Helloooooooooo Blogercisers! I have big plans for all of you tomorrow night. I will be the guest lecturer at Absolute Performance Physical Therapy in Waukee. The lecture will begin at 6pm and will cover nutrition and exrecise. I will be unveling many secrets regarding fat burning and nutrition... namely the the fact that you cannot simply count your calories and train religiously to get the body you want. Oh, don't start whining! You heard me right..........simply counting calories and exercising will NOT get you the physique you dream about a day long!

Seriously, if that were all it took, we'd all be lean, mean machines. While modifying your calories certainly plays a major role, the key to successful fat loss lies in the strategies that actually alter your body's metabolism.

Let's take for example, Carbs. Yes, carbs help to maintain muscle, but they can also stimulate fat storage. So, the thing you need to do is modify your carb intake by rotating high carb days with low carb days. When you lower your carbs, you want to raise your protein. This will ramp up the fat mobilizing enzymes and hormones leading to increased fat loss. Do not, however, keep your carbs low for prolonged periods of time. This will only deplete your muscles of glycogen and leave you looking flat. Increase your carbs every fourth or fifth day.

I mentioned increasing your protein when your carbs are low and I refer to the fact that protein exerts a greater metabolic boosting effect than either carbs or fats. And, remember, protein feeds your muscles and we mustn't let them starve since muscle is your greatest fat fighting component in the body!

Come and hear some more fitness facts tomorrow night. For more information, please call Absolute Performance Therapy at 987-6267.

Your Ironladydoc

I was J-walking this morning. No, not Jaywalking.........DR. J-walking! As many of you were running and walking in the Des Moines Marathon, I too, was walking the red carpet in the gym. Today, Ladies and Gentleman, I am going to discuss the importance of lunges in your lower body arsnal.

If you want really nice legs and glutes, you cannot escape the need to lunge and squat! Squats and lunges are extremely intense exercises using all of the muscles in the legs, butt, and thighs. The intensity of using all of those muscles in coordination cannot be replicated with muscle isolating leg machines. The sum is much, much more than the parts.

Squats and lunges have a hormonal response and a level of intensity that burns fat and builds lean muscle. I'm continually saddened by all of the nonsense out there. Stupid books, crappy gadgets, and mostly useless supplements are everywhere. Take a look at the options you have in your gym, and notice who is using what equipment:

• In my gym, all of the overweight people are on the ab machines doing thousands of pointless and ineffective crunches. Crunches are just too low intensity to make any real difference in how their body looks. They just don't know.
• Then look at all of the guys and girls who have the round butt and sleek sweep to their quads. At some point you always see them squatting or lunging. Or doing some squat or lunge variation, like step ups. Usually they are strong - they aren't squatting with the 3lb plastic dumbbells. They are squatting and lunging with fairly heavy weight. Lots of intensity. They are getting some work done, and it shows in their results.

Now, I understand that not everyone knows the proper form for squatting and lunging. And if you don't know the correct form, these exercises can get pretty sketchy. The last place to learn good squatting form is from the other people in the gym......many are doing it wrong. If you are unfamiliar with the proper form for squats and lunges, you should hire expert instruction.

Back to my J-walking. There are several variations of the lunge that you can do to avoid boredom........there's the front lunge, the back lunge, the side lunge, the walking lunge, and even the jump lunge.

Lunges are a great way to tone your butt and it can be done without even going to gym. If you have found you need more teardrop mass (the area just above the knee), give lunges a try. The front lower quads receive stretch and stimulation from this exercise in a very unique and effective way. Lunges also help target the glutes.

Lunges might look awkward, but they are quite effective. In fact, you don't even have to use weight, although, I suspect you will get good enough at these that you will be holding some pretty big weights in your hands as you J-walk the gym!

Feel the burn baby! Start J walking!

Hi there Blogger buds! It is a bit on the chilly side today. I woke up at my usual 0430 knowing that my morning walk was going to be burr cold. According to my little friend, Naters, that is on the "burr" side of cold. I think that means "burr" chilly, and sometimes "burr" hot..........indicating that he neither wants it to be too cold, nor too hot. Are you catching my drift?

So, on my walks at the crack of dawn, my pups and I enjoy the natural surroundings of the habitat, because let me tell you, there is nothing up at that hour except finatical fitness enthusiasts and little critters that are scavenging for food. Hopefully, nothing has been eyeing my lil lovebugs because they are sooooooo cute (more to come about them tomorrow).

This is also a time when I try to figure out what I want to do for my workout. I try to visualize the exercises, the weights I am going to use, and just how great I am going to lift those weights! Are you catching my drift? If not, I am using the art of "visualization"! Ah, visualization! In simple terms this is "seeing" what you expect to happen. It can be both positive and negative depending on your outlook on life. I am hoping you all have positive visualization going on at all times!

Not only am I thinking about my workout, but I am also trying to figure out what the heck I am going to eat for the day. Unfortunately, I have a hard time "visualizing" a positive food day. All I think about is how hungry I am going to be if I don't figure this out real quick. This is where food preparation comes into play. Plan ahead, make your meals for the week and package them up. There should be no room for last ditch fast food.

Listen freinds (I took that line from John McCain!), there have been no genetic changes in the human body during the last 100 years, so the factors causing significant improvement in athletic achievement (in everything from running to weightlifting) clearly stem from our better knowledge of nutrition, weight training, and perhaps most importantly, better visualization!!!

Lately, I have been hungry for chinese. But you all know the problem with eating out chinese........first off, most people go for chinese when they are starving and cannot remember the last time they ate.

So, you go and order a large entre plus an egg roll, hot and spicy soup, plus whatever appettizer sounds good at the time. I prefer the shrimp spring rolls to get things started. Then you proceed to eat ALL of it. If you are like me, you always end up feeling miserable afterwards, but I'd eat it all anyway.

I am not sure why I am thinking about this right now..........maybe because I am working late tonight and I am STARVING! I brought all my meals today too, but they simply don't appeal to me right now.

Today is a birthday for my friend, Laura. Maybe I should be having visions of ice cream and cake dancing in my head, instead. That kinda sounds good on my throat cuz it feels like I have swallowed gravel from the sandlot. Yea, I am getting sick. I guess it comes as a hazard of being a doctor. It's nothing that I cannot fight off.

I am not sure where I am going with this.....I am just waiting for a strep screen to come back. They take exactly 5 min to run unless it comes back positive sooner. No! I don't have strep throat! I have a cough too. Most cases of strep don't include cough. The classic symptoms of strep are fever, sore throat, and swollen glands on the front of the neck.

Ok folks, the bill is in the mail. I just told you all my secrets!! :)

Extra! Extra! Lose Body Fat NOW..........No Crunches, No Exercise, No Kidding........Just great tasting food. Now you can eat food THIS delicious and EVERY bite will contain the antidote to belly fat, the natural ingredient that actually TARGETS BELLY FAT!

This is not a joke. I read this add today. And I would venture to guess someone out there purchased this food that contains the "antidote" to belly fat.

Folks, please do not be mislead by these ads and articles. Please use some common sense. Seriously, does anyone really think they can lose belly fat simply by eating some magic food? I hope not......and if I am wrong, then I am not doing my job.

As many of you know, I have a huge passion for health and fitness. This past weekend I have updated my personal website. Included are lots of fact-filled articles, recipes, exercise routines, and a bunch of stuff about yours truly.......the lean, mean, IronLadyDOC machine. Check it out at www.maleajensen.com.