WHOEVER WANTS TO REACH A DISTANT GOAL MUST TAKE MANY SMALL STEPS.

Helmut Schmidt

Stick to Your New Year's Resolutions

Most people fail keeping there new year’s resolution, because in most cases they are too drastic and unrealistic.

For instance, for more then 20 years I have been making the same new year’s resolution, and unable to keep it.

Every year, my resolution is; not to tease my wife, cause she hates it! However, for me, in a strange way, it is way to show my affection to her. Therefore, in a few days (or hours) I forfeit my resolution. I guess, it’ just not realistic for me (sorry babe!!!).

On the other hand, I have been able to make small changes in my life (e.g. diet, life-style etc.)  thru the years, and able to stick with them. Each change was small and not overwhelming, and I guess that’s the point I am trying to make!

If you're like the majority of people who make New Year's resolutions, your goals are probably related to health, weight loss, and fitness. Here are some simple strategies to help turn those resolutions into reality.

choose Realistic Resolutions

Picking New Year's resolutions that are not realistic for you is just setting yourself up for failure. Your chances of achieving your goals are much better if they're realistic. Of course, it's always fun and inspiring to dream, but try breaking your ultimate goal up into more manageable, realistic goals that could lead you to it.

Don't Take on Too Much

When choosing your resolutions, don't try to change many different things at once. You'll burn yourself out and won't accomplish any of your goals, leaving you feeling disappointed and defeated. Instead, focus on a few key goals and the steps you need to take to reach them.

Write Down Your Plan

Write out your plan for achieving your goals. Writing down your resolution and the steps you're going to take can be very motivating. It will help you make your goals specific, not vague, and will force you to commit to your resolution.

Set Small, Attainable Goals

If you have a really ambitious New Year's resolution, such as losing weight, running a marathon, make sure that you have smaller, attainable goals with measurable results along the way. They'll help you track your progress and prevent you from getting bored or discouraged. For example, if your resolution is to lose 25 pounds total, your first goal could be to lose 1-2 pounds every week. An added benefit of setting smaller, attainable goals is that even if you don't meet your ultimate goal, you'll still have achieved other accomplishments along the way.

Make Your Goals Known

Telling friends and family members about your goals means that people will be holding you accountable and supporting you along the way. Your goals will also seem more real if you talk about them, rather than keeping them to yourself.

Keep a Journal

Tracking your workout or diet in a journal is a great way stay motivated. Even if no one else sees it, it can help hold you accountable. It's also a good place to record your goals. When you hit a rough patch in your training, you can go back and get inspired by how much progress you've made. Reviewing your positive steps will also make it harder to go back to your old habits. You can use a simple notebook to keep a journal..

Use a Schedule and Get Organized

Deciding to go workout when you feel like it isn't going to work for most people. Look at your weekly schedule and figure out when you're most likely to have the time for training, or whatever activities are going to help you reach your goals. Get everything you need to help accomplish your resolutions, so you can't come up with easy excuses.

Cut Yourself Some Slack

You're going to experiences some setbacks on the road to achieving your resolutions. Don't let one or two slips make you give up. Think of setbacks as opportunities for growth and don't beat yourself for not being perfect. It’s only a failure if you don’t try again!

Try to stay positive and get back on track.

A great resolution for the New Year is to volunteer your time for others, even if just once a week, or once a month. Volunteering is all about commitment and enthusiasm, so choose something that you will enjoy and are interested in.
~Julie Fisher-McGarry

Happy Holidays and a happy and healthy New Year

from the Tugendhaft family!

Eat Right At The Airport

Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Eat Right At The Airport

9 ways to avoid diet turbulence when traveling

Eating right can be tricky at the airport, but you don't have to break your diet when you travel. Fly lean and satisfied with these 9 tips.
SKIP THE EXTRAS:
Watch out for foods that pack extra calories and fat. If you're getting a sandwich, you definitely want to avoid anything with cheese or sausage. Generally speaking, steer clear of any salads sounding item like tuna salad, chicken salad etc. because there usually loaded with mayonnaise or other specialty dressings. Also, try to pass on junk- food sides like chips and cookies, which can be full of unnecessary calories, fat, and sugar.
LOAD UP ON PRODUCE:
The tough part of eating healthy in airports is finding produce, but you can get a Sandwich with extra lettuce and tomato, and more & more side stands are offering whole fruit to go; Fruits and veggies are low in calories, so they won't break your calorie bank, and they're high in fiber, so they'll hold you over while you fly. They'll also give you a healthy boost of protective nutrients. Many vegetables are a good source of vitamins A and C. Be sure to eat the brightly colored ones—dark green and orange, which are often lacking in our diets.
AVOID SALT:
It's no secret that eating a lot of salt is bad for you, but it may be worse for frequent fliers. For those men who travel often, higher sodium foods may contribute to high blood pressure and fluid retention. What's worse is that we usually have no clue how much sodium is in the foods that we order. So if you choose to sit down at an airport restaurant, request no added salt from the chef, and reduce salt intake from 25-50%.
SLOW DOWN:
We're usually in a mad rush at the airport, running between bag-check, Terminal This and Concourse That. We certainly don't want you to miss your flight, but slow down when it comes to eating. Take time to enjoy your meal and chew it well inhaling even the most nutritious meal will likely make you feel uncomfortable, bloated and unsatisfied. So savor every bite.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK:
Once you know which terminal you're flying out of, do some research—all eateries and their locations within the airport are listed online. Some airports even have the restaurants' menus on their website. Chains like Au Bon Pain and McDonalds even have the nutritional information for their options on their websites. If you know where the healthy options are, you're less likely to make poor choices when you travel.
STAY SOBER:
Airport sports bars may look promising when you're flight gets delayed, but try to avoid drinking when you fly. Aside from being a lot of empty calories, alcohol can dehydrate you, leaving you with major headaches (not to mention mile-high hangovers). Feel free to put your feet up with a Guinness once you hit the ground.
EAT OFTEN:
Eating in regular intervals is important to maintain blood sugar levels, satiety, and keep your energy high while you travel. We should not go longer than 4 hours between meals If the flight is longer, grab two small sandwiches.
EAT BALANCED MEALS:
Traveling can be unpredictable, but try to eat portions that are balanced. One of the goals of eating when traveling is a meal with moderate amounts of lean protein and carbohydrates with fiber, These meals help digest foods in a slow and steady way to release that needed energy when you arrive at your destination.
PACK YOUR SNACKS:
Don't be afraid to bring stuff from home. It saves money, time, and you know exactly what you are eating. You can also pack healthy snacks from airport shops—stick to the basics and grab an individual cup of hummus, a bag of ready-to-eat crudite, a hardboiled egg and a piece of fruit to bring with you on the plane. That way, you won't have to deal with soggy airplane dinners.

“THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE IMPOSSIBLE AND THE POSSIBLE LIES IN A PERSON’S DETERMINATION”

20 Secrets of Very Fit People

The path to personal transformation usually isn’t the simplest one. How dedicated are you to the path?

Yehuda Berg - Kabbalah

20 Secrets of Very Fit People

Here are a few helpful, healthy "TurboFired" tips. Read them, then print and post them so you have them as a daily reminder.

1. Keep a water bottle with you at all times and drink from it often. Water is the drink of choice, but if you don't enjoy plain water, than liven it up! Try adding a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime juice to your water bottle. You can also drink Propel Fit Water^®, VitaminWater^®, or some other form of healthy enhanced beverage with zero or very few calories, but remember: pure water is best.
2. Look at exercise as a pleasure and privilege, not a burden or chore. Think positively about the changes regular exercise will bring about in your body and your life. Rather than obsessing about your next meal, get excited about your next workout!
3. Eat well-balanced meals and remember that excessive calories, even if they are fat free and high protein, will turn to excess weight. No matter what the latest fad diet is, extra calories always equal extra weight!
4. Limit your caffeine intake and your exposure to smoke—even secondhand smoke.
5. Focus on short-term fitness goals first with an emphasis on completing daily exercise (but never lose sight of long terms goals either…..take one day at the time).
6. Keep a daily log of what you're actually eating. This includes grabbing a handful of chips here, the crust of your kid's sandwich there, and ALL your snacking……….no cheating!
7. Enjoy an occasional (once a week) "unhealthy" treat, but never an "unhealthy" week or "unhealthy" vacation.
8. Enjoy contributing to the health of others by having a partner or friends to exercise with, as well as recruiting others who have the desire to feel better and have more energy. Have a neighbor who walks every morning? Ask if you can join in!
9. Avoid monotony by introducing new forms of exercise to your routine—in addition to your regular workout, try biking, hiking, swimming, or rollerblading to keep you motivated and inspired.
10. Subscribe to fitness magazines to keep focused on health as an overall way of life.
11. Invest in the right tools—new workout shoes, a portable MP3 player or iPod with great music, the right fitness equipment, a new series of exercise videos, etc.
12. Make it your goal to do some form of exercise 6 or 7 days a week. If some days you exercise once in the morning and once in the evening, even better! If you're eating right, exercise will fuel your energy level!
13. Don't compare your body to other people's. Instead, work to be your personal best.
14. If your diet is unbalanced, work to balance it, and make sure you take daily vitamin and mineral supplements for total health.
15. Work to take your exercise to new levels of intensity.
16. Create an exercise schedule the day before, instead of leaving it to chance or waiting to "find" the time. Everyone from busy heads of corporations to mothers who work full-time to the President of the United States can make time to work out every day—you can make time too!
17. Move beyond the boundaries of weight loss and into total fitness. Measure success by the way your clothes fit and not some number on a scale.
18. Stick with eating plans you can maintain indefinitely. Remember that no matter how hard you're working out, if you're consuming too many calories, you'll never see the muscles that lie beneath the layers of fatty tissue.
19. Get adequate amounts of sleep, but remember that people who exercise regularly fall asleep faster and sleep more soundly.
20. Limit alcohol intake to special occasions.

When you wake up, seek the courage and strength to do the right thing. Decide that this will be another day in which you............... Walk The Talk.

Eric Harvey

how to create a meal

Whoever wants to reach a distant goal must take many small steps.

Helen Schmidt

To create a meal; Take one item from protein, complex carbohydrates, vegetables and fats column (see below list and see portion size);

Food List

Protein
Chicken breast
Turkey breast
Lean ground turkey
Swordfish
Orange roughy
Haddock
Salmon
Tuna
Crab
Lobster
Shrimp
Top round steak
Top sirloin steak
Lean ground beef
Buffalo
Lean ham
Egg whites or substitutes
Trout
Low-fat cottage cheese
Wild-game meat
Turkey Bacon

Complex Carbohydrates
Potato
Sweet potato
Yams
Squash
Pumpkin
Steamed brown rice
Steamed wild rice
Lentils
Couscous
Kashi
Bulgur
Whole-wheat pasta
Oatmeal
Barley
Beans (black, kidney)
Corn
Strawberries
Melon
Apple
Orange
Fat-free yogurt
Fat-free milk
Whole-wheat bread
High-fiber cereal
Whole-wheat tortilla
Whole-wheat pita bread
Whole grains

Vegetables
Broccoli
Asparagus
Lettuce
Carrots
Cauliflower
Green beans
Green peppers
Mushrooms
Spinach
Tomato
Peas
Brussels sprouts
Artichoke
Cabbage
Celery
Zucchini
Cucumber
Onion

Vegetable Proteins
Tempeh
Seitan
Tofu
Texturized vegetable protein
Soy foods
Veggie burgers

Healthy Fats
Avocado
Sunflower seeds
Pumpkin seeds
Cold-water fish
Natural peanut butter
Low-fat cheese
Low-sodium nuts
Olives and olive oil
Safflower oil
Canola oil
Sunflower oil
Flax seed oil

How to create a meal:

A portion is the size of a deck of playing cards, the size of your closed fist or the palm of your hand for all solid foods.

One cup for all liquids. 1.Protein Choose a portion of lean protein from above list 2.Carbohydrates Choose a portion of complex carbohydrates From above list 3.Vegetables Add a portion of vegetables to at least two meals each day from above list 4. Essential fats Consume one tablespoon of unsaturated oil daily or three portions of salmon per week 5.Water Drink at least 10 glasses of water each day. Eat more often Research indicates that eating smaller meals more frequently (about every three hours) supports metabolism and helps maintain energy. Eat 3 Meals and 3 Snacks a day! Snack; I like to work with protein shakes and nutrition bars to make it easier. However, if you make your own snacks; make sure each snack has protein! ·         In addition I would recommend a pre- and post workout “meal” Key to success…..Research your idea, Plan for success, Expect success & just plain DO IT! It amazes me how many people just skip the last step! Practice being a “doer” and success will follow you every step of the way! Josh S. Hinds

Portions Under Control

I USED TO SAY, “THINGS COST TOO MUCH”. THEN MY TEACHER STRAIGHTENED ME OUT BY SAYING, “THE PROBLEM ISNJ’T THAT THINGS COST TOO MUCH. THE PROBLEM IS THAT YOU CAN’T AFFORD IT.” THAT’S WHEN I FINALLY UNDERSTOOD THE PROBLME WASN’T “IT” – THE PROBLEM WAS “ME”!

Jim Rohn

Diet Tips and Rationale

• Eat meals and snacks at regular times every day  
• Less tendency to over eat next meal
• Particularly if meal is higher fat
• Less probability to eat easily accessible calorie dense snacks
• Regular eating may keep metabolism high
• Particularly digestion of higher fiber foods
• Thermoneogenesis: calories converted to body heat
• Maintains energy level throughout day
• Potentially higher caloric expenditure during activity
• Eat high carbohydrates meal (with protein) very soon after exercise  
• Improves post workout recovery (Niles 2001)
• Faster rate of muscle glycogen re-synthesis
• 50% more glycogen can be stored (Friedman 1991)
• Improved performance in subsequent exercise
• Less muscle damage
• Increased protein synthesis
• Nearly 3 fold increase (Levenhagen 2001)
• Decreases post exercise cortisol levels
• Increase lean muscle mass (Esmarck 2001, Holm 2004)
• Decreases risk of injury (Flakoll 2004)
• Eat fruits or vegetables
• Eat cruciferous vegetables
• Natural compound called sulforaphane (found in cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage and Brussels sprouts, but especially broccoli) acts as a cancer-preventive agent. (Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine).
• Indole-3-Carbinol (I-3-C)
• Eat high fiber foods  
• Less tendency to eat calorie dense foods
• By filling up on vegetables, fruits, and whole grains
• Fiber can decrease the absorption of dietary fat
• Fiber acts a barrier in the intestines
• May help stabilize blood sugar levels.
• Helps prevent constipation by adding mass to stool
• May help prevent certain cancers
• Make lower fat and healthier fat choices  
• Lower fat food are less calorie dense
• 4 Calories per gram of carbohydrates and protein
• 7 Calories per gram of alcohol
• 9 Calories per gram of fat
• Dietary fat is more likely to convert to body fat than carbohydrates or protein
• It takes 20% more energy for the body to convert carbohydrates or protein to body fat than it does to convert dietary fat to body fat
• Less tendency to over eat
• Particularly if previous meal or snack is small or skipped
• Fat is more palatable for many
• Too much saturated fat may increase blood cholesterol or LDL
• Omega-3 fatty acids  

29 Tips for Keeping Portions Under Control

When it comes to food portions, size matters. In a world filled with "supersized" options, all-you-can-eat buffets, and extra-large pizzas, it's no wonder people overeat. Have you ever found yourself in one of these situations?

• Eating snacks straight out of the bag while watching television, or even grabbing a second bag to munch on because your show is still on.
• Continuing to finish your food at a restaurant because others are still eating, even though you're full.
• Arriving at a party starving, so your dinner consists of fried appetizers and mayo-laden salads.
• Eating an entire packaged item only to realize later that it actually contained multiple servings.

I know I've been there. Once in a while is okay, but doing this too often can supersize your waistline and your risk for medical complications, including heart disease and type 2 diabetes. With just a little bit of preparation and planning, you can keep your eating habits and your portion sizes under control.

At restaurants

1. Doggie-bag it. Don't finish your food just because it's there—or because you're still at the restaurant waiting for others to finish. Most restaurant portions contain more food and calories than you need for one meal. Bring your leftover food home, or allow the busboy to take it away early. Even better, have the server pack half of it to go before bringing it to you. It seems like an odd request, but it's not uncommon these days.
2. Share with a friend. When you split a meal, not only do you cut the price in half, but you cut the calories in half too!
3. Order the lunch or appetizer portion. Lunch and appetizer portions are cheaper and contain fewer calories than full-sized portions.
4. Avoid buffets and all-you-can-eat specials. If you're like me, you want to try everything when you go to a buffet. That's why it's better to avoid buffets when you're trying to control the size of your portions. When you have no choice about where you go (like a large family gathering or party), find the smallest plate and fill it up with the healthy stuff like grilled chicken and vegetables first. If you must go back for more, allow yourself one trip. And only get what you really want. It's such a common habit to take a bit of everything, but if you can savor one reasonably sized serving of your favorite item, you'll enjoy it a lot more.
5. Choose items with large portions of veggies. Or order salad or fruit on the side instead of fries. If you're starving, you can fill up on high-nutrient, low-calorie food to keep full.
6. Eat your favorite "indulgence" foods every now and again. Totally denying yourself the foods you take pleasure in is a surefire way to set yourself up for failure. So go ahead and treat yourself once in a while to avoid feeling deprived. But eat a smaller portion, and savor every bite.

At home

7. Hang up fridge visuals. Don't swing the fridge door open mindlessly. Think before you eat. Hang up a picture of how you once looked, that one piece of clothing you wish you could fit into, someone who you want to look like, or even someone you don't want to look like. Take a moment to think about what you're really hungry for and about your weight loss/health goals before you grab something out of the fridge.
8. Preplan your groceries. Don't shop when you're hungry and you'll be less likely to bring unhealthy food home. Stock your house with healthy foods and snacks that are easy to grab when you're hungry, such as fruit, cut-up vegetables with hummus, or light cheese and crackers. You can also purchase single-serving snacks. I love The Skinny Cow^® ice cream sandwiches (chocolate is my favorite.) They're less than 150 calories and are preportioned so I know when I'm finished.
9. Don't eat straight out of the box or bag. If you do this, odds are you'll finish everything in it—or at least eat more than one serving. Instead, fill a small container or baggie with a single serving and leave the rest in the kitchen.
10. Break leftovers down. Instead of putting leftovers in one big container, break them down into single-serving meals or snack-sized portions before storing them.
11. Hang wall mirrors. We tend not to eat as much when we see ourselves.
12. Use smaller plates. If you can't fit as much food on the plate, you're likely to eat a smaller portion. Even better, use nonmicrowavable plates so you can't heat up seconds—lay down a sheet of wrinkled-up foil, or use one of Grandma's metal-glazed dishes; both are considered unsafe for microwave use by the USDA.
13. Don't put serving bowls of food on the table. Fill your plate in the kitchen and put your leftovers away promptly after they cool so it's too much of an effort to go back to the kitchen to get seconds.
14. Look at the serving size listed on the package. You may not realize you're actually dishing out a double serving of packaged food for yourself. Make sure you look at the nutrition label so you aren't overeating without even knowing it.

At work

15. BYOL (bring your own lunch). When you make your own lunch, you get to control the portion and exactly what's in it. Cook a big batch of food on Sunday, like pasta and veggies or chicken and brown rice, then refrigerate or freeze portions to take with you.
16. Keep healthy snacks at your desk. When you have healthy snacks at your desk, you won't be as tempted to head over to the vending machine for candy or chips. Make sure to divide them into single portions in baggies so you don't overeat. And keep them tucked away in a drawer rather than on top of the desk in plain sight.
17. Keep protein bars handy. Protein bars can be a lifesaver when you don't have time to run out to get food, or a meeting postpones your lunch for a couple of hours. Watch out for bars that only have a few grams of protein and seem and taste more like candy bars than meal replacements.
18. Research healthy lunch places near work. A few minutes of research can save you calories in the long run. Some places have light menu options with smaller portions that contain fewer calories. Plus you can look up the nutrition information for many popular restaurants online even if they're not posted on the menu. And, of course, remember to avoid those all-you-can-eat specials.
19. Drink tea—and lots of water. If you're filling up on zero-calorie water and tea, you'll feel fuller and eat less when it's mealtime.
20. Log what you eat. Hold yourself accountable for what you eat. Keep a notepad handy if you're not near a computer. Keeping track of everything you eat will help you take a closer look at your eating habits so you can make better choices.
21. Don't always have your cake and eat it too. If I ate cake every time there was a birthday, I'd have it almost daily. It's okay to treat yourself to some cake occasionally, but don't always eat it just because it's there. Make sure that when you do choose to indulge, you stick to your nutritious meal plan for the rest of the day, and just augment it with a small slice of cake.
22. Bring healthy snacks to meetings. If you're hosting a meeting, instead of the usual donuts and pastries, provide fruit, veggies, hummus, cheese, and wheat crackers. If you're not in charge of food-planning for meetings, break room, or vending machines, request that healthy food alternatives be made available at your office. After all, a sugar crash thirty minutes after the morning meeting isn't going to boost anybody's productivity.

At parties

24. Pre-eat. Before you leave home for a party, eat your own healthy, nutritious food. When you arrive at the party, you can focus on the people and the festivities instead of making a beeline for the buffet table. You can still enjoy tasting the appetizers, but you'll be satisfied with less.
25. Be a healthy host. Hosting a party? Serve healthy food. Your guests will thank you—plus you'll probably burn a ton of calories running around playing host!
26. Wait 20 minutes before going back for seconds. Sometimes, especially at extravagant parties, there's an endless variety of delectable food you'd never make or buy for yourself. Make sure you sit down with your first plate and eat slowly. It's okay to go for seconds, but before you do, take your time enjoying your food and conversing with fellow partygoers for at least 20 minutes while that first round of food digests. After you do, you may realize you've already had enough. And if you do decide to go back for seconds, don't restock the plate with everything on the table. Just take a small amount of a few of your favorites.
27. Don't hover around the food table. This is a recipe for disaster. I've found myself picking up olives and crackers as if my hand had a mind of its own. Take a cracker and run—far, far away from the food table. If you're still hungry, walk back over—but don't hover. Your waistline will thank you.
28. Treat yourself with nonedible rewards. It's natural for people to associate events and personal accomplishments with food. Holidays, weddings, football games, movies, job promotions, housewarmings, school events, community celebrations—customarily, they're celebrated with food. Instead, though, try treating yourself with nonedible rewards. Work out, watch a TV show, get a massage or a manicure, buy a new outfit, or phone a friend to share your excitement. Focus on the reason for the celebration rather than the food.
29. Dress to impress. Don't wear clothes that let you overeat without feeling or showing it. If you wear extra-loose, über-comfy clothes—or ones with an elasticized waistband—you might eat more. Instead, try wearing an outfit you look great in—if possible, one that's a little bit formfitting. Then there's less room to get away with eating too much. Besides, you'll get deluged with compliments that'll make you feel so great you won't want to overeat.

Mastering portion control will give you more control over your body and your life. Whether you're at a restaurant, at home, at work, or at a party, there's no excuse. You have the power to set yourself up for success. Being mindful of your portions will help you feel better right after each meal, which will help you manage your weight more effectively. You'll learn how to enjoy your favorite foods, boost your health, and even save some cash by eating less. Now isn't that worth a little bit of effort and planning ahead?

I USED TO SAY, “I SURE HOPE THINGS WILL CHANGE.” THEN I LEARNED THAT THE ONLY WAY THINGS ARE GOING TO CHANGE FOR ME IS WHEN I CHANGE!

Jim Rohn

Heart Rate Training Zones

Heart rate training zones are calculated by taking into consideration your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) and your Resting Heart Rate (RHR). Within each training zone, subtle physiological effects take place to enhance your fitness.

The Energy Efficient or Recovery Zone - 60% to 70%

Training within this zone develops basic endurance and aerobic capacity. All easy recovery running should be completed at a maximum of 70%. Another advantage to running in this zone is that while you are happily fat burning you may lose weight and you will be allowing your muscles to re-energise with glycogen, which has been expended during those faster paced workouts.

The Aerobic Zone - 70% to 80%

Training in this zone will develop your cardiovascular system. The body's ability to transport oxygen to, and carbon dioxide away from, the working muscles can be developed and improved. As you become fitter and stronger from training in this zone it will be possible to run some of your long weekend runs at up to 75%, so getting the benefits of some fat burning and improved aerobic capacity.

The Anaerobic Zone - 80% to 90%

Training in this zone will develop your lactic acid system. In this zone, your individual anaerobic threshold (AT) is found - sometimes referred to the point of deflection (POD). During these heart rates, the amount of fat being utilised as the main source of energy is greatly reduced and glycogen stored in the muscle is predominantly used. One of the by-products of burning this glycogen is lactic acid. There is a point at which the body can no longer remove the lactic acid from the working muscles quickly enough. This is your anaerobic threshold (AT). Through the correct training, it is possible to delay the AT by being able to increase your ability to deal with the lactic acid for a longer period of time or by pushing the AT higher.

The Red Line Zone 90% to 100%

Training in this zone will only be possible for short periods. It effectively trains your fast twitch muscle fibers and helps to develop speed. This zone is reserved for interval running and only the very fit are able to train effectively within this zone.

Heart rate variations for a given intensity

A reduction in heart rate for a given intensity is usually due to an improvement in fitness but a number of other factors might explain why heart rates can vary for a given intensity:

• Dehydration can increase the heart rate by up to 7.5%
• Heat and humidity can increase the heart rate by 10 beats/minute
• Altitude can increase the heart rate by 10 to 20%, even when acclimatised
• Biological variation can mean the heart rate varies from day to day by 2 to 4 beats/minute
• Certain Medicine and Caffeine may increase the heart rate

Find your Target Heart Rate

You can find your Target Heart Rate (thr) with this simple method. Subtract your age from 220 (for man) or 226 (for women) to calculate your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR). Find your training zone (%) and multiply that number times your maximum rate.
Or a more accurate method is the Karvonen Method explained below;

Find somewhere nice and quiet, lie down and relax. Position a watch or clock where you can clearly see it whilst lying down. After 20 minutes determine your resting pulse rate (beats/min). Use this value as your Resting Heart Rate (RHR).

If you have a heart rate monitor then put it on before you lie down. After the 20 minutes check the recordings and identify the lowest value achieved. Use this value as your RHR.

The heart is a muscle so with regular exercise it will become larger and become more efficient as a pump. As a result you will find your resting heart rate gets lower so you will need to check your RHR on a regular basis (e.g. Monthly).

Calculation of a zone value

 

The calculation of a zone value, X%, is performed in the following way:

• Subtract your RHR from your MHR giving us your working heart rate (WHR)
• Calculate the required X% on the WHR giving us "Z"
• Add "Z" and your RHR together to give us the final value

Example: The athlete's MHR is 180 and their RHR is 60 - determine the 70% value

• MHR - RHR = 180 - 60 = 120
• 70% of 120 = 84
• 84 + RHR = 84 + 60 = 144 bpm

When it comes to life, the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude.~GK Chesterton

heart rate training zone

As you change your brain, you'll also change your life, by becoming more connected to your senses and feeling more alive. Your awareness will grow, you'll be able to make better, more informed choices, and even appreciate the beauty you may have forgotten.Sondra Kornblatt

The lungs are the gateway for our breath of life. Every breath we take brings in oxygen that will burn fuel for energy. The air we breathe out removes spent gases from our system and cleanses our blood of many waste products from metabolism, particularly carbon dioxide.

In our highly industrialized society, our lungs are exposed to much higher levels of pollutants than ever before. Every day we inhale not only multiple emissions from combustion of fossil fuels generated from highway and air traffic, but also microscopic particles from other substances. Active and passive cigarette smoke, although better controlled than in past decades, still permeates much of the air we breathe. Today's topic will focus on improving respiratory function. 

Healthy lungs begin with a diet rich in a variety of fruits, vegetables, high-quality protein and essential fats, pure water, regular exercise and the avoidance of as many air pollutants as possible. From a supplemental nutritional standpoint I look at providing additional antioxidants, essential fatty acids, and adequate levels of vitamin C.

One of the greatest benefits of cardiovascular exercise is improved lung capacity and oxygen function. Getting into an Aerobic heart rate range (70-80% of your Maximum Heart Rate – see below for details) during cardiovascular exercise is one of the best exercised for the lungs. Just like you would do biceps curls to strengthen your arm muscles, you would do cardiovascular exercises to strengthen your lungs.

Consider walking, running, stair-stepping, bicycling, etc... for 20-30 minutes at least 3x/week.

As a Certified Personal Trainer I recommend Interval Training if you want to take your cardiovascular fitness to the next level.