Finish What You Started – Cut the Fat for Good

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There’s no question about it – making the commitment to work out is no easy task. Not only is it hard getting your new fitness program off the ground, but you’re sure to encounter pitfalls along the way. Don’t beat yourself up or quit when you meet an obstacle, jump over it! Staying motivated is the best way to ensure that you’ll meet your fitness goals. In this article, we’ll explore how you can stay motivated in all stages of your fitness journey.

At NYC Adventure Boot Camp we are big on the three C’s- COMMITMENT, CONTROL & CONSISTENCY! Make the first step and Commit and we will gladly guide you through the rest. Whatever your health and fitness concerns are, we are confident that we can help you achieve your goals! We can discuss your goals and see if we are a good match. What are you waiting for?

In the beginning

You may start off your fitness program with plenty of enthusiasm, but many of us start finding excuses to miss an exercise session or two as early as two weeks in. You’re sore and tired and you’d rather just stay at home. Of course you’re sore! You’re using muscles that haven’t been used in quite a long time, it’s perfectly normal. Make sure your body gets plenty of rest, but don’t fall for this well worn excuse. If imagining how amazing you’ll look and feel when you reach your goal seems too far out of your grasp at this point, give yourself a short term goal.

For example, create a goal that says that after six weeks of constant exercise, you’ll finally treat yourself to that luxury item you’ve had your eye on. Once you reach the first six weeks, make a new goal and work towards that. The time it takes to reach your final goal will be different for everyone and doesn’t have a definitive date, so create a solid goal that you can reach in the short term. Stay motivated so that you can stay on track and not only reach your short term goals, but your lifetime goal of being fit and healthy!

Pitfalls in the middle

The most common pitfall most of us will face on the path to our goal is a fitness plateau. All of a sudden, the numbers on the scale, the measurement of your thighs, or the amount of weight you can lift all stays magically the same, well before you’ve reached your goal. Does this mean that you’ve done as much as your body can handle? No way! Our bodies are incredible machines and will work hard to achieve their maximum capacity at whatever task we give them, but eventually the body will become so efficient that it no longer needs to use as much energy or burn as many calories to perform the task at hand.

This usually happens when you do the same exercises over and over again, so the solution may be as simple as changing the intensity of the exercise or the exercise itself. We can help you make the necessary changes to push through the plateau and continue on your way.

Those last five pounds

It’s true; the less fat you have to lose, the harder it is to get rid of it. Those infamous last five pounds can be a killer to push through, but think of how excited you’ll be to know you pushed through and stuck to your commitment from the beginning until the very end. If you’re having trouble getting past those last five pounds, consider consulting a fitness trainer, who is helpful during all stages of reaching your fitness goals. A fitness trainer can help design a fitness plan for you from the beginning, give you ideas or pushing through your plateaus, and keep you motivated all the way to the end, when you’ve reached your goal.

If you are in New York City and interested in joining an all women boot camp or fitness boxing classes please visit NYC ADVENTURE BOOT CAMP, mention that you found us through our blog for and extra 15% off a membership. Come work out like a GIRL!!!

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The weirdest trick to get you to start eating less!

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Portion control is the single best way you can revamp your diet without missing out on the foods you love. Portion control can not only help you lose weight, but it will give you more energy and keep you from feeling overly full and bloated after eating. However, it’s not so easy to do in today’s world. Restaurants will typically give you a double or triple portion on one plate, and it’s tempting to eat it all until you’re just stuffed. If you’re used to eating large portions, starting out controlling how much you eat can be really difficult.

Not to worry – there is one simple trick to start eating less TODAY, and although it’s a little weird, it works!

What is the trick?

Brush your teeth after you eat the portion you’ve designated for yourself!

It’s not a fool proof method by any means. There’s nothing truly stopping you from eating a piece of chocolate pie or the rest of the fried chicken in the refrigerator after you brush your teeth. However, following a good brushing (and mouthwash!), food tastes less appetizing. Your teeth feel clean and your breath tastes fresh, and the idea of eating again just won’t appeal to you as much.

Decide how much you want to eat and once you’re finished, make a beeline to the bathroom or even the kitchen sink to get your brush on. If you’re going out to eat, bring your toothbrush and a travel size tube of toothpaste with you. You will likely not have to do this forever – once you get used to eating smaller portions, your body will become satisfied with that amount. But it’s an excellent tool to keep in your arsenal for when you’re really tempted to eat something you shouldn’t. If you are, just brush your teeth! That cheesecake isn’t going to taste as good after a big swish of mouthwash.

Not to mention that your teeth will be fabulously clean and you’ll have a gorgeous bright, white smile to show for it. That, and you’ll never have to worry about onion breath after you chow down. 

Committed to your success,

Stacy Papakostas

NYC Adventure Boot Camp for Women
www.NYCAdventureBootCamp.com

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How to get the bikini body you’ve always wanted

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Bikini season is coming and unfortunately, after a couple of days…ahem, weeks…of indulging for the holidays, you’re likely looking at your itty bitty, teeny weeny, yellow polka dot bikini with fear and loathing. There’s no way you’ll look good in that come summer, right?

Wrong!

Here’s how you can slim down, tone up and shed those extra few pounds before you have to don…dun, dun, dun…the bikini.

Up Your Water Intake

This is one simple thing you can do to start detoxifying your body and shedding the extra weight. A lot of it is actually water weight, because so many of our holiday foods are chock full of salt and sodium. It seems as though drinking more water to get rid of water weight is counterintuitive, but it’s not. The extra water will help flush out the salt in your body, which will help you retain less water. ‘

Nix The Carbs

Okay, so you don’t have to eliminate carbs completely. But swapping rice or pasta for more veggies and using whole wheat products instead of white are all steps you can take to start getting rid of the extra fat around your midsection.

Start Walking

Walking is an easy exercise that you can do almost anytime, anywhere. You can do it on your lunch break at work (walk around the office a few times), in the morning or even at home if you have a treadmill. When done correctly, walking will not only burn calories, it will also help tone your bod. Walk quickly, keeping your arms at a ninety degree angle. Maintain good posture and suck your stomach in!

Slow Down When Eating

It takes twenty minutes for your brain to figure out that your stomach has enough food in it. So if you cram your face with an entire meal in ten, you’ll think you’re still hungry and eat way more than you really should. Portion your meal out with how much you want to eat and then take at least twenty full minutes eating it. Sip water and set your fork down a few times in between bites.

Get A Pedicure

Getting a pedicure won’t help you lose weight, but it will help you feel more fabulous in your bikini. Not only will a pedicure make you feel fantastic, you’ll love looking at the summery splash of color on your tootsies. Having gorgeous looking toes does wonders for your self-esteem and will encourage you in your endeavor to get the bikini body you’ve always wanted!

Committed to your success,

Stacy Papakostas

NYC Adventure Boot Camp for Women
www.NYCAdventureBootCamp.com

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How to improve your health FAST juicing

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Losing weight isn’t as important as being healthy, and in today’s world, being healthy is actually quite difficult. It’s hard to find time to exercise and cook healthy meals, and foods that you can pick up on the way home from work or on the way to the kids’ soccer practice are chock full of fat, calories and preservatives. Nutrients are hard to come by in convenience foods, and vitamin supplements can provide some of what you need, but the body doesn’t absorb them as well as it does nutrients from fresh fruits and vegetables.

However, there’s something you can do about it – you don’t have to stay stuck in this rut forever! Juicing is the fastest, healthiest way to improve your nutrient intake, lose weight and feel better. You can get the nutrients of pounds of fruits and vegetables in a few glasses of juice, and there’s no way that you could possibly physically eat that much fruit or vegetables in a single day.

Adding fresh juices to your diet will increase the amount of healthy nutrients you consume each day, helping you to feel better and have more energy. If you choose to do a complete juice fast, say for 3, 10 or even 30 days, you can lose a significant amount of weight in addition to boosting your nutrient intake. You can try substituting one meal out of your day with a juice. Juice fasting will detoxify your liver and other vital organs, ridding your body of waste products and toxins. Juice fasting can be difficult, but your body will thank you for it later!

Fruits And Vegetables That Are Good For Juicing:

Carrots – Beta Carotene and Vitamin A (detoxifies the liver)

Beets – Betalains (boosts your body’s natural detox enzymes)

Cabbage – (helps to remove environmental estrogens from plastics)

Greens – Chlorophyll (cleanses the blood)

Apples & Grapefruit – Vitamin A, Potassium

Kale – Calcium, Vitamin K, A, & C, and Lutien

Blueberries – B Vitamins, Antioxidants

Ginger – Boosts the immune system and reduces inflamation

Oranges – Vitamin C

Pineapple & Pomegranates – Folic Acid, Antioxidants

Celery – Calcium

Juicing is an excellent way to improve your health, regulate your blood pressure, increase fiber intake and build the immune system. People who incorporate fresh juices into their diets or begin a juice fast report feeling more energized and healthier within just a day or two! Prolonged juicing will help you to trim unwanted fat off of your body naturally, and help to keep toxins from building up in your vital organs.

The endless combinations are also a good way not to get bored.  If you haven’t tried juicing yet, go for it! It’s one of the fastest and easiest ways to improve your health! 

If you are in New York City and interested in joining an all woman’s boot camp  please visit  NYC ADVENTURE BOOT CAMP, mention that you found us through our blog for and extra 15% off a membership. Come work out like a GIRL!!!

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How To Meet Your New Years Weight Loss Goals Without Diet Pills

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Diet pills are often touted as a great way to lose weight quickly, without a lot of hard work, but in all actuality, diet pills can be dangerous to use and the effects don’t last very long. Once you stop taking the diet pills, the weight you lost (which often isn’t much in the first place and is mostly water weight anyways) usually comes right back and you’re forced to take the diet pills again to lose the weight and keep it off.

This is great for the diet pill companies, but not so great for your body and your overall health. Losing extra weight and maintaining a healthy weight is an important long term goal, but you don’t have to use diet pills to do it. If your New Year’s goal is to lose weight, you can do it without diet pills for longer lasting results! It may take some effort, but the hard work will be worth it come bikini season.

Calculate Your Basal Metabolic Rate

This is the amount of calories your body needs on a daily basis to perform basic functions like breathing and digestion. You can find a BMR calculator here. (http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/)

Reduce Your BMR By 500 Calories

You can lose weight fairly quickly if you create a 500 calorie daily deficit in your BMR. This forces your body to use the calorie stores your body has – also known as fat – to perform its daily functions. However, you don’t want to create a 500 calorie deficit in just your diet, or just exercise. Doing so is very hard to actually maintain. Who can truly stick to a 1100 calorie diet? It’s not healthy, first of all. And it’s really very difficult.

The best way to create the 500 calorie deficit is to do so by splitting up the calories between exercise and diet. Reduce your BMR by 250 calories and consume only that amount of calories a day. Then, make sure to burn at least 250 calories through exercise each day.

Losing weight may seem difficult at times, but it honestly is a simple mathematical equation. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight!

Always discuss any weight loss plan with your doctor first to determine the right plan for you and your body type. He or she can recommend the best foods to eat and forms of exercise for your specific health situation.

If you are in New York City and interested in joining an all woman’s boot camp  please visit  NYC ADVENTURE BOOT CAMP, mention that you found us through our blog for and extra 15% off a membership. Come work out like a GIRL!!!

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