With all the right information out there, why is obesity still on the rise?

September 23, 2010 by · Leave a Comment 

Over the years I have heard a lot of reasons as to why people are overweight and as a Personal Trainer, I have heard every excuse in the book. I don’t disregard the fact that genetics has something to do with why certain people gain weight easier than others or why some people have a harder time losing weight, it’s true. More often that not however, those same people grew up in unhealthy households. Perhaps even, their weight issues are a cause of bad choices their parents made during the child’s developmental years.

Let’s consider an article I read by Graham Fishburne (2006). He states that the sensitive time for developing fat cells is right before puberty. The time right before puberty is when most of the child’s food choices are made by their parents. Lastly, children often do not grow to their full potential unless they get the nutrients they require during the developmental years.

Just as important as proper nutrition, is the importance of daily exercise. Exercise is good for all sorts of reasons; one’s I am sure you have never even considered. Yes, it allows us to maintain a healthy weight but it also has a lot more benefits. As children, they need exercise to develop strong healthy bones. As adults, we need exercise to ensure we don’t get osteoporosis and/or muscle wasting.

I really think it is essential to educate yourself and your family on the benefits of healthy living. The choices we make when we’re young can affect us for the rest of our lives.

I give Elevate Me Organic energy bars a big nutritional thumbs up. They offer the perfect balance of carbs/fat/protein in an easy to-go format. Pack them in your backpack, purse, or car for a quick and easy snack.

Here is a link to Health Canada’s website http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ here you can find all the information you need on proper amounts of exercise and nutrition.

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Elevate me Summits Mount Begbie (Revelstoke)!!!

September 12, 2010 by · Leave a Comment 

For years, my boyfriend has been saying “mountaineering this, and mountaineering that” and when we go hiking he often sports his “mountaineering boots”. I never really understood what that meant, until now.

Over the years, I have spent a lot of time in the mountains, however, always running or day hiking. This summer, Peter and I went to Revelstoke to visit friends Todd and Kristen. It was Todd (an assistant Ski Guide) who came up with the brilliant idea to summit Mt. Begbie. This would not be an easy task and it would be an all day adventure. As we began packing the next morning, I was handed an Ice axe and some serious looking Crampons and wondered what I was getting myself into!

The day started out with steep switchback hiking. I don’t think I have ever hiked up switchbacks that were this steep. I started to sweat immediately and honestly could not wait to reach the tree line where the grade lessened. After 3 hours of hiking we finally came into a brilliant rocky meadow. The view was breathtaking.

The next section was the toughest of the day (for me). The 4 of us, all connected by the same rope, worked our way across a rather large glacier. My previous experience with this equals none. The 3 others I was with all donned mountaineering boots, while I, was wearing my low profile trail running shoes. I felt a little unprepared but they assured me I’d be fine. You could see the crevasses throughout the glacier but there were also some you could not see. Todd, in front me, was jabbing his ski pole into the snow to see if it was solid. I remember quite vividly this one time the pole went straight through. Todd put a big ‘x’ in the snow and said to me “Nicola, do not step here or you will fall to your death”. I was a little more than freaked out but managed to jump my way across it!

We finally reached the rocky peak we had to climb up. This peak was unlike anything I had ever been on this high up on a mountain. It was as though someone had stacked flat rocks a thousand feet high. The scramble up was by far my favourite part of the day. It was almost as good as the view from the top. We ate some lunch and relaxed for a while before heading back down.

The last thing that I was nervous about was rappelling back onto the glacier from the rock. Rappelling, I was told, was going to be easier than climbing back down to the glacier. It was actually really fun and because the rock was overhanging, I was just lowering myself in thin air. From there we made our way back across the glacier and hiked all the way back down. Peter and I decided to run back down and I cursed the now steep downhill switchbacks once more. I was happy to have brought my Elevate Me protein bar because I was so hungry on the way down.The entire round trip took 11 hours and it was well worth it. My first dose of mountaineering was a success and I look forward to trying it out more in the future.

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