The Truth About Standing Desks
• May 21, 2015

Standing desks are becoming increasingly popular as the idea that “sitting is the new smoking” gains popularity. By replacing sitting with standing, the thinking goes, you are counteracting the risks of sedentary office work. There is some truth to this, but it’s important to have the whole story, including guidance on how to safely transition to a standing desk.

Problems With Sitting

Sitting is not the problem. But sitting for extended periods of time (60 to 90 minutes or more) without a break seems to lead to tight hips, poor circulation and decreased insulin sensitivity. The decreased insulin sensitivity increases diabetes risk and may result in weight gain or difficulty in losing weight.

Remember: standing in place for hours on end is just as unnatural and potentially problematic as sitting for hours on end. Long periods of standing can damage knee cartilage, cause varicose veins and decrease productivity.

Proper Stand-Up Desk Transition

• Get an adjustable desk. You want to be able to go from standing to sitting when your body needs a break, or for tasks requiring greater concentration. Without the ability to make these transitions – especially in the beginning – you put yourself at a very high risk of injury.

• Stand on a pad. Most offices have thin flooring over concrete, so having something soft will help reduce the risk of foot, back and knee pain.

Alternatives to a Stand-Up Desk

If you decide a stand-up desk isn’t for you, but still want to break up your sitting time, here are two simple suggestions:
• Keep and drink more water at your desk. This kills two birds with one stone: you’ll be better hydrated and you’ll be forced to take walking breaks. Research indicates that as little as two minutes of walking per hour of sitting is enough to reduce your risk of disease.

• Set an alarm to alert you to get up every 50 to 60 minutes. Besides reducing the risks of extended sitting, these breaks help your brain work better. Mini breaks – especially with movement – help people process information and solve problems that have become frustrating.

A best-selling author and fitness expert with 16 years of experience, Josef Brandenburg owns The Body You Want club in Georgetown. Information about his 14-Day Personal Training Experience may be found at TheBodyYouWant.com.

Five Weight Loss Myths
• May 11, 2015

With so many people saying so many things about weight loss, it can be very hard to separate fact from fiction. Here’s the scoop on five common myths about losing weight:

Myth 1
Cardio helps you lose weight. Activities like a 30-to-60-minute jog don’t help most people lose weight because they make people disproportionately hungry (among other reasons). So if you burn off 500 calories, your body will be hungry for 550 to 600 calories. However, strength and interval training tend to blunt appetite and leave your metabolism elevated for up 36 hours afterward.

Myth 2
Eating five or six small meals will help you lose weight. The research on this is clear: spreading your food out makes people hungrier and less satisfied with what they’re eating – which is only helpful for weight gain. Eating fewer, larger meals is more satisfying, takes less time and is far more effective for weight loss, now and in the future.

Myth 3
More sweat during exercise equals more weight loss. You can take the easiest, least effective workout and do it in a hot, humid room and you’ll sweat profusely. This extra sweat will not result in any meaningful, long-term weight loss, only short-term dehydration. The goal is to keep the goal the goal.

Myth 4
Adding healthy food helps you lose weight. Example: most people could benefit from adding more protein to their diet, but if you simply add a few eggs to your normal blueberry muffin, you’ll probably gain weight. You’re just eating more. Swapping the muffin for a few eggs and some blueberries would get you much better results.

Myth 5
All weight loss is created equal. Most of the time people really want to lose body fat (or get back to their high-school size). These qualities are not easily measured on the scale. A low-calorie diet and cardio can result in half of your weight loss coming from your lean body mass – in other words, everything that isn’t fat – which makes it harder to look toned. It’s also harder to keep off.

A best-selling author and fitness expert with 16 years of experience, Josef Brandenburg owns The Body You Want club in Georgetown. Information about his 14-Day Personal Training Experience may be found at TheBodyYouWant.com.

Supplements: Myth vs. Fact
• April 23, 2015

Smart use of dietary supplements can definitely enhance the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. However, clever marketers make it very hard for consumers to make good choices. Here are eight supplement myths and facts to help you become a more informed consumer:

Fact: You should keep most of your supplements in the fridge. This is especially true for fish oil, because the beneficial omega-3 fats become rancid when exposed to heat, light or oxygen. This will also extend the shelf life of all supplements.

Myth: There are supplements that can target belly fat, or that will cause you to lose weight without changing your lifestyle. It would be nice if results came in a pill. However, the fact is that no supplement has ever been proven effective at targeting any specific body part, nor has there even been proof that a supplement can help you lose weight without diet and exercise.

Fact: The FDA has found hidden drugs in dietary supplements. The FDA has found more than 100 weight-loss supplements that contain hidden prescription drugs (including generic Viagra and seizure meds) and/or drugs so dangerous they’re not approved for use in the U.S. Beware of pills or drinks making big promises.

Myth: Taking vitamins means you can skip the vegetables. The truth is that supplements are only that: supplements. They help to fill in the little gaps in a healthy diet and lifestyle, but can’t take the place of nutrient-dense foods.

Fact: “All natural” doesn’t mean something is good for you. “Natural” only means that the product doesn’t have artificial colors or flavors – nothing more.

Myth: If a multi-vitamin makes your pee yellow, this means you didn’t absorb any of it. Just a little bit of Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) turns your urine yellow. You’re still absorbing most of what was in that pill. If the color bothers you, drink more water.

Myth: Drinking protein shakes will give you bodybuilder-sized muscles. The enormous muscles on professional bodybuilders are the result of superior genetics, decades of 24/7 dedication and pharmaceutical assistance. There’s no powder or pill that can give anyone huge muscles.

Fact: Drinking a protein recovery shake accelerates progress. Extra protein after a workout helps you lose fat and tone up faster than if you only drink water.

A best-selling author and fitness expert with 16 years of experience, Josef Brandenburg owns The Body You Want club in Georgetown. Information about his 14-Day Personal Training Experience may be found at TheBodyYouWant.com.

Spring Diet Cleanses: What You Need To Know
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Thanks to warmer temperatures and the celebrity buzz, more and more people are thinking about losing weight and getting healthier with the help of cleanses. Most will be disappointed. The central idea behind all cleanses or detox diets is that we’re sick and fat because our bodies are saddled with excessive toxins. By adhering to these very low calorie, often liquid-only diets – goes the pitch – we can detox, become healthy and lose weight quickly.

Scientists, medical doctors and legitimate nutritionists disagree, and generally don’t even believe that “detoxing” exists. According to Professor Alan Boobis OBE, toxicologist at Imperial College London’s Division of Medicine:

The body’s own detoxification systems are remarkably sophisticated and versatile. They have to be, as the natural environment that we evolved in is hostile. It is remarkable that people are prepared to risk seriously disrupting these systems with unproven ‘detox’ diets, which could well do more harm than good.

Very low calorie diets are also known as crash diets or semi-starvation diets in scientific literature. While these diets can help you lose weight very rapidly, they also fail 98 percent of the time. That is, 98 percent of the people on these diets regain everything they’ve lost, or everything plus interest.

These diets also become progressively less effective for the initial weight-loss boost because they negatively impact your metabolism, sex hormones, muscle mass and thyroid function.

Health and fitness expert Mark Fisher sums up cleanses nicely: “If eating food leaves you full of toxins. . .perhaps we should seriously consider the quality of the food you eat.” Losing weight is easy, but keeping it off is the hardest and most important part.

Your long-term success is mostly dependent on how you lose the weight in the first place. Quick weight-loss is sexy, and it sells $200 cleansing kits, but it almost always fails you. Instead, by focusing on small, manageable habit changes that you can stick to, you set yourself up for progressive success, building a lifestyle that will deliver the health and fitness you want for a lifetime – not just a weekend.

A best-selling author and fitness expert with 16 years of experience, Josef Brandenburg owns The Body You Want club in Georgetown. Information about his 14-Day Personal Training Experience may be found at TheBodyYouWant.com.

Keep Your Momentum – Even When You’re Sick
• March 26, 2015

You’ve been consistent with your new fitness routine and seeing results. One day you wake up with a runny nose, a sore throat and low energy. You want to keep your momentum, but you don’t want to slow your recovery or get anyone else sick. What are the dos and don’ts of exercising when you’re sick?

The good news is that regular exercise makes you less likely to get sick. Additionally, moderate-intensity workouts can boost your immune response and help you get better faster.

Don’t be contagious. Wash or sanitize your hands every time you blow your nose, cover a sneeze or cough. You’re already sick, and there’s no need to spread your misery to anyone else.

Do check your symptoms. If you have a fever, vomiting or diarrhea, or ache all over, then stay home and rest. But if you only have a runny nose, a headache, a sore throat or a dry cough, you’ll be okay as long as you follow the rest of this advice.

Don’t rush your comeback. With enough rest you will feel better, but it takes time to fully recover. If you felt awful for four days, then it will probably take four additional days – after you feel a lot better – until you are really back to normal.

Do listen to your body. This isn’t the time to push yourself. Workouts that are too hard or too long can suppress your immune system, making your illness worse. However, movement at an easy or a medium level, such as walking, mobility work or a very easy workout, can enhance your immune response. Keep these to just 30 to 45 minutes. Sticking to your schedule as best you can allows you to keep your momentum.

Don’t drink OJ. Orange juice is marketed as a cold-fighting beverage, but the opposite is probably closer to the truth. Ounce for ounce, orange juice has the same amount of sugar as Pepsi, and sugar is like a sleeping pill for your immune system; a large dose will slow it down for hours. The same goes for all sugary beverages.

*A best-selling author and fitness expert with 16 years of experience, Josef Brandenburg owns The Body You Want club in Georgetown. Information about his 14-Day Personal Training Experience may be found at TheBodyYouWant.com*

It’s 86 Days Until Summer
• March 11, 2015

When it’s 25 degrees below freezing, it’s hard to believe that Memorial Day Weekend (the unofficial first day of summer) is only 86 days away. Feeling and looking your best makes beach and pool time much more enjoyable. And being proactive about your fitness keeps you from being tempted to do something dangerous or unsustainable.

1. Use combination moves. These exercises are great for total body toning and revving up your metabolism, working nearly all the muscles in your body at once. The most effective combo moves combine an upper-body and a lower-body movement. Two examples are squat to row and split squat to overhead.

2. Drink half your body weight in ounces. This will help curb your appetite, allow for more workout intensity and improve your recovery. Often people confuse thirst for hunger. Proper hydration allows you to cool off more efficiently during exercise, which delays fatigue. Proper hydration also improves circulation, enhancing recovery and results.

3. Non-competing pairs. Structure your workouts for maximum time efficiency and effectiveness with non-competing pairs of exercises. Upper- and lower-body exercises make great pairs. An example of this are push-ups and deadlifts. The push-ups will tax your upper body, and while those muscles are recovering you can work your butt and thighs with the deadlift. This allows for local muscle recovery for maximum safety and intensity in minimal time.

4. Eat about three times per day. Fewer meals lead to a healthier metabolism and a better regulated appetite. Eating lots of small meals actually makes you hungrier and less satisfied with what you’ve eaten, even when the calories are the same.

5. Use power moves. Fast, explosive movements stimulate your metabolism in ways that slower exercise can’t. For most people starting out, this means throwing or slamming a medicine ball. These moves are easy to learn, very safe and require you to get your entire body involved to do them well.

A best-selling author and fitness expert with 16 years of experience, Josef Brandenburg owns The Body You Want club in Georgetown. Information about his 14-Day Personal Training Experience may be found at TheBodyYouWant.com.