Fitness & Wellness

Malfunctioning Digestive System?

Malfunctioning Digestive System?

If you have a malfunctioning digestive system, you probably hate the way you feel after you eat and even limit your diet because of it. There are a lot of different degrees of dysfunction, so I’m just going to address things like bloating, heartburn, gas, diarrhea and constipation that are uncomfortable, but not serious. While all reoccurring problems should be discussed with your health care professional, if the issue is determined to be minor, but ongoing, making lifestyle changes may be what you need.

Exercise may be a top priority for your digestion.

If you’re bloated or gassy, nothing sounds less desirable than doing jumping jacks or sprinting down the road. However, exercise could be extremely helpful with the condition. Walking can be extremely helpful after a meal. There are studies that show that walking helps move the food through your system after a meal and lowers blood sugar levels. It also helps pass gas through the system, to eliminate that bloated feeling. Intense exercise isn’t recommended, however, since it can create more digestive problems.

Regular exercise helps digestion in the long range, too.

A program of regular exercise can help strengthen your digestive system. It can help with constipation and strengthen the muscles in the system. It can increase the beneficial microbiota—digestive bacteria and etc.—that aids with digestion and help lower the risk of colon cancer. That improvement in the microbiome can make digestion better, eliminating much of the gas and distress you may have had months earlier. Regular exercise has proven to help relieve gas, stomach cramps, constipation and heartburn.

Your belly bugs will be happy when you eat healthier.

Your gut contains microbiome that is responsible for a vast array of functions from boosting your metabolism to digestions. You couldn’t survive without them. Not only does exercise help boost the friendly ones, so does what you eat. Increasing your fiber intake helps. Be careful when you do that. Increasing it too much at one time can have a negative effect. Fermented food can help improve your gut microbiome. Choose food like kefir, yogurt, sauerkraut, and kimchi. Increasing fresh fruit and vegetables that are high fiber also helps.

  • There are two types of fiber, soluble and insoluble, which help the digestive tract. Soluble fiber turns to a gel when mixed with water and insoluble fiber provides bulk. Both help prevent constipation.
  • Drinking plenty of water can help digestion. Your body needs water to help food break down after a meal so it can absorb the nutrients. It also helps keep stool soft to help relieve constipation. Drink eight 8-oz glasses of water a day.
  • Cut out sugar. Sugar decreases the number of healthy bacteria and feeds the harmful microbes that interfere with digestion.
  • Take a short break from eating. Studies show that intermittent fasting can help all of the body, including digestion.

Contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


Eating Fruit In The Morning

Eating Fruit In The Morning

Everywhere you look on the internet, there’s another article on miracle cures, super foods and what or when you should eat. One of those myths is about the consumption of breakfast and even whether eating fruit in the morning is healthy. The truth is, fruit is a healthy option no matter when you eat it. One of the reasons this myth was started is the sugar content of fruit. Whether you eat it in the morning or afternoon, it temporarily increases your blood sugar as the glucose is absorbed. Unlike some of the myths that promote it, it doesn’t “wake up” the digestive system or jump starts it. It’s a carb and as a carb, provides energy.

Fruit provides a lot of nutrients like vitamin C.

While you might get all the vitamins and minerals in a glass of fruit juice, eating the whole fruit is a better choice for breakfast. Whole fruit has fiber, which makes it a better choice than drinking a glass of fruit juice. Fiber comes with its own benefits, such as making you feel fuller longer and slowing the absorption of sugar, keeping blood sugar more level. It provides bulk, which aids in digestion issues and helps lower the risk of diabetes.

Eating just fruit in the morning may not provide the satisfaction a more well rounded breakfast does.

In order to feel satisfied longer and not face that mid morning hunger or slump, you need a combination of food. Lean protein and healthy fat will keep you feeling full, while a complex carbohydrate gives energy and fills you up. Fruit satisfied the need for a complex carb, while adding bulk in the form of fiber to help your digestion. If you don’t include healthy fat or protein, like nuts, you’ll probably face an urgent hunger long before lunchtime occurs.

Pair your fruit with healthy options for a quick, filling breakfast.

If that piece of fruit you ate isn’t making it as a complete meal, which is most probable, pair it with other food. Whether you opt for blueberries, strawberries or raspberries in a cup of Greek yogurt and topped with your favorite nut or simply have a half grapefruit with toast and nut butter or an egg, you’ll feel fuller longer and get a ton of nutrition.

  • If you enjoy having a bit of fruit at breakfast, watch your calorie intake. Try options like papaya and cantaloupe that are lower in calories for weight loss. Fruit that’s higher in calories, which includes bananas, cherries and grapes are far higher in calories, so choose wisely.
  • While eating fruit is healthy, you can get too much of a good thing. While whole fruit is healthy, you also need healthy protein and fat, as well as a higher amount of vegetables in your diet.
  • Avoid canned fruit with extra sugar added. However, frozen and canned options that have no additional sugar are just as healthy of options as fresh fruit, unless you pick it off the plant. They’re processed fresher than you’d buy in the grocery.
  • At Iron Fit, we can help you with a program of exercise and when combined with healthy eating, will help you live healthier and shed unwanted pounds.

Contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


This Is Your Year To Shine

This Is Your Year To Shine

If you’re already a member of Iron Fit in San Antonio, Texas, you probably already have your goals set and are ready to start your program to accomplish them. For those who are considering a fitness program, this could be your year to shine. It takes determination, persistence, hard work and keeping your eye on the prize, but it can be done. In fact, we actually have a 28 day challenge to help you get a jump start on your goals.

It all starts with knowing where you are right now.

One of the biggest benefits of working with a personal trainer is getting the help of assessing your present fitness level. The journey to fitness is like any other trip you take. In order to create a map to get you to your destination, you have to know where you’re starting. Using that information, the trainer then designs a program that’s tough, but still within your capabilities.

Creating weekly goals is also important if you want to shine.

Breaking down a big goal to smaller ones help you stay on track better. It’s far easier to check your progress each week and make adjustments along the way. What are the types of things you monitor with these goals? They can include your diet, sleeping habits, hydration and workout program. We find that circuit training gets results fast, so when you workout at Iron Fit, you may even exceed your goals.

Working out with others, a workout buddy or personal trainer helps you stay on track.

Whether you use the services of a personal trainer, have a workout buddy or simply workout in a group, you’ll do better than if you workout alone. Both a personal trainer and a workout buddy keep you accountable, encouraging you to workout when you might not feel like it. That encouragement isn’t verbal, but just knowing you’re meeting with someone. Working out with a buddy, in a group or with a trainer can push you to workout harder and longer, rather than quitting early.

  • In order to shine and achieve, you have to create a goal that’s truly yours and something you really want to achieve. If you’re starting a program because a friend or partner said you should, you won’t be as invested in success.
  • Workout smart and get the quickest results. Circuit training can help you do that. Results are super motivating and give you a chance to shine early on, to help you reach your ultimate goal later.
  • You can achieve anything you set your mind to do. It’s all about believing in yourself and providing that mental can-do attitude.
  • Enjoying your workout helps keep you on track. At Iron Fit, we have a program that’s varied that’s challenging and fun. If you’ve never tried kettlebells before, it’s an experience most people really enjoy.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


Wake Up - Kick Butt - Repeat

Wake Up – Kick Butt – Repeat

There are no mysteries about getting fit. It’s just a matter of doing it. You simply wake up, kick A@#, repeat. That’s the real secret behind fitness, but there are also many other things that can help you reach your goals faster. Consider combining a healthy diet with your workout. Not only will you lose weight faster, you’ll feel better and get more from the workout and every waking moment. A healthy diet devoid of processed food can put pep in your step so you have the energy to maximize your workout.

Add strength training to your workout.

Strength training not only provides a great deal of benefits for your health, it also helps melt fat away faster. While endurance training burns huge amounts of calories, too, it also burns lean muscle mass. When you do strength training it burns calories while also building muscle mass. The more muscle tissue you have, the easier it is to shed weight. That’s because muscle tissue burns more calories than fat tissue does. Strength training also stimulates after burn, which raises the number of calories you burn for up to 48 hours.

Circuit training gets you to your goal quicker.

You can target multiple muscle groups at once with circuit training. Each routine is a mix of exercises to help you reach your goal quicker. Circuit training is a time saver. As you swiftly move from one exercise to another, you’ll boost your cardio health and burn calories, which helps you reach your weight loss goal quicker.

Vary your workout.

One of the reasons Iron Fit offers so many different types of exercise options is that each one has something to offer. It’s also to help motivate clients. While you might not love calisthenics, you might love doing kettlebells or kicking and punching your way to fitness. It’s one reason Iron Fit has so many different options available and introduce them to each client. You might not think you’ll love a specific method of exercise, but once you try it, end up loving it. Not only does varying your workout avoid boredom and plateauing, it ensures every muscle is worked on every plane.

  • Don’t make the gym the only place to get exercise. Whenever you get the chance to walk a little further, do it. Park further from the grocery door. Take breaks from sitting and move around every 50 minutes.
  • Vary your speed. Whether you’re walking, working out or cleaning house, varying your speed from top speed to recovery speed every few minutes acts like a high intensity interval training session.
  • Get adequate sleep. You can’t do your best if you’re not getting enough sleep. Lack of sleep can cause you to eat more by disrupting the balance of leptin and ghrelin hormones.
  • Use a workout that’s created specifically for your fitness level and needs. We create it for you at Iron Fit.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


Make Excuses Or Make It Happen

Make Excuses Or Make It Happen

If you want to achieve anything in life, you simply do it. It can start by creating a goal, followed by a plan of action. Once that’s done, you have to stick to that plan. In other words, you either make excuses or make it happen. The problem with weight loss and fitness goals is that they don’t happen overnight. They take time to achieve. Enthusiasm wanes as time goes on, so each day without results makes it harder to stay the course.

You need to find ways to make it easier to stick to your plan.

There are many different tricks to help you keep focused on your goal. You can put sticky notes with messages to yourself around the house. You can visualize yourself achieving your goal. If you feel like skipping your workout, weigh the benefit of skipping it to the negative effects of skipping. In most cases, people decide that the positives of exercise far outweighs the negatives of not exercising. Some people simply get dressed for working out, without making that decision to go. Once they’re dressed, it’s easier to convince yourself to stick with the program.

Do you really have a slow metabolism that you can’t do anything about?

While you might have a slow metabolism, there’s no reason you can’t boost it. Exercise helps do that. When you do strength training, it can increase your metabolism for up to 48 hours after you finish. Strength training also builds muscle tissue. Muscle tissue requires more calories to maintain than fat tissue does, so the more you have, the more calories you burn 24/7. That means you’ve boosted your metabolism. Rather than sitting and feeling sorry for yourself, do something about it. Kick start your metabolism with exercise.

You could say you’re too busy to workout or boost your energy by working out get things done faster.

There’s no doubt about it, these are busy times for everyone. Having enough time to workout is often one of the excuses people give as reasons they can’t get into shape. What they don’t realize is that the more they workout, the more energy they have and the quicker they get things done. In fact, studies show that people who exercise regularly improve their cognitive functions, so their concentration and focus improve, making mental work go quicker, too.

  • You can’t use the fact that you’re too tired to workout as an excuse, since exercise boosts your energy and chases away that tired feeling. You actually need to workout if you’re constantly tired.
  • At Iron Fit, we help you stay more focused on your fitness goal by providing quicker results. There’s nothing more motivating than seeing results.
  • Do you hate traditional exercise, so you dread every trip to your gym? You’ll probably love some of the tools we use to help you get into shape. You can also vary your workout to include active things you love to do.
  • It’s time to get started and you can do it today. Try our free 3-day pass to get a feel of how different our Iron Fit program is. You’ll like what you find and how you feel.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


Low Carb Dieting 101

Low Carb Dieting 101

Trying to find the best diet to help you lose weight can be confusing. We don’t recommend dieting and believe the best option is healthy eating. However, it’s interesting to note that eating healthy can be low carb dieting. Low carb diets don’t contain processed foods or sugary products, which is part of a program of healthy eating. The information provided on a low carb diet shows the types of foods to eat on this diet and includes the positives and negatives.

Identifying foods to avoid on a low carb diet is easier than noting the ones to eat.

You normally associate dieting with a limited list of foods, but just like eating healthy, low carb diets provide lots of options. As noted before, sugar products and highly processed foods aren’t allowed on this type of diet, neither are soft drinks, artificial sweeteners, most vegetable oils and ice cream. That means it eliminates most of the low fat and diet food you find on the market. These are processed foods and often contain sugar to enhance the flavor that was lost when fat was removed. One thing that healthy eating includes that isn’t part of a low carb diet or is limited is pasta and bread.

You’ll find a lot of food that’s high in protein and/or may have fat.

How you get your calories changes when you go with a diet that’s lower in carbohydrates. Instead of getting most of your energy from carbohydrates, you get it from foods higher in fat and protein. When you eat carbohydrates, like traditional diets, your body changes those carbohydrates’ glucose to glycogen and then stores the glycogen in the liver. When the liver is at maximum storage capacity, the body converts it to fat. Cutting back on carbohydrates makes your body get fuel elsewhere and that’s body fat.

There are health benefits that come with low carbohydrate diets.

Low carbohydrate diets lower the insulin levels and reduces the risk for insulin resistance, which is a precursor to Type 2 diabetes. This type of diet also helps lower the LDL levels, the bad cholesterol, and increase the HDL or good cholesterol levels. It stabilizes blood sugar levels and triglyceride levels. They type of food consumed in a low carb diet have many health benefits. For instance, grass fed beef and butter from grass fed cows is high in Omega fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid—CLA—that makes it heart healthy.

  • You can tip your toe into a low carb diet by first giving up sugary products, processed food, bread and pasta. While it’s a healthy change, if you’re going to adopt a complete low carb diet, talk to your health care professional first.
  • While vegetables and fruit contain carbs, you can have them on low carb diets. Vegetables do contain carbohydrates, the carbs are more complex, so they don’t spike sugar levels and take longer to get into your bloodstream.
  • You do have to be more careful with the type of fruit you eat on a low carb diet, making choices that are low in sugar. You also need to avoid starchy vegetables.
  • There are temporary side effects of low carb diets that include fatigue, muscle cramps, rash, digestive upsets, bad breath, weakness and headache. Extremely restricted carbs for long periods can create a host of nutritional and long term problems.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


Functional Fitness - Getting Your Body Ready For A Year Of Fun

Functional Fitness – Getting Your Body Ready For A Year Of Fun

I watch people put their heart and soul into their workout program here in San Antonio, Texas. Some come in because they have medical issues that exercise and a healthy diet can help. Some just want to shed a few pounds and look their best. While those are both great reasons for working out, almost everyone that comes to the gym eventually loves the fact they have more energy and can do far more than they could before they started. After a few months of working out, clients notice they have more balance, coordination, are stronger and have more endurance. That’s functional fitness. It improves your range of motion and helps prevent muscle and joint injuries in the process.

Functional fitness works your core muscles.

While looking great is important, enjoying every minute of life to its fullest is far more important. You can’t do that if you’re not healthy and fit. When you do core training, which boosts that fitness, you’ll be boosting your chances of avoiding those sudden injuries from doing something as simple as bending over to tie a shoe or picking up a child. Whether you’re 26 or 86, this type of training can help you prevent injuries, boost your endurance and for seniors, help you live on your own longer.

You may not realize that you’re doing functional fitness training.

We just call it exercise, but in reality, you’re working all muscles in the body when you workout with us. While our workouts help you build muscle tissue and burn fat, they also aid in making sure you do everyday tasks at home, work or play with less potential for injury. It builds core strength, helps relieve backaches, builds strength an stability. Consider this. When you do squats, you’re burning calories and sculpting your body, but you’re also building strength so that sitting down and getting up from a chair are easier tasks.

It’s all about living better and feeling good.

Make this year the year you get back to those things you enjoyed doing when you were in your teens and twenties or trying new things you were afraid you didn’t have the strength or endurance to do. While we don’t necessarily focus on a specific functional fitness program, we provide all the training that not only helps you reduce injury, improve core strength, improve flexibility and boost your endurance. In other words, at Iron Fit, we not only help you shed those extra pounds, we get you ready for getting the most enjoyment out of life.

  • We can help everyone, even if you’re completely out of shape or have physical limitations. However, you need to check with your health care professional to make sure you’re able to start a fitness program and let us know your limitations.
  • Just imagine how great you’ll feel and look. Weight loss and body sculpting will boost your confidence, but the energy, strength and flexibility will boost the fun.
  • Seniors benefit from our fitness regimen. It helps reduce the risk of falls, slows or stops the progress of osteoporosis and improves balance. You’ll have pep in your step.
  • Exercises that focus on functional fitness work several joints and muscles at once. Instead of focusing just on a thigh muscle, it’s works the entire leg and hip area.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


Eat More Fat Burning Food

Eat More Fat Burning Food

If you’re ready to sign up for weekly deliveries of fat burning food, you wouldn’t be alone. Anyone that’s been eating healthy and wants to make weight loss faster would naturally be interested. These foods tend to burn a higher number of calories to digest than they actually contain. They also may help build muscle tissue—and that muscle tissue burns more calories than fat tissue does. They may also promote fat burning. For instance, raw almonds not only are a good snack that fill you up, they also build muscle tissue.

The thermogenic effect of food plays a big role.

What’s the thermogenic effect? It’s the amount of calories used to digest a food. For instance, food high in fiber require more calories to process as does brown rice. Whole grains and brown rice take more calories to process than they contain. However, remember whole grain products contain other ingredients, too. Brown rice, compared to white rice, even start out lower in calories. While lean protein, like chicken, still provide calories, it takes about a third of their calories to digest. There’s a reason that celery is always presented as a diet food. It has a high thermogenic effect.

Do you want to burn more fat? Try these foods.

Food that spikes your insulin level encourages the accumulation of fat around the middle. That’s why eating food that prevent that can be a real help to dieters. Salmon, walnuts, sardines, kale, brown rice and olive oil help keep insulin level. Foods high Omega-3 fatty acids help fat burning. Oily fish, flaxseed oil and both meat and milk products from grass fed cows are higher in Omega-3 fatty acid. A diet rich in blueberries helps reduce fat around your middle—belly fat. Oatmeal, lettuce and other high fiber foods help reduce belly fat, too.

Boost your metabolism and increase your weight loss with food.

People use the word metabolism often, but most people don’t understand exactly what it is. It’s the amount of energy it takes to keep your body functioning on a basic level. Even when you’re asleep, your body burns calories keeping various functions going. You burn calories just breathing! The higher your metabolism, the more calories you burn without additional effort. Foods that boost your metabolism include almonds, lean meat, eggs, beans, chia seeds and dark chocolate, just to name a few.

  • You know that spicy, hot feeling that hot peppers produce in your mouth? The capsaicin in it burns and does the same to fat. It heats the body, which requires calories to cool and breaks down fat in the process.
  • Many seeds help give your metabolism a boost. Try sprinkling hemp seed on your cereal in the morning for a quickie boost that burns a few extra calories.
  • Potassium is your friend when it comes to increasing your basal metabolism—calories burned while at rest, such as sitting. Bananas are a good source of potassium.
  • You can get extra help from switching drinks. For instance, that cup of coffee in the morning may contain caffeine to rev your metabolism, but green tea has both caffeine and catechin, a flavonoid that breaks down fat. Don’t add sugar.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


How To Meal Plan Successfully

How To Meal Plan Successfully

Do you want to lose weight? Is paying less for food important? Can saving time be a help? You’ll get all those benefits when you meal plan. Planning your meals ahead, shopping and even preparing them ahead may take more time the first few weeks, but you’ll find it saves time, money and even eat better the longer you do it. You start by with the planning, which should take place Wednesday or Thursday night, so you can shop for your meals on Friday and cook over the weekend.

Start with the ads and seasonal fruits and vegetables.

You don’t have to do this step if saving money isn’t your thing, but for most people, it’s an added benefit of planning. Check the online ads to get an idea of what’s on sale and then create a menu that uses those items. If one recipe requires things that don’t keep long or freeze, such as lettuce, make sure you use it in another meal so you don’t have waste. Create the menu and the shopping list for the week.

Get all the ingredients for the week on Friday.

If you’re a stay at home parent, you don’t have to follow the scheduled days as closely. They’re primarily for the person who works outside the home. Cook your meals over the weekend, double the recipes so you have meals to freeze for future weeks. The more you continue meal planning, the more meals you’ll have in your freezer for the future. You can use those for busy weeks when you don’t have time for shopping or cooking.

Freeze ingredients you don’t use or make sure you use them for other recipes.

If you need a chicken breast for one meal, but it’s cheaper to buy a whole chicken than just the breast, buy a whole chicken and use the other parts in another meal. Some meals require fresh herbs but not nearly as much as the amount you have to purchase at one time. You can freeze those herbs in ice cube trays for future recipes. Save the bones from chicken to create a bone broth you can freeze for future meals.

  • Eating healthy includes healthy snacks. You can assign the kids the task of making healthy trail mix from dried fruit and nuts and packing them in individual serving size bags.
  • Clean and slice all vegetables as soon as you buy them. You can make a dip and snack on them throughout the week, but if you have any left over, make soup for the following week.
  • You’ll save money and get all the nutrients possible when you use in-season fresh fruits and vegetables. You’ll be surprised at all the unique ways to use them that promote healthy eating.
  • When you plan meals, you’ll be able to prepare your meals by just removing them from the freezer and reheating them. It’s even quicker than waiting in the drive through line and far healthier and tastier.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio


Strip The Scale Of Its Power

Strip The Scale Of Its Power

If you’re one of my clients in San Antonio, Texas, you know that we look at various factors, besides the number on the scale, to check your progress. There’s a reason for that. Sometimes, the scales lie. That’s right, the scales simply don’t give the whole picture and by doing that, lead you to believe you’re a failure. There are other ways to keep the report from the scales in perspective and truly judge whether you’re making progress.

If you’re working out regularly, you’re most likely building muscle tissue.

Sometimes, people make great progress exercising and eat healthy meals, but when weigh in time comes, find they lost less than they wanted, didn’t lose anything or occasionally, gained a pound. How could that happen? Well it’s easy, they’ve been working out and building muscle tissue, which weighs more per cubic inch than fat tissue does. Luckily, muscle tissue is more compact, so a pound of muscle tissue would fit in a much smaller container than a pound of fat tissue. You’ll be slimmer, even if he scales say you aren’t.

Taking measurements, besides weighing in, can give you a more accurate picture.

If you take measurements all over your body and find that while you may not have lost a pound, you still lost inches. You’re making progress! One of the most important measurements is around your middle. The fat around your middle tends to be visceral fat, which crowds internal organs, making it the most unhealthy fat to have. If that measurement is smaller, you’re not only successfully losing weight, you’re improving your overall health.

Judge your progress by how your clothes fit.

Do you have a pair of pants or shorts that are a smidge too tight? Those can be your guide to whether you’re progressing or not. Every month, take out that clothing item and see how it fits. If it’s loose, you’re a winner! There will come a point when the clothing is so loose it will fall off. That’s when you use another pair of pants or shorts. It’s hard to judge just how much smaller you are when the pants have been too big for months. Most people have to buy new clothing at that point and usually buy it a bit snug if they have more weight to lose.

  • Scales can lie for other reasons. Your body weight is constantly fluctuating. Water retention, bloating and other problems can make you heavier. One way to avoid worrying about the daily fluctuations is to weigh in each week at the same time, on the same day of the week.
  • You’ll really benefit from exercise in a second way, besides losing inches. Muscle tissue requires more calories for maintenance, so the more you have, the more calories you’ll burn, boosting your metabolism.
  • Don’t ignore the scales, especially if you know you haven’t been true to your plan. While they are just one way to measure progress, weighing is also important. Just don’t judge yourself with every minor fluctuation.
  • Check out our 28 day jumpstart at Iron Fit. You’ll get the results you want quickly and love the scales again, even if they sometimes lie.

For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio