Get Fit with Monica!

Beginner's Guide to a High Rise Building Stair Workout

Note: If you are concerned in any way about your knees or other health conditions, check with your doctor before doing this workout!

Why climb stairs for exercise? Think about it, people all over the world are stuck in office buildings for work. Right outside their office door is a great workout waiting ...

Here is some basic 101 on nutrition about energy-yielding nutrients.

In the body, three organic nutrients can provide energy: carbohydrates, fat, and protein. The best fuels for workouts are carbohydrates. Although protein can be used as fuel, it is not a direct source. As a dietary source, it will be used to build muscle. Once in the body, if no carbs are available, your body must break down muscle to be used as a fuel ...

What is one thing that helps build a stronger immune system?

1. Move, or better said, move your lymph fluid! The lymphatic system is activated by deep, diaphragmatic breathing--in addition to water--the best way to activate the lymph system movement is with deep breath. Moderate exercise can help to improve and exercise your lungs while simultaneously activating your body's natural filtration system. Don't overdo it by running a marathon, expe...

10,000+ car miles saved by this inspiring California cyclist!

http://www.transportica.info/2017/02/bicyclist-are-humans-cyclist-mike-meza.html

This article provides information on how drinking alcohol affects the body and dieting. The book Understanding Nutrition, eleventh edition, was used as a source for this information.

When alcohol enters the body, unlike food, the body does not require time to digest it. Alcohol is quickly absorbed across the wall of an empty stomach, reaching the brain within a few minutes. This explains why we all know we should consume food be...

A little over a year ago, my client, Laura Meidinger, contacted me about fitness training.  She is 51 years old, 5'2, and a year ago, weighed about 190 lbs.  She had just quit smoking a few weeks before, and decided it was time to change her life.  She wanted me to help.

Laura had never really focused on exercis...

Terry on a search and rescue mission before weight loss

 

 

 

 

 

The new and improved Kris above!

Kris has been my client since last November.  She started just before the holidays.  What a time to start in with a personal trainer!  She was determined to lose weight, and deci...

Doing some mental and emotional exercise before you start an exercise program will help to insure success with your exercise program. It can be as simple as committing to reading something inspirational everyday then trying to acquire a deeper understanding of your weaknesses and strengths.

For a deeper understanding of what may or may not be holding you back, it is a good idea to pay attention to your body. Being physically fit depends on listening to your body, and someti...

I believe most people know that regular exercise will improve their mood.  As a personal trainer, this is something I strongly believe!  However, I also believe that getting outside and experiencing nature can also create many of these positive effects.

A good example of this is related to my son, Antonio. When he was about 6 months old, I started jogging and rollerblading with him (in a stroller jogger) on the American River Bike Trail in the evening...

Recently I was chatting with a friend who was eating a raw diet to help cure a parasite he believed he had acquired while he was in Mexico. Because of the affects of his illness, he has been extremely motivated to rid himself of the parasite, and was advised to begin eating a raw diet.  Just one of the side affects has been weight loss.

Once he began this type of eating, the weight began to peal off of him! I mostly advocate a plant-based diet with an emph...

By Frank Siefert

Owner of Off the Hook Fly Shop (offthehookflyshop.com)

The ways we can get exercise without even trying is amazing. Sometimes a fun hobby can lead to a great form of exercise. I started fly fishing several years ago and I fly fish out of a float tube. Not only am I having a blast doing it, but it is a fun and exciting way to get some exercise.

A float t...

Have you ever wondered what is required to become a Certified Organic Grower?  And, why should you eat organic?  It is not just to avoid unhealthy chemicals!

The following article was written by my mother, Lee Duncan.  She and her husband, David Duncan, spent many years as certified organic growers of apples, as well as producing many other nuts, herbs, range free chickens, and vegetables.  She has a degree in Agricultural Pub...

Below is an article about bone/knee health and running.  The article concludes with the idea that the knee adapts to the conditions imposed.  There is a possibility your knees could get stronger. Most of the runners studied, showed more cartilage than sedantary people.  Whether it was growth or simply bone preservation is still unclear.

In kinesiology, we learn that when you give impact (or loading)  to your bones, the bone will remodel it...

Blueberries are rich in Vitamins A, C, E and beta-carotene as well as rich in the minerals potassium, manganese, magnesium. They are very high in fiber and low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. But this is just the tip of the nutritional iceberg, for recent studies tell us that of all fresh fruits and vegetables, blueberries provide the most health-protecting antioxidants, those valuable elements which prevent cancer-causing cell damage and may limit the changes wrought by age related...

Walnuts...one more reason to eat them!

(From AOLHealth.com)

Incorporating walnuts into your diet may help you handle stress better, new research suggests.

Walnuts and walnut oil help reduce blood pressure during stressful situations because of the omega-3 fatty acids and anti-inflammatory compounds they contain, according to a study by a team of scientists at Penn State University.

Researchers looked at 22 healthy adult participants who had hi...

This is a good link to calculate your BMI.  What I like about this calculator is that it does not just take your weight and height, but also includes your waist size which is an excellent indicator for health risk.

Click on the link below and fill in the information requested to receive your BMI and Waist to height ratio.

http://home.fuse.net/clymer/bmi/

Standards for BMI are the follo...

Excerpts from American College of Sports medicine CEU training;

Menopause is a transition period in many aspects.  It is associated by many women with an undesirable change in body composition, as well as a redistribution of fat from the periphery to the center (particularly abdominal fat which is considered the most unhealthy); In general, body composition shifts include greater fat mass and less lean tissue for postmenopausal women. 

Menopaus...

Here is a little info about Diet DNA.  There are some recent studies that show some people may benefit from more of a low-fat diet, some from a low-carb diet while others may benefit from a mixture of the two.  Without actually getting tested with a saliva test, you can look at yourself physically, and give it an educated guess!

If you would actually like to be tested, go to the "more" tab on this website and find the tab that reads, "Eat Right for your Gene Type"