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Being a wellness pro is not enough!
 Just so you know, I had no intention of being the model for this issue - or any issue. However, I was, in essence, thrown into it. My original model cancelled for a Friday photo shoot; the back-up model decided, on Sunday, that she wasn't "prepared" to be photographed. And, thus, there was only one model left at that time, the 11th hour ... the one who was holding the camera, the one's who's writing this newsletter - moi!
Subsequent to the photo shoot, I had another fitness professional take my measurements, to avoid any bias or, in reality, suspicion of bias. To preempt the "Well, of course, he's a trainer" excuse, let me mention that fitness professionals are humans, too. And like anyone else, if they don't apply the very principles that they teach (proper nutrition and exercise), then they are as likely as anyone else to become deconditioned and gain excess body fat. I have seen a large number of large trainers (I don't mean muscular). In fact, as I attend fitness conventions each year - as I have for the past 20 years - it's become increasingly evident that fitness pros are, as a group, becoming fatter, just like the general American population.
 Fitness coaching doesn't automatically keep the practitioners fit and lean. It's a business, one which doesn't suffice as a fitness and nutrition routine, per se. Fitness coaches still need to have discipline, persistence and take action on their own time, just like everyone else. (Imagine a dentist who chooses not to brush and floss simply because s/he works on keeping teeth healthy every day - obviously the career has nothing to do with the practitioner's own results.) So, if you see a strong and healthy fitness pro, and you don't want to frustrate him/her, then avoid saying the words, "Well of course, you're a trainer." Fitness pros have to train hard and avoid junk foods, too, if they want to be lean, healthy and strong. There are no shortcuts for anyone. With that said, here's my story.
Model: Sal Fichera
Age: 49 Height: 5'9" (69")
Waist: 31.5" Hips: 37"
Waist-to-hip ratio: 0.85 (Ideal measures: 0.7 for women; 0.9 for men)
Waist-relative-to-height: (height/2 minus 3 to 5 inches for women or minus 2-3 inches for men) 69/2 = 34.5; waist is 2 inches smaller than ½ his height.
Body fat %: 8.5% +.
Weight: 165 lbs.
Garment Size: Medium (I used to be large, when I had a smaller, less muscular frame; but garment manufacturers have been scaling down size measurements so that overweight people don't feel bad about their weight gains).
Occupation: Corporate wellness consultant, coach, keynote speaker.
Preferred Approach to Fitness: Strength training: 3-4 times per week, 50-70 minutes each workout. Aerobics: 35 minute power walk from work to home, every night, with 8-12 pound backpack. Flexibility: at the end of every workout and activity. Physical activity: 3-5 mile walk every Saturday with wife; handball (as pictured above) every Sunday, 3-4 hours.
Primary motivations: to maintain youthfulness and vitality all through life; to manage stress; to feel great, mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually; to be strong, agile, and capable of handling any challenge better than if I were unfit / deconditioned; to enhance mental alertness and sense of well-being; to be lean, healthy and in shape.
Nutritional approach: Preferred philosophy: eat to live, don't live to eat. Eat 5-6 times per day. Avoid fried foods as well as saturated fats and simple sugars. SAMPLE: Breakfast: bowl of whole grain cereal with rice, oat, or soy milk. Snack (2 hours later): fruit (apple, orange, grapefruit, pear or banana) or low-fat/sugar health bar, depending on proximity to lunch. Lunch (1-2 hours later): hot-food buffet: protein source - chicken, turkey, seafood or tofu; carbohydrate source: vegetables and grain (barley or brown rice). Snack: depending on activity level of the day, either a vegetarian sandwich or a health bar with 7-grain bagel. Dinner: home-cooked meal: protein source: alternate choice from lunch; carbohydrate source: alternate from lunch; fat source: unsaturated oil (grapeseed or olive oil). Snack (2-3 hours after dinner): depending on how late I stay up, apple or 2 handfuls of raisins, and 1-2 slices of spelt grain bread, one cup of oat milk. Beverages: water (7-9 cups per day), non-caffeinated herbal teas (1-2 cups); occasional green tea (2 cups per week). Desserts: pastry, ice cream or cake (5 times per year).
Sleep: 5-6 hours on work days; 7-8 hours on off days.
Sidenotes:
a) Always remember, physical activities (basketball, handball, walks in the park) do not replace intense workouts, and vice versa. There are benefits specific to each mode of activity.
b) For the body fat skinfold measurements, only 2 sites were shown being measured last month - obliques and abdominal; due to current circumstances, I couldn't have a skilled measure-taker available at the time of measurements. To view the remaining sites, be sure to read the next two Fit Bod newsletters, over the next 2 months.
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