NIFS Healthy Living Blog

It is hard to believe that we are wrapping up another year at NIFS! As instructors looking back over the last year, we like to think that the variety of fitness opportunities that we have offered has provided individuals with the tools needed to move forward toward reaching and surpassing their health and fitness goals. Along with the variety of group fitness classes, personal training, group training opportunities, and fitness assessments and personalized exercise programs, we offer additional special programming throughout the year to keep our members on track and motivated!

Mini-Marathon Training Program

Every year, One America 500 Festival Mini-Marathon and other spring half-marathon participants look to NIFS for their training program. NIFS offers a unique program providing pace group leaders for each training group, ranging from a 7-minute run pace, to a run-walk group, to the 16-minute walk group. You will find a group of individuals ready to train for the same goal as you within your group each Wednesday night of the program when you meet for the long run. Participants also receive a snack after they finish their run. With nearly 325 participants and leaders last year, the program proved to be a success and resulted in many happy participants crossing the finish line reaching their goals in the 2013 spring half-marathons.

Slim-It-To-Win-It

Kicking off at the right time, just after the New Year’s resolution rush has worn off and the thick of winter has settled in, NIFS rolls out the Slim-It-To-Win-It 10-week fat-loss team training program, which has proved to be a great motivator for the members to stay on track with their weight-loss goals. This year proved to be a tight competition, with 11 different teams competing for the team title. The aBENger’s claimed the title, losing an average of 2.35% body fat!

Triathlon Training Program

As the only program in the city that has been training for the Go Girl Triathlon since the very first race, NIFS spent much of the summer training women of varying abilities to complete the sprint triathlon in August at Eagle Creek Park. Twenty-five very happy women completed the race that day! The program met at NIFS, the IU Natatorium, and Eagle Creek Park on Tuesday nights to complete a weekly group workout with coaches and concluded with a post-workout snack thanks to program sponsor First Watch Daytime Cafe.

Summer Showdown

Always promising to be an excellent fitness challenge, Summer Showdown never disappoints as a challenging test for those looking for an extra push to beat the heat in the height of summer. This past year, participants completed a partner 100 workout at the beginning of the program. After 6 weeks of training two days a week with a team and coach with workouts geared toward improving performance of the challenge, the partners completed the same workout to conclude the program.

Staff Rowing Challenge

A little friendly competition never hurts anyone; it also proves to be very motivating when looking at fitness! That is how we view the annual staff rowing challenge. From November 25 to December 24, members row as many meters as they can for their team. The team that rows the most meters and the team that rows the most meters per person gets bragging rights as team champions. We are currently wrapping up this program, but it has proven to be successful as a motivating fitness competition again this year.

Maintain Not Gain

Also currently occurring as a holiday incentive program, Maintain Not Gain proves to be a popular program year in and year out as it encourages fitness and weight maintenance throughout the holiday season. The program includes weekly motivational emails, group workouts, and incentive prizes for those who maintain or lose weight upon completion of the program. With 208 participants completing the 2012–2013 programs, the group lost a total of 208 pounds over the holidays!

Les Mills Launches

Over the past year, the Les Mills classes have become increasingly popular in the fitness center. In January, April, July, and October, Les Mills launches took place in the fitness center to introduce new releases with the goal of injecting energy in the facility and to pump up the members!

NIFS Barbell Club

New this year, Josh Jones headed up the NIFS barbell club in October. The program is great for anyone who is serious about wanting to improve their power-lifting abilities. This session focused on the clean and the snatch. Participants learned the correct way to complete the exercises and saw drastic improvements in their ability to lift like the pros!

Start 2014 off right by getting involved in one of NIFS specialized programs! Mini Marathon training starts Jan 22nd! Get Registered today!

This blog was written by Stephanie Kaiser, Health Fitness Specialist at NIFS. Meet our other NIFS bloggers.

If it is the most important meal of the day, why do about 31 million people (or 10 percent of the population) still skip breakfast? Here are the top three reasons people skip breakfast and how you can overcome those excuses to make eating breakfast a part of your daily routine.

I’m just not hungry in the morning.

You should wake up in the morning and be hungry. Your body has gone at least eight hours without food, so it should be ready for some fuel. If not, take a look at your before-bedtime habits and check to see whether you are constantly snacking on chips and ice cream late into the evening. If so, this can affect your hunger levels in the morning. Don’t go to bed hungry, but instead choose a reasonable snack around 100 to 150 calories like Greek yogurt or an apple with 1 tablespoon of peanut butter.

I don’t have time for breakfast.

If you would rather hit the snooze button a few more times than prepare breakfast for yourself, you might find yourself without enough time to eat in the morning. The key is to aim for three food groups at a meal, so even if you grab a turkey sandwich and a banana as you run out the door, you are still starting your day right. The key is to combine some protein and whole grains to help give you energy and keep you full. Breakfast is also a great time to get in a dairy or fruit serving, too!

If time is an issue, use this recipe to prepare breakfast for the whole week. Add the egg to an English muffin and grab a glass of milk or piece of fruit to go with it and you are set!

I want to save my calories for later in the day.

Some people think that if they skip breakfast, it will help with their weight-loss efforts or give them more calories to consume at lunch and dinner. Unfortunately, this is not the case. A recent study compared two groups: one ate more for breakfast and the other ate more at dinner, with both consuming the same amount of calories. The breakfast group lost more weight and inches than the dinner group. Typically people who skip breakfast overcompensate the rest of the day by eating more calories than if they had started their day with a balanced meal.

Whatever your reason for skipping breakfast, try to break that habit and start eating something every day. Start small with a glass of 100 percent juice or a piece of fruit and then work up to a balanced meal between 400 and 500 calories and at least three food groups!

Angie Scheetz, RD, is the wellness coordinator at NIFS and organizes the Mini Marathon Training Program, Dealing with Diabetes, and Lite ‘N Up. Enrollment for Lite ‘N Up is open though September 17, 2013.

There are numerous ways to overcome this bubble so that you actually make your resolution a reality. Here are seven of the best ones which, when used together, can help you keep your fitness resolutions.

Find fun ways to work out that don’t feel like exercise.

You can dance, swim, ride a bike…whatever is fun and doesn’t seem like hard work. Here are some more ideas.

Find a workout partner to share your experiences.

You can find partners at the gym, in the personal training programs, in various groups, and even online. When you have a partner, it not only makes working out fun, but it also adds accountability for everyone involved and a higher commitment level.

Create small competitions between yourself and friends or co-workers.

Create a body-fat or weight-loss challenge or a “who visited the gym the most during the month?” contest. NIFS has a program starting in February to help you get competitive, called Slim It to Win It.

Schedule your workout during times that last-minute excuses are least likely to pop up.

Minimize the chance of finding an excuse not to work out. Convince yourself that the workout is important and anything else can wait.

Celebrate your small accomplishments more often.

Do not celebrate with food! Make a reward chart for yourself with a list of things you want to accomplish and then add a suitable reward. For example, lose five pounds and buy a new CD, or go to the gym at least five times a week for a month and get new shoes. Make the rewards tangible items you want. Make yourself work for the things and you will recognize your achievements and feel motivated to continue.

1. Tell as many people as possible about your goals. The more people you tell, the more people there will be to hold you accountable. You could make an announcement at family reunions, work functions, and parties so people around you will be supportive of your decision and maybe not bring triple chocolate cake to the next function, but rather something healthy to show their support.

2. Write down all of your goals and put them in a place where you can see them frequently.

3. Identify and write down any and all compelling reasons you have for wanting to reach your goals. Examples of compelling reasons include something that moves you personally, such as extending your life so you will be around to see your grandchildren grow up, something as simple as bending over and tying your shoes, being able to climb stairs with groceries easily, and maybe losing enough weight to fit into your clothes again.

7. Reconnect with your compelling reason on a daily and frequent basis so that your mind is focused on always attempting to accomplish your goal.

The more you think about it, the more apt you will be to continue working on the goal. Remember, my fellow NIFS trainers and I are here to help you get there, too. Just give us a call at 317-274-3432.

Written by Thomas Livengood. Click here to meet Thomas and are other NIFS certified Personal Trainers.

Each year, The National Sleep Foundation ­provides helpful information on the correlation between sleep and exercise. Along with that information, it also points out how proper sleep is important to the equation of exercise and weight loss. Here is the latest information from them in 2024.

The key points of the article are as follows:

• Exercisers say they sleep better
• Vigorous exercisers report the best sleep
• Non-exercisers are the sleepiest and have the highest risk for sleep apnea
• Less time sitting is associated with better sleep and health
• Exercise at any time of day appears to be good for sleep

NIFS wrote about this same connection that stemmed from a research study on the topic. Below is an excerpt from that article written by NIFS Fitness Center Director, Melanie Roberts. We hope it will give you some added z's from it's insights!

The Sleep and Exercise Connection

The Sleep and Exercise Connection Researcher Karla Ann Kubitz published findings of a large meta-analysis covering more than 10 years of sleep and exercise studies. The review shows that exercise significantly increases total sleep time and aerobic exercise decreases REM sleep. Kubitz also noted that those who exercise regularly, as well as those taking up a single bout of exercise, both experienced an increase in NREM and total sleep time. The result: those exercising went to sleep more quickly, slept longer, and had a more restful sleep than those not exercising.

The Sleep and Weight Loss Connection

While some researchers feel the link between sleep loss and weight gain is weak, others continue to investigate what happens in the body when it doesn’t receive the 7 to ­9 hours of recommended rejuvenation time. “Sleep loss is associated with striking alterations in hormone levels that regulate the appetite and may be a contributing factor to obesity,” says Michael Thorpy, MD, director of the Sleep-Wake Disorders Center at Montefiore Medical Center in New York. Joyce Walsleben, PhD, past director of the Sleep Disorder Center at the New York University School of Medicine, agrees. “When you disrupt sleep, you disrupt your hormones. You become glucose intolerant, you want to eat more, and you don’t metabolize what you eat as well.” Not only can this hormonal disruption lead to weight gain, Walsleben warns, but also to an increased risk of developing diabetes. Even mild sleep deprivation can lead to a disruption of these hormone levels that regulate appetite which operate on a 24-hour rhythm.

Need another reason to choose sleep over late night web surfing or TV watching? Based on findings from Pennsylvania State University, lack of sleep causes chronic low-grade inflammation and predisposes you to cardiovascular events and a shorter life span.

Sleep On This

So whether you've been exercising regularly or have just started with a single session, you can expect a more restful sleep than someone who does not exercise. And since sleep plays an instrumental role in the body’s metabolic equation, consider starting a fitness program today.

1. Create a Weight-Loss Plan with Short- and Long-Term Goals.

Your goals should be realistic, specific, measurable, and attainable, and can be accomplished in a timely manner—nothing five years down the road. Keep a long-term goal in mind, maybe something like losing a certain number of pounds in six months. But definitely include short-term goals. The short-term goals could be daily, weekly, and even monthly.

   For example, three short-term goals could be adding a   
   vegetable to your lunch, practicing portion control by
   measuring out your food, and visiting NIFS to exercise every
   day for an hour. These short-term goals will lead you to the
   long-term goal.

   Not everyone will have the same goals, so create the goals
   based on your individual needs. If you know you tend to
   overeat, make short-term goals related to cutting back on
   certain foods and portion control.

   2. Strive for Consistency in Your Weight-Loss Routine.

Time and time again I meet people who want to lose weight, but something gets in the way. Life happens; they regress or slip up. The secret to overcoming those hang-ups is to bounce back and keep moving forward. Don’t let a few bad days defeat or deflate you. Keep a motivated mindset. Don’t be a yo-yo exerciser who exercises, leaves, and comes back a few months later only to start the whole weight-loss process all over again. It is such a vicious cycle and not a good place to be.

One great way to get past this block is to find a good support system. Whether it’s your spouse, friend, co-worker, or a workout partner you meet at NIFS, you need someone to hold you accountable and call you to find out where you were or ask you about your progress.

3. Refuse to Choose a Defeated Mindset!

It takes hard work and you have to stay focused. Every day is a new day. Wake up with a fresh start and regroup. Don’t ever feel like you have failed. Learn to overcome your obstacles and keep pressing forward. Like the old saying goes, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” Believe in yourself and you will be successful with your New Year’s resolution of losing weight!

Written by NIFS Health Fitness Specialist Christy Monday. For some extra motivation, learn how NIFS members have achieved their weight-loss and fitness goals here.