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CategoriesBlog Live Fit. Move.

5 Tips for Successful New Year’s Resolutions

As we round the corner and enter the last stretch of 2015, your thoughts may turn toward the New Year, and resolutions. Between 40 and 50% of us actually make resolutions, and losing weight or being fit and healthy rank among the top resolutions made each year.  However, 25% of people give up their resolutions inside two weeks, and 46% throw in the towel after five months.
Making a resolution doesn’t have to be difficult.  Here are five tips to make achieving your New Year’s goals easier:

1)  Start Small.  Steer clear of lofty or unreasonable resolutions.  Yes, you might want to be fit and healthy, or lose weight, but it’s not going to happen over night.  Resolving to go to the gym every day when you haven’t been in for months is a tad bit overzealous.  Begin with two-three days a week.  Get a feel for success, and then up the ante.

2) Schedule It.  If your resolution isn’t planned into your calendar, when were you planning on achieving it?  As a whole, we are terrible at scheduling time for ourselves, but oh-so-willing to fill our schedule pleasing others.  Not this year. Make a plan and schedule it in.  Treat your resolution as a commitment to yourself.

3)  Let go of deprivation.  One of the number one resolutions is to lose weight.  In order to do this, many people adhere to strict diets or intense exercise regimes.  Neither of which are sustainable in the long term.  In setting resolutions or goals, choose ones that make you feel good ~ that energize and excite you, rather than make you want to hide under a blanket.

4)  Minimize decision making.  Many of us suffer from decision fatigue and don’t even realize it. Decision fatigue (according to Wikipedia) refers to the deteriorating quality of decisions made by an individual, after a long session of decision making.  Think of this long session as your typical day:  choosing what to wear to, what to eat, how to get to work, and the list could go on.  Minimize your decision making by automating some decisions:  eat the same breakfast each day.  Wear your gym clothes to bed.  Exercise every Monday/Wednesday/Friday.  Make it easy with decisions pre-made for you.

5)  Learn to say no.  Saying yes to one thing, can mean saying no to something important.  Remember what your goals are as you make choices.  Saying yes to happy hour can mean saying no to that workout, family time, or down time that you’ve been craving.  Know what you want, and where you’re going, and make decisions accordingly.

Remember, change happens daily.  If you want to see big things happen in your life, start with tiny steps.

Flow Fitness Seattle - Blog - Five Reasons - Gym, Health Club - South Lake Union, WashingtonCategoriesBlog Live Fit. Move.

The Holiday Season is here, will your work out suffer? Five reasons to exercise.

Thanksgiving is right around the corner, with December hot on it’s heels. If you’re like most, your exercise routine suffers during the holidays. In December a workout gets squeezed out by shopping, parties, family time and other various activities. Many people look ahead to January, with plans to start again with a vengeance once the new year rolls around. At Flow, we challenge you to stick with your routine, even if you have to modify it to make it happen. Here are five reasons to get your workout in:

  • Exercise reduces stress, and increases energy. Stress is an inevitable part of life – especially during the holidays, with many demands on your time and patience. Exercise is an excellent coping mechanism. Studies show that it is very effective at reducing fatigue, improving alertness and concentration, and enhancing overall cognitive function. If your body feels better, so does your mind.
  • Exercise boosts your immune system. Who wants to miss out on holiday fun because of a cold? Physical activity may help flush bacteria out of the lungs and airways. This may reduce your chance of getting a cold, flu, or other airborne illness – reason enough to exercise each and every day!
  • Exercise can help combat holiday weight gain. Most of us indulge, if only just a little, during the holidays. Why not burn some of those extra calories with a good workout?
  • Even a little goes a long way. You may not have time for an hour long work out – but don’t hang on to to the “all or nothing” attitude. You can benefit from bouts of exercise as short as ten minutes. Sneak in movement in any way you can. Another tip: schedule it in. Many people give up exercise this time of year as something that takes up too much time. Be strategic, and plan ahead.
  • Exercise will be easier when January arrives. Instead of having to start over again in January, keep the momentum going and simply continue your current routine – even better: mix it up with a new class or two. The body loses fitness gains fairly easily, so do yourself a favor and maintain all you have worked toward this year!

Whatever you do, don’t think of exercise as just one more thing on your to-do list this holiday season. Think of it as a valiant act of self care. Move your body today!

Flow Fitness Seattle - Blog - Fitness Plateau - Gym, Health Club - South Lake Union, WashingtonCategoriesBlog Move.

Have you hit a fitness plateau?

Are you frustrated with your progress at the club? Do you work out every day, and yet don’t see any results? Are you bored with our current routine? You may have landed on a fitness plateau. We’ve all been there – be it at the gym, trying to lose weight or even learning a new skill. At first you make a ton of progress. Things are going great, and you’re feeling good. You’re losing weight consistently, adding more weight to that barbell or running further/faster than you ever have. Then, you hit a point and everything seems to pause, or go backward, even though you may be doing “all of the right things”.

One thing to keep in mind is that the human body is an amazing machine, and extremely effective at adapting to change. When you make changes in your diet or your exercise routine you are effectively “stressing” your body. The change is something new, and thus the body has to work harder, and you see results. Once that new things becomes routine, your body adapts. If you continue to do the exact same thing over and over, your body becomes incredibly efficient at that activity. And in fact, the body can adapt so well after doing the same thing over and over, that it burns fewer calories during the process.
This is why beginners can make progress doing almost anything. As you get more advanced though, plateaus are easier to come by.
The antidote: CHANGE.
Mix up your routine. This can weekly, or monthly or daily. Add in some change!

If it’s a faster race time that you’re looking for, mix up your training. Once a week do some speed work, add in fartleks or interval training. Join a local running club on their track nights. Run with people that are faster than you.

If it’s losing weight, keep a food journal. Really pay attention to what you’re eating right now and mix it up. Try a new recipe. Juice. Try smoothies. Go raw. Eat vegan or fast one day a week. Eat a different breakfast every day for one week. Try new snacks. Always listen to your body, and try new foods!

If it’s strength you’re after, vary the amount of sets you do or add weight each week. Do some body weight training. Try intensity training. Work with a trainer.

The bottom line, when hitting a plateau or stalling out on making progress is to do something different. Consistency is a good thing – until it isn’t. Every now and then (or perhaps once a week) change up your routine. Work out in a different way or at a different place. Eat something different every day – a new snack, a new recipe, or water with electrolytes. Take a different route to work. Find a new spot to get your work done. Go to a new coffee shop. Rest. Ahhhh, rest. Make sure that you rest.
You may be amazed at what opens up by changing things up.
Change it up today.

CategoriesBlog Live Fit. Move.

I don’t have time to workout.

You’ve heard the excuse.  You may have even used it yourself.

And yet, it’s likely not entirely true.

Have you ever stopped to think what might happen if you don’t exercise?

We often don’t think about health, until it’s too late.  Better to make it a priority right now, rather than wish you did, on your way to yet another doctor’s office.  Exercise has incredible benefits beyond simply being fit and losing weight. Regular exercise improves your mood, slows the aging process, promotes better sleep, boosts energy, reduces stress and actually helps you to get more done.

Four tips to making health a priority:

Me time.  It’s hard to exercise if you’re overwhelmed and can’t fit anything more into your day.  Learn to say no (even if you feel guilty), and build in time just for you.  Tip:  Start small.  15 minutes

Move more.  Walking is cheap and easy.  Walk as much as you can during the day ~ down the hall, out to lunch, running errands.  Schedule your meetings to walk and talk.  Here are seven powerful reasons to do so.

Know your why.  Exercising is not always easy.  There are days when you want to skip the gym or stay in bed rather than run – and that’s fine, every now and then.  If you know your why – and it’s strong – you’ll be more motivated to get moving. What’s your why? 

Make it fun.  Hate the treadmill?  Not coordinated enough for step class?  Don’t do it. Working out is easier if you love what you’re doing.  Find exercise you enjoy and get moving.

Move more, not less.  You’ve got time.  Make health a priority today!

CategoriesBlog Move.

Sitting is the new smoking.

You’ve likely heard of the potential health issues linked with sitting too much ~ it increases your risk for diabetes, is linked with cancer, raises your risk for a heart attack, as well as literally widening your posterior region.

New research, published in BMJ Open, indicates that sitting for less than three hours a day may actually add years to your life span.  However, we know that ditching the seated position completely is not always an option.  

There are standing desks, but standing all day can cause another set of issues.
The key is movement. 
How can you add movement to your work day?  One idea:  Walk and talk.  Take your phone calls on the move or schedule walking meetings.  Add small bits of movement to your every day.  This may add years to your life.   

What will you do?