Answers

Cutting fruit out of your diet is not very smart. I mean, why would you? In a survey of a million obese people it was found that not one of them achieved their expanded size by eating fruit. In addition, fruit has so many other benefits that NOT eating them would be less than smart. From vitamins to antioxidants and fiber, fruit is very good for you, just try not overdoing it and not right before bedtime. Fructose is not the same sugar as simple sugar, the stuff that is used to sweeten other stuff. That is my expert opinion.
Eat fruit!

Not exactly. Three times per week, I would say, is the minimum if you are looking for results and trying to bring about changes, to look different, to loose weight, to be productive. Twice is better than none though. If you must only do that than you’d better have a long workout and do pushes and pulls on separate days. Three is better!

Pilates is a good way to put your back out, if you are not strong enough and/or not used to those kinds of movements. It hurts me every time I do it. I have too much muscle and not enough flexibility, which is not an important factor when one wants to be steady on one’s feet and strong enough to do interval training and run up and down the bridge. If you plan on watching tv in a seated position on the floor, than yes, do pilates till you’re blue in the face. If you are looking to “tone up”, first step would be to build muscle which you can tone up. Pilates does build core strength, but not much beyond that.
Definitely does not add muscle at the rate you can build by doing traditional weight training exercises. It is not weight bearing either. Slim down?? Well, at least you are not eating for that hour duration of the class so yeah, maybe… not!

Have you looked into a spin class lately? How many fit people were there on their stationary bikes? Aside from the instructor. I see a spinning instructor who works out with weights before her class and yes, she looks very fit. She also does the stair master, and plyometrics, and I bet she runs too outside the gym. The problem with spinning is that everyone is in charge of their bike’s resistance, hence the intensity level at which they work out. Lets say you are riding a bike on the road. Do you adjust the terrain to fit your desired level of effort or do you just push yourself and get through it and try your best to stay with the group??? I bet no more than 10% of spinners (and I am being generous here) actually get a decent workout from spinning. It’s not enough. Riders in the real world pedal hours almost every day to get better and challenge themselves. Two or three classes a week at your self guided intensity is not going to do it. No.

How many football players you think go out onto the field on an empty stomach? Not a one. It’s better to have fuel if you know you’re going on a road trip. So get some carbs and got o work. Not better to work on empty stomach.

No. Eating more often will result in heightened metabolism and better energy disbursement and less fat storage from the same amount of calories. Not going to expand on this, it should be common knowledge by now. Snack people, eat yourself skinny! Seriously! (By snack I mean eat healthy, protein rich, small amount and not crappy carbs!)

Fat free and sugar free is replaced with artificial stuff that can be worse than saturated fat. Be careful and do your homework! No, it’s not OK!I

A marathon is a very draining high impact short term goal after which the body can go overboard when recovering and not only it can injure one, it can keep you from further training, it can backfire and put you back in fat! It is, however a good training goal for some, but definitely not everyone and definitely not for the weak or overweight. It should not end there either. I actually wouldn’t recommend it…but more on this later.

No. sweat is not an actual measure of workout intensity. One can sweat more due to high sodium or high metabolism. Or just because you’re stock in a cardio room with 10 other people sweating next to you. Not at all a good measure or an only measure!

Weights and cardio. Do both alternating. Old school old song. No shortcuts.

Absolutely yes, both strength training and cardio are necessary for a long term health and fitness goal and to lose weight.

In closing: nutrition, weight training and cardio are ONE, loose weight, tone up, stay fit, all the same. If you want to take a Pilates class, by all means, go ahead! If you want to run a marathon, go for it! If you feel like spinning once in a while, good for you! Cannot single out any one activity as good or bad, but I must stress that in order to be effective in reaching your goal a good base program of 3 days weights and 3 days cardio is a must. It is not that difficult and is all so rewarding! Everything else is gravy, fun, why not, do it!

You must enjoy and live this, not as a short term goal, but as a way of life. It will keep you strong, young, energetic and self loving, which is more than most people can claim nowadays. But don’t take my word, look around and see… Any questions?