A BALANCED APPROACH TO FITNESS AND NUTRITION

Michael Anders, head trainer and owner of Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting, specializes in helping his clients navigate the various stressors in life so they'll have a more balanced approach to health, fitness and nutrition. 

Anders has a Masters Degree in Sports Science, Sports Medicine. He especially enjoys focusing on post-injury recovery and coaching his clients to help get their eating under control or optimize it for their sports and activities.

During the Living the Good Life As A Woman In 2018 event organized by financial advisor Alison Rowe of Baird Private Wealth Management, he shared his top tips. 

Set Realistic Goals

• To increase your success, set a goal to fix one negative habit at a time because success breeds success

• A goal should have a 90% chance of success at a minimum

• When setting a goal, don't include the words "never" or "always"

• If you find the goal you set isn't doable, reduce it until it is possible

Nutrition

• Eat meals slowly (slow eaters eat less food and reach satiation earlier)

• Eat until you're 80% full

• Eat mindfully without distractions (no phones or TV) because people who eat without distractions are more cued into their hunger/appetite feelings

• Focus on having protein with each meal

• Nutrition is a crucial element in any fitness transformation so start working on making healthier food choices as quickly as possible

Fitness

• Don't overcommit by saying you'll exercise 5 or 6 times a week - that's unrealistic

• Aim to exercise 3 times a week

• Something is better than nothing: even if you just exercise for 10 minutes a day that adds up

Fitness and nutrition expert Michael Anders of Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting.

GO-TO YOGURT

Whether your go-to yogurt is traditional Greek, Icelandic or Australian, to make sure it's the healthiest choice, check the label to find out if it has more probiotics and less sugar. 

Yogurt has become a healthy go-to for breakfast, snacks, smoothies, or in recipes to cut down on calories. 

Greek yogurt is The O Report's favorite because it has less lactose and sugar, but more protein, than traditional yogurt. (Greek yogurt has up to 20 grams of protein; traditional has 11-15 grams.) 

Also be on the lookout for Icelandic and Australian yogurts, which are just now appearing in U.S. supermarkets. Icelandic is the thickest of all varieties, but it's also the tartest; Australian is the creamiest, but has a higher fat content. Also new is Oui by Yoplait, a line inspired by the brand's French recipe. It comes in 5-ounce glass jars, which allows the yogurt to set up without added cornstarch or gelatin. 

No matter which kind of yogurt you prefer, a recent article in Better Homes & Gardens magazine listed two things to check the label for so you can make sure the yogurt you choose is the healthiest. 

1. Probiotic Check. Look for the Live & Active Cutlures seal on the label of dairy and nondairy yogurts. It means that it contains the highest amount of probiotics. If you don't see a seal, make sure L. bulgaricus and S. thermophilus are listed as ingredients. 

2. Sugar Check. Plain yogurts should have 9 grams or less of natural sugar per serving. Flavored yogurts should have less that 15 grams of sugar. If it's higher than 17 grams, it has the same sugar content as two Fun Size Snickers. 

THE BEST - AND THE WORST - FOODS

Photos courtesy of www.pexels.com. 

Every year the Nutrition Action Newsletter, which is published for consumers by the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest, releases its list of the Top 10 foods you should avoid and the Top 10 foods that are healthiest for you. 

Here are the two lists, and excerpts of the nonprofit's revue of each food item. For more details, go to www.nutritionaction.com. 

Worst

1. Stouffer's Satisfying Servings White Meat Chicken Pot Pies. "Eat the entire pie, as many people do, and you're talking 1,100 calls, 23 grams of saturated fat (more than a day's worth) and 1,560 mg of sodium (a day's worth)." 

2. Five Guys Burgers and Fries. "The hamburger (with no toppings) has 700 calories and a day's worth of saturated fat (20 grams) and makes a McDonald's Big Mac (540 calories) look wimpy. Add 950 calories for the regular fries. A large MdDonald's fries has "only" 500 calories."

3. Campbell's regular Condensed Soup. "An average cup has 800 mg of sodium. But most people eat the whole can of soup, which contains 2,000 mg of sodium - more than most adults should consume in an entire day."

4. Chipotle Chicken Burrito. "It has 1,050 calories, 17 grams of saturated fat and 2,400 mg of sodium - as much as six Taco Bell Chicken Soft Tacos." 

5. Chocolate Tower Truffle Cake at The Cheesecake Factory. "If it weren't served on its side, it would stand over six inches tall. It weighs in at three-quarters of a pound, has 1,810 calories and three days' worth of saturated fat (62 grams).

6. Uno Pizzeria & Grill's Deep Dish Mac & Cheese. "It has more calories and saturated fat than a Famiy Size box of Stouffer's Macaroni & Cheese that serves five."

7. Olive Garden's Tour of Italy. "It comes with 1,520 calories, 48 grams of saturated fat and 3,250 mg of sodium. Add a breadstick and a house salad with dressing and you'll consume 1,800 calories (nearly a day's worth)."

8. Starbucks Venti White Chocolate Mocha. "It's as bad as a McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese."

9. Haagen-Dazs ice cream. "A petite half-cup has a half a day's saturated fat, 300 calories and 4 teaspoons of added sugar."

10. Cold Stone Creamery's Oh Fudge! shake. "The 20 fl. oz. size has the saturated fat content of two 14-oz. ribeye steaks plus a buttered baked potato."

Best

1. Sweet Potatoes. "A nutritional superstar - one of the best vegetables you can eat."

2. Mangoes. "A cup supplies 100 percent of a day's vitamin C."

3. Plain Greek yogurt. "It has twice the protein of ordinary yogurt."

4. Broccoli. "It has tons of vitamin C, carotenoids, vitamin K and folate."

5. Wild Salmon. "It's rich in omega-3 fats, which may help reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. And wild-caught salmon is more sustainable than farmed salmon."

6. Crispbreads. "Whole-grain rye crackers (Wasa for example) have simple ingredients (whole-grain flour, water, salt and sometimes yeast)." 

7. Garbanzo Beans. "All beans are healthy, but garbanzos stand out because they're so versatile."

8. Watermelon. "A heavyweight in the nutrient department. And when they're n season, they're often locally grown, which means they may have a smaller carbon footprint that some other fruits."

9. Butternut Squash. "It's an easy way to get lots of vitamins A and C." 

10. Leafy Greens. "Don't miss out on powerhouse greens such as Kale, collards, spinach, mustard greens and Swiss chard."