Fitness Newsletter                                                 April 2009

In this issue:

• 12-Week Amazing Body Challenge Participant UPDATE
• Health Briefs
• Attend Camp For Free!
• How To Curb Cravings
• Health Quiz
• Nutrition Tracking Sheets
• Recipe: Almond Chicken with Asparagus

We are now 4 weeks into our 12-Week Amazing Body Challenge, and so far 25 women have really stepped up their game! These women have committed themselves to 12-weeks of rigorous exercise both at boot camp and own their own. They have vowed to eat healthy and make better food choices. They have changed their mindset and their attitudes. And it shows! In just the first 3 weeks, over half of the participants have lost 5 or more pounds and two of the contestants have lost over 10 lbs! It’s sure to be an exciting race to the finish…

1. Identify your craving. You may be hungry out of sheer boredom, you may have an addiction to food, or your body may lack something it needs. If you crave any of the following, you may be lacking in nutrients:
   
   
   • Chocolate = magnesium may be low. During menstruation magnesium levels drop and chocolate cravings increase. Instead try fruits, nuts, or a vitamin/mineral supplement.
   • Sugar/simple carbohydrates = protein and complex carbohydrates are needed to sustain energy. A little science lesson: Carbohydrates break down into sugars. Sugar is a very fast metabolized molecule so it’s not a good source of long term energy. Your best sources of energy are protein and complex carbohydrates.
   • Fried food = you need calcium and OMEGA 3 fatty acids (i.e., the good fat!). Try eating more fish or check your grocery store for milk, cheese, or eggs that contain these fats.
     
     
2. Remove the rituals. You don’t need dessert after dinner. You don’t need candy at the movies. You don’t need a donut or pastry with your coffee. Before these rituals, try to be prepared with a healthy alternative.
   
   
3. Remove temptations. Just get rid of it! And to keep yourself from buying more, never go to the grocery store hungry. When you don’t have anything to eat except healthy food, going out of your way for a candy bar will be too much work .
   
   
4. Imagine what you’re really eating. This technique may seem a little extreme, but the power of the mind has a big impact on how easy it is for you to lose weight. Instead of imagining how great that candy bar tastes, picture the candy bar as what it really represents for you: fat. This is the fat which plans on sticking to you for a long time.
   
   To help you visualize this, imagine going to your local grocers and asking them to give you a pound of fat trimmings from beef. Now imagine that's what the doughnut will turn into after you’ve eaten it. That pound of fat will take up more space than you might realize. Freeze that pound of fat. Whenever cravings hit, just get that pound of fat out of the freezer so it reminds you of what you're really eating.
   
   
5. Water, water, water. Drink it, it’s good. The water intake recommended does NOT include the water you receive from food. If you feel thirsty, this means you are already dehydrated -- and dehydration can often be confused with hunger.
   
   
6. Delay your cravings. A good way of sticking to your diet is not to disallow your cravings, but simply delay them. What we mean by this is delay the gratification. You can give yourself permission to eat that candy bar, but not now.
   
   Delay yourself, and say you’ll eat it in 15 minutes -- 15 minutes is long enough for most cravings to pass. However, you don’t want to wait too much longer than this -- that kind of waiting seems pretty much impossible, and is hard to stick to.
   
   If 15 minutes passes and you still want that food you crave, go ahead and eat it. You could just eat half of that candy bar, and then wait another 15 minutes for the other half. This means you still get to eat the food you want, but you’ll make it last longer.
   
   
7. Turn off the lights in the kitchen. You’ll avoid hanging out in there.
    

Fat-free foods are lower in calories than regular foods.
            Answer: FALSE.

- If it sounds too good to be true... guess what? The myth perpetuated on the American public starting in the 1970's is that fat is a "bad" food. This has led to the manufacture of sugar-laden imitation products that often contain as many calories as the fat-free versions. People get into the habit of eating more of products labeled fat-free, but they are no better and possibly worse than the original.

Nutrition Tracking Sheets              In order to maximize your success and achieve your specific fitness goals while at Austin Adventure Boot Camp, it's critical to have a proper nutrition plan. Eating for success and optimal health is not just something that you should do while at Austin Adventure Boot Camp in order to achieve your best results, it's something that you should do for a lifetime. The Austin Adventure Boot Camp nutrition tracking sheet is designed to give you an easy to follow path to the perfect you! Our NEW nutrition tracking sheets will be available for all full-time campers who register for our upcoming camps! Get Yours! Register Now!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups asparagus tips, diagonally cut
• 1/2 cup plain, non-fat yogurt
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 2 cups cooked skinless, boneless chicken breast, chopped
• 1/2 cup red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted
• Spinach leaves

Directions:

• Steam asparagus for 2 minutes or until crisp-tender.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the yogurt, curry, lemon juice and salt.
• Add asparagus, chicken, bell pepper, cilantro and almonds and toss to coat.
• Serve on fresh spinach leaves.

Nutritional Info :

• Servings: 4
• Fat: 2.3 g
• Carbohydrates: 9.9 g
• Protein: 13.3 g
• Calories: 108