RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Did you know your brain is two-thirds fat? Therefore, to get better brain function we need to feed it healthy fat. Healthy fat in the form of foods (oily-skinned fish like salmon, tuna & mackerel, etc. Leafy green veggies, olive oil, flax seeds, avocados, chia seeds, and other unsalted/raw seeds & nuts). Supplements of omega 3, 6, 9 essential fatty acids are another great way in addition to food, to replenish your neurons and brain cells. Not to mention, healthy fat helps to attack the bad fat in our body.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

There's no wrong time to do cardio, but the TWO best times to do it to burn the most body fat are: 1) As soon as you wake up before consuming any calories. 2) AFTER strength/weight training. The reason for both are the same: the main calorie source of the body will use is body fat (stored calories/energy).

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

We all have areas on our body that we like more than others, and so sometimes we focus on those more with exercise. Here's three reasons to train the entire body, head to toe.

1) Training the entire body helps to burn more calories, because the larger the muscle (Ex: back & legs) the more calories it will burn all day long = faster results.

2) Training certain areas but not others distributes our body weight unevenly which puts unnecessary pressure to our spine, joints, and ligaments; leaving us more open to injuries.

3) Training certain areas but not others also makes us look disproportionate, like the guy in the picture.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Do you know what your body fat % is? The higher the body fat % the more we are at risk for cancer, stroke, diabetes, and heart disease.

WOMEN: 18-35yrs old body fat % should be 18-20%, 35-50yrs old should be 20-22%, 50yrs old + should be 22-26%

For MEN: 18-35yrs old body fat % should be 12-14%, 35-50yrs old should be 14-16%, 50yrs old + should be 16-20%

Have a qualified health & fitness professional calculate your body fat % TODAY, so you can begin tracking REAL (getting healthier) progress!

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

To get in-shape two terms should be abolished from our vocab forever: "weight loss" & "workout."

We should never be trying to lose "weight." We should ALWAYS be trying to lose body fat. Losing weight (muscle/water) is easy, and is the reason a lot of people are yo-yo weight losers then gainers. Remember, the scale is irrelevant if we're not losing body fat %.

As far as "workout," the battle to get into shape is more psychological than it is physical. Therefore we have to always be in a positive mindset. "Work" is a negative term. Exercise should be fun & challenging, something we enjoy doing.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

We've all heard a friend or relative say, "I just lost 10-20lbs doing ______." After the obligatory "wow" & "congrats" the next thing out of our mouth should be, "how much body fat % did you lose?" Nine times out of ten the answer will be "I don't know. Didn't measure that." The scale & BMI are irrelevant if the body fat % is not coming down. It IS possible to lose on the scale, but not lose body fat = loss of water/muscle or fluid fluctuation. Body fat % should be our main measure of progress, because that's where our disease risks come from. After body fat %, look at inches lost and how you feel internally.

WOMEN: 18-35yrs old body fat % should be 18-20%, 35-50yrs old should be 20-22%, 50yrs old + should be 22-26%

For MEN: 18-35yrs old body fat % should be 12-14%, 35-50yrs old should be 14-16%, 50yrs old + should be 16-20%

Have a qualified health & fitness professional calculate your body fat % TODAY, so you can begin tracking REAL (getting healthier) progress!

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Whether we're a little or a lot out-of-shape, everybody starts somewhere. Two simple things we can start doing RIGHT NOW to begin looking & feeling better are:

1) Start eating something SMALL every 2.5-3hrs to speed up your metabolism (how fast we burn cal).

2) Since it's nice out, go outside, and do run then walk intervals every 60sec for just 25mins. If seriously out-of-shape do walk then speed walk intervals every 60sec for 25mins. Once you build up your stamina kick it up to sprint then jog intervals every 60sec for 25mins.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

This graph shows how we look when we have less or more muscle combined less fat or more fat. The main points are:

1) Skinny/thin doesn't mean healthy or in-shape. It's possible to look thin, but still have a high body fat %. The goal should be to look lean & tone, not skinny & flabby.

2) The more LEAN muscle we have the quicker & more fit, lean, and tone we'll look. 1lb of muscle burns 50cal/day at rest, so 10lbs of LEAN muscle (not Schwarzenegger) will help burn an extra 500cal/day + what we burn during exercise = faster results.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Want to know a trick to get more out of your exercise/daily life activity? Answer: PUSH THROUGH YOUR HEELS. Whether you're walking, running, going up stairs, doing lunges/squats, jumping: push through your heels. This activates your glutes (butt) & hamstrings, which makes them stronger because it doesn't overdevelop your quadriceps. Also having strong glutes helps to protect your knees, because the glutes are 1/3 of the core (abs & lower back).

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Concerning fruits/veggies, ever heard of the "Dirty Dozen" or "Clean 15?" These terms refer to the levels of insecticides & pesticides in them.

The "Dirty Dozen" are: apples, celery, sweet bell peppers, peaches, strawberries, imported nectarines, grapes, spinach, lettuce, cucumbers, domestic blueberries, potatoes, green beans, kale, collards, and leafy greens.

The "Clean 15" are: onions, sweet corn, pineapples, avocado, cabbage, sweet peas, asparagus, mangoes, eggplant, kiwi, domestic cantaloupe, sweet potatoes, grapefruit, watermelon, and mushrooms.

Buying organic may cost more right now, but in the long run of life, it may save $ on medical bills; because these chemicals are toxic to the nervous system and have been linked to causing cancer. Organic items are not just limited to high end stores like Whole Foods, Standard Market, Trader Joe's, but Jewel has an organic aisle, as does Dominick's.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

How serious are you about looking & feeling your best? How intensely are you really exercising to get there? Are you even exercising the correct way for your specific goal? Or could you be doing other things for less time while seeing more progress than what you're doing now? Be completely honest with yourself, it might be time for a wake up call! For example, if you're looking to lose body fat & be tone quickly, are you doing HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING for both your cardio and strength training? If not, you're not doing the correct things for that specific goal. Google/YouTube HIIT for more info.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Sweating has NOTHING to do with losing body fat. All sweating is, is the body trying to cool itself down once it has become too hot. Wearing extra clothing, wearing sweatsuits, wearing sweat wraps around the abs, exercising in a room that's 105*F (bikram yoga), etc, is NOT going to help us lose body fat quicker. Actually, if we do not properly hydrate while we exercise, sweating is pulling water out of our cells, which dehydrates us, being dehydrated makes us tired faster, and less likely to finish the exercise with the intensity we need to achieve that fat loss.

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Did you hit the alcohol & salty/sweet treats hard celebrating the 4th? Here's four ways to get your nutrition back on track:

1) Start eating something SMALL every 3hrs. This will speed up your metabolism = burning cal faster.

2) To best detox from the booze keep drinking water since our body is 75% water, and our brain is 90% water.

3) To slow down the digestion of all the sugar, start consuming high FIBER foods.

4) All that salty foods = looking/feeling bloated, because sodium carries excess water. To lower the sodium levels in the body, consume high POTASSIUM foods (spinach, beans, bananas, kiwi).

RIO Fitness Chicago® Tip:

Chemicals in our plastic containers and other dishware may leach into our foods/drinks. This can disrupt hormone/reproductive system function and prevent body fat loss because these chemicals mimic estrogen. Five simple steps to avoid eating/drinking PLASTIC unintentionally:

1) KNOW THE CODE. Look on the bottom of your plastic to find the recycling symbol (a number between 1 and 7 enclosed in a triangle of arrows). 1, 2, 4 and 5 are considered to be the safest. 3, 6, and 7 leach chemicals that may be harmful.

2) DO NOT HEAT PLASTIC IN THE MICROWAVE. Heat can increase the rate at which chemicals like BPA leach from plastic. Containers labeled "microwave safe" have been tested by the U.S. FDA and found to leach extremely small amounts.

3) IF IT SAY ONCE USE, USE IT ONCE. Plastic breaks down over time and some aren't designed to withstand heating and cooling.

4) WASH BY HAND. Only put plastics into the dishwasher if they have a dishwasher safe label. If you want to be extra-cautious, wash all plastics by hand. In the dishwasher, plastics are exposed to detergents and heat, which may accelerate the leaching of BPA from food containers.

5) DO NOT FREEZE PLASTIC. Only put plastics in the freezer if they have a freezer-safe label. Freezer temperatures can cause plastics to deteriorate, which increases the leaching of chemicals into the food.