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I’m about to take a very big step onto a limb that probably won’t hold me. Yes indeed. I’m going to finally face a big truth in my life. That would be my weight. Maybe the hardest thing of all for me to talk about. I have a lot of shame attached to this one…
What’s really weird is that when I was a child, I was so ashamed of being too skinny. Or “poor” as Granny used to call it. “Marie,” she would say, “you don’t eat enough to keep a bird alive. You’re too poor.”
By far the strongest memory I have from grade school is the humiliation and down-to-the-marrow shame I felt on weigh-in day at school. I doubt very many people where and when I grew up had scales at home. I certainly never saw one in any house in the vicinity of Star Route, Milo, Oregon back then. In fact, most health screening children got when I was growing up happened at school.
Twice a year, at the beginning and the end of each school year, the scales (the kind you stand on and move the weight along the bar until it balances in the middle of the space on the right) was brought into the classroom and one by one, we went up, took off our shoes, and stepped on the platform. The teacher would adjust the bar and call out the number, write it down in a chart, and call out the next student’s name.
The afternoon of the day of the second weigh-in during first grade, as I passed my teacher and the second grade teacher in the hall, my teacher said to the other: “Marie is the only student in first grade that didn’t gain a bit of weight the whole school year. She weighed 46 pounds at the beginning of the year, and 46 pounds today.” She shook her head, and said to me, “You’re going to have to put on some weight or you’ll blow away.”
I can still feel my face burning with shame. Hearing that and feeling that changed who I am, I believe.
In second grade, when the scales were wheeled into the room, I could hardly breathe. Every time a name was called and got one student closer to my desk in my row, my panic went up another notch. By the time my name was called, I felt about to faint.
The strangest part of this memory is that, even at age 7, I was remarkably aware that I needed to not let my anxiety show, that I was alone in this experience, and I could not admit it or share it with anyone. I needed to keep my shame to myself.
Where on earth do children learn this by this tender age?? Well, maybe that’s another blog post.
I can’t begin to tell you how relieved I was when she called out the number 49. Yes!! I had put on weight!!! I didn’t need to feel shame anymore that day!! I was ecstatic! For a while.
I continued to be skin and bones through high school. I started gaining weight after leaving home for college, but then only finally reached what would be considered appropriate for my height. I started filling out more in my late 20s, then packed on quite a few pounds when I was pregnant. I was 30 when Blaine was born, and finally got back in shape over the next few years, when I ran nearly seven miles nearly every day. I loved running so much, it was my meditation and salvation during some really stressful times. I never fully recovered my running form after a stress fracture in my right foot put me into one of those wooden bootie things for a couple of months.
In fact, I’ve never really achieved regular demanding exercise for a sustained period of more than a few months for the past 20 years. I also have an addictive fondness for chocolate (among other calorie laden food items). And it shows. I now weigh significantly more than I did when I was pregnant. More than I’ve ever weighed in my life. Twice my weight in high school.
You notice I am not naming a number? I tried. No can do. The shame, I am still drowning in it. I can only say it is way too high.
And I need to fix it. I remember visiting my Aunt Cora not long before she died, after her leg had been amputated because of diabetes. (Everybody called it “sugar diabetes” where I grew up. Haven’t heard that phrase in so many years.) I could be her.
I don’t want to be. I want 2010 to be the year I face this and fix it. I don’t really have a plan at this point, but I’m going to make one. My coworkers are in this with me; each of us in our department faces our health issues and we have resolved to tackle this together.
I will track my plan and progress here in coming months. Please help me. I need your support. Have you faced this and fixed it for good? What worked? What advice do you have?
I have a feeling I need to go after the shame as well as the pounds. I guess you could say I’m seeking weightlessness in more ways than one.
‘Tis that time of year again, when we look back on the past 12 months to see if we’ve accomplished our resolutions.
I didn’t. My one resolution was to take a cooking class of some sort, and I just never got around to it. I accomplished one of my goals, though! I wanted to meet with a financial planner to discuss our finances and debt reduction, and we did.
I did do a lot more cooking, though, and trying out recipes and techniques that I’d never encountered before. Maybe I can count my self-education (with cookbooks and the Food Network, naturally) toward my resolution. Anyone?
This year, I have to step it up. There’s a lot going on, what with us getting married and at least 3 other weddings we’ve been invited to, keeping our finances straight, and the general craziness of everyday life. Here’s what I’d like to resolve:
What are your resolutions?
As if trying on workout clothes equates to working out actually.
Sigh.
I swear it’s not because of New Years’, but lately I have been feeling really out of shape. Ever since final exam period, I’ve been totally slacking in the fitness domain – probably because I realized I could get away with it.
Since overcoming my running addiction (you can get addicted!), I actually lost around 6-7 pounds – although this may also be attributable to the fact that it was around this time that I simultaneously transitioned from being a vegetarian to being a high raw vegan. I definitely know I didn’t lose muscle. Regardless, I went from running 7 days a week (one and a half hours to two hours at a time) to running once a week and doing intervals or the elliptical either once or twice a week. I was OK initially – perhaps my body needed the rest and energy to assimilate the dietary changes – but now I feel like I’m ready…
I’m ready to get back into shape!
(Now that I’ve typed that out…I realize how little I actually know about goal-setting – because I have no concrete plan other than : exercise more! Exercise a lot! I think I need milestones…ya know? Like those stickers that we used to get in grade 1 for completing dictation every week.) To be clear, I’m pretty OK with my current weight, but I’m thinking I need some kind of quantification to motivate me. I have decided rather unofficially to set myself a goal of losing 10 pounds.
Internet, hold me accountable.
Interestingly enough, I’m looking forward to going back to school and feeling the pressures of work and life. It’s a curious thing (I’m a curious creature) but I find that being busy actually forces me to become more desperate for making effective use of my time – for example, setting aside time for exercise! It’s weird that now that I have no excuse NOT to exercise, I just don’t do it! Terrible, isn’t it?
But I’m working on it. I’ll be a fitness addict soon enough – once an addict, always an addict, right?
In the meantime… since I enjoyed the remnants of yesterday’s Red and Orange Hemp Soup so much, I thought I’d spread the love.
Red and Orange Hemp Soup
1 1/2 red peppers, diced
½ big carrot, diced
½ cup hemp seeds
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp soy sauce
2/3 – ¾ cup water
salt and pepper to taste
Blend all ingredients together, adjusting water as necessary to achieve desired consistency. Enjoy scooped into kale wraps, on top of eggplant “nachos”, or just plain jane!
Any exercise program should include cardiovascular exercise, which strengthens the heart and burns calories. And walking is something you can do anywhere, anytime, with no equipment other than a good pair of shoes.
It’s not just for beginners, either: Even the very fit can get a good workout from walking.
“Doing a brisk walk can burn up to 500 calories per hour,” says Robert Gotlin, DO, director of orthopaedic and sports rehabilitation at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York. Since it takes 3,500 calories to lose a pound, you could expect to lose a pound for every seven hours you walk, if you did nothing else.
Don’t go from the sofa to walking an hour day, though. Richard Cotton, a spokesman for the American Council on Exercise, says beginners should start by walking five to -10 minutes at a time, gradually moving up to at least 30 minutes per session.
“Don’t add more than five minutes at a time,” he says. Another tip: It’s better to lengthen your walks before boosting your speed or incline.
2. Interval trainingWhether you’re a beginner or an exercise veteran, a walker or an aerobic dancer, adding interval training to your cardiovascular workout will boost your fitness level and help you lose weight.
“Varying your pace throughout the exercise session stimulates the aerobic system to adapt,” says Cotton. “The more power the aerobic system has, the more capacity you have to burn calories.”
The way to do it is to push the intensity or pace for a minute or two, then back off for anywhere from two to -10 minutes (depending on how long your total workout will be, and how much time you need to recover). Continue doing this throughout the workout.
3. SquatsStrength training is essential, the experts say. “The more muscular fitness you have,” says Cotton, “the greater the capacity you have to burn calories.”
And our experts tended to favor strength-training exercises that target multiple muscle groups. Squats, which work the quadriceps, hamstrings, and gluteals, are an excellent example.
“They give you the best bang for the buck because they use the most muscle groups at once,” says Oldsmar, Fla., trainer David Petersen.
Form is key, though, warns Petersen.
“What makes an exercise functional is how you perform the exercise,” he says. “If you have bad technique, it’s no longer functional.”
For perfect form, keep feet shoulder-width apart and back straight. Bend knees and lower your rear, says Cotton: “The knee should remain over the ankle as much as possible.”
“Think of how you sit down in a chair, only the chair’s not there,” suggests Gotlin.
Physical therapist Adam Rufa, of Cicero, N.Y., says practicing with a real chair can help.
“Start by working on getting in and out of a real chair properly,” he says. Once you’ve mastered that, try just tapping the chair with your bottom, then coming back up. Then do the same motion without the chair.
Gotlin sees lots of patients with knee pain, and says quadriceps weakness is the cause much of the time. If you feel pain going down stairs, he says, strengthening your quads with squats may very well help.
4. LungesLike squats, lunges work all the major muscles of the lower body: gluteals, quadriceps, and hamstrings.
A lunge is a great exercise because it mimics life, it mimics walking,” only exaggerated, says Petersen.
Lunges are a bit more advanced than squats, says Cotton, helping to improve your balance as well.
Here’s how to do them right: Take a big step forward, keeping your spine in a neutral position. Bend your front knee to approximately 90 degrees, focusing on keeping weight on the back toes and dropping the knee of your back leg toward the floor.
Petersen suggests that you imagine sitting on your back foot. “The trailing leg is the one you need to sit down on,” he says.
To make a lunge even more functional, says Rufa, try stepping not just forward, but back and out to each side.
“Life is not linear, it’s multiplanar,” says Rufa. And the better they prepare you for the various positions you’ll move in during the course of a day, the more useful exercises are.
5. Push-upsIf done correctly, the push-up can strengthen the chest, shoulders, triceps, and even the core trunk muscles, all at one time.
“I’m very much into planking exercises, almost yoga-type moves,” says Petersen. “Anytime you have the pelvis and the core [abdominals and back] in a suspended position, you have to rely on your own adherent strength to stabilize you.”
Push-ups can be done at any level of fitness, says Cotton: “For someone who is at a more beginning level, start by pushing from the kitchen-counter height. Then work your way to a desk, a chair, the floor with bent knees, and, finally, the floor on your toes.”
Here’s how to do a perfect push-up: From a face-down position, place your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Place your toes or knees on the floor, and try to create a perfect diagonal with your body, from the shoulders to the knees or feet. Keep the glutes [rear-end muscles] and abdominals engaged. Then lower and lift your body by bending and straightening your elbows, keeping your torso stable throughout.
There are always ways to make it harder, says Rufa. Once your form is perfect, try what he calls the “T-stabilization” push-up: Get into push-up position, then do your push-ups with one arm raised out to the side, balancing on the remaining three limbs without rotating your hips.
6. Abdominal CrunchesWho doesn’t want firm, flat abs? Experts say that when done correctly, the familiar crunch (along with its variations) is a good choice to target them.
For a standard crunch, says Cotton, begin lying on your back with feet flat on the floor and fingertips supporting your head. Press your low back down and begin the exercise by contracting abdominals and peeling first your head (tucking your chin slightly), then your neck, shoulders, and upper back off the floor.
Be careful not to pull your neck forward by sticking the chin out; don’t hold your breath, and keep elbows out of your line of vision to keep chest and shoulders open.
For his part, Petersen teaches his clients to do crunches with their feet off the floor and knees bent. He says that with feet kept on the floor, many people tend to arch the back and engage the hip flexors.
“Crunches can be excellent, but if they’re not done correctly, with the back arching, they can actually weaken the abdominals,” Petersen says.
To work the obliques (the muscles on the sides of your waist), says Cotton, take the standard crunch and rotate the spine toward one side as you curl off the floor.
“Twist before you come up,” he says. “It’s really important that the twist comes first because then it’s the obliques that are actually getting you up.”
But keep in mind that you won’t get a flat stomach with crunches alone, says Cotton. Burning belly fat requires the well-known formula: using up more calories than you take in.
“Crunches work the ab muscles; [they're] not to be mistaken as exercise that burns the fat over the abdominals,” he says. “That’s the biggest myth in exercise going.”
7. Bent-over RowTalk about bang for the buck: This exercise works all the major muscles of the upper back, as well as the biceps.
Here’s how to do it with good form. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, then bend knees and flex forward at the hips. (If you have trouble doing this exercise standing up, support your weight by sitting on an incline bench, facing backward.) Tilt your pelvis slightly forward, engage the abdominals, and extend your upper spine to add support. Hold dumbbells or barbell beneath the shoulders with hands about shoulder-width apart. Flex your elbows, and lift both hands toward the sides of your body. Pause, then slowly lower hands to the starting position. (Beginners should perform the move without weights.)
TechniqueThese seven exercises are excellent, efficient choices, the experts say. But with just about any strength or resistance exercise, says Petersen, the question is not so much whether the exercise works as how well you execute.
“Done with good technique, all exercises do what they’re supposed to do,” says Petersen.
The trouble is that poor form can change the whole exercise, putting emphasis or even strain on different areas than intended. This can hurt, rather than help you.
So especially if you’re a beginner, it’s a good idea to seek the advice of a fitness trainer – whether it’s a personal trainer or a trainer at your gym — to be sure your form is safe and correct.
Once upon a time, we were told losing weight required nothing more than a good diet and exercise plan and the motivation to stick with both.
While those things are still true, an entire industry has sprung up to help us achieve those goals. And over the past few years, dieting has gone high-tech, with an assortment of devices and services designed to help us shed the pounds. Many attempt to turn electronic items we use already, like cell phones, MP3 players, computers, and personal digital assistants (PDAs), into weight loss aids.
But is this high-tech approach for you? More important, could it really help you lose those extra pounds or build those six-pack abs?
The answer, it seems, depends on the gadget — and on you.
“If something helps you make healthy lifestyle changes, and you can maintain those changes, then it’s always a good thing,” says New York University nutritionist Samantha Heller, MS, RD.
In fact, a study presented at an obesity meeting in October 2005 showed that listening to music while you work out may help you stick to a fitness plan and boost weight loss.
That said, Heller cautions that many of the devices on the market may be unrealistic, not only in terms of cost but also in what they can accomplish — particularly when it comes to helping us make permanent changes in our eating and exercise habits.
Other experts agree.
“Clearly, some of these devices and services are better than others but in the end it still comes down to you, how much you eat and how much you exercise — that’s what matters most,” says Lona Sandon, MS, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.
To help keep you up to date on the world of high-tech weight control, WebMD asked several experts to help us investigate the possibilities. Here’s what we found.
The Food PhoneKeeping a food journal is one of the oldest and best-known ways to launch a successful diet. By writing down everything we eat, experts say, we can clearly see how much and how often we’re eating — and take steps to deal with bad habits. The Food Phone service takes it one step farther by providing you with instant “live” feedback on every meal.
How it works: Dieters pay a monthly fee to stay hooked up, via cell phone, to dieticians who are available 24/7. Whenever you get the urge to eat, you snap a digital picture of what you want to chow down on, and send it electronically to a food phone coach. The coach phones back with an instant “thumbs up” or “thumbs down” along with suggestions for what to do instead, such as eating half a portion of your desired treat.
The Food Phone continued…The cost: $149 a month.
What the experts say: “The good thing about this service is it does help you stop and think about what you’re eating, so it increases awareness of portion sizes and even choices,” says Heller. On the down side, she wonders how many people are really going to photograph all their food every day — and how many have $150 a month to spend on this luxury.
While Sandon says the Food Phone can be motivator, “it’s like having someone watching over everything you eat.” She notes that pictures don’t tell the whole story.
“You can’t tell how much fat, sugar, salt, or calories are in a dish,” she says, “so it may be most helpful in setting people straight on what a portion should look like.”
Bottom line: It’s a good choice if having “Mom” on your case 24/7 is what you need to help you stay on your diet. It’s a bad choice if “Mom” being on your case 24/7 is why you’re overeating in the first place!
Cell Phone Diet CoachesStill using a cell phone just to make calls? Now comes University of North Carolina (UNC) Healthcare with a variety of applications that turn your cell phone into a diet coach.
How it works: By downloading various weight loss programs (including a calorie counter, carb counter, personal trainer, and personal pedometer) you can turn any Java-enabled cell phone or PDA into a dieting encyclopedia. By entering personal information (like height, weight, and dieting goals), you can further customize each program to provide detailed information to help you meet your goals.
The cost: Prices vary from $5 to $7 per application. For an additional $2 per month, you can hook up to the online health link, which lets you monitor your progress and further customize your reports. If you agree to be a beta tester (that is, to test how well the program performs), the application is free and the fees are waived for 90 days.
What the experts say: “There’s nothing new here except how you access the information,” says Heller. If you need a gadget instead of a book to count calories or carbs, she says, this can help.
Bottom line: If you need to be mildly amused while counting calories, these programs can help you learn what you can and can’t eat if you want to reach your goals. They may also help raise your dieting awareness.
The Fitness PhoneTwo high-tech programs — one from Nokia and the other from Siemens — use cell-phone technology to help you meet your fitness goal. They offer various services, including an electronic coach, a calorie counter, body mass index (BMI) calculator, heart rate monitor, and fitness scheduler. And oh yeah, you can make calls, too.
25 Days of Yoga
My 25 Days of Yoga holiday challenge came to an end yesterday. In case you missed it, I decided to do yoga every day for the 25 days leading up to my return home for Christmas for several reasons:
1. In the month of November I neglected to take advantage of my unlimited monthly membership and felt like I was wasting my money. I thought a personal challenge would encourage me to attend class.
2. Commercial America has decided to make Christmas a time of great stress, anxiety and excess. I thought yoga would distract me from all of that.
3. The holiday season is filled with parties, food and drinking. I thought a dedication to something healthier would keep me from throwing my new lifestyle out the window.
I found that a daily commitment to yoga did, in fact, eradicate most of the unpleasantries I typically encounter during the month of December.
I avoided unnecessary shopping by buying 100% of my gifts online and shipping them straight home. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the hype of mall shopping, but when I do that I end up just shopping for myself and wasting money. Without the time or desire to do traditional shopping, I was able to spend more time doing thing I actually enjoy–sending Christmas cards, cleaning out the pantry and donating food, and baking.
I experienced little desire to eat cookies and drink cocktails all month (except gingerbread cats). Coming home every night covered in sweat and in desperate need of a shower makes it kind of difficult to meet up for happy hour or take part in a bar crawl. It does make me kind of lame, I guess, but I feel better for it. My body also doesn’t react well to alcohol anymore. I had less than one glass of wine last night and have downed three bottles of water this morning as a result.
And I definitely got my money’s worth out of my membership.
There were some down sides to my daily practice of hot yoga, though. I failed to responsibly rehydrate myself so I suffered some unpleasant symptoms of dehydration during the third week. As a result, I spent most of my final week practicing at home out of the heat. I also took two full days “off” and spent an hour reading Meditations from the Mat. In all, I practiced 17 days in the heat, 6 days at home, and had two days of reading.
I would never recommend to someone, especially a beginner, that they engage in 25 straight days of hot yoga. It can be very stressful on the body. I do think, though, that a daily yoga practice is very beneficial.
I will say, however, that by the end I was itching to move. Yoga is all about stillness in body and mind. It’s about clearing all thoughts, settling into a pose and controlling your breath. Maybe I’m just not disciplined enough yet, but around day 20 I had an urge to just run and pant uncontrollably.
I’m glad I did it. I’ll continue to do it. And I think I’d eventually like to get certified to teach. Eventually.
I got to my evening WW meeting tonight and was surprised to see my BOSS standing there! He had a present for me: THIS, poster sized, in a big frame. I was… overcome. Really.
(no, it’s not a REAL WW magazine cover, he did it in Photoshop! – what talent, right?) But truly I can’t even express what this means to me, on so many freaking levels. And if you don’t know the significance of this image, read this post.
This week I talked a few times about how on Facebook, there’s that “Year in Facebook” collage app, and it sort of summarizes your 2009 FB status updates. One of the very first updates I wrote in 2009 was: Need to lose weight for medical reasons. I’m scared. I need company. I remember what a frightened, sorry state I was in. But I put it out there. I started this blog. And, as they say, the rest is history.
Boy, see what happens when you put it out there? Did I ever get company. I’m truly overwhelmed with gratitude for this year.
Anyway, speaking of The Big Cheese, his blog post for this week is really funny and yet REAL and true, and what makes WW work at its essence. Having a good time. Planning. Making choices. Being intentional about all of it. And not feeling remorse for indulging, when that indulgence is intentional. He really, truly walks the walk as well as talks the talk. I printed out and read this post at several of my meetings this week and not only did members laugh, I think they really GOT IT.
How do you know when you’re overdoing it while exercising? Here’s a simple test: Say the Pledge of Allegiance out loud.
If it’s tough to voice those familiar words, you’re probably pushing yourself too hard.
That’s what researchers from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse found when they tried the “talk test” on 16 volunteers.
The participants (10 men and six women) were all in their 20s, healthy, and moderately active. That means probably none were marathoners or total couch potatoes.
Each person did four exercise tests on different days, using treadmills and stationary bikes.
Participants performed treadmill and bike tests at an easy pace and again at maximal exertion.
Meanwhile, researcher Carl Foster, PhD, FACSM, and colleagues monitored the volunteers’ heart rates and ventilatory thresholds. That’s the point at which it gets harder to breath.
Talk Is CheapPaces were tweaked for each person. For instance, some found their comfortable treadmill pace while walking; others jogged just as easily.
During the last 30 seconds of each workout, participants were asked to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Right after that, the researchers asked if it had been tough for them to talk.
The yes, no, and don’t know responses lined up with the ventilatory threshold readings. That is, participants who had a hard time talking were working too hard.
The results held true for the treadmill and the stationary bikes and were “highly consistent,” write the researchers in the September issue of the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.
“The talk test is a practical way for people to monitor their intensity during exercise,” says Foster in a news release.
And while your sneakers or gym membership probably weren’t cheap, the talk test is free and requires no special training or equipment.
Just be sure to say the words out loud, say the researchers. No fair muttering them under your breath; that’s too easy.
After all, you want to keep up the exercise habit, so don’t turbo-charge your workouts beyond your capacity.
#best09 December 21 Project. What did you start this year that you’re proud of?
It all started with Kristen’s call to join her as a Shredhead. From there it moved on to Yoga with my Bob and then the next thing you know we were running and running and running and running and running and running to a goal for next year. This coming March to be exact.
It’s good to have a goal.
I am proud of this. I did this for the health of it all. I feel better. I feel stronger. And according to my 23 year old daughter, I have a butt that is high and tight and worthy of even her envy.
Yeah, I’m pretty proud of this project of mine.
As I browse the blogs and websites of golf teachers and golf addicts alike, the themes tend to be fairly common. The majority promise instruction, tips, drills, training aids or gimmicks that will fix your golf swing quickly and permanently. They offer “scientific research” and other “evidence” that their methodology is the answer to your godawful mess of a swing. My first thought when I see this (after immediately leaving the website) is this: What if it isn’t your golf swing that’s broken?
Take the common swing fault of coming over the top, for example. This occurs when the club’s path on the downswing becomes steep and outside the proper downswing plane, or above the plane. According to the Titleist Performance Institutute, 43.5% of golfers exhibit this fault. The main reason that this happens is an early rotation of the upper body. But why?
Often the problem is a poor grip, or a lack of understanding of how power is created, or how the club should actually swing. But just as often, coming over the top is caused by physical limitations, which will not allow you to perform the correct action. In order to produce the correct downswing, the following physical capabilities must be present:
Absence of any of the the above characteristics will force you to perform compensations in your swing that lead to an over the top action. These characteristics are developed in the gym, not at the driving range or the course.
That makes it important that your coach has an understanding of how the body works in the golf swing. As your coach, I can work with you all day to shallow out your downswing, but if you can’t physically make the motion, we are both beating our heads against a wall. And that’s no fun for anyone!
so…there I was on my life-cycle, honing my body into an ever stronger and lethal weapon preparing for light, truth, justice, and the american way – not to mention trench warfare commerce, and possibly the summit of a mountain.
though my self-induced haze of fitness euphoria there emerged the image of my stunning youngest daughter, Emma Jo, and her friend for life (for now, anyway) Claire Butler. their blond hair joyfully wild from a sleep-over. they stood before me in our home-gym with a proposition roiling behind their blue and currently impish eyes.
Emma Jo spoke first, a delighted smile playing across her bright face: “Daddy, we want to clean your den! and, you can pay us!”
their orchestration both carefully considered and finely conceived, Claire added: “we’re doing chores instead of playing”
…absolutely and brilliant played.
the negotiations were nip-an-tuc, to be sure.
two WHOLE dollars EACH for the effort. and, to seal the deal, an extra dollar if they threw in the basement play room (that once served as our home school room). so, three large dollars each.
as they padded out of the gym, their triumph clearly evidenced by their chins held high and delighted squeaks, Emma Jo turned around with: “IloveyouDaddy”, and, “can we make it four dollars?” we’ll let you take us to Brusters for ice cream!”.
they had me pinned down for the count with a devious and well-calculated strategy to warm my heart and empty my wallet.
my Grandad used to introduce me to people with: “This is my Grandson Brian. You could drop hin naked into a Nebraska cornfied, and in two weeks, he’d own the farm”.
there you have it. Grandad would be proud.
I am; and helplessly enchanted and in love.
Peace be to my Brothers and Sisters.
Brian Patrick Cork
Shaun Goodsell
Athletes are given “Motivational” speeches constantly. They are told they need to get pumped up, ready to play, focused, and mentally prepared. When coaches and athletes are interviewed clichés are spewed out in rapid-fire fashion. These constant clichés have become tired, and as a result, have lost their intrigue. Throughout my day I get asked constantly how to “Motivate” athletes and what it is that uncovers the deep well of energy that lies within people, athletes included? I believe one important component is PERSONALIZED FEEDBACK.
Personalized feedback contains information specifically designed for the individual athlete that descriptively, clearly, and concisely creates a picture for the athlete concerning what they can do to improve themselves. This message can contain a descriptive message of something they did that was positive as well. Motivation is unleashed when it can be engaged in clearly defined actions that lead to results. When we communicate using tired clichés broadcasted to teams and groups with no personalization we leave people wondering and confused about what to do next. We are then shocked when our players play tentatively, without emotional intensity and engagement. Is it any wonder why athletes are disengaging and moving towards activities that allow them to be in control? We are unintentionally conditioning them to be disinterested in what is said to them because of the irrelevance of our messages.
I have learned that athletes are hungering for quality feedback they in turn can take and utilize to create success. We simply need to stop communicating in lazy, tired, and impersonal ways. Here are the ingredients of a Personalized Message:
Using this as an outline will help you re-engage those that have become disinterested in your messages and could help unleash a flow of energy that may have been lacking for months or possibly years.
I would love to hear your challenges and victories around your work with athletes!
Shaun
My cell phone is one of those cheap pay-as-you-go models that only does one thing: make phone calls. (And I think it has about $200 worth of minutes built up in it, since I keep forgetting to take it with me!) So if I write about cell phone technology, I may sound like a Martian who just landed and is utterly fascinated by a traffic signal. Please pardon my ignorance…
The new Sony Ericsson Yari phone has all the usual bells and whistles that today’s phones have, but it also combines the motion-sensing ability of the Wiimote, Your Shape and Eye Toy. It doesn’t seem to be available stateside, but reviews are popping up on foreign websites. This review from a site in India describes a fitness game and tennis game that sense your hand or body motions with a built-in camera, and a bowling game where you swing the phone like a Wiimote.
Other sites are saying that a boxing game is available for the phone. I can’t find any good gameplay videos, but here’s a video of (allegedly) a demonstration of the phone’s ability:
I know I’ve felt that way before in restaurants and classrooms; with the Yari, now I can score points for a one-two punch.
Ob das Ziel ist Ethernal Jugend, vollkommene Schönheit, Gesundheit oder festen lange Lebensdauer, können wir die Medizin, Chirurgie und Kuren Staat, in verschiedenen Formen und mit verschiedenen Prioritäten, haben schon immer eine zentrale, wie Disziplin und die Fähigkeit, in die Belange der einzelnen Zivilisation. Die alten Kulturen übertragen uns eine riesige Erbe des traditionellen Wissens über Kräuter, Massagen, Salben und andere natürliche Heilmittel (von denen einige behalten beeindruckende Potential). Diese Mittel sind immer noch wichtig, angewandt und bewundert von großen Gruppen von Menschen in vielen Ländern, mit Ergebnissen, die sich manchmal sehr positiv, auch von der modernen wissenschaftlichen Standards. Natürlich hat das zeitgenössische wissenschaftliche Herangehen an die Probleme des Gesundheits-und Wellness dramatisch entwickelt und immens verstärkten die Macht, das zu beeinflussen, um die Effizienz und das Ansehen der Mediziner und Ärzte in der menschlichen Gesellschaft, die dank ihrer Fähigkeit, die Lebensdauer zu verlängern, um Seuchen zu entfernen , um Krankheiten zu besiegen und Infektionen zu heilen, Schmerzen und Einschränkung erholt Kraft.
References: plaster, pharmaceutical, myweight, addiction, dentalplan, tanningbed, madness, insane, nurse, antibiotics, lotions, hairloss, patient, drugrehab, diabetes, prevention, protection, sight, pharmaceutical, medicalinsurance, nursing, healthcareplan, healthplan,
Das Zeitalter der Antibiotika, Schmerzmittel, sind Laser-Chirurgie, Genforschung und chemiotherapy verspricht Wunder für die Verbesserung der durchschnittlichen Qualität des menschlichen Lebens: also offensichtlich massive Hauptstädten und große Ressourcen investiert jährlich durch bewusste Regierungen und großen multinationalen Unternehmen im Bereich Forschung und Entwicklung für Impfstoffe, Therapien und pharmacons. Auch die Informations-Aspekte der Medizin und Gesundheitsversorgung sind an sich ein enormer Markt, wo die Leute wollen wissen, welches die besten Praktiken besser zu fühlen und denen helfen, Lösungen für mehr leben, sind nach neuesten Erkenntnissen und neuesten Lösungen. Angesichts der Bedeutung des Themas haben wir eine reiche Gruppe von Webseiten, die von http://www.thenew.com und http://www.euroserve.cn vorgestellt (mit http://www.esw3.eu DNS-Dienste zusammengefasst ), deren Zweck es ist, natürlich, präsentiert wertvolles Material über plastische Chirurgie, Hormontherapien, Arzneimittelrezepten und medizinische Betreuung.
References: dentalinsurance, analcancer, bladder, blood, breastcancer, breastimplants, calculus, cardiac, cervicalcancer, cervix, cystectomy, davincicystectomy, denture, endoscopy, erectiledysfunction, fracture, genitals, genitalwarts, heartattack
How much exercise do I really need and how often do I have to do it?
An ideal pattern would be to do the more strenuous exercises earlier in the day. These exercises don’t have to involve high-intensity aerobics or marathon-type runs. If you are a jogger, great. But, even a brisk walk is beneficial. As bedtime approaches, slow your body down with milder exercise, such as an evening stroll. This type of exercise can be done on a daily basis. To achieve faster results, higher intensity programs are beneficial as little as 2-3 times per week.
You can either make time now to improve and maintain your overall health for the long term, or when your health fails, you’ll be forced to find the time to fix it or the consequences could be catastrophic.
(At least 1•1 billion adults and 10% of children are now overweight or obese, leading to decreased life expectancy due to cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, or some types of cancer. The main causes of the obesity epidemic are clear: overeating, especially of foods rich in fats, extracted sugars, or refined starches; and a progressive decline in physical activity.)
We can all spare a minimum of 45 mins-1 hour, 3 times per week of intense exercise if it means living a longer healthier life.
Some tips to incorporate healthy lifestyle choices into every day activities:
1. Instead of taking the elevator to the second floor, walk the stairs.
2. Take a walk around the building on your breaks.
3. Bring a healthy lunch and a few snacks to work to avoid fast food.
Visit www.livewellforlife.net for more vital health and wellness information.
Yours in health,
Dr. Nicki Anzalone
If you are into fitness training, OUTSIDE Magazine online is a terrific resource. I came across an oldie but goodie article from December 2008 by Matt Fitzgerald called, The 12 most common, performance-defeating fitness mistakes—and how to fix them: http://outside.away.com/outside/bodywork/200812/fitness-mistakes-1.html
While all the tips are worth reviewing, the one that seems to me to be most important for just about anyone who is stuck at a fitness plateau wanting to lose inches is MISTAKE # 5:
Going Long and Slow to Burn Calories
Most athletes looking to lose weight stick to long, slow cardio workouts, since the maximum fat-burning rate occurs at moderate exercise intensity (a.k.a. the fat zone). But if you’re looking to trim a belt size, you need to do high-intensity intervals—they simply burn far more calories overall. Plus high-intensity exercise ramps up your resting metabolism by stimulating what’s called excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC). “Your body will continue to burn calories as it replaces the oxygen you expended during your workout,” says Nick Winkelman, a performance specialist with Arizona-based Athletes’ Performance. Here’s a simple way of looking at it: To lose weight, you need to burn more energy than you take in. High-intensity training is the most effective way to do this—especially if you get only ten hours per week to work out.
The Fix: Replace one or two weekly endurance workouts with high-intensity intervals. Example: Warm up at 65 percent of your maximum heart rate (MHR) for five minutes and then do a one-to-two-minute interval at 90 to 95 percent of your MHR. Return to your warm-up pace until your heart rate drops back down to 65 percent of MHR. Repeat until you can no longer get down to 65 percent of MHR within a couple of minutes—that is, until you’re sweating bullets. Then cool down.
http://outside.away.com/outside/bodywork/200812/fitness-mistakes-5.html
And of course, always check with your physician before attempting any new work-out program!
I’m sitting here waiting for my ‘dieters’ green tea to infuse. It is the night before I start my new exercise and nutrition life change which I’m certainly ready for. I wrote my first entry almost 2 weeks ago, but I have to ask myself why I didn’t start right after that. I find that when people struggle with body issues, many excuses are used to try to justify the lack of self commitment. For example: “I can’t start my diet today. It’s a Wednesday. We all know diets can only start on Mondays.” OR “It’s dinner time and I haven’t eating anything all day. 0 calories! I’ll go grab a burger before bed. It cancels out.” Nice.
My workout entails p90x classic and walking/jogging everyday except Saturdays. I’m contemplating whether or not to get my butt kicked before the walk/jog or to have that waiting for me when I get home from my walk/jog.
My nutrition plan entails oatmeal & fruit for breakfast, tuna & veggies for lunch, salad w. a white protein for dinner, and 2-3 snacks of nuts and dried fruits for snacks in between. Also, a caffeine free green tea before bed. I think that sounds good.
Of course, if there are any suggestions I would appreciate them.
Also, I HAVE to mention my photos that I’m going to put in the about me section. Let me just say that I am absolutely horrified to even look at them so I’m sure they will just delight viewers. No need to thank me =D I was contemplating whether I should put a cute yellow smiley or even a black blob over my face because God forbid anyone I actually know seeing this! However, I feel it may be a stepping stone to better things so let the terror commence!
WORKOUT
Spin + Leg WO = Hurts So Good!
Friday was fantastic, just my kinda day! Started the day off trying out a new spin class. I stumbled on studio dedicated to Spin & Yoga and was excited to try it out. It was definitely different from anything I’ve done before because the whole class is done in the dark. There were black lights (which made my leftover competition acrylic nails look just lovely) and we were out of the seat 90% of the time. Overall, I think I could really like it. Will probably go to another class Sunday. And in keeping with my trying new fitness things goal, today I’m going to Yoga! A few of my friends are really into it and this studio’s been highly recommended. I’ve taken a few classes in the past and have just been bored, but I’m giving it another shot. Today I’m just doing the beginner glass, but hopefully I can try one of the more dynamic classes later in the week.
I also met with my trainer yesterday and had a killer leg workout. I forgot how great it feels to have the energy (thanks carbs) to lift heavy, and how much I love doing it. Not only do I not like steady state cardio because I get bored, I don’t prefer doing lifting sets over 15 reps for the same reason. I love lifting heavy in short sets. By the ended of it my legs were shaking and the endorphins were running like crazy.. so great to be back to this mode of training!
EATS
Breakfast came in the form of Pumpkin Oats, mixed with 1/2 scoop Cake Batter PP, topped with 1 tbsp natural Peanut Butter and Unsweetened Coconut
snowy oats
diggin it
Lunch was a quick one in between my workout and another meeting, but it was a fantastic. I tried out Allie’s, from Pimp My Protein Shake, Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride Protein Shake. I used her recipe but added in 2 tbsp Sugar-Free Cookie Dough Syrup and used Cake Batter Protein Powder. It was absolutely delicious! Seriously try this asap, it taste just like an ice cream shake, though I think it would be good hot too (I’ll letcha know later today, I want another already :p )!
I finished off the meal with the rest of the Kabocha from the night before.. yummers!
So I felt like trying a new recipe for dinner, and settled on this one. Of course I made some changes, and instead used:
1 Butternut Squash, peeled & cubed
1/2 c TJ’s Omega Trail Mix
1/3 c Cheddar Rice Shreds
1/2 c chopped Mushrooms & Garlic
I added protein in the form of Ham and topped it with my roasted squash mix. Overall the meal was pretty good, but I think I went a little crazy with the garlic, wohhh, smelly!
the plate is small, I promise
Buy These!
I almost forgot.. I finally gave in and picked these up at the store when I was getting baking goods..
These flavors are all amazing! Seriously I couldn’t pick a favorite, it’s totally a mood thing.
Party Recap
The holiday party last night was a lot of fun. I had about 1/2 a glass of wine, which was plenty for my light-weightness, and was pretty good about the snacks… but of course I had to try little slivers of the pie’s I made. And the verdict? The Brownie Mint Pie (recipe here) was great, though I used a chocolate graham shell because I had an extra lying around and it was a bit burnt, though still tasty. If I was to do it again, I’d use a regular shell and sprinkle the bottom with Chocolate Candy Cane. The Cookie Pie was tasty but needed to be warmed. I think it was just too thick, so the cookie ended up being too hard since I had to store it in the refrigerator to keep the frosting fresh. I’ve made cookie cakes/pies before that turned out better, so probably won’t use that recipe again. And it seemed like everyone enjoyed the cookies, because they all got eaten up!
cookies on display!
congregation around the snack table
I didn't make them, but pretty nonetheless 
Fun Links
Fit Sugar’s Holiday Gift Guide
I’m kinda nervous for yoga. The class is 80 minutes, so if I’m bored it’ll be brutal, and I’m super sore! haha, ah well, I’m keeping an open mind.. though I do still need to go get a mat!
Amazon is having their great toy sale again (like they did in the past 2 or 3 Decembers) and there are some wonderful bargains. One of them is Wild Planet Hyper Dash which is only $9.99 as of this writing. I got this for the kids a couple of years ago, and it’s not only fun, it can be quite a workout for the whole family.
Hyper Dash, like DDR, is so simple in theory. Just turn it on and do what the voice tells you. You spread out the 5 colorful numbered targets, on a table, in a room or across a football field – there’s no limit. Then as the voice calls out targets, you hit them with the handle as quickly as you can, and at the end, it calls out your time and determines the fastest player. There are several levels; the easiest level calls out colors (perfect for non-readers) and on the highest level, it calls out equations (“1+2!”) or makes you remember the last target or even the target before that. It’s truly a mind-body workout, and besides teaching kids math and colors while burning off all that excess energy, it’s a teaching opportunity about short-term memory and senior moments and why Mom can remember all the words to “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer” but not which target she hit 15 seconds ago.
This is a great example of an exergame that doesn’t require any video screen and can be played outdoors as well as indoors. Normally it costs around $20 but if you can get this Amazon deal before it goes away, hit it (and I’m not being paid to say that).
My Fitness Coach (based on Yourself!Fitness for PS2 and Xbox) is a well-acclaimed Wii exergame from 2008. It’s really little more than a programmable workout DVD – the controller is only used to keep your stats and set up your preferences – but it got much better reviews than some other “interactive” exergames, showing that sometimes no interactivity at all is preferable to bad interactivity.
Now a sequel, My Fitness Coach 2: Exercise and Nutrition, has been announced for January, and it’s another relabeling of an existing game, NewU: Fitness First which was never released in the US. Reviews of NewU are very positive, although one reviewer still likes Wii Fit and EA Sports Active better.
MFC2 adds balance board support which a lot of people wanted for the first game. It also uses actual videos of trainers instead of computerized avatars to demonstrate the exercises, and it adds nutritional planning and recipes
Today I chose to stick with safe foods (edit: or so I though) but still tried to keep them interesting! After a couple days of no sugar/simple carbs or dairy, but mid-morning today I felt sooo much better.
WORKOUT
Today was just a cardio day. I started with a 5 min warm-up walk (4.0), then did a quick 10 min. HIIT alternating 1 min at 6.0 with 30 s at 9.0. Got my heart rate going, then I headed down to spin. Class was pretty good, not the best but not bad either. But I found a new Spin & Yoga dedicated studio and I am SO excited to try it out. I have it on my calendar for Friday morning, I really hope it’s great!
THE FOODS
Safe & Orange
For breakfast this morning I visited an old friend, the mighty Pumpkin Protein Pancake. It was a good one too, nice & fluffy, topped with Walden Farms Maple Syrup and Pumpkin Spice.
she's a beauty (why 'she'.. no idea)
But today my pancake had new company… I picked this up at the Borders’ Cafe over a month ago and was just reminded of it the other day. Grade: A~ So good! I added a tbsp of Peppermint Mocha Creamer and the two were meant to be..
don't they make a beautiful couple?
safe & delicious
Not So Colorful, but Still Tastey
Even though it’s something new, I was pretty sure it would be safe.. enter Quinoa Flakes! I cooked up 1/3 cup flakes in 1/2 c UVAB + 1/2 c H20, then mixed in a scoop of Chocolate Protein Powder along with 1 tbsp Better n’ Peanut Butter and brought it with me for a morning snack. It was definitely different but I like it. The flakes are so much softer than oats, but I can see it being worked into the breakfast/snack rotation. I forgot to take a pic earlier and I ended up eating it during class, at which point I thought a camera flash might be a bit distracting :p
Coloring it Up
I threw a couple fun items into an comp-diet staple. Here we have:
2/3 c Egg Whites
1.75 oz Tilapia
~1 c Baby Spinach
~2 tbsp Pico de Gallo
pre-nuking
rainbow eggs
More Orange
After my stomach felt better I was completely craving Sweet Potato. So dinner ended up being 1/2 a medium Sweet Potato mixed with refrigerator odds & ends in the form of: 3 oz Chicken Breast, 1/2 Avocado, 1/4 c Black Beans (think that was a bad choice 
), 2 tbsp Rice Shreds, and Pico de Gallo. It ended up being bigger than I planned, but I guess I was making up for having my appetite back because I wolfed it down! Bad idea though, something was in there I shouldn’t have eaten, was it the tomatoes, avocados, beans? gahh, I have no idea! I do however have a new found empathy for people with real, permanent, food allergies :/ .. I’m learning and will try again tomorrow
.. It looks oddly similar to lunch .. This makes me realize how much I’d like a new serving set!
Southwest Sweet Potato Mix
Holiday Festivities
Two fun Holiday events to look forward to over the next couple days. First, tomorrow we’re (roommate & I) hosting a Holiday Movie & Cookie Night. Plans are to make cookies/desserts, watch ‘Love Actually’ and enjoy a spiked beverage. I carefully picked out recipes to use the leftover, unopened baking supplies still floating around my cupboards. On the menu is:
Iced Cinnamon Chip Cookies
Chocolate Chip Pie
Brownie Mint Pie
The great thing is, these will be out the door by Friday afternoon to go to the next fun event..
On Friday, it’s my Grad program’s annual Holiday Party. It was a lot of fun last year, and I’m sure I’ll have fun again this year, though I know the experience will be much different being that I’m not really able to drink these day. But with my crazy schedule over the last few months I was a complete hermit, so it’ll be really nice to get to hang out with everyone outside of school.
On another note, I totally spaced on “attending” a webinar tonight because I was watching Top Chef. Are you a fan do? Do you agree with who won?
Have a wonderful Thursday!
Calasanz and student performing Physical Arts
Calasanz believes that the beauty of martial arts comes from knowing yourself. When we see a beautiful dancer, a “Bruce Lee”, or a Muhummad Ali Calasanz believes it is in the movement of these wonders that inspire us. Calasanz teaches how to be pretty, he teaches the art of practicing moves and not just correcting them but making them prettier and prettier. This comes from looking in the mirror and watching yourself, so that every movement is controlled. This is the foundation Calasanz believes in. When you are in control of yourself or your “movements” then you have gained the knowledge of beauty, the moment you let anybody control that for you, This is when you are going to be “lost”.
Today I ran like an Australian, on the wrong side of the trail. I learned it the hard way that crossing the street to come back was not congenial to the health of my knees. Routinely, I would run down the right sidewalk, then for a change of scenery, cross the street and run on the other side going back. The problem is the sidewalk cross-slope of the Chicago sidewalks. And if you run in the street, you get the same problem at another angle. Excellent flood control; not so excellent for my right knee. Most humans I know are asymmetrical, therefore it took me a while to discount the human factor and consider that the pain in my knee may have something to do with the slant of the street. Now I no longer cross the street to turn around, I pick a side. Now both sides of my body get exactly the same workout. Great. Except that this treatment has a side effect: boredom. Exploring the same side of the street twice in a single run is like having a playlist that is too short. Luckily, I enjoy running on the lakefront trail, where the world is flat and the other anthropological encounters don’t exist. When I need extra entertainment, I divide my route into three segments and name them, like Dora the Explorer: Bridge, Upside-Down Tree, Water Fountain; Bridge, Tree, Water Fountain; Bridge, Tree, Water Fountain! I repeat it to the beat of my music like a hip-hop artist. Winter brings other exciting opportunities for fun in the form of ice patches. I found there is always the logical way of getting around a road block and then there is the more creative one. And nothing compares to the adrenaline rush of almost colliding with a pissed-off biker who is going against my running traffic.
“We’ll do 100 M.P.H. / Spendin’ someone else’s dough / And we’ll drive all the way to Reno / On the wrong side of the road,” Wrong Side Of The Road, Tom Waits
Art: Boy Riding Against Traffic, © 2009 Maxim Dalton. All rights reserved.
Whooo hoooo! It’s so hard to believe that the Half Marathon has come and gone! (Well not entirely hard to believe because I have sore muscles that are reminding me of my adventure this morning! BUT its a good sore!)
It was fantastic. I really did enjoy my first half marathon. It was overcast and slightly rainy weather. The race started at 7AM and I finished just before 10AM. Kinda funny to me that I spent nearly 3 hours running this morning! My goals for the race were to run the whole distance without stopping to walk and to finish in 3 hours. I had just made it! I kept a steady, comfortable pace throughout. I also had great friends encouraging me before the race and I had Diana, Felipe, Jillian and Emily’s Dad cheering me on during the race! I am SO incredibly thankful for them and the host of wonderful people in my life!
I felt pretty good throughout most of the race. Mile one went by real quick for me. That was an encouraging start! When I passed the 3 mile mark I was like, this is cake- I just did a 5K, all I need to work through now is two 5 milers. I was constantly breaking down the course in my head to be encouraged in each section. You know, “one down, 12 to go,” “whoo hooo, just are over the halfway mark!” and “hey-yo, we are in the double-digit mile markers!” The furthest I have trained to is 10 miles. I was still feeling pretty good and strong through that point, however, come mile 11 and 12 I was feeling it! Each of those miles seemed to go on forever! I so was kicking in the inspirational/motivational songs at that point! (Glees’s “Keep Holding On” and Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” – Laugh all you want, it kept me going!)
And to be honest, mile 13 I thought I was going delusional! Well at least in hindsight! The last stretch I saw my friend Jillian but couldn’t piece together that it was her! My friend and running partner, Emily ran with me at this point and as she was cheering me on she said I just kept saying, “wow, I feel like I am going to die,” “no really, I am about to die,” and “I am dying right now.” I remember just wanting to stop but pushed myself through to the end and I am so glad I did! Once I crossed the finish line I got that funny sensation of being on a people mover! I guess after running for 3 hours your body gets use to it and it just kept moving…. that was weird! Then, my legs turned to jello!
I had all these great thoughts throughout my race too. I was thinking about how much I really enjoy the running community. I was all ready for my race and had my little energy packs but accidently left it in my gym bag! When I saw Diana at around mile 5 and yelled to her if she could bring one to me down the way a wonderful lady of the course gave me hers! They were so kind! I had a couple of small talks with folks as we ran too! One lady came up beside me and told me that I had “beautiful curly hair.” I have to admit it made me chuckle! Most people around me also seem to smile throughout the race, I loved that too! In additional to all that, there were all these reminders to relax along the way- you know, to not tense up your shoulders and whatnot. Those reminders were such a gift- ain’t that like us to forget some of those simple things and not enjoy the journey! I also thought about how life really is sooo much like a marathon yet we tend to approach it more often than not as a sprint. The distance take endurance, time, commitment, purpose, focus, intention, encouragement, right thinking, and training. Also, I have really grown to love running, just like my friend Amber said I might! As I ran, I took note of all the different people out there running with me. All different backgrounds and ages! It was thrilling. I made a personal commitment to myself to be that 85 year old (if I live that long on this earth!) who is out there running, taking care of the health and body that has been given to her.
I must say that this was an incredible, fun experience! I wouldn’t trade it for nothing!
Or is it?
When I was a kid, all the way through high school, I had teachers in different classes do projects and tell the class that we need to conserve water.
I remember my German language teacher in high school, Frau Brown, said “If you take a shower that’s longer than five minutes, you’re wasting water.”
In elementary school, it was even worse (or better?). This was in 1978, just asfter the gas crisis, just after the hippie revolution. Earth Day was started as an annual event just 8 years before. Everyone was very Earth-conscious.
We had projects on how to read electric meters, and what kWh meant. We were told to turn off the water while brushing our teeth, and to turn off lights when leaving a room.
All of that still remains with me. I still go around my apartment turning off lights in areas where no one needs them on (my roommates leave their lights on sometimes). It borders on compulsive.
The other day, I worked out really really hard. I was beat. I got home and thought “a nice hot shower will help me.” So I took one. And it went on for more than five minutes.
It dawned on me suddenly, as I was standing under the hot water, feeling my muscles relax. I became a little anxious. What was I doing, wasting all of this water?!!!
Then another thought popped into my head.
I’m not the only consumer of water, I mused. In fact, individuals probably aren’t even the biggest consumers of water.
What about all of those factories out there? So I started to dig around a bit.
To quote one article:
“USGS hydrologist Molly Maupin says, “We know that petroleum refineries and paper and pulp mills, as well as steel manufacturing facilities, are known to use an awful lot of water.” But even more significant, in many cases, is the effect on underground aquifers, lakes, or rivers that aren’t directly used in the manufacturing. Effluent and wastewater discharged from industries and mining operations — or leaking from inadequate waste and industrial storage facilities — can contaminate large amounts of groundwater or surface water.”
Basically, was I destroying the planet, and its fresh water stores, with my longer-than-five-minutes bath, or was there a bigger picture to consider?
Once I began to read more about this issue, it became very clear that our Subject/Object worldview had struck again. The message of water conservation had naturally become neatly packaged into a “personal responsibility” issue – as all issues do in our culture.
Take, for instance, the recent change from corporate-funded retirement programs to “individually-funded” programs like 401k. Now it is the individual’s responsibility to prepare for their future.
Or, we can begin a similar debate about oil/fuel consumption – are private individuals really the biggest consumers of oil/fuel? I don’t think so:
“Yes, the US military is completely addicted to oil. Unsurprisingly, its oil consumption for aircraft, ships, ground vehicles and facilities makes the Pentagon the single largest oil consumer in the world. By the way, according to the 2006 CIA World Factbook rankings there are only 35 countries (out of 210) in the world that consume more oil per day than the Pentagon.” (for this great article, click here).
To use an old idiom – our society is talking out of both sides of its mouth.
Telling the consumer that they need to purchase hybrid vehicles, when the factories that produce those vehicles run on and use petroleum and petroleum-based products is ludicrous.
Telling people that we need to go to the Middle East to “defend freedom” and secure the world’s oil supply for the good of all men, women, and children, is similarly ridiculous.
Telling individuals that they need to conserve water, while factories churn through it at rates far exceeding that of any individual or group of individuals is in this same category.
Not to mention the types of compounds that are being flushed out as waste from factories, versus from private dwellings. The only thing going down my drain is soap and dirt. What’s coming out of the effluent pipes on a factory?
Now, this is not to say that the individual “consumer” doesn’t have an impact on water usage. For one, you shouldn’t use or take more than you need. It just doesn’t make sense, for you or for the entire world of which you are a small, continuous, part. For another, you decide consumption of things by your choices…or “buy” your choices…you decide how many factories continue to run on a daily basis.
All of this goes back to culture, though.
The accepted mode is to buy things. I’ve been stunned going into local stores (even the grocery store) in the past week. They’re all packed. At first, I didn’t know what was going on. I thought maybe there was some sort of emergency I hadn’t heard about. Then someone told me they were going “Christmas shopping” and I realized what was up.
The thrust of our society is a Production/Consumption cycle. This production/consumption cycle is built over an underlying dichotomy of Self/Other, or Subject/Object. We base everything of “value” on this framework, and within that context, over the framework. If something doesn’t fit into this, it is rejected outright.
And the Vox Popularis always wins.
But what about fitness, isn’t this a fitness blog?!
Well, ok, if I must. But if you haven’t realized it by now, the definition of “fitness” as something separate from the environment you live in – the context or habitat you inhabit, as separate from the Earth, the Land, and the rest of the beings on it – is something I’m trying to explicate on this blog.
Fitness is similarly subject to this dialectic – Self/Other, Produce/Consume. Fitness in our culture is about oneself. About the way one looks, or how much one can bench press – as compared to an (idealized) external Other.
It leads to bizarre notions of “fitness,” and more bizarre products and practices that create a rift between individuals, and between those individuals and their environment.
Put yourself back into context – back into the cycle of things. You were never separate from it, you just had blinders on.
Hope you all had a wonderful Friday! Mine was pretty darn good. So with just a few weeks left in December, I’ve been contemplating my 2010 goals…
Fitness: Build Build Build!
I met with my trainer today to get feedback from the NPC show and discuss my plan and goals for 2010. As far as feedback from the NPC judges, it was mainly things I already knew I needed to work on. They told my trainer that I had a great physique and symmetry and that I just need to be bigger (in order to win overall). As for Fitness, my weakness is presentation and playing to the crowd. I was really happy with the feedback because they are areas I can certainly improve upon! I’m going to look into taking dance classes at a local community center to hopefully improve my rhythm and performance skills, and as for “getting bigger,” I’ve got my instructions… But first I guess I should tell you my goals..
JR NATIONALS, JUNE, CHICAGO!
There are a couple local shows in February which would be great to give me more experience, but we decided that it was more important for me to take more time to build and prepare for Jr. Nationals than do that and have to cut my build short. So now I have December through mid-February to put on some muscles mass. In order to do that I’m looking at the following diet:
Protein: 180-240g per day
Carbs: 145-185g per day (40-50g at Breakfast, 50g Post-Workout, the rest throughout the day)
Fats: 60-80g per day
So wow, that’s ALOT more food than I’m use to. Definitely going to be doing some serious meal planning this week. What I do love is that it gives me plenty of room to experiment with new foods and recipes, so I’m happy. Still getting down my gallon of water will be tough at first, especially considering I had a hard time with it on my high carb days previously, and then I was only at 130g and around 1200 calories. Ah well, I’ll make it happen somehow!
Workout Split will be 5 days and look something like:
Monday: Power Legs
Tuesday: Power Upper
Wednesday: rest
Thursday: Shoulders & Glutes
Friday: Back & Core
Saturday: Hamstrings & Arms
Cardio:
Monday: Spin
Tuesday: HIIT
Wednesday: Spin
Thursday: rest
Friday: HIIT
Saturday: Yoga, Dance, Hike, etc
Then on Sunday I rest
I did make it to the gym today. Nothing crazy happened, just did a little leg work then did 20 minutes of Cardio, a mix of HIIT and SS. I was definitely feeling my days off and dirty-eating, but I know just getting in there and jogging it out helps. I am longing for the day.. which better be within the next few days.. when my stomach doesn’t hurt after almost every meal. Ok, I’m done with the poor me on that one, after all I’ve kinda brought it on myself, haha!
Professional
Find a job! Actually I need to find 2 jobs. I need to find a part-time job ASAP. I only have 2 more weeks left of classes before I have a whole month off, so I’m really hoping to find something. But more importantly, I need to find a full-time job for when I graduate in May. My parents, professors, career center, and credit card company remind me of this on a daily basis. It’s a GIANT stressor in my life, but just one of those things that I just have to keep looking, applying and networking. So on that note, if you know of any marketing/PR/media positions in Sports, Fitness or Public Health anywhere in the country please let me know. (I’m completing my MBA specializing in Sports Business along with Strategic Marketing, got my BA in Public Health from Berkeley, and worked at Johns Hopkins coordinating research projects for 2 years). I apologize for the shameless advertisement.. but I think I might even post my resume somewhere on the site somewhere.. hmm
On a related note, I decided not to do the Spin Instructor course this Sunday but instead wait to do an AFAA certification early next year. It’s a little cheaper and I can do a Group X course and be able to teach multiple types of classes.
Personal
ahhh.. yeah.. haha.. I have been the socially lamest person ever for the past 4 months. I have been perfectly content staying home on Thursday-Saturday night. I’m honestly not sure how much that’s going to change. I realize that I really don’t miss drinking at all, and I’d much rather feel fresh and have a great workout the next morning than go out and feel disgusting all the next day. I know there is a happy medium between those two, so that’s where I’m hoping to chill.
Meal Repeats & Really Awesome New Stuff
Today’s early eats were extremely similar to yesterday..
Apple, Pumpkin Yogurt, Almond Butter & Granola
Just a slice of course!
I did however give this bad boy a try!
Grade: A, love it. But we all know at this point how much I love my holiday flavors. It’s just silly how fast I go through the Celestial Seasonings Ginger Spice flavor. Which by the way is made ‘gasmic with SF English Toffee Syrup and a couple drops of English Toffee Stevia!
I had another exciting new thing.. my first GREEN MONSTER! So my first attempt failed. I tried to adapt Angela’s ‘Peppy Carob Green Monster’ (peppermint mocha obsession strikes again), but I think I added waayyy too much peppermint because it was completely undrinkable. My 2nd try however was a super success!
pre-blended.. looks like witches brew :p
Amazing Grass Green Monster
1 cup frozen Spinach
1 packet Amazing Grass, Chocolate Green SuperFood
1 cup Unsweetened Chocolate Almond Breeze
Dash Stevia extract
my very 1st Green Monster!
Report card: A, loved it! I’m looking forward to playing with different ingredients. Next time I’ll definitely add 1/2-1 scoop of Chocolate Protein Powder. The options are endless :p
I had a piece of the casserole around 4:30pm, so by 7pm I was ready for another snack.. enter.. Kabocha!
Sweet Kabocha – 2 Ways!
I picked up a couple Kabocha yesterday and was looking forward to experimenting this evening with a couple sweet concotions. I tried 2 different things. After cutting it in half and scooping out the seeds, I sliced up just one of the halves. I then lightly brushed each of the slices with Coconut Oil and swooshed them around in a bowl where I’d mixed a few tablespoons of Swerve (no-cal baking sugar) and Cinnamon. Placed those lovelies on a cooking sheet along with the other half of the Kabocha face down. I cooked them in a 375F oven for 30 minutes. At 30 minutes I took out the Kabocha half (turned up the oven to 400 F), removed the skin and mixed it with 1/4 cup Trader Joe’s Nut’s About Rasberry & Chocolate Trail Mix. At the last minute I also decided to sprinkle a little Unsweetened Coconut on top. I then placed that mix back in the oven with the wedges, and cooked everything for 10 more minutes. Ta da!
Sweet Cinnamon Kabocha Slices
Crunchy Kabocha Delight
Ok, what I have dubbed ‘Crunchy Kabocha Delight’ was amazing! I was being bad and topped it with about a tablespoon of Sunflower Butter (how do people drizzle nut butters and make it look so pretty? I need a food blogger tutorial on that), but this stuff is fantastic on it’s own. The Trail Mix I added of course upped the calories & fat, but again it would still be great without it. Next time I think I’ll try mixing in Protein Powder and I have no doubt it will be a new favorite of mine. Ok, I see that probably happening tomorrow
amazingness
I’m a planner, so today maybe me feel happy, energized and excited for what lies ahead. I feel so blessed to have found competitive fitness and this wonderful blogging world. All of you ladies inspire me everyday to make myself a stronger, better person as I pursue my goals. 2010’s going to be the BEST YET!
sfsdfjksdl
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I ate the remaining peach cobbler and yams but didn’t want the banana pudding. The bp was good but I’ve burnt myself out on it. Plus, I eat a banana every day at work. I weighed myself this morning and I only gained a half pound over the Thanksgiving holiday. I’m very happy with that. I’ve been working hard to burn the calories. So, I probably gained more, but I’ve been working out a lot since Saturday that I may have burned off most of the calories I took in.
I’m excited to partner with Wayne Helms, owner of Elite Training in Bryn Mawr, PA, to bring you some awesome fitness articles! Wayne will be working with me to present the topics that YOU want to read about . . . so make sure to leave comments on this post about the fitness topics you’d like to read about, or you can contact Wayne directly (see contact info at the end of his article).
Because I know that many of my readers are runners, Wayne’s first series is about training to improve your running. This series will be released every few weeks over the next month or two. Enjoy!
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Wow! It’s already that time of year when it’s getting colder and when it’s getting darker earlier. Which means that this is the best time of year to train and improve your running. However, this means that you will not be running outside on the streets or on a track to improve your running performance, nor will you be training inside on the treadmill, elliptical or bike. Get where I am going with this? No? Read on.
As a Sports Performance Coach and Personal Trainer, I tell my athletes this all the time: You will never get better at your sport just by playing your sport. Sounds crazy, I know. But it’s true. Running a lot, and just running, doesn’t allow you perform better as a runner. You will quickly hit a plateau and get stuck. Your PRs will stay the same. It will be a struggle to add on more miles. Of course this leads to frustration, burnout, injuries and quitting. If you want to get better at your sport, you need to work on the muscles that you will be using for your sport in order to allow them to develop and strengthen. During this series of articles I will address four areas that I believe are the most important in developing a safe, fun and year-round training cycle. They are: training cycle, flexibility, balance and core. Please understand that there are other areas that need to be worked, but I picked these four as I believe that they are the most vital. In my explanations, I will be using plain English and staying away from technical and scientific terms so that you can easily follow along.
First, change your mindset. How do you do that? Simple. It starts with what you call your run. Do you say, “I am going for a workout?” Or do you say, “I’m going for a run?” “I am going to the track?” “Going for a jog?” Or do you say, “I am training!” This last statement is the mindset that will help you succeed. Here’s why it works. Training implies a plan. A system. A training cycle with peaks and valleys. An end or attainable goal. Working out is open-ended. No vision, no plan, no training cycle. Kinda like spinning your wheels in the mud. You try your best to get ahead, but in the end, you’re stuck. Your time and energy is limited. So you can’t waste a minute of your valuable time not getting the most out of your training time and program. If you don’t have a plan and goals, you’re on the road to burnout, injuries and quitting.
Don’t get me wrong, running is great. It clears your mind, works your heart, improves muscular endurance and gives you some alone time after a busy and stressful day. Running is a chance to decompress. That’s why it’s more important than ever to take a break from it. Here’s what I tell my very dedicated athletes: If you don’t choose your rest time (or planned rest time in a training cycle), your body will choose it for you. For example, you may get sick, or a minor injury could turn into a major injury. You don’t want this to happen at a time when you’re feeling an urgent need to run for your mental and physical wellbeing. If you’re a team sport athlete, you don’t want to peak at the wrong time or not at all for your state tournament or playoffs.
Training Cycle
Now that you have changed your mindset, set a goal with a date. There’s nothing like a deadline to keep you on track and focused. Your goal can be a 1-mile fun run, 5k, 10k, triathlon, etc. The best thing you can do is register and pay your money for the event. Now you’re motivated. Or, if you are just running for fitness and fun, simply choose a goal date. This is the date when you’ll know that you’ve done all that you can and that it’s time to take a break and change gears. In addition, pick a start date to get back to it. Write this information down and post it on the mirror or refrigerator so that you have a constant reminder of your goals and start dates. Your break should be at least 1 week and up to a month long, depending on your goal and the intensity of your training cycle and event schedule.
My suggestion for a recreational runner’s training cycle is this: November, December, January and February are the best months to train for running. March and April are when you should slowly build your mileage and intensity. May, June and July are when a lot of events take place, so work on drills and tempo runs during this time. You will get a lot of miles if you run a full schedule. August, September and October are usually a great time of year to run because of the weather. That being said, as school starts, a lot of fall sports kick into gear and life gets busy, so this is a great time to take a break from running and rest instead. Please understand that this is a loose guideline based on my own training cycle. Your own event schedule will dictate your unique training cycle. Just make sure that you have peaks and valleys with rest in there, too.
I hope that you have enjoyed this article and found the information useful, as well. I would love to hear from you, and I welcome suggestions for other training topics you’d like to read about on Defining Wellness. You can email me at Wayne@elitetrainingsports.com. If you’d like to sign up for my newsletters, which contain fitness training package specials and tips on training and performance, visit my Web site at EliteTrainingSports.com.
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About The Author
Wayne Helms is the owner of Elite Training. Wayne has trained many men and women who are looking to get fit, feel better and enjoy pain-free daily function in their lives. He has been coaching a variety of male and female athletes, many of whom have won full athletic scholarships to top colleges and universities, for over 16 years. Wayne is a former high school (Upper Darby High School) and college wrestler at National Power House Delaware Valley College, where he was a two-time Conference place winner and Academic All-American. Currently, he is training for both the Philadelphia Triathlon and the Philadelphia Irish Pub’s distance cycling event that take place this summer.
