Personal Trainer Pamela Hernandez talks about the good and bad of protein shakes.

In this video is advice for:

• Are protein shakes good for you?
• When should you take a protein shake?
• Are shakes the best way to achieve weight loss.

It pains me somewhat to say that but in fact this year I was the Runner Up in the Best of 417 awards.

Sure it’s disappointing but I’m actually proud of that runner up status. It reminds me of my senior seminar in political science. Dr. Connor was known as kind of a hard ass. A smart ass and a hard ass. The class grade was based on participation, a presentation and a paper. Even though it was an undergraduate paper, he treated it more like a master’s level thesis.  Planning of that paper and presentation started only a couple of weeks into the class and there were milestones that had to be met along the way to get full credit at the end. There was also lots of reading for the in class discussions.  It was one of the hardest classes I have ever taken.

I got a B in that class. I was really proud of that B too. I worked harder for that B than any A I had ever received.  That’s what made me so proud. I had given it my best effort and come out not on top but with some recognition for my hard work and some notes on where I could improve. I learned not just about the subject matter but about myself: what I was capable of and what areas I needed to improve.

This year’s contest affected me in the same way. The runner up status is recognition that I am proud of. It means that many of you believe in me, what I do and that I deserve the title of Best Personal Trainer in 417. But it also means there are many who don’t know me. They don’t know my own story of transformation and that I’ve walked a mile in their shoes. They don’t know how hard I work to give the best I can to each and every client.

Or perhaps they do know me but just don’t think I am the best. That means I need to step up my game. That means I need to continue to work harder and smarter, finding ways to give you what you need to achieve your fitness goals.

Let’s open the discussion here. My focus for 2012 is to be my best so I can bring out your best. I want that title again in 2013. Tell me what can I do better, what do you need from me to achieve your goals? How I can earn your vote for the Best Personal Trainer in 417 2013?

The Fit Truth: Diet foods won’t make you fit.

The 4^th Key to Real Fitness is Food Quality.

Last week we talked about quantity. Balancing calories in with calories out is important. But so is learning about the quality of the calories consumed. A donut and a chicken breast may both have 240 calories but you will feel a whole lot different after eating the chicken breast than you do after eating the donut.

The clients who are the most successful, who show the best results in fat loss (which is different then weight loss, remember?) are ones who take the time to learn about food. They aren’t afraid to clean out their cupboards and start over. They embrace the idea of lean protein and stop being scared of carbs. Fats are no longer a four letter word.

I do have clients who try to slide by with 100-calorie snack packs and frozen meals to hit their calorie goals. In the beginning they do okay.  If you’re making better choices (after all a 100 calorie pack of popcorn is better than a bag of potato chips) you will see some progress. But eventually that progress will slow and frustration will set in.

Meanwhile, my clients who are getting in touch with real food are talking about how much food they eat. They don’t feel hungry.  They feel good! They have more energy! Their kids are asking for seconds! They are saving money since they aren’t eating out 3-5 times a week. Eating real foods is a win-win for your health, waistline and wallet.

They also allow themselves to have an occasional treat. This is the real world after all. We all have birthdays to celebrate and vacations to enjoy. But they are honest with themselves about what a treat is: not an every day occurrence.  A treat is something to be enjoyed once a month or even once a year, like your grandma’s chocolate pie that she only makes at Christmas. A true treat then should be enjoyed and savored. It should not be a source of guilt nor should it be saved up for or paid for the next day. This is not a process of deprivation and starvation but balance and being real.

Your food quality action plan is:

1. Educate yourself. If you don’t know foods that are good examples of protein, carbs and healthy fats pick up a copy of Nutrition For Dummies. I love the Dummies series of books because they break down potentially technical subjects into easy to understand chunks. Learn the basics.
2. After you’ve got the basics, pick up a copy (or subscription) of Clean Eating Magazine. Every issue has a variety of recipes plus snack suggestions in their meal plan. In my opinion it is the best source of healthy recipes out there. You’ll get variety and the recipes change with the seasons.
3. Do a cupboard cleanse. Out go the snack packs of cookies and crackers. Dump the diet soda down the drain.  Check condiments, sauces, cereals and breads for high fructose corn syrup. If HFCS is there, in the trash it goes.
4. Make a list of the clean eating staples for your next grocery trip. Include non perishables like natural peanut butter, oats, beans, lentils, whole grain flours, frozen vegetables, quinoa, whole wheat pasta and green tea.
5. Shop once a week with a list and a plan. Weekly because you’ll need to pick up at least some of the perishable items (like bananas and eggs).
6. It’s okay to take short cuts. Buy things like baby carrots, pre cut fruits (in their own juice only) and single serving bags of raw almonds if it’s going to help you make time for things that really require prep.
7. Again, this is a process. It will never be perfect. Just do the best you can, making the best choice available in any given situation.

So that’s it. Those are the 4 Keys to Real Fitness. They aren’t sexy or earth shattering. There’s no promise of an easy button or super fast weight loss. It is going to take some work.

But they are real. It’s not a “diet”, a road map to fleeting weight loss that leaves you as soon as you return to normal. It is the road to a new normal. It’s a transformation, slow and steady over time, to a life focused on living and not dieting. It just takes that first step to start this journey. Are you ready to say goodbye to the diets and take the brave first step to a new way of living?

See all articles in the series The Fit Truth.

Welcome to the first post from my new fitness book club!

It’s funny that as I write about the first discussion and book selection, I am struggling to stay away from the distraction of Twitter and Pinterest.  The irony is the first book up for discussion was Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength. The authors, Roy F. Baumeister and John Tierney, tackle the topic of self-control: where it comes from, why some people seem to have more than others and is it possible to strengthen it?

What could have been a rather dry subject was actually made quite entertaining. Baumeister is the researcher, in the clinical sense, of the pair and has plenty of experiments and studies to back up his primary conclusions: willpower is a real thing that can be conserved and strengthened. To help make sense of the research and figure out how to apply it in your own life, Tierney uses real world examples and real life situations.

My favorite chapter, for example, is his discussion of glucose levels and their impact on willpower. He uses a story of type 1 diabetic and comedian, Jim Turner, to illustrate the point. Jim recalls a nighttime episode of irrational thinking and near hallucinations to show how low blood glucose can take away our common sense and make us people that we aren’t normally.

I know this first hand. I too lack self control and rational thought when my blood glucose drops. (In case you didn’t know, I am also a type 1 diabetic.) I’ve been known to yank phone cords out of walls, break things and (although it’s been a long time) eat uncontrollably when my blood sugar dips far too low.  While most people don’t experience it to the extremes that Jim and I do, there is a lesson to be learned: to make rational thoughts and decisions the brain needs fuel. Let your glucose levels drop too low and you lack the ability to make good choices.

While this isn’t a fitness book, the authors do offer a pretty good weight maintenance plan that could also carry over to anyone trying to lose fat. I don’t want to give it away but I will give you a hint-it’s not about dieting.

If you’ve ever wondered how some people seem to quite smoking for good or stay dedicated to the gym with ease, this book is for you. There’s even a solution for my Twitter/Pinterest problem. It’s called RescueTime and I really need to look into it.

Thanks to everyone who joined the live Facebook discussion about this book. If you missed it all the questions and discussion are still there, just scroll back to January 19.

The next book for my fitness book club is The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest.  For me it’s not just about living longer but also about have the best quality in those years. From what I’ve read so far this book will help us do both. Look for the Facebook live discussion in March. Read along and join us!

Exercise alone won’t give you the body you want. You’ll feel better: have more energy, sleep better and move better. But you can’t out train a bad diet.

3500 calories equals 1 lb. In theory, you would need to eat 500 calories less per day to lose 1 lb. per week. This, however, assumes that people are only consuming the number of calories needed to maintain their weight. If you need 2000 calories to maintain your weight but average 3000 calories per day your 500 calorie reduction isn’t going to help you lose fat. You have to create a calorie deficit. In the example above, that person would need to reduce calorie consumption and increase activity to create a 1500 calorie deficit to see 1 lb. of weight loss per week.

Then there are the people who have bought into the diet industry’s starvation mantra and are actually eating too few calories to sustain a healthy metabolism. Without adequate fuel on a regular basis the body is going to act like a calorie sponge when a normal amount (or excessive amount) of calories are consumed.

The Fit Truth: People have no idea how much food they actually need nor do they have an accurate picture of how much they are really eating.

The 3^rd Key to Real Fitness is food accountability with a food journal or meal plan.

After medical and lifestyle questionnaires the next assignment for all of my clients is a food journal. This lets me see which camp they fall into: too many calories or too few. (It also helps me understand the kinds of foods they are eating, but we will talk more about that next week.)

Would it surprise you to hear that most often they are eating too little instead of too much? When I tell people they need to eat more to lose fat they look at me somewhat blankly, like I grew another head or mysteriously started talking in a foreign language.

There are a lot of opinions on the actual importance of calories. But, based on my experience and observation, to lose fat you need to find that “sweet spot” for food intake. You need a caloric deficit to encourage your body to tap into its reserves. You also need enough coming in so that the body feels okay letting go, that it has enough to meet its needs so it can afford to use some of it’s stored resources.

So while I agree that all calories aren’t created equal they do still matter. To lose fat you need to create a plan to stay accountable to your calories.

To create food accountability, here are your action steps:

• Get an estimate of your maintenance level calories. Use the calculator on my Tools (female calorie calculator or male calorie calculator) page to help you determine how many calories you need to maintain your current body weight at your current activity level.
• Reduce that number by 20-25%. This is your target. Remember this is an estimate. You may, depending on results, need to adjust this amount. Also, rule of thumb, don’t let your calorie goal go below 1200 if you’re female or 1800 if you’re male.
• Pick a tool for your food log. It can be a notebook, spreadsheet, web site or app. It doesn’t matter as long as it works for you. This means you may need to experiment to find the right method.
• If you’re more of a planner, then choose a meal plan instead of log. A meal plan is more like a budget. If you have 1600 calories to spend, planning a budget for the day makes sure you get what you need by the end of the day-no more and no less. It also gives you a blueprint for the day so you don’t have to think, just do.
• Accept that no method is perfect. There is always going to be a margin of error and there may be gaps. Do your best and be consistent. It will pay off!

Remember how I said all calories aren’t created equal? Tune in next week for the 4^th and final key-Quality Matters.

See all articles in the series The Fit Truth.

Personal Trainer Pamela Hernandez gives advice to a viewer on what to do when you experience pain associated with exercise.

In this video is advice for:

• What to do when you experience pain.
• What pain is bad.
• When you should see your doctor for exercise related pain.

When it comes to nutrition, there are 3 questions I always get as a personal trainer:

• Is soda really that bad for you? (Yes, it is.)
• What do you eat? (I’m at a different place than you are. You’re welcome to check out my food log on Dailyburn but I promise you won’t like it.)
• Are protein bars okay?

That depends on the protein bar and what you mean by “okay”.

Protein bars can be a great quick and easy snack. They fit in a desk drawer, backpack or purse. They can be a lifesaver when you’re on the go like I am. They, however, should not be a replacement for real food. You should not live off protein shakes and bars.

And some protein bars are really just glorified candy bars: high in sugar without an adequate amount of protein. Or if they are low in sugar it’s due to artificial sweeteners like maltitol, which can cause some serious digestive issues making you (and potentially those around you) very uncomfortable.

I’m always looking for good protein bars to recommend to my clients. Recently, I discovered another winner-NuGo Slim.

NuGo makes a variety of bars but the NuGo Slim caught my attention for 4 reasons:

• 15 grams for protein- 5-6 grams more than my next favorite bar, Luna.
• 2 grams of sugar-it’s real sugar too, but not too much.
• 9 grams of fiber-combined with the 15 grams of protein, this bar will keep you feeling fuller longer
• Dark Chocolate-even I occasionally need a chocolate fix. All 3 varieties that I tried were dark chocolate dipped and they all tasted amazing.

Where I live, these bars are hard to find (anyone near a Whole Foods can pick them up there), however you can order them online for a good price from AllStar Health (my favorite place for protein shakes and vitamins).

Or you can win a box filled with all 3 varieties: Raspberry Truffle, Roasted Peanut and Dark Brownie Crunch.  Just leave a comment on this blog post telling me your experience with protein bars. Do you like them? Have you had some awful ones? Or is there a really good one you love? Maybe your own recipe? This contest is open to the continental United State only. One entry per person and winner will be drawn at random. Comments must be posted by 10 pm CT on January 25, 2012. There will be one winner, hope it’s you!

Cardio. It’s everyone’s go-to solution for fat loss. Hours are spent walking on treadmills and in parks every day in an effort to lose weight.

I’m going to say something that many may disagree with but here it goes.

The Fit Truth: Walking doesn’t cut it for fat loss.

The 2^nd Key to Real Fitness is doing high intensity cardio.

Walking is good for lots of things. It’s good for your cardio respiratory system and it certainly burns some calories. And I absolutely don’t want to discourage anyone from getting up and moving. Moving is always preferable to doing nothing. Moving is good for the body. But it doesn’t cause your metabolism to sizzle the way some serious high intensity cardio does.

I define high intensity cardio as a cardio respiratory workout that increases your heart rate to the vigorous intensity zone, a heart rate above 70% of age adjusted estimated max or you can’t get out more than a couple of words without taking a breath (the talk test), that aren’t sustained for a long period of time. This definition includes a variety of activities, such as:

• Fartlek training or sprints for runners
• Walking with running intervals for beginners
• KB swings with rest periods in between each set
• Running stadium stairs
• Mini circuits of calisthenics

Also please keep in mind that high intensity is relative. If someone is carrying an extra 100 lbs on their frame and hasn’t exercised since high school gym class, walking very briskly may indeed by a high intensity workout. They may only be able to do it for few minutes to start, resting before the next bought. So walking in the beginning may be appropriate for some. But if you keep doing it, it won’t be for long.

The goal is to push your body out of its comfort zone. I want you to do this for 2 reasons:

1. Your body is smart and adapts quickly. It will figure out how to achieve any task in the most cost efficient way possible after only a few times.
2. The body likes to remain in a state of homeostasis, keeping everything in its same normal steady state. If you create a disturbance, the body works after the disturbance to bring everything back to normal. The more of a disturbance you create the more energy it takes to bring things back to normal. Hence, the afterburn effect.

Your Action Steps:

1. Determine if you are going to add your high intensity cardio to your workout on strength days or do it as a standalone workout on alternating days.
2. Choose an activity (or activities) and purchase equipment if needed (things like a jump rope, kettlebell or interval timer).
3. Commit to at least 2 sessions a week of high intensity cardio. Start with 4-5 minutes. Work your way up slowly. Sessions shouldn’t be longer than 30 minutes and can be as short as 10 minutes depending on the activity.
4. Steady state, moderate intensity activity can follow the high intensity period if desired. For example, if you ran stadium stairs for 10 minutes and like running, you can follow up with a regular run.

Now you’ve got the foundation of your exercise plan.

Exercise is important but, when it comes to fat loss, nutrition is what makes or breaks your results. Next week, I’ll share the most important first step for my all-star clients when it comes to their nutrition and their success.

See all articles in the series The Fit Truth.

Big mistake. Monday morning after Christmas I woke up with no idea what to do. No plan, no workout goals and, honestly, little motivation.  Yet the workout was on my calendar that morning so it had to be done.  I couldn’t take hours figuring it out. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 was waiting on me!

I thought to myself, I need to reset. I usually take a rest week the first week of January, but I also knew I wanted to make a push before heading to SXSW again in March, add a little muscle drop a little fat.  New plan: take a rest week and use the time to formulate a new plan for the 10 or so weeks till SXSW.

But wait. I had a big day on Christmas. I ate more deviled eggs than I probably should have and at least 3 vegan banana blueberry muffins.  I needed to move.

Inspiration hit as I was eating my protein pancakes. Dailyburn recently revamped and created a new workout site (with the original site now labeled Dailyburn Tracker). I had done one of their workouts on Christmas Eve to try something new and found it enjoyable. Why not spend the week just working out with Dailyburn, I thought? Try something new everyday, test drive the new site and chronicle it all for you.

So here is my unsolicited review (I do blog for Dailyburn Life, but this was completely my own idea) of the New DailyBurn.

• Monday: I chose KIT with Judi Stettler. KIT stands for Kickboxing Interval Training. It wasn't as challenging as I had hoped. The asparagus vs. burger chant wasn’t terribly motivating, either. I don’t like burgers and I really do love asparagus.  I needed to push a little farther to compensate for a day off and the overindulgence of Christmas. I added the glute workout with Anja Garcia. Loved it. 10 minutes of booty lifting intensity.
• Tuesday:  Cardio Sculpt was up. With Judi again and itt was okay but I didn’t feel a lot of sculpt. I did get an aerobic workout, which was really my intent all along.
• Wednesday: Complete Kettlebell Circuit had been calling me all week. This was the day and I got a new trainer, Corey Storey. At first I wasn’t sure I would like him. I found his accent bothersome. I loved the extended yoga stretch at the end and it is an awesome beginning kettlebell workout. I may use what I learned to help my clients perfect their swing.  Warning: Use a lighter kettlebell for the YAW press or do the military press.  Trust me.
• Thursday: Rest day. Everyone deserves a rest day.
• Friday: It was an amazingly sunny and warm (at least for December) day. I decided to take a walk and follow up with some Restorative Yoga. It was 16 minutes with Corey Storey. His shirtlessness bothered me but his voice was so soothing at the end I almost feel asleep in corpse pose.
• Saturday: Powerball Strength with Anja Garcia. It started strong but sort of fizzled out at the end. It felt light on legs, which was surprising since most of her workouts are great for the glutes.
• Sunday: Back to Cardio Ball with Anja Garcia, the first Dailyburn workout I had tried on Christmas Eve. I didn't have a medicine ball at home but a dumbbell worked just fine. It was just as good as the first time, but I wondered if I had already run out of cardio options.

That was my week with Dailyburn. Overall, I like the idea of having multiple and seemingly appropriate workouts available every day. Anja is my favorite, maybe it’s our kindred Latina spirit. The workouts all have modifications. If you don’t have the equipment indicated in the details, don’t worry. There are always options for you. Same thing for fitness levels, there is always the basic, the beginner and the advanced option in each workout.

I do worry about there being a lack of a plan. It would be an easy for a beginner to do multiple strength workouts in a row, opening them up to the burnout or injury. The nutrition piece, in my opinion, also leaves something to be desired. For example, I indicated when I enrolled that I am a vegetarian yet the daily food suggestions always include meat.

When I asked, I was told that more specific nutrition recommendations would be coming.  I also don’t understand why workouts don’t track to the old site. Not only do they not track they aren’t even listed for me to do as a manual entry. Hence, nothing in my workout log for that week.

For variety and originality, I give it an 8. For structure, only a 4. The workouts are great, but look elsewhere for nutrition. Anyone else tried the New Dailyburn?

image by ericmcgregor

The Fit Truth: You Must Strength Train

The 1^st Key to Real Fitness is committing to a challenging strength training program as the foundation of your fat loss and fitness routine.

I won’t lie; there are lots of ways you can lose weight. But do you want to lose weight or do you want to lose fat? Losing weight isn't the same as reshaping your body so you fill out your jeans and have tank top ready arms. Losing weight just means being a smaller version of your squishy self. What makes the difference between just losing weight or having a fit body is a focused, appropriate and challenging strength training program.

Focused:  Your strength program should be efficient and designed to maximize results.  If you’re program contains a lot of isolation moves (like concentration curls) or machines (like leg extensions) then you may not be getting the biggest bang for your buck.

Appropriate: No one walks into my studio and starts doing dead lifts and single leg squats on the first day. Your strength program should meet you where you are.  If you’ve never lifted a weight in your life, your program should start with learning proper form and how to move your own body.  It should also be designed with your goals in mind. A fat loss program looks different than a sports specific or body building program. Any prior injuries or muscle imbalances should be taken into consideration.

Challenging: Please don’t take appropriate to mean easy. If someone has never lifted weights before a body weight squat can be very challenging. At the same time, endless repetitions with 3 lbs dumbbells will not shape the body you want.  If you can do 50 crunches on the stability ball then you need to increase the intensity. Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone.

My most successful clients embrace their strength programs. When push comes to shove, they will do their strength homework instead of cardio. I want you to do the same. You can raise your heart rate with strength training but it’s harder to build muscle by riding the stationary bike.

Your Action Steps:

1. Strength train 3 days a week minimum. No excuses.
2. If your goal is fat loss, your movements should be designed to use as many muscles as safely as possible and to keep your heart rate up. Keep the movements big and rest periods small.
3. Make sure you can do a basic squat, a basic lunge, a push up (whatever modification makes sense for your fitness level), a bent over row and a plank hold with perfect form.  You must master basic foundational moves before progressing to more challenging versions and combinations.
4. Keep a training log. Document all strength sessions with reps and weights done. Have a plan for progression that matches your goal.

Don’t worry, we don’t leave cardio completely out. It is important for good health and it can help you burn more calories. But many of you are going about it the wrong way. Next week, I'll tell you how cardio fits into your program.

See all articles in the series The Fit Truth.