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NEW YEAR NEW YOU 2017: You’re worth it

What’s holding you back from achieving your fitness goals?

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HIIT, gay news, Washington Blade
self-worth, HIIT, gay news, Washington Blade

Achieving a successful long-term fitness plan requires starting with a healthy psychological view of yourself.

Being a trainer and helping people achieve their fitness and health goals for 15 years has given me a lot of data on what has worked and what hasn’t worked. It’s also given me insight on what barriers many people face when attempting to make a healthy lifestyle change.

I’ve had the blessing of working with more than a thousand people and had the honor of talking about health to a thousand more. Though I’ve connected with the rich and poor, CEOs and blue-collar workers, black and white, male and female, and any other combo you can think of, they all present many of the same barriers to becoming fit and healthy. The most common barrier I see keeping people from achieving their goals comes from a lack of self-worth.

What is self-worth?

When we speak about self-worth, I could care less about how much is in your bank account or what your credit score is. This is a different type of currency that makes you intangibly rich. Self-worthiness employs the basic fact that you feel, believe and act upon the premise that you deserve greatness in everything you do. Most minorities can relate to this feeling or breaking point because most civil rights movements come from a general place of worth. How each group acts upon it varies of course, but whether you are marching in the street, lobbying with Congress, using economic influence or all of the above, your movement starts from a place of self-worth. Your healthy lifestyle will start from the same place.

Worth the sacrifice

“Heavy is the head that wears the crown.” “With great rewards come great sacrifice.” Sure we’ve all heard quotes like these, but rarely do we hear that we are worth the sacrifice. The first barrier most of my clients have is getting to a point where they decide they are worth the sacrifice it will take in order to put their health and fitness as a consistent priority in their life. For some, the sacrifice is money, for others it’s time, but for most, the hardest part is getting to a point mentally of believing that they are worth the sacrifice.

It’s taking a step back and saying to yourself that I love myself so much that I will be selfish. The second step to this is actually backing this idea up with actions that show you and the world that you actually believe what you’re saying. In general, I’ve found that people are much more willing to sacrifice for others and commit for others than they are for themselves. Think about the times you’ve done something because someone has asked you, but you wouldn’t have done the same for yourself and your own happiness.

I always think about your friend’s expensive birthday dinner that you’re willing to go to for the other person, but you’d never treat yourself to. This also resonates with parents who want the best for their kids and will sacrifice everything, including time, money and sometimes sanity, but refuse to sacrifice any of the above for their own health or happiness. Think about the parent who cooks and eats an unhealthy dinner to satisfy their kids but won’t take the time to cook what is on their personal eating plan. There’s also the parent who would spend a limitless budget on putting their kids into sports activities, but won’t invest a dime into their own fitness. By sacrificing for others, even our family, at every decision, you send a strong message to yourself and the world that you’re not important.

Changing this starts in realizing that when you’re at your best, you are also the best for others. The best teachers are the ones who live their own creed. The best parents don’t just tell their kids to do things, they reinforce it by setting a positive example. If you want your kids to eat healthy, then you need to eat healthy. If you want your kids to adopt a consistent healthy active lifestyle, then you must do the same. Your health is worth the same sacrifices that you would make for others and not only that, you are better for your family, friends and society in general when you do.

Worth the fear

“I must not fear. Fear is a mind killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear.” (Frank Herbert) “Conquer fear and conquer your life.”

The second barrier I see prevent most people from sticking with or even getting started with a new health and fitness plan is fear. Fear of failing. Fear of looking stupid. Fear of the work it’ll take.  Fear of not being as good as everyone else. Fear of everything. You are worth the fear. You are worth not only having these legitimate feelings, but you are worth facing those fears and overcoming them. Facing and overcoming these fears will mold you into a better you.

Think of it like this — every great change and challenge in your life has started with fear. First day of school. First day at a new job. Moving to a new city. Getting married. Getting divorced. No matter what it was, if it was new in life, there was fear. Though the degree of the fear varies from person to person and situation to situation, the presence of fear is always there. The acknowledgment of this fear is OK and to some degree healthy, but it’s important that this fear is a moment and not a movement.

When I meet with people starting a new training plan with me, I like to ask them what are they afraid of. Most answers circle around how others will perceive them and how they perceive themselves as compared to themselves during another time in their life. They think they will disappoint me, be judged by other people or that they’re not as fit as they once were. Though changing this behavior, of course, doesn’t happen in one session, I have found the most success in getting people to refocus on who they came here for and teaching them how to be in the moment. I totally agree that the gym can be an intimidating place especially for a novice, but only if you are valuing your worth and success on the scale set by other people. If you can commit to defining your success by yourself and for yourself, then what others are doing or how they perceive you will not mean anything to you.

I understand this is easier said than done, but this may be one of the most important habits that you must work to create. There’s always going to be someone more experienced than you and not as far along as you. Your journey is your journey. When it comes to overcoming the comparisons to the old you or to the you that you think you should be, it really comes back to defining your own success.  We can take it to the next level by defining your success in this moment. If you were a millionaire who went broke, your current financial goals can’t be set on your previous rich status. You have to work on getting that first dollar and building on that. Same in the gym. We have to honestly assess where we are and allow ourselves to be in that moment. You are worth facing these fears and allowing yourself to reach your goals.

Worth the credit

“I did a good job.” The last barrier keeping many people from staying consistent in a long-term program, is the lack of acknowledgment of their success. We all love to be told “good job.” Most of us are very willing to tell others when they have done a good job, but we rarely give ourselves that intangible pat on the back. We stay consistent in things where we feel like we are challenged and getting better.

If you never acknowledge the successes you’ve achieved, then you won’t think you’re getting any better when you are. This again stems from a place of worth. You are worth taking the time to compliment yourself and even reward yourself.

A little exercise I use with clients is something I call the “what-would-you-tell-a-stranger?” game. I’ll take a client’s personal successes and give it to a stranger. Then we analyze it objectively. If a stranger told you that last year they worked out one time a week and ate unhealthy five times a week, but this year they are working out and eating healthy five times a week, would you rank them as successful?

The answer is almost always, “Well that’s great, but …” I tell them, “No buts.” If it’s good enough for someone else, then it’s good enough for you. I suggest that monthly you reassess your progress from day one and allow yourself to check back in on your progress. This will help keep you motivated to stay in the game for the long haul. You are worth the compliment.

Self-worth and self-discovery are all part of the process of building a healthier happier you. The fitter, happier you starts from a space of believing that you are worth the journey that a lifestyle change will take you on. There will be ups and downs, but the key is to stay on the ride. People who have long term success with their fitness plan run into snags, but are always able to bounce back. If your goals are centered at your worth, then when those bumps in the road occur refocus on your worth to find your way back on the wagon. No matter what your New Year’s resolutions are, center them at your self-worth and 2017, 2018 and 2019 will be everything you imagined and more.

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Fitness

NEW YEAR NEW YOU 2020: Local VIDA master trainer on trends, tips and technology at the gym

Get good technique down first; you can always add weight later

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Fitness experts say the best results from a new program start to appear 12-16 weeks into so tenacity is important. (Photo courtesy Beth Caldwell/VIDA Fitness)

Jesse Johnson makes his living working as a master trainer at VIDA Fitness (U Street location) but he agreed to share some of his tips and advice with us for free.

The U Street location is one of five of the gay-owned chain’s D.C. locations. A sixth is slated to open this spring in Ballston (Arlington, Va.). Johnson is 33, gay and left a career in corporate staffing to join the VIDA team in 2011. He averages between 50-60 clients in mostly 30-minute sessions per week. Find out more at vidafitness.com. Free introductory classes are available this month. The offerings are listed at vidafitness.com/uniqueclasses. 

Johnson’s comments have been slightly edited for length.

WASHINGTON BLADE: How much does the coaching you give your clients vary from year to year as new studies and findings are made available? And how do you know if something is just another fitness fad vs. something we should really heed?

JESSE JOHNSON: There are always going to be fitness trends, that’s a given. However  before we alter what we tell our clients, we look to peer-reviewed literature. One or two studies doesn’t give much evidence — that’s not enough proof. We definitely pay attention to what is trending and we try to stay as current as possible, but we don’t incorporate it until it’s been through a more rigorous review process.

BLADE: What trends have you seen of late?

JOHNSON: In the collective big picture, there’s been a big uptick in group training. The term that’s thrown around is fitness cocktails where somebody may do a couple classes back to back, some cardio, maybe some core body work, different muscle groups — there’s been an uptick in that. And also more of what we call functional training. People want to be pain free and strong. Sure, there’s always the aesthetic benefit of lifting weights, but what people really want is to be functionally strong into their 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s.

BLADE: Anything else?

JOHNSON: I think workouts are becoming more mindful as people use technology — apps and wearable tech to be more aware of what they’re doing. From a metric-tracking standpoint, it’s easy now to tell your heart rate, number of calories burned, number of steps taken in the course of a day with Fitbit, Myzone, the Apple watch, to the apps themselves like the Peloton apps are pretty innovative and help people be more aware of what they’re doing, how frequently. There’s more mindfulness in working out. Also people see going to the gym as more of a club or social space among millennials and Gen Z. They work out with friends, it’s seen as more social, not punishment after a weekend of drinking. 

BLADE: How much does the industry really change? For instance, would you say there’s anything significantly different you’re telling your clients today vs. what you might have said when you started at VIDA nine years ago?

JOHNSON: Well, knowledge has increased dramatically and a lot of it is due to the fact that this industry didn’t even exist 40-50 years ago. People didn’t have the same needs then they do now. But a lot of the basic fundamentals are the same — keep moving, stay active, eat purposeful and do things you enjoy doing. If you enjoy doing it, it’s easier to make it a habit. I’d say we take more the sniper approach today vs. the machine gun approach. We target more instead of just spraying a bunch of bullets hoping something hits.

BLADE: So often with nutrition it seems you’ll hear one thing, then five years later the exact opposite is what experts are saying: don’t eat eggs, no eggs are good. Stuff like that. Does fitness advice change that drastically as well?

JOHNSON: Not as much. A lot of it has to do with whether people are already moving or not. We don’t take them right out of the gate to a high level of intensity. We let them work up to it. But no, I can’t think of any particular exercise we were advising a few years ago we’re saying, “No, don’t do that one anymore” or anything like that.

BLADE: What do you do if you see people working out on their own using improper technique? Can you really hurt yourself with bad form, like lifting with your back and that kind of thing?

JOHNSON: Well we try to be as polite as possible. We’ll only approach someone if we thinkg they’re about to injure themselves. But knock on wood, I haven’t seen very many injuries at VIDA and I like to credit that to the large staff of personal trainers we have on the floor. There is an inherent risk to working out — you can hurt yourself, but it doesn’t happen very often.

BLADE: Is it better to stay at a weight level at which you can maintain excellent form or push yourself out of your comfort zone with heavier weight even if your form suffers a little? 

JOHNSON: Numerous studies have found if you take a lighter weight and do more reps but push yourself to your failure threshold vs. doing fewer reps of a heavier weight to failure, the outcome is the same. And there’s a higher risk of injury with heavier weights. We like to focus on form and technique before we progress, especially if somebody is just joining the gym and they may not know much about resistance training. You can always add weight later. 

BLADE: How many of the New Years resolution folks really stick with it? Do you see many of those same faces by March or April? 

JOHNSON: Almost all my new clients stay with me for months, sometimes years. However statistically within the industry, the number is very low. The honeymoon period on average is about six weeks and it’s a shame because often you see your best results 12-16 weeks into a program. You’ll see more immediate results sooner but that’s when it starts to get really spectacular.

BLADE: How bad are the wait times for machines at VIDA? Is it pretty crazy at peak time? 

JOHNSON: I’m not gonna lie, the gym is very busy and there are peak times. But the U Street location is more residential and we have between 50,000-60,000 square feet of space so there’s not a lot of wait time for many of the machines. And people tend to be pretty aware. They’ll let you work in with them.

BLADE: How gay is it?

JOHNSON: I’d say 50-60 percent of our clientele is gay.

BLADE: Some lesbians and trans folks as well?

JOHNSON: There are lesbians. I don’t personally have any trans clients but we have 30 trainers on staff so there may be some but yeah, it’s mostly gay men. Obviously everybody is welcome. 

BLADE: Has that ebbed or flowed much over your years there?

JOHNSON: No, D.C. is a pretty good city to be a gay person in. I haven’t seen any major change. 

Jesse Johnson (Photo courtesy of VIDA)
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Fitness

Why a personalized diet can help you achieve better results

One size fits all is not the best approach when it comes to eating and fitness

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diets, gay news, Washington Blade
Research has found that not all diets and bodies work together the same way. (Photo courtesy Rawpixel/iStock via Getty Images Plus)

From custom-designed sneakers to tailor-made sunglasses, the trend of personalization is going head to toe, and for good reason, making its way to the world of weight loss and wellness.

Specifically, researchers have been studying two converging topics in recent years. One is the importance of body type in determining the combination of fats, carbohydrates and protein that will provide the best results for a given individual. The other is the variability of results associated with a single diet — the idea that if two people start the same diet at the same time, their results could be drastically different.

On top of that, consumer research shows that people overwhelmingly prefer personalized experiences. Sixty percent of consumers agree that personalization is essential to weight loss and overall wellness.

Here’s what to know about why personalized diets are becoming so popular and how to find the right diet for you:

The importance of body type

The places your body stores excess fat may be the single greatest predictor of health outcomes. This is the concept behind Nutrisystem’s assessment of the four most common body types: “Apple,” “Pear,” “Hourglass” and “Rectangle.”

“We’re going a bit old school here, because these categories have stood the test of time for a reason. They provide crucial information on how you respond to food intake and can help you to adjust what you eat based on your goals,” says Courtney McCormick, corporate dietitian at Nutrisystem. 

Body type can also influence how macronutrients like fat, protein and carbs are processed. To fulfill your individual needs, first determine your body type, food preferences and goals, then look for a weight loss plan that takes these important factors into consideration, such as Nutrisystem.

One size does not fit all

The DIETFITS study, a large, randomized research study comparing low-fat versus low-carb dietary patterns found no difference in weight loss between them. But drilling down into the data, one can see great variability. Some dieters gained weight while others lost a lot. But it’s not always about weight outcomes, as recent research has shown that factors such as body shape may play a bigger role in the determinants of health risks than body weight alone.

For instance, a woman who is apple-shaped tends to carry her extra weight in the mid-section. She would see best results on a lower-glycemic nutrition plan that is lower in refined carbs and higher in healthy fats and protein.

“Research shows that one size does not fit all when it comes to weight loss and disease prevention,” McCormick says. “That’s why we’ve created a unique, personalized approach that’s easy to follow and designed to help participants lose weight and get healthy.”

For more insights on how to personalize your diet and maximize results, visit leaf.nutrisystem.com.

While it’s no secret that achieving one’s weight loss goals is challenging, personalizing your plan can help make things easier, ultimately providing you a greater chance of success.

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Fitness

Al Roker blasts Jillian Michaels for criticizing Keto diet

The fitness trainer says the ‘personal attacks’ were ‘bizarre’

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Jillian Michaels, gay news, Washington Blade
Jillian Michaels, gay news, Washington Blade
Jillian Michaels (Photo by Don Flood; courtesy True PR)

Jillian Michaels revealed she “hates” the increasingly popular Keto diet but “Today” show weatherman Al Roker slammed the fitness trainer for dissing the high-fat, low-carb diet.

Speaking with Prevention, Michaels says she doesn’t like the diet because “There’s no calorie restriction;” “You may miss out on important nutrients;” and “It could shave years off your life.”

In response, Roker, who is a fan of the diet, called out Michaels for her aggressive reputation as a fitness trainer on “The Biggest Loser” on Twitter.

“So @JillianMichaels says #Keto is a bad idea. This from a woman who promoted on camera bullying , deprivation, manipulation and more weekly in the name of weight loss. Now those sound like bad ideas,” Roker tweeted.

Roker further defended the Keto diet, which he says he has been on since Sept. 1, on “The Today Show.”

“My point is, what works for you, works for you,” Roker explains. “There’s science on both sides that says it’s not a great idea and science that says it is a good idea.”

Michaels responded by posting a video on Twitter saying she didn’t appreciate Roker’s “personal attacks”

“It’s bizarre, it’s unnecessary, it’s beneath both of us,” Michaels said. “Read my book, ‘The 6 Keys.’ I’ve extensively researched everything in that, and nutrition is about way more than weight loss.”

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