Lanza Blog

LANZA’S TIPS FOR A HEALTHIER YOU!

Posted on August 17, 2011 by admin

Now that summer is in full swing, people are spending a lot of time at the beach, in parks, amusement facilities, tailgating at the baseball games (unless you’re a Dodger fan, in which case you’re home), or backyard barbeques. (Hello Dodger fans!)

Have you spent any time at the gym? On a treadmill? On your bike heading for the mountains? How about eating healthy? Beach food? I don’t think so. Park fare? Maybe not. Tailgating? Uh uh. So let’s talk about a few things you can do to improve your health.

First off is nutrition. Good eating. Healthy habits.

Start by replacing your dinner plates with small ones. You’ll tend to eat more on a 12 inch plate than a 10 inch plate. Better yet, use a salad plate. You won’t fill up as much and you’ll cut your calorie intake by 20%.

Buy a set of ramekins. Use these for deserts such as ice cream or puddings. Just a few spoonfuls as compared to a huge bowl.

Eat an apple and drink a glass of water before your meal. The skin is fiber and it will give you a feeling of fullness before you start eating.

Keep junk foods to a minimum in the pantry and put them way in the back. When you’re looking for something to eat chances are you’ll take the first thing you see. So keep the healthy food in the front.

As far as the exercise, try to do something physical after a meal. Especially dinner. Go for a walk, take the kids out for a bike ride, run with the dog, meet a neighbor for a stroll. You’ll burn calories and you won’t want the extra calories that come from snacking after a meal.

If you watch TV at night, play games with your programs. If you’re a True Blood fan like I am, you have to do 5 pushups every time fangs are exposed. Or 5 crunches when the “F” word is said. (Prepare to do a LOT of crunches).

I tried that with the Sopranos once and I think I did 14,755 crunches. Anyway, you get my point. Move.

These are just a few of the things that will keep you on the right track. If you need more tips or want a healthier way of life, call us or stop in. We’re always here for you and we’ll show you how to do it right. And you’ll have fun! Really. Really!

Thanks for listening and have a healthy day!

Posted in Baby Boomers, Childhood Obesity, Dieting, Exercise, Fast Food, healthy body, Healthy Lifestyles, Muscle Growth, Nutrition, Senior Exercise | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

SOMETHING I’D LIKE TO SHARE

Posted on August 9, 2011 by admin

The Dash, By Linda Ellis

I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone,
From the beginning…to the end.

He noted that first came her date of birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years. 

For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth…
And now only those who loved her,
Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own;
The cars…the house…the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard…
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left,
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what’s true and real,
And always try to understand
The way other people feel

And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile..
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy’s being read
With your life’s actions to rehash…
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?

Posted in Baby Boomers, Childhood Obesity, Dieting, Exercise, Fast Food, healthy body, Healthy Lifestyles, Muscle Growth, Nutrition, Senior Exercise | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

THE BUTTERFLY

Posted on August 6, 2011 by admin

In these trying, frustrating and exasperating dog days of our current administration, I find myself looking toward the Heavens for support. Not answers, mind you. I think I have some of them and some of you might not like and/or agree with them. So I’m looking upward trying to find the strength to wake up each day with a smile on my face and move forward.

Which leads me to a wonderful story I heard long ago but really gives me some hope. I’m going to share it with you. I don’t know the author so I apologize for that.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do and maybe you’ll get something from it. I know I did. Here it is.

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further.
So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.
The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.
What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been.

We could never fly!

Posted in Baby Boomers, Childhood Obesity, Dieting, Exercise, Fast Food, healthy body, Healthy Lifestyles, Muscle Growth, Nutrition, Senior Exercise | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

IS YOUR CHILD OBESE? YOU COULD LOSE CUSTODY.

Posted on July 18, 2011 by admin

That’s right. You heard it here first. There’s a huge debate brewing in Government. The big question has arisen that asks if parents of super obese children should lose custody of them. And what are they basing this on? It’s as simple as neglect. They argue that parents are neglecting their children. There’s no physical abuse, no sexual abuse, no emotional abuse. But abuse just the same. Not paying attention to what your child eats or how much exercise they get or don’t get.

In a provocative commentary in the Journal of the American Medical Association, it seems to already have happened. The piece states that putting children in foster care temporarily is sometimes more ethical that obesity surgery.

Dr. David Ludwig, an obesity specialist at Harvard-affiliated Children’s Hospital Boston, said the point is not to blame the parents, but rather act in the child’s best interest to do what the parents could not.

Approximately 2 million children in the U.S. are extremely obese. Some have obesity related conditions such as type-2 diabetes, breathing difficulties and liver problems. And it’s these children that the state would want to protect by removing them from their homes.

Ludwig said the issue arose after he saw a 90 pound 3 year old in his clinic several years ago. Her parents had disabilities, little money and trouble controlling her weight. At age 12, she weighed 400 pounds and had developed diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and sleep apnea.

Guess what? The state placed her in foster care. After a year, with proper nutrition and exercise she lost 130 pounds. Her apnea and diabetes disappeared.

A 2009 opinion article in Pediatrics said temporary removal from the home is warranted “when all reasonable alternative options have been exhausted.”

In that article they discussed a 16 year old weighing 440 pounds. She nearly died from breathing complications. Doctors discussed whether to report her family for neglect.

State intervention doesn’t require new legal requirements. Health care providers are required to report abuse, neglect or children at immediate risk.

Jerri Gray, a Greenville, S.C. single mother lost custody of her 14 year old son who weighed 555 pounds. She claims that she had to work 2 jobs so she didn’t have time to cook. She would buy fast food instead. The boy was turned over to her sister and in 2 years the boy lost over 200 pounds.

Other advocates for the other side are weighing in but it seems that the state can and will take a child if they find neglect.

So there you have it. It’s a serious issue. And one I’ve tried to tackle many, many times. Get your children off the couch, away from the computer or TV, stop feeding them the garbage that comes from the King, or the Clown, the Hut and the Box and bring them to the playground, the park or here! We have lots of programs for children. It’s educational, fun and safe.

Thanks for listening and have a healthy day!

Posted in Baby Boomers, Carbohydrates, Cardiovascular, Childhood Obesity, Dieting, Exercise, Fast Food, Fats, healthy body, Healthy Lifestyles, Heart Disease, Holidays, Muscle Growth, Nutrition, Protein, Stress, Vitamins | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

YOUR CAR. YOUR BODY. IS THERE A DIFFERENCE?

Posted on May 18, 2011 by admin

It’s not a trick question. And you’re all thinking that Lanza finally lost it. After all of the exercising, cardio, resistance, flexibility and core training Lanza finally exercised his marbles away. Lost them completely. My body and my car are no different? What kind of supplements is this guy taking?

Well, let me assure you all that I have not exercised my marbles away. And the only supplements I take are multi-vitamins, minerals and a wonderful protein drink to add the extra protein I need during the day. Because, as you know, we are all carbohydrate junkies. So a little extra protein is good for you.

Now, back to your car and your body. When you wake up in the morning, do you pop right out of bed and run to the closet to get dressed? Or is it more of a “wake up, spend a few minutes wondering where you are, what day it is, stretch a little, roll out of bed on your side, sit on the edge of the bed and wonder if it’s Saturday and do you really have to get up?” I thought so. When you get into your car and start it up do you drive it immediately or let it warm up a little, letting the oil warm up to coat the pistons so it doesn’t sputter.

If you’re going to take a long trip, say to Palm Springs, or San Francisco or Bakersfield (I don’t know, some people might need to go there) do you first fill your tank up with gas? It’s the same as your body. Think of starting your day as a long trip. Eat breakfast. Put fuel into it. You won’t break down or find yourself running out of gas.

You know that forty dollar fuel pump? Same as your heart. They pretty much do the same thing. When the fuel line gets clogged no gas gets to the engine. When your arteries get clogged no blood gets to the heart. Boom! Heart attack. Which, by the way, has nothing to do with the heart. Your heart is probably still in good shape. It’s the circulatory system that’s the problem. A heart attack happens when blood flow is interrupted. So you need to clean out the line so to speak. (I’ll give you a secret. Cardio.) It’s like a high pressure hose pushing out all the gunk in your arteries. Gets it clean.

I can go on and on about the similarities but you get the picture. And here’s a final thought. You take your car in for maintenance. Change the oil. Rotate the tires. Clean or change the things needed to be cleaned or changed. Every seven, twelve, twenty-five, fifty thousand miles. It keeps the car running efficiently. Lasts longer.

But what about your body? Do you keep it in good running condition? Use the best fuel, get the maintenance check ups? Change the oil, rotate the tires so you can keep it a little longer? Running efficiently?

Give us a call here a Lanza Fitness and we’ll perform a diagnostics test for you. We can show you what you can do to help your body last a little longer and keep your trade-in value at the top level.

Thanks for listening and have a healthy day!

Posted in Baby Boomers, Cancer, Carbohydrates, Cardiovascular, Childhood Obesity, Dieting, Exercise, Fast Food, Fats, healthy body, Healthy Lifestyles, Heart Disease, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Holidays, Muscle Growth, Nutrition, Prostate Cancer, Protein, Senior Exercise, Stress, Uncategorized, Vitamins | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments