The segments are entitled “Libra por Libra”

If you are anything like me, you may have never developed a craving for veggies.  When I was pre-teen I can remember disliking vegetables with a passion.  My mother would “order” me to eat them.  I couldn’t leave the dinner table unless I cleared my plate.  I would resort to many skillful tactics to avoid consuming veggies.  I often fed them to the dog…thank god he ate them.  Particularly Brussell sprouts.  I could barely stomach them and I would chuckle when “snoopy” ate them because I couldn’t believe he could tolerate them.  Other times I would wait until my parents went to the kitchen to do the dishes and when they weren’t looking, I would put the veggies in my mouth and chew them briefly them spit them into a napkin, fold them up and drop em in the trash en route to unloading my plate to be washed.  Of course I also did the ol’ hold my nostrils shut while I chewed and quickly swallowed my with a big sip of water along with my veggies.  For some reason or another my mother would also buy frozen veggies which to me were even less appealing.

I really hated vegetables and I couldn’t understand why my mom was so adamant about me eating them.  She really worked hard to discipline me to eat them but I’m sorry to say ma, your efforts were falling on deaf ears.  Even my brother resorted to them same tactics as I did.

As a responsible adult however,  I really make a strong effort to eat veggies…at least 5 servings a day.  Guess what?  I still don’t like them.  I still hate brussell sprouts and I can’t really stomach green beans.  But I now make a very strong conscious effort to consume them.  Not the brussell sprouts or green beans (because I still can’t stomach them) but a big variety of other fiberous veggies.  Its just a matter of my health being one of my top priorities in my life.

The veggies that I consume on a daily basis:

• Collard greens
• Broccoli
• Kale
• Mustard greens
• Cauliflower
• Cabbage
• Swiss Chard
• Red Leaf Lettuce

Do I like any of these veggies?  Not particularly.  The only one I can somewhat tolerate is cauliflower.  However, because I am aware of the importance of veggies to a healthful diet rich in anti oxidants, fiber, minerals, and phyto-nutrients, I make it a priority to eat them daily.  The only way I am able to do this however is that I have discovered ways to tolerate them.

For example, and you may think this sounds crazy, but I mix broccoli and cauliflower in with my steel cut oatmeal.

Here’s how.

From the recommendation of my good friend Danny (a self proclaimed chef) a few years ago I purchased a Zyliss food chopper for $20.00.  I bought it at “The Kitchen Store” located in the Belz Factory outlet mall on S. Las Vegas Blvd. I love this thing.  It dices veggies within 5 seconds.  All it takes is a few pounds of my hand to chop the veggies into tiny little (tolerable) pieces.  I then stir the “fist size” serving of minced broccoli and cauliflower into a serving of Steel Cut Oatmeal.  The taste of the oatmeal is strong than the minced veggies.  This is how I can tolerate two large servings of those RAW veggies in one meal. I couldn’t eat them outright on their own that’s for sure.

Here is another example:

For lunch, I eat a huge salad that is loaded with fiberous veggies.  It includes minced Collard greens, Kale, Mustard greens, Cabbage, Swiss Chard, and chopped Red Leaf Lettuce as my filler.  After mixing them all in a huge bowl, I separate the salad into portion sizes of separate Tupperware containers.  When I am ready to eat a serving, I then add Balsamic vinegar and oil.  This is really the only way I can tolerate all those greens.  Again, the dressing masks the nasty taste of all those greens.

But look!  I just consumed 4 of the 5 recommended servings of veggies for the day and I did this all by lunchtime.  As you can see I have found ways that I can tolerate my veggies and get the nutrients I need for optimum health.

In order for you to be successful with the RealResults 12 week Eating plan here is the main key:  You must commit to eating no less than 5 servings of RAW “Rougage/fiberous” veggies every day.  This is not an easy task.  I know this from personal experience and from looking at our clients food logs every day.  But this is how it works and that’s just the way it is.  Fiber is one of the big keys to weight loss.  I didn’t make up this rule…it’s just the truth.

As a trainer I have heard every excuse not to workout. Some may be valid excuses but in my book most are not. I recently have given this some thought and I felt the need to write about it. I rarely miss workouts but then again I am not NORMAL as my clients tell me on a regular basis. I have trained through migraine headaches, colds, blisters, a broken arm, extreme fatigue, mono (which I didn’t know I had in college) and many more things. I know at times I should not have been working out but I am one extreme. Some of my clients are another end of the spectrum. They seem to be able to come up with any reason not to work out. Now I must say I love them all but I need to say the excuses need to go! In the last few months I have heard the following excuses (everyone will remain nameless:)

• I forgot my sports bra and socks
• I forgot my shoes
• My toenails hurt (you runners know when your toenails get bruised at times)
• I have a hair appointment
• I had too much sex so I can’t do legs today!
• I got cramps
• I took too much cold medicine
• I went to bed too late
• I was tired
• I cut my toe
• I didn’t want to
• I got a new puppy
• I had to spend time with my boyfriend/husband
• I am gym depressed
• I have allergies
• My dog is sick
• The plumber is coming
• I drank too much last night
• I had to work late

I could keep going but you get the point. None of the things I listed above are good reasons in my book to miss a workout! I have had bruised toenails and yes they do hurt for a few days but I have always been able to continue to run. I have had cramps and I still manage to workout. I know I don’t currently have a boyfriend but when I did, he would never expect me to miss a workout to be with him. If you forget something you need for your workout most times you can make due or run to Wal-Mart and by and cheap replacement. If you think your might be working late then get your workout done in the morning. I don’t expect people to get a two hour run in with a migraine like I once did but a little headache? Sometimes an easy workout will help. Some of my best workouts were done when I really didn’t want to do them and managed to get myself moving.

My point is don’t let the excuses come too easy. If I sat here and really thought about it I could come up with several reasons why I shouldn’t run tomorrow. But I don’t do that I know I have to run and I do it. You should do the same. Stop the excuses and get out there and do it. You want to feel better, be healthy, lose weight, improve yourself and your performance. The only way you can do that is to stop coming up with reasons why you can’t workout. Get moving and don’t let your mind overpower your will. Plan your week and workouts and get them all in!

Days went by and I continued to regularly see Maurice at the gym by himself.  I wasn’t always the best judge of character when I was in my late twenties and Maurice wasn’t someone I would have normally approached freely, largely due to my insecurities at the time.  But I had a gut feeling about him.  One thing I am good at because of my profession and understanding of genetics and body types is that I can tell if someone has the physical capacity to have an outstanding physique.  Maurice was easily one of those people.  He was blessed with a big frame and naturally large muscles.  All he needed was the right knowledge and strength of character to carry that out.

Maurice Clay before

A week or so after my initial sighting of Maurice I made up my mind that I wanted to approach him to offer my guidance and tell him about his amazing potential.  I had my doubts though.  I was nervous that he may not give a damn about what I had to say, he may think I want something from him, or he may think I have some nerve to suggest what a grown man should do.  But something in me felt compelled to approach him, after all I really only had good intentions and wanted to help.

The next day I again saw Maurice and fortunately I had the time between clients to speak with him.  So I did.  I walked up to him and politely introduced myself.  He said that he had seen me around working with people.  I came right out and said it.  “Maurice, the reason why I wanted to speak with you was to tell you that from my perspective as a trainer, I can see that if you got really serious with your diet and workouts that you could have one of the best bodies in the gym.”

I couldn’t believe his response.

He said “You puny little white boy, you got some nerve telling me that.”

Ok, I’m kidding.  Here is what he said.  “You really mean that Paul?”  I then went on to tell him why, regarding his genetics and body type and such.  This led to Maurice and I chatting regularly about how he could change his diet and I offered suggestions about cardio that he needed to stick to.  Maurice completely shattered my initial thoughts about him.  He is a very gentle and kind man and very complimentary and appreciative.

Not soon after I had met with Maurice I had made a decision (not a very bright one) to move to Seattle and open a record store.  This is a very long and entertaining part of my life that I would have to write lengthy blog post about, but not right now.  I left Vegas, packed up all my stuff and moved to the northwest.

Needless to say as you can see by my presence here in Vegas, I came back.  The record store was a bust and I fell on my rear end financially.  I moved back to Vegas 8 months later and got back into training.

Maurice Clay after

One day while back at the LVAC I was sitting at the Juice Bar taking a break.  At least a full year had passed since I had trained anyone at the LVAC.  Suddenly a large, very ripped and muscular man approached me and asks me how I’m doing.  I said “I’m fine thanks, but I’m sorry but have we met before?”  “It’s me Paul…Maurice!”  I was completely floored.  He looked like a different person.  He said that the day I first approached him he went home and looked in the mirror and made a life changing decision.  He said that my words that day had a massive impact on him and he decided to change his life.  He was thanking me up and down for going up to him and for all of the advice I had given him.  He was so thankful and appreciative even though he’s the one who did all the work.  Maurice lost 100 pounds in a year.

What an awesome feeling that was for me at the time.  This is what makes my career so fulfilling is that hopefully something I do or say can impact a person to make a life long commitment to his or her health and fitness.  Maurice still looks this good today even in his 40′s.  The after picture below is one that I personally took when I helped Maurice prepare for his first body building show many years ago.  Tuns out Maurice had the character and discipline to stick with it.  I am still so very proud to this day.  Maurice is the inspiration for my first before and after shoot for the LVAC magazine.  I don’t take the credit though…that all goes to him.

The best kept secret in fitness…SWIMMING!

The benefits from swimming are virtually endless! Here’s just a few of the most important reasons to get your butt in the water:

1. Swimming face down, front crawl style swimming burns more calories an hour than any other form of cardio due to the fact that all muscles in the body are enlisted making your heart work a great deal harder than something just enlisting the legs.

2. Swimming is the only form of exercise where you get gravity off your body. This makes it rehabilitative allowing spine and joints to decompress which is impossible with most land cardio. It’s ideal for people with injuries, arthritis, or tendinitis whom cannot safely handle weight bearing cardio. Although training with weights and doing power exercises with your trainer is good stress, it’s still stress on the body. Swimming can help reverse the muscle/tendon damage from weights/impact exercise whether you’re swimming for rehab or fitness.

3. You can swim when you’re 100 years old thus provoking fitness longevity throughout all your days!

So how do the Nancy’s swim clinics work?

All clinics will be held at LVAC pool on 215 and Eastern. We will decide together if you the swimmer would be best placed in GROUP 1 or GROUP 2.

Group 1 is for total beginners working on basic breathing and becoming comfortable with placing face in the water. This is held in the warm pool as there’s not enough movement yet to keep heart rate up and stay warm. May advance to kickboard work. May also advance to group 2 if necessary.

Group 2 is for individuals comfortable with ryhthmic, face down breathing in the water. Their goal is focused on eventually swimming continuous laps for fitness. They will, depending on ability be receiving stroke mechanic drills or actual swim workouts.

How much does it cost?
Simply the cost of a Real Results Fitness single session, $19. But talk about a priceless skill!!

Swim clinics will be held once or twice a month. For more info, text me anytime 702 767 7917

I look forward to seeing you there!