Stress and Your Weight

PGX wants you to relieve your stress!

Your health, weight and stress: a bad combination.

Have you reached a plateau in your weight loss efforts? You may be surprised just how much stress has to do with that! Stress. Even the word sounds scary.

Stress causes our body to secrete cortisol which in turn, prompts our body to release stored glucose, increasing our blood sugar. Unfortunately for our waists, all the excess sugar that we don’t use gets stored as fat! Essentially, having too much stress in your life is like eating too much dessert, not too mention the sugar rush usually leads to food cravings. It seems a cruel and revealing trick of the English language that stressed spelled backwards is desserts!

Real Simple has three quick ways that you can relieve stress and, consequently, help you stay trim.

Work, school, family obligations, meetings and appointments, housework, projects… Life can get busy and overwhelming. So, my two main tips for this sunny Monday? Don’t stress the little things and get your daily fiber!

 

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Old Man Winter and Your Workout

Avoid those winter workout blues!

It’s cold and it’s dark for more hours than it is light out, but don’t let winter mess with your workout!

How many times have you let winter convince you to skip your workout? I don’t know how many times I’ve convinced myself that it’s too cold to get moving, too rainy to drive to an exercise class or the gym, too early to get up and ski… Unfortunately, it has happened. But this winter, my major fitness goal is to overcome the laziness, ditch the excuses and get exercising!

Fitness Magazine has a great article that has all the answers to trump those winter excuses: Winter-proof Your Workout!

Don’t let Old Man Winter get you down. Jump up and exercise!

 

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Busting Fitness Myths

Hey PGX’ers! Let’s bust those food and fitness myths!

Steven and Chris get the scoop from fitness guru Sarah Robichaud!

There are so many opinions about fitness and exercise out there, I know it’s easy to get confused. When is the best time to workout? If I’m working out early in th morning, should I eat breakfast after? If I workout regularly, can I eat whatever I want? I didn’t break out into a sweat! Does this mean I didn’t push myself hard enough?!

So many questions! I can’t answer them all in one day but Steven and Chris, with their fitness expert, Sarah Robichaud, have put together a quick read that answers a few of the most common fitness questions and debunk the myths around exercise and eating in, Busting Food and Fitness Myths.

Read on to bust those fitness myths and get your questions answered so you can get moving! Have a great workout!

 

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Monday Morning Mix & PGX

Gaining workout insight and inspiration from movement, music and PGX!

Without fail, if you wish for sun all weekend, you will not get it. And following that, you?re pretty much guaranteed to wake up Monday morning to – bingo! you guessed it! – clear blue skies and sun. That?s the way it always works, am I right?

This Monday morning was no different. However, today, I took advantage of the sunny skies and found inspiration in them for a great work out. The inspiration struck quick and I wasn?t about to waste the beautiful morning watching the news or immersed in my book!

So, I got my cycling gear on (quickly), got my iPod ready and headed out the door. My goal was to do 45 minutes of power cycling through the neighborhood. But, of course, I needed some auditory inspiration; I decided to rely on my trusty Monday Morning Mix. My mix relies heavily on much of the soundtrack featured on the 2010 documentary from Trafik Pictures: To Live & Ride in LA. However, there are a few other little gems I snuck in there that also get me pedaling a little harder. My Monday Mix is about 60 minutes long and, I can tell you, it made my Monday morning and put me in a positive mood. I?ve been smiling all day.

I powered through the hills and focused on the falling leaves that abound in our neighborhood. Although I find fall in the northwest a bit dreary, there is always a silver lining on days like this. When I returned home and began my usual weekday tasks, I did them with a big smile on my face. I feel great and I think a little of my positivity rubbed off on my kids and wife too.

Right before my morning smoothie, I took my PGX, my multivitamins and I can tell you I?m ready to take on this week. Have a great week and remember to always find inspiration with movement, music and PGX!

 My ?Monday Morning Mix?

  • Chromatics – In The City
  • Bad Veins – Falling Tide
  • Datarock – Bulldozer
  • The Chemical Brothers – Theme for Velodrome
  • Trouble Andrew – Bang Bang
  • Ballerina Black – Microphones In the Mattress
  • From Monument to Masses – Checksum
  • Eulogies – Eyes On The Prize
  • Bad Veins – Crosseyed
  • Themselves – Dark Sky Demo
  • Ballerina – Leaves
  • Hot Hot Heat – Implosionastic
  • Minus the Bear -Animal Backwards
  • Darker My Love – Summer Is Here (…it?s really not, but I can wish!)
  • Futurecop! – Starworshipper
  • Minus the Bear – Secret Country
  • Streetmedia – The Life (feat. Diego Redd)
  • Crown City Rockers – Restless

 

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Friday Fitness Fun for Fall!

Discover the Top 10 Workouts for Fall!

Get out of the gym and into shape!

Autumn is here and with this season, comes colder weather; and with the colder weather often comes heartier appetites and occasions for comfort food. I know that I have to make even more of a conscious effort to eat well, exercise and not to become a winter couch critter! But does the chilly weather mean I have to go the gym?

Just because summer is over, doesn’t mean you have to workout indoors! It’s true that when the rain and cold weather comes, it’s not as appealing to go outside but I think these fun outdoor fitness activities might change your mind!

Fox News shares their Top 10 Fall Workouts that will help keep you in shape and having so much fun not matter how many layers you may need to put on!

My personal favourite on that list is Ultimate Frisbee. Although…I wouldn’t mind raking a huge pile of leaves and jumping in! Get outside and enjoy the fall colours and crisp air. Just remember to bundle up!

Have a fabulous weekend everyone!

 

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Workout Bloopers!

It’s PGX’s Weight-wise Wednesday and we’ve got a quiz!

Take the quiz and spot the workout bloopers!

Quiz time! Don’t worry it’s not scary. Have you ever gone religiously to the gym, had what seemed like the perfect workout, and then got stuck on a weight loss plateau? You could be eating healthy food and exercising, but if you aren’t seeing the results that you hoped for, you might be committing some workout bloopers!

When I took the quiz, I discovered the mistakes I was making in the gym and now that I have an answer to my plateau troubles, I feel more motivated to change things up! Take Fitness Magazine’s Can You Spot Workout Bloopers? quiz and test your gym know-how!

Good luck and keep on moving!

 

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PGX & Red Carpet Fitness!

Want the secrets to looking red carpet ready?

Learn how you can get that red carpet glam from the celebrity fitness experts!

So did you watch the Oscars last week and think: how on earth do these celebrities get in such good shape that they look fabulous in those figure-hugging gowns and those svelte, slim-fit suits?! You’ll be happy to hear that their red carpet glam is not out of your reach. With a little perseverance, positivity and a place to start, you and I can definitely get that red carpet celebrity look!

So where to begin? Check out what celerities trainers are saying!

Allure Magazine talked to Harley Pasternak (trainer to stars such a Natalie Portman, Megan Fox and Orlando Bloom) and revealed his slim-down secrets.

Want more red carpet tips? Fitness expert Rick Miller dished out his top 5 tips and recommended exercises to get into Oscar shape!

Remember to supplement any exercise plan with good nutrition and keep up with your daily fiber!

 

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20-Minute Applesauce Cookies

Guilt-free, nutritious and tasty cookies for Tasty Tuesday!

Indulge your inner cookie monster with PGX and this healthy recipe!

Have you ever been hit with a serious cookie craving? Silly question. I’m sure at some point in our lives and at least once, we’ve all craved cookies or something along those lines of sugary goodness! Well I have big plans to indulge this particular craving in the healthiest way I possible! Shape Magazine has shared a quick and tasty recipe that won’t make your waist line grow!

This cookie recipe will let you enjoy delicious, sugar-free treats that are packed with healthy ingredients like flax! By adding PGX Daily Singles (try 2.5 to 5 grams of PGX granules= 1-2 sticks), you can give these cookies a kick of fibre!

20-Minute Applesauce Cookies!

Ingredients:

3 ripe bananas
2 c. rolled oats
1/3 c. applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tbsp. ground flax
1/2 c. dried cherries

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a fork, mash the bananas in a bowl. Stir in oats, applesauce, dried cherries, flax and vanilla extract. Mix batter well. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a lined cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes.

Makes 36 cookies

 

 

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Recipe: Creamy Chocolate Mid-Day Shake

Try this delicious Creamy Chocolate Mid-Day Shake with PGX SatisFast from nutritionist, Kristin Metvedt, RHN!

Figuring out the right ingredients to add to your protein shakes can be a tricky business. So, we went to our friend, nutritionist, Kristin Metvedt, to help us come up with some great PGX SatisFast smoothie recipes.

Our first recipe, includes our new Double Chocolate flavour. If you’ve only tried this new flavour with water, give it another shot with Kristin’s delicious recipe below!

Wise words from Krsitin: “Raw cacao bean powder provides minerals; magnesium, potassium and zinc. Raw agave nectar is sweeter than sugar and rates as low glycemic.”

Ingredients:

  • 375 ml cold water
  • 1 scoop PGX SatisFast Rich Chocolate
  • ? avocado
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon (or a pinch to taste)
  • 1 tbsp Cacao powder, unsweetened
  • 1 tsp Agave syrup to sweeten

Method:

Measure out liquid into a blender cup and blend all ingredients until smooth. Quick, simple and easy!

Be sure to drink an additional glass of water (375-500 ml) after taking PGX.

Nutritional Information:

  • 212 calories
  • 16 g fat
  • 20 g carbs (12g fibre, 5 g sugar)
  • 16 g protein
  • 227 mg sodium
  • 525 mg potassium

Have questions for Kristin? Ask her here!

Enjoy!

 

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At the Gym: Technique & Results

Welcome back to Weight-Wise Wednesday with a look at proper fitness technique at the gym!

PGX takes a look at how doing an exercise with the correct form could make all the difference to the outcome of your routine.

We’ve all been there. You’re eating well, you’re fitting in regular exercise sessions but for some reason, your workout routine is just not working for you. Chances are, a small mistake, such as not taking a long enough rest period, as explained by shape.com, is coming between all your hard work and the results you derserve! So, let’s master those moves!

Shape.com’s list includes:

  • Proper posture on cardio machines
  • How to correctly execute sit-ups on an exercise ball
  • Working on your core to improve your form in all areas of your workout
  • Proper kettleball technique

All it takes are a few tiny adjustments to your form. So, adjust, apply and get out there PGX’ers and show those exercises who’s boss!

 

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