5 Ways to Help You Enjoy Working Out

Delayed physical changes, soreness and the boredom of routine are just a few factors that discourage people from working out every day. It’s finally time to stop hating working out and start loving it! We have five easy steps to help you maintain your workout plans and learn to love exercising!

1. Organize Your Goals.

Before you hop on the treadmill or hit the floor for some crunches, establish some goals. Sounds easy, but if you don’t have a concrete plan how can you stick to it? If you want to see results, jot down the steps needed to achieve them. Failing to organize is a surefire way to guarantee giving up and opting out of your workouts.

2. Turn up the Tunes

Music adds excitement and takes your mind off pain and fatigue. Studies suggest fast-paced music helps people work harder and increase concentration. Get in the zone! Start putting together the perfect workout playlist.

3. Do What You Love

Don’t force yourself to do workouts you hate. Find fun and exciting exercises you enjoy and before you know it, working out will be just another hobby.

4. Set up A Reward System

To keep yourself motivated, find small ways to reward yourself after every workout. Whether it’s a small healthy treat or some simple shopping, reward yourself every time you reach one of your goals.

5. Make it a Group Thing

If you dread going to the gym by yourself, get fit with some close friends, family members, or coworkers. Schedule workout dates to play some 3-on-3 games, take a Zumba class, or practice simple partner lifting. Chit-chatting while working out will help the time fly.

We hope these tips will help you learn to love working out. Always remember there is a goal in reach and think about how great you’ll feel once you've achieved them!

Can Bariatric Surgery Reverse Diabetes?

If you struggle with obesity and type 2 diabetes, research suggests that bariatric surgery will not only help you lose weight, but also improve or resolve your diabetes. Las Vegas weight loss surgeon Thomas Umbach encourages you to schedule a consultation to discuss weight loss surgery with him.

Research Backs Up Diabetes Claim

A good majority of the research linking bariatric surgery to the treatment of type 2 diabetes has come out of the Cleveland Clinic. Results of the Cleveland Clinic’s 2012 STAMPEDE trial (Surgical Therapy And Medications Potentially Eradicate Diabetes Efficiently), published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed bariatric surgery to be more effective than medicine in controlling diabetes in obese patients.

In fact, researchers noted that 42 percent of patients in the study who underwent gastric bypass surgery showed no signs of diabetes after one year, compared to 12 percent of patients receiving drug therapy.

A similar study out of the Catholic University in Rome, also published in 2012, made another surprising discovery. They noted that some of their test’s subjects saw a change in their insulin and blood sugar levels almost immediately after surgery, even before losing any weight.

The Cleveland Clinic then led a STAMPEDE sub-study, the results of which were published in Diabetes Care in February 2013, that found gastric bypass surgery restores pancreatic function in moderately obese patients with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes.

Long-Term Remission from Diabetes?

Though these studies’ findings were encouraging, up until late last year, nobody had looked at the long-term benefits of bariatric surgery in patients with type 2 diabetes.

In September 2013, the Annals of Surgery published new research from the Cleveland Clinic confirming that overweight patients with type 2 diabetes continue to improve or reverse their diabetes nine years after weight loss surgery.

The Cleveland Clinic’s lead investigator, Dr. Stacy Brethauer, said, “This study confirms that the procedure can offer durable remission of diabetes in some patients and should be considered as an earlier treatment option for patients with uncontrolled diabetes.”

Schedule a Bariatric Surgery Consultation

Dr. Umbach would be happy to explain how bariatric surgery at his Las Vegas practice can help you accomplish your health goals and live a longer, more satisfying life. Please call 702-463-3300 to schedule a consultation today.

Sources:

• http://www.cbsnews.com/news/study-weight-loss-surgery-keeps-diabetes-at-bay-long-term-reverses-complications/
• http://www.today.com/video/today/46865805#46865805
• http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130919140823.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily:+Latest+Science+News%29
• http://abcnews.go.com/Health/DiabetesTreatment/weight-loss-surgery-cuts-type-diabetes/story?id=16002552
• http://my.clevelandclinic.org/media_relations/library/2013/2013-09-19-cleveland-clinic-study-shows-long-term-effects-bariatric-surgery-obese-patients-type-2-diabetes.aspx

Post-Bariatric Surgery Exercises

Planning and executing a proper exercise routine after bariatric surgery will help you achieve the body and lifestyle you have been dreaming about. With healthy eating, consistent workouts and discipline, maintaining your new lifestyle post bariatric surgery will become second nature. Benefits of working out include toning your muscles, increasing your energy, tightening loose skin, lowering your blood pressure and ultimately working out will make you feel great!

Recovery

Recovery is very important and does not happen over night. Communication with your doctor is vital and very necessary. It takes effort and a strict diet. After you and your doctor feel like you have fully recovered, you may then begin planning your routines.

Take it Slow

For most patients, working out will be a gradual experience. For the first couple of weeks after the recovery period, patients should begin sitting exercises focusing on legs and arm movements. Exercises include leg lifts, arm rotations, and shoulder rolls. After performing some of these exercises, patients should go for a walk outside or on a treadmill to get a little cardio in. This work out should be done everyday for about 30-45 minutes to condition the body.  

Picking up the Pace

After about a 3-4 weeks (Or more depending on patient), patients should now be ready for more challenging exercises. Implementing cardio and aerobic exercises will help shed some more pounds and tone the areas that need it.  Riding a bike outside or taking cycling classes at the gym are great ways to incorporate cardio into your work out routine. Always remember to go at your on pace when performing these exercises.

Building Strength

By the 3^rd or 4^th month, working out should very much be second nature. It’s all gradual advancement from this point on. To see more results make sure to add some strength training into the mix.  Strength training exercises should be incorporated into your routine at least 3 times a week. Exercises include lunges, squats and the use of dumbbell weights. You may feel some soreness following these exercises. It’s very important to take care of your body afterwards with rest and the right post workout meal or protein shake.

Sources

http://www.blossombariatrics.com/recovering/

http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/lose-weight/build-strength/strength-training-for-beginners/

Keeping Your New Year’s Resolution

How many of you have “Stick to my resolution” as one of your 2014 resolutions? If you don’t already, go ahead and add it to the list because we have some helpful tips to help you accomplish your 2014 goals.

1. Plan and Organize

In order to really focus on your goals, you have to stay organized. Create a system to help you stay on your path. Lists are a great way of staying organized.

Write down a series of steps to remind yourself of  what to do, jot down your progress and lastly differentiate your short term and long term goals.

 If you can maintain a system that fits you, stick to it and keep up the hard work.

2. Reward yourself

Every step closer to your goal deserves a round of applause. Whether it’s one huge leap or a series of smaller steps, sit back and reward yourself. This will remind you that you are closer then when you started and giving up CAN’T be an option.

3. Don't Beat Yourself Up

In the beginning, falling off the wagon is very common. For most of the world, one mistake can set a person back indefinitely and there goes another failed New Year’s resolution.

When this happens, accept your mistake, forgive yourself and get back on the wagon and keep pushing towards that goal!

4. Be Social Friendly

We live in an era where we share everything with everyone. Social media has allowed us to connect with people similar to us.

Share you progression with the cyber world. Publicly committing to a goal can bring personal motivation and also welcome in others who may have similar goals.

This way, others can support and motivate you.

5. Smart Phone, Smart Tips

You know that device you glue your face to on a daily basis? The device that started off as a way to merely communicate with others? Yea, your smart phone. Well there are a plethora of apps to help people stick to their goal.

Search for some apps in the app store that you feel can help you. Apps such as Lose It! and Fooducate can help users maintain and track what they eat and what activities they do to reach their ultimate goal.

We hope these tips help you get to where you want to be. Keep reminding yourself how badly you want to reach your goal and how satisfying it will be at the end. Goodluck!

Sources:

http://www.bankrate.com/finance/personal-finance/9-ways-to-keep-your-new-year-s-resolutions-1.aspx
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2013/12/27/keep-new-years-resolutions-goals/4192127/

Five Common Excuses to Skip Exercise 

Classic commentary about staying active during this time of the year can end up sounding like excuses or holding goals off for a certain date on the calendar, like New Years. These positions are not necessarily bad but why not start now? Here are five excuses that can trick you, but don’t worry. We are here to reveal these excuses and give you weapons for combat.

I Will Either Be Too Hot or Too Cold

This is a real factor in staying active and can take the option completely off the table. If the weather isn't conducive for the type of activity desired, bring it home. Everything from an inside gym to crunches in between daily tasks will get the job done.

I Have No Time

Time is a concept that no one will ever grab a hold of, but combining activities will help. This idea has been referenced in previous posts and we sympathize with not having time. Making space by breaking up an activity throughout the day, packing a bag the night before, and varying in intensity levels will all help with keeping activity on the to-do list.

I’ll Start Fresh in January

Turning over a new leaf is a great thing, but getting a head start can help keep the new leaf turned over. Put aspirations of a healthier 2014 to motion early and don’t wait for the next few weeks!

I Am Too Tired

Staying active gives you energy. With the endorphins that are produced while staying active, it will ironically provide the energy you lacked at the beginning. On the days where fatigue is more intense, reduce the severity of your activity.

I Get Frustrated When I Don’t See Results Right Away

Don’t necessarily gauge the importance of staying active with visible results. Those will come but it relies on consistency. Set goals for certain days and stay concerned with accomplishing these goals. Make adjustments when needed and keep your enthusiasm high!

These excuses are thoughts that almost everyone has encountered at one point or another, but being aware and preparing yourself for solutions will be helpful this upcoming season!

Sources:

http://www.fitsugar.com/Worst-Excuses-Working-Out-Winter-26293812

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/video/gym-smarts-chest

http://www.acefitness.org/acefit/fitness-programs-article/3318/ACEFit-workout-advice-and-exercise-tips/

Tips for Time Management and Healthy Living

Time is never a factor in life that seems to be in many people’s favor. There might be seasons where time is abundant, and other seasons where there does not seem to be enough hours in a day. With a crunch on time it can lead us to comprise on things of priority, like our health. Here are a few simple tips that can kill two birds with one stone and help the tasks of a day feel doable.

Evaluate How You Are Spending Your Time

For the week, pay special attention to how you spend time either by mental note or keeping a daily log. This can help evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. Ask these questions:

What am I doing well?
 What can I do better?
What are unhealthy and unproductive tendencies?

Answering these questions with evidence to how you spent the week will help to pinpoint the needed areas of adjustment.

Make a To Do List

Now I know this sounds tedious, but writing everything down in one place will relieve stress. Make a to do list for the day and leave it up to the paper to remember each task. After the list is made, take these steps:

 Organize it by priority

 Delete any unnecessary tasks

Be reasonable about what you can accomplish

Try to pair tasks together (talk on the phone while completing a mindless task)

This will help you have more of a grip on your day and minimize last minute rushes.

Time to Yourself

Often taking time off or taking a 10-minute break can seem like a setback when in reality it can do the opposite. If our bodies are run into the ground each day it can result in sickness or a decrease in productivity. Here are some ideas in taking a break:

Take a walk

Do stretches in the middle of the day

Make time for a hobby

 Give your body enough sleep

All of these factors can relate back to health. When our health is put on the back burner, we end up becoming less motivated and lack in time management. These are small ways we can implement into our daily schedule for a healthier more organized lifestyle.

Sources:

https://svpply.com/item/42521/Finetime_clock

http://www.lucilleroberts.com/blog/diet/sharpening-time-management-skills

http://expressbloomington.com/ownerblog/lack-of-time-management-skills-lead-to-health-problems/

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/time-management/wl00048

3 Tips to Keep Healthy during the Holidays

The holiday season is here! It is time for colorful foods with scents that beckon memories, music that is designated for certain seasons and token symbols like the turkey or Christmas tree posted on every decoration. 

Each year the holiday season approaches and a conversation of when to say “no” or how to watch food portions hangs in the midst of grand delicacies that make mouths water. We feel the weight of this conversation and have good news: you can have your cake and eat it too. Holidays do not have to mean depriving you or your loved ones of the relished foods, it simply means implementing basic disciplines to cruise through the holidays with happiness and health. After some research in and out of the office, here is yet another three-step guide piece on holiday food:

1.       Prepare for the Party

Arriving to an event hungry with delicious, yet high in calorie, foods will be a mistake. Make sure to grab a small snack before the buffet begins. This does not mean show up without an appetite, but having something previously on your stomach will help when decisions at the food table need to be made. The light snack should be a healthy selection that is high in water content, which will fill you up faster. If you want to contribute to the spread, maybe suggest bringing a healthy dish!

2.       Stay Active at Any Cost

Holidays not only meaning more food but also more people, so getting time to exercise might be difficult. Regardless, keep activity on the priority list. This could mean fitting in a work out right before the big meal or party. The food will not only be festive but also a reward after working hard. Another suggestion is multi-tasking during errands. When the grocery store calls and a jog is put on the back burner, walk swiftly and engage your core during lifting. These may seem silly, but the smallest burst of activity will help with health and usually supply more energy.

3.       Choose Your Calories Carefully

If this season is the only time you indulge in these treats, be wise in your selection. Try to steer away from eating calories that are common all year round and taste the pumpkin pie, gingerbread cookies or eggnog. Be aware of portions and the fact that beverages contain calories! When hosting a party, you might even decide to grab smaller serving utensils and skinnier glasses. Choose carefully and appreciate each dish on your plate.

Lastly, take time to enjoy the holidays and all that it brings. ‘Tis the season to find joy with your loved ones and let the memorable food enhance the experience. Take in the sights, scents, and sounds. Holidays aren't meant to set you back, but push you forward into the new year.

Sources:

http://www.thedeserve.com/964-real-men-cook-kitchen-too.html

http://www.realsimple.com/health/nutrition-diet/healthy-eating/eat-healthy-during-holidays-10000001683797/

http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/4-ways-to-eat-healthy-during-the-holiday-season.html#b

http://www.active.com/nutrition/articles/10-strategies-to-prevent-the-holiday-bulge