On Saturday forty of us met up at Zurich Airport having travelled from Manchester, Heathrow or Birmingham and, on schedule, arrived within half an hour of each other. All was going so well until our transfer coach was delayed for 1 ½ hours due to an accident on the motorway which caused massive delays. So we, that’s myself and my two fellow holiday guides, looked after everyone’s luggage and we sent all our guests off shopping in the airport! The coach eventually arrived, everyone was wonderful and no one moaned once. Brilliant!
When we arrived in Lech in the Arlberg region of Austria, some two and a half hours later, a welcome drink of champagne awaited us literally as we stepped off the coach. What a welcome!
The views from the hotel are unbelievable. Beautiful mountains topped with snow, meadows blanketed with glorious flowers of every colour and description. Just imagine the scenes in the Sound of Music and that’s what we are looking at!
We have organised this holiday in the same hotel for 23 years. We have a packed programme and yesterday we enjoyed watching the Lech Town Band play in the town square, with the local residents dressed in traditional Austrian costume. It is a lovely sight. Last night, after an exquisitely presented four course dinner (all low fat of course) we watched a show of photographs of Lech in summer and winter. Everyone is relaxed and having a whale of a time.
But there is a serious side to this holiday. People come to eat healthily, take lots of exercise and learn about adopting a healthy lifestyle. Some are also serious about losing weight and we have seen some significant weight losses in previous years. To this end everyone who wanted to be was weighed in yesterday morning and each day, at 8 am, after the early morning brisk walk of 45 minutes, I weigh them again. This isn’t something I would normally recommend but unless they are monitored on a daily basis those drinks at the bar, the large and varied portions served to themselves each morning at breakfast can ruin their good intentions. And that’s not to mention the surreptitious apple strudel that might be consumed when no-one’s looking!
So today was the first day of monitoring. Despite generous portions of food and alcohol, because many had been on a couple of walks yesterday and some had even had a swim in the open air pool, most of them had lost weight this morning but some hadn’t. I’ve just finished giving them a talk on how to lose weight and portion sizes being crucial so I’m hoping the gainers will be losers tomorrow.
We are getting ready now to go trout fishing. It is an hour’s walk to the trout lake and we have to catch our own lunch. It is the most delicious trout I have ever eaten so I always feel it is worth the effort.
Some may go swimming afterwards and at 5 pm I will be teaching them aerobics in the school gym. This evening it’s quiz night so there will be lots of fun and laughter guaranteed.
Let’s hope it doesn’t rain for the trout fishing!
Showing posts with label Losing weight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Losing weight. Show all posts
Monday, 6 July 2009
Thursday, 18 June 2009
Why is exercise is so good for us?
Every year I run two Rosemary Conley Weeks – one at Ragdale Hall Health Hydro and one in Lech, Austria. They are both quite different but both are extremely rewarding as with each week, the guests are able to completely relax and enjoy beautiful surroundings and at the same time learn a great deal about diet and fitness. They are able to eat healthy low fat food that is prepared for them and undertake lots of exercise in all kinds of different forms. It works and that’s why this week is my 15th year at Ragdale and in two weeks’ time it will be my 25th year of running the Austria trip!
Ragdale Hall is only 20 minutes from where I live and they love organising this special week. This year we have around 90 guests in my group – including four husbands – and, as well as being pampered with facials, manicures, pedicures, rubs, soaks and massages in the most luxurious surroundings, they listen to three talks and have two workouts from me. By the end of the week they fully understand how to lose weight, become fitter, burn fat, tone up and eat healthily. Each year around two-thirds of the guests return for another helping of motivation and education to see them through the 12 months till we meet up again. It is a delightful week.
The Austrian trip is quite different. It is based on activity rather than pampering as each day we ramble through the mountains for a couple of hours, chatting together and soaking up the glorious scenery. Yes, the guests get the talks and the workouts, but the freshness of the mountain air is revitalising and the group do everything together – including the Concert Night when any of our guests who are talented in performing in some way – singing, poetry, comedy, acting, dancing – entertain us to our great delight. It is a unique holiday and every year we are fully booked.
Whilst we are able to enjoy beautiful healthy food on each of these weeks, it is the activities that make the difference. At Ragdale guests can go to as many classes as they wish in between their treatments and the fully equipped gym is there for everyone to enjoy. In Austria, there’s the early morning walk, the main hike (2 hours) plus a workout on most days, and that’s on top of the walk to the open air swimming pool for those who enjoy a dip.
By the end of each week most folk have lost weight. In Austria we have a Slimmer of the Week Award and it isn’t unusual for the winner to have lost seven or eight pounds! On both trips the guests eat very well but the difference is the activity they do. Exercising with others, in an environment that is conducive to being more active, is brilliant. It somehow seems more ‘normal’ and not so much of an effort. But we can develop habits at home that encourage that too.
It is important to realise that any exercise that makes you warmer and a bit out of breath is ‘aerobic’ and that all aerobic activity burns fat and stimulates our metabolic rate even after we stop exercising. On the other hand, using weights or a resistance band to do ‘toning’ exercise works our muscles and makes them stronger. The stronger our muscles, the higher our metabolic rate becomes. So it is easy to see that by including aerobic activities and toning exercises into our regular fitness plan, we are not only helping ourselves to lose weight and burn fat, we are strengthening our muscles and stimulating our metabolic rate. Add to that the fact that exercise helps to tone up our skin as we lose weight, so that it doesn’t go saggy and baggy, you really shouldn’t need any more convincing that exercise is good for you! And that’s before you take into account the fact that exercise helps our heart and lungs towards overall better health. It really is a win/win/win situation. There is absolutely no down side.
Our biggest excuse for not exercising is lack of time yet the average time we watch TV in the UK is 27 hours a week! If we could just find 30 minutes every day to be more active, we could transform our health, our weight and our figure!
Check out my DVDs if you want to exercise at home, or consider coming along to one of our Diet and Fitness Club classes and enjoy exercising with others just like you. Our website has all the details: www.rosemaryconley.com
Ragdale Hall is only 20 minutes from where I live and they love organising this special week. This year we have around 90 guests in my group – including four husbands – and, as well as being pampered with facials, manicures, pedicures, rubs, soaks and massages in the most luxurious surroundings, they listen to three talks and have two workouts from me. By the end of the week they fully understand how to lose weight, become fitter, burn fat, tone up and eat healthily. Each year around two-thirds of the guests return for another helping of motivation and education to see them through the 12 months till we meet up again. It is a delightful week.
The Austrian trip is quite different. It is based on activity rather than pampering as each day we ramble through the mountains for a couple of hours, chatting together and soaking up the glorious scenery. Yes, the guests get the talks and the workouts, but the freshness of the mountain air is revitalising and the group do everything together – including the Concert Night when any of our guests who are talented in performing in some way – singing, poetry, comedy, acting, dancing – entertain us to our great delight. It is a unique holiday and every year we are fully booked.
Whilst we are able to enjoy beautiful healthy food on each of these weeks, it is the activities that make the difference. At Ragdale guests can go to as many classes as they wish in between their treatments and the fully equipped gym is there for everyone to enjoy. In Austria, there’s the early morning walk, the main hike (2 hours) plus a workout on most days, and that’s on top of the walk to the open air swimming pool for those who enjoy a dip.
By the end of each week most folk have lost weight. In Austria we have a Slimmer of the Week Award and it isn’t unusual for the winner to have lost seven or eight pounds! On both trips the guests eat very well but the difference is the activity they do. Exercising with others, in an environment that is conducive to being more active, is brilliant. It somehow seems more ‘normal’ and not so much of an effort. But we can develop habits at home that encourage that too.
It is important to realise that any exercise that makes you warmer and a bit out of breath is ‘aerobic’ and that all aerobic activity burns fat and stimulates our metabolic rate even after we stop exercising. On the other hand, using weights or a resistance band to do ‘toning’ exercise works our muscles and makes them stronger. The stronger our muscles, the higher our metabolic rate becomes. So it is easy to see that by including aerobic activities and toning exercises into our regular fitness plan, we are not only helping ourselves to lose weight and burn fat, we are strengthening our muscles and stimulating our metabolic rate. Add to that the fact that exercise helps to tone up our skin as we lose weight, so that it doesn’t go saggy and baggy, you really shouldn’t need any more convincing that exercise is good for you! And that’s before you take into account the fact that exercise helps our heart and lungs towards overall better health. It really is a win/win/win situation. There is absolutely no down side.
Our biggest excuse for not exercising is lack of time yet the average time we watch TV in the UK is 27 hours a week! If we could just find 30 minutes every day to be more active, we could transform our health, our weight and our figure!
Check out my DVDs if you want to exercise at home, or consider coming along to one of our Diet and Fitness Club classes and enjoy exercising with others just like you. Our website has all the details: www.rosemaryconley.com
Tuesday, 9 June 2009
Losing weight is harder as we get older
Every Monday evening I teach a couple of classes at the Holiday Inn in Leicester. I have been teaching my classes there since 1986 and around 15 or so of my members have been coming to me since then and some of those women are now well into their seventies.
What I find so rewarding is that this special band of folk are fit and able, and their bodies are serving them well plus they have good figures. For many of them, this class is the only real exercise they do all week yet even that one class has made a significant difference to their health and wellbeing because along with the weekly exercise, they have lost weight and kept it at a healthy level. And that is crucial.
There is no doubt that if we want to live a long and healthy life, we need to keep our weight in check. Being slim makes a dramatic difference to our health at any age, but never more so than when we get older because our joints as well as our heart will suffer if we don’t. But losing weight when we are older is tough because our metabolic rate slows down with age.
The rate at which we burn calories (our metabolic rate) starts slowing down when we hit 30! Past the age of 60 it slows down significantly added to which we are usually less active in our daily lives so the risk of an increase in weight for many older folk is high. But we can do a lot to help ourselves.
As we get older our body tends to lose muscle strength (because we don’t use them as much as when we are younger, plus an older body isn’t as efficient at maintaining muscle tissue)and the body is more inclined to lay down fat. This is bad news all round! However, if we eat a low fat diet that is moderate in its portions we can lose weight or at least stop ourselves from gaining it. Then if we add physical activity, we can dramatically help ourselves by burning more calories as well as keeping out muscles strong and prevent muscle wastage. Strength workouts such as muscle toning exercises or using light weights will really help to maintain muscle and bone strength. Aerobic exercise (anything that makes you slightly out of breath and warm) will burn extra calories and also fat. By doing a combination of both, even if it is only once a week, will make a difference and if you cannot get to a class, working out to one of my DVDs will work wonders. I always include aerobics and toning in all my programmes so even one DVD will fulfil your needs.
So if you are young and reading this, try and get your weight to a healthy level while it is easier to do so and then maintain a healthy lifestyle into later life. If you are older, start taking action now so that you are investing into your old age. I love the saying ‘exercise is like a savings account. The more you invest the greater the dividends’.
Check out our website for details of my DVDs and our Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness classes. We are here to help you.
What I find so rewarding is that this special band of folk are fit and able, and their bodies are serving them well plus they have good figures. For many of them, this class is the only real exercise they do all week yet even that one class has made a significant difference to their health and wellbeing because along with the weekly exercise, they have lost weight and kept it at a healthy level. And that is crucial.
There is no doubt that if we want to live a long and healthy life, we need to keep our weight in check. Being slim makes a dramatic difference to our health at any age, but never more so than when we get older because our joints as well as our heart will suffer if we don’t. But losing weight when we are older is tough because our metabolic rate slows down with age.
The rate at which we burn calories (our metabolic rate) starts slowing down when we hit 30! Past the age of 60 it slows down significantly added to which we are usually less active in our daily lives so the risk of an increase in weight for many older folk is high. But we can do a lot to help ourselves.
As we get older our body tends to lose muscle strength (because we don’t use them as much as when we are younger, plus an older body isn’t as efficient at maintaining muscle tissue)and the body is more inclined to lay down fat. This is bad news all round! However, if we eat a low fat diet that is moderate in its portions we can lose weight or at least stop ourselves from gaining it. Then if we add physical activity, we can dramatically help ourselves by burning more calories as well as keeping out muscles strong and prevent muscle wastage. Strength workouts such as muscle toning exercises or using light weights will really help to maintain muscle and bone strength. Aerobic exercise (anything that makes you slightly out of breath and warm) will burn extra calories and also fat. By doing a combination of both, even if it is only once a week, will make a difference and if you cannot get to a class, working out to one of my DVDs will work wonders. I always include aerobics and toning in all my programmes so even one DVD will fulfil your needs.
So if you are young and reading this, try and get your weight to a healthy level while it is easier to do so and then maintain a healthy lifestyle into later life. If you are older, start taking action now so that you are investing into your old age. I love the saying ‘exercise is like a savings account. The more you invest the greater the dividends’.
Check out our website for details of my DVDs and our Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness classes. We are here to help you.
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