I’m so happy w/ it… they did a great job… all of my new blogs will be updated right to the new website.. so check in often !!!

I’ve seen it all across the news lately that the government is making an effort to force restaurants to lower their sodium levels.  This is great !!!! Then I see a poll that asked individuals if they thought this was a good idea….60% say NO, they must have only asked my friend Fabbo ( who insists on restaurants maintaining their salts and Trans Fats). When you have a number like 60% saying No..this should tell us something… WE HAVE TO COOK OUR OWN FOOD, TO BE IN CONTROL OF OUR HEALTH.

Soo…time to bring down the bad rep of the amazing spice SALT.  Salt is essential, delicious, and enjoyed on many foods… as it should be !!!  I put Celtic Sea Salt on probably half the foods I cook.  The insides of our body actually come pretty close to mocking the environment of the ocean.  Our tears are salty, blood is salty, our sweat is salty.  Salt helps w/ the digestive process, and it enables the liver, kidneys and adrenals to work more efficiently.  The bonus of organic, high quality sea salts is that they are actually known to LOWER blood pressure, and decrease water retention.

Natural Sea Salt vs. Table Salt

The body can’t make salt, it has to come from an outside source.  Therefore by taking away all the sodium in your diet, you are actually doing your body a dis-service.  You just have to make sure you are getting high quality salt.  Its the same as cholesterol.  Your body needs cholesterol, and if you don’t bring it in from an outside source then your body will over produce it until you finally ingest it.  I know plenty of people who hardly have any salt in their diet but they still have to take Lipitor or any other pill because their blood pressure is too high.

High quality Salt, looks absolutely nothing like table salt.  The salt your body craves, and needs should be grayish in color and should almost look moist, and damp.  It is so important to maintain the electrolyte balance in the body and high quality sea salt will do that in such a healthier manner than sports drinks.

Bottom Line, salting your home cooked meals is actually beneficial to the body and will balance you out.  75% of your body is made up of water and it needs adequate sodium levels. All restaurant food is loaded w/ sodium and should be avoided.. sorry its the truth.

It is recommended that we consume between 1500-2300 mg of sodium daily.  I have always gone by trying not to have more than 400mg of sodium per meal.  Check out some of these disturbing restaurant facts below, and how much sodium some of their meals consume.  Click HERE to read this article in its entirety.

Olive Garden- chicken parmesean, 3380 mg ( talk about gaining an instant pound of bloat)

McDonalds happy meal, cheeseburger- 1040 mg ( yup thats a kids meal… read the article to see what the quarter pounder w/ cheese was)

Oscar Meyer Lunchables, bologna – 890 mg

Campbells condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup – 870 mg

This is too much… and some of these were not even restaurants.. they were packaged foods that people buy because they are busy (lazy)

Your body deserves better than that… take the time to cook.

Tip from Michael Pollan’s FOOD RULES:

Sweeten and Salt your food yourself.

Whether soups or cereals or soft drinks, foods and beverages that have been prepared by corporations contain far higher levels of salt and sugar than any ordinary human would ever add- even a child.  By sweetening and salting these foods yourself, you’ll make them to your taste, and you will find you’re consuming a fraction as much sugar and salt as you otherwise would.

W

Alternative Cardio Workout- CARDIO BOX

At the end of last week I made a video of my client Katie, during her boxing workout.  This girl is amazing.  She works full time, she is a mother, she makes the time to come in for workouts, she has improved her eating and lifestyle choices, she is a bad ass in the weight room ,yet the biggest sweet heart in the real world.  Katie was headed to NYC for the wknd so we had to fit in 2 workouts back to back.  Katie did a full body strength workout the first day, so the second day I wanted to make a fun, challenging, cardio workout.  I don’t know how people sit on boring cardio machines… I’ve said this a million times.  Anyways, a great ALTERNATIVE to the boring machines is boxing !! We had a boxing themed workout and Katie had a blast and burned tons of calories along the way.  Check out this video.. this proves that cardio can be fun… and I swear if you do a workout like this it will go by a millions times faster than the elliptical machine.

Alternative Summer Desserts

Everyone loves ice-cream in the summer… and for some reason a majority of my clients have this infatuation w/ Dairy Queen.  I hate dairy queen… yes this is only my opinion…but its all that blizzard, soft serve, fake ice cream crap.  I prefer j.p. licks, or hilliards.. I have discovered two new ALTERNATIVES that I think replace ice cream perfectly.  Having the ice cream of your choice once in a while will do no harm… but if you notice that its more of a 3-4 nights a week thing in the summer than I suggest trying out these option.

1. COCONUT MILK ICE CREAM – This stuff is soooooo good and after reading the ingredients I convinced myself it was really good for me.  Like anything else, this is good in moderation… but i’m telling you this stuff is so much better for you than ice cream.  There are minimal ingredients, which is always a plus, and it is sweetened w/ agave nectar, another plus  Try one of these two brands.. they’re my favorite    
2. This next one is just as good.  Who doesn’t love cool whip or whip cream??? And who can’t help but laugh thinking about family guy when they say cool whip ??? Anyways… fresh fruit w/ some all natural Tru Whip is a healthy ALTERNATIVE for dessert.  I have been having fresh strawberries, and blackberries w/ 2 tbsps of Tru Whip for dessert.  I could eat tru whip as ice cream, its that good !!!  It is also very low in calories and fat.  

Alternative Breakfast

Most of you know I am not a fan of cereal or granola.  I think it is crap, to be honest… yes even the kashi, or fiber, blah blah blah.  Cereal is simply processed grains that have been heated at very high temperatures to take away any nutrients that could be left.  Granola is just like cereal to me.  Usually the “healthy” brands are sweetened w/ high fructose corn syrup, which should always be avoided, no matter what those stupid commercials say.  Nature Valley is considered a health conscious brand… and these granola bars are packed w/ crap !  If you can’t see the ingredient list you should know that SUGAR is the second ingredient, which means it is used the second most in the product.  Then about seventh on the list is HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, which means that the sugar was not sweet enough, so they then added the corn syrup.  Besides these bars, the other problems I have with granola are that they are usually so high in calories, fat, and sugar… and people don’t tend to only eat the serving size.

Now I’m not saying that its always bad to have a  BOLA GRANOLA, but you have to look at the ingredients.  Last year they were giving out samples of  Bola Granola, and I kid you not when I say this was the best tasting granola I have ever had.  I purchased some, but when I got to the checkout I was disturbed to see that it cost me almost $8, but the taste was worth it .  It is a local product, made by hand, and with all organic products.  A serving of bola granola has 10 grams of protein which is extremely high compared to any granola competitor.  Besides the nutrition facts comparison, its the difference in the ingredients that got me hooked on Bola.  Check out the ingredients in Bola: Organic Rolled Oats, Almonds, Brown sugar, Pumpkin Seeds, Water, Canola Oil, Wheat Germ, Organic Wheat Flour, Organic Flax Seed Meal, Wheat Bran, Pure Vanilla Extract, Sat, Vitamin E.

Stick with the serving size and mix it up with some Plain Greek Yogurt for a high fiber, high protein meal or snack… Thank me later… this one is delicious !!

Alternative Night/Bed Time Ritual

I believe it is a fact that those who relax and decompress at night, as well as get to bed before a 11p.m. are able to lose weight quicker, or maintain a healthy weight. I also believe that these individuals are less stressed throughout the day, and give off a positive energy.  It is very hard for some people to get off their blackberrys, and lap tops at night.  Some people are watching the 11:00 news in bed at night, before they fall asleep… which we all know is stressful…and others aren’t getting to bed before midnight.  If this sounds like your nightly routine, I highly suggest making some changes.

1. No cell phones or computers after 8 p.m.
2. Dim the lights in your house after dinner.  The evening is a time to decompress.. Dimming the lights or simply using candle light is a way to help your body slow down for the night
3. Try shutting of the t.v. earlier and reading a book.  Read your book in the dimly lit room, this will help make you more tired, and get you prepared for bed.
4. When you get in bed… lights off, T.V. OFF, cover your clocks, ALL ELECTRONICS AWAY FROM YOUR BED !!!!
5. When I get home at night I light a lavender candle in my room… when its time for me to go to bed, my room smells like lavender, which is my favorite relaxing scent… and i’m literally comatosed in under 5 minutes.

I would like to end the night time ritual Adjustments by saying that I do recommend these options more in the winter than I do in the summer.  I believe our bodies crave energy when the sun is up and high.  Therefore when the sun rises…we should rise…. and when the sun sets… we should be settling down.  In the summer months it is brighter for much longer than in the winter… therefore, we should enjoy later nights in the summer !!!

Alternative Food Rules

I bought the book FOOD RULES , by Michael Pollan today.  Its the perfect little book for quick tips on foods.  I’m going to share a tip with you all on each post of mine over the next few weeks/months.  Todays Alternative food tip. GET OUT OF THE SUPERMARKET WHENEVER YOU CAN. Your probably confused ??   Whats the Alternative ?? Get to a Farmers Market !!!! Pollan says you won’t find any high fructose corn syrup at a farmers market… along w/ the elimination of processed foods, packaged foods w/ unpronounceable ingredients.  What you will receive instead includes: fresh, whole foods  that have been produced at the peak of their season.  This is the type of living food your body craves… the type of food that actually has an expiration… usually about 1 week.  For all you Eastonites, you now have Langwater Farm to look forward to… but there are literally farmers markets all over the place.  I don’t know what it is about picking up your food on a farm, but it literally makes you appreciate it that much more.. and it just tastes healthier… yes part of it is mental… but it also is that much more fresh, because it has just been picked instead of being shipped from Mexico or wherever it was grown.

Alternative Actions/Choices

This last little story may be a little off topic, but I need to vent and talk about what I witnessed today. The most obnoxious woman ever was standing in front of me in line today at CVS.  She was talking to a friend on her cell phone discussing the Phoebe Prince case ( the girl who killed herself from being bullied) .  This wreched woman was saying that bullying is natural and that Phoebe was a (insert vulgar word)… she then went on to say that she admired the kids from Columbine… to quote her she said ” I know you won’t agree with me, but I admire those kids from Columbine.  I mean if someone’s bullying me I’m not gonna hurt myself… I’m going to take out everyone else”  I kept my mouth shut, which  was not that easy to do… but the woman behind me could not control her self.  She nicely went up to the girl and said ” excuse me, I think you should be having this conversation in private”.  I knew this girl was not the type to just take a comment like that easily, so of course she went off saying that she had a right to freedom of speech.

The reason i’m sharing this story was because it got me thinking of alternatives again.  This girl in line literally thought the only alternatives were suicide or attempt to kill everyone.  Beyond Disturbing… and this was an adult talking.

This story has been all over the news.  We are never to old to remind ourselves, our friends, children, and loved ones of the old saying… TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED.

Anyways.. like I said, this story just got to me. Unlike the miserable thoughts of this woman, there is an alternative besides suicide and violence. Happiness and Kindness are contagious qualities.   So smile more, compliment people, practice patience… you get the point.

There is always an ALTERNATIVE…make the right decisions, and be the best you can be !!!!

]]> http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/26/alternatives/feed/ 3 jklane coconut-milk-ice-cream TruWhip-Bowl-2 nature valley chobani-nonfat-greek-yogurt bola granola lavender vanilla food-rules http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/22/no-equipment-no-problem-no-more-excuses-to-skip-exercise-just-because-you-dont-have-the-equipment-or-the-membership/ http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/22/no-equipment-no-problem-no-more-excuses-to-skip-exercise-just-because-you-dont-have-the-equipment-or-the-membership/#comments Thu, 22 Apr 2010 14:50:09 +0000 jklane http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/?p=551 ]]> Sometimes getting exercise into you daily routine involves being creative and using what you have… and sometimes all you have is your own bodyweight.  Not to worry, this may be all you need.  My mom and I tried to save you guys from having to be creative when we came up with this video.  We literally just used our own bodyweight, water bottles, and paper plates as equipment.. and these were not easy exercises.

Do I think this is the best way to accomplish your health/fitness/weight loss/toning goals… No, not really…. but when you’re traveling, or when you have a busy day and can’t get to the gym these will suffice and fill in perfectly.  They can be a good little change from your routine and you don’t have to feel guilty about not working out.  It is important to have a program design when you have specifically goals.  I know too many people who just “wing it” every time they go to the gym.  This is a good way to just keep circling around your present situation.. and the future will hold more of the same.  So take this video for what it is.. some fun stuff to do when you’re stuck w/out any equipment.

To everyone who doesn’t know me or my family… the other woman in the video w/ me is my MOM… she looks unbelievable and she should motivate everyone out their to stay fit and healthy.  She has completely taken control of her health over the last 5 years and now we call her Lisa Buttons… b/c just like Benjamin Button her age seems to now be going in reverse !!!

P.S. TODAY IS EARTH DAY … so RECYCLE  your bottles after you use them for your exercise

Please perform  the following exercises w/ caution.  If you have not been active I recommend consulting your physician or meeting w/ a trainer before you try on your own.  The training Fix is not responsible for the possible outcome of injury from these exercises

]]> http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/22/no-equipment-no-problem-no-more-excuses-to-skip-exercise-just-because-you-dont-have-the-equipment-or-the-membership/feed/ 1 jklane http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/20/my-new-health-hero-and-his-food-revolution/ http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/20/my-new-health-hero-and-his-food-revolution/#comments Tue, 20 Apr 2010 18:18:12 +0000 jklane http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/?p=546 ]]> This past Friday night I stayed in all night and relaxed due to a 6a.m. train the following morning to NYC.  I  finally got to check out Chef Jamie Olivers show called Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution.

This show is great, and it really is to bad that its on friday nights at 8p.m.  This show needs to be on at a prime time so that everyone can see what is going on in the world of food.  The show focuses on children and school lunches in West Virginia.  West Virginia is one of the most obese and unhealthy areas in the nation.  The children were fed pizza, hamburgers, fried chicken, french fries, flavored milk, and lots more crap on a daily basis. The sad thing is, this is not only a West Virginia issue… children are fed that at schools across the entire country.  With one school Jamie was able to show that for not much more money school systems could buy fresh local produce, and higher quality meats and still feed the students.  When the healthy food was prepared for the children, the school gave them an option, and the children actually wanted the healthier options. Jamie made his way in to the community and opened up a walk in kitchen ( almost like a free walk in clinic) to show individuals for free how to start cooking and how easy and fun it can be.  In order to spread this kind of healthy lifestyle to all schools across the country we need to help Jamie and SIGN HIS PETITION. If you don’t want to get involved with this I highly suggest packing your kids healthy school lunches, because they are not getting the nutrition they need, or deserve in the school lunch line

I love the show glee and when Jamie did a flash mob dance with a large crew from Marshall college on teaching how easy it is to cook up some stir fry I was sooo happy.

]]> http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/20/my-new-health-hero-and-his-food-revolution/feed/ 1 jklane food revolution badge http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/14/5-reasons-i-love-my-job-clients-easton-goes-organic-i-am-all-smiles-today/ http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/14/5-reasons-i-love-my-job-clients-easton-goes-organic-i-am-all-smiles-today/#comments Wed, 14 Apr 2010 21:58:00 +0000 jklane http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/?p=540 ]]> I am incredibly happy lately. My job has been amazingly busy, and I have truly had the pleasure of meeting and training some amazing people over the last year.
A lot of my clients have been working so hard over the last few months and to see, and hear about their amazing accomplishments makes me so proud, and so happy. Yes I tell them what to do, but the energy they put in, day in and day out is what earns them these amazing results.
I tend to get close to almost all of my clients so we text and email throughout the weeks. I have received some messages this week and just had funny comments made in sessions that I would like to share because I want you all to understand how much I love my job and why its soooo rewarding. For the privacy of my clients i’m not going to use names.

1. I received an email at the beginning of the week that went like this :  So.. my pants don’t fit ( to loose)  my tops don’t fit ( down a size).. you are a miracle worker !! haha I just ordered this bathing suit for the summer.  I’m siked. I’m sooo happy for this individual… they have been working their A$$ off for months, they are one of the nicest people I’ve ever met, and they deserve everything they are working so hard for.
2. Rise and shine and I get a wonderful text from a wonderful person: After all my complaining…Not only am I down the 3 pounds I gained, but down 1 more. I am officially 1 pound away from 20 lbs lost! woooo!! How could I not have a great day after reading that first thing in the morning.
3. 10 a.m. this morning I get this amazing text from one of my first time triathlon ladies: Had a breakthrough yesterday-ran a whole mile without stopping!! Then did another 1/2 mile after a 2 min. walk. Yay! Going swimming now… Every one who meets this individual is inspired..  she has become a great friend to me over the last year and she knows how much I support her with all of her health and wellness goals… sounds like she is also on her way to an amazing triathlon race this summer
4. I train a funny group of women on tues. and t,hurs. and yesterday we had a great laugh in class.  Snatches, were one of the exercises in our program.  I’ll admit the word alone is somewhat questioning.. first comment that came out when I announced the circuit was ” Let me guess, a man came up with the name for that one”, on their second round one lady was attempting heavier weight that appeared to heavy when she couldn’t lift it and said ” I broke my snatch” We all had a good belly laugh on that one… to top it off one lady asked if we could change the name because  she said ” I don’t like that word, my husband calls me that when he’s mad at me” With all that said, we have decided to call the exercise, SNAPS, in that class, haha.  Never a dull moment on Tues. and Thurs.
5. This quote today from one of my clients just cracked me up.  This individual loves to play volleyball, but because of a shoulder and knee injury, this sport as you can imagine, can sometimes be painful.  Every time they come in we go through the… hello, how are you, how you feeling, whats new routine.  Today they mentioned that they played volleyball on Monday night.. when I asked how it was the response was quite simple ” I DIDN’T SUCK”  i got a great chuckle out of this one, and realized that some of the corrective work we’ve been doing may be starting to really help out.  Keep up the Not Sucking !!!

So as you can see… I have the most amazing clients, the most amazing job, and am so thankful and happy to be where I am.  These people, along w/ my passion and wellness are what keep me motivated everyday to get up and go to work.  There is a quote about loving what you do and you will never work a day in your whole life…not only do I love what I do.. but I love the people I get to be surrounded by on a daily basis.  Surround yourself with positive people who are trying to be the best they can be, and they will bring out the best in you.  I promise you that !

HARD WORKIN LADIES

Now onto something else that is putting a permanent smile on my face

EASTON IS GOING ORGANIC

Thats right, Easton had really started getting to work on their ORGANIC FARM, and it is literally less than a 1/4 mile from my studio.

MEET YOUR FARMERS .

Langwater Farm is going to be amazinggg !! Their CSA is already full for 2010 but I am excited to help out with some of their volunteer work.. I want to see what its like to be a farm girl.

Lang water farm is right across from Sheep Pasture (where they usually have the small farmers market.. going to be much bigger this year).  The farmers that were selected for this project are 4 younger individuals who seem to really have a passion for farming.  One of them is actually great friends with my cousin Jake who is also an amazing farmer.  He can tell you more information on any vegetable than you would ever want to hear.. its actually fascinating.  I am so excited to have fresh, local, ORGANIC , veggies right down the street.  No excuses anymore.  No One can say that they don’t have the time to drive to whole foods… this is even better.. all these veggies and produce are straight off your local farm… I’m aware of my dork status currently… but this is soo exciting.

LANGWATER FARM

]]> http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/14/5-reasons-i-love-my-job-clients-easton-goes-organic-i-am-all-smiles-today/feed/ 0 jklane 210 langwater sign http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/12/larabars-snack-options/ http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/2010/04/12/larabars-snack-options/#comments Mon, 12 Apr 2010 15:08:05 +0000 jklane http://jennaklane.wordpress.com/?p=536 ]]> Lots of people like to have “bars” with them at work because they need a quick snack.  I can respect that, because I don’t always have tons of time to make healthy snacks.  Most “bars” out there  are promoted as health food bars, or protein bars but they are Loaded w/ crap.  Honestly the ingredient list is usually at least 20 or more ingredients and one of them is usually “natural flavors”  All natural flavors means is that there could be a list of up to 100 more ingredients that the FDA does not require that company to put on their label.

I have been eating Larabars for the last few years.  This is a raw food bar and it is delicious.  I have never seen more than four ingredients on a larabar, yet they are loaded with flavor.  I literally am eating one as I type this… I got the flavor Peanut Butter Cookie and it has 3 ingredients : Dates, peanuts, salt.  It has the same consistency of other bars, it tastes good like most other bars, and its perfect snack size.  The difference is this all raw, real food.

I think most people get turned off by the larabars because they are high in fat, and calories.  The reason the fat and calories are higher is because its real raw food.  Nuts/Seeds are high in fat… that is where the fat comes from in the bar.

I recommend these as snacks… not as meal replacement… they have on avg. around 7 g of protein in a bar… definitely not enough for a meal.. but with the mix of healthy fats it should hold you over in between meals.

If you have food allergies or if your kids do then that is another great reason to try these out.  They are gluten free, soy free, dairy free, and not genetically modified.  I don’t have food allergies at all but I love knowing that i’m eating not processed, whole foods.

I know you can find these at whole food and any health store… try them out.. they are delicious !!

Granted, she already looked amazing before she came to the studio.. but she looks unbelievable.

This girl has been devoted to her workouts and healthy diet and deserves everything she has.  Have fun on your trip Sammy, no one is going to want to be next to you on the beach.. b/c you’re gonna look amazinggggg !!

Take a look at the end of one of Sam’s last workouts… a little video montage of how hard she’s been working..this was a metabolic circuit we did at the end to just BURN calories … she had already done a nice strength workout for 40 min. and we wanted to finish with a bang.

Also, check out my latest running playlist..this should keep all you triathlon ladies at a speeedy pace.

Newest Running and Biking Playlist… kiss 108 style

Hi I’m Jenna from Westwood and these are my favorite songs:

Warm Up

1. Alicia Keys- Go Ahead ( I always like Alicia during my walk before I take off running)
2. Blue Man Group( thnx for this one Sam, love it !!) – Rods and Cones
3. Robin Thicke feat. Estelle – RollaCoasta

Pick It Up

1. Sting ( Dave Aude Remix) – Send your Love
2. Chromeo – Two Step
3. Will I Am – Its a new Day
4. Keri Hilson and Timbaland – Return the Favor
5. Usher feat will.i.am – Omg

Faster

1. Ciara and Missy Elliot – Work
2. Blue Man Group ( amazinggg beat) – I feel Love
3. Jamie Foxx feat TI and Justin Timberlake – Winner
4. P Diddy ( i think thats name he went with) – Hello Good Morning
5. R Kelly (don’t hate) – Burn it Up
6. The Hours (nike commercial song)- Ali in the Jungle
7. Rodney Atkins – If you’re going through hell ( yes its country, but a good song to push through at the end of wrkt)

Cool Down

1. Jack Johnson – You and your heart
2. Rob Thomas – Someday

Happy Tri Training… keep it up !!

Enjoy

p.s. this is my first time ever talking into a camera and doing a video like this… much harder than it looks.  So go easy on me please.