What would you say if I promised you easy, no
effort weight loss? Just take this pill, and POOF!
you drop the pounds.

Sounds great, right?!

But what if I followed that promise with a range
of possible side effects including memory
lapses, suicidal thoughts, and heart palpitations?

“Hold it Tim! That doesn’t sound so great.”

The pharmaceutical industry continues to search,
(yet it will never find) for an answer to weight
loss in a tiny little pill. Their latest effort is called Qnexa.

I could save them millions of R&D dollars if they would just ask me whether these weight loss pills will work or not.

But they won’t. Because there is BIG business in
weight loss pills. Wall Street analysts say any drug with modest results could become a blockbuster. So I assure you pharma execs will stop at nothing to develop ‘that’ drug. Even if it has side effects such as sucidal tendencies.

The FDA panel’s chair, Kennth Burman said this
about Qnexa, “Some of these side effects are
serious and could be life-threatening and must be
weighed against a relatively modest weight loss.”

If you stop and think about that, we’ve taken
weight loss to a whole other level. We’ve gone
from side effects like gas, bloody stools, and
cramps (remember Wow! Chips with Olestra) to
sucidal thoughts. It’s madness! People will soon
be deciding whether to risk life-threatening side
effects in order to lose some weight.

Don’t fall victim to the weight loss pills… to the diets… to the HYPE! Be a smart consumer. Anyone that needs to lose 20 pounds knows they didn’t gain it overnight. And you certainly won’t lose it overnight. At least not safely and permanently.

Go with what’s been tried and true. Exercise and
nutrition. Sure, it won’t happen in a week or two.
But the time and effort you put in will help you
discover a body and a person you haven’t seen in
awhile. Take the first step and start today.

I would love to help you. You’re welcome to request a free bootcamp trial by clicking here. You’ll see how St. Louis women get fit and firm and start losing weight and getting in shape the right way. Oh… and I promise the only side effects will be looks from your man and questions from your girlfriends about what your ‘secret’ is!

We hope to see you soon!

St. Louis Bootcamp for Women

P.S. Whatever you do to lose weight, please do it safely. If you’re unsure seek out a professional. Call your doc or a fitness trainer. Trust them. Not the big weight loss companies.

P.P.S. I don’t expect you to trust me right away. I believe trust has to be earned. You can see what our ladies say about us and then request your fre.e trial here.

Posted under Nutrition Tips, Weight Loss Tips, health

I received an email from one of my mentors
last week. He was using the problem I’m
referring to in a different light. But
immediately I realized it’s the biggest problem
mother’s face. Here’s what he said…

“Author and motivational/self actualization guru,
Larry Winget, has a book out that I recommend to
you. It’s called “No Time For Tact.” Great title.

VERY serious advice that cannot be overlooked for
long or you *will* pay the price.”

I think he’s spot on. But this is THE biggest and
most common problem I hear from mothers.

I firmly believe we’d be lost without our mothers.
They always put themselves on the bottom
of the totem pole and serve others first.

But it shouldn’t be that way. And it doesn’t have to be
either. I just finished meeting with Jennifer Janson. She
trained with us last year and came back in to get get
re-started.

Jennifer runs her own ‘company’ of 6 at home. Plus
her husband. When she went on hiatus from FT, she
realized that going it alone and doing it on her own was
not realistic. Too much distraction. Too much room for
error. Too much time. She was better when she had a
disciplined and structured exercise routine. It was time
for her. No one else to think about. No one else to tend to.

FT helps leverage her health and fitness. And she
knows her family is better served because of it.

This is even more important with your health, your
fitness, and your weight loss. You will serve
others better (spouse, kids, friends, etc…) if
you serve yourself first.

How to be effectively “selfish”:

Plug these into your calendar first:

- Your personal down time
- Your workouts
- Your nutrition
- Your sleep

And then be discplined about
honoring and protecting that time. Will it
be perfect? No. It never will be. But you
can certainly strive for it.

If you are married, have kids, work a lot of
hours, there are always others to tend to. It
takes discipline and commitment or your time can
soon fade away.

Gotta guard against that – at all costs.

Here’s to the Mom’s out there!

P.S. If you think this is only applicable to mothers
you’re sorely mistaken. Make sure you take time
for yourself, your health, your fitness, and watch
your care for others improve!

P.P.S. Would you like help being ‘selfish’? Would you
like a way to leverage your health and fitness? See
how Jennifer does it by clicking here.

Posted under Fitness Tips, Personal, health

Here’s something to fear… ”Cancer Group Finds Excess Body Fat Alone Causes More Than 100,000 Cancers in U.S.” That was an article I read from Reuters. A colleague told me he saw an article in the USA Today on the same study. By now it’s been picked up by other reporting outlets and you may have seen a similar article. It was fitting since I wanted to write to you about cancer.

And a quick note about the quotation above… the key word is ‘Alone’. The study found that body fat alone caused cancer. Not body fat, physical inactivity and lack of nutritious foods cause cancer. Your excess body fat alone.

As many of you know October was breast cancer awareness month. I can thankfully say none of my immediate family or friends have suffered from this cancer. And obviously, it does not pose a threat to me. But recently I talked with breast cancer survivor and client, Maria Mallonee the other day. And I thought her advice was well worth sharing.

Maria is quite interesting. She’s a medical mystery. She has no genetic disposition for breast cancer. She’s a runner and has kept a healthy weight throughout the years. But after a regularly schedule mammogram they found a lump. “I would say the NUMBER ONE tip I would give is do self breast exams, but HAVE YOUR MAMMOGRAM!!!  Don’t put it off for any reason!!”

Breast cancer among other cancers is a killer. And if you choose to stick your head in the sand about it, you could be in for a rude awakening. Had Maria not taken the necessary steps to watch for this she might not have been a survivor. You MUST take the necessary steps to ensure you remain healthy and well. I’m going to give you specific steps to follow in a minute.

You probably know 60% of Americans are overweight. Maybe you are, maybe you aren’t. But apply the study to you. If you have some extra fat on you, even just ‘that last 10 pounds’, then maybe you need to ask yourself how at risk you are.

Could losing an extra 10 pounds save your life?

Wow, that’s a powerful question. How hard would you try to lose weight if you knew it would prevent you from having colon cancer? A heart attack? Or another deadly disease?

It’s a good question for self inventory.

A lot of times people call me when they have a wakeup call. Hopefully it’s an early sign that gives them time to take some action. Unfortunately not everyone’s wakeup call comes early enough.

So it’s time to take a self inventory. And action! If you don’t care about your health, no problem. Stop reading and delete this email. But since you’re still reading I’ll venture to say your health and well being are important to you. If you want to be in control of your health, and not bounce through life crossing your fingers hoping and praying to avoid cancer, then now’s the time to take action.

Here are 7 tips for cancer prevention straight from the Mayo Clinic. Oh, and keep in mind every bit of effort counts. Picture yourself putting dollars in the health bank every time you do something good.

Maintain a healthy weight – as I mentioned earlier, there is a clear link between excess body fat and cancer. Endometrial, esophageal, stomach, pancreatic, kidney, gallbladder, breast, uterus, and colorectal to name a few. By now you should know being overweight can lead to A LOT of health issues. Overweight is synonymous to smoking. You know it’s bad for you, so don’t do it.

Stop smoking – see previous sentence. Tobacco puts you on the fast track to cancer. Quitting smoking is one of the best decisions you can make for your health.

Physical activity – this will obviously help you keep a healthy body weight and as a consequence aid in cancer prevention. Make sure to incorporate strength training and cardiovascular training as part of your program.

Lower the fat in your diet – studies show a decrease in risk of cancer with those that maintain a low fat diet. Shoot for less than 30% of fat from your total calories and stay away from saturated and trans fats. And eat plenty of fruits and vegetables which have shown to reduce the risk of cancers.

Limit alcohol – experts aren’t sure how strong the link between drinking and cancer is, but they know it exists. And it doesn’t matter which kind of alcohol. Go with my rule of thumb, 1 drink twice a week, or 2 drinks once a week.

Limit your exposure to the sun – skin cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer and also one of the most easily preventable. My siblings and I were all lifeguards and my mom would punish us if we got sunburned. No lie. Do the same for your kids.

Get screened – Ok, this won’t prevent any cancer, but a screening or self exam will help you discover cancer early. And the earlier the better. So please heed Maria’s earlier advice. Talk to your doctor to determine which screenings are appropriate for what age and interval.

There are your 7 tips. You can’t control genetics, but YOU CAN control other factors. Take a self inventory of your health and think about the next 5, 10, or 20 years. What do you want them to look like? Do you want to be plagued with illness? Or do you want to have the freedom to do what you desire? The choice is yours.

To your health and wellness,

Tim

P.S. Wanna join a group of women that are losing weight and having fun while doing it? Click here for your free class.

Posted under health

I’ll get to the big news in a minute. But first, the secret…

I just implemented a Corporate Wellness Program with an insurance firm in Clayton. We’ve put together an 8-Week Challenge to help everyone get motivated and in their best shape! It’s a ‘Biggest Loser’ Challenge in-a-box if you will.

Last week as we were going through their Fast-Start Orientation we covered goal setting.

This step is often overlooked with an exercise program. But it’s so important! If you don’t have anything to work towards, then you’ll end up just spinning your wheels. And that’s not productive.

To help ensure weight loss and fitness results you must set goals.

As I spoke to the group of 20 or so, most hadn’t heard of S.M.A.R.T. goals. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. Your goal must incorporate each category. I’ll break them down one by one and give you a few examples.

Specific – Your goal must be specific. “I want to lose weight” is not a goal. That’s simply a wish. But, “I want to lose 18 pounds” is a specific goal. Now we know where you are (your current weight) and where you want to go (your current weight minus 18 lbs.).

Measurable – Goals must have some form of measurement. Weight is easy. You step on the scale, and then you step off the scale. What about getting in shape? How do you measure that? Maybe it’s walking up a flight of steps without panting. Maybe it’s to run 30 minutes without stopping. Whatever it is, make sure your goal can be measured.

Attainable – I’ll admit this is my least favorite. I like to be aggressive with my goals. And I hope you do too. But keeping a foot in reality is important. For instance, a goal for me “To make it in the NBA” would not be realistic (no matter how much I would like it to be . I’d be setting myself up for failure. Make your goal aggressive, but attainable.

Realistic – This one is somewhat like attainable. Losing 30 lbs. in 30 days is not realistic. Nor is it safe! Give your goals some boundaries. When setting health and fitness goals you must keep physiologic abilities in mind. When losing weight, 1-2 pounds of weight loss per week is a safe estimate, but having a resting heart rate of 30 or doing 1000 pushups in a minute is not realistic.

Timely – Last but certainly not least. I heard someone say once, “Nothing would ever happen without a deadline.” And you know what? It’s true. Without a deadline or some sort of timeline, the chances of follow through are slim to none. Adding a time element creates a sense of urgency. Going back to the goal of “I want to lose 18 lbs,” adding “in 12 weeks” now gives you your deadline. Always, always, always have a deadline.

Goal setting is always our first step when setting up a health and fitness program. A SMART goal is one that works. Take out a pen and paper now and write down some goals. Make sure each one includes each category. (If you have an ipod, stay tuned… my brother’s company is putting together a SMART goal App as I write. I’ll keep you posted!)

To your health and fitness success,

Tim Chudy

P.S. If you think your company might be interested in the “8-Weeks to Your Best Body” Corporate Challenge please call me directly at 314.863.7799.

P.P.S. Hope you had a great holiday weekend. Over the past couple of years you may remember me mentioning my girlfriend Joella. Well, I took a surprise trip to New York City over the weekend and popped the question. She said, “Yes!” making me the happiest guy in town!  I couldn’t be more excited and thought I’d share the awesome news with you.  I love you Jo.

Posted under Fitness Tips, Personal, Weight Loss Tips, health

My Great Uncle Joe passed away last week.  You may know of my Uncle Joe. I’ve mentioned him before and you can even find him as one of our SuperClients of the Month.

Uncle Joe died at 103 years old. He was a common man with an uncommon character. My Grandpa Chudy, his younger brother, was the same way.

The Chudy family wouldn’t be the only ones to tell you what a great person Uncle Joe was. At 103 years old his visitation and funeral were well attended. Everyone from his mailman to his bowling buddies at the senior center, even his girlfriend! were there to celebrate his life and say goodbye. It’s sad to see him go. But I don’t know if anyone could’ve asked for a better life.

He was born in Czechoslovakia in a small farming town. He came to America through Ellis Island and eventually settled in St. Clair, Michigan. He barely spoke English, but was a fast leaner and developed friends right away. He married his love, Helen, and remained married until she passed in the early nineties.

I’ll never forget what he told me about my Aunt Helen. After a stroke she was put into a nursing home to be taken care of. After one week my Uncle Joe refused to keep her there and brought her back home. The nurses warned Uncle Joe how much work it would be and cautioned him against it. They told him he wouldn’t last 5 days. “5 years Timmy. 5 years I took care of your Aunt Helen.”   Wow. I’ll never forget the sacrifice he made so she could stay at home. Never.

Uncle Joe was a common man with uncommon character. And I, along with many others, will miss him.

It wasn’t just the length of his life, but the quality of his life. His life was still rich with relationships. His family and friends were everything to him. And he still had a positive outlook on life. That’s why he made our SuperClient of the Month.

At 103 years old you have to be healthy and to not only keep, but to foster those relationships.

Late last week as I was waiting in line for my coffee I glanced at the Health section of the St. Louis Post Dispatch. The cover story read, How well you age can depend on you.

My Uncle Joe would have agreed. You can read the full article here:

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/lifestyle/stories.nsf/healthfitness/story/9686C8BF2F4F2EBD86257610007545FE?OpenDocument

The article goes on to divide aging into essentially 2 categories: genetics and damage. You control one, but not the other.

Thankfully the Chudy genes are strong, but I could easily neglect them. Smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise, all that bad stuff can counteract good genes. But my choice to live a healthy lifestyle will lead me to live long years. Hopefully into my hundreds.

You see, most people I talk to care more about quality than quantity. I’ll be willing to bet you don’t care to live to a specific age, but you want to live well to whatever age that might be. You want to be willing and able to reap the work you’ve put in. You want to have the relationships and enjoy the time with those people you love most. 

My Uncle Joe would tell you to “Keep busy and stay active.” It worked for him. And I hope you make the choice to live a healthy lifestyle.

To your health,

Tim Chudy
Fitness Together

P.S. If you would like more help request a complimentary health and fitness consultation here. Or, if you’re not quite ready, you can download our infopack here.

Posted under health

I was having dinner last night with some friends
when my buddy’s wife said that he actually did the
grocery shopping this time. And that’s a big deal.
Because Andy hates the grocery store. When they go
shopping together he complains because she takes
such a looooong time. But so do I. In fact, I
like going to the grocery store. But I also know
what I’m doing, what I’m looking for, and what I
should avoid.

Maybe you like it. Maybe you hate it. But unless
you have a loving spouse that does it all the
time, there are a few tips to stick to when
heading out for your food.

1. Shop the perimeter. The aisles have fresh
produce, meat, and dairy. The aisles in the middle
contain boxed, packaged, and wrapped stuff, which
is a lot of times highly processed and not good for you.

2. Keep a list. And stick to it. A list gives you
boundaries to work within. It also prevents you
from grabbing random food items – particularly
ones that are bad for you. Make a list at home
when you have a clear head. This will save you
time and money.

3. Don’t shop when you’re hungry. This is the
BIGGEST mistake of all. What will you do in a
store with food of ANY choice when you’re hungry?
You’ll buy it! And buying Fruity Pebbles or Ding
Dongs may sound good at the moment, but will only
make you feel bad later. Go shopping once you’ve
had your meal. And if you have to go on an empty
stomach make sure you have a list!

4. Take your kids. After a nutrition consultation
with our clients we provide them with a ready-to-
go grocery list. This is a great time to bring the
kids along to teach them and instill good habits.
The earlier you do this the better.

I remember when I went to the grocery store with
my mom and dad I would try to sneak Froot Loops
into the shopping cart. I was always caught and
told to put it back. I didn’t like it at the time,
but I learned what a good breakfast was. And what
a good breakfast was not.

The next time you go grocery shopping keep in mind
these tips. They’ll help you stay on track and
stay healthy.

Now go eat something healthy,

Tim

P.S. If you’d like some help with your meal
planning and grocery shopping send me an email or
request a nutrition consultation here.

P.P.S. Our next Spring Boot Camp for Women
starts next Monday 5/25. We’re now offering
morning and evening classes! Go here for more
info or call 314.863.7799.

Posted under Nutrition Tips, Weight Loss Tips, health

Sleep more.

Ha Ha. I’m kidding of course. We all know getting the right amount of sleep prevents us from getting tired. But if you’re like most of the people I talk to, you can’t always get a solid 8 hours. So how do you keep from getting tired? Even downright exhausted.

Well there are things you can do to increase your energy levels even if you don’t get a lot of sleep. And I’m not talking about a double shot espresso or Red Bull. There are natural steps you can take to help increase your energy levels throughout the day.

And it’s important to mention what kind of tired you are. One of our clients came in the other night for her workout and she was exhausted.

“How are you feeling Kim?”

“Tired. I have a huge proposal tomorrow. I’ve been working all day and I still have a lot to go. But physically I’m ok.”

What Kim knew is that she was mentally fatigued and not physically fatigued. Once she left her work at work and started her workout her energy levels soared! She was smart enough to differentiate between mental and physical energy.

And that’s a BIG secret! Mental fatigue is usually related to stress. Once you acknowledge this you can cope with it through exercise, meditation, or something else that makes you happy. This will help return your energy level while not relying on foods and drinks to ‘pick you up’.

Ok, now that you know there’s a difference between mental and physical fatigue we can talk about the five steps to never getting tired again.

1. Make a schedule and stick to it. We’re creatures of habit. Making a regular schedule for eating and sleeping will have a profound effect on your weight loss.

2. Eat 5 -6 times per day. You’ve been hearing this for years. And I’ll admit it’s hard. Eating helps boost metabolism. And doing it in smaller spurts throughout the day will help keep your metabolism burning and prevent you from crashing mid afternoon. 

3. Don’t use food or drinks to give you needed energy. This only cures the symptom of being tired. Your goal should be to cure the problem. Relying on sugary foods and drinks will only add weight while giving you a temporary fix on your energy.

4. Schedule a power nap for 15 minutes on days you don’t get enough sleep. While naps do not necessarily make up for inadequate or poor quality nighttime sleep, a short nap of 15-30 minutes can help improve mood, alertness and performance. And you’ll be in good company. Winston Churchill, JFK, Ronald Reagan, Napoleon, Einstein, Thomas Edison and George W. Bush are known to have valued an afternoon nap.

5. Make sleeping seven to eight hours per night a priority. No one likes to admit they watch a lot of TV, but studies and surveys tell us we all watch too much. Replacing one hour of TV or internet with sleep will help you turn 6 hours to 7 or 8.

Put one or more of these five steps to use and you’ll increase your energy throughout the day. For my full article on sleep you can visit the Fitness Expert Network here.

Now go eat something healthy,

Tim

P.S. Thinking about a change in your life? You can schedule a FREE health and fintess consultation here.

Posted under health

Your last chance to register for ‘Bring on Spring’ Boot Camp is about here.  If you want to Lose Weight, Tighten, Tone and Firm Your Body, and Drop Dress Sizes Fast then this might be for you!

The deadline for registration is tomorrow Saturday, March 14th at 5pm. And we only have a few spots left. So you must act fast! You can register for your FREE class here.

Boot Camps are a FAST and FUN way to get FIT and FIRM. If you’re looking to get started with a health and fitness program then this will give you the kickstart you need. Whether you’re a seasoned athlete or starting from scratch, you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for.

And don’t worry about the weather. We’re holding it inside still. And yes, it’s early in the morning. But that’s because all you’ll have to sacrifice is your sleep. Get up, get in, get out, and get on! What’s 12 measley hours of sleep in exchange for a fit and firm body…energy out the wazoo…and getting back into those old jeans!?

Register today! You have a little more than 24 hours to do it. Don’t delay. Do this now while it’s fresh on your mind.

If you have any questions just give me a call, 314.863.7799. I look forward to seeing you there!

To your health,

Tim

P.S. You can ‘Try Before You Buy’ and see if this is what you’re looking for. Click here to sign up and see if it’s a fit!

Posted under Fitness Tips, health

I just finished my cup of coffee from
Starbucks. They were brewing Sumatra today. It’s
one of my favorite beans. From the Asia/Pacific
region, it has virtually no acidity with herbal
notes and earthy aroma. Good stuff.

But that’s not what I want to tell about today. It
was what was on the outside of the coffee cup that
I wanted to share with you.

In my last post I gave you the key to unlocking your
potential; Decide, Commit, and Do.

Well, if you’re a Starbucks customer you’ve read
their ‘The Way I See It’ comments on the side of
the cup. These are comments and thoughts on a
variety of topics and from a variety of people.
From famous Hollywood actors to normal everyday
Joe’s. Some good. Some not so good. But this one
today was good.

Anne Morriss, a customer from New York City said
this:

“The irony of commitment is that it’s deeply
liberating – in work, in play, in love. The act
frees you from the tyranny of your internal
critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself
up and parade around as rational hesitation. To
commit is to remove your head as the barrier to
your life.”

Wow! VERY well put Anne.

I call that internal critic head trash. But
commitment does free you from that nonsense going
on upstairs. Over the years I’ve heard more
rationalizations than you could ever imagine.
Admittedly, some of my own.

You will continue to listen to them until you
commit. So take the step today and make your
commitment! Free yourself from the parade of
rational hesitation.

To your health,

Tim Chudy

P.S. – Ready to commit? Click here to
register for a complimentary consultation.

P.P.S – Not Ready For A Consultation Yet? No
Problem. Click here to receive your copy
of our complete information pack.

Posted under health