Have you ever experienced this? When the urge to eat something bad comes over so strongly that you feel you have no choice but to give in?

Then, when it’s over, you feel awful that you’ve eaten all those calories and set yourself up for further weight gain. So you’re good for a couple of days until another craving comes over you…and so the cycle repeats.

I’m here to tell you that you hold the power. And it’s not as hard as you think.

Most of us have certain trigger foods that send our diets into a fiery tailspin. The plan is to identify your trigger foods and to replace these with more wholesome, real food substitutions in order to break the cycle.

What’s a Trigger Food?
Trigger foods are foods that when eaten make you crave more of it, or cause you to eat more food in general. These foods are eaten out of habit, not out of hunger. Your trigger food is something you’ve probably said you feel addicted to. Most trigger foods are high calorie, processed and filled with carbs.

You’ll know something is a trigger food when it’s hard for you to stop eating it, even when you feel full.

Replace Your Trigger Foods
When you stop eating your trigger foods, the craving you feel for it gets weaker and weaker. To assist you through this transition use the ideas below to replace your processed trigger food with a healthier, real food option.

Trigger Food #1: Candy
Due to the high concentration of refined sugar, candy is one of the most addictive of trigger foods. If candy is a major part of your life, then start replacing it with unsweetened dried fruit. You’d be surprised how satisfying the natural sweetness of dried fruit can be. Try apples, pears, apricots, figs, and mango.

Trigger Food #2: Salty Snacks
Salty snacks are nearly all processed, refined and packed with simple carbs. Basically it’s the perfect storm for weight gain. Fight the urge to rip open a bag of chips and instead make a batch of Baked Plantain Chips. See the recipe below.

Trigger Food #3: Sweet Drinks
Sodas made with high fructose corn syrup or coffee drinks made with simple syrup have one thing in common: loads of sugar. If drinks like this are part of your daily life, then you know first hand how addicting these can be. Start replacing these high-calorie, high-sugar drinks with zero calorie iced teas. Add a packet of zero-calorie stevia, made from the stevia plant, for sweetness.

Trigger Food #4: Fried Foods
It’s common to have a weakness for fried foods. There’s something about the texture, taste and fat content of fried foods that sends people into an eating frenzy. To eliminate this temptation, make your own homemade versions of your favorite fried foods by baking and then turning on your oven’s high broil. For example, instead of commercially made French fries, cut a sweet potato into fries, toss with olive oil and bake at 425 degrees F for about 40 minutes, until crispy. The baked versions of your favorite fried foods have considerably fewer calories and you’re less likely to stuff yourself with them.

Trigger Food #5: Baked Treats
Cookies, cakes, donuts, muffins and brownies are serious trigger foods. These are hard to avoid, since they are often shared socially at parties and celebrations. Make your own baked goods at home while replacing flour with almond flour and sugar with a touch of raw honey or stevia in the raw. These ingredient substitutions will make your baking lower in carbs and less addictive. However, keep in mind that baked goods are still baked goods and should be eaten as a treat in moderation.

Eating a healthy diet, free from trigger foods, is one side of the equation when it comes to getting into amazing shape. The other side is consistent, challenging exercise.

I’m here to take care of the exercise in your life. All you have to do is show up when I tell you and then give it your all for that short amount of time. Easy enough, right?

This small investment of time and energy truly will transform your body and your life. Call or email today to get started on the last exercise program that you’ll ever start, and the one that gets you into your best body ever.

I don’t want that to be you.

Here are the top 3 outdated, time-burning exercise techniques to NOT DO:

1) Slow and Steady Cardio Sessions: Walk into most gyms and you’ll see every single piece of cardio equipment full of people in a slow, steady state of cardio. Meanwhile the free weight area is a ghost town. The idea that one should toil for hours in a steady state of low-intensity cardio in order to burn fat is the ULTIMATE outdated exercise technique. New science has clearly proven that explosions of speed and intensity are the future of fat burn.

2) Weight Machine Wandering: You’ve seen this character. He wanders among the weight machines, plops down on an open one and cranks out a set (without adjusting the weight or seat) and just as quickly as he came, he’s gone off to the next open machine. There’s no rhyme or reason, and his technique and form are way off due to his careless use of the machines. Do I even need to explain how this haphazard exercise technique burns more time than fat? I didn’t think so.

3) Chronic Low Intensity: When you simply go through the motions during your workout, that’s classic low-intensity. You’re not pushing yourself with challenging weight, you’re not trying to go faster, and you’re not really breaking a sweat. Oh and, big surprise, you’re also not burning any fat. Each workout should be a challenge to go harder than the day before. If you find yourself just-going-through-the-motions then quickly pick up the pace.

So what’s the secret to burning fat?

A challenging routine that incorporates strength training, intervals of intense cardio and is done with intensity. Sound complicated?

It doesn’t have to be. I’m here to provide you with the most cutting-edge workouts that deliver results while burning fat.

You deserve that fit and attractive body – I’m here to help you get it.

Call or email today to get started.

It’s time that we had an uncomfortable little talk about a very important issue…

That junk food in your house.

You know the stuff that I’m talking about. The ice cream jammed into the back of your freezer. The packaged cookies that you say are for the kid’s lunches. The candy stash that’s leftover from the last few holidays. Those bags of crunchy, salty snacks in your pantry. The bottles of soda that you know you shouldn’t drink. And the list goes on…

Here’s the bottom line: If you eat junk food then you’ll get fat. Junk = Fat.

Now I know that you have justified the presence of junk food in your house, so let’s walk through these justifications and I’ll shine some truth on it for you.

1) It’s For The Kids: This is the oldest excuse in the book when it comes to keeping junk food in the house. It’s flawed for many reasons, namely because you know you eat some of it. When junk is in the house you are bound to eat some of it at times. And your kids should NOT be eating junk food on a regular basis, such as in their lunches. It’s not good for them and it’s not good for you.

2) I Didn’t Buy It: Oh, I didn’t buy it. My in-laws, friend, sister, kids, spouse bought that. OK, it’s still in your house. I understand why you may be hesitant to throw out food that someone else gave you, but look at the big picture. By throwing junk out of your house you are protecting your health and the healthy of everyone who lives under your roof. That’s huge!

3) A Little Bit Won’t Hurt: When you keep junk food in the house you’re fooling yourself if you think that you only eat a little bit of it. The contents of your kitchen become the things that you habitually eat. If there’s junk in the house then you habitually are eating it, and a little bit of junk every day adds up to a LOT of junk over a week or month. And you wonder why you haven’t lost the weight yet…

4) It’s My Favorite: I understand that there may be junk foods that you’ve become so used to eating that it’s hard to imagine going a day or more without it. In this case, you really need to cut the junk out in order to achieve your ideal health and fitness level. Birthdays, holidays, and special occasions are the time to have a taste of your old favorite junk. And after you’ve stopped eating it daily you may find that it doesn’t even taste as good as you remember.

5) Life’s Too Short: YOLO, right? (You Only Live Once) If this is your excuse for having junk food in the house, then I’ve got a new one for you. YOLO, so why not live that life in a healthy, fit, attractive body that’s full of energy, free from aches and pains and looks amazing?! Being fit and healthy is so much more rewarding that eating a favored junk food every day. Nothing tastes as good as fit and healthy feels.

Now it’s time for you to take action. All you need is a big black trash bag and the determination to be fit and healthy. Grab that bag, march into your kitchen and start pitching the junk.

Look for anything in a package that contains processed sugar, grains and high amounts of sodium. Go get ‘em!

Wheeew! Didn’t that feel great? Your kitchen is now wholesome and healthy, and your body will be too.

Eating a healthy diet, free from junk, is one side of the equation when it comes to getting into amazing shape. The other side is consistent, challenging exercise.

I’m here to take care of the exercise in your life. All you have to do is show up when I tell you and then give it your all for that short amount of time. Easy enough, right?

This small investment of time and energy truly will transform your body and your life. Call or email today to get started on the last exercise program that you’ll ever start, and the one that gets you into your best body ever.