ASK THE TRAINER

My weekly answers to questions.

Q: About how much weight should I aim to lose a week?
A: I'm going to stick with the standard 1-2 pounds a week. Anything extra is great! Expect to lose more the first few weeks, then it will slow down to the 1-2 pounds a week, if that. Don't get frustrated, losing weight as part of a permanent lifestyle change will take some time. It's a slow process. I call it a roller coaster ride because you will have ups and downs, twists and turns, and may even fall off (but stay buckled in).

Q: How do I get past my plateau?
A: Many different ways, try them all till you push past it. Have you been logging everything you eat correctly? If not, begin to monitor it more closely. If you are not eating enough, add 200-300 calories. If too much, deduct calories. How much are you working out? Can you add 15 minutes a day or up the intensity? Try a totally new workout routine. Eat less processed foods, more clean foods. Up your water intake. The basic idea is to shake things up. It's better to shake things up BEFORE a plateau, so keep changing up and tweaking your routine.

Q: How "insane" is the Insanity workout?
A: Very, very intense. If you are relatively new to working out or not in great shape, you may want to sit this one out. It's very explosive, high intense mostly plyometric moves. If you have bad knees, consult your doctor about this workout. In fact, consult your doctor if you have any physical conditions before starting a workout program.

Q: I need to lose ten pounds in a month, can I?
A: No. That's my short answer. I actually get this question a lot. Losing 10 pounds in a month is definitely possible but it all depends. How much a person currently weighs, are they just starting out, how serious are they to losing the weight or is this just a short-term loss for a special occasion. I get the latter as the answer, someone wants to lose quickly for some event. Give yourself time to lose the weight the correct way and it won't come back again. To lose ten pounds a month, the average person has to cut calories to the lowest possible (1200 for women, 1500 for men) and exercise roughly 2 hours every day for a month. And even then, there's no guarantee you can lose 10 pounds in a month. I know there are special products, special workouts, articles in magazines that say you can, and you can....it's just not that a guarantee.

I lost a total of 43 pounds and it took 14 months! See Weight Loss Journey in Numbers blog. The most I lost in one month was maybe 7 pounds. And there were months I lost only one pound. Doesn't mean I didn't work just as hard that month. I was in it for the long haul, not just pushing at it for one month. Look at the big picture and make small goals. You will get there when you get there.

Keep the questions coming!