RHWellsFitness

  As we celebrate Christmas and New Years next week, a lot of people are more than likely going to over indulge.  Here is a scale to help you get ready for the New Year and any resolution you may be thinking about. We live in a land of plenty here in the U.S.  Do you know how to tell the difference between being starving, satisfied or stuffed? It seems it should be obvious and people should know the differences.  Here is a graphic to show the Hunger Scale: At a 1, we are beyond a growling stomach.  We are weak and dizzy.  At this stage I think of how Jews were treated at POW camps by the Germans in WW2.  I also see this when there is an extended famine in Africa.   At level 2, people have a constant growling in their stomach. Not occasionally but for a few days at a time. At level 3, people are hungry with a slight growl of the stomach. People claim they are hangry at this level. Being hangry should be at a level 2, with a more constant growl...

I see a lot of people constantly looking for THE perfect workout.  Whether it is a workout to firm the glutes, build mountainous arms, or chisel your abs.  The thing is...this is a myth..sort of. The majority of people that I see looking for the perfect workout are looking for three things: Time crunch - With busy and hectic lives, people are looking for something they can do around all their busy schedules. Don't want to fail - People are afraid of looking like they don't know what they are doing or don't want to simply fail. They are not into working out - They either don't like to break into a sweat or sports/athletics is not their thing. Above, I said that THE perfect workout is a myth...sort of.  I say sort of because even though there is no perfect workout for all people, you can certainly find THE perfect workout for you. Physiologically, we all have the same body structure.  Heart muscle, skeletal muscle, central nervous system, bones, jo...

Lately, I have been seeing and hearing a lot of ads for weightloss supplements and programs.  This got me to thinking, "Are these "solutions" sustainable?".  After doing some research, here are six items that I have read about that make sense and are doable.  1.  Sustainability This goes back to my initial question, "are these 'solutions' sustainable"?  If you have to buy a product to loose weight, how long will you be able - or willing- to keep buying this product?  Can you see yourself doing this for more than two months?  Do you see yourself doing it in five years?  If the answer is no, it is not sustainable.  If the answer is yes, what will happen after you stop using said product?  Will you be able to keep it off, or will the weight come back?  This is one reason that I have a problem with "Diets" that eliminate certain foods. 2.  Exercise I know some people that are not into going to the gym and breakin...

Are you thinking about making a decision to start your fitness journey in the beginning the new year?  Most people choose to start on January 1st. Some people start a couple of weeks before to get over the newness and accustomed to new routines before the crowds get there. If life, as usual, has gotten in your way to starting your fitness journey before, don't fret. Like everything in life, there is no such thing as perfection.  Consistency is the key.  Over time, it will look like perfection.  Just ask Patrick Mahomes.  As we are now mid-December, statistics show that a lot of people sign up for gym memberships to get healthier and fitter.  By the end of January, half have stopped going to the gym.  By March/April, most will stop going to the gym or exercising. Here are my tips to starting a fitness journey that is successful for the long term. The Beginning 1.  Start with a checkup with your doctor.  Especially if you have never w...

I recently came across a plethora of questions starting with "What is the the best way to lose weight...?   The ending to this question runs the gamut from "without exercise" to "in your face" to "in three days".  Most of the questions are understood and are reasonable questions.  A few, not so much.  I say this because losing weight does not happen overnight.  It took a while to add on the weight, so it is reasonable to expect that it will take some time to lose it as well. The first group of questions I am going to group into Spot Reduction.  A lot of questions had to do with losing weight in certain parts of the body.  The message has been out there for a while that we can't spot reduce yet they are still popular questions.  Not sure how this myth keeps on living.  The truth of the matter is that we can't pick one spot on our bodies and make fat go away from just that spot.  To lose weight, it has to come off from all over th...

  Funny how the cycle of life affects us all.  We all start the same, and we all finish the same.    What I see as the two biggest issues from an aging stand point are muscle loss (sarcopenia) and loss of bone density (osteoporosis).  These two can be controlled with a healthy diet AND resistance training. I'm not saying it doesn't happen.  I'm just saying we can minimize the effects of both of these conditions. Sarcopenia begins around age 30.  Loss is gradual and starts at about 3 - 5% per decade.  It doesn't seem like much, but it is cumulative.  Once you reach age 60, it becomes more noticeable.  In your 80's, loss jumps to between 11 and 50% according to WebMD.  If you are young, you will notice this if you break your arm or leg and they are in a cast for a long time.  When the cast comes off, you will notice a big difference. This loss can be mitigated by resistance training.  Even people that exercise regularly will...

As we approach the end of 2025, and the beginning of 2026, a lot of people are contemplating improving their health but don't know where to start. Most people are too general when they meet with a personal trainer.  Too general means too vague.  You need to be more specific to know if you reached your goal. Fitness goals are different for everyone.  Some people may have similar end goals, but their journeys may be different.  A good example of this is the Olympics.  All the competitors had the same end goal...winning the coveted gold medal.  How they get to the winter Olympics is similar in that they had to win in competition.  Their individual training methods were different and geared to the individual's needs and abilities. Fitness goals also change with time as we age.  When I was a teenager, I trained for sport primarily.  How I looked and felt came in a close second once I saw the body changes.  A third reason then became attractio...

Welcome!  Thank you for stopping by.  This post is just an introduction of myself to the world at large.  Who is RH Wells?  I am a certified personal trainer through the American Council on Exercise.  I enjoy health and fitness and this is my way of sharing, and hopefully making a difference, with the world.  I have my share of health issues.  I have found that exercise has helped me cope with my condition and continues to give me a very good quality of life.  On the personal side, I am a Christian, a husband, and a dad. I grew up in west Texas, played high school sports even though I wasn't the most athletic, and spent my weekends riding horses and competing in Gym Kanas. I attended Northern AZ University (Bac. Sci.) and a few years later University of Phoenix (MBA). Took up Kajukenbo after that, earning my brown belt and doing some competitions - including Vegas. Years later, after getting married, now raising three wonderful kids with their i...

  On February 13th, Robert F Kennedy was voted and confirmed to be the 26th secretary of Health and Human Services.  Some people are scared, and others are hopeful of what he might do. This got me to thinking about what his background is.  Why is he qualified for this position?  Should we be scared, or hopeful? In researching Mr. Kennedy, here is his history.  He attended Harvard in late '70's and law school in early '80's.  Passed the Bar in 1985, which is when he began his career as an environmental attorney suing corporations for disposing of hazardous waste into waterways instead of properly disposing them.  In the '90's, he began taking private clients, instead of cities or groups, to fight against corporations with poor waste management. This is also when one of his son's was found to have peanut allergies.  After some research, he attributed this to certain vaccines that began to be used in 1989.  His fight against oil and chemical com...