The Other Half of Miller's Fitness - Meet Jack!

Introducing Jack - the other half of Miller's Fitness! I met my husband, Jack, in the gym. Where else? He was on the stair machine and I was in the weight room. Our story has been about fitness ever since. He manages the local gym and is also an ACE-certified personal trainer. To say that he is in great shape is an understatement. Yesterday he ran 4 miles at 6.5 miles per hour. His heart rate peaked at about 140 beats per minute. Thirty seconds after finishing, his heart rate had already dropped back down to 108 beats per minute. Did I mention that he is 57 years old and we live at altitude, about 8,500 feet above sea level? He can run circles around guys half his age and is "strong like bull", as he would say. He is 5' 10" and when we met in 1990, he weighed about 170 pounds. Now he is a svelte 150 and his body fat is in the low-teens.

We live in the mountains of Colorado and our primary source of heat is a woodstove. Every weekend Jack is outside gathering wood on our property. It's free heat, it cleans up our woods and he gets off on playing lumberjack. He'll march up with mountain with his chain saw in hand, find a dead tree that needs to come down and have at it with the chain saw. He cuts the dead tree into 6 -10 foot lengths and carries them back to the house, by hand, thrown over his shoulder. No ATV's here. He carries it all by hand, making 3 - 4 trips up and down, in all kinds of weather.

Last summer, the cedar siding on our house needed to be power-washed and re-stained. You know the rest. Of course, Jack power washed the whole house himself, then hand-brushed on the stain. He tried using a sprayer, but it just didn't do a good enough job for him. So he hand brushed the stain on the entire house. Doing the peak of the house was challenging, but he eventually got it all. I got queasy just watching him on top of the roof. He says the view up there is awesome. I'll take his word for it!

He says that exercise is his therapy. He has saved us thousands of dollars in psycho-therapy costs because he is a disciplined exerciser. He works out his angst and solves his problems while lifting weights and doing cardio. He motivates me and keeps me going when I don't feel like it. I have to stay in shape just to keep up with him! Fitness is the basis of our relationship. When I think of Jack in the years to come, I just have to smile. I envision a strong, yet wiry guy who will still be trying to play with chain saws.                   

7 Anti-Aging Goals: Be a 90-Year Old Rock Star!

I'm fascinated by the aging process. Some people age with strength and grace, while others become frail and bitter. Some maintain their health, but the majority succumb to disease and illness. Over the years, I've learned a few things from strength training my clients and observing friends and family as we age. People can be quick to criticize their own bodies and waste a lot of energy bitching and moaning about every little ache and pain. We take so much for granted about our own bodies, rather than appreciating the miraculous gift we were all given, free of charge, at birth.

But one day, unless we take care of our bodies, the abilities we now take for granted, will begin to disappear. We will begin to lose strength, vitality and mobility. So, in anticipation of my own golden years, I've set some goals for myself. My intention, and part of my 40-year experiment on myself, is to be able to do the following on my 90th birthday.

1.  Get up from the floor! Somewhere along the line, as people age, they lose the ability to get up from the floor. I can't imagine not being able to get up. If you fall and break your leg, that's one thing. But to just not be able to get up from the floor because of pure weakness is not acceptable to me.

2. Squat down and stand back up! As your leg muscles weaken and your knee joints become unhappy, you lose the ability to squat. Who cares, right? Well, that means you can't really see what's on the bottom shelf of the grocery store, you can't squat down to hug your grandkids, and you have lost some of your mobility.

3. Stand for hours! Most old people cannot stand for very long and they are actively looking for a place to sit down. Standing must be very painful or tiring for them. I'm on my feet a lot during the day, but I also sit a lot when I'm typing my pearls of wisdom. Not to be able to stand upright, for an hour, two hours, or as long as I want, is incomprehensible to me.

4  Walk quickly and take long strides! Due to weakness, lack of core strength and balance, as we age our stride gets slower and shorter. I've got short legs, so I practice keeping my stride long. Lunging, especially on the beach, is great for training a long stride.


5.  Stand on one foot! This is all about balance and core strength. When I'm 90, I want to be able to do the Tree Pose with confidence.

What the heck! I don't just want to be fit, I want to be a 90-year old ROCK STAR! Therefore, I'm going to set the bar high with the following:

6.  15# dumbbell bicep curls! Just for fun! How impressive would that be? At 90 years old and pumping out 15# dumbbell curls?

7.  Push-Ups - boy style of course! A 90-year old who can still do boy style push ups would simply ROCK!

These are the first seven things I want to be able to do 40 years from now. I can do them all easily, without thought, at age 50.  I won't take them for granted and, in spite of some aches and pains, I will always remember to be thankful for a healthy, strong body. I'll be less critical of the wrinkles staring back at me and more appreciative of having strong legs to propel me through life.

Let me know your goals! 

No Dessert? Ever? Jack and Jane's Secret

Jack LaLanne is now at the big gym in the sky. At 5'6", 150 pounds, sporting a 30" waist and bulging biceps, Jack was known as the Godfather of Fitness. He was fit long before being fit was cool. In 1936 he opened the nation's first health club and he designed many of the pieces of strength training equipment still used today. He believed in exercising every day and eating healthy at every meal. In fact, in 1929, he gave up eating dessert.

Jane Fonda graced the cover of USA Weekend and at 73 years old, she looks great. She says, "Nothing is more important as you age than staying physically active." At 5'8" and 121 pounds, she credits a super-healthy diet, plenty of exercise including strength training, eight to nine hours of sleep, sex and dancing for staying in shape. All good stuff! She eats "zero trans fats, zero partially hydrogenated oils, and no desserts, period."

I thought it was odd when I read that Jane Fonda had given up desserts. Then the next day, I read the same thing again regarding Jack LaLanne giving up desserts. Think about that. Imagine what it would be like to give up eating dessert forever. I'm not sure I could make that commitment and that seems discouraging. I aspire to live the healthiest life possible, but to eliminate all dessert seems to take some joy out of life. I've noticed that as I age, I'm forced to give up more and more things, but giving up dessert is crossing the line.

Does it sound like I'm a dessert junkie? Well, I'm really not. I gave up eating dessert when I was preparing for a fitness competition without any trouble. I guess I believe that everything is okay in moderation. Eating a dessert once a week is not unhealthy. On the other hand, eating large heavy desserts every day isn't good for your health. Eating one cookie isn't a problem. Eating the whole bag is a problem. It's all about balance.

Don't give up because you're not perfect. Don't throw your hands in the air and say, "Why bother?" You can still get in great shape and live a balanced life. Don't get discouraged by thinking that you must eat absolutely perfectly at every meal or you can't achieve health. I'm a living example of someone in great shape who still enjoys an occasional Snickers bar. And you can bet if I'm on a cruise ship, I'll be checking out the cheese cake and the ice cream bar.

That's not an excuse to go crazy with desserts. Remember, everything in moderation.

Tribute to Jack LaLanne, Godfather of Fitness

Fitness legend Jack LaLanne has passed away at age 96 from respiratory failure cause by pneumonia. According to the Wall Street Journal Blog, he used to say that he couldn't die because it would ruin his image. The ultimate goal, though, isn't to live forever. Instead it's to live a long, healthy, pain-free life and to ensure that the numbers or years allotted to you are of optimal quality. If you reach old age and you are sharp and active up until the very end, you've won the game, so to speak. 

One of the things that intrigued me the most was a quote in the New York Times.  “The doctors were against me — they said that working out with weights would give people heart attacks and they would lose their sex drive.” Sad, but true. And it still goes on today. I hear stories all the time of doctor's telling their patients to "lay off the weights" or "stick to light cardio". Instead of encouraging exercise and strength training, their first response is usually the opposite.

Thanks Jack, for paving the way and for being a srength-training, weight-lifting pioneer. I'll keep your message alive.

Grocery Store: Friend or Foe?

As a personal trainer, I always recommend to my clients that they prepare their own meals and avoid eating out at restaurants. Of course that means going to the grocery store on a regular basis, usually once or twice a week to keep the pantry stocked with fresh foods. Going to the grocery store used to be a relatively painless undertaking.

Back in the day, grocery stores were mom and pop operations on the neighborhood corner. You could walk down the street and find everything you needed in a small store where everyone knew your name. These days the grocery shopping experience is something entirely different. Huge big-box warehouses stock aisle after aisle of pseudo-food, while giant parking lots hold all the cars. The corner store is likely to be a convenience store that is a giant junk food temptation.

Back in the day, I remember going to Fotia's, the local mom-and-pop corner store. It was probably smaller than the size of my house and the candy bars were kept behind the counter. I remember peering over the counter at the selection and then politely asking Mr. or Mrs. Fotia for the Hershey's bar and handing them a dime. Ah, the good old days!

Now when I make the trek to the grocery store, the first obstacle is the parking lot and hoping for a close-up spot, which is still about a half a football field away from the front door. No big deal in the summer, but in the winter where I live, it matters. As I walk in, I start putting my blinders on, so to speak, because as soon as I enter the big-box, I know my senses will be flooded with sweet temptations.

On the days when I'm on a mission to just get in and out of the grocery store quickly, I put my head down and ignore the candy display on my left and the pastries on my right. I don't look up to see the donuts approaching and I politely decline the offer of a free chocolate chip cookie from the guy in the bakery. I'll be cruising along and at the last second look up to see I'm about to crash into a display of something chocolate that has been cleverly placed in the center of the aisle so it's unavoidable.

I make it to the refrigerated section way in the back and as I reach for some organic milk, the rack of Snickers bars displayed by the milk was the last straw! Even with your head down and the best intentions, it's tough making it out of the grocery store without purchasing something unhealthy. Back in the day, you just needed to avoid the candy and chips aisle and you were home free. 

On the days when I take off the blinders and go on an investigative mission at the grocery store, I slow down and look at everything around me and marvel, or should I say cringe at all the junk that's being displayed at every turn. You are greeted at the end of every aisle, the middle of most aisles, definitely at the check out area with candy, candy and more candy. And don't forget the guy in the bakery pushing free cookies. When is enough enough? My teeth hurt looking at all of it.

On these trips, I take the time to examine the labels on food products so I can let my clients know the best choices. Not many people have the time or patience it takes to read the list of ingredients. There's no way that people like my 90-year old mom with poor eyesight can even begin to read them. I don't look at the calories or the grams of fat. I read the fine print where the truth is hidden - the list of ingredients. I can only take so much, though, and when Tom Jones smash hit, "What's New Pussycat" starts blaring overhead, I can't take it anymore and head for the door. 

Why do grocery stores have to be so huge and loud and obnoxious? Do we really need 50 types of salsa or 100 types of cereal to choose from? People are overwhelmed by the volume of choices. They don’t have the time to read the labels and compare them all, so they grab the first thing that catches their eye and hope for the best.

So friend or foe? My childhood grocery store, Fotia’s, was definitely a friend. The new big-box with the coffee shop, the juice bar, the sushi bar, the pizza bar, the Chinese food bar and the free cookies from the guy in the bakery, not so much.

Do You Want to Look 5 Pounds Lighter Instantly?

Do you want to look at least 5 pounds lighter instantly? Then stand up straight! I'm not kidding. Do what your mama told you and stand up straight! One of the things I learned while preparing to compete last year is that there is a lot of illusion involved in looking lean on stage and in photos. One of the first things you learn how to do is to stand up straight. By simply standing up straight, throwing your shoulders back, lifting your chest and exhaling deeply, you immediately lose 5 pounds. Next time you're walking through the mall or the grocery store, try it! It might feel weird at first. It's uncomfortable because you are so used to slumping and slouching. Standing up tall and straight is a sign of confidence and strength and it makes you look more youthful and slimmer. Maybe you slouch because you're tall, or you have a large chest, or you spend too much time at the computer or behind the wheel of your car. Maybe you slouch because you feel life is beating you down and it's a protective stance. Regardless, slouching makes you look heavier and older than you need to look. Try it and let me know what you think.

Are Your Tolerable? How will You Feel when You're 90?

“How are you today, mom?”  “I’m tolerable”, my 90 year-old mom replies, with a smile.  She doesn’t complain about all the aches and pains that accompany 90 years of living, but I can tell she’s stiff and hurts in a few places.  The best part is she keeps moving and keeps a positive attitude.  I wonder what I’ll be like at that age.  If I have to live to be that old, I’d like to be better than tolerable.  The definition of tolerable is “not too unpleasant or severe” or “moderately good, but not outstanding”.  Okay, I’d like to be at least reasonably pleasant or semi-outstanding.   

I wish she would have known years ago what we know now about strength training.  She would have been the first in line to lift some weights.  Her core would be so much stronger and she wouldn’t have lost 4 inches in height.  Her legs would be stronger so she could move about easier and not tire so quickly.  Her arms would be strong enough to continue doing her hair.  She recently bought a couple wigs because her arms are too weak to style her own hair anymore.  But the knowledge about strength training just wasn’t widely available back then. 

Even though she’s healthy, she poops out quickly and doesn’t have the strength to do the things she loves.  She used to love to travel.  She’s been to Hawaii numerous times, Alaska, Germany, Tahiti, as well as all over the U.S.  Her last trip was a few years ago when she treated the family to a Hawaiian cruise, but her traveling days are over now because it’s just too tiring for her.  She still lives alone, but my brother is right next door and checks in on her often.  Too often, according to my mom. 

What will you be like at the ripe old age of 90?  Will you be sprightly, full of life, vim and vigor?  Will you be energetic and active?  If you want the answers to these questions to be YES, know that the decisions you make today and the way you live your life today will determine how well you live tomorrow and into the future.  The stronger you become now, today, the better the quality of life you will enjoy for years to come.  Nourishing your body with the proper foods, today, and avoiding all the junk food that lurks around every corner will reap abundant benefits for the rest of your life.  Make the decision, today, to do yourself a huge favor, and strengthen your body.  Lift weights.  Grow some muscles. It will make a difference for years to come.  What will you be like at 90?  Tolerable?