Getting Weight-Wise with PGX and Flamenco Dancing!

How do flamenco dance and PGX combine for better health? Here's my story...

Having written for this blog for quite some time now, I decided it was time to share my journey to better fitness and health. We all have our ups and downs on the road to our reaching our personal fitness goals. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has felt like a yoyo at some point. But after years of trying different diet and exercise routines, I've finally discovered the key to my personal success: flamenco and PGX.

Dance has always been a passion, hobby, and, best of all, a fabulous way to exercise! Livestrong.com estimates that for some dances such as ballet, swing, tap, ballroom, line and flamenco dancing, one can burn up to 300 calories per hour. This number of course depends on many factors such as your weight and intensity, but it is still a sure sign that dance is a fun and effective way to get in shape!

I've tried many of these dances but none of them have helped me like flamenco. Flamenco is a full body workout that will get you moving practically every muscle in your body from your fingers, wrists, arms, shoulders, hips, legs, feet, abs, and even your facial muscles (have you seen the facial expressions?)! Its the type of dance that gets your heart pumping and your lungs working, giving your body a balanced aerobic workout. It encompasses fast and slow rhythms, having you alternate between low and high intensity movements that keep your muscles working and increasing your stamina.

How does PGX fit in with my routine? Over the weekend I had the chance to perform in a flamenco production of Peter Pan and after a flattering but incorrect alteration, I had a limited amount of time to squeeze into my mermaid costume. I started to take PGX Satisfast with Whey Protein prior to meals and before I knew it, the skirt fit!

Without PGX, flamenco did wonders for me. With PGX, I'm getting closer and closer to my personal health goals! If dance worked for me, it could work for you. If not flamenco, there are plenty of options (even dancing in the kitchen for an hour is great!). Find something you love and give it a swing, a tap and a whirl!

Image source: Karen Flamenco and for a cool sample of flamenco dancing, check out this video of Maria Juncal

Ever heard of the fast food burger aging test? We've got some results to share with you!

McDonald's is better with a Coke… Not in this lifetime!

Since the first unchanged french fry was uncovered from the floor of a '59 Chevy, people have been trying to determine it’s age. Not the car (that’s easy), but how old is the darn french fry? Those things turn up as often as loose coins and always leave the question, "Who’s been eating McDonald's in my car?”

The truth is that those fries could be left over from the guys on the factory floor, the first owner, second owner or your own teenager from the day before. Without a pretty sophisticated date test you may never know. I have done the burger and fry "when did they die" experiment numerous times and I still can’t give you a reasonable answer as to the age of any of them. I have three french fries and burger samples that are 8, 6 and 4 years old. Try and guess which one is which!

And how about those burgers? I've got McDonald's hamburgers that seem to be surviving the test of time (and one house fire in my case) just as well as the french fries!

Serious Eats conducted research that sheds some very interesting light on the mystery of the unchanging appearances of fast food in, The Burger Lab: Revisiting the Myth of The 12-Year Old McDonald's Burger That Just Won't Rot (Testing Results!).

If the agelessness of the fast food french fry doesn't cause you to blink, I've got a few numbers for you. They say "McDonald's is even better with a Coke!" Think again. When you add one bottle of a soft drink such as Coke to the 265 calories and 532 milligrams of sodum of a hamburger*, you are adding up to 240 calories and 65 grams of sugar to your meal!

Julia

*Hamburger nutrition facts from nutritiondata.self.com More detailed nutritional breakdown available there.

Image courtesy of Julia Havey.

10 Secrets to Lasting Weight Loss! It's time to start your journey!

Julia Havey shares her personal experiences and the secrets to her success...

As someone who is experiencing lasting weight loss, I want to emphasize that it is possible!  After all your hard work to reach your health goals, here are my tips to maintaining the new you:

1. VISUALIZE SUCCESS

Dream of the life you want and visualize what it will look like, what you will be doing, how you will be living.Find a picture that best illustrates what that life will be like and place it somewhere you will see everyday. Write down on it what your life IS going to be like! You must first visualize before you can realize.

2. PASSION

To enjoy the results of your journey, this self-improvement, you must really LOVE it. You must create a passion for healthy living in all that you do! Write down 3 reasons why you are passionate about getting healthier. Let your passion for a healthy life fuel your activities. And there's no need to go it alone. Bring along some support and find a friend with similar health goals, get fired up about it and help each other! Together, your passion will keep each other going through the rough spots.

3. KNOW THAT YOU ARE NOT YOUR BODY

For too long, we have allowed "FAT" to become a personality trait; it isn't one! Write down 10 positive adjectives that you would use to describe yourself and read them each day! Also, say my affirmation 2 times a day:

"I believe in my ability to improve my health, my attitude and my life. I am worthy of the best that life has to offer and today I have the opportunity to get closer to realizing my dreams and goals!"

Believe in yourself and be your own best friend!  

4. STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE

Make the phrase, "if you keep doing what you have always done, you will keep getting the same results you have always gotten," your new mantra! Toss aside the old and unhealthful habits and take ONE step each day in the direction of a new and improved, healthy lifestyle!  

5. DEVELOP A POSITIVE ATTITUDE

There are four cornerstones to the healthy house that you are building for yourself: water, nutrition, exercise and a positive attitude. Each is essential if you are going to succeed in this journey. Get happy, it will do you good! Leave any defeatist attitudes at the door!

6. EXERCISE

Move your body everyday! There is nothing wrong with exercising at the level you are capable of each day, and increasing your duration, intensity and frequency as you get more fit! Do you know what the BEST exercise is?! The one you love and enjoy the most!

7. NUTRITION

Dr. David Katz (Oprah's nutrition guru) teaches you to know that your body was designed to eat. So let PGX make it easier to stick with a healthy diet. Remember: “diet” doesn’t mean ‘short term restricted calorie intake plan meant to bring about frustration and temporary weight loss!' It means ‘the manner of eating indicative to the species.’ You are human so eat and enjoy your food!  

8. EDUCATION

Read every article you come across, every book that interests you and find a motivational program you will use. Learn about nutrition and arm yourself with proper tools to help you on your journey. There is wonderful support material available to help you--use it! And thanks to the makers of PGX: their support is free! www.PGX.com  

9. REWARD YOURSELF

A wonderful synergy is created when you earn rewards for healthy living. Like Pavlov's dogs, you will seek out these and ultimately train your brain for healthy living! Make daily, weekly and monthly goals and reward yourself with non-food related prizes such as a bubble bath, a manicure, sleeping in late, or a movie night, etc! 

10. COMMITMENT AND ACTION  

Do what it takes to realize your dreams and goals, and if you aren't in the mood--do it anyway! 

11. BONUS SECRET!

Drink 1/2 your body weight in fluid ounces of water! i.e for my 150 pound body, I need 75 ounces of water a day!

Julia

Image sources: Saleem Rana, Energy Secrets to Success, Spine Alive.