San Antonio Personal Trainer Blog

Hello San Antonio,

We're down to just a few days to the holidays, and every year at this time, I find myself answering numerous questions about what individuals can do to avoid sabotaging themselves and their fitness programs on the holidays.  Believe it or not, it's not as complicated as it may seem.

First and foremost, following a structured program should be a way of life and not just a quick fix.  I realize that this is a broad spectrum and a bit more than this article should encompass, but the importance of increasing lean body mass via exercise to increase the resting metabolic rate, eating several small meals throughout the day (as opposed to 2-3 large meals) and doing light to moderate cardio vascular work 2-3 times per week.  There are two parts to this post - first is an article I wrote a while back, but I think it addresses each of these things and should give you a better understanding of what you may not be doing and how you can improve that aspect of your personal fitness.  After the article, I have included some easy to follow tips to help you succeed on staying on progress through the Thanksgiving holiday and beyond.

When people say they aren't making gains, it usually can be attributed to a couple of reasons. Below are a few reasons why many folks don't make the gains that they could and should.

Not Eating Enough
Diet is a bad word. Somehow, many people confuse this word with starvation. A diet is simply what you eat. In no way does it imply that you should starve yourself. In fact, starving yourself is a sure way to GET FAT! Your metabolism will freeze, causing you to store fat, and your body will also metabolize muscle.  Also, low-carb dieting is all the rage right now, and let me let you in on a secret-it is not for those who want to build muscle! You MUST have plenty of complex carbs to build muscle. Carbs are just as important as protein - Do NOT be fooled that you can make gains by only taking in insane amounts of protein. Muscle building relies on functions that can only be performed by carbohydrates. Many people believe that their daily calorie requirements is what they eat everyday. Many are shocked to find out that for their metabolism to perform optimally, their bodies require a lot more calories than they normally consume. But not just any calories-you must find a macronutrient ratio that is consistent with your goals and keep your diet within those numbers!  You do NOT have to micromanage your nutrition, but I do recommend that you start reading labels and learning how much food equals X amount of calories, protein, carbohydrates, fat, etc. 

If you're going to make gains, your body can't be short on any (not ONE) amino acid, trace mineral, or vitamin. That is why you MUST supplement these three things!

Eating Too Much
Of course, if you eat hamburgers and pizza everyday, you're not going to see the gains you want. Everyone should concentrate on eliminating saturated fat from their daily food intake. But that isn't what I mean by this topic. Contrary to popular belief, your body cannot assimilate all of the protein you consume. Actually, it is limited on how much it can process at one time (depending on the person's size and amount of lean body mass). The 1 gram per pound of body weight is a good rule of thumb (male and females alike). Divide that number by your number of meals and spread your protein intake out. Your body can and will convert extra protein to fat just like it does any excess calories, but also remember that protein makes you fill full quicker, lowering your overall caloric consumption.

On the same token, excess carbs will also be converted to fat. When you're trying to decide how many carbs you should eat per meal, look at what you'll be doing for the next 3 hours. If you are going to be active, you will require more carbs for more energy. If you're going to be sedentary (resting, sleeping, etc) you won't require as many. Also remember that all carbs are different. If you're looking to remain lean, you should keep your sugar intake to a minimum, getting your carbs from complex sources such as whole grain rices and pastas, beans (black, kidney, etc) and vegetables. Simple carbs should be limited only to your post-workout meals, and can also be useful in some pre-workout meals (immediately before a workout).

Not Drinking Enough Water
Your body is more than 70% water. In short, drink water if you're AWAKE. It is involved in every bodily function. Don't wait until your thirsty. Concentrate on drinking at least a gallon per day, especially before, during, and after you workout. A slight decrease in body water will result in a decrease in performance. Get rid of the soda and juice - They carry a lot of unnecessary calories, mostly from sugar.

Relying Too Heavily on Supplements
People always ask me "What will help me gain more muscle?" or "What will help me lose fat faster?" It's all diet and working out. There is no magic pill. EVERYONE should be using a multivitamin, amino acids, and Essential Fatty Acids, but don't believe the hype on every supplement you see. If they produced steroid results, they would be a) Illegal and b) a LOT more expensive. If it looks too good to be true, than it probably is. Look at the cost benefit. Even if it slightly helps you, is it worth the insane cost? Probably not. Whole food is the most anabolic legal substance on earth.
Also, a lot of people seem to get most of their protein from whey powder. Whey powder is a very efficient protein, but you should get no more than half (I prefer less than a third) of your protein from whey. Whey is fast absorbing, and is effective post workout, but not really practical at any other time. Also, don't drink protein alone. Your body requires carbs to help digest protein. Drinking protein by itself will force it just to pass right through you. Start eating whole foods!

Working Out Too Much
I can't reemphasize this enough-your muscles grow while you rest, NOT while you're training. Nothing destroys gains quicker than overtraining.

Not Working Out Enough
Stay consistent. While there is no reason to go to the gym 6-7 times a week, you most definitely need to go at least three. Once or twice a week is simply a waste of time. Get in there and learn to be efficient. Find out what you want to do and design your program accordingly.

Not Keeping Diet and Exercise Journals
How can you know where you're going if you don't know where you've been? I can't express the importance and ease of this time tested method. You've got to chart your progress - If something isn't working, you've got it all right there-find out what it is and fix it!

Impatience
Getting in shape, gaining muscle, and losing fat takes time. If you're losing more than 1-1 1/2 lbs a week, you're losing muscle. If you're gaining more than a pound a week, it's probably got some fat in there. It doesn't happen over night, but believe me, 3 months can come and go quick. Look at the bigger picture-if you make slight gains every week for 6 months, think of where you'll be at that point. Don't get discouraged!

Of course, there are many more reasons why someone may not be getting the results they want, but these are the most common. If you're not getting where you want to be, take a look at your overall program, and decide if it's working for you. If you're still not sure, don't be afraid to ask!

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I've always been a huge advocate of a once per week "cheat" day.  This serves a few purposes - first, it allows us to avoid going insane.  If we crave pizza or hamburgers, it's really easy to say "You know what?  I can eat all of the burgers I want on my cheat day..."  You're never more than 6 days away from it, so that gives us quite a bit of psychological benefit.  I also believe that there is quite a bit of physiological merit to a cheat day as well.  Eat clean, healthy foods for 6 days and then go on a gorge-fest on the seventh day.  First off, your body rejects nearly all of the food.  You can NEVER eat as much as you think you want to because as soon as that grease enters your system, your body seems to shut down and guess what: now, you begin associating a negative feeling with unhealthy foods!  Then you're only more motivated to get back on track and get back to feeling better.

First off, let's all make Thursday, November 23, 2006 (Thanksgiving Day) our cheat day and enjoy ourselves.  I'm personally going to wake up early that day and start spending time with my family.  IF you are so inclined, jump on the treadmill for 20-30 minutes, or go for a light jog/brisk walk around the neighborhood to burn a few extra calories before the binge begines.  Here are some other tricks that you might find useful:

-Drink PLENTY of water.  Wake up in the morning and drink 12oz.  Before you eat down another 12oz and continue to sip throughout your meal.  Water makes you feel full faster and will help you avoid insane overeating.

-Use a fiber supplement.  I personally use Benefiber everyday.  What does fiber do?  Well, in short, it makes sure that the digestive system is working optimally.  In fact, most Americans get less than 20% of the recommended daily allowance of fiber per day.  What is even more scary is that the RDAs are for SURVIVAL and not for optimal performance!  Yikes!  I'd take 2-3 table spoons the night before and 2-3 tbspns the first thing the next morning.  Remember, I'm a 225lb male, so my fiber requirements are higher than someone who is 150lbs.  Follow the directions on the bottle, but you'll find that it you can handle quite a bit.

-Eat your veggies FIRST!  Veggies simply aid digestion.  The bulk will make you feel full faster, but they'll also make the trail through the digestive system much easier to follow.

-Double up on the white meat.  Turkey is one of the most complete proteins available, so don't be afraid to get most of your calories from white turkey!

-Be aware of sides like gravy, dips, breads, and other common holiday goodies.  Now, I said this is your cheat day, but I realize that there are a lot of people that are conscious about what they're consuming.  Don't go insane - you've worked hard, so enjoy that piece of cheese cake (my favorite).  One day will not make you or break you.

The most important tip I can give?  Get back on track on Friday, November 24!  Don't let Thanksgiving last four full days!!!  I'll be in the gym early on Friday to get it out of the way.  If someone wanted to make Wednesday their last workout day for the week, that would be fine, but I'd at least recommend a day of moderate cardio sometime Friday-Sunday to have some activity (football in the yard???). 

I'm going to go a bit further and give out something that I'm personally doing.  Today is 10 days until Thanksgiving, and Saturdays are usually my cheat day.  Well, I'm going to avoid a cheat day this week and I'm going to behave myself until Thanksgiving Day.  I know that most of you have the willpower to do whatever you want and I also know that my personal training clients want to achieve their goals more than anything in the world and skipping one cheat day is a small price to pay.  It's not something that you must do, but I think avoiding it will alleviate quite a bit of the guilt associated with not-so-healthy eating.

Hopefully, you understand the importance of making fitness and healthy nutrition a part of your lifestyle and you're already doing what you need to do.  The tips I have provided should assist you in minimizing holiday damage, but remember that a day of feasting with your family isn't going to spend you into a downward spiral if you keep it to 1-2 days.  I realize that many people let go during the last 5 weeks of every year and decide that it's ok to start back after the new year - don't fall into that trap!  Don't lose all of your momentum and progress.  I propose that you forego the New Year's Resolutions for Thanksgiving Resolutions! 

Yours in health,

Boyd Myers, San Antonio Personal Trainer