Personal Training In Ridgewood NJ!

I love the beautiful small town vibe in Ridgewood New Jersey and the surrounding towns of Bergen County New Jersey. This area has some of the best restaurants, activities, school systems, physicians and so much more! Ridgewood NJ even has a quaint little authentic French cafe that I am madly in love with.

Offering Personal Training In Ridgewood NJ over the last fifteen years has been a blessing. I have met some of the most amazing people from celebrities to sports professionals to some of the highest ranking women and men in corporate America! Each one has taught me something along the road to their fitness and overall health goals and many have become dear friends!

Fit, Healthy and Fabulous, LLC started out as personal training in Ridgewood NJ but has branched out over the years to offer a more balanced approach to fitness. I have taken multiple courses and have been certified in many new modalities in fitness and wellness so that I could offer my amazing clients more ways to feel healthy and fit. 

We offer help with nutrition and healthy eating and when necessary refer to our Registered Dietician for more in depth counseling. Meditation and learning how to breathe is one of the most important things that you will ever learn in your lifetime. We teach you how to relax and learn healthy breathing techniques with guided meditation. If you are more of a group type we have a fantastic meditation coach that offers weekly classes. 

I have also added Reiki to Fit, Healthy and Fabulous, LLC. After going for a Reiki session myself and feeling the difference it made in how I felt. I was hooked! I am now a Certified Reiki Master Teacher Practitioner and Certified by The Angel Quest Healing Center as an Angel Therapy and Energy Healing Practitioner. If you are curious about these services feel free to contact me for more information and an in depth description.

All of these additions have brought many new clients who are looking for so much more than a fitness routine with exercise and set counts for an hour training session. The clients at Fit, Healthy and Fabulous, LLC are educated on the importance of being healthy and fit BODY, MIND and SPIRIT! And we have everything they need to help them achieve and live a healthy lifestyle.

What are you waiting for? Contact us today to start living your best life ever filled with positive, healthy choices. 

https://fithealthyandfabulous.com

Gratitude

Everywhere you go, you hear it these days...Be Grateful! Yet we hear so many people complaining!

Gratitude is a very important part of your daily mindset. In fact, gratitude has been proven time and time again to make people feel happy, more content, less stressed, helps lower blood pressure and even can help promote better sleep habits. I am a firm believer in practicing gratitude daily. When I feel like I'm having a bad day, I stop myself, take a deep breath and think of all the things that I am grateful for such as my family, my health, finding the love of my life and all the amazing things that he has brought into my life, the love and mutual respect we have for each other is a true blessing every day. A rare and amazing man for sure xo

I often think about something as simple as having food on our table, a roof over our heads and a warm bed to sleep in as a gift in itself. After spending extended time in Mexico volunteering in dog rescue, meeting so many local residents with their dogs and families, I realized how much I have in my life. Seeing so many living without basic necessities, enduring daily abuse, literally working 12+ hours just to make enough to buy a few items was a lesson learned well by me. It made me a better person and one who will always live with gratitude and give back to those in need.

Once a week I have a ritual that I do it's called from the heart to pen to paper. I sit and write everything that I am grateful for down on paper, think about what I wrote and put it in a glass jar that I made with pretty little accents and photos of things that I am grateful for. It makes me stop and think about what was positive in the day instead of what may have gone wrong or was negative on that day, it honestly makes the not so happy stuff seem so less dramatic and stressful.

We ALL live with some level of stress and negative encounters in a day, it is a matter of how you want to respond to those things that can potentially take your energy levels down, ruin your day and make you feel negative and complain for the rest of day, which in my opinion always feels like the more you complain and hear the complaint the more life you give it and the worse it feels!

So what kind of day do you want to have today? Start the day with gratitude and positive energy! Try my little ritual of from the heart to pen to paper and even involve your entire family in it, it turns out it can be so much fun for the kids and brings spouses closer together too!

https://fithealthyandfabulous.com

I am GRATEFUL!

Natural Ways to Lose Belly Fat

With all the diet pills and other weight loss programs being offered out there, it can be tempting to think that there is no natural way to lose belly fat. This couldn't be further from the truth. The only long-term solution to toning up is through adopting a healthy eating and exercise program along with a more positive lifestyle. Everything else from weight loss surgery to quick fad diets is a quick fix and probably not the best choice.

In addition to doing abdominal exercises and cardio to lose belly fat you need to be more aware of what you eat. You should eat little and often aiming to have up to six small meals a day. This will accomplish a number of things not least avoiding bloating and cravings, two things that can put off even the most determined dieter. Obviously, you will need to make better choices and follow a sensible eating plan.

Take time to enjoy your food rather than grabbing a quick meal at a fast food restaurant or a frozen or processed dinner in front of your favorite TV show, this is a huge calorie consumer because people tend to eat mindlessly while focusing on the show and not what they are actually eating, also try not to snack straight from the container while sitting in front of the tv or computer, always put the portion in a bowl. Cooking your own food rather than relying on processed or restaurant meals will help you to lose pounds and slim down too. Taking your time and savoring every mouthful and chewing your food will help you to lose weight as well as you are far more likely to stop eating when you are full rather than just finishing what is on your plate.

Drink plenty of water as our brains often confuse hunger with thirst. If you have recently eaten but still feel hungry try drinking a glass of non-carbonated filtered water. You will often find that the "hunger pangs" go away as you quench your thirst. Don't drink a lot with your meals though as the water will dilute the digestive juices, slowing down the whole digestion process and causing waste retention which can lead to gas and bloating. And above all, do not drink soda and sugary drinks.
Steer clear of empty calories when trying to lose stomach fat. These are found in alcohol and fizzy drinks. They have no nutritional value and will play havoc with your plan for firm abs. Having some self-control and learning to say no to some of your favorite foods will help you lose tummy fat. We can all fall in bad habits such as having biscuits every time we have a cup of tea. Cutting out these small snacks will help to reduce your overall calorie intake and thus help you to drop pounds.

But all of the above is worthless unless you start increasing the amount of physical activity you do. You need to add weight training in order to firm up those abs. You need to increase the amount of aerobic exercise as well to increase your overall fitness level but also to help you tone up your whole body, not just the belly area. Speak to the trainer in your local gym about the areas of your body that you particularly want to change and he will help you to develop a workout to target these. Given some time and motivation you will find that the natural way to lose belly fat is the best albeit it might not be the quickest! Here's to a healthy, fit and toned new you!

fithealthyandfabulous.com

How Your Body Rebuilds Muscles During Sleep

Ever tried to go to sleep with a throbbing thigh or a swollen ankle? Muscle strains and sprains are painful, which can make it hard to fall asleep. However, sleeping seems to affect the speed at which your muscles recover. If you want to get back on your feet faster, your best solution may be to go back to bed for a few hours.

Many athletes can’t make time for sleep between a busy training schedule or other responsibilities. However, sleeping less than seven hours per night has been linked to multiple chronic diseases, such as diabetes and depression. In the short term, it can make you irritable and less happy about training. Also, sleep deprivation may impede your ability to recover from injuries.

Of course, if you increase your hours of sleep each night, the improvements in your athletic performance can be immediate and dramatic.

More Sleep, Improved Performance

The benefits of increasing the number of hours that you sleep may extend beyond healing your muscles faster. In one study, a basketball coach added a new requirement to the training regimen - sleep at least 10 hours each night. Well rested basketball players had faster reaction times and reported less fatigue, as expected. More surprising, their shot accuracy improved and those surveyed said that their physical and mental well-being was better after the sleep extension.

Why Sleep Is So Essential

Everyone knows that sleeping makes your muscles feel better after a while, though the feeling of lying in bed may be uncomfortable. However, scientists are now hypothesizing about the chemical processes that occur during sleep. One study suggests that certain chemicals, like growth factor 1, aren’t released as much when you’re sleep deprived. Since these components have a role in regenerating muscles, sleep loss may lead to muscle loss.

So, in addition to eating your protein (which has been demonstrated to help muscle recovery), make time for a few more hours of rest when you’re trying to recover from a hard workout or injury.

How to Rest Better

Aching muscles can keep you awake at night, but they need sleep to recover. You can overcome this situation by focusing on improving your sleep habits and comfort level in bed.

First, keep a consistent bedtime and wake-up time, even on weekends. Your body calibrates its internal clock using many mechanisms, but it likes consistency. If you go to bed at 9 p.m. each night, your body will learn to start releasing sleep hormones, like melatonin, at that time. Even if you’re in pain from a rough workout, the melatonin release will help ease you into slumber.

Second, make sure your bedroom is comfortable. People need different firmness mattresses depending on their body weight and preferred sleeping position. Check mattress reviews to see if your bed is a good fit for the way that you sleep. Another way to make your room more restful is to minimize distracting light and sounds. Blackout curtains and a white noise machine may help.

Lastly, don’t exercise right before bed. In the summer, it can be tempting to wait for the cooldown of the sunset before working out. However, the rush of hormones from exercise can make it difficult to fall asleep afterward. If you must do some activity in the evening, keep it light, like easy yoga or stretching.

These tips should help you get the sleep you need to recover from tough workouts and feel better soon.

Guest Blogger @ SleepHelp.org

The Benefits of Calcium

It is that time of the year again in the Garden State!

Delicious fresh veggies and yummy fruit. And the perfect time for a healthy smoothie too! Today I chose a green one, however, I love the fresh berry ones too. But first, I want to discuss the benefits of calcium in your diet and how to get it with fresh local produce.

Calcium is so important, your body needs calcium to build and maintain strong bones. Your heart muscles and nerves need calcium to function properly too. The exact amount of calcium you need depends on your age and other factors. Growing children and teenagers need more calcium than young adults, while older women need plenty of calcium to prevent osteoporosis and bone loss. People who do not eat enough high-calcium foods should take a calcium supplement, but before you consider a calcium supplement, make sure that you understand how much calcium you actually need, learn the pros and cons of calcium supplements and speak to your physician. This is a great article for more information on calcium from the Mayo Clinic/Calcium

It is best to try to get calcium in the food you eat daily. I personally cannot take a calcium supplement because I find that they bother my stomach, so I make sure to get the daily amount in the food and drinks that I choose. Some of my favorites include edamame, figs, almond butter and fresh fruit sandwiches on organic calcium fortified bread.

Other foods rich in calcium include:

Dairy products such as milk, cheese, and yogurt. If you are lactose intolerant, choose the veggie options.

Leafy, green vegetables, spinach is my favorite, I put spinach in smoothies, salads, soups and omelettes too.

Choose fish with soft bones, such as canned sardines and salmon. Salmon is healthy and easy to buy and prepare.

There are many calcium-enriched foods such as breakfast cereals, fruit juices, orange juice, soy milk, rice drinks and tofu. I buy little edamame packages in the frozen food aisle and defrost them for snacks.

I always feel that greens are a great way to get your daily calcium and help defend those beautiful bones. Here is one of the ways I get my calcium daily, it is so easy to make and take with you in the morning. I use a Nutra-Bullet RX it is affordable and works amazing for smoothies and makes hot soups too.

My Perfect Green Smoothie:
Just place one banana, one cup of low-fat milk or coconut water, 1/4 cup of Greek yogurt, one full cup of kale or spinach and one tablespoon of organic local honey in a blender and mix until it's smooth and you have a very delicious bone defending smoothie. If you like a thicker shake like smoothie just add 1/2 an avocado. Yummy!

Cheers to good health!

 fithealthyandfabulous.com

Healthy Bones and Exercise

Healthy Bones and Exercise go hand in hand. Your strength truly comes from within when it come to your bones! Your bones keep you standing tall and moving in proper alignment. Did you know that your bones also store essential minerals and protect your vital organs too? That's right not only do they keep you in motion they keep you safe and protected too!

There are over 10 million people effected by osteoporosis in the United States alone! It is important that you are doing everything possible to keep your bones healthy and strong. The key to healthy bones is prevention.

My number one tip is, weight training! Weight training is not just for toning up your muscles, there is just nothing better than picking up a set of dumb-bells for increasing and maintaining bone density. Strengthening your bones is the best line of defense in the prevention of osteoporosis. With so many trendy fitness programs many people are being drawn to everything BUT weight training, while cardiovascular exercise is healthy for the heart we are talking healthy bones here and weight training is the way to go! If you're not sure how to properly train with weights and dumb-bells consult a personal trainer or fitness specialist. If you have already been diagnosed with osteoporosis and are being treated for it, you can talk to your doctor and physical therapist about exercise and a referral for a certified personal trainer that has experience with this population of clientele. May women who have already been diagnosed with osteoporosis have reported an increase in balance and a reduced fear of falling after starting a weight training program, furthering the benefits with a reduced fall risk. You should aim for 30 minutes of weight training, three times per week. As with any new fitness routine, you should speak to your doctor before starting a new program that requires physical activity, once your doctor clears you, don't wait, get started on the road to healthy bones and exercise for a better lifestyle and a healthier future!

Calcium and Vitamin D play a key role in bone health. Calcium helps build and maintain strong bones while vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium. The added benefit of vitamin D is that it can help some people with depression and mood swings, which is why it is commonly called the "sunshine " vitamin.

For women who are experiencing peri-menopause, menopause and post menopause the bone building process slows down at these stages in life, so talk to your doctor about getting tested for vitamin D levels and supplementation. This stage in life is a celebration not a negative as society likes to make it seem, which makes many women misunderstand the process of menopause. Though the term "menopause" is often used as a blanket statement referring to all the stages of menopausal transition the transition can actually start as early as a women's 30's. I find that educating yourself on this important stage in life along with daily exercise, an organic, whole food, natural diet and a healthy mindset is your best line of defense!

fithealthyandfabulous.com