SKFitLife Challenge Week 8 Information

Still not up to speed and ready to ROCK Week 8?

YOUR priorities and the WHY behind them…

#1. NUTRITION… this accounts for 80% of what you look like on the inside AND the outside. Without proper nutrition, you will be wasting your time. Sounds harsh, I know, but it is the truth. And this goes for UNDEREATING TOO!

#2. WEIGHT TRAINING… when you build muscle, you increase your base metabolic rate (the calories you burn throughout all 24 hours). This is also what gives you those shapely muscles. I have set up our training in a way that keeps your heart rate high throughout for extra fat burning:).

#3. HIIT… When you do HIIT (or any interval work), you are literally changing the chemistry in your body to burn fat while shaping (also known as “conditioning” your body).

#4. Steady Cardio… Think longer is better? Not so much and this is why…

☀️ When we do long bouts of cardio, our bodies start to wise up… hmmmmm…. we ran 12 miles yesterday and the days before that…. so let me increase appetite to prep for yet another round.

☀️ Our bodies see the added muscle as “dead weight”. Why would it want to carry around that extra “dead weight”? If your goal is to have shapely muscles (upper and lower body), long steady cardio is not what is going to get you there.

☀️ It takes a surplus to add muscle and if we are constantly doing long bouts of cardio, we are constantly using those “building blocks” to power through our workouts which leaves little to build with. Take a look at different types of athletes… you will see very few runners who have killer shoulders. It really depends on your goals.

☀️ With that being said, running was my first fitness love and there is something sooooo freeing about going for a long run on the open road, BUT when I finally discovered HOW to get the muscular LOOK I was going for, I realized that my hours spent on the road were better used doing weight training and HIIT.

Weekly Need to Know:​

☀️ SKFitGurls Monthly Membership Info: When you registered for the 12 Week SKFitLife Challenge, you were automatically set up for the discounted rate of $54/month for the SKFitGurls.

If you decide not to continue with us once your 12 weeks are complete, you can email us at challenge@skfitlife.com. We will cancel any future payments and you will receive a confirmation email from PayPal.

You can cancel within 5 days of your billing cycle for a full refund of your monthly fees. This is a great option if you want to stick around for the first 5 days to see what the SKFitGurls are all about.

Monthly payments begin at the END of your 12 weeks here in the challenge.

If you have ANY questions, email us at challenge@skfitlife.com and we will get your email answered!

​☀️ It is that time again, Pictures!! Week 8 is where all of you who have been following along with the program will really notice a difference. Take those photos and compare them to Week 1… Are you ready to spend these last 4 weeks giving it your ALL???

Am I eating enough protein? How about fat? How can I tell?

A: Please take a look at the following calculation and at a minimum, you will see the ball-park range for your daily protein needs.

For some reason, the mass media really likes to talk about calories, but fails to talk about macro nutrients…

Daily calories = Goal weight x (workout hours per week + 9.5) • Protein grams = goal weight in pounds • Fat grams = half goal weight in pounds • Carbohydrate grams = [Daily calories – (protein calories + fat calories)]/4

NOTE: o 1 gram of protein provides 4 calories o 1 gram of carbohydrates provides 4 calories o 1 gram of fat provides 9 calories • By the way, Aragon said it doesn’t matter if you eat 6 or 3 meals per day.

Female Example
You are a 160 pound woman who wants to weigh 140 pounds, and you exercise for a total of 3 hours per week:

Daily Calories = 140 x (3+9.5) Daily Calories = 1750 Protein = 140grams (560 calories) Fat = 70grams (630 calories) Carbohydrates = [1750 – (560+630)]/4 Carbohydrates = 140grams

What about SODIUM?

We have touched on sodium and have seen the effects of too much sodium. Sodium plays a very important role in our health as well as our ability to burn fat and train hard.

I will be sharing a 5 day prep for photos which includes 2 days of limiting sodium. This is only temporary (2 days) and only effective if you already have sodium in your diet on a regular basis. So, on a regular basis, adding sodium to your food isn’t just tasty, but it is healthy too. Check out the following info from a fitness friend, Joel Marion:

“Salt and sodium:

Salt is NOT bad for you…GEEZ LOUISE. In fact, it can actually boost your fat loss. I’ve hit on this MYTH time and time again, but it’s worth repeating.

Salt only creates a problem when you avoid it like the plague and then all of a sudden eat a bunch of it. Why? Because you’re unknowingly causing your body to crave sodium (because you never give it any) and when you finally do consume salt, it hoards every bit of it like me when I haven’t eaten pizza in a week.

You see, there’s a special hormone in your body called aldosterone that regulates your “internal” sodium levels at wide range of dietary intakes. Eat less and it holds on to every bit you do consume, eat more and it just gets rid of what it doesn’t need.

A normal, stable, healthy sodium intake is very important to your fat loss and exercise goals for 2 reasons:

a) Healthy sodium levels result in greater blood flow to working muscles during exercise.

b) It’s sodium’s job to deliver potassium (one of the major nutrients involved in the muscle contraction process) into muscle cells during exercise. A low sodium intake will absolutely negatively affect your workouts, causing you to fatigue sooner. In the end, you burn fewer calories and lose less fat.

Now, there are some individuals who are very salt sensitive when it comes to blood pressure, so those individuals need to closely monitor the affects of sodium in their diet. But, for the general healthy population, a healthy sodium intake has many benefits.

If you’re a healthy individual who is purposely avoiding sodium because you think it may have a negative effect on your fat loss, try gradually increasing your sodium intake over the next couple weeks along with increased water consumption and I guarantee your workouts will thank you for it.”

So, that is the skinny on sodium.

What about Grapeseed Oil?

Studies suggest that Grape Seed Oil and its Extract constitute anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-histamine, anti-aging, anti-allergic, antimicrobial, and adaptogenic activity. Therefore, it has been beneficial in the treatment of a number of health issues which include:

• Arthritis
• Edema
• Dermatitis
• Acne
• Wrinkles
• Dry And Itchy Skin
• Age Spots
• Sun Burns
• Chapped Lips
• Wounds
• Bruising
• Stretch Marks
• Varicose Veins
• Hemorrhoids
• Chronic Venous Insufficiency
• Premature Aging
• Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS)
• Weight Loss
• Stress
• Dandruff
• Hair Loss
• Warts
• Cardiovascular Diseases Especially Atherosclerosis
• Hypertension
• High Cholesterol Levels
• Diabetes
• Visual Impairment
• Cataract
• Macular Degeneration
• Studies also suggest that its free radical scavenging activity may strengthen the immune system and reduce the risk of developing cancer.

Which Good FATs are Best?

OILS! Nuts, nut butters, salmon (or other oily fish), avocado…these are the best choices. Variety is important. We have been hearing the benefits of olive oil for years and while it is in fact full of healthy fats, it is primarily Omega-6 fatty acids. Our typical American diet already has a high amount of Omega-6, so we should work to balance out our Omegas by using a variety of fats.

Is it bad that I get all my carbs from mostly veggies??

When I eat rice (even if it’s brown) or bread (any kind) or potatoes or anything like that, I have a tendency to over eat them, so I try to stay away. Should I have some oatmeal in the mornings with my 1 egg, 3 egg whites and 1/2 cup of spinach?? I just don’t want my body craving more of the starchier carbs. I know my body and it always goes there. I think I’m addicted to carbs.

A: Be careful not to go low carb for too long. My ability to think and reason decrease significantly when I cut out starchy carbs significantly for extended periods of time. Total avoidance can lead to binging… your serotonin levels can also be affected. Oh, and let’s not forget that you could end up constipated.

If you need to have strategies in place, just cook single servings. Have them in the meal and then walk away from them. If Ezekiel bread is hard to resist, stick with things like sweet potato and squash. Some people are sensitive to wheat and some rice, so stay away from those if that is the case. What if you mix some grains in with your veggies, so that you aren’t tempted to eat a whole bowl of rice? A salad with some cooked barley mixed in is quite tasty, for example!

Just wondering is it bad to have a lot of edamame beans? I’m dying for them and made them for lunch tomorrow but I know I want to eat the bag…so would I count them as a protein or a complex carb?

A: You have to use portion control with these guys. They actually have a little bit of everything… protein, starch, fat. Just split them up in to servings so you are not tempted to finish the bag

Not seeing results yet?

The good news…YOU MIGHT NEED TO EAT MORE!!!

If you have the 80% down and you’re not seeing results, it is a matter of kicking that metabolism up. Have you used these tools to calculate your daily needs yet?

Step 1: Calculate your ideal daily calories.

Step 2: And then plug that number in to figure out your macro (protein/fat/carb) breakdown.

I personally recommend starting out with the “Zone” calculations. I feel more satisfied with the higher fat content.

While I love eating clean, and many times a day, I abhor using measuring cups. Do any of you have tips for being conscious of intake without resorting to measuring everything?

A: Firstly, eat off a plate the size of your spread hand as its quite hard to over eat if you’re using a plate of this size. Secondly check out these videos from our hero Tosca, a tough love guide to portion control using comparisons between measuring cups and your hand:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5tsPDa_dUE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7aG2OfAV5k

Hidden Ingredients

Is that can of soup is a clean choice?

Check for this ingredient.

Autolyzed yeast extract…

“Autolyzed yeast extract is used primarily as a flavor enhancer in a variety of processed foods such as soups, meats and vegetarian “meats.” Some products include yeast extract in addition to other flavor enhancers such as MSG, hydrolyzed protein or substances labeled only as “natural flavor.” Like MSG, it is valued for its ability to stimulate taste receptors that are sensitive to the umami or savory type of taste.

Which brings me to my next point of “natural flavors”

The definition of “Natural flavors” is very fuzzy and leaves tons of room for interpretation. When you cook your own food, you know what you are adding to it. Watch out for those bouillon cubes… they probably contain MSG.

The warning label for autolyzed yeast extract:

“Autolyzed Yeast Extract: is an ingredient that requires special labeling in the Europe and is associated with obesity. This ingredient causes excitotoxicity which leads to brain damage over time.”

And then there is the organic boxed products

…where technically, only 95% of the ingredients have to be organic (100% Organic is the only thing that means 100% organic when it comes to these items).

Bottled Water

Most bottled waters are nothing more than tap water that has supposedly gone through an extra filtration processes. However, independent testing of bottled water conducted by the Environmental Working Group revealed that popular brands contain, on average, 8 different contaminants, ranging from fertilizer residues to bacteria to carcinogenic disinfection by-products. Some contaminants that exceed legal limits for tap water.

Single-Serving Coffee Pods

Yes, they are convenient, but also very wasteful. These are made from non-recyclable, non-biodegradable plastic. They are made of plastic and even though it is polypropylene, a less-toxic plastic, there’s growing evidence that, when subjected to heat, all plastics leach chemicals that can interfere with hormonal development.

Yoplait Low-Fat Yogurt

This yogurt may be low in fat, but it contains 26 grams of sugar—that’s more than what you’ll find in a Twinkie! Don’t fall for the low sugar ones… they have replaced the sugar with artificial sweeteners.

Splenda Essentials with Antioxidants

Total gimmick… then again you all know to avoid all Splenda☺.

Special K Cereal Bars

These bars not only have heart-damaging trans fats and potentially carcinogenic BHT, an unnecessary chemical used to retard rancidity in oils, but also contains sugar alcohols which can cause digestive issues.

How to Choose the Best Nuts

When choosing nuts, you want to have them RAW because just like not heating your good fats (other than something like coconut oil), you don’t want to roast your nuts on high temperatures… it changes the molecular structure of the fats in the nuts. Yes, still a better choice than Doritos though!

For those of you that use Isagenix: do you have to use ice?

Can you mix the shakes with water or do you use some kind of milk? I want to try them but I need to make sure they are reasonable for what I have accessible at work.

A: You can use just water and ice or you can use coconut milk or any milk that you like; you can get a cup with a small shaker ball in it. That works well for the office, too.

When I am having the lean mean turkey meat salad and add the beans, do I also still need a starch? Or are the beans my starch?

A: Yep… beans are also a starch.

For leaner protein does it make sense to have more fish?

A: Yes, fish would be a GREAT protein source. 

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