The Resolution

We’re back this year with an even bigger and better way to kick off the new year. This is the first ever department-wide weight loss challenge that will help you get your nutrition on point while focusing on improving your whole health at the same time.

Register

The Resolution will run 8 weeks, January 13th to March 10th and include:

Get weekly meal plans with shopping lists
Access to HIPAA-compliant software to journal your food intake for Chloe to view and comment on as well as message Chloe for questions and support
Submit their weight weekly, if desired
Have access to weekly recordings and handouts as well as weekly tips to help you stay focused and motivated throughout the challenge
Unlimited access to department nutritionist, Chloe Schweinshaut
Weekly virtual "office hours" with Chloe to answer any nutrition questions you may have
An InBody scan week 1 and week 8

This challenge is open to all uniformed, civilian and cadet personnel and their spouses and partners.

Here are the key points for this 8 week challenge:

1. You are automatically signed up if you do an InBody with a Health & Ladders district lead or you can email chloe.schweinshaut@boston.gov

2. A Health & Ladders District Lead will visit each firehouse & group to administer InBody scans during week 1 (Jan 10th to Jan 13th) and week 8 (March 7th to March 10th)

3. Office Hours with Chloe are every Wednesday from 1130 to 1200 - HERE

4. Movement .. like nutrition is medicine. Be open to new ideas, because without change .. there'll be no change. See our recommended list of activities to support weight loss below.

5. Sleep is the foundation of your wellness pyramid.

Recommended activities to support weight loss (in no particular order):

Bootcamp Classes

HIIT classes

Yoga
Peloton Classes (20+ minutes)
Running, Rowing, Skiing, Biking (outdoors and indoors)

Resistance Training coupled with Cardio

Walking on the treadmill on an incline (20+ minutes)

Myth buster - cardio does not necessarily burn more fat than resistance training. The more muscle you have, the higher your resting metabolic rate. Of course, doing something is better than nothing ... but the most efficient way to supplement your fat-burning diet is to combine the two!

InBody Preparatory Steps
refrain from eating 3 hours before your scan
refrain from exercising 3 hours before your scan
refrain from consuming excessive caffeine or alcohol for 24 hours before your scan

refrain from using lotions or ointments on your hands or feet on the day of

What is a healthy Body Fat Percentage?
Like the fire service ... these numbers do not have a sliding scale with age.:

Men should strive to keep their BF %
between 10% - 20%

Women should strive to keep their BF %
between 18% - 28%

Why a body composition analysis vs body weight?

Hoping on a scale doesn’t always tell the whole truth. By using body fat percentages and muscle mass as a measurement of success, you will be able to see your muscle mass rise even if your weight is not moving. Often when you increase the intensity of your training, muscle mass will rise while body fat drops, preventing any movement in your actual weight. This could be discouraging for some. Being able to see this progress is important as it allows you know what you are doing in the kitchen and weight room is working.

Muscle Mass
High skeletal muscle mass, low body fat percentage and low visceral fat is the goal. This type of body composition is at the lowest risk for cardiovascular disease. Generally, greater muscle mass has positive health effects. As you get older, you naturally lose muscle mass. This age-related muscle loss, called sarcopenia, begins at age 30. You continue to lose 3 to 5 percent of muscle mass every decade, which reduces physical function and increases your risk of injury. But if you're deliberate in your resistance training, you can slow down muscle loss and protect your physical ability … which is HUGE in our line of work.

What percentage (minimal) of your weight should be muscle?

BMI (Body Mass Index)

We will politely decline all BMI data for the Resolution as its calculation is flawed. BMI is a value derived from a person's mass (weight) and height. It does not differentiate between muscle mass and fat mass. This error results in categorizing men and women with muscular frames, like firefighters, as obese.

The opinions of Health & Ladders are just that .. opinions. Our programs are never to supersede your doctor's advice and protocol for you.