The Cenegenics Times

The Nutrition & Fitness Department Newsletter
Issue 08 4th Quarter 2012
The Cenegenics Times
Photo Shoots
Enhance Your
Motivation to
Do It!
Top 8 Holiday
Workouts!
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LATEST FROM CENEGENICS ®
Message from the CEO – John E. Adams
As we enter the last quarter of
2012, it’s nonstop forward motion
at Cenegenics.
We’re excited to announce our
newest center—Cenegenics
Puerto Rico—has officially
opened in San Juan. It is our first
center outside the contiguous
U.S., creating a doorway to the
Caribbean, Central America and
South America. Overseeing the
center is our physician partner
Dr. Claudia Villate, board-certified
in internal medicine and an eight-year Cenegenics physician
affiliate.
Meanwhile, our Cenegenics Atlanta center moved to a new
5,000-square-foot facility to better accommodate its ongoing
growth. Kudos to the center’s CEO/CMO, Cenegenics physician
partner Dr. Randy Smith and his team . . . and much success at their
prestigious new surroundings in Sanctuary Park.
On the research front,
Cenegenics had its scientific
expert review—“Topical
Testosterone Gel for
the Treatment of Male
Hypogonadism”—published
in Clinical Medicine Insights, a
journal of Libertas Academica.
Among those joining our Chief
Medical Officer Dr. Robert D.
Willix, Jr. in the collaborative
effort was Dr. Ernst R. von
Schwarz, the Chief Medical
Officer of the Heart Institute of
Southern California/professor
of medicine at UCLA’s David
Geffen School of Medicine.
Even better news? We’re
developing new services,
centers and programs to make
2013 another year where we
go beyond medical excellence.
Visit our news/blog site at
CenegenicsPost.com.
Like our Facebook Fan Page
and follow us on Twitter.
The official Cenegenics
Facebook page:
Facebook.com/Cenegenics
If you’ve got a Twitter
account, follow us here:
Twitter.com/CenegenicsAMM
Watch official
Cenegenics videos:
YouTube.com/CenegenicsAMM
Message from the CMO
Robert D. Willix, Jr., MD – Cenegenics Boca Raton
CENEGENICS' PROACTIVE GOAL FOR THE HOLIDAYS
You probably have forgotten last year’s holiday debacle—the guilt
because your blood sugar had never been so high, not even your
fat person’s clothes fit and you missed more workouts during the
holidays than you actually completed all year.
Well, it’s time for the blessed holidays to begin. It starts with
too much candy on Halloween, then the pumpkin pie on
Thanksgiving, the home-made cookies, pie and ginger bread or
the dreaded fruit cake at Christmas. It then crescendos with the
January 1st hangover and the New Year’s resolutions.
•
Set a goal to compete
in a charity race with
someone who never
dreamed s/he could do
any race
•
Let our Cenegenics
team show you how to
prepare for the holidays
by lowering your risk with
our anti-inflammatory
nutrition plan
•
Donate your time or
money helping the needy
(e.g. work at a soup
kitchen)
Couple all these festivities with the guilt, the tight jeans, feelings of
failure and slight depression . . . and you’ve got the holiday cycle.
Break it! The number one reason for a family doctor visit is stressrelated illness. But the holidays don’t have to be stressful—if you
change the pattern. Let’s start with a new paradigm from the
Cenegenics' Proactive Guide to a Better Life.
If you want to reduce your
stress and have a rewarding
holiday season, start thinking
of how to reach out to
someone you don’t know.
2
THE CENEGENICS ® TIMES
Message from the Editor
Jenn Zerling, MS, CPT – Cenegenics Beverly Hills
It’s that time again . . . Happy holidays!
Can you believe the year is already in its last stages?
A
s the year winds down, you have
an opportunity to reflect on all
your 2012 accomplishments
and dive into your goal sheets for 2013.
Throughout that process, it’s imperative
to keep vigilant on your age management
journey, not allowing your eating and
exercise patterns to slip.
Yes, there are celebrations in this season—
delicious meals, and for some, the bubbly
libations. But you also have the option of
remaining strong within the fundamentals
of leading a healthy way of life . . . yet still
revel in the holiday spirit.
This issue of the TIMES gives you tools on
how to jam through the holiday season
without losing focus. Your focus can easily
shift when your schedule shifts. However,
it is truly up to you to stay on track despite
what the holidays bring.
How? Schedule your workouts, your meal
preparation and make the decision to
follow through with each item you set for
yourself every day. No matter how busy
you get, take care of you so you can be the
great executive, spouse, parent and friend
that you are to others. By taking care of
yourself, you optimize your relationships,
both in business and personally—and
you also feel physically, mentally and
emotionally awesome!
Another way to truly stay focused
in your program is to schedule
your annual exam. This exam is very
motivating because it revisits your initial
assessment results and allows you to get
better. Call your program coordinator
today to schedule your annual exam. It’s
quite rewarding to witness your fitness
levels, body composition, labs and other
clinical assessments improve.
You get to choose how you march into
2013. Will you possess an ambitious mind
that clears the way for optimal health? Or
will it be a repeat of last year? The choice
is yours. The fitness and nutrition team
is here to assist you to be at your best . . .
after all, you certainly deserve it!
Take your VO2 max results to the next
level by switching up your interval
program. Some ways of measuring
improvement is retesting your VO2 max
test at your annual exam, feeling your
rate of perceived exertion strengthen
during exercise, decreasing your
recovery in between interval sets and,
of course, through visible physique
transformation.
Connect with your
lifestyle counselor at
CenegenicsLivingOnline.com.
We love hearing from you—and welcome any suggestions or feedback
you may have. Email them to me at [email protected].
3
FITNESS
Top 8 Holiday Workouts
Alison Frerichs, CPT – Cenegenics Atlanta
During this time of the year, many people find it challenging to
incorporate an active, invigorating exercise routine into their
tremendously busy holiday lifestyle and travel planning.
H
elp is here. Pick a workout for
each day to improve lean muscle
mass during the season. Most
gyms have classes or trainers for more
guided expertise
TRX workout. Do squat rows with “Y
Fly,” low rows, power pulls and one-arm
curls. Rest one to two minutes in between
exercises; exercise to full muscle fatigue or
failure—typically to AMRAP (as many reps
as possible).
HIIT workout (high-intensity interval
training). A sample program to follow:
•
Warm-up jog of 0.5 – 1.5 miles
•
Perform an alternating jog/run or
rapid walk/jog for 2 miles. After every
quarter mile (or 3 – 4 minutes), stop
and do 25 pushups. Sprint the last
quarter mile (or last 3 – 4 minutes)
•
Tricep dips (on bench or chair if not in
a gym), 4 sets to failure
•
Pull ups (if no bar is available,
substitute mountain climbers), 4 sets
to failure
Supersets. Choose two or three major
muscle groups and superset each exercise
(for example, chest/back or biceps/
triceps). Select two to three different
exercises for each body part and perform
two to three sets of each.
Navy S.E.A.L. fitness. 46 situps, 47
pushups, 1.5-mile run in 13:05 minutes,
500-yard swim in 14:10 minutes (or do a
run).
Pyramids or drop sets. Once a week,
change the rep range or weight amount
for successive sets. No more than 60 reps
recommended.
DVD series workouts. Think P90X,
Insanity or Cathe Friedrich. Pack them in
a suitcase or download an application on
your phone!
Yoga. Do yoga for 45 to 60 minutes to
stretch muscle fibers , improve core
strength and relax your mind.
Boot camp. Most gyms offer 45-or-60
minute classes almost daily—i.e. timed
60-second intervals in a full-body workout,
variety of exercises, even plyometric
exercises.
Remember, your Cenegenics nutrition/
fitness counselor is always available as
a resource for your specific nutrition
and exercise needs.
What's your heart rate zone during cardio workouts?
You need to know. It can mean the difference between over/under training—or exercising at the right intensity.
Make every cardio session count. Use a Polar heart rate monitor.
Ask your fitness/nutrition counselor how to incorporate your heart rate zone into your fitness program.
yy The EnergyPointer shows if the effect of your training is fitness
improvement or fat burning
yy Displays calories burned
yy Comes with comfortable textile transmitter and coded heart rate
transmission to avoid cross-talk
4
NUTRITION
Inflammaging ...
The New Word on the Street
Barbara H. Schuman, ACSM-CPT, NSCA-CPT – Cenegenics Boca Raton
Every day the media is posting news stories about the rise of obesity,
diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s and cancer. What’s not making the
daily headlines is the most dramatic detail linking all these ailments.
W
hat is that? Chronic
inflammation or inflammaging
is a condition generally
not treated on its own by mainstream
physicians, unless it occurs alongside
another complaint, such as arthritis. The
stealthy silence of chronic, low-level
inflammation conceals its devastating
capacity to destroy our health at a cellular
level and accelerates our aging process.
•
Chronic inflammation is activated
through extreme calorie consumption,
an abundance of saturated and transfats and excessive amounts of refined
carbohydrates, which causes elevated
blood sugar levels. Refined carbohydrates
include bread, pasta, rice and all cereals.
When sugar circulating in your blood
stream comes in contact with proteins
and lipids, a destructive reaction results in
compounds called advanced glycation
end products (AGES). These attach to
the cell receptors activating numerous
inflammatory molecules and genes
associated with producing all the chronic
ailments associated with aging.
•
Here’s how to combat inflammaging:
To discover the inflammatory
rating of most foods, go to www.
inflammationfactor.com. A handy App
called IFTracker (Inflammation Tracker)
is available on the iPhone. Combining
your knowledge of low-glycemic index
nutrition with the food ratings on this
site will help you achieve a higher-level
success in the war against inflammation!
•
2-6 grams of omega -3 fish oil per day
resolves acute/chronic inflammation,
reducing the occurrence and
consequences of cardiovascular
disease, metabolic syndrome, lung
disease, neurodegenerative diseases
and cancer.
Exercise lowers the cytokines
and pro-inflammatory molecules
independent of weight loss.
References
1.
Karin et al. Innate Immunity gone awry: Linking microbial
infections to chronic inflammation and cancer. Cell.2006;
124 (4): 823-825
•
Avoid eating charcoal grilled meats
blackened from high temperature.
2.
Mosquera JA. Role of the receptor for advanced glycation
end products (RAGE) in inflammation. Invest. Clin, 2010 Jun;
52(2): 257-68
•
Increased soluble and insoluble fiber
intake, 27-64 grams/day can decrease
C-reactive protein (CRP) along with
other inflammatory markers.
3.
Francheschi,C. Inflammaging as a major characteristic of
old people: Can it be prevented or cured? Nutr Rev. 2007
Dec;65(12 Pt 2):S173-6
4.
Das UN. Essential fatty acids and their metabolites could
function as endogenous HMG-CoA reductase and Ace
enzyme inhibitors, anti-arryhthmic, anti-hypertensive,
anti-atherosclerotic, anti-inflammatory, cytoprotective, and
cardioprotective molecules. Lipids Health Dis. 2008;7:37
5.
Gonzalez-Periz et al. Obesity induced insulin resistance
and hepatic steatosis are alleviated by omega-3 fatty
acids: a role for resolvins and protectins. FASEB J.2009
Jun:23(6):1946-57
6.
Matasuyama W et al. Effects of omega-3 poyunsaturated
fatty acids on inflammatory markers in COPD. Chest. 2005
Dec;128(6):3817-27
7.
Tassoni D et al. The role of eicosanoids in the brain. Asia
Pacific J Clin Nut 2008;17 Suppl 1:220-8
8.
Wendel, Heller AR. Anticancer actions of omega-3 fatty
acids-current state and future perspectives. Anticancer
Agents Med Chem. 2009 May;9(4);457-70
9.
Bruunsgard, H. Physical activity and modulation of systemic
low-level inflammation. J Leukoc Biol. 2005;78(4):819-835
10.
Viassara H, Cal, Crandall J et al. Inflammatory mediators
are induced by dietary glcotoxins, a major risk factor for
diabetic angiopathy. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2002; 99(24):
15596-15601
11.
North et al. The effects of dietary fibre on C-reactive
protiein, an inflammation marker predicting cardiovascular
disease. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2009;63(8);921-933
12.
Gordon et al. Adrenal and gonadal steroids inhibit IL-6
secretion by human marrow cells. Cytokine. 2001;16(5):178186
13.
Galland, L. Diet and Inflammation. Nutr Clin Pract. 2010;
2(6): 634-640
14.
Krishan, AV et al. The role of Vitamin D in cancer prevention
and treatment. Endocrinol. Metab. Clin. North Am.
2010;39(2):401-18
15.
Meydani M. Vitamin E and atheroclerosis; beyond
prevention of LDL oxidation. J Nutr. 2001 Feb;131(2):366585
•
•
DHEA, an adrenal hormone that
is a precursor to testosterone and
estrogen, can suppress inflammatory
cytokine activity.
Micronutrients such as magnesium,
vitamin D , vitamin E , zinc and
selenium have proven effective in
reducing inflammation.
Good daily defense: chile peppers,
kale, spinach, onions, garlic, caviar,
salmon, halibut, sardines, anchovies,
ginger, turmeric, cayenne pepper,
Brazil nuts, almond butter and olive
oil.
5
LIFESTYLE
Holidays Can Go Hand-in-Hand
with Healthy Choices!
Kate Sanders, MS, ACSM HFS – Cenegenics Boston
The holiday season is rich with the company of friends and family. It is
equally rich with well-intentioned "enablers" who inadvertently cause
you to revert to poor behaviors that will throw you off your Cenegenics
program.
T
he last thing you want to do is
upset your host by declining her
Grandma’s special pumpkin pie.
Or perhaps you want to sneak in a quick
workout on a holiday and you "catch a lot
of slack" from your family.
Enablers have good intentions, as they
encourage you to relax and enjoy the
festivities.
However, feasting on pumpkin pie,
skipping workouts and sitting on a couch
sipping on a glass of eggnog, add up in
calories—and perhaps even pounds!
So, how do you strike a balance between
enjoying holiday treats, staying on track
and disabling the enablers?
Avoid derailing your plan by considering
the following scenarios:
1. Plan your meals in advance. Decide
what you want to eat, or not eat,
ahead of time. If you are dining at a
restaurant, check out the menu and
make your selection before getting
there. If you’re headed to a party,
commit to "no dessert" or "one glass
of wine." Then, stick to your plan.
2. A friend asks you to meet for
dinner on Thursday, but you had
intentions of working out. One
option is to suggest an alternative
day, but refrain from sharing why
Thursday will not work. Most
people see exercise as optional, not
mandatory. Save yourself a defensive
debate that may very well lead to
skipping the workout. You may also
consider engaging in your workout
and seeing your friend afterward.
3. Whether you’re attending an office
party or Thanksgiving dinner, bring
a dish that you will eat. This is a
built-in guarantee that you will have
at least one healthy option to choose
from. Chances are your peers won’t
even realize you’re eating ‘differently’
from anyone else.
A lot of times, our biggest obstacle to
improved health is not ourselves but
other people. This is magnified during the
holiday season.
Stand your ground and remind yourself
that a healthy way of life can be
maintained in the company of friends and
family, even during the holiday season!
It all boils down to your willingness and
motivation to stay on track with your age
management plan.
6
RECIPE OF THE QUARTER
Fajita Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Brandi Reed – Cenegenics Beverly Hills
The perfect dish for holiday parties or for your family can be made
in less than 25 minutes.
Ingredients:
Preparation:
1 bag of frozen French green beans
You will need two sauté pans.
1 bag of mélange fire-roasted bell peppers
In the first pan: Heat 3 tablespoons of
grapeseed oil, then add the sweet potato.
Sauté until slightly brown for about 15
minutes.
1 bag of pre-washed romaine hearts
1 large sweet potato, diced into small, thin
squares
4 oz of plain feta cheese
1 basket of cherry tomatoes, diced
horizontally
1 avocado, diced into small chunks
Free range chicken breasts (pre-seasoned
is an option)
While that is sautéing: Heat the
remaining tablespoon of oil in another
pan at medium-to-low heat. Add in
the chicken, keep turning for about 10
minutes.
Add in the entire bag of bell peppers and
¼ cup of feta cheese. Sauté for another 10
minutes.
Back to the pan of sweet potatoes:
Add in 1 cup of the French green beans.
Sprinkle salt, lemon pepper and red
pepper flakes and toss with the diced
sweet potatoes. Sauté for another 5
minutes or until potatoes are soft and
green beans are cooked.
Finale: Take one romaine leaf and place
some of the chicken dish inside the leaf,
topping it with tomatoes and avocado.
Use salsa for added flavor.
Then, scoop out some of your sweet and
spicy potatoes with green beans and
place it onto your dish for a delicious
healthy side dish.
Bon appétit!
D
TH OWNL
EP
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HE
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!
4 tablespoons of grapeseed oil
½ tablespoon of sea salt
½ tablespoon of lemon pepper
¼ teaspoon of crushed pepper flakes
Preventing disease is
what we do.
Heart Dis
ease
Preventio & Stroke
n Program
Unique. A
dvanced. C
ompr
from Cenege
nics® Med
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ehensive.
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ive Medical
Powerful.
Approach
for Optimi
zed Health
Now we’re targeting
it head on with a
totally new level
of medicine—and
a focus on heart
attacks and stroke.
7
NUTRACEUTICAL OF THE QUARTER
Probiotics
Beth Traylor, MD, FAAFP – Cenegenics Las Vegas
The holidays are fast approaching. Whether you view them as a time for
celebrations with friends and family or downright stressful, there is one
undeniable truth you need to know.
A
nd here it is: They present quite
a challenge when it comes to
sticking to a healthy diet and
exercise regimen.
Don’t despair and just throw in the
towel. While there is no magical fix for
the damage that may be done with
indiscriminate feasting and lack of
exercise, evidence suggests that probiotics
may be one means of mitigating against
at least some of the damage that can
occur from a high-glycemic holiday diet.
Here’s why. The human gastrointestinal
tract is a complex entity that is responsible
not just for nutrient absorption, but also
a multitude of other regulatory systems
involved in the maintenance of health
and wellness. It functions as a barrier to
toxins and diseases, acting as a barrier to
“screen” what moves into and out of the
bloodstream. It is an immune modulator
and even plays a role in nervous system
function by releasing chemical mediators
that affect not just the “gut,” but the entire
central nervous system.
Your gut is home to trillions of microbes
representing more than 500 different
species of bacteria or yeasts. Most are
normal organisms, critical for health,
assisting in eliminating disease-causing
microorganisms. They are needed for
required vitamins, i.e. biotin, pantothenic
acid and vitamin B12.
According to nutritional expert and
noted author Jonny Bowden, PhD, CNS,
processed carbohydrates (i.e. bread
and cereals) are like “Miracle Gro” for
pathological organisms. Alteration of the
normal balance of bacteria and yeast—
whether it is from high-glycemic carbs or
antibiotic use—can wreak havoc on the
body.
The use of fermented dairy products to
treat disease and maintain health has
been discussed since Biblical times. In
the early 20th century, serious work
on the subject was undertaken by the
Pasteur Institute in Paris. The actual
term “probiotics” was coined and first
introduced in 1953. Since then, modernday research into the role of healthy gut
organisms has skyrocketed.
Check the benefits.
•
Build a healthy immune system
•
Reinforce the barrier function of the
intestinal lining preventing bacteria
and toxins from adhering and/or
being absorbed into the body—
and also prevent food allergies
by blocking allergens from being
absorbed, which also may have a
beneficial effect in decreasing eczema
for those with atopic dermatitis
•
Secrete antimicrobial substances
called “bacteriocins” that actually kill
off the pathogenic (disease-causing)
organisms
•
Deliver cholesterol-lowering effects in
animal studies
•
Exhibit potential anticarcinogenic
properties by reducing cancerproducing enzymes in the gut
•
Exhibit antioxidant properties
•
Facilitate detoxification
•
Build healthy intestinal lining
•
Aid vitamin K and B production
•
Reduce incidence of antibioticassociated diarrhea
•
Help maintain remission in
inflammatory bowel disease patients
•
May be useful in treating the gut
inflammation seen in many chronic
fatigue syndrome patients
•
Restore the normal balance in
females with vaginal and/or urinary
infections
Beware, not all probiotics are
created equal. Many over-the-counter
probiotics—even those sold in higher-end
retail outlets—don’t contain sufficient
bacterial species in adequate quantities of
living organisms to have any benefits.
8
TA-65®
About TA-65®
TA-65® is a proven telomerase activator* that was discovered by California biotech company Geron,
and licensed to T.A. Sciences.
The patented supplement targets one of the primary causes of aging, shortened telomeres—the protective end-caps
of DNA at both ends of every chromosome.
Cells divide daily, creating a problem as the years march on. With cell division, telomeres grow shorter, eventually
altering the chromosomes and leading to cell death or senescence (cellular aging where cells malfunction
and can no longer divide).
How is TA-65® made?
TA-65 is a naturally occurring single molecule found in the ancient Chinese
herb Astragalus. T.A. Sciences has developed a proprietary process to refine
and purify TA-65.
Our process begins with tons of plant material harvested from selected
farms in one small region in China. In our plant extraction facility, the raw
Astragalus root is chopped up and refined.
After initial extraction, the base ingredient is further purified and then sent
to an outside government testing facility where it is tested for purity, heavy
metals, and pesticides.
The product is then sent to a FDA-certified, state-of-the-art, laboratory for
final purification that ends up with 90+% pure TA-65.
Why not simply buy Astragalus extracts in a health food store?
Astragalus extracts can be found in most health food stores, but such
products contain little or no TA-65.
We tested 4 commonly available Astragalus extracts and none of them contained any measureable amounts of TA-65
(the test assay is accurate to one part per million).
Our proprietary production process starts with 3 tons of plant material and ends up with capsules that we guarantee
contain 5mg of TA-65.
DR. SAYS …
Telomere Testing and Treatment
Mickey Barber, MD – Cenegenics Carolinas
Our partnership with Life Length®—a leading telomere testing and
services company—allows us to test and analyze critically short
telomeres by taking a patient's blood sample.
I
f the lab results indicate short
telomeres, we have a set of
comprehensive therapies that may
slow the shortening of telomeres and
reverse signs of aging due to critically
short telomeres. The therapeutic process
may even cause some telomeres to
lengthen, which could mean previously
aging cells may become younger than
before.
This isn’t magic—it’s science. Numerous
studies demonstrate links between
chronic stress and poor health, including
risk factors for cardiovascular disease and
poor immune function. There are studies
that offer evidence that psychological
stress is significantly associated with
higher-oxidative stress, lower telomerase
activity and shorter telomere length,
which are known determinants of cell
senescence and longevity in peripheral
blood mononuclear cells from healthy
premenopausal women.
How do we treat shortened telomeres?
Besides recommending changes in diet,
exercise and lifestyle (multiple recent
studies indicate that longer telomeres are
associated with higher physical activity
levels), we offer the nutraceutical TA-65®,
an all natural molecule that is isolated
from the astragalus root and known as a
telomerase activator.
Most human cells have the potential to
live a lot longer than they do. Whether
they "just live a lot longer" or are
actually immortal is directly related to
the expression of an enzyme present
in almost all cells but "turned off." That
enzyme is called telomerase, and TA-65
turns it on.
Can you buy TA-65 online and take it?
You can, but there are no guarantees that
what you’re getting is actually TA-65—
not to mention that not everyone needs
supplementation with neutraceuticals and
the dose should be carefully monitored
based on lab work.
We’ve seen amazing results with this
treatment in practice, not just in reduction
of risk factors for heart disease and other
age-related health problems, but also
anecdotally from patients who have
experienced the positive effects from TA65 personally.
And because I am a pre-menopausal
woman in my 50s as well as a Cenegenics
patient, I have experieinced these
improvements firsthand.
Recently someone asked me if I had
plastic surgery on my face since I last saw
him a few months prior. I haven’t . . . and
the only change is my taking TA-65!
10
PATIENT KUDOS
Patient interview by Jenn Zerling, MS,
– CPT Cenegenics Beverly Hills
R.D.
JZ: You’ve had such amazing results. What
made you join Cenegenics?
RD: I felt like I was a mess. I knew
something was wrong and was trying to
correct the situation by myself. I knew I
needed help, so I reached out to a doctor
at the Cenegenics Las Vegas office, then I
got Dr Life’s book. The book’s diet seemed
to be too much of an effort.
JZ: What seemed like too much effort in
the book?
RD: Well, I knew I was overweight and
had too much body fat. I wasn’t feeling
well. My whole life goal was to not be
afraid of aging. Every time someone said,
“I’m gonna be 40,” I would say, “I’m looking
forward to being 40!”
Then when someone said, “Ugh, I’m gonna
be 50,” I would say, “I’m looking forward to
being 50.”
My plan was to be the same at 40, then
50, 60 and so forth. But then at 60, I
was getting sluggish and my attitude
and eating habits sucked—and I didn’t
maintain my weight properly. Before I
came to Cenegenics, I was about 215
pounds. The problem is, everyone always
told me I looked great, I guess because of
my frame. Then I would get home, look in
the mirror and ask myself, “What the heck
are they talking about? I felt like a fat pig!”
2011
RD: His diet is pretty restrictive. I was
thinking of getting down to below 10%,
but then I didn’t know if I can handle that
kind of lifestyle. At the time, I was 68
1/2, and didn’t think I could change my
ways. But it kept resonating with me and
that’s when I called Dr Lal and made an
appointment.
JZ: What was your body fat percentage
when you started your Cenegenics
program?
RD: It was almost 30%.
JZ: It was 26.6%. That was back in June
2011. By April 2012, it was down to 9.3%.
RD: It’s gotta be about 7% now.
JZ: Very possible. But to keep it in
perspective, you went from 51 pounds
of fat last year to 16 pounds this year—a
30-pound drop in fat.
RD: Well, that’s what the program is
designed to do as long as you adhere to it!
JZ: Yes, those are the key words, as long as
you adhere to it. Richard, you mentioned
before that you were such a mess. Can
you define what that meant for you?
11
PATIENT KUDOS
Interview cont'd…
JZ: So how did you decide to change in
that moment?
RD: Looking at the photos of Dr Life
and the other men and what they
accomplished made me realize that if they
can do it, I can do it easily.
JZ: What life situations threw you off track
right around 60 to cause you to gain a lot
of weight and be thrown off your path of
healthy aging?
RD: Just uncontrollable eating habits. I
was enjoying everything. And then my
daughter got married. I didn’t expect
that because she was almost 40, then she
had a baby. At that point, I realized what
I wanted was to see this grandchild go to
college and get married. So I knew I had to
do something about my health.
JZ: How old are you Richard?
RD: I will be 70 on October 4th. I’m very
happy with the results. My biggest fear is
getting stupid and eating like a fool again.
But I’m so happy with where I’m at . . . I just
need to keep a vigilant eye.
JZ: I feel confident you will forever use
the tools we’ve given you to keep up the
lifestyle you attained.
RD: Exactly! I keep reminding myself of
that!
2012
JZ: What an urgency factor!
RD: I also have two grandsons who like to
hunt, so I had to stay in good shape to do
these things. And looking at Dr Life, I told
myself that if I can look half as good as
him, then I will be okay.
JZ: Are the lifestyle changes you made
sustainable for you?
RD: The nutrition is very easy to follow,
and I love the food you have me on. I love
fruit and cottage cheese, and proteins. My
dinners are much smaller. I no longer do
16 ounces of steak. I’ve cut back in half.
JZ: Do you drink alcohol?
RD: I do, but I’ve cut down substantially,
having only a glass of wine about three
times a week and maybe once a month,
an iced vodka. I used to drink beer, but I
cut that out.
12
MEDICINE IN THE RAW
The Perfect Storm
Paul Thompson, MD – Cenegenics Dallas Fort Worth
We’re quickly approaching that time of year—the ultimate health
challenge that is the trifecta of obesity, also known as the winter
holiday season.
T
he scheduling couldn’t be worse.
Three holidays revolve around
over-consumption, one right after
another. If that’s not bad enough, there’s
a warm-up event called Halloween, when
high-sugar treats are as plentiful as food
stamps.
The biggest problem with these holidays
is their close approximation in time.
They are like a train of temptation blowing
through our healthy disciplined routine.
Without planning, that train is likely to
knock us off track if we aren’t careful.
As we say in the Boy Scouts, “Be, be, be
prepared.” Keep these tips in mind so
come January, you won’t be digging out
your big boy pants.
1. Cheat Day. One day a week of
splurging is okay, so don’t beat
yourself up over it. Get back on your
exercise and nutrition routine pronto.
If one day turns into a week, then
you’ll need to go back through the
induction phase. That means keeping
your glycemic index down below 54
for two weeks straight. No cheat days
and no alcohol!
2. Social functions. That’s a nice word
for alcohol-and-food-laden gettogethers. Step away from the bar
and food table. Don’t graze at the
buffet. Fill a small plate and move
away from the temptation. Eating
with your fingers? Remember to
extend the pinky.
3. Alcohol. Dry red wine is your best
choice—and it has notable heart
benefits. Two glasses for men and one
for women. Go over that and you lose
the health benefits, personal restraint
and maybe your dignity and your
job. Skip the fruity, sugary punch and
mixers. Just drink plain water.
4. Workouts. Make every attempt to
continue your workout routine. There
is no excuse to skip your workout no
matter where you are. A few days off
your routine can lead to a disaster.
With that said, you can’t rely on your
workout to fix mistakes made with
consumption. You can’t out-exercise
bad nutrition!
These rules should help keep your
program on track through the firestorm.
If you should fall off your horse, stand up,
brush yourself off and get back on.
What if?
What happens when your business offers your
employees/top execs healthy aging coaching
from the world leader in the field?
Plenty. For starters . . .
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lower healthcare costs
lower workers' comp/disability
greater work capacity & performance
healthier, stronger, happier work culture
better stress management
Check out the possibilities. Optimized Health™.
www.optimizedhealth.net
13
CORPORATE WELLNESS
Jenn Zerling interviews Katrina Hall
from the Cenegenics Carolinas offices
Cenegenics Carolinas
Friendly Competition
JZ: Tell us about your program.
KH: We’re doing an incentive with all of
our employees for the two clinics in the
Carolinas. Using the Olympics theme,
Riley (the Cenegenics Nutrition and
Fitness counselor in Charleston) and I (the
counselor in Charlotte) drew names out of
a hat and assigned staff members to one
of two teams.
Members from both clinics—including
the two doctors from each clinic—were
on either Team Katrina or Team Riley. Our
roles are to help improve each person’s
VO2 max within a time frame set between
mid-July and October. During that time,
we are using Cenegenics Living Online
(CLO) so that staff members are wellversed with the site since we use it with
our patients, while getting them results.
Our main goal is to implement better
aerobic capacities by writing interval
programs and weight training workouts
for each team member. Riley is training
everyone twice a week to participate in
the Susan B. Komen 5K run. This is a great
opportunity for everyone because many
of the participants have never done a 5K
before. All team members are getting
assistance from Riley since they all live in
Charleston, and I’m in Charlotte.
JZ: How are you ensuring fairness with
team members since Riley sees his team
every day and you don’t since you’re in a
different office?
KH: Despite the fact I’m in a different
office than my team, every team member
still got an exercise prescription written
for them based on their VO2 max test and
their current fitness level.
JZ: So your main reason for doing this
contest is to teach other employees about
what you and Riley do for Cenegenics?
KH: Exactly! We all get consumed in what
we do each day, that it’s easy to not fully
understand each other’s roles in the clinic.
By getting the team members to do this
fitness contest, they can talk about the
different assessments and get excited with
the patients about what’s behind each
test.
As each person performed their test,
everyone watched while Riley and I
explained what was happening during the
test.
We also want to promote the Cenegenics
plan to all of our employees so they can
reference it with our patients and feel
great themselves.
We want our team to be on the same
lifestyle plan as our patients.
Continued next page ...
14
CORPORTATE WELLNESS
Interview cont'd…
JZ: Who came up with this idea?
KH: Riley did. He was making enough
comments and harping on team members
about their poor nutrition and inactivity.
I don’t get to see them, so I don’t know
what they’re doing over there.
One day, he told me that the team was
not following the Cenegenics lifestyle and
we should start a program in the form of a
friendly competition.
When we discussed this with Carrie, the
Charleston office manager who is super
competitive, she agreed it would help
improve the health and knowledge of our
team and help them understand what
Riley and I do.
JZ: How are you keeping everyone
engaged and motivated to stick with it?
Are there timelines, retests and recurrent
communication to pump them up?
KH: I have two out of my four team
members using CLO, so they’re logging
their workouts and asking me for
modifications if they don’t have certain
pieces of equipment.
I am talking with each team member on a
weekly basis.
Now, when I call over there to ask them
questions about a patient, I hear them
yelling in the background, “So and so isn’t
following the nutrition plan!” That fosters
an energy in the office, making it fun and
engaging.
I also send out helpful, encouraging
emails to keep them engaged on their
plan.
Riley does weekly meetings with his team.
Since I’m not there, I make it my business
to reach out to my team members every
week as much as possible so they feel
supported.
And just like I do with my patients, if
someone needs more follow-up, then I
plan based on an individual’s need.
JZ: Do you find it’s a disadvantage for your
team members since Riley is there and you
don’t have the ability to offer that handson touch with your team members?
KH: No, because that office is very busy,
and the relationship operates the same
way as with our patients.
We did set some rules up front that Riley
can’t do one-on-one personal training
with his team to be fair since I’m in
Charlotte.
JZ: Is this competition something you
can offer other corporations for their
employees, as part of our new Cenegenics
corporate wellness program?
KH: I think it would be a great idea to
implement in companies to help promote
corporate wellness. Our patients love that
we are doing this and actually post their
vote on our Facebook fan page who they
project is going to win. The competition
makes things very exciting for everyone.
JZ: In October, when you re-measure the
VO2 max score, how will you determine
the overall winner?
KH: We realized after retrieving the
starting numbers in the beginning,
that my team has higher VO2 scores so
the winner will be based on the higher
percentage of change, which is fairer and
a true testimony to who is training and
who is not.
JZ: Do you have any daily posts from the
participants on Facebook with updates of
their progress?
KH: We update it every couple of weeks.
JZ: What is this program called?
KH: The Cenegenics Carolinas Olympics.
We did this to correspond with the
Olympics. On our website, we ask, who do
you think will take the Gold? Just a little
friendly competition at its best!
15
COUNSELOR OF THE QUARTER
Cenegenics is growing substantially fast. That means our Cenegneics teams are growing, too.
So we’re featuring one of our talented Cenengenics fitness and nutrition team members each
quarter so you can meet the faces behind our age-management mission.
ELIO CONSTANZA
Born: New York, NY
Age: 34 years old
Current location: Miami, FL, since
2006
Education:
University of Massachusetts Amherst
B.S. in Sports Management
National Academy of Sports
Medicine:
CPT, IFS, PES
Experience: Over 10 years working
in the health club industry as
a trainer, in operations and in
fitness management and upper
management at The Sports Club/LA,
Equinox and Lifetime Fitness Boca
Raton.
Outlook: Elio enjoys helping
people improve their overall
physical condition through exercise,
nutrition and supplementation. He
appreciates his role at Cenegenics
Miami, which allows him to be part
of a team who teaches individuals
the necessary tools for healthy
aging.
“Prevention is the key to good
medicine, which is a proactive
approach in place of a reactive,
symptom treatment Band-Aid.
That’s why I love my job. “
—Elio
16
HIGHLIGHTS
New Book
Jenn Zerling is proud to announce the publication of her first book,
Breaking the Chains of Obesity, 107 Tools, which is a toolbox
of how to get your weight off, if weight loss is one of your main
age management goals.
Click here to view the book on Amazon.com. Click here for the book review.
Cenegenics
Beverly Hills
Annual Photo
Shoot
Every year, Beverly Hills hosts
an annual photo shoot for all of
their patients as a motivation
tool. These photo shoots give
the patients a sense of urgency
to help sharpen their focus
on pristine healthy nutritional
behaviors and improved fitness
levels. Patients come to this
event with their own level of
progress. Beverly Hills is proud
of all of their 2012 “models.”
Everyone showed excellence.
This year,
http://thexgallery.com
shot the patients.
17