This week’s motivation and challenge are going to be NUTRITION and WEIGHT
focused!  Yep… JUST what you wanted!
If you feel like you have been working hard and are not seeing the results
you want….I can tell you right now….it is most likely your nutrition!
WHAT you eat, WHEN you eat it and HOW MUCH you eat are going to directly
affect how your body looks and feels!

I am going to review SEVEN basic RULES that you already KNOW and encourage
you to STICK to these PROVEN principles for weight loss and maintenance as
well as recovery from training. These are all basic, proven principles and
when you incorporate these into your permanent lifestyle you WILL reach your
goals!

*#1: Eat 5-6 SMALL meals* per day made up of a healthy combination of lean
proteins and COMPLEX carbohydrates (especially your veggies!)
Every time you eat, your metabolism kicks in to start burning what
you’ve eaten. Keep your metabolism going and burning as much fat as
possible by keeping it awake and moving every couple of hours!
You will also benefit because you will NOT be hungry and will make
better food choices because you desire less food.

*#2: DRINK WATER! * LOTS OF IT! Like…96 ounces or MORE every day!
I know! This is totally NEWS to you! I have never mentioned it
before and I am sure you are shocked!
Your body is almost 70% water. Give it what it needs….WATER!
Water helps your body transport the nutrients you need efficiently
into your cells. At the same time, water also helps eliminate wastes while
flushing all toxins out of your body to make you healthier.
That would also include aiding in the removal of FAT.
Water also cushions joints. This is important for us endurance
athletes as well as anyone else that wants to have healthy knees, hips,
ankles, etc.
So….get those water bottles filled and START DRINKING your water!

*#3: Eating Before Bed (NO Late Night Eating)*:
Eating before bed is NOT a wise decision (unless you are looking to
get BIGGER and FATTER).
While we are sleeping, our metabolism slows down. So, anything you
are eating before you sleep is most likely going to be stored as fat because
your body won’t be able to burn it off completely.
Make a goal to be FINISHED with any food at least THREE hours before
you go to sleep!  So…if you are an early to bedder and go down around 9:30 p.m., you
are DONE eating by 6:30 p.m.!
Not only will you stay healthier and lighter…but you will also SLEEP so much better! Double bonus!

*#4: Keep up your CARDIOVASCULAR EXERCISE and STRENGTH TRAINING!*
As endurance athletes, we love our cardio! We love to go out there
and do a 3 hour bike followed by a nice long run. But, let’s just talk for
a moment about the WEIGHT loss or maintenance issues of our movement.
Cardiovascular exercise is a huge key to losing weight. Your
nutrition can be terrific, but if you are NOT doing any cardio, you are not
going to reach your fullest potential for weight goals.
If you are just looking to lose weight…you really don’t need to do
a TON of cardio. For those of you that have done the long distance
races….Ironman, Ironman 70.3, Marathons, Ultras, etc., you can attest to
the truth that your weight pretty much levels off and you don’t just get lighter and
lighter by doing more and more cardio.

We also need our FUNCTIONAL STRENGTH TRAINING to help maintain muscle
and keep our metabolisms revved up by the higher energy demand of the muscle
on our body.

As athletes, we also need to include strength training to keep our
connective tissue strong and healthy and to help us move more efficiently
and stay injury free!

So…TWO FOLD benefits here:
1. Cardio and strength training help keep us lean, light and healthy
2. Strength Training in particular helps keep us injury free, more
efficient in our movements and increases our metabolism.

*#5: Eat your PROTEIN!*
I know we are NOT bodybuilders…but, our bodies are still made up of
the building blocks that we can only get from protein sources.
Did you know that 1 gram of protein is 4 calories? That means that if
you eat just 100 grams of protein every day…that is only 400 calories of
your total daily caloric intake?
Sometimes when I tell people to eat more protein, they think that it
is just SO many calories or a huge part of their daily intake. It’s NOT!
Aim for ONE gram of protein for every pound of LEAN body weight you have.
SO…if you weigh 150 pounds and you have 110 pounds of lean muscle mass,
aim to eat around 110 GRAMS of protein every day (that would only be 440
calories with the remaining daily calories coming from complex carbohydrates
and essential fats).
If you want to stay healthy, lean, fit, more energetic, less hungry
and injury free…feed your body clean, lean, quality protein (5-6x daily!)
You don’t have to be a big meat eater to get in more protein. You can
get a great source of protein in the form of a protein smoothie!

Just by incorporating 1-2 of these protein smoothies every day, you
will be giving your body a huge boost in health!

*#6: Get rid of the SUGAR!!*
Yep…this is another shocker! You mean, sugar isn’t good for me??
NOPE! But, we sure LOVE it, don’t we??
It’s easy to love….it’s really just a short little chemical bond
from being a drug! And, who doesn’t just love an addictive drug?
If you want to lean up, lose weight, feel healthier, get rid of the
headaches, body aches and lethargy….then LOSE the sugar!
That also means your beloved SODA! YES…even the “Sugar free” stuff!
I KNOW it’s hard! Sugar is my nemesis! I have NO problems with any
of the above principles. BUT, I LOVE my treats!
I can totally relate! Oh cursed sugar!
But, I also know that when I am really focused and limiting the
sugar…not only do I feel better, lighter and leaner…but, my cravings for
it go WAY down!
So…come on, give it a shot! Limit the sugar (especially in the
evening), and see what happens!

*#7: Get enough SLEEP!*
I have trained and coached FAR TOO many of you that do NOT get near
enough sleep!
If you want to lose weight, stay healthy, recover from your training
and reach your goals…you need to SLEEP!
In a recent study it was shown that overweight adults lost 55% LESS *
FAT* when they got 5.5 hours of sleep per night, compared with when they
slept for 8.5 hours per night.
The same study also showed that the same adults were also hungrier at
night when they slept less.
If you are serious about trying to lose weight, stay healthy, lean up,
recover from your training, have more energy and pretty much just be
AWESOME….then please….SLEEP!
And…don’t give any excuses about how you just CAN’T go to sleep
before 1 a.m. cause you are just too busy.
Too busy to be awesome? Too bad!
And…don’t give the excuse that you are one of those people that can
get by on 4 hours of sleep every night…cause, sure…you may be getting
by…but you are not THRIVING (and, once again…being awesome!)
Make it a goal to get your sleep…and then come thank me later!

So…those are your SEVEN basic principles for BEING THE BEST and HEALTHIEST
YOU!
If you feel a little (or a LOT) overwhelmed by the thought of incorporating
ALL of these into your lifestyle right now…NEVER FEAR!
JUST PICK ONE thing that I covered and choose to be the best you can at that
one thing!
Don’t worry if you can’t do ALL of it right now.
Just tell yourself that you will commit to becoming better at whatever you
feel you can do!
Then…DO IT and ENJOY IT and be PROUD OF YOURSELF for any progress
you make!
I’m serious!
The worst thing we can do to ourselves is get down on ourselves because we
try to be perfect or take on too much at once!
Little steps towards greatness…that’s all we have to do!
So…pick ONE if that’s all you want and ENJOY!

So, now you know what you are going to be focused on this week and what you
are going to work on to become even more incredible and healthy and happy!
Don’t forget our NEW schedule that takes effect this week!
Keep up all your terrific training and nutrition and hard work!
You can do this! AND….yes…it is worth it!!
Have a great week!

Keena

Coach Keena

Keena Schaerrer
USA Triathlon Certified Coach
NASM Certified Personal Trainer
ACE Certified Personal Trainer
BS Recreation Mgmt/Health: B.Y.U.
PowerTri Contributor
keena@coachkeena.com
801-427-3808