The Curves Middle East Facebook video contest has been a great success so far. All winners receive a prize to the value of $500! The winners are posted on our facebook page each week www.facebook.com/CurvesME

Congratulations to all our winners so far, you can watch the videos on the links below.

Suzan Hamaza- Salmiya, Kuwait www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSS15fse31E

Usha Ravishankar – Waab Doha www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBAQqOuxHJ4

 Kirsteen Simpson – Duheil Doha www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkWx6Gb7TjQ

Asmaham Kurdy- Saida, Lebanon youtu.be/ielqGUL5yoA

Mariam Refaat- Heliopolis, Egypt www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTn62vmR3PM

Adila Ardikani- Mansourieh, Lebanon www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpjJ1eIjWB4

Paula Herberling- Budaiya, Bahrain www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdFS8wx2KIk

Rita Hashweh- 3^rd circle, Jordan www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_S8M_WkO6w

 Safa Jawa- Khobar, Saudi Arabia www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFX8EnWULSY

Nathalie Traboulsy- Ashrafieh, Lebanon www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlMNiWiR-ek

 Dr Anan Shesheh- Riyadh, Saudi Arabia www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqJ5VaHSYJE

 Sana Habash – Rabieh, Jordan www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkXv7ZAmyVw

 Videos for a new Curves Middle East club are posted each week so log onto facebook and get voting!

Happy New Year to all the readers of the blog!

The top 10 new years resolutions are:

1. Spend more time with family and friends
2. Start a fitness program
3. Lose excess weight
4. Stop smoking
5. Enjoy life more
6. Stop drinking
7. Get out of debt
8. Learn something new
9. Help others
10. Get organized

Come along to Curves and we will help you with your resolutions!

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1 out of every 2 men and 1 out of every 3 women will develop cancer in their lifetime. 1 out of every 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Those kinds of statistics might lead us to believe that there is nothing we can do to prevent cancer. While our genetics can definitely play a role in cancer development, research indicates that more than 60% of all cancers that can be avoided with a healthy lifestyle. More than 60%! That means that our lifestyle determines more often whether or not we will get cancer- even more than our genetics.

There are three key things we can do to prevent cancer.

1. Reach a Healthy Body Weight

2. Eat a Healthy Diet

3. Be Physically Active on a Regular Basis.

These three behaviors-weight, diet and physical activity- work together to prevent cancer. The good news is we are not helpless in the fight against cancer!

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As October is Breast Cancer month it is important that women check breasts regularly.

Changes to look for in your breasts

• Any new lump (which may or may not be painful or tender)
• Unusual thickening of your breasts
• Sticky or bloody discharge from your nipples
• Any changes in the skin of your nipples or breasts, such as puckering or dimpling
• An unusual increase in the size of one breast
• One breast unusually lower than the other

The best way to find breast lumps is to do 3 things:

• Have regular mammograms (usually every 2 years starting at age 50. If you are under 50, talk to your doctor about your risk factors for breast cancer, including your family history, to decide whether regular mammogram screenings are appropriate for you).
• Have your doctor check your breasts.
• Check your breasts yourself every month.

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First, age. BMR decreases with age. While this is a natural part of the aging process, do you know why this really decreases with age? Mostly because of muscle tissue. You lose muscle tissue as you age, and you will really lose it if you aren’t using it. This is another reason strength training is important throughout life. Strength training helps you protect your muscle tissue as you age, which in turn helps you protect your metabolism.

 Dieting can also affect muscle tissue. As you may recall, conventional diets often cause people to lose 25% of their weight in the form of muscle. What do you think would happen at the end of that diet? You lost muscle, so your metabolism is lowered, meaning that you can’t consume as many calories without regaining weight. That is again why it is important to strength train and consume quality protein while dieting- it helps to protect your muscle tissue as you lose weight.  

The next factor is growth. Have you ever watched a teenage boy eat? They seem to be able to just eat and eat and eat and they never put on any weight. They are growing, and they have a higher BMR. This also applies to pregnant women. When you’re pregnant, your BMR goes up.

 Stress also causes a rise in your BMR. When we talk about stress, think of physical stress- being very ill or recovering from surgery. Both of these are stresses to your body and increase your BMR.

 Environmental Temperature can affect your BMR. If it is either extremely hot or cold, your body will have to work a little harder to maintain temperature, and that raises your BMR.

 Another factor that affects BMR is fasting or starvation. Fasting or starvation lowers your BMR. This is a survival mechanism for your body. If you are fasting your body slows metabolism so that you don’t starve to death. Your body becomes more efficient at conserving energy and your metabolism slows. While you probably haven’t intentionally starved yourself, many of you have probably experienced this at some point when you were dieting. Have you ever hit a plateau? If so, you have experienced a drop in metabolism. When you restrict your calories for a long period of time, your body will adapt to the lower caloric intake by lowering your metabolism.

The next factor that affects your BMR is hormones. Hormones play a role in several ways. If you have hypo or hyperthryoidism you have been affected by a hormone. Hypothyroidism means low thyroid function and this results in a lower metabolism. If you have hypothyroidism your doctor probably put you on a medication to boost your thryoid function. It can be more difficult for individuals with this condition to lose weight, but it is certainly not impossible. Individuals with hypothyroidism should strength train to boost metabolism and add cardio to non Curves days.  

Another scenario that every woman has been affected by is PMS. You know how you can feel ravenously hungry before your period? Well, your BMR increases right before your period, so it makes sense that you feel hungrier. Isn’t it nice when science validates something we were already feeling?!

 Finally, the last factor that can affect BMR is caffeine. Caffeine raises BMR. Have you noticed how most people speak about their coffee consumption as though it were a bad thing? Actually, people who have up to 3-4 cups a day have less heart attacks, less strokes, less diabetes, less Alzheimer’s and many other diseases. Research has revealed that coffee is one of the best sources of antioxidants in our diet and it raises BMR. But….don’t get your hopes up- it doesn’t look like coffee can really help you lose weight. Green tea on the other hand, may help with your metabolism and weight loss. Remember, you can count tea as water. So, if you like green tea, it would be perfectly healthy to sip green tea throughout the day- hot or iced- and it may even help with your weight loss.

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Metabolism…you have probably heard that word a lot in the dieting world. You have heard it can go up and down and you know it can affect your progress, but what impacts metabolism? We are going to take a look at the factors that determine your metabolism.

Basal metabolism is the energy that it takes to maintain your life…all of the basics- the energy it takes for you to breathe, for your heart to beat, for your kidneys to filter wastes…basically all of the important jobs that your body does each day without you thinking about it. Basal metabolism makes up about 2/3 of your total energy expenditure- or calorie burn- for the day. Let’s look at the other way that we burn calories throughout the day before we get further into basal metabolism.

So these are the ways that we burn calories throughout the day. The largest piece, as we noted, is -basal metabolic rate- or BMR. BMR is all basic functions your body does each day to keep you alive. The next largest piece is physical activity.

When it comes to metabolism, this is the piece that you have the most control over. This is the area where you can make a really big difference. The last piece is called thermic effect of food. This is the calories burned from eating. That may be the first piece of good news that you have heard today- eating actually burns calories! But that doesn’t mean that you should eat more and more and more if you are trying to lose weight.  Many women decide exercise is too much work, I will just diet. If you remove physical activity, you are removing a huge chunk of your potential daily calorie burn and you are making it much more difficult to lose or even maintain weight.

For the most part, you don’t have much control over basal metabolism. Sure, there are a few things that you can modify, but for the most part, if you want to make a large impact on your metabolism, it is going to really happen through that exercise piece.

Watch out for the next blog entry where we will look at  factors that affect basal metabolism.  Don’t forget to follow us on facebook  www.facebook.com/CurvesME

Sodium- it is the seemingly innocent item that sits on most dinner tables. Salt is one of the most widely used food additives. People put it on everything, baked potatoes, pasta, vegetables…you name it! Some people salt their food before they even taste it! While salt might seem completely innocent, high intakes of salt can lead to high blood pressure and of course, high blood pressure contributes to heart disease.

According to the World Health Organization, high blood pressure causes half of all cardiovascular diseases. In fact, it is estimated that high blood pressure causes 62% of strokes and 49% of heart attacks. So clearly, controlling blood pressure is an important part of reducing our risk for heart disease. The good news is there is a lot that you can do to reduce your risk of high blood pressure, we will just look at sodium for now.

While too much sodium in the diet is bad for your heart, your life actually depends on having a certain concentration of sodium in the blood at all times.  Sodium is the primary regulator of fluid volume in our bodies and our bodies maintain a constant concentration of sodium at all times.

Have you ever felt bloated after eating a meal that is high in salt? What happened is your body had to retain fluid in order to maintain the same concentration of salt throughout your body. Now, you won’t hold on to this extra salt and water forever. Your kidneys will eventually remove the extra salt in your urine, returning your blood volume to normal again.

 The problem is before you are able to remove the extra salt from your body, your blood volume increases. Remember, your body is retaining fluid to maintain concentration of salt- this increases blood volume. A rise in blood volume puts extra pressure on blood vessel walls and causes your heart to work harder in order to pump the extra fluid throughout our body. The increase in pressure, especially if it persists, can have detrimental affects on your heart health.

So, sodium is essential to our bodies, but how much is too much? The recommended daily intake of sodium is between 1,500 and 2,300 mg. But do you know how much the average person consumes? Take a guess…The average adult consumes 3 to 4,000 mg a day! That’s about twice the recommended amount!

You might be sitting there thinking…I don’t use the salt shaker, so, certainly that doesn’t apply to me. Well, the salt shaker is one place for salt in the diet, but salt lurks in many other places too.

Deli meat is very high in sodium and it is something that is recommended to totally avoid if you have high blood pressure.

Fermented foods, this includes cheese, pickles, soy sauce and yogurt. Salt is used in these foods to either reduce or stop the rate of fermentation.

Condiments- ketchup, salad dressings, mayo…or any other condiments.

When you are eating outside of the home you can usually bet that the food will contain more salt and more calories.

How can we reduce salt in our diets?

One: Buy fresh. Fresh products only contain natural amounts of salt. Fresh fruits and vegetables contain more potassium than sodium, but when foods are processed the potassium level decreases and the sodium level increases. Research indicates that increasing your levels of dietary potassium can help lower blood pressure. And, as we said fresh fruits and vegetables are low in sodium too! One of the best ways to reduce salt in your diet is to choose fewer things out of a can or a box. Choose more fresh, whole foods.

If the produce you want is not in season, frozen fruits and vegetables are your next best option because they rarely contain added salt. Canned is your next choice. If you choose canned, look for “low sodium” or “no salt added” on the label and rinse these in a colander to reduce the salt content.

Two: Limit your intake of salty snacks like chips, pretzels, crackers, and salted nuts. If you can, buy lower sodium options. 

Three: Avoid adding salt during food preparation. Instead flavor your meals with fresh herbs, black pepper, crushed red pepper, garlic or onion powder. Salt is an acquired taste. Start tuning down your taste for salt and you won’t miss it.

Four: As  already said- fewer things out of a can or box. Processed foods, like frozen dinners, contain more salt than natural sources. If you need meals in a hurry, prepare larger meals when you do cook- then eat the leftovers the next day or freeze portions for later. If you do that, your home-cooked meal will be just as quick as a frozen dinner with a lot less sodium….and it will probably save you money too.

Finally, Five: Use condiments sparingly. Condiments like pickles, relish, olives, soy sauce, tarter sauce, and chili sauce should be used in moderation. Even low sodium options of soy sauce and teriyaki sauce still contain high amounts of salt, so use these sparingly.

So, let’s kick the salt habit and become heart-healthy! Follow us on facebook

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Attitude is that state of mind through which you filter all information and make all decisions. Positive mental attitudes can be deliberately built. They can be shaped by the choices you make. Make the choice to put into your mind only those things that are uplifting and empowering. You’ll soon notice the effect on your decisions and relationships!

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We all want to burn body fat and protect muscle tissue, so how do you we do this? Sustained target heart rate activity conditions the body to access fat for energy. During the first few minutes of exercise your muscles will primarily burn energy in the bloodstream and glycogen in the muscles. As you continue to exercise, you body will begin to access more fat stores for energy. Sustained exercise will continue to burn more fat, and your body will become more proficient at accessing body fat. The key to burning stored body fat is to exercise 3 to 5 times per week at your target heart rate level for 20 minutes or more. You can do this at Curves but why not also add some walking into your exercise program.

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At Curves our machines use hydraulic resistance, this means that it is possible to perform strength training and cardiovascular training at the same time. With hydraulic resistance exercise you are moving fluid. This is similar to aquatic exercise and is very safe and effective for all fitness levels and for all ages. So you are never too old to join Curves! There are no weight stacks to manage or repetitions to count.

With a double postive workout, you never lower the weight you just push and pull. The lowering of the weight is one of the main causes of injury in conventional gyms. At Curves you simply push forward with one muscle group and pull back with the opposing muscle group. This intensity easily elevates and sustains your target heart rate. By working muscle groups that oppose each other , you also work muscles symmetrically or in balance. This aligns the muscular- skeletal system to improve functional posture and movement.

 If you are not already a member please call your nearest club and arrange a free tour and fitness assessment. Don’t forget to follow us on facebook www.facebook.com/CurvesME