"Doctor" Paula Does Doha: Happy New Year

Wishing You 

the Best in 2016!

Yes, I am back to blogging after a five month transition to a new part of the world, a new university, new students, a new home, and generally a new lifestyle.  I plan to catch up on some of the experiences I have had in Doha.  I have shared some of them on Facebook, but without much commentary or the perspective that comes with being here for several months now.

It is still a very great adventure that I am holding gently in my mind, heart, and hands.  

Many of my expat friends here have posted reflections on Facebook today about their own experiences during 2015. They often talk about the surprise they still hold for making the transition to Doha from places all over the world.  Few expected to be here a year ago.  They talk about the challenges of change.  But, also the importance of the journey of growth, self-discovery, and service. They talk about what you shed to be able to put on this new skin. 

About a year ago, I accepted an offer to visit Dubai with a grade school friend.  The seed had been planted by a former colleague, Henry Webb, to work internationally.  I wanted to scale up, so the seed began to grow. I stayed on the 44th floor of the Birg Kahlifa, made famous by the fireworks display that last night also featured an adjacent hotel fire. 

That experience was transformation.  Clearly, I could live in the Gulf.  So, now the task was to land a job here.  More on that in later blogs.

So, as I told my students this semester when I asked about their career plans:  "Everything begins with an idea."  What's yours for 2016?

Temporary Resolutions Don't Count

It's that time of year again where resolutions are flying left and right and the excitement of a New Year and a "new you".  We all want self-improvement and that means different things to everyone.  Always at the top of the list is weight loss and gaining muscle definition.  Working in the fitness industry for 30 years, this is one of my busiest times and although happy for the job security, I am disenchanted about temporary resolutions.

I always see a "gung ho" attitude to start and sadly a large percentage of people return to old unhealthy habits after only a few weeks.  Beginning a fitness plan can feel easy, fun and fabulous but it's the continued lifestyle where many struggle. Typically, unrealistic goals have been set and the inability to adhere or be happy with strict healthy food changes and over-committed workouts wins and resolutions fly out the window.

The majority want to make changes but expect it to happen tomorrow not taking into consideration years of living unhealthy.  Patience and self-acceptance need to be part of the resolution decision and also going about it with realistic expectations.  If you have been overweight and without muscle definition most of your life, it is unreasonable to think a week of healthy eating and pumping iron is going to magically create results.  Frustration usually sends people running from one "quick fix" fake fitness plan to the next.  The only thing achieved here is spending tons of cash on unregulated crap, a continued unhealthy body and left without proper nutrition and exercise knowedge.

If you are serious about your fitness resolution, begin by accepting where you are and progressing slowly with choices you can live with, be happy about, and maintain for a lifetime.  "Rome wasn't built in a day" and neither will you. Allow yourself to be a beginner and be proud for each day accomplishing steps toward your goals.

I recommend reading my recent article "Resolve to Get Fit" covering vital information on how to eat for muscle, avoid diet mistakes, improve your metabolism and more. Take your time perusing the landing page for other articles that will help with accountability to your health and fitness resolution.

Resolve to Get Fit...Read the Article!

The resolution takeaway: if it is temporary, then it doesn't count!

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Happy New Year! xoxo Darla

Works For Me

What works for me may not work for you.  That's awesome!  Why, because we are all different people accepting our strengths and weaknesses.  It is important to grab onto the things we can do, and perform at our best not holding anything back.  Acceptance of who we are and celebrating our strengths is essential for our health and fitness.  I forgo push-ups for example because they will aggravate my neck injury, but put me on a chest press and I am good to go.

It could be easy to sulk back into a corner and cry over spilt milk and my loss of certain athletic abilities, but what would that do for me?  Nothing.  Life has given me a great purpose and a strong will to fight for my fitness.  I have good and bad days just like you.  Over several years of training, I have come to really enjoy what I can do through modification of workouts, and creative challenge in program development.  I do what works for me and it's fabulous.

It is important to never give up hope and know you can achieve great things, reach your goals and DO what it takes to get there.  I found what works for me and each of us has the ability to find their strong and put it to work literally.  It doesn't matter how long it takes because life and fitness is all about the journey. The important thing is walking it, putting aside fear, letting go of a "failure" attitude, and embracing who you are right where you are.

New happenings on my about.com site! Read my articles on "Why You May Need More Calories" and "100 Calorie Superfood Snacks Made Quick and Easy".  I publish fresh content weekly and cover a wide variety of nutrition, health and fitness topics.  Head on over...

About.com Sports Nutrition & More by Darla Leal

Thanks for stopping by my Blog and I want to wish all of you a very Merry and Blessed Christmas and Happy Healthy New Year!  Don't forget to subscribe below and never miss a free update:

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Merry Christmas from My Family to Yours!

I Am What I Eat to a Large Degree

I am what I eat to a large degree and the whole "eating a sexy beast today" does not apply.  People ask me all the time about my nutrition and exercise programming outside of my working with clients.  I am a walk-the-talk trainer and maintain a fairly disciplined eating program and honestly, I would be a hypocrite if I didn't.  I am passionate about what I do helping people adopt healthy lifestyles and eating right plays the largest percentage in the fitness game.

I have maintained a healthy eating plan for several years and it is now a habit as natural as breathing.  I would feel weird if I began pounding down processed crap to feel like crap.  Eating superfoods daily and timing my nutrients is auto-pilot living for me.  I don't have to think about it or journal anymore but simply live it.  It is a process and habits do take time to develop.  All I know is I feel at my best when I eat the right things and combo that with consistent exercise.  My only downfall is not getting enough rest sometimes but disturbed sleep goes along with the whole menopausal thing.

I do enjoy teaching a simplistic and realistic way of eating right.  Nutrition should never feel like a burden but be a fun adventure of change learning how to sub out unhealthy choices for healthier alternatives.  It is true "you can't out exercise a crappy diet" and succumbing to food guilt punishment is not the path to fix that issue.  It is learning how to eat to become who you want to be and guilt is never connected to that.

Healthy food is also my preventative medicine and linked to decreased inflammation and reduced risk of disease.  Want to feel better and improve your quality of life overall?  Start eating healthy!  It may sound easier said than done, but it is a choice and working on what you really want in this life.  I blow no smoke working with clients about what it takes.  You can wish all day but if you don't apply the work, nothing happens.  The work becomes a healthy lifestyle and eventually you look back and don't even think about how hard it was but how good it feels now.  It's like giving birth and how the ultimate pain feels unbearable but the gift of a newborn is the amazing result (I would have to use a different analogy for men of course) but you get my drift.

I hope the holidays are treating you well and you are staying on track with your nutrition.  I have published a few articles on the about.com network that will be very helpful.  "Holiday Survival Tips", "Eat Healthy, Feel Healthy and Look Amazing", and you will really enjoy "100 Calories Superfood Snacks Made Quick and Easy."

           

             Read Holiday Survival Tips!

Read Eat Healthy, Look Amazing!

Read 100 Calorie Super Food Snack ideas

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Be Well and Stay Healthy

 

Giving Up is Never An Option

We all have hard stuff in life, frustrations, and days we just want to keep our heads tucked under the pillow.  The thing about life and the journey is navigating through everything with our best healthy responses, attitudes, and choices.  I am not immune to feeling the tough in life and even in my workouts.  There are days I want a trainer to kick my butt and push me when I struggle with lack of motivation.  Not every day goes as I had planned and nutrition can also take a hit.  Some days, I am just tired, burned and do have to take a step back and  away from the gym.  All that is OK and in my opinion, normal.  This afternoon, I chose to take an Epsom salt bath...there ya go!

 Life is not challenge free and success comes from how we handle the discomfort.  Building muscle is an uncomfortable process for example, but I push through to achieve a positive result.  Goals are achieved through planning and working.  I have put in years of hard work to get the results I wear in the form of muscle.  Tired or not, giving up is never an option.  As long as I give my best for me, no matter what that looks like, it is good enough.  Today, my best came through taking an Epsom salt bath and right now my sore muscles are saying ... thank you.

I have published some amazing reads for you on the about.com network, "How Food Guilt Affects Getting Fit," and "How to Stay Healthy During the Holidays". 

How Food Guilt Affects Fitness
read the article!

Holiday Survival Tips to Stay Healthy
read the article!

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Darla Leal, Fit-over-50
 Stay Healthy

£ 90,000 for the world's fastest electric car

Detroit Electric's electric cars SP: 01 is capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km / h in 3.7 seconds and become the world's fastest electric car.

Detroit Electric Model 01 by fledgling Detroit manufacturers developing Electric designed with sporty, 2-seat. Many people will be easily recognized by its stylish design to the Lotus Elise cars in the UK, simply because a lot of key positions in the company has been working for Lotus.

As announced by the manufacturer, SP: 01 can accelerate from 0 to 100 km / h in 3.7 seconds before reaching a top speed of 249 km / h. In particular, SP: 01 can be moved continuously over distances more than 300 km per charge only battery lasts about 4.3 hours.

Detroit Electric said they only produce 999 units SP: 01 for sale to consumers is £ 90,000, equivalent to 2.88 billion. When sold, the main rival SP: 01 will be the Fisker Automotive and Tesla Roadster particularly billionaire Elon Musk. Telsa Roadster has a maximum speed of 201 km / h.

My Genetics, Muscle and Eating LOTS of Carbs

To this day I dislike the "skinny" word and believe me, I have had my share of teasing until I discovered how to build curves with resistance training.  I have my Dad's genetics and I am thankful, but it has been a challenge to put on muscle.  I am also constantly hungry and burn up energy like crazy so if I do not eat lots of carbs, I would not feel good and in fact, light headed.  My metabolism seems to work faster than I can fuel it and it can be frustrating.  Some say they can just look at food and gain 5lbs whereas if I look at food, my metabolism says let's burn it up.  I will not workout if I feel hungry and prefer to down a healthy meal before hitting the weights.

I just so happen to be one of those people on the other side of the spectrum that works hard to put weight on and fattening up with crap to be "skinny fat" is not what I am looking for. My goal is to pack on lean muscle mass and that is done eating quality healthy carbs, lean proteins, and healthy fats. I have been the brunt of online attacks for looking too skinny, too thin, manly and even have had anorexic tossed my way.  That has been overshadowed by my followers who enjoy seeing a woman with muscle on her build and knowledge that anorexics are unable to sustain lean mass because their body is wasting away using it for energy.  This blog is not about any "hate" thing because that goes along with being an Internet personality and putting myself out there to help people.  My skin is thick and my knowledge is confident and that is what matters.  Also, this personal share is to dive into how my body functions and what I do to maintain my muscle.

Genetics do play a small role in our physical appearance, but we absolutely have the power to change things by what we eat and how we challenge our bodies.  I work hard and eat (a lot) to support that.  I don't believe in diets nor do I teach that in my personal training practice.  Just because some genetics may predispose obesity doesn't mean that we are to accept it and not even try to be a healthy person.  The same goes for lean genetics like mine.  We are all in this boat together with differing body types and how they function.  Regardless of our body makeup, it is important to put up a fight for what we want and not give up.

I have recently published two outstanding articles on the about.com network "Eating for Muscle" and  "Diet Mistakes Women Make Trying to Gain Muscle" helpful for lean mass gain and also fat loss.  Check those out!

Are You Eating for Muscle?
Read the Article!

Diet Mistakes Trying to Gain Muscle
Read the Article!

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Be Well and Stay Healthy!

Appreciate We Have the Incredible Opportunity to Get Fit

I read this motivation today and I could not have penned it better myself, especially during the holiday season.  We lose sight of what an incredible opportunity we have to get fit and instead of looking at it as a burden, we should be spilling over with thankfulness.  Do you have a working body?  I do, and although I may have some medical limitations, it has taught me to appreciate what I can do with what I have.

Do we really have a right to sit and complain about how difficult getting healthy is when others can't even lift from a wheelchair?  We live in a stressed up world and most of the time self-induced with all the busy stuff that keeps us away from the important things in life.  Getting fit and healthy is a privilege just the same as growing older.  If our mindset is not screwed on right, we will make a mess of what life is all about, including how to treat our bodies.

Instead of looking at meal prep to keep you on track with your fitness goals as a pain in the butt, try looking at your healthy food with a thankful spirit of what it is going to do for your body.  There are many who only wish to have the healthy food stocking your pantry.  The same goes for exercise and having such a busy life to not fit in a 30 minute workout.  Really?! There are many who long everyday to even lift their own body weight from a wheel chair.  Try looking at your body as a beautiful gift and appreciate the awesome opportunity you have to get in shape.

It will be our mindset that carries us into the right way of thinking about getting fit.  Our bodies will not go where our mind does not push us and a thankful spirit is going to be a great place to start.  Let's celebrate the fact we can apply the effort to get fit because it is truly something to be thankful for.

I wish you all a beautiful Thanksgiving holiday and a renewed mindset and application of achieving your best healthy body. Be well and Stay Healthy!



Always updated articles on my about.com health website.  Did you know that famous burning "3500 Calories to Lose a Pound of Fat" is not accurate.  Read the article and plug in your own stats with the free weight change predictor calculator!

There is More to 3500 Calories Burns a Pound...Read the Article

Thanks for stopping by my Blog and don't forget to subscribe and never miss my free updates:

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Be well and Stay Healthy!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fitness is Not About Having All the Answers

Fitness is a process and an ongoing journey of learning what works and what doesn't.  There will be ups, downs, frustrations and victories fine tuning our daily choices.  The point is to continue the uphill climb to becoming our best healthy self.  It's not about having all the answers because we never will.  During our life, our bodies will change, circumstances will happen and the pursuit of health and happiness will need to continue no matter what.  Quitting is never an option for us.

Fitness comes at a price and we do not get a free pass to good health.  Life is not that easy although many of us search around for things believing it possible and spend too much money on wasted gimmicks and unregulated supplements.  It is really OK to take things slow and enjoy the fitness ride along the way.  We are all works in progress in search of being better than yesterday.  Mistakes are not seen as failure but opportunities of learning and not repeating.  The mastery of adopting a healthy lifestyle stems from our mistakes and shows us the areas we need to change to reach our fitness goals.

We learn how to do that each day through what we eat and drink, how we exercise, time spent resting, and even the balance of work vs. play.  The opportunity is there for us and without excuse and what it comes down to is priorities. Is your fitness taking a backseat to the busy going on in your life, or negative self talk that keeps you from even trying?  As I shared, it is not about having all the answers, but it does require you to not want to stay in an unhealthy life situation. Something for you to think about.  Be well and Stay Healthy!

I have published some informative articles on the about.com network that will help with your journey of health and fitness.  My newest article titled "Holidays Call For Us to Become Food Snobs" is an entertaining read full of fitness tips on how to maintain your shred through the holidays.

Become a Fitness Food Snob for the Holidays

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Darla Leal, Fit over 50

Food is Not the Enemy

It would be easy to blame food for being overweight and unhealthy, but the truth is food is not the enemy.  In fact, our survival is based on our need for food and water to run our body.  If we are honest about our lives, it is about taking responsibility for our fitness and making choices to keep us healthy.  Quality of food could be part of the issue, but then again who is making the decision to eat the frozen pizzas, burgers and fries in super size portions.  Actually, getting down to the chemistry and caloric needs of our body, eating too much is the biggest factor of not being fit.  Even if we ate the crap food and kept it within the calorie portion to run our body, we could be labeled 'skinny fat people'.  On the outside we may give an appearance of being an appropriate weight, but inside we are a hot mess and feeling like it.  There is nothing good that exists in processed fake food and the damage it does to our body through inflammation and disease is alarming.

Food is our friend and turning the crap into quality is what will change our bodies into fit, healthy people.  You have heard "no-one ever got fat eating too much kale"  and not that I would sit around eating kale all day but you get the point of the statement.  If we start eating to live instead of the other way around, a huge change in the obesity epidemic would happen as the shift toward eating the right stuff would finally be taking place.  How our bodies look and feel are our responsibility and we can absolutely use healthy food to control much of that.  We are hit in the face all day long with fast food commercials, peer pressure, and even sabotage by our own hands or significant other to turn to the dark side of food.  You have the power to see food as your friend and control what you put in your face.  The donut may look appealing but that apple is going to supply the best nutrients to fuel your body and push you closer to your fitness goals.

As the sports nutrition expert on the about.com network, I am always providing fresh exciting content for you.  Check out my recent articles on white rice, eating full-fats, how salt recommendations have been challenged and so much more.  You are guaranteed to find several subjects that interest you and may even have questions about.

Don't forget to subscribe below to never miss a free update of the Stay Healthy Fitness Blog!

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Be well and Stay Healthy!