You burn fewer calories when you exercise in cold weather than you do when it's hot. The heat creates more work for our bodies. Our hearts have to work twice as hard to take blood to the skin to dissipate heat. On the other hand in cold weather your heart only has to pump blood to your muscles, not to the skin to dissipate heat. Also, your muscles create heat during exercise (upto 70% of energy produced by muscles is heat) therefore your bodies do not need to work harder to keep you warm. People tend to eat more in winter because food also produces heat energy so we have to work twice as hard to keep the pounds off. On a last note, do stay wrapped up warm, when our muscles are cold it is easy to injure yourself. Make sure you warm up slowly and cool down after every workout.

Before you hire a personal trainer you should ask the following questions:

What are your qualifications and certification?
A qualified personal trainer has an education in physiology, health promotion, athletic training, kinesiology or a similar field. Many journals and companies suggest your personal trainer should have first aid as well as certification from a reputable organization such as ACSM, ACE, IDEA, YMCA, NSCA or similar. Here at Chris Ball Fitness we actually believe this is still not enough. A 6 week course cannot possibly educate somebody in all areas of a humans physical and mental abilities. Look for trainers with degrees and specialist knowledge. See their areas of strengths and decide whether it is right for you.

Testimonials

See what others have said about the trainer before you hire them.

Do your research

Has your personal trainer been accredited by the media or other credible trustees. Do they regularly provide information on other areas of fitness besides the company and their ability as a personal trainer?

Do you have liability insurance?
They should answer yes.

What are your policies and procedures?
A personal trainer should have a documented policy explaining their services, costs, cancellations, length of contract, and emergency procedures. They should also require a medical clearance form to be completed before they work with you.

Finally, you should feel comfortable with the trainer, his/her style of communication and the expectations of your time together.

Personal trainers aren't for everyone, but a trainer provides certain benefits that you can't find when working out on your own. Here are the top ten reasons a personal trainer may be right for you in accordance with The Journal of Sports Medicine.

Motivation
One of the main reasons people benefit from a personal trainer is that they lose motivation to stick with a consistent exercise program. People always start and stop after only a few weeks of training due to boredom or lack of visible results. Personal trainers can provide structure and accountability, and help you develop a lifestyle that encourages health.

Individualized program
If you have any chronic health conditions, injuries or training goals (running a marathon, for example) a trainer will work with you and your health care provider to plan a safe, efficient program that considers these needs and enable you to reach your health goals.  Without a personal trainer you could further an injury or hold back on exercises that are ok to do because you are scared to do further damage.

Efficiency
Personal Trainers help you focus on results and stop wasting your time doing inefficient workouts. A good personal trainer plans your routines and will help you get maximum results in minimum time.

Improve technical skills
If you play a particular sport, the right personal trainer will help you improve your skill by showing you new training techniques specific to your sport. The Trainer will incorporate skills training into your program so you improve not only your strength and endurance, but your agility and mental focus as well.

You are new to exercise
If you are an absolute beginner, a personal trainer is the ultimate fitness coach. A good trainer will introduce you to a very simple, effective routine and build efficiently so before you know it, you have the confidence and knowledge to decide what is right for you.

Break through plateaus
Ok, you are already in pretty decent shape, but you've been there for years. If you are stuck in the same routine and want to break out of a rut, a personal trainer is the perfect solution. A trainer will jump start, not only your motivation, but your routine as well.

Learn how to go it alone
If you ultimately want to learn all the facets of designing your own routines so you don't need to use a personal trainer, going for a few months may be all you need. All good personal trainers will teach you the basics of building and modifying a fitness program to achieve maximum results.

Workout Safely
A personal trainer watches your form and can provide objective feedback about your limits and strengths. Most of us tend to ignore some of the subtle signals our body provides. We either push through pain or give up too soon. Because a personal trainer can watch what you are doing while you are doing it, they can help push you or slow you down as necessary.

Workout at home
Many personal trainers make house calls. If you don't have the type or interest in going to a gym, but have a hard time knowing what to do on your own at home, a personal trainer can bring fitness into your living room.

Lose Weight
There is a good reason that the number one reason people hire personal trainers is to lose weight and get into shape -- it works. If you made a resolution to lose the fat and build the muscle, a trainer can keep you on track and help you realize that goal.

In May 2006, researchers at Yale University School of Medicine weighed in on the issue with a review article that looked at more than 100 studies on the health benefits of green tea. They pointed to what they called an "Asian paradox," which refers to lower rates of heart disease and cancer in Asia despite high rates of cigarette smoking. They theorized that the 1.2 litres of green tea that is consumed by many Asians each day provides high levels of polyphenols and other antioxidants. These compounds may work in several ways to improve cardiovascular health, including preventing blood platelets from sticking together (this anticoagulant effect is the reason doctors warn surgical patients to avoid green tea prior to procedures that rely on a patient's clotting ability) and improving cholesterol levels, said the researchers, whose study appeared in the May issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. Specifically, green tea may prevent the oxidation of LDL cholesterol (the "bad" type), which, in turn, can reduce the build-up of plaque in arteries, the researchers wrote.

A study published in the December 1999 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that "Green tea has thermogenic properties and promotes fat oxidation beyond that explained by its caffeine content per se. The green tea extract may play a role in the control of body composition via sympathetic activation of thermogenesis, fat oxidation, or both.

As you can see there are lots of health benefits to green tea but will it make you lost weight. Yes and no. It helps your body to break down fatty deposits but in order to see noticable results you will need a healthy balanced diet and regular exercise in order to lose weight.

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