June 2005 Newsletter

An Inspirational Quote

"Don't do aerobic work- it makes you dumber and fatter."

Charles Poliquin. World-Renowned Strength and Performance Coach

You CAN Heal A Damaged Metabolism

It's an old, frustrating story - you try diet after diet and one exercise program after the other, but the numbers on your scale aren't budging. At this point, many people throw in the towel and give up ever trying to be thin or healthy.

If this is YOUR story, you may want to consider the following facts:

• How much you weigh has nothing to do with whether or not you have a healthy metabolism.
• You can be thin and have a damaged metabolism.
• You can be fat and have a healthy metabolism.
• You can think of your metabolism as the combined using up and building up reactions that are happening within your body every day.
• A healthy metabolism is one in which the using up and building up reactions are matched on a daily basis.  

You have damaged your metabolism if the using up and building up sides are no longer balanced. Once you understand this important fact, you will never again engage in endless high intensity aerobic exercise, skip meals or go on a starvation diet, stay up all night or neglect to manage your stress. You will stop using yourself up by overworking and realize that by the time you have damaged your metabolism, you must learn to rest, employ destressing exercise like yoga, Qi Gong and Tai Chi and anabolic exercise like weight lifting because your muscles are the engines of your metabolism.

Signs that you may have a damaged metabolism:

• You are addicted to refined sugars, caffeine, nicotine, alcohol or illegal drugs.
• You have allergies, sinus problems or asthma.
• You have anxiety or depression requiring long- term treatment.
• You have an autoimmune disorder such as eczema, lupus, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, polycystic ovary disease or Hashimoto's thyroiditis.
• Systemic candida.
• Chronic fatigue syndrome.
• Excess weight around your midsection in addition to high cholesterol, heart disease, high blood pressure, gout, stroke or Type 1 diabetes.
• Chronic insomnia, sleep apnea.
• Irritable bowel, leaky gut or chronic constipation.
• Hypoglycemia not related to eating poorly or diabetes medication PMS lasting most of the month.

Many people become confused when they have a damaged metabolism. They remember when they were young and healthy and tried to lose weight. All they had to do back then was cut back on what they were eating and pick up the pace of their workout program.

But when you realize you have a damaged metabolism, you need a real professional to help you rebuild it. If you make the mistake of going to a conventional diet centre and starving yourself or a typical fitness trainer who pushes you to the max just because he or she thinks harder exercise is always better, you will only make yourself worse, lowering your metabolic rate even further.

At Total Fitness, we know this for a fact as many of our clients who have been through other programs have had their metabolic rate scientifically tested. One client who weighs more than 200 lbs. was told she couldn't eat more than 1,200 calories a day without gaining weight.

Catherine Carrigan and Patty Bonafede have studied personally with Dr. Diana Schwarzbein, an endocrinologist who specializes in teaching clients how to rebuild their metabolism with healthy eating and the right kind of exercise.

There are five steps to rebuilding your metabolism, according to Dr. Schwarzbein:

Step 1. Healthy Eating - Find out the appropriate amount of carbs, saturated fats and proteins you can eat for your current metabolic rate. If you are in adrenal burnout, you may have to control all three factors - how much protein, how many carbs and how much saturated fat. If you don't eat enough carbs, your metabolism may never heal properly. Healthy eating may also include vitamin and mineral supplements to help you rebuild.

Step 2. Stress Management - Focusing on Sleep -You can't rebuild if you aren't sleeping.

Step 3. Taper Off Toxic Chemical. - These include street drugs, alcohol, caffeine and preservatives in processed foods.

Step 4. Hormonally-Balanced Exercise - De- stressing exercise is a must for everyone and weight- lifting is important to help you increase your metabolic rate. Every pound of muscle helps you burn 50 more calories per day.

Step 5. Hormone Replacement Therapy - if necessary. The first step to rebuilding your metabolism is a personal assessment to determine your starting point. Come to Total Fitness and find out how you can eat more frequently and work out smarter to achieve the results you want.

Delicious Food For You!

Taco Pizza Pie by Patty Bonafede

Ingredients for Filling / Topping.

• 1lb. of good quality ground beef or turkey.
• 1 garlic clove, minced. ¼ teaspoon salt.
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin.
• ½ teaspoon chilli powder.
• 4 chopped green chillies.
• 8-9 oz. mashed pinto or kidney beans (fresh preferred, you cook them yourself).
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped.
• 3 green onions, chopped.
• 1/3 cup coarsely chopped green bell pepper.
• 2 cups shredded, cheese of your choice (goat cheese preferred and there are many kinds).
• Sour Cream, Avocado for garnish.

Ingredients for Cornmeal Crust:

• 1-1/2 cups rice and/or millet flour.
• ½ cup cornmeal.
• 1 tablespoon baking powder.
• 1 teaspoon salt.
• ½ cup butter.
• ½ cup organic milk or water.

How to Cook Taco Pizza Pie

Prepare dough for Cornmeal crust. Preheat oven to 400F. In a large skillet, combine ground beef, garlic, salt, cumin and chilli powder. Sauté over medium heat until beef is browned, 4-5 minutes. Stir in green chillies. Spread mashed beans over pizza dough. Spread beef and chilli mixture over beans. Place tomatoes in a circle around outer edge of pizza. Place green onions in circle inside tomatoes. Place green peppers in centre. Sprinkle cheeses over pizza. Bake 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown on edges. Serve with sour cream and avocado (guacamole). Serves 4-6 Prepare dough for Cornmeal crust. Preheat oven to 400F. In a large skillet, combine ground beef, garlic, salt, cumin and chilli powder. Sauté over medium heat until beef is browned, 4-5 minutes. Stir in green chillies. Spread mashed beans over pizza dough. Spread beef and chilli mixture over beans. Place tomatoes in a circle around outer edge of pizza. Place green onions in circle inside tomatoes. Place green peppers in centre. Sprinkle cheeses over pizza. Bake 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown on edges. Serve with sour cream and avocado (guacamole). Serves 4-6

Making the Cornmeal Crust:

In a large bowl, mix together flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in milk and mix until dough forms into a ball. Turn dough onto a well- floured board. Knead until smooth, 10-12 time. Roll dough into a 13-inch circle. Place dough on ungreased cookie sheet or pizza pan. Pinch edge of circle to form a 1-inch rim. Set aside until ready to use.

Upcoming Total Fitness Events

Natural Vision Improvement Seminar
Saturday & Sunday June 4-5,
Atlanta, $375.
For More information visit:
www.totalfitness.net/classes_seminars.htm

Nutrition Mastery Seminar(London)
Saturday & Sunday July 2-3,
London, £240 / £265
For More information visit:
www.totalfitness.net/classes_seminars.htm

Balancing Hormones for Fat Reduction and Vitality
Wednesday July 6 6-9PM
Saturday July 9th 9-12 noon
Atascadero, California, $60
For More information visit: www.totalfitness.net/classes_seminars.htm

Business & Money Mastery Seminar(London)
Sat’ & Sunday July 23-24,
London, £240 / £265
For More information visit:
www.totalfitness.net/classes_seminars.htm

Classes

Yoga Classes: Every Tuesday and Thursday, 7:30-9 p.m., Holy Spirit Catholic Church. $15 per class or $65 per calendar month.

Overcoming Eating Disorders: A free class for the general public, every Wednesday in February, 7 p.m., Holy Spirit Catholic Church.