To Your Health

newyearsresolutionIf you’re making resolutions about  your health this New Year’s, here are some local professionals that may help you follow through and get back the hourglass figure you want to see in your mirror. Happy New Year and Best of Luck!

“Two-thirds of American adults adopt a New Year’s resolution with fitness goals in mind, yet 73% of this subset doesn’t even come close to achieving their objectives,” according to a study conducted by Harris Interactive. Whether you have made New Year’s resolutions that involve your health, weight loss or gain, and body composition, or you are planning to exercise more, you may be able to improve your results with help from a local wellness and nutrition expert.

Medically supervised weight loss is just around the corner at Weightsmart, MD, behind Starbucks at Central Avenue and 66th Street. Weight loss is the specialty of Dr. Mark Roberts and his attractive team. Evening hours are available for a $99 introductory consultation. Using real food, FDA-approved appetite suppressants, and food plans that cut way down on carbohydrates, clients get real results and learn how to keep the weight off and live better lives. Call 727-343-9100 or visit www.weightsmartmdandwellness.com/ for more info.

Another committed individual we’ve benefitted from meeting is Eric Lawton, an active Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce member. His store, Max Muscle, a locally-owned, family-operated nutrition center, opened just south of Tyrone Mall in June 2013. They are offering exclusive supplement lines for health, sports nutrition and weight loss.

A visit to Max Muscle involves an introduction to the ‘In-Body 230 Body Composition Assessment machine’. This high tech device measures and analyzes body fat, lean muscle and hydration. NESTA-Certified Fitness nutrition coaches on staff educate and guide the proper use of the Pharmaceutical Grade supplements they sell.

Eric promises clients they can lose weight and never be hungry with his Nutrition Coaching and Planning for Results. Custom meal planning helps clients ‘stick to a healthy food plan’ from morning to night six or seven days a week to achieve desired results. There is even a shopping list provided to get whatever is needed. Benefits include fat loss, improved energy, better sleep, lean muscle support, and better performance. The scientific methods used are safe and effective for all age groups.

“The secrets are portion control and proper food combinations,” he says. “We can prove our systems work in a matter of weeks. To have permanent results, however, often requires at least subtle lifestyle changes.” To learn if this program is for you and how to get started, call Eric Lawton, NESTA-Certified Fitness Nutrition Coach, Max Muscle St. Pete, 727-343-3648, stop by the store at 6848 22nd Ave N. in St. Petersburg or visit online at www.maxmusclestpete.com or on Facebook.

If you are looking for help with your physical workout, Dave Smith might be your guy. Dave is a fitness coach specializing in corrective exercise and performance enhancement. He operates SmithBuilt Fitness in St. Petersburg, where he offers private coaching, personal training, corrective therapy and group fitness programs to individuals of all levels.  He brings his services directly to his clients, either in their home gyms or at his private, state-of-the-art studio.

“Odds are likely that you’ve tried and failed to reach your fitness goals, whether they were to lose belly fat, get toned, build strength or even train for a sporting event,” he says. “But, this year, things can be different. It’s all in your approach. Regardless of age, fitness is for everyone; success depends on setting expectations appropriately, picking the right type of exercise, working with someone qualified and correcting old injuries or mucular imbalances. Overcoming the latter is, as I see it, the biggest obstacle to getting and staying fit.

“Everyone has muscular imbalances.  Simply put, this is when one part of your body is much stronger than an opposing part.  When opposing muscles place different amounts of tension on a joint, you feel pain. That knee pain you have?  It’s not due to your knee, rather the muscular imbalance in your leg. This happens when your hip flexors and hamstrings become tight but their opposing muscles (your butt and quadriceps) are weak or less active. That chronic back pain you have?  It’s due to a weak core.  And what about that sciatica pain? A tight outer thigh might be to blame. Before signing up for Boot Camp, enrolling in Cross Fit or lacing up a pair of sneakers, seek out the right program for your age and fitness level. SmithBuilt Fitness customizes training programs for the individual.  When it comes to fitness, just like weight loss, one size does not fit all.” 

Visit smithbuiltfitness.com for more info, call Dave at (315) 383-7040 or email smithbuiltfitness@gmail.com.

Story by Peter A. Roos

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