Feel the Burn Thursdays

Good morning, shrinkin' divas!

Just a few little reminders here on our workout sharing day:

1. Energy Bars or Sport Beans or Gel or anything:  Keep track of ALL your calories consumed and ALL your calories burned and stay within your net caloric goal.  Perhaps you didn't burn enough to warrant a high calorie energy or protein bar.  Check out this article from Bicycling Magazine: http://www.bicycling.com/article/0,6610,s1-4-21-21630-1,00.html
2. Sleep: "Moodiness, anxiety, and irritability are all effects of losing out on sleep"  This has been big for me.  Last night I got an unusual 12 hours of sleep and it made all the difference in the world.  If I can get that in once a week, I would be a new person.  I go to sleep a grinch and I wake up a superwoman ready to take on the world.  Check out this article from Runner's World Magazine: http://www.runnersworld.com/article/1,7124,s6-238-267--8028-0,00.html#
3. Workout Outdoors: Think unconventionally with your workouts.  It doesn't have to be a dedicated hour at the gym.  It can be just a 10 minute romp around the park with the kiddos.  (Ok, except when you live in crazy Wisconsin and it decides to snow in APRIL) Except for that rarity, being in the sunshine just makes you happier than being cooped up indoors.  Check out these ideas for outdoor workouts from Women's Health Magazine: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/outdoor-workouts
4. Emotional Outlets: When your emotional trigger or stressor hits, and you turn to food, first of all try so hard to recognize WHY you got in that mood in the first place, and find an alternate method of dealing with it.  This is something I'm a novice at, but I've heard working out is a fantastic stress reliever.  For me, when I get in a good workout, I'm just proud of myself and want to shout it from the rooftops, so everything else that is bugging me in my life just isn't that big of a deal anymore.  It's all about my feelings about myself.  Here's an article about stopping binge eating from Shape Magazine: http://www.shape.com/weight_loss/diets/stop_stuffing_yourself_secrets
5. Strength Train: Don't forget this important piece to your workout program.  Cardio looks more appealing b/c you become sweaty and blast huge calories, but weight training (dumbells, resistance bands, pilates, core work, squats, crunches, etc.) has big pros that can't be overlooked.  You'll look slimmer, you'll rev up your metabolism, and you'll be strong. Don't worry about bulking up- that doesn't happen to women.  Here's info on Weight Training 101 from Shape Magazine: http://www.shape.com/fitness/workouts/weight_training_101
6. Water: Are you drinking enough of it?  Sodas, even diet sodas, tend to make your midsection bloated.  Water will energize you, keep you hydrated enough to not confuse thirst signals w/ hunger signals, & keep you healthy.  Here's the link to the tool from Runner's World that helps you calculate out how much you need to be drinking each day, something we've posted on here before: http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-302--5382-0,00.html#

So what workouts have you been up to lately?  What do you have planned for this weekend???

Feel Good Friday

Good morning, girls!  I hope you all make it a fantastic weekend ahead of you :) 

Remember, even if things aren't going as you want them to go, BE POSITIVE!  I was reminded of this last night when I was talking to the beloved Marin and I realized my voice coming back to me was annoying!  No matter what stress or inner hurricanes I've got going on, whining & complaining doesn't improve anything.  It brings you AND whoever's listening to you down.  So be proactive!  Actually DO something to improve yourself or your situation- BE POSITIVE! 

#s 6, 7, & 8 are so great :)   Alright, gals, let's all make a positive comment today on this post, something to rah-rah us all up to make it a phenomenal weekend!

11 Benefits of Being Positive by Jon Gordon

Over the years I've done a lot of research on the positive effects of being positive and the negative affects of being negative. The research is clear. It really does pay to be positive and the benefits include enhanced health and longevity, happiness, career advancement, athletic performance, team building and financial success. Being positive is not just a nice way to live. It’s the way to live. In this spirit here are 11 benefits of being positive.

1. Positive People Live Longer - In a study of nuns, those that regularly expressed positive emotions lived on average 10 years longer. (The Nun Study)

2. Positive work environments outperform negative work environments. (Daniel Goleman)

3. Positive, optimistic sales people sell more than pessimistic sales people. (Martin Seligman)

4. Positive leaders are able to make better decisions under pressure. (Heartmath.org)

5. Marriages are much more likely to succeed when the couple experiences a 5 to 1 ratio of positive to negative interactions whereas when the ratio approaches 1 to 1, marriages are more likely to end in divorce. (John Gottman)

6. Positive people who regularly express positive emotions are more resilient when facing stress, challenges and adversity. (Several Studies)


7. Positive people are able to maintain a broader perspective and see the big picture which helps them identify solutions where as negative people maintain a narrower perspective and tend to focus on problems. (Barbara Fredrickson)


8. Positive thoughts and emotions counter the negative effects of stress. For example, you can't be thankful and stressed at the same time. (Several Studies)

9. Positive emotions such as gratitude and appreciation help athletes perform at a higher level. (Heartmath.org)

10. Positive people have more friends which is a key factor of happiness and longevity. (Robert D. Putnam)

11. Positive and popular leaders are more likely to garner the support of others and receive pay raises and promotions and achieve greater success in the workplace. (Several Studies)

Tuesday Motivation

Good morning, lovelies! 
I am majorly impressed at all the momentum going on in this, the 5th week of the challenge!  Your successes are phenomenal :)  Great job, everyone!  Every little fraction of a pound and every sixteenth of an inch moves you one little step closer to your goals of revealing the real you from within! 
Today's post is going to be by Sarah, to Sarah, and for Sarah :)  But maybe some of you will gleam a tiny morsel of insight from it, too... hehe

Emotional Eating

When things are going great for me mentally, emotionally, at home, at work, the whole shebang, I am stellar with an iron will for working out and eating healthy.  But toss a really rotten, stressful, good-for-nothing, universe-against-me kind of day in the mix, and then the torturous "who the heck cares" rationales creep into my mind and bad decision follows bad decision.  I know this.  And that makes it more annoying.  I know what I'm doing, I know I'm trying to find comfort in foods that are bad for me, but either don't care or I don't know what else to do.  I'm sure you've all experienced this at some point or other; I can't be alone in this boat.  Perhaps your downfall is the weekend- when peer pressure or when the "I deserve it because my weigh-in was so good" rationale creep into your mind?  Whatever the reason is or the rationale you tell yourself, emotional eating is simply eating for a reason other than hunger. 

Here's a good article that explains what emotional eating is, but most importantly, how to start overcoming it (other than spending a lot on a therapist :P )  And here's my tactic!  "Identify any healthy coping skills you use in response to the triggers. Maybe you don't use food for comfort all the time. How could you begin to use the healthy coping skills you practice more often?" 

Shopping does the trick for me.  Ok, now I know you could argue that shopping is just as bad, moving one vice to a different location and bam, another vice, but still, if it's not putting cheesy food in my mouth, then it's good by my book.  Next time I feel overwhelmed, I am going to swing by Marshall's and see if I can find a cute workout top (I'm not letting myself buy expensive clothes or non-workout clothes at this point in my journey).  Then I'll feel motivated to workout to relieve the stress!  And luckily working out does relieve the stress, but getting from an angry mood to a pumped up and ready to workout mood is hard, and so this little tactic of mine has helped and will help me get in the mood to workout.  And be way cute, which is important :)  hahaha   I only get this all-consuming emotional need that needs feeding perhaps once a month or every other month (just so happened to be with lunchtime yesterday), which is lucky for me I guess; I am grateful I don't have it more often than that.  Other healthy coping skills that work for me are snuggling up with a good book or taking a little nap.

Have any of you dealt with emotional eating?  Have you found a way to substitute a healthier coping mechanism?  How did you recognize it was in fact emotional eating and not hunger?  How do you keep those moods at bay in the first place? 

I can't wait to hear all your great ideas :)  You girls will never know how much you help me, and well, all of us help each other, actually.  Love you all!!!!!!

Tuesday Motivation

GOOD MORNING :)

Did you know that laughing helps you lose weight?

• "Researchers found that a strong laughter for 10-15 minutes daily can increase energy consumption by 10 to 40 calories per day."  
• "She found that laughing 30 seconds to five minutes as often as 10 times a day, her cravings stopped. She began losing weight, had more energy and developed a yen to exercise," and from the same article, "A study from the University of Maryland School of Medicine showed that daily hearty laughing increases the blood flow by expanding stress-constricted vessels. 'A belly laugh is internal jogging,' ... Laughing involves 'a great deal of physical exercise and muscular behavior' — 15 facial muscles plus dozens of others all over your body that flex and relax. Your pulse and respiration increase, oxygenating the blood. 'Laughing 100 to 200 times per day is the cardiovascular equivalent of rowing for 10 minutes...'  Laughter sets the respiratory apparatus and its muscles into motion, he says," and again from the same article, "The biological changes we see with moderate, routine exercise...are very similar to the changes we see with the constant use of mirthful laughter...for laughter to produce the same benefits as aerobic exercise, it would require a long, sustained bout of hysterics."
• "Researchers discovered that laughing increased both heart rate and calorie expenditure by up to 20 per cent and the longer particpants laughed for the greater the effects....just 15 minutes of laughter a day will burn 10-40 calories, depending on a person's weight and the intensity of the laughter.  That's enough to shift between 1 and 4lb a year."  From that same article, "The idea that laughter benefits health has been around for many years, possibly because it reduces muscle tension, increases the amount of oxygen in the blood, exercises the heart and produces happy chemicals in the brain called endorphins. It certainly makes sense that laughing would burn more calories too, as a result of the extra movement and increase in heart rate linked with laughing. You don’t burn heaps of extra calories but as any slimmer knows, it’s little changes that make big differences. Plus, having a laugh usually makes most of us feel more positive about life – and ultimately, this can help us feel better about ourselves and make us more motivated to lose those excess pounds. If nothing else, adding laughing to your list of weight loss tips gives you the perfect excuse for watching your favourite comedy or having a few more night’s out with friends!"
• "Personally, I know it helps me. It gets me through good times and bad times, and I think laughing is one of the greatest pleasures in life. Anyone who can make me laugh is a quick friend. Laughing brings so much happiness to my life. You know how laughing just makes you feel wonderful? It releases tension and just makes the day a little bit brighter? Laughter is the best prescription on days when you need that little push to keep you going...We can’t always take everything so seriously. Adding laughter can help make the journey to losing weight and feeling better that much more fun!"

SO CHUCKLE AWAY AT LIFE TODAY, LADIES!!!!!  These cracked me up :)

Tuesday Motivation

Did any of you feel the burn shoveling snow this morning?  YOU WILL TOMORROW :)  I hope everyone drives safely in the blizzard we're expecting tonight here in my neck of the woods. 

Today's post is about de-stressing and chilling because that will help you lose weight, be healthier, and be happier.  Check out this article from Women's Health: Zen Commandments.  And these articles from Fitness Magazine: Happy People and Lose the Weight and Stay Stress-Free.  And WebMD: De-Stress and Eat Less.

We all have experienced that when we're stressed to the max, we say "screw it all," and make poor decisions.  I know I have done that more times that I'd like to recall in my life.  Stress is a diet-buster, exercise-de-motivator, sleep-inhibitor, and mood-killer.  And so much of it we do to ourselves.  When we're eating healthy and exercising, though, it seems stress is lower.  And when stress is lower, we eat healthier and exercise more.  So which causes which?  Which came first, the chicken or the egg?  hahaha  We can always control how we react to different situations that arise in our lives, even if sometimes those situations are out of our hands.  We decide if we're going to let stressful situations sabotage our goals and our healthy decisions.

What ways do you ladies keep stress at bay?

Reflection Friday

"I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday." -Abraham Lincoln

It's our last weekend of this challenge!  Based on Amy C.'s comment earlier this week about how her thought processes have changed when she thinks more now about what she's going to eat, I'd love to hear all of your reflections on how your body and your mind have changed over the last almost 6 weeks.  How is the new you different from the old you?  What have you changed about the way you think about healthy living?

Check out this article about changing our thought processes to effectively lose weight and keep it off: The Weight Loss Solution: Think Thin.

What do you like or not like about this article? Anything you can pick out that applies to your situation specifically?

I liked these especially:

• "When [they] reach a plateau or lose motivation, ... welcome the opportunity to ... be honest with themselves about the areas in which they can do better. Since hurdles and dwindling motivation are certain to happen both at camp and at home, teens learn creative ways to reconnect with their goals and experiment with new weight loss strategies." 
• "Negative affirmations can be replaced with a new, encouraging internal dialogue such as “It won’t be easy, but I can do it.”"
• "Thoughts lead to emotions, and emotions lead to actions...By changing the thought processes, we can control the bingeing and emotional eating. That is the process of lifestyle change." 
• But the best of all is ths one: "Long-term weight loss is as much about thinking thin as it is about looking thin." 

So what do you think it means to "think thin?"

Make it a phenomenal weekend, you thin hottie you :)

Tuesday Motivation

We all fight our own battles, but check out this article about getting back on the bandwagon after a setback: Dieting Setbacks: How to Get Back on Track After Regaining Weight.  Again, the best measurements of progress are not the scale but the way clothes fit and how your body measures.  Don't despair if you've gained- we all have weeks like that.  Don't use one rough weigh-in as an excuse to let the whole week spiral down the loo- you can start fresh right away.  You are in charge of your decisions and your body.  Don't be so rough on yourself- you're all pretty darn awesome :)  It's a marathon, not a sprint.  She who holds on longest will hit her goals and find success :)  Here's to a great last week!!!!!

Feel Good Friday

Good morning, ladies! Check out this article on losing weight during stressful times and let me know what you have planned for this weekend to "calm your mind."

Stress and Weight Gain

This was my favorite part: "If you're facing twin battles against stress and weight, calming your mind should be your first priority, Gluck says. "Addressing stress would be more effective than going on a diet," she says."

Keep up the hard work thoughout the weekend! You ladies all push me to do my best :) Thanks for everything!

Feel the Burn Thursday!

This idea came from Valerie- who completely rocks my running world :) She says on her blog "intense exercise can release the same amount of dopamine as a prozac, though the 2 are not completely interchangeable, so consult your doctor before starting this or any self medicating/exercise activity."

Nice even through its sarcasm! Intense working out really does generate a high through the release of endorphins straight into the brain, specifically the parts of the brain associated with emotions. Could lead to "chills" and "euphoria." :) I LOVE this article- doesn't it make you pumped up to work out?!?

Yes, Running Can Make You High



My favorite part is this, referring to the results of the studies: "They even offer hope for those who do not enjoy exercise but do it anyway. These exercisers might learn techniques to elicit a feeling that makes working out positively addictive."

Whoa! Get on the "euphoria" band wagon today! I love how our bodies were designed to make such a great feeling when we take care of it.

What do you have planned for this week for workouts? What have you done this week for workouts?