It’s that time of the year again…
The sun is coming out more often, it is getting warmer, and people are planning their summer getaways.

Are you looking for ways to tone up your body so that you can be confident that you look good in a bikini when you hit the beaches this summer?

Although there is no quick fix (since fitness is a lifestyle), check out these tips that can help you get into shape for the summer (and beyond).

1. First, take a hard look at your diet. Diet is just as important (if not more so)as exercise when it comes to getting in shape and staying there. I am not an advocate of depriving yourself of things that you like to eat, but if you are eating cake, ice cream, Kraft dinner, chocolate cookies, and potato chips every day, you are doing yourself a disservice.

I find it helpful to write down what you are eating every day, and adjusting your portions accordingly. Often times, we don’t realize how many calories we are actually taking in, and by writing it down, we are able to think about what we are eating and how much we can cut out without depriving ourselves.

I believe that it is not very hard to cut out about 250 calories from your diet per day. 1 Chocolate chip cookie and a can of soda equate to approximately 250 calories.

2. Try not to drink anything with calories. It does not mean that you can’t enjoy a glass of juice once in a while, but did you know that a glass of juice is anywhere between 100-200 calories, not to mention that there is often sugar added? Instead, substitute your juice (and other caloric beverages) with water or green tea, both of which are good for your health.

If you are still craving juice, you can dilute it by adding water to it, and that way, the concentration of sugar will be reduced and you can still enjoy the flavour.

According to my nutrition notes, you should divide your weight in half, and that is the number of ounces of water that you should drink. So, I’m 118 lbs, which means that I should be drinking 59 ounces of water per day.

3. Figure out what exercises you enjoy doing. I hope that my earlier post on “creative ways to get fit” can give you a few ideas.

4. Write down what you did for a workout every day. Personally, I find it useful to get a calendar and put a check mark on every day that I worked out. If you really want to get detailed, you can actually write down what you did for that day… for example: Wednesday, April 20th-went for a jog. Writing things down keeps you aligned with your goal and keeps you on track.

5. Find someone to work out with. Working out is much more fun when you have someone else with you who enjoys the same activities as you do.

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What do you like to do for exercise?

I hope you found this helpful!

Aviva =)

Before deciding how to lose weight, it is important to set a realistic goal weight. Many people start an exercise & diet program with unrealistic expectations of the speed at which they want to lose weight, and a goal weight that is too low for their body type. Such unrealistic expectations set people up for disappointment, binge eating, are demotivating, and not to mention can be bad for your health.

Some people can be big and fit at the same time, and no matter what they do they will not be a size 2, because that is not their body type. Your body type is genetically determined, and although you can tone up and look great, you may not reach your goal weight if it is unrealistic.

Generally, if you are able to exercise every day, your BMI is under 25 (but don’t go below 19, that’s not healthy either), and your waist is smaller than 35 inches for women or 40 inches for men, then your risk of obesity-related health problems decreases and you are OK.

Also, if you are a woman, and your waist-to-hip ratio is greater than 0.8, then you may be at risk of serious health conditions (cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, etc).

It is good to have a weight loss goal, but a goal has to be SMART. A SMART goal is one that is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. Without the aforementioned, a goal is not really a goal.

It is important to note that a healthy weight for me is not necessarily a healthy weight for you, and it’s not necessarily a healthy weight for someone else. When you reach your optimal weight, you should feel great about your body and your health. Every person is different, so every person’s workout, diet and weight loss program should be customized to suit their needs.

If you are very new to working out, don’t set goals such as “I will work out 6 days a week for 2 hours a day and lose 15 lbs by the end of the month”. Although it is specific, measurable, and timely, it may not be realistic nor attainable. Quick weight loss should not be the goal, because it took you longer than a month to gain the weight, so it will take you longer than a month to lose it.

How do you decide what’s a realistic weight goal for you?

Thank you for reading,
Aviva

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Source: My nutrition class notes

Just 100 extra calories per day for 1 year can add up to 10 extra pounds. After my track & field injury back in 2008, when I continued eating as much as I did before having quit intense training, I noticed that I gained about 10 lbs. Living in a small town, with volleyball being the only sport offered at school, no wonder why the extra calories somehow found their way to the waist, butt and thighs in the form of a few unneeded inches.

Are you having difficulty with a few extra inches and those 10 pounds that seem to have appeared out of nowhere?
The secret to losing those few pounds could lie in your eating habits during food preparation and after dinner. Sure, a spoonful of what you’re making here, and an extra piece of bread after supper, and some more spoonfuls after dinner don’t seem like much. However, considering that you are eating all your meals, snacks, AND a few extra spoonfuls, you may very well be blowing your calorie budget.

Here are a few tips that will help you avoid unnecessary caloric intake:

1. Don’t cook on a completely empty stomach. If you are very hungry while making your dinner, you will start reaching for the chips, bread, cookies, and other high-calorie foods. You will also be more likely to eat what you are cooking, while you are cooking it, before you actually sit down for dinner.

2. Avoid grocery shopping when you are hungry. It is not unusual for a hungry shopper to come back with about 3 bags of different flavours of potato chips, 2 packages of cookies, and a chocolate cake. When junk food is in front of you, you are more likely to eat it.

3. Don’t wait until you are hungry to eat. If you are trying to lose weight, you should be eating smaller meals more often so that you don’t overeat later in the day.

4. If you are still feeling hungry after dinner, instead of reaching for the bread, make some green tea or water to fill the gap. Green tea is wonderful, and has no calories.

5. If you need to, write down everything you eat, including any calories that you take in before and after your meals. Writing things down helps you see what you are eating, and allows you to make adjustments to your diet if you feel you need to.

I hope you found the above post helpful.
If you have anything to add, feel free to do so in the “comments” section.

Aviva 🙂

Source: My nutrition notes from my university class.