Friday Night at The Dang Gym was Zumba-for Life night! Instructors Lori Clayton, Sheri Hayworth, Laura Borondy kept the crowd moving with a wide variety of music. The parking lot was filled with enthusiast ready to have a cardio workout and show some new Zumba-ist the moves that would give them a workout like no other. The Zumba-thon was held from 7-10 PM. Some of Johnson County Relay for Life team members from The Movers and Shakers were there to sell hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, water, ect. to raise money for their team. “We are hoping to make this an annual event for our team to raise money for Relay for Life,” said Gary McCleary. “It is a fun and healthy way to raise money and awareness of our fight against this disease.”

Relay For Life is June 4th, at 6 PM. It takes place at the Marshall Young Sports Complex on Cleburne High School campus

Read the Labels

Being in the fitness industry, we spend alot more time helping people lose fat than anything else. It amazes me how the majority of people come in with preconceived ideas on fat loss tactics. Where do they get their information? Diet books, media, friends or the often deceiving packages on foods at the grocery store? Just because it says HEALTHY, it still has calories and should be eaten according to portion size. ” The boring message is when it to food that there are two variables: what you are eating and how much,” says Dawn Blatner, R.D., and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

An average adult woman should consume about 1600 calories a day, says Deanna Hoelscher, director of the MIchael & Susan Dell Center for the advancement of Healthy Living and a professor at the University of Texas, Austin, School of Public Health. It’s not jus counting calories, eating a variety of foods in proper portions will also help maintain a healthy weight.

Imagine a plate: One quarter should be a lean protein ( like fish or chicken ), another quarter should be grains ( oatmeal or brown rice ), and the last half should be fruits and vegetables. How you prepare your foods is also a very important. Improper cooking methods can rob foods of their nutritional value.

READ THE FOOD LABELS: Don’t be fooled by the NO-FAT or LOW FAT versions. When something is taken out, something else takes it’s place. Yogurt with fruit is labeled low fat, for example can have more sugar than two scoops of ice cream. In fact, some fats are healthy, for instance avocados, walnuts and salmon, these fats stave off hunger and can keep your arteries from clogging. Still, just because something is good for you, it doesn’t mean you can eat all you want. It’s not a food industry conspiracy. Marketers follow the trends, for instance the Atkins Diet, foods all over the store were labeled low carb or no carb. ( FYI: Atkins has been critisized by by just about about every medical organization known to man ). A 2008 study Arizona State University and the University of Kentucky showed that dieters will actually eat more if the portions are presented in small packages because of the reduced sizes are perceived to be diet food. Marketers and the trends, that’s why we now see 100 calorie packages of Oreos, it’s still a bag of sugar and fat filled cookies that you don’t need. Even the fast food industry is claiming to add healthier choices on their menus. They maybe healthier than other items on the menu but, that does make them healthy. It’s all in how it’s presented and just another marketing trick. Give the public what they think they want and they’ll buy it. It’s like saying light cigarettes are okay. Give me a break.

The Bottom Line: Eat less and exercise more, this is a proven method that works. Let us design a fitness and a nutrition program just for you.

Michael Joe Wilkerson, CFT, SPN
The Dang Gym

Andrea Grafa, A Dang Super Mom

Andrea Grafa joined The Dang Gym over three years ago after having her daughter. “I like the younger crowd (at The Dang Gym), a lot of them are moms and are here for the same purpose,” said Andrea. Our free childcare, the “Dang-a-roo Club”, provides a safe place for her daughter to play so she can get her workout in. Andrea said that it is not only the free Dang-a-roo Club but also the “wonderful” staff that helped make her decision to join The Dang Gym.

She is now looking forward to delivering her son in just 1 ½ months and is not about to use motherhood as an excuse not to be fit. “I make it a priority to workout and multi-task for everything else. But my family is my main priority,” said Andrea.Let’s face it, things change when you’re expecting and exercise is no exception. “Well, because I’m pregnant right now everything is modified,” Andrea said. Her workout consists of 30 minutes each on the bike and weights, 10 minutes each on the elliptical and stairmaster and finishes up with lunges. “During pregnancy it makes me and the baby a lot healthier (to exercise) but overall I love the way I feel after a great workout.”

She stays motivated because she wants to be healthy and keep her weight down. And that’s important for this very busy mother of two (well, almost). She is self-employed at “Up-Close Photography” and sells Scentsy as well. With such an active lifestyle, she has to take care of herself, to stay strong and healthy for her family.

We are so proud of Andrea! She is an inspiration to us all! Keep up the great work!

Melinda Prater
TheDangGym.com

Family, Friends, Fun and Fitness At The Dang Gym.

Lucy joined The Dang Gym 18 months ago and went right to work. She dedicated herself to a workout program and found that many of her friends were ready to start exercising too. Now they workout together, inspiring and encouraging each other while making fitness look so fun. Lucy and her friends benefit from a variety of aerobic classes 2-4 days a week and also do strength training in our women’s only room. “I really enjoy Lori’s classes. She is a very good instructor, especially Zumba and Kickboxing!” Lucy said.

When The Dang Boot Camp began in January, Lucy was so exited that she began to encourage her husband Benigno to join up with her. “My wife said, ‘Come on! You will like it!’ She loves The Dang Gym. So I came with her and tried it out. I met the friendly staff and decided to join and do the Boot Camp too!”

Benigno is a runner. He runs about six miles on the treadmill, as well as circuit training. “I feel stronger and faster. Now bad weather is no excuse not to exercise.” he said. His fellow boot campers know how fast he is, they call him “Speedy Gonzalez.”

It wasn’t long before Lucy and Benigno realized that their son Benny would also benefit from an early morning workout before school. Benny is 13 years old and follows his parents’ example of a healthy active lifestyle. He is already was active in sports like football, basketball and running so Boot Camp was a different kind of a challenge for him. “He stuck with it and made us so proud!” said his parents.

Lucy can see how exercise improves the health of our older members. She wants to do all she can to live as healthy and as long as she can. “Exercise helps me feel like new and relax.” she said. Her hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed by Benigno either, “I think she’s beautiful!” he said. (And so do we!)

The Dang Gym Spring Boot Camp begins May 17th. Come in and sign up now! Everyone’s welcome, so don’t wait another day to get your family on their way to fitness!

Melinda Prater