Going to France - A Bientot

I'm not going to be blogging for about 10 days and if I do decide to blog it won't be about planks or squats but rather, croissant, wine and walking everywhere.

I do plan on weighing myself before departure and upon return home to see how the French diet has impacted my ass. I will report personally on this "French Women Don't Get Fat" thing that everyone keep saying.

I'm currently 124 pounds. Let's see what happens. I never gorge myself or use holidays as an excuse to constantly overindulge. I just don't like the way it makes me feel (like a stuffed pig).

It's not my first trip there but it was so long ago I feel like a different person looking at the same place with a new set of eyes and a moulded heart. My best bud will be in tow. I haven't traveled with a midget before.

Today she told me, "Don't tell me what it's like. I want to see it for myself. It's my first time."

The riot workout

I just watched the youtube clip of the protestors singing Oh Canada on Queen Street in front of Steve's Music.
This video is going viral all over the world right now. It sent chills down my spine and made tears spring up in my eyes.
The events of this weekend will undoubtedly be talked about for quite a while to come. As a reporter on the CBC said this morning, "there are things trending on social media right now that will continue trending for quite some time". He mentioned this in particular. No film director could have orchestrated a scene quite like this.

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I know it's not funny but I had to find a way to make a bit of levity out of the heaviness of this weekend. Watching the footage over the weekend, I've wondered how anyone in poor health would safely survive scenes like the above.

What would a workout look like that might prepare you for a protest and the potential of rioting. This training advice would apply to both police and protestors since both groups engage in similar activities.

You guessed it...

Short intense bursts of activity that would allow one to escape danger, pursue violent anarchists, or escape accidental arrest. Training for becoming a war correspondent might look exactly the same. For those of you with a weak heart or any physical limitations, I would say that engaging in protest oriented or war correspondent like training would be contraindicated. Talk to your doctor before starting any new physical activity.

Come to think of it, tabata might be the perfect type of high intensity interval training to prepare someone for the short bursts of running required to stay safe in protests turned riots.

All joking aside, this weekend has saddened the city. I hope the footage being circulated throughout international media and social media sites will not discouraged people from visiting what is normally a peaceful and tolerant city. I heart Toronto. What about you?

Craving Ice? Maybe you're anemic

Anemia is something I've gotten to know well partly because I've been anemic on and off during my life. I remember going to get my finger pricked at the hospital quite often as a child. I also know it because so many women are anemic especially the pregger ones or the ones who are peri-menopausal or who are in the middle of the big change.

What does anemia have to do with exercise you ask?

A drop in athletic performance or a general feeling of fatigue may indicate you are suffering from anemia, a condition in which the production and amount of your red blood cells is below normal. Red blood cells which carry oxygen from the lungs to muscle tissues and organs are synthesized in the bone marrow Each cell lives for about 120 days in the circulation.

An adequate supply of these red blood cells is essential to physical activity and overall well-being. A low red blood cell count means less oxygen is being delivered to performing muscles. Because oxygen is essential to burn the calories used by muscles in aerobic exercise, this can have a direct effect on your ability to perform.

Taken from When Tired Blood Slows You Down

Whenever someone is experiencing fatigue that just doesn't go away, I always send them to their doc for a check up and blood work. If it's anemia it's easy to fix. If it's other health issues or depression like stuff, that's more complicated. I almost want a client to find out they're anemic vs. something else or nothing at all. The improvement in one's energy level when anemia is addressed can be huge.


Women who are experiencing repeatedly heavy periods ought to get blood work done. But honestly, I don't believe that getting checked once a year is enough when women are experiencing peri-menopausal like heavy periods. A few months of seriously heavy periods especially for people who don't eat enough iron in their diet (most of us really) can quickly put someone over the edge.

Just the other day, one of my fabulously energetic clients who is peri-menopausal found out she's very anemic. I was like "Shit! What are you going to be like when you're not anemic!?"

So when I came across this little puzzling article on the New York Times Well Blog I thought many thin blooded folks would find it interesting.

The Claim: A Craving for Ice Is a Sign of Anemia

In recent years, cravings for ice have emerged in the medical literature as a puzzling and increasingly documented sign of anemia, especially its most common form, iron deficiency anemia. Scientists don’t fully understand the link, but some suspect that compulsive consumption of ice — called pagophagia — relieves inflammation in the mouth brought on by iron deficiencies.

I don't normally eat a tray of ice before I go to bed but the funny thing is that this particular anemic client mentioned above kept on talking about getting water with ice at the movie theatre like it was a special treat. Hmmm....

Here's a bit more info on anemia and exercise taken from When Tired Blood Slows You Down

One common cause of anemia in women is the lack of iron in their diet. Women need nearly twice as much iron as men (18 milligrams/day compared with 10 mg/day) because of menstrual blood loss.

Heavy exercise may also increase iron needs by up to another 1 to 2 milligrams day. This may be caused by a combination of factors, including iron loss in sweat, blood loss from the urinary tract or gastrointestinal system and the breakdown of the red blood cells in the circulation from heavy foot striking (foot-strike hemolysis).

So if you're craving ice like it's ice cream, maybe it's time to get poked.

Oh and speaking of blood, True Blood got renewed for a fourth season. I'm hooked. I've often wondered if Sookie is anemic with all that blood sharing and why Bill doesn't feed her a huge steak after he eats.

Is fat the new black?

Is it just me or do I see fewer people ordering skinny lattes, buying non-fat yogurt or getting dressing on the side.

The obesity trend can be directly correlated with the low fat eating movement. Despite that fact that the majority of people have successfully cut fat intake to the recommended 30% of daily caloric intake, over 70% of the population is overweight or obese.

So low fat eating wasn't the solution to health and weight management and now people are throwing their hands up in the air saying, WTF? Why should I be so careful about fat intake if this isn't the solution it's been made out to be. It's not just me thinking this:

Low-Fat Food Is A Damn Lie. Walk into any supermarket and you'll see "Low-Fat" foods that are supposed to help with your figure. Well let me suggest for a moment that the only figures that Low Fat foods help are the food-manufacturers' profits.

The bottom-line is that Low Fat foods will still add fat to your bottom (if you're female) or to your belly (for males). Let me explain.

Now technically, when they measure the chemical content, there will be less fat in these Low Fat or "Lo-Fat" foods. But that doesn't help anyone who wants to lose weight. Why is that, you ask?

Well FAT in the food we eat isn't the problem. The problem is the FAT that's piling up on out under-exercised and over-fed bodies. But our excess fat didn't come from eating fatty food.

And this so-called fat free food that's offered to us is almost always full of sugar. Added sugar makes our food taste all the more appetizing, especially to those of us with a sweet tooth.

Why low fat food is a damn lie

As long as we are eating whole unprocessed foods and not too much of them plus plenty of plants, I don't think we need to obsess about fat. I'm a skinny bitch and I take whole or cream in my coffee. I just don't eat transfat (except when I'm hurting today and need the VERY rare McDs breakfast). Thanks to the mamas from the school for a super fun time that I'm paying the price for today. Way to end the school year you cool ass mamas!

So gone are the days of thinking that anything low fat is game to eat. This is the era of eating whole unprocessed foods and watching portion sizes. This time, this eating trend is going to stick but not like fat around your middle.

Any observations about my predicted fat is the new black trend...please post!

Wine drinkers eat healthier than beer drinkers- new study shows

I'm a wine drinker. Have never really loved beer. When I worked at Molson Breweries I used to get 7 dozen beer a month all of which I gave away. We even had a management pub where everyone would go get a little buzzed after work and then jump in their cars to drive home. I shit you not. I would try to fit in and sip on a Heineken (yes most Heineken is produced under license here, not across the pond).

Even free beer couldn't convert me. Many of my clients drink socially and many of them say they can't give up their wine. I, like them, appreciate a nice glass of wine. I started studying wine in my early 20s. Maybe I was playing grown up but regardless, my beautiful trip to Sonoma in the 90s converted me for good.

I train an epidemiologist (no that's not someone who studies the epidermis) and she is great about keeping me up to date on new health related research and reports. THANK YOU! I love all the smart clients who expand my world.

A few days ago she told me about a study coming out of Denmark that looked at whether people who buy wine buy
healthier food items than those who buy beer. According to her, the study is a darn good one.

The results as you can guess?

Wine buyers bought more olives, fruit and vegetables, poultry, cooking oil, and low fat cheese, milk, and meat than
beer buyers. Beer buyers bought more ready cooked dishes, sugar, cold cuts, chips, pork, butter or margarine, sausages,
lamb, and soft drinks than wine buyers.

The conclusion?

Wine buyers made more purchases of healthy food items than people who buy beer.

We already knew that drinking wine is associated with lower mortality than drinking beer and spirits and this study is pointing us into the direction of why.

Have you ever met anyone with a wine belly? I think not.

Bigger waist line means less sex for both sexes

As I'm on my rampage to understand MOJO and fitness, Suzanne Cheriton at Red Eye Media passed along a link to a study that came out last week: She's on it as per usual. Sexuality suffers considerably among obese men and women.

I knew that obesity can cut off circulation to the sword in men and can lead to impotence not to mention making the unit look smaller, obesity will also cut down on shagging frequency for men and women. Now this is a problem! Hello less caloric burning and sweating between the sheets only perpetuates the waist line expansion.

Obese women are likelier to neglect contraception, obese men are more prone to impotence and both are far less sexually active than counterparts of normal weight, a study said on Wednesday.

The findings highlight “a major reproductive health challenge,” requiring doctors to pierce the twin taboos of obesity and sex, it said.

The research covered 10,170 men and women aged 18-69 whose data was randomly chosen from a French survey of sexual behaviour carried out in 2006.

So what do they mean by overweight?

Overweight was defined by having a body mass index (BMI) of between 25 and 30, and obesity as a BMI of at least 30.

Obese women were 29% less likely to have had a sex partner in the previous 12 months, compared with women of normal weight.

Obese men were 69% less likely to report having more than one sexual partner in the same period and two and a half times likelier to report erection problems than non-obese counterparts. Obese men under 30 were also far likelier to have a sexually-transmitted disease.

Sexual dysfunction -- lack of desire or arousal or pain in intercourse -- was not a problem for obese women.

The study, published online by the British Medical Journal (BMJ), was headed by Nathalie Bajos of the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) in Paris.

“In public health terms, the study lends a new slant to a familiar message: that obesity can harm not only health and longevity, but your sex life. And culturally, it reminds us clinicians and researchers to look at the subjects we find difficult.”

Now of course this might apply to everyone but it is another nail in the coffin of obesity. Nothing good can come from it. It's the type of issue that deserves more specialized one on one attention.

Life is too short to live without MOJO baby!

Jane
Founder
Urbanfitt

Dancing with Parkinsons 2010 Fundraiser

Sarah Robichaud is a remarkable human being. Several years ago she set her mind to something and made it happen. I've known Sarah since before we both had our kids. We worked together at what was Level Five Fitness and co-authored "Working on the Ball: A Simple Guide to Office Fitness". She's a toned, tenacious and huge hearted woman and the founder of the charitable organization, Dancing with Parkinsons.

Dancing with Parkinson’s (DWP) is a class where those with Parkinson's Disease can explore the potential of their own movement through choreography and improvisation.

DWP has the unique privilege of live musical accompaniment for each class. The live music enables a broad range of tempos and styles for each piece of choreography helping to transport bodies and spirits in a joyful, safe environment.

I just bought my tix for this...

On June 22nd, Dancing With Parkinson's will be hosting "I'VE GOT A FEELING!", an evening that will have the whole room clapping, twirling and stomping the night away. This year’s fundraising event will have homegrown faces from news, entertainment and the literary world, plus a diverse list of guests varying from neurologists, corporate medical representatives, celebrities, and those families who have a personal interest in Parkinson’s disease. Everyone will be there to dance to live music, be wowed by the PD dancers and support the DWP program.

Where: Lula Lounge - latin dance club!
Address: 1585 Dundas Street West, Toronto
When: Tuesday June 22nd
Doors open at 6:30pm
Show starts at 7:00pm
Dancing until 11pm

Visit the website to purchase tickets while there are still some left.

"DWP has been changing lives since 2008 and our commitment to dance therapy is only growing! These events are important celebrations, for the students and their families, and for the sustainability of the DWP program. Thank you so much!"
Sarah Robichaud, May 2010

My $25 bag of cherries

Last year, I visited Caracas, Venezuela, several times. Why Caracas? Well that's whole complicated story about love and loss. But instead of getting into that, I thought I'd share my experience with imported fruit.

The other day on my way home from work I stopped at a corner store and spied the first Ontario grown strawberries of the year. Well of course I snatched up two containers and felt joy well up in my soul with the thought of the first taste of one of those beautiful, small and flavor packed berries. The store owner told me that people weren't interested in buying the Ontario strawberries over the USA imported strawberries because they cost more. To me they are two completely different fruits. You can't compare the taste. The giant often flavourless imported strawberries are a sad cousin of the real deal.

I got in the car and ate several berries without washing them. Yum. And I know over the next two weeks, the Ontario strawberries for sale are only going to get better.

So this fruit experience made me think about the $25 bag of cherries I had in Caracas. We were driving through Caracas and he spotted a truck with a sign advertising cherries. He asked me, "Do you want some cherries?". I said sure not realizing what a huge deal it was to get your hands on cherries in Caracas. He returned to the car and presented my one pound gift. I casually asked him how much they cost. He said $25 USD. I said "What?! Tell me how much they cost in Bolivars." He told me and yes, in fact, he had done the math correctly. It was one of the sweetest gifts I've ever received.

I just thought I'd put our own circumstances in perspective. This is taken from Food: Something's Rotten in Venezuela, June 7, 2010.

Tens of thousands of tonnes of basic foods rotted in the last year in shipping containers belonging to the Venezuelan government. Fully two-thirds of the food consumed by Venezuela's 27 million inhabitants is imported.

'One might think it is carelessness or negligence. If that is the case, there should be a sanction, but it could also be corruption,' President Hugo Chávez said last week as the scandal emerged. 'We will get to the bottom of this case,' he pledged in his weekly Sunday column.

Some 35,000 tonnes of beef, pork and chicken, milk and dairy products, vegetable oil, flour, sugar and salt were in 1,200 shipping containers found abandoned in Puerto Cabello, a port 150 kilometres northwest of Caracas.

A similar quantity was found in another 1,100 trucks several months ago in a lot in Venezuela's central plains.

'It's a shame that food is lost as a result of irresponsible actions of who knows which officials, when there are so many people going hungry and searching from market to market to see if they can afford to buy everything they need,' Aminta Sánchez, a nurse who lives with her daughters and a son- in-law in the densely populated west side of Caracas, told IPS.

According to official figures, at least six percent of Venezuelan population suffers from malnutrition -- about the same percentage that the government says lives in extreme poverty.

Chávez quickly absolved Energy Minister and PDVSA president Rafael Ramírez and ordered him to launch a 'counterattack against the oligarchy,' the opposition elite who he blames for manipulating the situation, noting that the volume of food lost 'is less than one percent of the flow of foods that do reach the people.'

Together, the Venezuelan government and private sector import about 8 billion dollars in food annually. The main imports are milk, butter, cheese, beef, chicken, vegetable oils, flour, sugar, maize and beans, as well as products that used to be Venezuelan exports, such as coffee, which now comes from Nicaragua.

The leading suppliers of food are the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Bolivia and, until political tensions erupted last year, Colombia.

The government, which preaches food security, in the last three years has intervened in numerous farms of all sizes and in agro-industrial companies, both domestic and foreign. It has also shut down or fined everyone from major supermarket chains to modest butcher shops, all to ensure the availability of inexpensive food.

Annualised inflation for food stands at 41 percent, according to the Central Bank of Venezuela, and although the government's National Institute of Statistics says the minimum salary -- about 250 dollars a month -- covers the basic food basket, trade union organisations say at least twice that sum is needed.

For several months each year, there are shortages in the government's grocery stores of meat and dairy products, oils, flour, cereals and sugar. These items can be found in the informal street markets, but at twice the price.

In part, the difficulties are related to the rupture of trade ties with neighbouring Colombia as a result of diplomatic and political disputes. Colombia was a big supplier of meat, dairy and potatoes.

So maybe the local strawberries I bought the other day cost an extra $1 but so what. We have it so so good here. Let's stop griping about shit and start appreciating how fortunate we are to live here in Canada. Most of us can find anything we want to eat any time of year. Not that food security is perfect in Canada but those of us living in abundance in Canada ought to enjoy every strawberry as a gift. And if you really want to get your hands dirty, go pick them yourself with your family. I was going to go last weekend but the weather didn't cooperate.

Here's the name and location of a U Pick place in Stouffville:

Applewood Farm 12442 McCowan Rd. (905) 642 - 4720. Call first to make sure the field hasn't been fully picked.

My five favourite fitness toys du jour

I can be just as fickle as the rest of 'em when it comes to finding new things that keep me interested and inspired. I would be physically and mentally bored to tears if I was doing the same series of exercises over and over again. Thus I never get fixated on following one fitness guru or fitness trend. I still filter my new toy purchases through a rational analysis of how they fit into my fitness philosophy and approach and believe in adaptability in terms of moving forward in fitness and in life, period.

So recently I've been introduced to some new toys (fun!) by some fitness geeks like me (i.e. Sara-Clare extraordinaire, Amanda Thebe the Foxy Burd and by trying new classes here and there that get me outside my comfort zone).

MY FIVE FITNESS TOYS DU JOUR ARE THE FOLLOWING:

1) Battle ropes

WHY? THEY MAKE PEOPLE ACCESS THEIR INNER WARRIOR BETTER THAN ANYTHING I'VE EVER USED. YOU CAN ORDER YOUR OWN AT AGATSU.COM



2) The black terminator physio roller

WHY? THE NEW BLACK PHYSIO ROLLERS I'VE BEEN BUYING AT FOREMOST FITNESS (274 EGLINTON WEST) ARE SUPER DENSE AND UNFORGIVING WHICH ALLOWS FOR PROGRESSION IN MYOFASCIAL RELEASE. I LOVE THAT MY CLIENTS HAVE BEEN BREAKING UP THE GRISSLE ENOUGH TO NEED ROLLERS THAT PROVIDE MORE INTENSITY.



3) Pull up straps

WHY? WE HAVE THREE DIFFERENT LEVELS AT URBANFITT. IT ALLOWS PEOPLE TO DO PULL UPS WITHOUT A PARTNER AND TO ENSURE THEY PATTERN A PROPER PULL UP WITH THE HELP OF BANDS THAT PROVIDES THE PERFECT AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE IN THE STICKING POINT OF THE MOVEMENT. SARAH KIM ALSO POINTED OUT THAT THIS IS THE ONLY TRAINING TOOL THAT DALTON MCGUINTY TRAVELS WITH ;)



4) Kettlebells

WHY? MAINLY BECAUSE THEY ARE FUN AND CHALLENGE MY BODY IN A NEW WAY. THIS IS REALLY A POST UNTO ITSELF THOUGH. THEY ALSO ARE TOTALLY ON THE METABOLLIC TRAINING WAGON THAT IS GREAT FOR PEOPLE TIGHT FOR TIME AND WANTING TO SEE BIG RESULTS. THEY ARE TRICKY THOUGH AND YOU NEED PROPER INSTRUCTOR BEFORE THINKING YOU'RE ALL GOOD WITH THEM. THEY CAN BE ONE OF THE MOST MISUSED TRAINING TOYS. AGAIN, YOU CAN GET THEM AT AGATSU.COM



5) Acupressure balls

WHY? MOST OF US CAN'T GO GET BODY WORK DONE EVERY DAY AND UNDER PROPER SUPERVISION AND DIRECTION FROM A THERAPIST ACUPRESSURE WITH BALLS CAN BE AN EXCELLENT WAY TO RELIEVE TENSION, BREAK UP SCAR TISSUE AND PREVENT INJURIES. HERE'S A LITTLE VIDEO EXAMPLE (NOT IDEAL BUT YOU CAN GET THE PICTURE FROM THIS).



Why not the TRX you ask? Because I've been using them for maybe 6 years now and they aren't that new for me. I throw some TRX stuff in here and there but it's limited compared to other tools.

And just to ensure I qualified the above, I love loads of eclectic fitness tools but these are my fave right now. I'll keep you posted when I find new stuff I really dig.

Over and out.

Jane Fonda's 1987 workout tips in 2010?

One of my clients passed along a Jane Fonda videotape a couple months ago. I hung onto it not knowing exactly what I wanted to do with it...until yesterday. I was reading the back of the tape and saw her top 10 workout tips.

Some of you youngins might not even know who Jane Fonda is much less have witnessed her fitness stuff explode and take over in the 80s. I did. I was front and centre with leg warmers, body suits and spandex and LOVED it. I even got certified to teach 'aerobics' in 1991. It was fun shit back then and it was still relatively fresh. Sometimes I bring that girl from 1991 out to play in class for a laugh... and four and three and two and one etc. etc.

So here is how Jane Fonda's tip from 1987 measure up today:

1) Try to set a regular time to exercise and stick to it. Getting a routine going is half the battle.

RIGHT ON JANIE! AGREED

2) Three times a week on alternate day sis the minimum number of workouts you should strive for.

BATTING TWO FOR TWO! AGREED

3) Turn off the phone before you start.

WELL IF YOU'RE WORKING OUT AT HOME THIS COULD NOW MEAN TWO PHONES...AND YOUR COMPUTER. WE HAVE EVEN MORE DISTRACTIONS THEN WE DID IN 87'

4) Be sure there is no draft and enough room to swing your arms wide.

THIS HAS CHANGED FO SHO. OUTDOOR BOOT CAMPS AND THE OUTDOOR EXERCISE BOOM. STRIKE ONE

5) You will need and exercise mat or towel to give you a little padding for the floor work. Have it ready at the start. If you are on a carpet, put a towel under you to delineate your workout space and keep the dust and fibers out of your nose and hair.

WHAT? ALTHOUGH THERE ISN'T ANYTHING OVER TO DISAGREE WITH, THERE SO MANY OTHER GOOD TIPS THAT COULD REPLACE THIS ONE. FUNNY THO.

6) Wear comfortable, absorbent clothing that allows you to move freely.

UH DUH. I GUESS THIS EXERCISE THING WAS SO NEW BACK THEN THAT THIS HAD TO BE POINTED OUT. WHERE WAS LULULEMON BACK THEN?

7) Be sure to wear a pair of running shoes with good cushioning and support for exercise during the aerobic section.

WE ARE MOVING PAST THE IDEA WE NEED FOOT SUPPORT. STRIKE THREE.

8) Never eat before exercising.

I'VE GOT AN IRON GUT PERSONALLY. AND YOU CAN'T GET A GOOD WORKOUT IN WHEN YOU'RE RUNNING ON EMPTY FOLKS. BUT THIS ONE ISN'T A CLEAR CUT STRIKE.

9) Remember to empty your bladder before you start.

SO FREAKIN' FUNNY THIS ONE. MAYBE THIS ONE IS GOING OUT TO ALL THE LEAKY LADIES OUT THERE.

10) Keep a glass of water or fresh juice nearby in case you get thirsty (no carbonated soda pop please!)

STRIKE THREE BECAUSE OF THE JUICE ADVICE. WATER FIRST AND MAYBE A LOWER SUGAR OPTION FOR ENDURANCE ATHLETES.



So I just wanted to thank you, from one Jane to another for helping to set us on the path of personal fitness with all the cool ass shit you did back then. Makes me almost want to buy your new stuff coming out to see if you're on the cutting edge again.

Vertically challenged people more likely to have heart problems?

Really? WTF...

Like not being able to reach for stuff or being discriminated against by heightists wasn't enough.

When I saw this headline last week I had to take a closer look: Short people may be more susceptible to heart problems.

Being shorter and has never really been linked directly to increased health risk, until researchers in Finland looked at 52 previous papers with data on height and heart problems in more than 3 million men and women.

On average, short people were under 161 centimetres (5 feet 3 inches) and tall people were at least 174 centimetres (5 feet 9 inches). The study was paid for by the Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular Research and others. It was published online Wednesday in the European Heart Journal.

So what does this mean for short people?

“We don't want to scare short people, but perhaps they should be extra cautious about their lifestyle,” said Borge Nordestgaard, a professor of genetic epidemiology at the University of Copenhagen. He was not connected to the study.

Is this going to mean short people are going to feel even more pressure to exercise. I say, whatever gets anyone, short or tall, young or old, frail or fat, working out more and taking better care of themselves, it's all good folks.

Height's impact on heart disease was still less important than things like smoking, which increases the chance of a heart ailment by up to four times, he said.

But really why would being shorter have an impact on heart health I wonder?

Experts suggests there could be a biological explanation, such as a hormone imbalance that hurts the heart or possibly that shorter people have smaller arteries that could theoretically get clogged quicker with cholesterol and be more easily damaged.

Is this correlation something we should really be worried about?

Experts think it's too early to consider height as a risk factor for heart disease.

Smoking, nutrition and exercise habits are still going to have a bigger impact on heart health. But really, if someone who is working with a little less vertical progression reads this and feels motivated to finally get off their butt and leave it behind, then the time spent writing this post was worth it.

Over and out folks.

Foxy Burd and I kicking mamas butts at the playground

This is taken from my friend Amanda's blog, Fitness Fun and Nutrition....Amanda is really the fitness goddess here. I don't know how she finds the time to take care of two midgets and run a graphic design business and then stay so up to date on fitness developments. I want some of whatever energy she's running on!!!!

A few of the Mums from my sons school have been asking me how they can workout in the summer, when going to the gym will be difficult. So myself and fitness goddess Jane, took the ladies through a workout which they can do anywhere. I wanted to give them enough information that they feel they can do a quick session at home, in the hotel or on holiday.

We hung out in the playground after school, with all the kids too. Jane and I did a general conditioning class, based on a circuit training format. The only props we brought along were battling ropes and a resistance band for chin-ups, all the other exercises were using done using body-weight.

We had so much fun, the kids even joined in occasionally. And it was really cool to see these women working their butts off - I think they surprised themselves at how hard they could work and how empowering some of the exercises were.

The workout ended with the kids doing a tug-of-war and the parents doing a tabata cycle.

Click here for copy of the workout. Print it out and use it whenever you know you can't make it to the gym.

It sure was a blast seeing all the women really dig into the battle ropes. I wondered what they were thinking about as their inner warriors came out to play. . And spending time with other mamas from my daughter's school was a great way for me to feel more connected to the school community.

The Human Facebook project

Some of you may have heard by now about Steve Ladurantaye's (Globe and Mail reporter) social experimentation "The Human Facebook Project".

It's been up and running and evolving for the last few months. He's interfacing facebook with blogging, humanizing the template profile world of facebook and letting people use the blogging platform on a one off basis. It really takes community driven blogging to another level and he and I have been having a bit of dialogue about it. The interesting part is that I have my own interpretation of what the Human Facebook Project is all about. Maybe I'm projecting my own beliefs and issues with social networking?

A few days ago, he asked me a few questions on a facebook chat and this is the result in his post. It is a collaborative social experiment as he likes to put it that is interesting to watch unfold.

The title of his post about me is: Get Fit Dough Boy and here's the intro:

I met Jane when working on a story about her fitness business. I wrote that she was exhausting to speak to, and kind of left it at that. A few years later, talking to her again, she brought it up and I’ve felt a little guilty ever since.

So I’m not going to mention that this time. Instead, we talked about exercise, since she’s a personal trainer.


What follows are my answers to five questions. And for the record Steve, starting an article with "Jane Clapp is utterly exhausting to speak to for more than two minutes" is unforgivable. But I forgive you.

Stay posted as Steve starts to open up this platform to new avenues of self expression.

Do you need to workout in shoes and extreme parkour...barefoot?

There's loads of debate about what's better: training with or without shoes. People ask me what's best all the time. Normally, I just defer to what they prefer or what feels most natural for them.

Personally, I dig working out in my chucks that provide protection without loads of support. I can feel more of my foot in contact with the ground which forces better proprioception: the unconscious perception of movement and spatial orientation arising from stimuli within the body itself..

If you've read my blog post on Barefoot Running and also followed the growing trend, we can understand the argument for running without crazy supportive shoes. But what about strength training barefoot?

Well I hate to say it but many body building websites, albeit packed with machismo, offer some pretty up to date insights if you can filter out the crap. This blurb is taken from TMUSCLE.COM

Tthrough years of wearing shoes, our feet lose their tactile capacity, which is bad enough. But they also fail to develop to their proper size and shape. Tendons and ligaments shorten, muscles weaken, and the risk for foot and ankle injuries increases.

If it sounds like the ancient Chinese tradition of binding the feet, it kinda is. "It's identical, but to a lesser degree," Rooney says. "Shoes crush the foot into abnormal positions and you don't get the movement the foot is designed for."

And while that might be a puppy upper to the foot fetishists among us, it's a doggie downer when it affects your results in the gym.

Because your feet are the only point of contact between your body and the floor on most lifts, your lifting success depends, in part, on their proprioception — the sense of where they are in space. The more precisely they work to grip the floor, the better they'll help you activate the muscles farther up the movement chain.

Rooney believes that if you free your feet up, allowing them to move and react to the surface beneath them, your lifts will show commensurate improvement. "Just like strengthening the rotator cuff can improve your bench press, strengthening the lower limbs is going to let you run faster, jump higher, and lift more weight," he says. "Your numbers will go up."

My personal experience? When I'm doing any type of unilateral leg work that requires balance, at least one person in a group training session complains that the muscles in their feet cramp or fatigue before anything else. hmmm

But I'm not decided on it being great for everyone. I have some people with ankle or foot issues that require extra support to limit pain and strain on the joints (AKA orthotics). Without the extra support, they wouldn't be able to workout pain free. So this leaves me scratching my head a bit.

MY ADVICE? If you don't have any serious foot or ankle issues, then drop the extra support during your training and try a few workouts barefoot or with shoes like chucks.


And to close this post with some fun, I found this insane video of a dude doing extreme parkour barefoot. If you check out the type of surfaces he's landing on, you can see why being barefoot would be essential for grip and balance. It's really amazing what he can do. I wonder how many times he's fallen and bumped his noggin.

Cook to bang: The lay cook's guide to getting laid

One of my clients told me about the story "How to wine, dine – and move her straight to the bedroom" in class today. I thought it was hilarious!

"You aren’t rich. You don’t play in a band. Your six-pack is what’s chilling in your fridge, not what’s chiselled across your abs.

Don’t sweat it. As long as you know your way around a kitchen, you’re a hot commodity on the dating scene, says Spencer Walker.

“I find that food is a great equalizer,” he says. “It doesn’t matter like how good looking or rich [you are], or how well you play guitar. … Not everybody can play guitar, but everybody can cook.”

Mr. Walker would say that. The Los-Angeles-based writer and former sous-chef and private chef has just published Cook to Bang: The Lay Cook’s Guide to Getting Laid, spun from his website of the same name."

I have to admit, that yes in fact this has worked before. There's nothing like being with someone who really savors life, who takes time to enjoy simple things and milks the most out of daily activities like eating.

I could never be with an OCD fitness freak who can easily eat organic greens out of a container and plain skinless chicken breasts. What is that all about? Life is too short.

I've also been wined and dined over expensive dinners. It's kind of easy to throw your plastic down. It's harder to take time to express feelings towards someone through extra effort and time.

Now boys. Don't get the wrong idea. If you use this cook to bang thing to manipulate women into the sack, you suck. If you're doing it because you really dig a chick and want to show her you might be good enough for her, then you have my blessing.

Now I'm not saying that a big over fed under worked out belly wouldn't be unattractive in the long run. I'm just saying that food is a gift and a man who can work with food is more likely able to be sensual in the sack as well. Am I right or am I right?

And just a little head's up, if the meal is better than what happens in the sack, no amount of home cookin' is going to get you seconds.

Would you listen to fitness advice from your doc?

I don't know about you but I have found that many GPs just don't take very good care of themselves. I've seen many at the studio personally and most are so freakin' busy they don't even have time to drink water through their day. God bless them for working so hard to care for their patients but the reality is that they are just like most other overly stressed, busy, multitasking people out there.

And the truth is that they aren't actually experts in fitness. It's not their job to be up on the latest research into what is best for people in terms of exercise prescription, not to mention they just don't have to singular focus like a fitness geek like me.

So when I came across this article in the Globe and Mail:
Written prescriptions for exercise get people moving

I thought it was pretty cool that doctors are considering this type of thing in their practice. But I also know that most doctors don't present the picture of balance themselves and struggle like normal people in staying active and keeping weight off. Am I wrong here people?

Here's an excerpt from the article:

"It’s called an exercise prescription. “It’s very similar to any prescription. It’s a specific dose of exercise, individualized to the patient and signed off by the doctor,” says Dr. Robert Petrella, assistant director of the Lawson Health Research Institute and a University of Western Ontario professor who holds chairs in aging and health.

Dr. Petrella’s research reveals that the exercise prescription is a powerful and effective way to improve people’s health. “We know it is effective. We’ve proven it using sophisticated measures of cardiovascular health,” he says."

If his research is reliable, then all I can say is awesome! Exercise AND weight loss is one of the best treatments for so many chronic illnesses like diabetes, depression, heart disease, cancer, you name it.

But to all those doctors out there who are going to jump on this very progressive band wagon, people are going to listen to you more when you walk the talk. And let's face it, we need as many working healthy reliable doctors as we can get in this country. So take your own advice!!!! And don't be afraid to admit you don't know everything about the current developments in exercise prescription. I'm sure many cutting edge trainers would be happy to give you the low down.

Jane

Top 5 metabolic exercises

For those of you thinking about summer arms and tanks, it's time to forget about bicep curls and tricep kick backs and start thinking about doing things right. Using big movements that challenge the whole body will help burn fat all over your body and fix your metabolism. Don't waist your time isolating little muscles (unless you're rehabing and doing your housekeeping exercises of course.)

When I say metabolic exercises I mean something that gets our whole body involved, shoots your heart rate up and recruits as many muscle fibres as possible.

Here's some pics. You could pretty much kick your own arss and get your whole body knackered within 30 minutes by doing a few sets of these suckers. Here's a few pics to accompany some of them. You can also use any metabolic type exercise for a killer Tabata set.

1) Burpee





2) Split squat jump






3) Mountain climber










4) Battle ropes











5) Pull up









Need help knowing how to do these. It's time to get some help. Call us at Urbanfitt 416.964.3309

Graphic explanation for myofascial release and stretching - the fuzz speech

Sara-Clare passed this video along and thought the I Heart to Sweat readers would find this interesting. I sure did!

It's graphic but so informative. Gil Hedley Ph.D is totally entertaining as well. Be careful! There's a human cadaver.

But this will help convince you to stretch and release, not just get all sweaty and pump up!

This is called the fuzz speech.

Obesity increases probability of c-section and birth defects

Over the years I have worked with high risk pregnancies, women going through or coming out of IVF, women with poly cystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), women who develop pre-eclampsia and women who try to fend off repeated gestational diabetes.

I see many women post c-section and women who start pregnancies at a BMI of over 25 or more. Generally, I've found women do better during pregnancies regardless of BMI starting out if they exercise and keep doing SOMETHING even if it's just a little movement for as long as possible right up until birth. I've had clients who are overweight and have vaginal births and healthy babes. And they did whatever was possible to stay conditioned and eat well before and during their pregnancy. And my prenatal clients that came to me with a BMI over 25 ensured they gained on the low end of the suggested weight gain scale.

IN NO WAY WOULD I EVER WANT TO ADD TO ANYONE'S NEGATIVE FEELINGS ABOUT HAVING NEEDED A C-SECTION. C-sections save many lives.

Many of you might be up to date on the fact that Canada's infant mortality rate does not compare very well with other industrialized nations. (5.7 out of 1000). We now sit 25th lowest in the world. Much of this can be attributed to poor health care in rural areas particularly for First Nations peoples.

During my pregnancy I researched birth statistics and grew to understand the medicalization of the birthing process in Western culture. We all know that the rate of c-sections has been steadily increasing. We also know that women are having babies later in life and that over time our waistlines as a population have been expanding.

When I came across this info about a new study, I had to post it. I found it very interesting and kind of surprising. This excerpt is taken from the New York Times Well Blog:

"About one in five women are obese when they become pregnant, meaning they have a body mass index of at least 30, as would a 5-foot-5 woman weighing 180 pounds, according to researchers with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And medical evidence suggests that obesity might be contributing to record-high rates of Caesarean sections and leading to more birth defects and deaths for mothers and babies.

Hospitals, especially in poor neighborhoods, have been forced to adjust. They are buying longer surgical instruments, more sophisticated fetal testing machines and bigger beds. They are holding sensitivity training for staff members and counseling women about losing weight, or even having bariatric surgery, before they become pregnant."

Some key points of interest:
11% of women with a BMI of 20-25 get C-Sections
25% of women with a BMI 30-35 get C-Sections
43% of women with a BMI over 40 get C-Sections

This study comes out of the US but much could be extrapolated into our current infant mortality statistics in Canada. Many impoverished people don't have access to proper nutrition in addition to other poverty related issues that put some people at higher risk for obesity. If you're not sure about your food security, or even having a reliable roof over your head then weight loss becomes a trivial concern.

Here's some more from the blog:

"About two out of three maternal deaths in New York State from 2003 to 2005 were associated with maternal obesity, according to the state-sponsored Safe Motherhood Initiative, which is analyzing more recent data.
Obese women are also more likely to have high blood pressure, diabetes, anesthesia complications, hemorrhage, blood clots and strokes during pregnancy and childbirth, data shows.

While doctors are often on the defensive about whether Caesarean sections, which carry all the risks of surgery, are justified, Dr. Howard L. Minkoff, the chairman of obstetrics at Maimonides, said doctors must weigh those concerns against the potential complications from vaginal delivery in obese women. Typically, these include failing to progress in labor; diabetes in the mother, which can lead to birth complications; and difficulty monitoring fetal distress. “With obese women we are stuck between Scylla and Charybdis,” Dr. Minkoff said."

The solution to all of the above? I don't know big picture. The women who come to see me before and during their pregnancies are privileged to have access to a personal trainer. I've seen some people more motivated than ever to get healthy in order to have a healthy pregnancy, almost like a preconception boot camp. If you're thinking about getting pregnant maybe the potential health of your child will be a strong motivator for taking care of yourself in a way you aren't currently.

There's just something wrong with the direction we're heading in as a society and no single person is to blame.

Why is Canada slipping in it's ranking as compared to the rest of industrialized nations? I'm way over my head in having any ideas for solving that sad state of affairs.

But here's a good explanation of what is happening to us as a country:

"Factors affecting infant mortality include the growing gap between rich and poor and the child poverty rate, he said. The article also pegs Canada's child poverty rate well below average.

Canada has 15 per cent of its children living in households with less than 50 per cent of the Canadian median income. Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway all come in at five per cent or less."

taken from "Canada's highest infant mortality rate highest in Saskatchewan"

Connie is going on her 1st date in 13 years

Today is Connie's 63rd birthday. When I met her about a month ago and after getting to know a bit it was clear to me that a big part of our mission in working together was to get her MOJO back.

She chuckled when I told her this. I knew it wasn't totally gone because she had cheeky little painted toe nails and a great sense of humor. She really didn't believe me that getting her MOJO back was even possible. I assured her that yes, anyone at any age can have MOJO. I just asked her to trust me.

After a couple sessions I gave her some exercise homework and she's been pretty darned good at it doing it alone at home. Wow. That alone is an accomplishment. Most people get home programs and have a hard time with location motivation.

We've been working on getting her back in her body and getting her to push past what she thinks she can do. Over the years, I've developed a keen sense of how much to push people to keep their confidence level up and keep them safe. Connie can now stand on a BOSU while I throw heavy stuff at her. I could see from our first session that we needed to tackle her balance and coordination ASAP and she's moving forward fast.

As we get older, it's extremely important we do proprioceptive activities to ensure our brains stay healthy. People lose their MOJO often because we don't take time to connect our whole beings as a unified machine. We need to keep the brain body connection alive and even after it dies a bit we can still get it back with some good focus. But it's more than focus. It's about building strength again and learning to play at the same time.

More and more research is coming out to show the benefit of exercise on the brain:

"Working out isn't just good for the body, it's good for the brain, according to a new study, the latest to weigh in on the cognitive benefits of exercise.

Regular exercise speeds learning and improves blood flow to the brain in monkeys, the study found. The researchers suspect the same would hold true for humans.

While there is ample evidence of the beneficial effects of exercise on cognition in other animal models, such as the rat, it has been unclear whether the same holds true for people, said study researcher Judy Cameron, a psychiatry professor at Pitt School of Medicine. Testing the hypothesis in monkeys can provide information that is more comparable to human physiology."

taken from livescience.com


It's taken four weeks and already something dramatic has changed in Connie. She actually feels like going on a date for the first time in 13 years. The quality of the date is neither here nor there. It's just a first step getting Connie closer to her MOJO baby.

Go Connie! Luv ya!

Jane Clapp

New Exercise Guidelines for Cancer Patients released today

I see three clients who are breast cancer survivors and have gotten to know only a fraction of their suffering by spending time with each individually for quite some time.

Many of us wonder how we would deal with such a major health blow, a life threatening illness. These women beat the big C and started doing pull ups shortly after finishing treatment.

What I've noticed is how each woman savors smaller things in life. Their hearts have been softened by their suffering. Some people might feel cheated by life for having gone through what they did. It's not that they are glad it happened but they all have let the experience massage their souls.

Just the other day, Mary, 55, was battling the heavy ropes with a ferocity a woman half her age might shy away from. Peggy, 68, is game for anything I give her and works out four days a week. She continued to go to regular classes during treatment as well. Leanne, 62, has the discipline to come and work out alone religiously for the last 18 months. She now has a perky apple bum.

It is truly a gift to spend time with each of them.

So when I saw that new exercise guidelines were released by the American College of Sports Medicine today I am jumping for joy.

Here's a little blurb about it taken from Los Angeles Times:

Although the same 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity activity suggested for the general population is also recommended for people with cancer, the prescription is not one-size-fits-all. The panel noted that although most forms of moderate exercise, such as strength training, yoga and swimming, are good for cancer patients, exercise regimens should be tailored to accommodate fitness levels, diagnoses and safety requirements. Someone with a compromised immune system, for example, may be better off not exercising in a public gym.

Said Schmitz, "We now have a compelling body of high-quality evidence that exercise during and after treatment is safe and beneficial for these patients, even those undergoing complex procedures such as stem cell transplants. If physicians want to avoid doing harm, they need to incorporate these guidelines into their clinical practice in a systematic way."


Maybe, just maybe, oncologists and anyone involved in treating cancer patients will include exercise in part of a patient's treatment plan. I can't believe they ever really debated this. Hello...feeling good is so important for health on any level. And if there's even a tiny opportunity for a cancer patient to taste vitality during treatment AND after, well don't you think it just makes sense in predicting the success of treatment?

Hallelujah!

Jane Clapp

Emotional intelligence trumps technical know how in personal trainers...

I've had many people in the past tell me that I need to create a 'system' for my training approach at Urbanfitt so that it can be duplicated by minions. It has been argued to me many times that without a structured training system that is documented, tracked and measured that I will never be able to grow Urbanfitt.

That has never sat well with me. I believe that each fitness professional has unique talents, skills and backgrounds that to need to be nurtured and brought out, that each person on this planet has their uniqueness that needs to blossom.

So there has never been one training system at Urbanfitt. But what I've always focused on is a set of core values:
-no pressure sales
-compassion, empathy and respect for clients' individuality
-no hypervigiliance about exercise or nutrition, instead coaching towards balance
-healing the body and people's relationship with food
-excellent attention to form and technique
-always putting what is best for the client (even if it means not training at Urbanfitt) ahead of a buck

How a trainer or instructor achieves this is up to them. And what I've found is more predictive of success in the industry isn't knowing every little thing about training and health, but instead emotional intelligence. Obviously, having a strong technical foundation is great. But without EQ no one will really succeed in this competitive industry.

So when my client sent me a link to this Globe and Mail article "Emotional Intelligence trumps technical know how" I thought it was important to share this with all of you.

If someone can accept they don't know all there is to know about fitness, that's a good starting place. Curiosity in any profession is number one. And knowing how to relate to people in an authentic way is vital for success. I don't know about you but I don't want to spend my precious time with fitness zombies!

Here's an excerpt from the article:

“We are finding much more emphasis on that, and the whole idea of problem-solving and creativity, really trying to drive unique solutions through creative, innovative approaches rather than simply relying on the tried and true.”

In today’s multi-generational and multi-cultural workplaces, it is essential to recruit and promote people “who have the sensitivity and the ability to build rapport,” Mr. Beveridge said.

So when you go to hire a trainer or choose a class, make sure you look for the EQ as well. You're more likely to stick to it.
I've accepted that my refusal to shove a uniform training system down people's throats might halt the fitness empire growth. But hey, life is too short to sacrifice core values. Besides, I don't want to have to pretend like I know it all.

Cancer survivor battling the ropes

I have three breast cancer survivor clients right now. Over the years, I've seen many cancer survivors, people dealing with chronic cancer and sometimes people in the middle of treatment. Vitality is something everyone deserves to feel, sick or not sick and we shouldn't have to wait for a critical illness to make us want to have our mojo aka vitality.

June's success story of the month will be about my breast cancer survivor clients who totally blow my mind with their determination. They come here post chemo and surgery and do pull ups, lunges or pretty much anything I put in front of them and now today, battling ropes.

Here's a little pick of one of my inspirational clients showing the rope who's boss.


I heart the ropes Sara-Clare! Thanks for getting them in. So fun! Talk about serious metabolic training.

Stay posted for the June success story of the month where we can all be inspired by these three warrior women coming out on the other side of breast cancer stronger and more vital than ever.

Here's a little video of a battling rope circuit. This dude is hard core. But anyone can do this. And don't worry ladies. You won't get huge ass muscles like him but you may lose body fat. Oh no!

A little press in the Metro today!

Celia Milne from the Metro interviewed me last week! Great little article...here's an excerpt.

“I’m excited about it. It helps melt the butter,” says Jane Clapp, head trainer and founder of Urbanfitt, who brought Tabata to her fitness studio in January.
Tabata and other interval training methods are rendering steady state cardio workouts — such as going for a long, slow run — passé.
“You see people on the elliptical machine for 30 minutes reading a magazine. That drives me crazy,” says Clapp. “If you can read a magazine while working out, you are not working hard enough. That will not help you see results and you won’t be present in your body. You also won’t get the post-workout calorie burn.”

Read full article online.

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