RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Everybody (even personal trainers) has obstacles to getting/staying in-shape. Whether poor nutritional habits, lack of exercise, exhaustion, stress, etc. Identify what yours are & begin overcoming them. Start by answering this question, "I'm not in the best possible shape because I _____________________?" It won't be easy, but you will be successful, if you choose to change!

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

"I just want to lose WEIGHT and lose it quickly." STOP trying to lose "weight." STOP doing crazy diets that have you eating barely anything, just liquid, or taking pregancy hormones (HCG), etc. STOP focusing on the scale. All of that nonsense if FALSE results, and going to keep you as a yo-yo weight gainer/loser. Instead, have your main focus be on losing body fat, and that's it. Here are the TEN Nutrition Commandments that if you follow 100%, you are guaranteed to see results in a HEALTHY, long lasting way.

1) You have to burn more cal than you're consuming. Ask a health & fitness professional to calculate your daily calorie limit and start staying within it. Nobody should ever eat under 1200cal/day, because that lowers metabolism which means holding onto and storing more body fat.

2) Eat every 2.5-3hrs = 4-6 SMALL meals/snacks per day to keep your metabolism (rate at which you burn cal) fast. Eating 1-2/day slows your metabolism = body fat gain.

3) Avoid bad trans/saturated fat foods, because they lead to artery clogging, cellulite, and keeping your body fat cells full. Eat healthy unsaturated fat foods (ex: fish/nuts/flax) that help to burn body fat.

4) Eat high glycemic carbs (ex: bread/pasta/rice/oat) ONLY after you exercise, because they digest quickly. Eating them all day long = body fat gain because they're not burned quick enough. Eat low glycemic carbs (ex: fruits/veggies) the rest of the day because they digest slowly.

5) Eat lean protein foods (ex: chicken/turkey/fish/nuts) that are not high in saturated fat. Consume a whey isolate protein (ex: ISOPURE) that is low cal/carbs after every time you exercise (weights & cardio). This will build lean muscle which help you burn more cal all day long.

6) Limit alcohol consumption. Alcohol increases levels of body fat production hormone cortisol and lowers body fat burning hormone testosterone.

7) Limit sodium intake to no more than 1200mg/day. Sodium carries water which will make you look & feel bloated, and can lead to high blood pressure. Eat high potassium foods to lower sodium levels.

8) Drink 80-120oz of water everyday. Prevents overeating, reduces soreness after exercise, and keeps your skin looking healthy.

9) Limit sugar consumption because excess sugar is turned into body fat. Avoid "sugar free" foods/drinks because artificial sweeteners are not properly metabolized by the body and are turned into body fat.

10) Get rest every night! Lack of sleep increases levels of body fat production hormones and decreases growth hormones that help us recover from day/exercise.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

For every cigarette we have we lose 5mins off our life. Takes about 5mins to smoke it, so technically every cigarette chops 10mins off our life. It's even harder to quit now because our government allowed tobacco companies to put more addictive chemicals in cigarettes, in the settlement agreement for the nationwide no smoking in restaurant/bar/workplace bans. Think of the long term effects though, and how your time is erased with each puff.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

The battle to get/stay in-shape is more psychological than it is physical. How bad do you want to look and feel better? What sacrifices are you willing to make to get there? If you say you can't do something, you can't/won't. If you say you CAN do something, you CAN and WILL!

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

At the age of 25 we all start to 1/2lb of lean muscle tissue every year for the rest of our life. Losing muscle tissue = slowing down our metabolism (rate at which we burn cal) = gaining body fat quicker. At 30 our metabolism slows down even more. At 40 we start to lose bone density, making our bones weaker, and leaving us more open to injury. So important to begin exercising, especially strength training, to avoid health issues such as these in the future. START TODAY!

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Do you have love chub? Love chub = when you're in relationship that every activity centers around food & drink, and so you begin to gain body fat. It especially occurs during new relationships, but can also happen if all you and your friends do is eat & drink when together. If you have love chub, try doing activities with your significant other/friends that do not involve food/alcohol; or if you want to continue that, then get some serious exercise in together too every day.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Eating healthy is not a punishment, like all you can have is water and lettuce. Good nutrition is just about making smarter choices whether eating at home or out. Look at this picture to see poor vs smarter ways to order/prepare foods. Remember, eating right is NOT a 4-16wk diet that you eventually stop, it's a complete lifestyle change, that you do every day.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Don't exercise the same muscles every day. Every muscle group needs at least 48hrs of rest to fully recover, rebuild, and regenerate new muscle tissue that will help us see faster results. So for example if you do lower body today (Friday), next day to train them would be Monday. An exercise schedule to be lean & tone quickly should look like this:

Monday: Upper & Lower Body
Tuesday: Core (Abs, Lower Back) & Cardio
Wednesday: Cardio in the AM & again in the PM
Thursday: Repeat Monday
Friday: Repeat Tuesday
Saturday: Repeat Wednesday
Sunday: Rest

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Want to have nice abs for Summer 2011? Follow our RIO Fitness "AB COMMANDMENTS" to help get you there:

1) Strength train your ENTIRE midsection (obliques, lower & upper abdominals), finishing with a lower back exercise to fully complete your core.

2) Do NOT work your abs every day. They're a muscle like any other so they need time to recover & regenerate. Give 48hrs in between, so if you did them on a Wed, next time would be Sat.

3) Do cardio properly so you're burning calories from fat & not energy (glycogen). This means no more than 30mins, and the cardio must be done in intervals (Ex: 60sec run then 60sec walk for 25mins).

4) Track how many calories you consume daily. Consuming more calories than you burn daily will increase body fat production.

5) Limit HIGH GLYCEMIC CARBS (breads/pasta/rice/oats) to ONLY after exercise. These are carbs which digest quickly, so if they are consumed throughout the day and not burned they'll be turned into body fat. LOW GLYCEMIC CARBS (fruits/veggies) are the carbs to be eaten the rest of the day.

6) Limit your sodium intake to no more than 1200mg/day. Sodium increases water levels in the body, making you look & feel bloated. Consume foods high in potassium (i.e. bananas/spinach/apricots/beans) daily to lower sodium levels in the body naturally.

7) Limit/avoid alcohol consumption. Alcohol triggers the body fat production hormone cortisol to begin production.

8) Limit your stress. Increased stress levels also increases levels of cortisol.

9) Get your rest. Lack of adequate rest each night increases levels of cortisol.

10) Remember, just focusing on your abs won't give you a nice midsection, you need to strength train from head to toe. Especially do not neglect large muscle groups (back/lower body), because developing those will help you burn more cal/day & increase testosterone production which is the hormone that helps us burn body fat quickly.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

With this surprising gorgeous weather many are outside running trying to get in-shape. Cardio is essential to lose body fat, BUT strength training burns FOUR times more calories and keeps our metabolism (how fast we burn cal) high for 24-36hrs (cardio keeps it high for just two hrs). Most effective way to strength and do cardio to see quick results is called High Intensity Interval Training. Google/YouTube it for more info.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Give away your "fat clothes." Getting rid of clothes that are now too big helps us to focus on getting/staying fit. If we keep larger items in our closet it'll psychologically make it OK to gain body fat. Also, if you're starting to gain, NEVER purchase larger sizes. In fact, if you're gaining, buy smaller sizes and hang them all over the house as a reminder to get back in-shape.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

For more motivation to get in-shape, strip down to your intimates and take a picture of your body in a mirror. Nothing is more revealing, eye-opening, and possibly embarassing, than to see how far we've gotten out-of-shape. Start with a "before" photo, then take one every four weeks. Whether you're making progress or not, pictures never lie.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Stressed out? Don't turn to food or alcohol for comfort, because that just will contribute to body fat gain, which leads to more negative feelings, which leads to more bad food and drinks. Break the cycle. Instead stress eating/drinking, go for a walk, get a massage, practice yoga for better breathing and relaxation, buy a new outfit, take a mini weekend getaway even if it's at your own home. Food and drink should NEVER be a reward for exercising, and definitely NEVER A means to cope with the issues of life.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Are you an emotional eater/drinker? Stop the cycle. Remove everything in your life that causes you stress or contributes to body fat gain. May be easier said than done, but start TODAY by throwing out all the high cal/fat/sugar/sodium/etc food & drinks in your house. Then go to the store and replace all of that with fresh fruits & veggies, lean proteins (white meat, fish, eggs, beans, unsalted/raw nuts, plain Greek yogurt, etc), and complex 100% whole grain carbs. If we put garbage inside our body, we can only expect garbage out. Same can be said if we fuel with nutritious items, put good stuff in = feel better, look better.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Only 90 days until the unofficial start of Summer! Aka the season of short sleeves, Summer dresses, shorts, and swimsuits! Did your arms, butt, thighs, and tummy survive the Winter assault of goodies, especially during the holidays?? NOW is the time to start fine tuning that body for Summer, not in May. Starting RIGHT NOW, no more garbage food & drinks, start going to bed earlier so you can wake up earlier to exercise because it's the best time to exercise to maximize fat loss.