Written on Tuesday, November 25th, 2008 by Miroslav Nikolov
Stephen Cooper answers my fitness questions on BodyFitWork.com
I want to apologize about I wasn’t able to post an article in Monday. I have problems, but now I realized one of my ideas - new category where you can read professionals opinions and interviews of dietologists, fitness instructors and weight loss experts.
My first interview is with Stephen Cooper - L.A. Personal Trainer, Pasadena,CA.
Stephen Cooper is a veteran personal trainer from Los Angeles, California.
For over thirteen years, Stephen has been helping clients lose fat and live optimally through his creative and challenging fitness programs.
He draws on his experience and passion for fitness to coach others to lose fat and re-energize their lives. He often conducts one day seminars at his local community college, and he has been quoted in national magazines such as, Woman’s Day and Shape.
What he answered:
What will you say to someone who come to you and ask: “I want to lose my stomach fat”?
First of all, I’d say that a very common question. One of the first things is I would as him/her, “What did you eat today?” It’s very telling when a person reveals what she ate or didn’t eat. Many people will need to make major adjustments to lose their “stomach fat”. This could mean starting an exercise program, or tweaking the intensity, and diet plays a major role.
Unless you have incredible genetics, or have a great metabolism, sacrifices will need to be made to lose the stomach fat. If someone isn’t disciplined, or is looking for shortcuts, then I won’t help them.
Here you can find the dispute about one way to lose stomach fat - “Spot reduction - is it possible during weight loss“.
What you say to people who ask you about diets like: fish diet, fruit diet, tomato diet and so on? What do you think about diets like these?
When a client has a specific goal in mind, let’s say “I want to lose 20 pounds for my wedding in 3 months”, then I tell her she will have to follow a diet. There is no way that the weight will just fall off without a plan, however having said that, I seriously believe that the best way to lose the weight and keep it off, is to follow the basic rule of eating well 80-90% of the time, and treating yourself the other 10-20%. Also I’ve seen some people can follow certain diets and get great results, where others just plain hate it. Each person is different.
What is best diet for you?
I like to eat a wide variety of fresh foods. Plenty of red meat, fish, chicken,fruit, vegetables, nuts. No too much bread or pasta. Sometimes I’ll have ice cream, and I do like dark chocolate.
How you determine how much time is needed someone to lose weight? Give a time and weight example from your practice.
I actually work backwards.Like the wedding example from above…if someone has to lose fat by a certain date, then the eating plan will have to be followed to the letter. Each person loses fat at a different rate, so it’s hard to give specific numbers.
I’m a big believer in improving one’s body composition, so a client may not lose pounds, because she is actually getting leaner but also adding some lean muscle. Her measurements such as hip and belly circumference will decrease because of the fat loss, but the overall number on the scale may not decrease.
A realistic goal - “9 ways to lose 12 pounds“.
Can you give us some tricks from your practice, which help you to lose or keep your body weight?
Many of my clients are suffering with stress and lack of sleep which is critical in trying to lose fat.I won’t go into the chemistry aspects of why this happens, just realize that getting enough sleep is one of the important keys to losing body fat.
As far as “tricks”…I’d say that I’m a fan of sprints, jump rope, and short hill runs. I don’t suggest that my clients do any long duration cardio activities, unless they enjoy it. For fat burning, I’d stick to the sprint activities.
Things you think can help you - “9 nutrition fallacies“.
What do you think about calorie counting. Is it useful or you suggest when someone ask you to eat instinctively?
In the short term it may be OK. I’d use something like www.fitday.com to get an estimate of calories, and more importantly ratios of carbs, pro, and fat. I wish people could eat healthy and “instinctively”, but most people will choose what’s quick and many times sugary.
Describe your professional career and experience, where you graduated and what subject.
For as long as I can remember I’ve been interested in anatomy and how the body is capable of incredible things. I worked for some time driving an ambulance here in Los Angeles, CA, and later worked in a hospital. It was there that I determined that I’d rather help people before they ended up in the hospital. It was then that I began my professional career as a personal trainer.
The professional part is that I’ve been certified as a personal trainer for over 13 years. First with the American Council on Exercise, then the National Academy of Sports Medicine, and most recently I got my Level 1 Trainer Certification from CrossFit.
You can find Stephen Cooper:
STEPHEN COOPER TRAINING - Luxe Personal Fitness Training - Pasadena,CA
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