Don t be held hostage to the obligatory holiday weight gain. Instead, melt the fat by sculpting your own fitness and nutrition program. If you feel that you need earmuffs and blinders to withstand the blizzard of health and fitness information, use these 5 simple tools from personal trainer and sports nutritionist Lynn VanDyke to chisel your perfect body.

Tool 1- Strength Training: Every pound of muscle burns 35-50 calories per day. Adding lean muscle mass is the best way to kick-start your metabolism, fight osteoporosis and melt the fat. Try doing 3 sets of 12 repetitions for each major muscle group. Sprinkle in different exercises such as bicep curls, lunges or tricep kickbacks. Work

each muscle 1-3 times per week and always use perfect form.

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Your alarm goes off a 6:00 AM; you jump out of bed to get ready for your run. You look out the window and notice that it s snowed, the thermometer says its 35 degrees Fahrenheit outside. For a fleeting moment you think about postponing your run, but just for a second, the avid runner that you are won t let you miss a day, unless of course there s a blizzard.

While being dedicated to your sport is admirable, here are some tips on cold weather running from a personal fitness & nutrition trainer Dallas you should know in order to avoid injury and have a safe run. You might also consider using the expert skills of personal

fitness & nutrition trainer

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I m going to give you 5 practical tips to turn your body into a fat-burning machine information that you can take with you and implement on a daily basis, both in and out of the gym or workout environment. Rather than quantify specific amounts, I ll be giving you some simple ideas. Let s get right to it:

Eat Fiber
A high-fiber diet decreases fat and cholesterol absorption in your intestine (preventing fat storage), slows glucose absorption in the bloodstream (meaning more sugar gets burnt as energy, less gets stored as fat), stabilizes insulin levels and delays stomach emptying (both of which decrease your appetite), and makes you full faster (so you eat less). Research has

shown that a low-fat, high-fiber diet results in nearly three times more weight loss than a low-fat, low-fiber diet. So how do you get your fiber? Here s how I get mine: 1 fully loaded salad, 1 bowl of oatmeal, and 2-3 raw fruits every day (fruit bonus: vitamin C in citrus fruit can also help burn fat).

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To stay fit, one needs to exercise. To stay healthy and well nourished, one needs to eat the correct diet. Exercise does not have to mean spending hours in the gym, and a diet does not necessarily mean cutting out all those good things we crave! But you do need to find a balance which suits you. Sticking to a healthy diet and fitness plan will ensure your body is well nourished and healthy.

The thought of exercise makes most people cringe, myself included. But not all exercise has to be a chore. Why not take up a new sport which you might enjoy? For example, a dance class. Before you know it, the class will be over, you

will have enjoyed yourself thoroughly and there s your exercise for the day! This will of course keep your fitness level where it should be - at peak!

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In the age which we live there is an unprecedented focus on getting and staying healthy. As more and more research points to the effect of fitness and nutrition on our overall health, the findings become more difficult to ignore. There is no doubt that the food that we eat and the physical activity that we perform significantly impact our weight and our body s overall health and longevity.

When you look at fitness and nutrition and the consequences of ignoring their importance, it is not difficult to see how large a role they play in our health. First and foremost, it is important to understand how powerfully diet can affect us. Natural, whole foods such as

fresh vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and lean proteins give our bodies the vitamins that it needs to function effectively. We have energy when we eat right. And when we have energy we burn fat. Eating properly allows us to maintain a healthy weight and keep undue stress off of our hearts; it also allows us to keep our blood pressure and cholesterol levels in the healthy range. Most importantly, good nutrition keeps our bodies stocked with antioxidants that fight off a range of illnesses including cancer.

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