Red Deer Personal Trainer Josh Neufeld Talks Fiber

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fiber Red Deer Personal Trainer Josh Neufeld Talks Fiber

Fiber is critical for good health, are you getting enough?

We all know that we should be eating fiber! Not only is it part of a healthy eating regimen, but also reduces the risk for some chronic diseases such as constipation and haemorrhoids. Fiber has even been found to reduce the risk of cancers found in the colon, as well as it decrease the levels of LDL (low density lipoproteins – aka, bad cholesterol) found in our bodies, which can help to reduce the risk of many heart related  diseases. BUT! What does the average person really know about fiber? How much does the average person need? What are some good sources? Are there different kinds of fiber? All valid questions, and all vital to knowing if you are nurturing your body appropriately, or not.

Let’s start with the different types of fiber. First off, we have soluble fiber, whose function is to bind with the fatty acids we ingest, and prolong stomach emptying so that we feel fuller, longer! It also monitors and regulates the rate at which sugar is digested, which is crucial for the treatment and prevention of diabetes. As mentioned earlier, this is the type of fiber that has a direct correlation to the levels of bad cholesterol in your body. Good sources of soluble fiber are: rolled oats, nuts, barley, flax, fruits, vegetables, as well as pysllium husk. All of which should be included as part of a healthy diet.

Next up, we have insoluble fiber, and although similar to soluble fiber it plays a different role in digestion. Insoluble fiber works to move bulky foods through the intestines as well as control the pH balance in your intestinal tract (so is to reduce the risk of heart burn or other pains that could be associated with digesting foods). Insoluble fiber works to push food through our GI tract and has a direct correlation to the prevention of constipation. This is important, because over time if food has the opportunity to build up it can start to grow microbes in your colon and may eventually cause a disturbance in pH in the intestines. This is dangerous as such symptoms have led to cancers of the colon. Good sources of insoluble fiber are: seeds, nuts, fruit skins, and dark vegetables (such as green beans and asparagus).

The most important thing to take away from all this is that your body NEEDS direct fiber sources in order for it to function properly. Introducing more whole grains, fruits, nuts, and vegetables into your everyday diet WILL have a dramatic effect on both weight loss as well as leading a healthy lifestyle! The average person needs about 25 grams of fiber per day, more specifically about 20 grams of insoluble and 5 grams of soluble. BUT, as long as you are getting your 5 servings of fruit and vegetables, as well as at least 3 whole grain servings a day (oats, pysllium husk), then you are likely meeting your daily fiber requirements.

Josh Neufeld’s Vacation Super Guide

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vacation travel Josh Neufelds Vacation Super GuideJosh Neufeld’s Vacation Super Guide

So you’re headed away on vacation, but with only one problem: You just fit yourself into those skinny jeans, or you fit that awesome jacket you had in high school, and you don’t want to come back from a relaxing vacation only to realise you are back at square-one! No problem, just make sure you stay health conscious on your next trip and you may surprise yourself when you step on the scale when you get back home. ‘But how do I do that?’ – you might ask. Follow these 10 great steps (or at least some of them!) and you won’t have to deal with an angry trainer upon your arrival home!

  1. Bring Workout Gear – chances are you are going to find yourself with some down time and are going to wish you had some workout clothes so that you could go for a nice run. So don’t leave yourself any excuses and bring your gear!
  2. Pack Some Snacks – you know the effect that eating 6 (or more) regular meals has on regulating blood sugars and metabolism, so don’t neglect this simple rule while you are away. Consider bringing some healthy snacks with you (or finding some at your destination). Easy items include: nuts, seeds, vegetables, fruit or maybe even a scoop of protein powder.
  3. Get to The Beach! – running, walking, jumping, or any form of movement done on sand has actually been proven to be a low-impact alternative for people with knee and hip issues.
  4. Take a Lesson – why not try surfing? Snowboarding? ANYTHING! These fun activities also count as great forms of exercise, where you can have fun at the same time.
  5. Go Fishing – not only is lounging around in the sun a great source for Vitamin-D, but you may also come home with a healthy supper loaded with your essential fatty acids.
  6. Use Your Body(weight) – simply bodyweight exercises such as pushups, squats, dips, and lunges are all great exercises that require little to no equipment and when performed daily for 20 minutes will help maintain lean muscle mass.
  7. VITAMINS! – all too often people take off to an oasis and neglect everything they have been doing for the last 6 months to get ready for their trip! Be sure to pack your multivitamins and your omegas (or whatever else you have been taking). It takes only seconds each day to get these crucial supplements in, and your body will thank you for it.
  8. Family Affair – don’t think you’re alone in trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle while on vacation. Why not plan to have 30 minutes each morning where as a family (or a couple) you can take a run together? Or even challenge each other to some pushups and wall-sits? This is a fun way for your family to connect and stay fit.
  9. The Buffet – don’t take the “all you can eat” sign as a challenge. Be sensible in your everyday meals and try not to overload your body with foods it’s not used to.
  10. HAVE FUN! – a vacation is a time to step away from life’s daily stresses, and gives us an opportunity to reduce our stress levels and see life a little more clear. So don’t be afraid to indulge a bit, and rest that body. After all, you’ve earned it!

What types of fats should you be eating?

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Red Deer Personal Trainer – One-to-1 Senior trainer Josh Neufeld

fish oil What types of fats should you be eating?Most individuals will claim that weight loss is achieved through eating “low-fat” diets. The question is not necessarily how much fat you are ingesting on a daily basis, but rather what types of fats you are regularly taking in. It is true that portion control is essential for being able to manage and control weight loss; however, what is not always taken into account is the quality of those calories as opposed to the quantity of the calories can make a huge difference on your ability to achieve your weight loss goals. Fats act as a long-term energy source for our body to thrive off of, and because they take longer to digest they can help amp up your metabolism when ingested during regular meals. Nutritional fat is also essential to brain, cell, heart, nerve, eye, lung, digestion, organ function, as well as immunity systems in your body.

Overall, your daily intake should consist of about 20 to 30% fats (dependant of course on your own body type as well as trainer/dietician recommendations), but based on an average 1800 calorie diet, this would mean about 360 to 450 calories worth of fat. Or rather, approximately 40 to 50 grams of fat on a daily basis, adding an additional 2.5 grams for each additional 100 calories taken in throughout the course of the day. Broken down even further, less than 10 of these grams (ideally, none) should come in the form of either saturated fats or trans-fats (as these are the types of fats that are solid at room temperature and relay directly to most cardiovascular diseases). Focus the majority of your daily intake of fats on unsaturated as well as omega 3-6-9 fats.

Unsaturated fats actually work to reverse the effects of bad fats. The poor effects of bad fats (saturated and trans-fatty acids) such as increases in blood pressure and other cardiovascular diseases, can actually be reversed by the intake of higher-quality fats such as those found in nuts, game meat, avocados and olive oil. These types of healthy fats actually work to reduce an individual’s cholesterol as well as LDL (low density lipoprotein; a common cause of atherosclerosis, aka blood clotting) levels.

Omega 3-6-9 fats work in the blood to reduce blood triglyceride (fat) levels, as well as increase circulation by working as a natural blood thinner. It has also been noted that the intake of such omega fats has a direct correlation to a decrease risk in the probability of strokes, as well as they have been linked to an increase in the immunity levels of those individuals who take in consistent levels of these types of fats.

So what do you look for on a nutrition label? Be sure to note the total amount of “grams of fat” per serving. Take this number (let’s assume it is 5 grams) and subtract from that the total amount of saturated/trans-fats (let’s assume this number is 1 gram). From this you will know now many good quality grams of fat you have absorbed (as 5 – 1 = 4 grams of unsaturated or omega fats).

Getting Back on the Wagon

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Guest post by One-to-1 Fitness trainer Adam Green.

241 donkey and wagon 4 Getting Back on the WagonNumbers. That is what everyone is worried about. The number on the scale, number of calories they are eating, number of meals, and the list goes on. So much of weight loss and leading a healthier lifestyle is based around numbers- and it can be a daunting task taking on a new and healthier lifestyle. Coming out of arguably the worst time of year as far as eating healthy and in moderate portions, I find that there are a lot of negative emotions floating around. Negativity around the amount of parties, amount of food and drinks that will be consumed, and negativity towards a persons own self image. Looking in the mirror after a weekends worth of holiday indulgences can be a blow to not only your confidence level, but also your motivation. In a perfect world- you should be in your most motivated state of mind coming out of a holiday slump. But it is normally not so (they don’t call it falling off of the wagon for nothing). It is the time of year, to get back on the wagon. Time to focus on the positive numbers, and realize that small changes make a big difference throughout the year. Here are some hypothetical scenarios that are great examples of how small changes can make a huge difference.

-Taking the stairs at work instead of the elevator- lets say there is 50 stairs at your job, and you leave for lunch- that’s 200 steps you would climb on a daily basis- working five days a week, 1000 steps a week. Do that every week for a year- that is 52,000 additional steps that you have added to your routine- a huge amount!

-Completing 100 pushups a day (10 sets of 10, 4 sets of 25, etc) equates to 36,500 pushups in a year- that’s a ton of pushups! Maybe you haven’t done a pushup in a year or two or ten- that’s fine! Start with a number that is measurable to you- even 10 pushups a day is 3,650 pushups/year- which is a lot if this past year you did none!

-Cutting out liquid calories- these are terrible for your waste line! Drink water more, cut out pop (diet and regular) and monitor your liquids- making small changes in your daily routine of beverages can make a huge difference.

A Tim Horton’s Double Double has 230 calories and 26 grams of sugar- two of those a day is an extra 460calories and 52 grams of sugar ( that is more than a can of pop )- 460 calories x 5 days of work a week is an extra 9,200 calories a month- just on your daily coffee a day! Since a pound of fat is 3500 calories, that is almost 3lbs worth of empty liquid calories. Solution? Black is best, but if you are looking for a less drastic change initially, switch to skim milk and bring your own packages of stevia ( 0 calorie natural sweetener – Costco has bulk individual serving size packages- keep a bunch in your vehicle and at work)

A Starbucks Grande (medium) Eggnog Latte has 470 calories and 48grams of sugar (more than a can of pop…again)- skip the starbucks holiday drinks, ‘premium’ beverages- take a look at the nutritional information and you will be shocked. Elect again for black coffee, café Americano, or naturally sweetened coffee with skim milk- other options which are much better are cappuccino or café latte with skim milk- less that ¼ the calorie and sugar count. 300 calories less per work day is still 6000 less a month! And with the money you save you reward yourself with new, smaller clothes!

-Increase cardio frequency or time- by adding another day of cardio, or an additional 10-15 minutes to what you do already on a daily basis makes a huge difference over time. If you are doing 30 minutes 3 times a week- switching to 4 x a week is an additional 1,520 minutes a year ( or 26 hours!). Even easier is adding on 5 minutes a day- that is sooo miniscule- yet adds up to 13 hours extra of cardio after a year- at only 5 extra minutes 3x a week.

As you can see- small changes made equate to huge numbers over a period of time like a year. Tiny modifications to what you already do on a daily basis will make a difference in the numbers you see on the scale, your belt size, and the number of people who will compliment you on how much healthier and better you look.

Cabel’s Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs – Personal Training

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In case you’re just joining us…

PLEASE READ FIRST: Ok let me start by saying this article is based on my opinion and over 19 years experience in the fitness industry. In my time in this industry I have managed health clubs, I’ve worked for supplement companies, I’ve assisted and contributed to product design, I am a registered massage therapist and a holistic lifestyle coach. To date I’ve personally assisted more than 3000 local individuals in reaching their fitness goals, overcoming injuries and eliminating pain through improved muscle balance and posture. As an amateur physique athlete I’ve even gained and lost more than 1000lbs of bodyweight in 15 different experiences with specific, measured, calculated nutrition and exercise strategies.  I am very proud to say our training facility One-to-1 Fitness has built on this experience and to date has completed more than 60,000 training sessions in just three years of operation.

Recently on my Facebook account I acknowledged my disgust for one the latest weight loss crazes I’ve been hearing about, in this case the HCG diet. Over the years I’ve seen all kinds of gimmicks come and go. In this opinionated article series I’m going to put my credibility on the line and share with you what I think are some of the worst weight loss programs and why. You don’t have to agree with me, it’s ok if you don’t. You can likely easily find “research” that will discredit my belief and my opinion and that’s also ok. All I ask is that look at this with a reasonably open mind and decide for yourself if my opinions have some merit. All opinions and conclusions beyond this point are the result of real world, in the trenches experience with people just like you.

IMPORTANT NOTE: At the time of writing I am collecting the final measures from our most recent 6 week challenge. Using only exercise and nutrition I’ve seen 30+lbs lost, nearly 24” lost, over 10% bodyfat and 16lbs of actual bodyfat lost in just 6 weeks. Every single individual has preserved nearly all of their muscle mass (and in most cases gained more) ensuring their metabolic rate can only be higher than it was just 6 weeks ago.

Last but not least, the final piece of this series, does that make this the best of the worst weight loss programs? And the next victim is…

sue adam copy 285x300 Cabels Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs Personal Training

Adam, a kinesis grad, works with one of our awesome clients at One-to-1 Fitness

Personal Training

…yup that’s right, that’s what I said, the very thing that I do and promote on a daily basis. Why would I say that? Well for starters, I felt it was only fair to put what we believe in on the chopping block as I have done with other’s beliefs.

To be consistent, here’s what I think is great about personal training and why I’ve been in this industry for so long impacting as many lives as possible. The core value of personal training is just that, personal. A good personal trainer looks at each person as an individual. He or she looks at what your nutritional habits are like, how much you are consuming regularly, what those foods might be and specifically the ratio of the primary macronutrients like protein, carbohydrates and fats. He or she then looks at your lifestyle as a whole, considers all the activities you are, have or want to be involved in, how much sleep you get, how much stress you face, and most importantly what does it all mean to you? What are your goals? A good personal trainer considers injuries, interests and time constraints and numerous other variables. It’s these things that have kept me in the industry and the advantages of personal training over or as a compliment to many of the other weight loss programs we’ve already discussed.

Personal trainers are not bound to one philosophy or modality. We have creative license to look at all tools and resources and use what we believe will work for you. And if it doesn’t work we begin again. That’s why there are those that believe in low carbs, low fat, high fat, somewhere in between. Generally we don’t teach kettlebells, yoga or Crossfit but next week you might experience them all because we believe that certain aspects fit your situation and are the best tools for the job.

Sounds pretty good right, so what’s wrong with personal training?

The problem with personal training is more of a situation really, tied up in a simple question, what makes a good personal trainer?

The industry of fitness experts has grown rapidly to fill an expanding need, more than ever individuals realize they need to take more control of their own health. Unfortunately as a growing industry that hasn’t really been taken seriously until now it has remained highly unregulated.

Is a good trainer certified?

Probably, but does certification make you a good trainer? Consider that you could go online tonight, write an online multiple choice exam, and be certified tomorrow. You wouldn’t have to talk to anyone or meet with anyone for observation, you wouldn’t even necessarily have ever had to step foot in a gym. Just have a credit card; that is a major pre-requisite to some certifications. CanFitPro considered to be Canada’s largest fitness certification network (which we also teach) has about the best certification program currently available to the public in the country. Even within this program there is only an average of 4-8 hours of hands on instruction for exercise and one hour of testing observation.

Will a good trainer maintain liability insurance?

Certainly, but is insurance an indication of a good trainer? Consider that you only need to be “certified” to acquire your liability insurance. There is no discrimination by what organization or question where your certificate might have come from. You could produce your own certificate tonight at home and that might be enough to qualify for insurance.

Does a good trainer have a college or university degree?

Those letters are powerful aren’t they? Truth is we’ve hired the majority of our current team through the Kinesiology program at RDC. However for every person on our team there were five more that didn’t survive the first interview because their anatomical, biomechanical or physiological knowledge was so poor. Education is definitely an asset but I think we all know that often there is disparity between what we know on paper and practical application.

carolyn jollimore 300x255 Cabels Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs Personal Training

Carolyn was a recent participant in our You In 6 Weeks body transformation program.

So how do you pick a good personal trainer? I wish I had a good answer. I think finding out the above is a really good place to start. The next place will be looking for testimonials and positive customer feedback, and if possible even contacting them. Look for trainers that have referrals from established professionals like chiropractors, physiotherapists and doctors. See if they have a proven track record and talk to them about what they do to continue to develop themselves. Ask if they offer any kind of risk reversal or guarantee. And perhaps very importantly consider how long they’ve been in the industry.

If there is one thing for certain, this industry is continually evolving and good trainers are always learning, they can’t afford not to be. When we started One-to-1 Fitness we knew that recruiting quality trainers would be our biggest challenge which is why we’ve went to great lengths to incorporate our own training programs, our own internal certifications, and our own requirements for continual education. It’s still not perfect but we are pleased to say that we offer more comprehensive onsite training than any other fitness centre in Canada to our knowledge. I’m not saying that you have to come train with us (but I’d also be lying if I said I didn’t want you to) but rather trying to stimulate your thoughts when looking at hiring a personal trainer to make sure you make the best choice.

Well that about does it, the moral of this long multi-part story is that it doesn’t matter what weight loss program you choose (except please stay away from the first couple mentioned) it’s going to have its ups and downs. The most important thing is that whatever program you choose give it your utmost consistent commitment. Reach your goals, learn enough about your body, and establish good habit that you will keep you fit for a lifetime. I hope in some way you have found this series helpful and I wish you the greatest success in your fitness and weight loss endeavours.

Cabel’s Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs – Weight Watchers

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In case you’re just joining us…

PLEASE READ FIRST: Ok let me start by saying this article is based on my opinion and over 19 years experience in the fitness industry. In my time in this industry I have managed health clubs, I’ve worked for supplement companies, I’ve assisted and contributed to product design, I am a registered massage therapist and a holistic lifestyle coach. To date I’ve personally assisted more than 3000 local individuals in reaching their fitness goals, overcoming injuries and eliminating pain through improved muscle balance and posture. As an amateur physique athlete I’ve even gained and lost more than 1000lbs of bodyweight in 15 different experiences with specific, measured, calculated nutrition and exercise strategies.  I am very proud to say our training facility One-to-1 Fitness has built on this experience and to date has completed more than 60,000 training sessions in just three years of operation.

Recently on my Facebook account I acknowledged my disgust for one the latest weight loss crazes I’ve been hearing about, in this case the HCG diet. Over the years I’ve seen all kinds of gimmicks come and go. In this opinionated article series I’m going to put my credibility on the line and share with you what I think are some of the worst weight loss programs and why. You don’t have to agree with me, it’s ok if you don’t. You can likely easily find “research” that will discredit my belief and my opinion and that’s also ok. All I ask is that look at this with a reasonably open mind and decide for yourself if my opinions have some merit. All opinions and conclusions beyond this point are the result of real world, in the trenches experience with people just like you.

IMPORTANT NOTE: At the time of writing I am collecting the final measures from our most recent 6 week challenge. Using only exercise and nutrition I’ve seen 30+lbs lost, nearly 24” lost, over 10% bodyfat and 16lbs of actual bodyfat lost in just 6 weeks. Every single individual has preserved nearly all of their muscle mass (and in most cases gained more) ensuring their metabolic rate can only be higher than it was just 6 weeks ago.

weight watchers Cabels Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs Weight WatchersIn the number 9 spot…Weight Watchers.

What’s wrong with Weight Watcher’s you might ask? Well fundamentally, I would say not a lot. The idea of teaching people the idea of controlling portions, associating these portions with points to detract from the negative obsessions that come from counting calories is a great idea. Add the support one-on-one and in a group of your peers makes it even more powerful. The icing on the cake is it’s also reasonably inexpensive too. In all Weight Watcher’s fundamentally is a great weight loss program.

All the years I’ve been a personal trainer I’ve frequently referred to Weight Watcher’s as a good starting place. Unfortunately it’s still not perfect. What’s missing?

In my opinion one missing element and one structural flaw prevent it from becoming a superstar. The missing element is more attention to the importance of exercise and how it really fits into the equation. Now I may be unclear on this having never actually attended Weight Watcher’s but from what I understand there is little more attention given to exercise other than that it’s good idea to engage in some form of exercise on a regular basis.

The structural flaw behind Weight Watcher’s for effective, long term, permanent weight loss is unfortunately the point system itself. You see within the point system what you spend your points on and how you spend them is very loose and the selections are very broad. I’ve seen nutritional journals where people were skimping on their points early in the day to accommodate bigger meals in the evening. Or where whole foods were forgone to account for the points in alcohol, clearly alcohol calories have no real positive contribution to a slumping metabolism. As a personal trainer reviewing these journals it becomes quickly apparent that the general guidelines of the point system allow for too much variation in macronutrient ratios and lead to the stumbling block of little or no continual, sustainable weight loss for many.

It’s a double edged sword, the consistency and awareness of portion control and daily intake are both really strong fundamentals that people need to learn. Weight Watcher’s does well at staying on track with its core idea which is just that, consistency and awareness of portions and daily intake, but unfortunately that’s still not enough of an understanding of how the body works to lose weight and keep it off forever. Sorry Weight Watcher’s I think you’re great but there’s still work to do.

Cabel’s Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs – Isagenix

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In case you’re just joining us…

PLEASE READ FIRST: Ok let me start by saying this article is based on my opinion and over 19 years experience in the fitness industry. In my time in this industry I have managed health clubs, I’ve worked for supplement companies, I’ve assisted and contributed to product design, I am a registered massage therapist and a holistic lifestyle coach. To date I’ve personally assisted more than 3000 local individuals in reaching their fitness goals, overcoming injuries and eliminating pain through improved muscle balance and posture. As an amateur physique athlete I’ve even gained and lost more than 1000lbs of bodyweight in 15 different experiences with specific, measured, calculated nutrition and exercise strategies.  I am very proud to say our training facility One-to-1 Fitness has built on this experience and to date has completed more than 60,000 training sessions in just three years of operation.

Recently on my Facebook account I acknowledged my disgust for one the latest weight loss crazes I’ve been hearing about, in this case the HCG diet. Over the years I’ve seen all kinds of gimmicks come and go. In this opinionated article series I’m going to put my credibility on the line and share with you what I think are some of the worst weight loss programs and why. You don’t have to agree with me, it’s ok if you don’t. You can likely easily find “research” that will discredit my belief and my opinion and that’s also ok. All I ask is that look at this with a reasonably open mind and decide for yourself if my opinions have some merit. All opinions and conclusions beyond this point are the result of real world, in the trenches experience with people just like you.

IMPORTANT NOTE: At the time of writing I am collecting the final measures from our most recent 6 week challenge. Using only exercise and nutrition I’ve seen 30+lbs lost, nearly 24” lost, over 10% bodyfat and 16lbs of actual bodyfat lost in just 6 weeks. Every single individual has preserved nearly all of their muscle mass (and in most cases gained more) ensuring their metabolic rate can only be higher than it was just 6 weeks ago.

isagenix Cabels Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs Isagenix

Cleansing for reducing toxicity and improving health is a pretty important idea in today's world.

Isagenix – A week or two ago someone had replied to one of my posts in this series and asked me what I thought about the Isagenix weight loss program. I honestly can’t believe I missed Isagenix on my list but maybe #9 is an ok spot for it. I’ve had some interesting experience with Isagenix, I’ve had family members who have tried the program and loved it, I’ve had people try to recruit me to it, and I would even go so far to say that I have strong mutual respect for someone who I know has a very strong Isagenix business here in central Alberta. At one point I was even so torn about Isagenix I even tried their 9 day program, I was starving and miserable and hated it, but does that make it bad?

What I really like about Isagenix is I found it very palatable for a cleansing product, as restrictive as cleanses are I’d say that’s a very important product feature. We all know if we really don’t like something it’s very difficult to do it for long. I think that cleansing is a very important component of health and should be something we all do 2-3 times a year. I also found and believe that Isagenix appeared to be a decent quality product, which is unusual of many MLM type products.

Now here’s what I didn’t care for with Isagenix.

Number one, I feel that no one should use any type of cleanse for more than 5-7 days. Now there is quite likely a fair amount of research that may suggest otherwise but in my world with everyday people trying to lose weight and feel better one of the biggest obstacles we constantly are working to overcome is that people don’t eat often enough or eat enough period. As a result their metabolisms are very shunted and sluggish, I personally feel that super restricted, reduced calorie, unbalanced eating for more than 5-7 days as a maximum does more damage to the metabolic rate than the benefits of what the cleanse is supposed to do. In my opinion you’d be better to do a 3-5 day cleanse every three to four months rather than risk shunting your metabolism any more than most people currently are. (This could situationally be disputed depending on how toxic and unhealthy a lifestyle someone might be living.)

So my primary beef with Isagenix has always been that the package seems to be wrapped, targeted and marketed at the consumer looking for instant gratification weight loss (solid business plan really) and the 9 and even worse 30 day cleansing program instructions are violate one of my core philosophies as I explained above. Now with that being said through some of the Isagenix teams their are coaches that take on larger roles and work to teach their clients to adjust and adapt accordingly through the process so you don’t feel miserable and starving like I did. (As I’ve discovered through the person with whom I have strong mutual respect for, but this has not been a standard experience with every Isagenix program that I’ve seen.)

Does Isagenix make your body more alkaline and is that a good thing? A lot of discussion has circled around the idea of the alkalinity of your body and what that means to health in the last few years. It’s an interesting notion that I think carries some weight (no pun intended) but I’m not sure that it’s a blanket certainty with every body. William Wolcott in the world of Metabolic Typing suggests otherwise and I am inclined to agree that some bodies may function better or differently at varying degrees of alkalinity or acidity. However in general terms I don’t think the acidity that we all face due to broken nutrients in processed, hormonal, irradiated food is good for anyone. If Isagenix does make your body more alkaline (which I doubt it does significantly having tried to adjust my own and carefully measuring with PH testing strips) that’s only good if you intend to continue to use the product for the rest of your life. Making the body more alkaline requires very careful food consumption long term, it happens gradually and is very difficult to maintain. Hydration and the type of water are as important as your food among other things when try to adjust your PH.

So there you have it, Isagenix, like every other program so far, isn’t perfect. I hope you are seeing a common trend. Each system has components that are good (with the exception, in my opinion, of maybe those that were in the first 2-3 spots on the list) and components that are not so good. Would I recommend Isagenix? If you follow their instructions to the letter, absolutely not, if you work with someone who understands your metabolism and use it to reduce toxicity as means to improving your health, yes then I probably would.

This series is nearly done; it’s taken a little longer than I thought it would. I want to say thank you for your responses and feedback. I hope I can hold your attention for just a little longer. Next week I am going to try to reveal the final piece of this instalment, I’ll share what I think is the best of the worst if that makes sense. What weight loss program will it be?

Cabel’s Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs – Jenny Craig

3 Comments

In case you’re just joining us…

PLEASE READ FIRST: Ok let me start by saying this article is based on my opinion and over 19 years experience in the fitness industry. In my time in this industry I have managed health clubs, I’ve worked for supplement companies, I’ve assisted and contributed to product design, I am a registered massage therapist and a holistic lifestyle coach. To date I’ve personally assisted more than 3000 local individuals in reaching their fitness goals, overcoming injuries and eliminating pain through improved muscle balance and posture. As an amateur physique athlete I’ve even gained and lost more than 1000lbs of bodyweight in 15 different experiences with specific, measured, calculated nutrition and exercise strategies.  I am very proud to say our training facility One-to-1 Fitness has built on this experience and to date has completed more than 60,000 training sessions in just three years of operation.

Recently on my Facebook account I acknowledged my disgust for one the latest weight loss crazes I’ve been hearing about, in this case the HCG diet. Over the years I’ve seen all kinds of gimmicks come and go. In this opinionated article series I’m going to put my credibility on the line and share with you what I think are some of the worst weight loss programs and why. You don’t have to agree with me, it’s ok if you don’t. You can likely easily find “research” that will discredit my belief and my opinion and that’s also ok. All I ask is that look at this with a reasonably open mind and decide for yourself if my opinions have some merit. All opinions and conclusions beyond this point are the result of real world, in the trenches experience with people just like you.

IMPORTANT NOTE: At the time of writing I am collecting the final measures from our most recent 6 week challenge. Using only exercise and nutrition I’ve seen 30+lbs lost, nearly 24” lost, over 10% bodyfat and 16lbs of actual bodyfat lost in just 6 weeks. Every single individual has preserved nearly all of their muscle mass (and in most cases gained more) ensuring their metabolic rate can only be higher than it was just 6 weeks ago.

jenny craig Cabels Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs Jenny CraigJenny Craig – Jenny Craig makes number 8 on my list for worst weight loss programs. Does this mean that I think Jenny Craig is terrible, bad, not recommended? No not at all, that is reserved for the weight loss programs that made 1, 2, and 3 on my list. But since these articles are meant to be critical let me tell you what I don’t like about Jenny Craig.

First off all the food is processed, because it’s processed and likely typically prepared in a microwave you need to understand that no matter what the raw ingredients are; metabolically they are not the same at the point which you consume them. Food processed by any means, designed with an extended shelf life and then reheated by microwave is broken metabolically, promotes free radical development and is not good for you. This is why even the meals we have made for our clients it’s always suggested they be reheated in the oven and we strongly urge people to minimize the use of a microwave as much as possible.

Next over the years it seems to me nearly everyone that uses the Jenny Craig system faces a 1200 or 1500 calorie diet, it’s very rare I’ve encountered a suggested meal plan that is based on a higher caloric intake. I am sure there must be some aimed for male clients but I haven’t seen them.

Below is the equation for Basal Metabolic Rate.

Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) – ( 4.7 x age in years )
Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) – ( 6.8 x age in year )

The BMR for a 30 year old, 5’6, 130lb female would be 1389 calories. At first glance this doesn’t sound so bad if the typical Jenny Craig diet is between 1200-1500 calories per day, but here’s what most people don’t understand. Basal Metabolic Rate is the total number of calories to maintain your current bodyweight and its standard function every 24 hours if…you didn’t get out of bed.

So how many calories do you burn just living life each day? Well on average people burn 150 cals/hour of walking, so let’s assume we only burn 1/3 that much for every waking hour living, for most people that’s still an extra 500-700 calories a day just living and performing daily activities. Now imagine increased needs for stress, recovering from illness, an injury, a physically demanding job or even exercise. It’s safe to say that if you are even remotely active your caloric needs will be easily 1000 calories or more over your BMR.

Now yes it’s true, between your exercise and nutritional program having a slight caloric deficit is an important factor for weight loss, but time and experience has shown that if this deficit is much more than 10-20% at any given time, or drastically reduced in a very short time frame your body responds by shutting down different aspects of your metabolism, immune system and other body systems. This means that if you do lose any weight you are highly likely to gain some or all of it back and even worse you are at a much greater risk for injury, sickness and disease.

In fact I previously wrote a blog post on this very topic – (Click Here)

The positives to Jenny Craig are the convenience of the food, which is a very strong positive as it’s critical for most people to learn and adapt to a high frequency of meals to stimulate metabolism. Combine this with coaching and support and you have a great environment. The major flaw of this program as I’ve pointed out is its disregard for how the body works.

Why would the system be designed this way?

Most people are already eating too few calories on a daily basis. As a trainer it’s a very tough sell to help them understand and believe that eating more is not only critical to permanent weight loss but also their long term health and performance. Additionally when you increase someone’s calories the body must go through an adaptation(metabolic recovery) phase which means their weight may go down, it may go up, or more commonly it will stay the same for a period of time. Unfortunately this period of time is very unpredictable and makes it a tougher sell to the average weight loss consumer who is emotionally looking for the instant gratification of immediate success.

There you have it, that’s my take on Jenny Craig, who will make #9 on my list? Find out soon!

Cabel’s Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs – LA Weight Loss

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In case you’re just joining us…

PLEASE READ FIRST: Ok let me start by saying this article is based on my opinion and over 19 years experience in the fitness industry. In my time in this industry I have managed health clubs, I’ve worked for supplement companies, I’ve assisted and contributed to product design, I am a registered massage therapist and a holistic lifestyle coach. To date I’ve personally assisted more than 3000 local individuals in reaching their fitness goals, overcoming injuries and eliminating pain through improved muscle balance and posture. As an amateur physique athlete I’ve even gained and lost more than 1000lbs of bodyweight in 15 different experiences with specific, measured, calculated nutrition and exercise strategies.  I am very proud to say our training facility One-to-1 Fitness has built on this experience and to date has completed more than 60,000 training sessions in just three years of operation.

Recently on my Facebook account I acknowledged my disgust for one the latest weight loss crazes I’ve been hearing about, in this case the HCG diet. Over the years I’ve seen all kinds of gimmicks come and go. In this opinionated article series I’m going to put my credibility on the line and share with you what I think are some of the worst weight loss programs and why. You don’t have to agree with me, it’s ok if you don’t. You can likely easily find “research” that will discredit my belief and my opinion and that’s also ok. All I ask is that look at this with a reasonably open mind and decide for yourself if my opinions have some merit. All opinions and conclusions beyond this point are the result of real world, in the trenches experience with people just like you.

IMPORTANT NOTE: At the time of writing I am collecting the final measures from our most recent 6 week challenge. Using only exercise and nutrition I’ve seen 30+lbs lost, nearly 24” lost, over 10% bodyfat and 16lbs of actual bodyfat lost in just 6 weeks. Every single individual has preserved nearly all of their muscle mass (and in most cases gained more) ensuring their metabolic rate can only be higher than it was just 6 weeks ago.

LA weight Loss Cabels Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs LA Weight LossLA Weight Loss – LA Weight Loss gets my next vote for the worst weight loss programs, placing it at seven on my list. LA Weight Loss is a really great business model; they have taken characteristics of other programs and combined them into a very highly profitable model. Even though I’m going to criticize LA Weight Loss it would be arrogant of me not to mention early that in spite of this criticism there are also positive aspects to the LA Weight Loss Program (which also applies to last weeks criticism of Herbal Magic and in the weeks that follow for the other programs lower on the list.)

These positive aspects include the ongoing accountability and support of having a coach, encouragement to eat frequently, regular portion sizes combined with the affirmation and recognition of achievement. So what is it that I don’t like about this program?

Well most recently I have to say their “Take Off Juice Diet” is absurd. It’s essentially a rip off of the old Hollywood fasting diet and it’s a garbage idea that preys on consumers and their need for instant (temporary and potentially metabolically damaging) gratification. There are better and more effective ways to detox, and you should understand that any rapid weight loss that occurs on any program in the first two weeks is primarily a change in intercellular volumization and hydration (or in laymen consumerism terms “water weight”.)

LA Weight Loss is very product driven, like most of these similar systems you must use their products while on the program, their very expensive products. They rely on metabolic stimulators (generally wrapped with herbal diuretics for those instant temporary results) and then convenience items like bars, shakes, etc. Now these food supplements tend to be more expensive versions of what’s readily available at Popeye’s or any health food store. You should know that even with a financial interest in the local Popeye’s I still don’t recommend these types of convenience products to my serious weight loss clients. They are still a poor substitute for real food and should only be used as a last resort to solving a difficult schedule; and always with the caveat that it will most certainly affect their progress.

As a whole combine the cost of the consulting and the expense of the ongoing use of their branded products and you’ll find LA Weight Loss to be a very expensive program for what is truly offered.

In my opinionated series LA Weight Loss has earned a spot lower on the list (the lower it is on my list the better I feel the program is) and finished 7th. It’s important to understand every program has it’s weaknesses (even personal training) and if this or another program has worked for you by no means do I wish to discourage you from using that program. The purpose of this series is just to provide perspective from someone who has interacted with thousands of people trying to lose weight and what I’ve seen and think of numerous other programs (as we are frequently asked.) 

Who do you think is next?

Cabel’s Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs – Herbal Magic

8 Comments

In case you’re just joining us…

PLEASE READ FIRST: Ok let me start by saying this article is based on my opinion and over 19 years experience in the fitness industry. In my time in this industry I have managed health clubs, I’ve worked for supplement companies, I’ve assisted and contributed to product design, I am a registered massage therapist and a holistic lifestyle coach. To date I’ve personally assisted more than 3000 local individuals in reaching their fitness goals, overcoming injuries and eliminating pain through improved muscle balance and posture. As an amateur physique athlete I’ve even gained and lost more than 1000lbs of bodyweight in 15 different experiences with specific, measured, calculated nutrition and exercise strategies.  I am very proud to say our training facility One-to-1 Fitness has built on this experience and to date has completed more than 60,000 training sessions in just three years of operation.

Recently on my Facebook account I acknowledged my disgust for one the latest weight loss crazes I’ve been hearing about, in this case the HCG diet. Over the years I’ve seen all kinds of gimmicks come and go. In this opinionated article series I’m going to put my credibility on the line and share with you what I think are some of the worst weight loss programs and why. You don’t have to agree with me, it’s ok if you don’t. You can likely easily find “research” that will discredit my belief and my opinion and that’s also ok. All I ask is that look at this with a reasonably open mind and decide for yourself if my opinions have some merit. All opinions and conclusions beyond this point are the result of real world, in the trenches experience with people just like you.

IMPORTANT NOTE: At the time of writing I am collecting the final measures from our most recent 6 week challenge. Using only exercise and nutrition I’ve seen 30+lbs lost, nearly 24” lost, over 10% bodyfat and 16lbs of actual bodyfat lost in just 6 weeks. Every single individual has preserved nearly all of their muscle mass (and in most cases gained more) ensuring their metabolic rate can only be higher than it was just 6 weeks ago.

Herbalmagic 225x300 Cabels Opinion: Worst Weight Loss Programs Herbal Magic

Red Deer weight loss coach ranks Herbal Magic as #6 worst weight loss program.

Herbal Magic

– Herbal Magic is the first of the mainstream weight loss centre programs I’m going to pick on, it is the next logical choice for my opinionated list of the Worst Weight Loss programs. Over the years I’ve been faced with many people that have had personal experience with Herbal Magic, many times they were people that succeeded initially only to gain all the weight back, others it flat out didn’t work at all. Now I think it’s important to note it’s far more likely that people who hadn’t succeeded with the program would be more likely to employ the services of a personal trainer, but with that said it’s not the success or failure rate that has raised my concern with Herbal Magic.

Problem #1 – Ambiguity of product ingredients. Like most weight loss centres the listing of product ingredients is restricted to the view of only those that purchase them, and if this weren’t Canadian law I suspect even users might be kept in the dark. By comparison if you quickly search for an ingredient listing of any main stream health product provider you will readily find ingredient listings within seconds. We are lead to believe that these formulations are so effective that they must be protected and kept secret. On the contrary, having been involved in the supplement industry for years, and even loosely involved with product formulation and development once upon a time, I can tell you that the opposite is more likely true. Secretiveness around your ingredient listing is a demonstration that if people readily know what’s in it before they buy it they can quickly determine that it truly doesn’t meet the cost to benefit ratio to make it a smart buy, in short not so “magical.”

Problem #2 – Discouraging people from exercising, and particularly from any form of resistance training. Now I can’t say or speak that this is a philosophy or belief of the company as a whole but numerous clients and contacts I’ve made over the years were actively discouraged to stop or not exercise or use resistance training while on the Herbal Magic program because muscle weighs more than fat and that was what was slowing or stopping their weight loss. Let’s set the record straight, a pound of muscle is on average 10% heavier than a pound of fat, and every 24 hours the pound of muscle will burn 50 calories when you are at total rest while the fat will only burn 1, a pretty good trade off for 10% more weight. Furthermore it’s well known that resistance training is particularly important for anyone over the age of 30 to support and maintain healthy bone density. Last but not least simple common sense would suggest exercise burns calories and raises your metabolism; any program suggesting you not exercise to lose weight should raise a red flag.

Problem #3 the worst of them all – Major, long lasting digestive distress. I can think of at least 10 (and likely more if I try hard) individuals that were having major stomach and digestive problems weeks and months after stopping the Herbal Magic supplements. We are all sensitive to different foods, herbs and supplements in very different ways. Even though these supplements are labelled as “natural” don’t be naive thinking they can’t be dangerous or have negative consequences. When using any nutritional product at all if you notice physical changes with regular use that don’t go away within days you should immediately cease using that product until you can learn more about it or consult a physician. Wait until all symptoms are relieved and try again for no longer than 10 days to see if they reoccur. It’s important to listen to your body a detox period when starting something new can leaving you feeling less than great for a few days but it most certainly shouldn’t continue for long, protect yourself as you must live each day with how you feel as a result.

In all I have not and will not ever recommend Herbal Magic to anyone and would encourage you, if you’ve been considering, to think again. This one was tough to position in my list, it could have came sooner. Ultimately I positioned it here because like most of the weight loss centre programs the positive part of the program is there is some coaching and accountability to reinforce the idea of consistent eating habits, though I don’t necessarily agree with the volume or structure I can’t in all fairness ignore that there is some positive reinforcement to better lifestyle habits within this program so it ranks a solid 6 in my top 10 list of worst weight loss programs.

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