Stay Fit Tip: Muscle Means Metabolism!

Did you know that statistically our basal metabolic rate decreases by approximately 5% for every decade of life after 20? People who have a sedentary life have a significant loss of muscle mass as they age.

Weight training and other resistance exercise will increase your muscle mass, which raises your metabolic rate and burns fat.

Diet alone won't cut it. If you are only using a diet plan to get lean, you are more likely to regain your bodyfat when you "go off" the diet. According to the National Weight Control Registry, 90% of successful dieters use exercise to maintain weight loss.

I'll be posting a quick bodyweight circuit training workout video on here in the near future.

Training Log

Today's high intensity workout is going to be a 25 minute super-set session of 2 compound exercises: Hex Bar Deadlifts and Weighted Dips.

First, I'll start with a brief dynamic warmup, some plank work for core activation, then I'll do a lighter warmup set of the hex deadlift and bodyweight parallel bar dips. After that I will choose a weight I can handle for 6-8 reps and continually super-set between each exercise until the remainder of the 25 minutes is up. That's it... simple, effective, and efficient!

I'll log the weights used after. Next workout is on Wednesday. I'm looking forward to getting back into a routine!

JH

Stay Fit Minute #4: Trainer Interview

This is an excerpt of an interview I had with a local Toronto networking company. I briefly discuss why I got into this business, and the importance of challenging yourself when it comes to exercise.

I should also give props to the beautiful female "client" volunteer in this video (who is actually my wife, Olga). (o;

My Stay Fit Newsletter is Ready

The Stay Fit Newsletter is now set up! I've already sent out the first 2 weekly editions and the feedback is positive. I will be keeping it brief, with quick health and fitness tips, motivational quotes, monthly Stay Fit videos, and links to new fitness articles I'm writing. There will also be information in there for the athletes I train.

If you're interested please sign up using the Newsletter form on the left margin. As always, keep in touch and let me know what information you want me to get out to you!

Stay Fit,

Josh

Stay Fit Tip - Digestion

Take time to eat and enjoy your meals. Chew your food 20 to 30 times each bite. Rushing through meals causes suppression of hydrochloric acid, making digestion difficult and leading to antacid use, bloating, gas and constipation or diarrhea.

Also, the best time to drink water is 15-30 minutes before a meal or 2 hours after a meal. Too much liquid with meals will wash out the hydrochloric acid, digestive juices and enzymes in your stomach and intestines and delay digestion.

Stay Fit Tip

A study conducted at the Veteran's Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City, found that mild exercise like walking after meals, moved food through the stomach faster and helped relieve minor indigestion.

Becoming a Father

As of this Tuesday, November 4th, at 7:07PM, I became a father to a beautiful, happy, and healthy 7 lb baby girl named Kaitlyn Nicole Hewett. We arrived home from the hospital yesterday and have been adjusting to having a totally dependant addition to our family... which is completely overwhelming yet totally rewarding! Both mom and baby are doing great.

Because my wife had decided to have a natural birth (no epidural, induction, or other interventions), my role as her birth assistant became that much more essential. I feel so fortunate to have been able to be so involved in the process, and I have a much stronger bond to both my wife and daughter because of it. It was a very long labor, but a thankfully quick delivery. The entire experience was far more intense and unreal then I could have imagined! I could write forever describing every minute of the labor, birth, cutting the cord and meeting our new born baby, but let me just say it was the most profound day of my life, and obviously life-changing.

Looking back it almost feels as though becoming a father is a necessary step to truly becoming a man. Not only does this develop strength of character and discipline, but I believe being a good husband and father is one of the most 'manly' things a guy can hope for!

I look forward to watching her grow.

To see photos of her check out:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=179241&l=926ef&id=716340391

Josh H

New Stay Fit Newsletter Coming Soon

I'm setting up a new Stay Fit E-Newsletter for those who are interested to subscribe to. It will include links to health and fitness related articles I've written and videos I've produced, as well as the regular weekly Health Tips and Motivational Quotes, of course!

I've been receiving positive feedback about the short health tips messages... I was wondering if there was any other information, news, or health & fitness related subject that any readers would like to see introduced in this e-letter?
You're feedback is appreciated.

Stay Fit!
Josh