My name is Erin Light, and I am the Fitness and Health Specialist at Clarian Bariatrics. I hold a degree in Education from Indiana
University, and I am an American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) certified personal trainer. I developed the fitness coaching program that helps post-operative patients with a customized approach to exercise and healthy lifestyle initiatives. You may see me teaching Supervised Weight Loss Classes or you can always find me near the weights and treadmill! Everyday I am amazed at how blessed I am to be working at Clarian Bariatrics! I work with the most kind and dedicated people, and I feel that I have truly found my calling. After a family experience with Bariatric surgery in 2007, I remember saying to my husband that I would dedicate my work to educating Bariatric patients about exercise and wellness. I feel truly blessed that I get to work so close to my passions in life. Exercise isn’t the only thing I enjoy though! I love to spend time with my family and friends, travel, read, watch sports, take care of animals, and spend time outside. I hope I get a chance to meet you some day to learn about what you enjoy doing as well!
Are you looking for a way to get some exercise in this weekend?
Walk the Talk will be getting together for the last charity walk of the season. Come join us as we participate in the St. Jude Children’s Research 5K on Saturday, November 21 at 9 a.m. The walk will be held at Northwestway Park located at 5253 W 62nd St, Indianapolis 43268. This walk will be a paved path that is 1.6 miles long. It is a beautiful park that will make a great location during this time of year!
By walking in this 5K event, we can help the doctors and researchers at St. Jude find lifesaving cures for desperately ill children in communities everywhere. By walking, we can bring hope to the patients and families that walk through the doors of St. Jude everyday in search of a cure.
If you would like to join us in this cause, please sign up on our
team page, and click on Sign up to Walk. During your registration, it will ask you to “Join a Team”---look for our Clarian Bariatrics Walk the Talk team! Everyone who joins the team will receive a free Walk the Talk t-Shirt! We hope to see you there! Feel free to call me at 317-275-7017 if you have questions
Walk the Talk will be getting together for the last charity walk of the season. Come join us as we participate in the St. Jude Children’s Research 5K on Saturday, November 21 at 9 a.m. The walk will be held at Northwestway Park located at 5253 W 62nd St, Indianapolis. This walk will be a paved path that is 1.6 miles long. It is a beautiful park that will make a great location during this time of year!
By walking in this 5K event, we can help the doctors and researchers at St. Jude find lifesaving cures for desperately ill children in communities everywhere. By walking, we can bring hope to the patients and families that walk through the doors of St. Jude everyday in search of a cure. If you would like to join us in this cause,
please sign up on our team page.
Everyone who joins the team will receive a free Walk the Talk T-Shirt! We hope to see you there!
Looking for help getting started with exercise? The American College of Sports Medicine teamed up with MyExercisePlan.com to help people take the necessary steps to creating a lasting exercise program. Check out this website to do self-assessments, watch exercise videos, and use some helpful tools that will promote your success.
http://www.myexerciseplan.com/assessment/
Do you love watching The Biggest Loser? Whether you love the show or not, most people can agree that the participants are inspiring in their quests to get healthy and lose weight. This past year, I’ve gotten quite a few comments and questions about the show and the exercises that are performed by the participants. I haven’t faithfully watched the past few seasons, so I can’t comment directly on the training programs in the show. However, I was
sent an article recently that reviewed the exercise programs and included an interview with Bob Harper (show trainer) about how realistic the show really is when it comes to what you see on the screen.
If you want to read Bob Harper’s comments and other personal trainers thoughts on the show, check out this
article.
A couple things I took away from this article:
- Remember that these participants are living outside of the “real world” during this show. Think about the changes you could make if you didn’t have to work, clean the house, or take care of your family. Their jobs during this special time in their lives are to exercise, learn how to eat right, and compete in weight loss. We ask you to do all these things, but we can’t keep you here overnight. Think about how successful you are for doing all of these things while living your real life!
- The exercise programs are typically extreme for the overweight population. These participants are thoroughly checked for medical issues before and during the show. They are not allowed to be a participant if they suffer from certain medical conditions. If you are ever questioning whether you should be exercising like them---think about whether or not The Biggest Loser doctors would clear you to participate.
- Although the whole concept of the show is very inspiring, you have to remember that the main goal of The Biggest Loser is TV ratings and entertainment. I am the first one to admit I come to tears every time I watch the show, but I always try to remember the “TV element” of the production. We don’t see everything!
- And most of all…if the show gives you positive and uplifting feelings and helps you start exercising, then keep watching! If it makes you feel inadequate or unmotivated like you could never exercise, then change the channel!
Anyone want to join me in a challenge? I found this awesome program on
www.livestrong.com through one of the “Dares” that I picked. It is a plan to perform 100 push-ups in a row in 6 weeks! I’ve already started and so can you!
The program can be found at
www.hundredpushups.com. You can do the push-ups in any form: off the wall, off the table, on your knees, or on your toes! If you want an easy, free, and effective program to increase your upper body strength…this is it! If six weeks seems a little fast for you, don’t worry. You can slow down the program by spending a week on each “Day” that the program provides.
Browse the site for a little while and you’ll discover there is a 200 Sit-ups (crunches) program and a 200 Squats program too! I’m working on all of them right now. Who wants to join me?!
Lance Armstrong is a hero to anyone who knows what it’s like to be faced with physical challenges. He is a great role model and shows us that nothing is impossible. Although he is widely known for his amazing Tour de France accomplishments, he faced his own physical challenges after he was diagnosed with testicular cancer that spread throughout his
abdomen, lungs, and brain. Lance proved to us all that effort, education, and a positive spirit can help one overcome anything. He also learned that a healthy lifestyle that included good nutrition and exercise helped him overcome his physical challenges. He made a commitment to share his experiences and help others overcome challenges through his Livestrong Foundation.
One of the neat ways Lance has reached out to help people is through his site
www.livestrong.com. This site is a network of people who care about living healthy and want to make sure they always strive to take care of themselves and the world around them. This site is totally free (you can upgrade if you want) and provides you with wonderful online nutrition/activity logs, exercise videos, and so much more. I’m a big fan of the fitness section (
http://www.livestrong.com/fitness/). Check out this site if you want to join the movement to live healthier! And make sure to add me as a friend!
Hi Everyone! I wanted to share a photo of the "Walk the Talk" group taken at the October 4 Walk from Obesity. It was a great morning, and our group had a nice time bonding in the fall sunshine. You can find more pictures on our Facebook page at
www.facebook.com/clarianbariatrics.
If you have thought about joining a "Walk the Talk" session, what are you waiting for? We meet every Friday at Clarian Bariatrics at 11:30 a.m. Remember to bring a sack lunch and comfortable clothes.
Thanks to everyone who has let me know that they've enjoyed my excercise series in the
Indianapolis Star! I wanted to post the most recent edition, which features feet seat crunches. Click on the information below to read the article!
Feet seat crunches
Indianapolis Star - Indianapolis,IN,USA
Erin Light, fitness coach for Clarian Bariatrics, 6640 Intech Blvd, Suite 300, ... Light works with those enrolled in Clarian Bariatrics' supervised ... |
This has been such a wonderful summer for outdoor activities! But I’m already mentally preparing myself for the changing seasons to come. Just like most people, my activities change significantly with the weather and time of year. Experts are recognizing this trend as well and in a study shown on
www.excusercise.org, Dr. Bruce Cohen questions how the weather and time-of-year affects our motivations and adherence to exercise programs.
Think about how the weather affects your activities. Do you dread the cold weather? Are you afraid of falling on the ice? Do the changes in temperature and time of year make you hibernate and become less active?
I know that as the weather changes…so do my activities. And over the years I’ve learned that preparation (remember that last blog entry?) is the key to maintaining physical activity when things change. Sometimes changes happen that we never saw coming, but this is one we can expect every year! Now is a great time to start thinking about your fall and winter workout sessions.
I recently joined a new gym that had Les Mills classes. Those are my favorite workout classes because they are challenging and fun. Although I don’t go to them much right now because I’m taking advantage of the outdoors, I know that I will utilize them when it is way too cold to be outside. Is there a gym or class that you’ve wanted to try out? Maybe now is a great time to research, plan, and save for those programs.
I also use a lot of at-home workout programs during the colder seasons. I like Exercise TV on digital cable (
www.exercisetv.tv too!) or the free Yoga classes on
www.yogatoday.com. I just move the coffee table and turn my living room into my workout studio! Do you have any workout DVDs or dumbbells at home that you can use this year? Try to use this season as a way to get started on your new fall/winter workout options, and then you will feel prepared and confident to keep up with your healthy lifestyle no matter what is thrown your way!
It’s easy to jump into action when you set goals to begin exercising. After all, exercise requires you to be active! But just like any new habit, it takes time to get yourself ready to adopt this kind of change in your life. When you truly want to change and create a new healthier habit, pushing yourself too fast through the process of change can result in feelings of failure when you encounter obstacles.
Like I presented in an earlier blog called Contemplating Change, studies show that change is a process that that looks more like a spiral staircase than a straight and narrow path. In the book Changing for Good: A Revolutionary Six-Stage Program for Overcoming Bad Habits and Moving Your Life Positively Forward, psychologist James Prochaska explains that people move through different stages of change when creating a new habit or getting rid of an old habit…and that they sometimes move back and forth between the stages before finally accomplishing their goals.
One of those important stages is preparation. When it comes to physical activity and following a healthy diet, this stage is crucial. Preparation allows you to mentally and physically prepare yourself for a significant lifestyle changes that will happen. You have to rearrange schedules, plan your meals, avoid triggers, say “No” sometimes, etc. These situations can be tough if we haven’t properly prepared how we will act and react in them. Just like you prepare to go on a vacation by looking at a road map and packing bags (with clothes for all weather occasions), this kind of preparation is also necessary for adopting healthier changes in your life too.
If you want to start becoming more physically active, preparation gives you the chance to sit down and think about what resources you have, how you will fit exercise sessions into your busy schedule, and what you will do if you go out of town or during the holiday season. It gives you the chance to talk with your family about your new goals and ask for their support.
This stage allows you to think about challenges and come up with strategies before they happen, so you aren’t always caught off-guard. When trying to make significant changes in your life, remember to not skip over this important step! It will help you be prepared for all the new things to come!
Developing new habits and getting rid of old ones can be downright tough. It takes desire, concentration, and willpower…among other efforts. But one of the most significant discoveries in the psychology of change is that change is a process that that looks more like a spiral staircase than a straight and narrow path. People cycle through different stages of change that range from not really thinking about it, contemplating about it, preparing for it, acting on it, and hopefully maintaining and adopting the new habits.
These different stages are important processes that people pass through in order to be successful with change. People often find themselves stuck or falling back into the contemplative stage for many reasons. If you feel like you’ve been thinking about exercise for too long without being able to act on it successfully, you might be stuck here too.
One way to help yourself along with change is to do a decisional balance where you weigh the pros and cons of change. Think about the consequences of starting an exercise routine…do the pros outweigh the cons? Are the cons really that bad? Next, it is important to raise your awareness about how physically active you are and how physically active you need to be. Do you find yourself sitting most of the day? Do you know how much you should be exercising to achieve your goals? Also paying attention to how you have attached your self-image to different aspects of you life will help you discover if that is what might be holding you back.
Do you have inherent fears or lack of confidence about exercise? Is exercise seemingly not important to your friends and loved ones? Journaling all these things is one of the best ways to understand your own thought processes and why you may be stuck just thinking about the habits you want to adopt. For more help on this, check out the book Changing for Good: A Revolutionary Six-Stage Program for Overcoming Bad Habits and Moving Your Life Positively Forward. Attending Clarian Bariatrics Support Groups as well to discuss the ways you need help moving forward. We want to do all we can to make this a wonderful journey in your life!
Many of us get stuck in contemplation mode when making healthier lifestyle changes. It can be easy to think about how much we should be exercising and even beat ourselves up for not following a routine better. We think about all the reasons why we should change and how it will make us feel, look, move better, etc. But we often get stuck trying to figure out how this kind of routine can actually fit into our lifestyles. We look at all the things that would have to change and eventually put it off for a better day.
Well we all know that the “better day” can turn into weeks, months, and even years before we begin taking the next steps towards making exercise a part of our lifestyles (or making any significant change for that matter). In the mean time, we’ve beaten ourselves up many times over the fact that we should be exercising. You might have those “stuck in a rut” feelings and if you’ve tried to follow a program many times, you might have growing feelings of frustration towards exercise in general. Is any of this sounding familiar?
Trust me, I’ve been there...
I apologize for not getting this up sooner, but I wanted to share with you one of many opportunities for individuals to get fit with others! The "First Steps" program at The Running Company is a great opportunity to meet new people and work towards a healthier, happier you!
Below are descriptions of two great programs that are currently offered. Please contact the running company for more information, including when the next "First Steps" session will begin. Also, don't forget to join us for "Walk the Talk" each Friday at 11:30 a.m. at the clinic!
Would you like to learn to run or walk for fitness? Find yourself a little out of shape or need help getting motivated? Your friends at The Running can help -- and it's FREE!
We’re offering an 8-week walking/running program just for beginners, or for those who've gotten out of their fitness routine and could use some help. In a supportive, non-competitive environment you’ll receive:
- A daily training program designed to get you up and moving in 8 weeks!
- A training diary to track your progress.
- Expert advice on exercise, equipment and injury prevention.
- Four workshops, a time to talk to the coach weekly, and a Fitness Celebration at the end of 8 weeks with prizes and gifts!
- First Steps begins September 8 and is available in all four locations of The Running Company. For more details or to register, just download the registration brochure and fax to 202-7400.
Join us for Nike Run Club Every Monday and Thursday
Join The Running Company this summer and fall for Nike Run Club on Monday and Thursday evenings in our Broad Ripple and Carmel stores. You can test-run Nike footwear, try out Nike+ and the Nike+ SportBand, enjoy refreshments after the run/walk and meet new friends in a casual, fun environment. Visit our calendar for exact dates.
Broad Ripple: Mondays at 6:00 p.m.
Carmel: Thursdays at 6:30 p.m.
Email info@erunningcompany.com with questions!
Clarian Bariatrics' “Walk the Talk” is gearing up for another charity event! We have created a team for the three mile Walk from Obesity event this year. We would love all of you to join us, so we can continue to raise money and spread awareness about obesity.
Our last walk was very successful, and we even got a picture with the First Lady Cheri Daniels! I have set a goal for us to have at least 50 participants on our team for this one, and every patient that signs up with our team and participates will receive a Clarian Bariatrics “Walk the Talk” Team t-shirt. Feel free to bring your family and friends along and come join the fun!
When: Sunday, October 4 from 2 p.m. - 5 p.m. (Our team will meet at 2:30 p.m. for a picture and t-shirts.)
Where: Lawrence North High School, 7802 Hague Road, Indianapolis
What to Wear/Bring: Wear comfortable clothes, walking shoes, and bring your friends, family, and camera! Don’t forget your water, too.
How to Sign-Up: Visit our team
Web site at this link. Just fill out the information to join! You can also download a copy of the registration form from the main
Web site. Just make sure to include the Clarian Bariatrics team on the entry form! If you sign up by mailing in your registration form, please call Erin Light to let her know you’ve joined the team so she can keep you updated on the event.
How to Prepare: Keep up with your regular walks! You can also follow the training program on the site at this
link.
For more information, please contact me at 317-275-7017 or by e-mail at elight@clarian.org.
I wanted to let you all know about this great, FREE opportunity to get out and have some fun while the weather is still nice. The Hoosier Outdoor Experience will be taking place at Fort Harrison State Park in Indianapolis on Saturday, September 26 and Sunday, September 27 from 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
According to the
Web site, this is your opportunity to "mix a little mountain biking with hiking, fly fishing, archery, kayaking, target shooting, horseback riding, camping or just about any other outdoor activity you can imagine and you get the Hoosier Outdoor Experience."
See you there!
I will be posting two parts of a great motivational blog from one of our success stories, Bob. He is so great about providing ideas and suggestions to all of us at Clarian Bariatrics, and I think he has some awesome advice to contribute to our blog readers as well. Look for part two on Friday!Recently, I had a nice chat with a woman during the Heartland Walk for Health at the Indiana State Fair. Although she’s not a bariatric patient, she’s lost over 50 pounds since December through dieting. However, she’s been feeling a little “down” lately since her weight loss has slowed down. She’s hit the dreaded “WALL.”
I shared my post-surgery experience with her. I’m almost 18 months post-surgery and have lost about 155 pounds. And, I’ve seen at least a couple of plateaus in my 18 months. I told her this is common among those of us who have lost a lot of weight. Then I shared my approach for beating the “blues." I hope it’ll help her and maybe it might help someone else, too.
I call it…CELBRATE YOURSELF!
When you feel a little down because the weight loss has slowed, realize that your REAL goal is not to lose weight…it is to GET FIT. Your weight was just one of the things standing in your way of getting fit.
Then, think of some of the things you can do now, that you couldn’t do before your weight loss… and CONGRATULATE YOURSELF FOR IT! You’ve done a pretty good thing here. You should feel good about it. For example:
- I congratulate myself every time I mow the lawn now. A year ago I couldn’t mow the lawn!
- I built my wife a raised garden bed this spring. 1,800 pounds of stones and mortar, then shoveled in 2000 pounds of dirt. But, I built it as much FOR MYSELF as I did for my wife! Every time I look at it now I marvel at what I did. A year ago that wouldn’t have been even a dream!
- I can work around the garden for an entire day now. GOOD JOB! PAT MYSELF ON THE BACK! A year ago… no way I could have done that! (Unfortunately, I’ve discovered the poison ivy in my garden. But, a year ago I didn’t know I had it! WOW!)
Below is text from a recent article I found on the American Diabetes Association Web site that I thought was interesting. Now there is scientific proof that exercise can make you happier!
People who engage in moderate physical activity in the months after bariatric surgery report fewer mental health issues than those who exercise less, according to research reported at the Annual Scientific Meeting of NAASO, The Obesity Society, held October 20–24 in Boston.
Kathryn E. Henderson, PhD, and colleagues at the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University in New Haven, Conn., conducted a study of 134 patients who underwent gastric bypass surgery. The patients—140 females and 14 males—were extremely obese, with an average body mass index (BMI) of 51.7.
The participants completed a battery of self-reported measures before surgery, and at 6 and 12 months after surgery. The evaluations sought detailed information about physical activity, depression, self-image, and a range of mental and physical health issues.
Responses were divided into three groups: No exercise, physical activity one to three times per week, and physical activity four or more times per week.
In general, patients with lower BMI tended to exercise more. While exercise levels rose overall postoperatively, <50% of participants reported moderate physical activity at 6 and 12 months.
According to the researchers, the most physically active group of patients reported the lowest psychosocial stress. Those who engaged in moderate physical activity at least four times per week reported superior physical and mental health, had fewer depressive symptoms, and reported higher self-esteem than nonexercisers.
I found this great article/video on the
Empowered Doctor Web site and wanted to share it with you all. Click on the link above to view the video, while I have shared text from the article below.
Patients who incorporated regular physical activity into their lives after bariatric surgery lost more weight and had better general health and vitality and less depression and anxiety than those who were inactive, a recent study shows.
"Bariatric surgery is quickly emerging as a standard treatment for severe obesity, although weight loss outcomes vary. These results suggest that patient behavior, particularly physical activity, may promote both enhanced weight loss and greater improvements in health-related quality of life following bariatric surgery," said lead author Dale Bond, of the Miriam Hospital's Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine.
The study was performed on about 190 patients who underwent gastric bypass operations at Virginia Commonwealth University. They filled out a questionnaire to provide an assessment of their physical activity levels both before surgery and one year afterward.
To categorize which patients were "active," the researchers decided on a minimum of 200 minutes of weekly physical activity (which included walking, as well as sports or exercise of a moderate or vigorous intensity). Participants also completed questionnaires that measured aspects of their health-related quality of life, such as physical or emotional problems, bodily pain, general health, energy levels, social functioning and mental health.
Researchers noted that exercise boosted progress toward all of the goals of bariatric surgery. Those patients who went from almost no weekly activity to 200 minutes or more lost 13.2 pounds more than their inactive counterparts.
They also lowered their body-mass index by two units more and reduced their overall weight by 8 percent more than those who didn't increase their exercise levels. The active group also experienced more improvements in general health, vitality, depression and anxiety symptoms compared with those who stayed inactive.
Clarian Bariatrics has kicked off our "Walk the Talk" charity events with the First Lady Cheri Daniels! The Heartland Walk for Health was held August 15 at the Indiana State Fair and it was our team’s first charity walk together. Mrs. Daniels joined us for a group picture before leading the group in a two mile walk around the fairgrounds. The event was a huge
success! We’d like to give a big thanks to all the patients who joined the team and walked with us. You all truly showed us how to “Walk the Talk” that day! Feel free to share your experiences below, we’d love to hear about how you did.
If you haven’t already heard, "Walk the Talk" is a support group and team that is open to any Clarian Bariatric patient, family member or visitor. We meet every Friday from 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. at the Clarian Bariatrics outpatient clinic. We walk the local trails for one mile (30 minutes) and then have lunch together while we chat, ask questions and discuss strategies and successes.
We are also a team that chooses to “Walk the Talk” around the community. We sign up for active charity events and join them as a team together. Feel free to join us at support group and the charity events anytime. You do not need to attend support groups to participate in the "Walk the Talk" charity events. You can find out about these events on our blog, in the Bari Bites Newsletter or by calling Erin Light at the Clarian Bariatrics at 317-275-7010.
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