Monthly Client Spotlight!

SPOTLIGHT ON....LaDonna Trapp!

June 2017

“I look healthier, leaner and sculpted.  I am happier.”

These words are in my “Personal Decree” that I wrote 5 months ago when I started at Pumps.  Ian gave me homework that required me to outline my personal goals and write a short decree that I could read on a daily basis to keep me motivated.

Not only do I look healthier, leaner, and sculpted, I am happier and I have confidence in my ability to achieve my hopes and dreams.  I have learned how to breathe and I have more energy than ever.  My husband believes in me and we believe in the menu planning, including portion control, in conjunction with the exercise program!

My husband gave me the best Christmas gift ever…a six month training program at Pumps Fitness!  Today, you can see the results in my muscle tone and my most recent achievement is I ran my best time ever in a 5K race!  Ian’s training program has helped me gain muscle tone, strength, endurance, flexibility, balance, weight loss, sensible eating and confidence!  What more could you want from a fitness program?

As I am about to go into month six, I have begun to lament that is nearly the end of my Christmas gift.  But being a wise mentor, my husband is encouraging me by saying, “Keep going!  Anything that helps you stay healthy and strong is paying you back.”  Wise words, right?  If you invest in being strong by supporting your joints, maintaining a healthy heart, losing weight through healthy menus, and gaining energy and confidence, you will spend less time with illness, injuries, lethargy, and that endless list of negatives that hold you back.  That is priceless!

In the past, I have watched handicapped people pass me in races.  My daughter offered to take my hand to help pull me up the last hill during one race in particular. I thought, how awful, not just for me but her too! I would not have my daughter held back and possibly embarrassed because I couldn’t pull it together to get my backside trained for a 3 or 5 mile race. My biggest concern was my breathing. I was so short of breath and was concerned of pushing myself too hard. I watched my times get slower and slower with each race I participated in. 

Today my attitude is that I am in the right place to test the limits of my abilities when it comes to cardio endurance.  At the first spring race this year I knew I could push myself and control my breathing, and I did breathe! Results? Three minutes off last year’s time! At my next training session after the race, I came in telling Ian, I am going to push it. I figure I am in the right place to do it.  If I fall over your there to help me!  He said, “Yes, we’ve got ya!” All I can say to that is, Awesome!! After the race, my daughter congratulated me on my race time.  My response was simple…I am just happy and healthy and I know that I don’t have to slow down as I get older.

I am far from done! I hope to lose a few more pounds even though I have moved my belt over three notches! Currently my daughter and I weigh the same and she is 30 years younger than me and looks great! I have goals for sculpting my legs. By the time October 1 rolls around I will be 60 years old and married 40 years. Then I think it will be the perfect time to proudly wear a beautiful Jamaican swimsuit!! ;)

Want more results?

The key is to maximize your workouts. To do this, you will need to push yourself to the point that your body is working as hard as possible without putting yourself at risk for injury. How can you do this? With a simple heart rate monitor.

Read on to see how you can make use of a heart rate monitor, and take heart because better workouts are on the way!

Why It Works

Your heart plays an essential part in your health, well-being, and ability to stay alive. When your heart is working at its perfect tempo, you’re able to burn the most amount of calories and feel your best when you work out. Having a hard time figuring out just how hard and fast to push yourself during a routine? A heart monitor is there to help.

How to Use It

Once you’ve got a heart rate monitor, all you have to do is strap it on your wrist, start working out, and it does the rest. When you’re pushing yourself in the gym or on a run and are feeling good, check the monitor and take note. That is where you want your heart rate to fall in the future. It’s your heart’s sweet spot.

Actually, it’s a good idea to toss on your heart rate monitor when you’re not working out. Wear it while you’re going through your daily routine—working, eating, going to the store. This gives you a baseline to see how hard your heart works normally. So when you start exercising, you should see a sizeable change in your heart rhythm.

With the heart rate monitor on, you can quickly find your lactate threshold or redline. This is when your body switches from using mostly oxygen to using mostly glycogen during high-intensity exertion. You could go to an exercise physiologist and pay for a special test to find this out or simply note at what point in your workout you're unable to talk without breaking up the sentence and your breathing rate suddenly increases. At this point, your pace is comfortably hard and does the most good for your health. Look at your heart rate. Keep that in mind for the next time you work out.

Watch It Change

As you know, the goal of regular exercise is to beat your body into submission so that it is constantly improving. When you do this, your heart rate does something funny. It actually beats slower. With a heart rate monitor, you can actually monitor your overall fitness progress by watching your beats per minute drop. The change will take time and may never be dramatic, but as your body grows more accustomed to being worked hard, your heart doesn’t have to exert itself as hard as it once did, because it knows what to do and is more efficient at doing it.

Not seeing your heart rate drop? Keep working at it and stay focused on your heart rate. If it starts jumping above your sweet spot, slow down. You may hunger to push your body beyond your heart’s comfort zone, but if that means sending your heart rate into outer space, don’t do it!

Take It to Heart

Information is only useful if you use it. Once you learn your ideal heart rate, pay attention to how fast your heart is working during your routine. Then do whatever it takes to get your heart there and stay pumping at that pace until your trainer says to call it a day.

If you’re not interested in knowing your heart rate, no problem. Heart rate monitors aren’t for everyone. Just be aware of other signs that indicate whether your body can be pushed a little harder, is operating at peak performance, or needs you to back off. And if you have questions, remember, we’re here to help you meet your fitness and weight loss goals.

Call or email today to get started on a fitness program that will quickly bring you to your goal.

An excellent exercise choice to make is to start one of our fitness programs!

Boost Healthy Eating Choices

In order to make healthy eating choices a no-brainer, empty out your kitchen of any and all junk food items. Throw out the processed, sugar-filled and carbohydrate-rich junk food items that have been contributing to your weight gain.

Now replace all of the junk items with healthy replacements. Whole, fresh food items like fruit, vegetables, lean protein, eggs, seeds and nuts. The closer an item is to its natural state, the healthier it is for you. Stay clear of “health food” that come packaged and processed.

Fennel, Celery and Green Apple Slaw

Here’s a light and refreshing salad that’s filled with healthy fiber. Fresh tarragon, fennel and lemon juice lend vibrant flavors, eliminating the need for fattening, store bought salad dressing. Serve alongside a portion of lean protein for the perfect, fitness approved meal. Servings: 2

Here’s what you need:

•              2 Tablespoons olive oil

•              1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar

•              1 Tablespoon fresh tarragon, minced

•              1 teaspoon lemon juice

•              zest from 1 lemon

•              2 celery sticks plus the leaves

•              1 fennel bulb, plus the fronds

•              1 green apple

•              dash of salt and pepper

1              In a small bowl combine the oil, vinegar, tarragon, lemon juice and zest. Set aside.

2              Using a mandoline slicer on the thinnest setting, thinly slice the celery, fennel bulb and green apple. Place in a medium bowl. Chop the celery leaves and fennel fronds and add to the bowl.

3              Toss the salad with the dressing and season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 219 calories, 14g fat, 192mg sodium, 23g carbohydrate, 7g fiber, and 3g protein

Call today for a consultation and assessment!

Email: Pumpstrainingandpilates@gmail.com

Phone: 219-548-3480

Web: Pumpsfitnessinc.com