Trainer Girl’s FAQs: 7 Top Fitness Questions, Answered

Every client of mine has specific goals and needs a customized workout based on a lot of variables; but at one point every client has eventually asked me the following questions. I never get tired of answering them because I never get tired of helping people understand how the fitness journey works (It’s so easy, right?). Here are questions you’ve probably had at some junction in your own journey. Review them as necessary and make adjustments to your health where appropriate.

#7: How often should I workout?
This depends on your goals, but generally speaking, you should do what realistically fits into your life. If you need to lose 60 pounds, this means cardio five to six days a week is what’s realistic for you (pending your doc’s approval, of course). If you don’t need to lose any weight but want to increase lean muscle and bone mass, this could mean two to three days of strength training and two days of cardio for you. There’s no blanket answer for this, but the one general tip I do give is to make it fit into your schedule. If you can’t keep up a regimen of 6 days on, 1 day off at the gym, then don’t set yourself up for failure with a hardcore workout schedule. But if you’re like some of us who are grouchy, moody, and down-right difficult to be around if you don’t move your body six days a week, then by all means aim high my friend!

#6: How often should I eat?
Again, you have to do what will fit into your schedule, but just remember your metabolism isn’t going to do you any favors when you don’t give it a consistent supply of energy and nutrients. If you’re someone who eats a big dinner but nothing for breakfast, you need to work on just trying to get in three well-balanced meals a day for starters. If you’ve got the basic breakfast, lunch, dinner deal locked down, you probably need to switch it up to smaller, more frequent meals. I always aim for a big breakfast (300-500 calories), a mid-morning snack (100-250 calories), a decent lunch (400-500 calories), a mid-afternoon snack (100-250 calories), and a moderate dinner (350-600 calories). Of course these values all depend on your energy expenditure, but the take-away here is to supply your body with consistent energy so it’s not crashing and craving Starbuck’s by 2:30 PM. Everybody’s different, so the 5-small-meals-a-day plan may not work for you. But if you find your metabolism stalling it’s probably because your body isn’t sure when it’s going to see proper nutrition again so it’s storing your previous meal as...you guessed it: fat. Whatever you do, keep your portions moderate and wait 20 minutes before you go back for seconds (works every time!).

#5: What is a healthy percentage of body fat?
First, promise me you won’t go get one of those silly body fat calculators that say they can tell your percentage if you just press your thumb up against them. I won’t get into the technology behind that now, but just don’t go there. You’re better off going to a trainer or gym that will most often tell you your body fat percentage free of charge. Just keep in mind this will require you to be “pinched” with calipers, so expect your fat to be played with just a bit. It’s not bad at all and totally worth it to know where you stand. Plus it takes about 5-10 minutes. Any respectable place will measure your body fat with no questions answered, no deals to sign, and no monthly commitments. I have people stop in all the time because they’re curious about their body fat. So don’t be shy! Once you know what your percentage is, here’s my breakdown:

Women: Age 18-39: 18-25% is healthy; Age 40-55: 21-30% is healthy; Age 56 and up: 26-31% is healthy. Keep in mind women need a certain amount of fat for reproductive and physiological changes in our bodies as we age.

Men: Age 18-39: 6-19% is healthy; Age 40-55: 12-24% is healthy; Age 55 and up: 24-31% is healthy.

#4: What should I eat?
This one’s trickier than the others because without knowing your body type, diet restrictions/needs, or energy requirements, I can’t tell you what you should be eating in detail. However I can tell you where to begin and what’s most important. First let’s cover the things to limit or stay away from: Excess salt, any trans fats, enriched wheat or enriched flour, excess sugar, chronic overindulgence in alcohol (had to point out the obvious), and too much saturated fat (think fatty meats, dairy, and oils). Got that? Now cut the portions in half, because most often my clients tell me they “didn’t eat that bad” I find out that what they ate wasn’t the problem, it was how much they ate. Just because you’re having a chicken salad for lunch doesn’t mean you can have two chicken sandwiches at lunch. Calories are calories! Now for the ingredients you should concentrate on. Choose whole-grain every time over enriched when it comes to grains and carbs. Aim for lean proteins (chicken, pork tenderloin, beans, low-fat yogurt and dairy, fish, tuna, seafood, turkey, and very lean cuts of beef or even buffalo meat if you can get it) and of course, eat your fruits and vegetables. Remember this: Fruits and vegetables are carbohydrates, so if you really want to cut back on the weight quickly, count your veggies as carbs and limit grains to 2-3 servings a day. You’ll see a difference, and you’ll understand why the Atkins Diet worked so well. Just remember: Don’t cut out carbs completely because we need them for energy.

#3: How can I lose the last 5-10 pounds?
An easy one! Are you a stickler for wanting to lose that last bit of fat around your stomach that just won’t go away? That’s an accumulation of tiny little things like that extra glass of wine at night, the weekend binge at your friend’s BBQ, eating your kid’s leftover fries (yes, even “just that one time”), grabbing a handful of M&M’s as you walk by the candy dish, etc. If you’re really serious about losing that last extra bit of weight, you better be really serious about what goes in your mouth ALL. THE. TIME. I’m not going to paint this easy, pretty picture – losing the last 5 pounds means making sacrifices. It means not slipping up even once all week long. It means living pretty much by the book. If you can do that, terrific! I’ll bet you look fantastic and seriously, good for you. But if you want a balanced life where you won’t hate your child’s birthday because you can’t eat birthday cake, then forget about that last “little bit” of fat. Life’s too short to sweat the small fat.

#2: How fast can I lose the weight?
I would love to be able to tell you that you can lose 10 pounds in 1 week, ala Biggest Loser. I know that’s what you want to hear and I know that’s what you’ve been told by big supplement manufacturers and diet food suppliers. However I’d be lying to you. The healthy amount of weight to lose that’s been proven to lead to long-term success is 1-2 pounds per week. I know that seems small time, but give it 10 weeks with a solid fitness regimen and decent nutrition and you’re not only healthier but you’re better educated as to what works and what doesn’t. You can lose the weight as fast as you want to, it just depends on whether you want to risk putting it all back on once it’s lost or keep it off for good.

#1: What is the one piece of advice you wish everyone would take?
Okay you got me; I don’t ever actually get asked this, but I wish I did. My answer would be: Stick with it! Never, ever, ever give up on working out or eating healthier. You skipped a workout? Big deal, start over the next day. You ate too much at Mongolian? Been there, done that. Get over it and get back on track the next meal. Stop giving up and stop making excuses. That’s what my answer would be if I ever got asked that question! So...thanks for listening.

Meet the Trainer

Crystal is a certified personal trainer through the National Sports and Conditioning Association (NSCA). She has a passion for helping others live a healthy lifestyle and coaching them to push their limits beyond what they think they are capable of.