying goes, “misery loves company” so taking that really challenging group power or spinning class with friends actually makes that hard class fun.

For information on our Summer special at Answer is Fitness, contact us.

If you are looking for a fun and different type of exercise to help you lose weight, look at learning kettlebells. As you know by now, building muscle is the best way to lose weight. But cardio is essential to your health.

Kettlebell workouts combine aerobic and anaerobic exercise that help you lose weight faster than cardio or weights alone. In fact, a 20-minute kettlebell workout is worth about an hour on the treadmill!

The kettlebell is used to perform ballistic exercises. Ballistic exercises are a combination of  cardiovascular, strength and flexibility exercises. Kettlebell workouts use several muscle groups at once.

In order to lose weight, most personal trainers recommend interval training. Kettlebell exercises  are more  aerobic and similar to high-intensity interval training. This makes kettlebells perfect for weight loss.

In one study, people who worked out with kettlebells for 20 minute burned an average, 13.6 calories/minute aerobically and 6.6 calories/minute anaerobically during the entire workout. This is equivalent to running a 6-minute mile.

For more information on working out with Kettlebells, contact Answer is Fitness.  

Through the winter it is hard to remain focused on eating healthy, exercising, and losing weight. By the time March rolls around, many people feel like they have tons of weight to lose.

Here are a couple of ideas on how to stay focused and stay motivated for weight loss so you can be ready for the warmer weather in a couple of months.

Make a commitment to a charity – When you join an athletic fund raising event, you have no choice. Get yourself on a Relay for Life team or some other walk for a benefit.  You are not going to let down those who sponsored you and you’ll burn calories while preparing.

Lift the amount of weight you have lost – Using free weights, work out with the same amount of weight you have dropped. This makes it easy to remember how much you have lost. It is motivating to see how much you are struggling to lift that 10-pound weight. You can't possibly forget how far you've come when you're sweating doing three sets. You used to be carrying around that weight!

Make a great play list -A recent study on women's fitness found that women are more likely to stick to an exercise program if they listen to music while working out.

Do not wear baggy, loose clothes – Don’t make yourself comfortable in your gained weight. Put on the tight jeans, or leave out your bathing suit. Give yourself a visual reminder of the goal you want to accomplish.

Work out with others- Many studies have proven that support from other people can keep you motivated to lose weight. So get some friends to work out with you. Get yourself a personal trainer, who can help you, create an exercise program for you, keep you company, and keep you accountable.

Group exercise classes - Join a group exercise class and make friends with the other regulars. Seeing them will inspire you to attend even when you feel like not going. Guilt is motivating. When you don’t go to your exercise class, everyone knows.

When it comes to making a commitment to losing weight and getting healthy, don't overwhelm yourself. When you are trying to change your lifestyle, it is best to start with baby steps, getting your feet wet before diving in makes it easier to start, make the commitment, and stay motivated.

Someone said, “a journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step”.  You don’t have to change everything in your life to be healthy. Changing on small thing would make a big difference. It is recommended that you eat 3 servings of vegetables a day. Do you?

Walk every day. Put an audio book on your iPod, or create a fun song list and take some times to walk outside or on the treadmill. This small addition to your day and routine cuts down on your risk of heart disease, and increases your life expectancy, and you will lose weight by expending the calories.

Do you want to lose weight? One of the easiest ways to do that is to eat breakfast. Your metabolism slows at night and remains slow until you feed it. Starting your day on an empty stomach keeps your metabolism working slowly for longer.

Want to exercise more? Don’t plan on exercising for an hour every day. Exercise for minutes at a time that when added up result in an hour of exercise in a day.  It is easier to exercise with friends, so instead of taking a coffee break, go for a 10-20 minute walk several times a day.

Need help figuring out how to get started and stay motivated? Contact Answer is Fitness today.

Have you noticed that some people burn fat faster than others? Or, that some people seem to be able to eat whatever they want and they still stay thin? Well this has to do with a person’s metabolism; how fast it works.

Because of genetics, some people do burn fat faster than others. However, age, weight, diet, and exercise habits also have an effect on your metabolism rate. As you age, your metabolism slows down, mainly because, beginning as early as your 20’s you can lose 5-6 pounds of muscle every 10 years. The less muscle mass you have, the slower your metabolism works. This means, you are burning less calories every day as you age. But, you can speed up your metabolism!

Of course you can cut calories, especially extra ones. But, don’t dramatically cut calories from your diet. Your body is programmed to maintain your weight, so if you cut too many calories, like 1000, your metabolism will actually slow down.

Add interval training to your cardio workouts. Doing interval training just 2 times/ week burns more calories than standard cardio workouts. In fact, studies show that when you add interval training you actually lose 2 times as much weight.

If possible, break your workout into two shorter sessions. Walk or run on your lunch break and do 15 minutes of weight training after work. You could burn an extra 100 to 200 calories in a day. Run up the stairs at work, even small bursts of activity can get your metabolism going.

You have heard it before, but eat breakfast! Those who eat breakfast lose more weight than those who don’t. Your metabolism slows down as you sleep and only speeds back up when you eat again.  Start up and speed up your metabolism  by eating a 300 calorie breakfast.

Eating extra protein can cause you to burn and extra 150 -200 calories/day. It is harder for your body to burn protein so your metabolism works harder to break it down.

5 to 7 smaller meals is much better than 3 larger meals. If you eat healthy and small all day, your metabolism works fast all day every day.

Start working out with weights. Weight training is the best way to speed up your resting metabolic rate. As we’ve said, as you age, your metabolic rate slows. Weight training can speed it up again: A pound of muscle burns up to nine times the calories a pound of fat burns.

Need help losing weight or sticking with your fitness routine? Contact Answer is Fitness.

We are approaching February now, how are you doing on your commitment to get in shape and lose weight? Losing weight and trying to maintain a fitness routine take a commitment and lifestyle change.

It is important to commit to exercising and eating healthy like your life depends on it, because it does. Do you still need some help? We are here to assist. At Answer is Fitness in North Attleboro, join now and receive the first 2 months free and no enrollment fee.

With child care, an expansive schedule of exercise classes, a Cinedrome Movie Theater with Cardio Equipment, personal training, and a great community feel, we can help keep you motivated and committed to your new lifestyle.

No matter the level you are trying to take it too; training for a marathon, or just trying to exercise for 45 minutes a day, we have the team who can help you out.

Contact Answer is Fitness for a free pass or to join with 2 months free.