Southwest Florida’s endless summer weather offers means many people want to keep a shapely and well-toned body year-round. From fat-burning foods to the energy-enhancing and body-toning movements of Pilates and Gyrotonics, as well as the latest in body contouring methods and body wraps, local practitioners offer tips on how to shape and sculpt the body for summer, or for a lifetime.

Apply Nutritional Wisdom

Chef Jude Windau, a personal chef in Naples, has been preparing delicious food for more than 20 years. Certified through the American Fitness Professionals Association in nutrition, wellness and sports nutrition, he stays abreast of the latest studies on foods that aid in healthy weight loss. Windau works with personal trainers and coaches, plans meals and prepares high-flavor, low-salt dishes.

“Certain foods, such as chili peppers, have a high thermogenic effect, which heats up the body and literally burns calories as you chew. Add hot sauces to soups, eggs and meats to stoke metabolism,” says Windau, who also suggests drinking four cups of green tea per day, because the polyphenol epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) had been shown to enhance weight loss significantly.

Chiropractic physician Gary Gendron, a diplomate in clinical nutrition with 27 years of experience and the founder of Bonita Springs-based Nutrition Specialists of Florida, recommends reducing sugar consumption and eliminating foods such as enriched breads and pastas, as well as others that are high in carbohydrates that the body converts to sugar. Gendron suggests eating twice as many high-fiber vegetables like organic spinach, bell peppers, cauliflower and broccoli as fruit, to keep the carbohydrate count and glycemic index low.

“Avoid all processed foods and eat enough lean protein and quality fats found in fresh water fish, chicken, turkey, macadamia nuts and avocados. Avoid excessive consumption of carrots, bananas and squashes,” advises Gendron. “Exercising within one hour of rising in the morning and before eating breaks down stored fat, accelerating the desired goal of sculpting the body,” he adds.

Dr. Caroline Cederquist, a board-certified bariatric physician with a specialization in nutrition and metabolism and the founder of Cederquist Medical Wellness

Center, in Naples, offers a comprehensive, individualized approach to nutritional weight loss. In her recent book, The MD Factor: Correcting Metabolism Dysfunction, she shares what she has learned from 23 years of treating patients that have difficulty losing weight.

Cederquist maintains that changing the diet has the biggest effect on weight loss. “Learn the basics of meal planning and preparation so that you eat well-planned meals, where you get adequate lean protein to ensure no loss of lean muscle tissue in the weight-loss process,” she explains. “Carbohydrates are allowed, but they should primarily come from healthy sources, such as vegetables, legumes, fruit and non-refined grains. Fat intake is reduced for weight loss to occur but is not off-limits; fat is naturally present in foods high in lean protein and then healthy fats such as nuts, olives and avocados are allowed. After two weeks, patients have a new food routine and can add exercise, which I view as the thing that helps them maintain long-term weight loss,” affirms Cederquist.

With her husband, Ed, she founded BistroMD.com. “Meals with ‘food as medicine’ are planned by three dieticians who work with me to create delicious meals using fresh foods that rev up metabolism and stabilize blood sugar with minimal processing and without chemicals. We ship them nationally, providing natural foods and convenience,” describes Cederquist, who tracks her patients’ progress with a questionnaire and blood work. “In 2013, nearly 90 percent of my patients—men, women and children—were unaware that they had metabolic dysfunction,” she notes. “This means that because their body does not metabolize carbohydrates well, they store more fat.”

Move!

Exercise physiology is the foundation of Symmetry Precision Fitness, in Naples, owned by Jay Weitzner, a certified fitness trainer, who designs effective and safe fitness routines using the mechanics and physics of exercise. “The best exercise routine is one that works the entire body. Even if you only want a better butt or more shapely shoulders, you need an overall workout that won’t create imbalance in your joints later. Show your fitness trainer a photo of your ideal body and work with them on a routine that makes sculpting your body achievable,” says Weitzner.

Certified Authentic Pilates Instructor Christy Demond, owner of Pilates on the Move, in Fort Myers, closely supervises each client’s series of controlled Pilates movements. To maximize their benefit requires concentration, centering, precision, breath and flow.

Demond proposes that Pilates exercises can offer a new shape from head to toe. “With Pilates equipment, you lengthen and strengthen the whole body, not just the core. Muscles lengthen, which results in better definition and occasionally even an inch in height,” observes Demond. “In my 20 years of experience, I’ve seen equally great results from Pilates mat exercises performed daily for 10 minutes. Pilates leaves you feeling stronger, walking taller and breathing more deeply and fluidly.”

Patricia Wilborn, owner of Pilates Gyrotonic Yoga Studio, in Naples, claims that the reward of at least six weeks of Gyrotonics sessions on a machine or Gyro-Kenesis mat sessions is a longer and leaner look, perfect for bathing suit weather. “Gyrotonics flowing and rhythmic movements with applied resistance—which are designed to open up the space between the joints, increase joint mobility and circulation, as well as improve balance and coordination—lengthen the spine and improve posture,” promises Wilborn, a corrective exercise specialist certified by the National Academy of Sports Medicine.

Sculpt and Contour

“Safe, all-natural, mineral body wraps that work on problem areas, detoxify and contour the body by compressing the tissues and drawing out toxins and

impurities,” shares Barbara Ohm, a skincare specialist who co-owns Suddenly Slimmer, in Cape Coral, with her daughter, Shandra Ohm, a nutrition and wellness specialist. “In the first treatment, an individual generally loses six to 20 inches, which do not return unless the individual gains weight,” comments Barbara, who generally recommends a series of five wraps. During their seven years in business, she adds, the duo has seen amazing results, including a visible reduction in the appearance of cellulite.

The Cavi-Lipo system, a new approach to sculpting, produces an ultrasound cavitation wave to stimulate the lymphatic system, promote better circulation and help reduce toxins. According to its developers, the system also vibrates adipose (fat) cells at a very high rate, causing tiny air molecules to form inside only the adipose cells. As the air molecules force their way out, they burst the fat cell, which is then metabolized and released through the liver and other natural metabolic processes. As the ultrasound wave passes through the surface skin, it stimulates, firms and tightens the skin.

Debra Florio, a licensed massage therapist and owner of Contour Body Works Massage Therapy and Day Spa, in Fort Myers, suggests that her Cavi-Lipo clients schedule pre- and post-lymphatic massage, take niacin and do a liver cleanse. “Refraining from alcohol and carbohydrates for 24 hours is as essential to the long-term success of treatments as a lifestyle that includes a healthy diet and exercise. In six to nine treatments, stomach fat and love handles disappear,” says Florio, who points out that Cavi-Lipo can also be used on the face. A new location, Sculpted Beauty by Cavi-Lipo, will soon open in Bonita Springs.

Lipo Light Naples offers non-invasive weight and inch-loss services, including the advanced slimming and sculpting technology of Cavi-Lipo, as well as Lipo Light, which uses LED light waves to penetrate the skin. “Our clients shape up body areas such as the waist, hips, thighs, upper legs, and arms. They generally lose an entire dress size, as well as between six to nine inches in as little as three weeks,” says Dr. Ron Repice, a chiropractic physician. He explains that Lipo Light’s LED light waves create pores, or channels, in the cell wall, and trigger the release of the enzyme lipase to break down triglyceride molecules into fatty acids and glycerol, which are small enough to pass through the pores of the cell wall, releasing stored fat. He recommends two treatments per week for four weeks, along with exercise and cleansing protocols such as a liver detox.

With so many options available, regaining and maintaining our ideal body is just a few steps away. These experts can help anyone slim down and shape up.

 

Resources

Chef Jude, 305-890-7144, [email protected].

Dr. Gary Gendron, Nutrition Specialists of Florida, 28315 S. Tamiami Tr. Ste. 101, Bonita Springs, 239-947-1177, [email protected], ChiropractorBonitaSprings.com.

Cederquist Medical Wellness Center, 1575 Pine Ridge Rd., Naples, 239-593-0663, [email protected], DrCederquist.com.

Symmetry Fitness, 1750 J&C Blvd., Ste. 10, Naples, 239-940-2121, NoFadsAllFitness.com.

Pilates on the Move, 13010 Metro Pkwy., Ft. Myers, 239-910-0638, [email protected], FitOnMove.com.

Pilates Gyrotonic Yoga Studio, Golden Gate and Santa Barbara (next to Naples Christian Academy), 239-290-7499.

Suddenly Slimmer, 1718 Cape Coral Pkwy. E., 239-541-4652, [email protected], SuddenlySlimmer.com.

Contour Body Works, 16120 San Carlos Blvd., Ft. Myers, 239-489-3063, ContourBodyWorks.com.

Lipo Light Naples, 1715 Heritage Trail, Ste. 203, Naples, 239-530-3040, LipoLightNaples.com.

Sculpted Beauty by Cavi-Lipo, 26381 Tamiami Trl., Ste. 136, Bonita Springs, SculptedBeauty.net.

Jay Weitzner, 203-382-4913, [email protected].