How to not gain 25 pounds on Thanksiving

November 25, 2015

1. Go for a fasted early-morning run Thanksgiving day. Wake up and get in a nice 20-30 minutes at a comfortable pace. Fasted cardio forces your body to use stored energy sources for fuel (aka fat), but also that morning run will set your mind right for the temptations to come.

2. Eat a balanced breakfast. Two eggs fried in a tsp of coconut oil, half an English muffin with a tsp of almond butter on it for me. (That's my breakfast almost every day, and I won't change it for Thanksgiving.) Avoid starting the day with a great big breakfast casserole. Plenty of casseroles to come later in the day.

3. When feast time begins, beware of the dips, Chex mixes, sausages, and other high-calorie appetizers sitting around, trying to destroy all of your nutritional goals. Have a taste! But not too much more than that. Remember, this isn't even the main event.

4. Turkey time!! Eat that turkey! That's why we're here. And fill the rest of your plate with the cleanest vegetables available. Take very small servings of the rich casseroles that really are delicious, but packed with carbs and fat. Oh and also, don't eat the bread; those are empty calories. There is plenty of delicious food around; don't waste calories you could have used to eat something awesome on boring old bread.

5. Dessert: EAT IT! and enjoy it! But don't eat it twice. But what if there's two desserts there? Yep, there probably will be. Eat half a serving of each. Eat ONE serving of dessert and be satisfied.

HAPPY GOBBLE GOBBLE!

Clean Eating

November 15, 2015

Crew Fitness endorses clean eating and moderation. Eating clean means we choose foods that benefit our bodies. Purifying our diet improves the heart, mind, and body.

Replacing snacks like packaged cereal bars with a fruit and a handful of nuts can make a big difference in our overall nutrition. Choosing a dinner like a 5-ounce steak, half a sweet potato, and asparagus instead of a cheesy casserole or lasagna will bring benefits for the following 24 hours, and making similar choices day after day will change your life.

Amy's favorite breakfast is 2 eggs (but only one yolk) and one serving of unsweetened oatmeal. "Sometimes I even mix the eggs into the oatmeal. Other times I add in a teaspoon of almond butter or some blueberries."

Small changes can make a big impact on your overall health. A few small shifts in food choice can yield more changes, resulting in a pure diet that our bodies will thrive on.

Begin by making one change to your daily nutrition. Replace a pre-packaged snack with a piece of fruit and a small handful of nuts. You'll be amazed at how good this one change will make you feel.

November 6, 2015

The claim: Rowing uses mostly upper body strength.
The verdict: FALSE!

The truth is that rowing works 84% of all of the muscles in the body, and the power in a strong row is generated by the LEGS. We row using legs, then core, then arms. The momentum of the drive is generated by the legs and continued by the core, and then completed by the arms, in the catch.

The rower is really the perfect machine for training the whole body. Rowing is awesome cardiovascular exercise at low impact to the joints.

Indoor rowing has long been used by endurance athletes such as runners, swimmers, and triathletes to cross train their cardiovascular system and increase aerobic capacity.

Sprint intervals on the rower will shred fat and boost metabolism for hours post workout. The combination of mean rowing and clean eating is going to create a strong, vibrant, healthy CREW!

Row for life!

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For more info on the great benefits of rowing, check out these articles:

Wall Street Journal: Row Your Flab Away

The Observer: The Rise of Indoor Rowing