Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, girls!
On my mind lately has been that incredible feeling when you're in the groove, when you're eating healthy and you're getting in a lot of activity, and temptations are less trying because you're so dang proud of yourself, and you're just HAPPIER! That, and the thought that you're on a roll, why botch that up w/ falling off the wagon.  Right now I'm in the groove.  I've eaten great and worked out great for about 10 days in a row now.  That's big.  So I am just thinking about how I can keep that going indefinitely.  What's helped me is making workouts a priority over everything else because I know I'm going to be getting in beaucoup family time this long weekend.  Also, when I work out, I'm proud of myself, so I subsequently eat healthy.  If I don't work out, I'm feeling sluggish and not so proud of my self, and I make poor choices.  So for ME and MY psyche, the key is getting in my workouts.  I know everybody's going to be different.
Another thing on my mind lately has been the cyclical nature of my motivation.  Not talking about a monthly visitor, but talking seasonally.  Now that I've been on this fitness journey for 18 months, I've experienced a full circle on seasons.  I really struggled summer of 2009 w/ motivation, and it wasn't until fall 2009 hit that I really hit the groove and the biggest changes of all took place in my body, lasting through winter, too.  I really struggled this past summer, too, 2010.  But I just feel right now, I feel in the groove now, ready for a great fall & winter.  So I think fall is my time to shine!  I have no idea why!  I'm sure it's all in my head.  So I'm thinking about how I can keep the groove going year round and experience successes in spring and summer, which are hard for me.  For that, I think the busyness of fall & winter is what causes me to be extra careful about prioritizing and scheduling things, which means workouts get an actual time spot and they're not neglected.  Spring & summer are more relaxed for me, which means I tend to fly by the seat of my pants more and workouts fit in where they can fit in, I don't schedule them, and things are a bit more likely to not happen at all.  So maybe I need to pick a race in the late spring and mid-summer to train for.  Just random ruminations of me & my life.
But I'D LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE to hear if you've reflected on or noticed any patterns in your lives, and how you achieve more steadiness and balance year-round.
Oh, & let us know what workouts you've been doing :)
Here's to a fantastic holiday weekend!

Feel the Burn Thursday

Hey, girls!
How are you?  What movin' & shakin' have you been up to lately?  I hope a whole lotta sweatin'! :)

Here's what Amy C's been up to :) Thanks for sharing! What cute little boys you have :)

I went for a 22 mile bike ride last night w/ my hubby & 2 other guys.  We went a good 5 mph faster than my happy normal cruising pace.  I was really pushing my limits.  I haven't had a hard workout in a long time, so last night's hard workout felt like I punched through a brick wall! It was just what I needed!

Hoping to get in a run and hot yoga tonight!

Tell us what you've been up to!

So, totally random, but you wonderful ladies w/ kids, any of you have a hula hoop laying around?  Did you know if you pick that up & hula hoop for 10 minute it blasts 100 calories??   

Feel Good Friday

Good morning, girls!
Friends don't let friends be lethargic :)
Get out & Be HaPpY!  Go do something fun this weekend!
I absolutely adore how active and bubbly and awesome you ladies all are.  Totally pumps me up for kicking my booty!
Have you guys ever checked out http://www.localhikes.com/?  It's a website that lists TONS of hikes to do for your area, added by fellow hikers, and you can search by distance, if it's dog friendly, if it's an easy family hike, if it's a loop or an out & back route, etc.
There are even 6 hikes listed for Delaware :)
There are 3 for Iowa :)
There are 5 in Illinois :)
There are 88 in Utah :)
There are 154 in Colorado :)
Sadly Wisconsin is extremely underrepresented, but we loved hiking the bluffs at Devil's Lake in Baraboo when we lived there.

Anyone who takes a hike or walk on a trail w/ their family this weekend & emails me the pic will get entered in a drawing for a fun prize from me on Monday!!!!!  Email by 8 am on Monday to sarah.a.weight@hotmail.com. 

(Picture of you on the hike, of your family on the hike, of your dog on the hike, of your foot on the hike, or just of the scenery on the hike---whatever you're comfortable w/ me posting in blog world for us to all enjoy)

Feel the Burn Thursday

Heyyyyy, girls!
Hope you're rocking your day.
Amy C, I think you're awesome. You're taking a frustration and DOING something about it. I love your action! I admire that you're getting the assessments done that you need. I hope that as you learn more about your body that you don't get mad at it but continue to develop that love for it and be compassionate towards it. You rock!

So here's a link from Discovery Health's Activity Calorie Burn Calculator. http://health.discovery.com/centers/cholesterol/activity/activity.html

It talks about how a run on a treadmill isn't the only way to burn calories :) That everyday things we do can add up to big burn! A nice reminder for all of us.

Share a little thing you've done lately to get in extra calorie burning here & there!

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, divas!
How are you doing?  Day Four!
Share what workouts you've been doing the last 4 days!

Here's a little post-running series I put together recently after doing a Yoga for Runners DVD, and from playing around on my own, but these poses feel really good on my hips, hamstrings, & low back after a run.  It's not meant to strengthen, for that you'd do a different style of yoga or pilates.  It's meant to loosen and open.  I'll try my best to describe the poses, but if it still doesn't make sense, just Google :) or let me know.  The whole thing can be done in a flow with just a couple breaths in each pose taking about 10 mins total, or you can spend as much time in each pose as you feel like, taking a really long time.  Just do whatever your body wants to do.  Give it a try, though!

• Standing savasana: Stand tall and straight, big toes touching, heels slightly apart, sides of the feet parallel to sides of your mat.  Palms of your hands facing forward.  Shoulders relaxed and directly over hips. Ears back slightly to be over shoulders.  Inner thighs slightly spiraled towards the wall behind you.  Just take a little bit to chill here, purpose being to feel proper body alignment w/ joints stacked over one another, having just gone for an awesome run.  You can also do a body inventory & see how every part of your body is feeling, see what's sore or what's tight.  You can have a chance to slow down your breath.  Try to slow it all the down to a six count inhale and a six count exhale.

• Ragdoll: Step your feet out to hip width, about 6 inches apart, or two fists-width.  Stand with strong legs and fold at the hips forward.  Let your upper body and your head hang down loose.  With your hands grab the opposite elbow.  Let gravity lengthen your spine.  Can bend your knees slightly.  An inversion like this with the head below the heart will invigorate your brain w/ all the blood rushing to it, after having spent so long in a run w/ gravity pulling your blood to your extremities.  It will also relax you.  This will gentlly start to stretch hamstrings & low back.  Inhale and slowly stand back up straight.

• Dandayamana Bibhapktapada Paschimotananasa (ok that one is just fun to say in Sanskrit :) ) a.k.a. Standing Separate Leg Forward Fold:  While standing upright, step feet out to 5 feet apart.  Sides of feet parallel to each other.  Inhale arms out to a T at your sides.  Exhale fold forward at the hips with a flat back, going only as far forward as you can with a flat back.  If your back starts to round, go back a smidge.  With your hands, grasp wherever you can, your thighs, your calves, your ankles, or under your heels.  Use arm strength to pull the hip stretch and hamstring stretch further.  Rocking your body weight into the balls of your feet will allow your hamstrings to relax and stretch further.  When done, inhale arms back out to the sides in a T and slowly come back upright to standing, bring legs back together.

• Tabletop:  Get down on all fours on your mat.  Shoulders directly over your wrists.  Hips directly over your knees.  Tops of feet flat on the mat.  From here you can move however feels good, swirling your hips around like you're churning butter, etc.  This loosens up your hips more.

• Cat:  Come back into a still tabletop.  On exhales, arch your back up like a cat.  On inhales, dip your lower back down like a cow.  Do this however much you want, really slowly, focusing on creating space between each vertebra, undoing the compression and you did on your run.

• Downward Dog:  Keeping your feet and hands in the SAME place on your mat (shoulder width & hip width apart), curl your toes under, and push yourself up to downward dog so your butt is up in the air like an upside down V.  Work towards the getting the bottom of your feet flat on the mat, but also play with bending your knees and feeling the stretch differently there.  Sit bones tilt towards the ceiling.  This stretches the hamstrings, calves, shoulders, back, etc.

• Runner's Lunge: From downward dog, inhale your right leg up in the air behind you, and exhale swing it through underneath you and place your right foot outside your right hand, on the right edge and maybe slightly off your mat, toes pointing out.  Lower your upper body down to the left of your right thigh, whatever feels good.  This is a major hip opener and stretch.   Move however you want here, maybe working towards getting your forearms on the mat, or maybe just staying upright with your hands on the mat, or maybe really slow circles with your hips.  When done, inhale and bring your right foot back and return to downward dog.  Do the other side the same way.

• Half Pigeon: From downward dog, inhale your right leg up in the air behind you, and exhale swing it through underneath you and place the outside of your right knee down on the mat by your right hand, and the outside of your right ankle to the left side of your mat, maybe by your left hip, or maybe if you're really flexy, closer to your left hand.  Whatever feels good.  Bring your hips down to the mat, your left leg is straight out behind you, top of the foot flat against the mat.  Check that hips are level, one's not further back than the other.  Then if you want, you can start to lower your upper body down, maybe your elbows & forearms are on the mat in front of you, or maybe you can put your forehead on the mat in front of you, or maybe you just stay upright and just your fingertips are on the mat.  When done, inhale and push up onto your hands, bring your right foot back up and behind you and return to downward dog.  Do the other side the same way.  This is a big hip opener, too.  This is one that Jen R taught me long before I ever took my first yoga class :)

• Child's Pose:  From downward dog, bring your knees to the mat.  Sit on your feet, big toes touching, knees out shoulder width or maybe as wide as your mat.  Lower your upper body down and your arms out in front of you, palms & forehead down on the mat.  Completely relax into this posture.  Your belly drops down between your thighs, let it hang.  This feels good, but it also keeps on stretching the hips and knees.

• Seated Forward Fold:  From Child's pose, inhale up to tabletop then move to sit your bottom on the mat, legs out in front of you, knees feet and ankles touching.  With your hands, move the junk in your trunk out to the side so that your sit bones are deeply rooted into the mat and level.  Knees are bent.  Inhale your arms up above your head, lengthen your straight spine up, and with a flat back fold forward grabbing your big toes with your peace fingers (your knees are majorly bent so you can do this).  Then with a very very straight back and grasping your big toes, slowly start to scoot your heels away from you on exhales.  On inhales straigthen and lenthen the spine.  Your pelvic bowl is going to tip forwards to make this happen.  Go to where it doesn't hurt but the hamstring and low back stretch feels really good.  If you're really bendy flexy and you've actually gotten your legs flat to the ground and your spine is still perfectly straight, THEN you can round down your back down and touch your forehead to your knees if you want.  Inhale back up to seated.

• Supine Twist:  From seated, lay back on your mat so you're laying completely on the ground.  Inhale, bring your right knee up to the sky above your hip and grab it with your left hand. Exhale, gently pull that knee to your left side, maybe all the way to the ground.  T-out your arms at your side.  Your left leg is straight out and relaxed.  Relax your whole body, stretching & twisting your spine and stretching your hips.  Inhale and bring your knee back upright, and exhale it down to the floor by your other leg.  Do the other side the same way.

• Bound Angle Pose: Laying flat on your back on the mat, bring your knees apart and out to the sides and the bottoms of your feet to touch.  Bring your feet as close to your booty as you can.  Let your knees hang loose to the side.  Gravity stretches and opens your hips and inner thighs here.  No need to push or strain, just let yourself flop open and relax.  When done, scoot heels and legs back together so you're just laying flat on the mat again.

• Cow:  From laying flat on the mat, inhale and bring your knees up to the sky above your hips.  Cross your right leg over your left leg, like you're sitting cross-legged in a chair.  Knees are compressed.  Grasp with your hands the backside of your your left thigh and on an exhale slowly pull towards you.  This feels really good on the glutes, hamstrings, and hips.  When done, release hands, switch out which knee's on top, and repeat on the other side.

• Savasana:  Release your legs down on the mat.  Lay flat on your back, heels touching, letting your toes splay open to the sides, palms facing up, shoulderblades together on your back so your heart is raised up to the sky and there's no tension in your neck, and relax.  Same as the first pose only laying down, take a full body inventory of how you feel.  Slow deep breathing.

And yay! You're done! 

For me this feels REALLY REALLY good post-run :)  I hope you guys enjoy it!

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, girls!
I hope you're having a great day :)

Let us know what great workouts you've been up to!

Mini Me, I've been researching the hot summer runs a bit more.  Here's an article on Runner's World about it.  I guess the foods you eat the night before a long summer run can affect you?  "The night before summer long runs, he sticks with salads and fruits, which are not only light but also have a high water content to assist with hydration."  They also suggest running waaaay early in the morning to beat  the heat.  And also to let your body set your pace- not pushing yourself.  "In other words, when it's hot, slow down. "If it ain't happening, it ain't happening," says Dunaway. "What we say here is 'Don't be a hero in the heat.'"  Also, your body stresses when it's running in the heat, especially if you're in air conditioning the rest of the day.  The article suggests exposing yourself to heat in increments throughout the whole day so you adjust to the heat.  "Gradually exposing yourself to the hot weather--for as little as 30 minutes a day--helps induce changes that make the body more tolerant of heat stress."

This other article from the same site suggests pairing a run w/ a swim.  Like run to the pool, swim, and run back.  It will help bring down your body temperature. 

Take care of yourselves, ladies!!!

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, buff beautiful babes!!!!

I hope you're all having a great week!  Please share what workouts and activities you've been up to last weekend & this week!

In yoga teacher training last night, we explored Ayurveda and we went into the 3 types of doshas, which are pretty much personality types of people.  Of course there's a lifetime-full of information you can study further on it, but this is just the generic schpeel.  Each of us has a little bit of each of the 3 doshas within us, but usually 1 dominates or sometimes 2 can equally be dominant.  Anyways, after you take some quizes and learn more about each of the 3 types, and after you know what your dominant dosha(s) is, then you can use that information to gain a deeper understanding of yourself, to learn to not compare yourself with others, to learn how to motivate yourself, how to relax yourself, and how to balance yourself.  Back that up, I said MOTIVATE, RELAX, & BALANCE!  Sweet! 

So check out some of the dosha quizes online- there are TONS of them.  Here's the first Google hit: http://www.whatsyourdosha.com/   Then after you know which dosha you are, Google that particular dosha to learn more about it.

Sooooooo......share!  Tell us what your dosha is (vata, pitta, or kapha)!  Tell us how you feel about that!  Tell us how you can take that knowledge to then motivate yourself!!!!!

This link shows the best workouts for your type:
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/the-right-exercise-for-your-type.html

Again, each of us can be multiple types, each can go in seasons, sometimes in diff situations we're one and in others we're another, sometimes our body is one and our mind is another, etc. But still, kind of a fun way to get some new workout ideas, right?!?!?

Feel the Burn Thursday

Helloooooo, ladies :)
Hope you're all making it a great day!
I had a very involved anatomy & physiology lecture last night for my yoga teacher training class, and then I have a cadaver lab for it this Saturday, and so I've got muscles on my mind!  You all probably know this, but I liked it:

• Stretching muscles is actually a misnomer.  Your muscles don't ever become longer.  Through stretching and movement, you're showing your muscles their full, normal range of motion with the purpose of them memorizing that full motion and becoming more fully utilized to their full potential.  Kind of a fun way of looking at it.
• Cartiledge doesn't have any blood cells in it like muscles do, so for it to "heal" when damaged, it has to pull its nutrients and healing materials from the bones it's connected to.  Hence it takes a LONG time for cartiledge injuries to heal.  Muscles have blood cells in them and the healing blood courses through them, so muscles heal pretty quickly.  Hang in there, Meghan!
• Ligaments (connect bone to bone, like ankles), once stretched out can't ever be stretched back.  So if you've rolled your foot (this is for you, Mini Me!) once, you're very likely to keep rolling it over and over again your whole life.  Same w/ sprains.  So be gentle on your ligaments and be careful to not over-extend joints when stretching, standing, doing yoga, sports, etc.  Always avoid "locking" your knees, but put a small "microbend' in it so that it's solid, straight, strong, but non-damaging and gentle.
• All workouts and physical activity should cause you to "feel the burn & strength" in the "belly" of the muscle, never the ends of the muscle where they connect to other things.  So when in a lunge for instance, you should never feel the burn in the leg muscles close to the knee or close to the hip.  You should be properly aligned so that you feel the burn in the belly of the thigh muscle, the center of the thigh, it's meatiest part.  If you do feel it towards the ends/connective areas of the muscles, you're going too far for it to be beneficial for you and you're likely to do damage and cause undue stress/tension.
• An issue somewhere in your body could very likely be caused elsewhere.  For instance, last fall when I was running crazy mileage, I'd get sore hips when I hit about 15 miles.  My running shoe sales guy (an ironman) told me that it most likely was due to tight hamstrings pulling down on my hips.  Extra stretching & yoga cured the dull hip pain like a charm.  And then we talked about just this last night in yoga.  If someone has sore knees, it COULD be because they're quads, hamstrings, etc. are really really tight and are tugging funny on the knee ligaments/tendons.  If someone has a lot of tension in their low back, it could be b/c tight legs are tugging on the hips which are tugging on the low back or just tight hips tugging on the low back.  Everything's so interconnected- it's crazy!  Just another fun way to think of things.

So what great workouts have you been up to this week????  Anybody do anything fun & active over the long holiday weekend?

Whatcha Eatin' Wednesday

Hey, beautiful ladies!  I hope you're doing great.  I'm sure some of you are still traveling back from summer vacation over the holiday weekend.  Whenever you're back, check in to say hey to everybody!  The cheering each other on is one of the things that makes this group work for everyone. 

A couple things: First of all, there shouldn't be anything scary about a reduced caloric intake....unless you're not eating what you're burning.   If you're at too much of a caloric deficit, then you'll experience scary things like weakness or lightheadedness, not to mention you won't be losing weight to keep it off, AND your body will enter "starvation mode" and your metabolism will hit the floor in an effort to keep you alive and your organs pumping.  Here's an example of how the "calorie counting" thing should be going:

• Enter in your age/gender/current weight/goal weight/activity level, etc. to My Fitness Pal (or other sites you prefer, like Daily Burn, etc.)
• It will then spit out that you should aim for (for example only) 1300 calories a day NET. 
• Then you start keeping track of what you eat.  So if I eat 300 calories for breakfast, 100 calorie late morning snack, 500 calories for lunch, 200 calories for afternoon snack, 300 calories for dinner, and 200 calories for an evening snack, then that totals 1600 caloiries consumed for the day. 
• But you're also tracking what workouts you do.  So if I went for a jog for 3 miles and burned 300 calories, that's subtracted from my total calories consumed for the day of 1600, so then my NET calories consumed is 1300, which is right on target. 
• So if I don't have time to get in a workout that day, then I'm going to be extra careful w/ my food intake and stay at 1300 calories consumed. 
• On the other hand, if it's a Saturday and I go on a 4 hour bike ride and burn 1000 calories, I'd better be consuming 2300 calories that day total (1000 calories above my net goal b/c I'm burning 1000 calories), b/c if not, my body is going to be burning muscle for energy instead of the fat & food I want it to burn, I'd feel weak, drained, exhausted, & have a really crappy workout.
• I can't emphasize enough how VERY VERY important it is that you're "eating what you burn" for workouts. 
• After you've got that figured out, then you can work on improving the quality of your diet, being sure that what you're consuming is the highest quality, highest-octane fuel possible.  Try to hit your protein intake goal, your fiber intake, etc.  Try to stay under your sodium limit.  Try to get in enough water.  Try to limit sodas, etc.  Your My Fitness Pal food diary will  tell you the protein amount you should be aiming for based on your current weight, gender, activity level, etc.  But if you're doing really hard strength training or race training, you should be aiming for way more protein, as close to your body weight as possible.  So if you weigh 160 lbs, you should be aiming for 160 grams of protein.  I know that seems like a TON, but just get in as much as you can up to that amount.  Most everything I've heard on the subject goes off this basic guideline.  And if you're not that active, don't worry about that much protein.  Just if you're really pushing it and really building muscle.  And eating every few hours is going to keep your metabolism roaring for you all day long- I like the mini meal method.  Keeps you feeling fuller longer, too.

There is lots and lots of medical advice out there for this being the healthiest way to lose weight.  Yes, it's really gradual weight loss, a pound here & there, but it's the best way to lose if you want to keep it off.  Ask any dietician for advise specific to your body and your circumstances- be sure to consult a physician for a good way to modify your diet if you have health concerns like hypo/hyper-thyroidism, hypoglycemia, diabetes, etc.  This is the principle behind Weight Watchers, too---you gain extra points by working out.

Ok, then SECOND of all, it's our day to swap recipe and snack ideas!  Please help; I'm in desperate need of fresh new ideas.  This past weekend I made a favorite, Summer Salsa.  Which I've posted before on here, but YUM YUM YUM!

Summer Salsa

• 1 can corn, drained
• 3 tomatoes, diced
• 1 can chickpeas or garbanzo beans, drained
• 1 can blackeyed peas, drained
• 3 avocados, diced
• 1 package of dry italian dressing mix (prepared as directed on package, so w/ the oil & vinegar & water)
• Mix it all together
• Enjoy w/ whole wheat pita chips, blue corn chips, etc.

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, workout wonderwomen!

Here's an article from Ultramarathon Man Dean Karnazes' blog on Runner's World Magazine's website that Mini Me shared- pretty sweet- thanks! 

http://dean.runnersworld.com/2010/06/small-wonder.html?cm_mmc=RSS-_-rwrsshome-_-NA-_-NA

It is about an 8 year old girl completing an extremely difficult race and winning!

Her mom says " I had told her that with hard work, determination, focus and a belief in herself that anything was possible. Now she can truly internalize that fact and draw upon it in the future."

"Seeing her bobbing little pigtails in the lead in the final stretch brought tears to my eyes. She had done it. She had believed in herself–she had believed that winning was a possibility–and she, and she alone, had made it happen."

It's a really cool story about an incredible and determined little girl. I just put my favorite two excerpts up above.  When we have a success, whatever it might be, we add it like fuel to our emotional and motivational gas tanks. The more you recognize and celebrate every little success in your life, the more confidence and strength you'll have to draw on in the future when perhaps you might really need it. And I of course like the childish audacity of If you want something awesome to happen in your life, then go out & do it!!

Thanks, Mini Me! 

What workouts have you guys been doing lately? What activities do you have planned to get your sweat on this holiday weekend?

Feel Good Friday

Good morning, lovely ladies!

Check out this article:

Best Benefit of Exercise? Happiness

"Two primary chemicals involved in making exercise feel good are cortisol and endorphins.

Cortisol is a hormone produced by the body under stress, such as anger, anxiety or fear, and it ultimately inflames and damages our organs. Exercise burns cortisol, and thereby makes us healthier and happier, Mandel says.

Endorphins are morphine-like hormone molecules that enter the brain's neurons and park on receptors that normally send pain-signaling molecules back to other parts of the brain. Some say endorphins are even more powerful and yield a more euphoric feeling than opiate drugs such as morphine and opium, which park on the same receptors when introduced to the body.

Exercise stimulates the brain's pituitary gland to release endorphins, an abbreviation for endogenous (meaning "produced within") morphine, in the bloodstream."

"Mostly, you get a consistent high from a workout to music and a workout that you enjoy," she says. "It is important to realize that routine deadens the heart, and you have to change up your exercise regimen. The body always adapts and you need to challenge it. So, vary the intensity, cross train, take dance classes, try a new sport, use a personal trainer for a few sessions, etc. Keep it fresh, and you will get that high!"

Make it a happy weekend, ladies! :)

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, fit beauties!

Have you ever felt like you've hit a performance plateau?  Check out this article about reaching a point in your training (whatever sport it might be in) where gains don't come so easily, and learn how to still improve.  http://www.bicycling.com/training-nutrition/training-fitness/get-your-plateau
"Plateaus happen when your body has done as much as it can with what you've given it,"

"You're given a certain set of tools at birth, DNA-encoded...As you begin to train, you have three to four years when your improvement curve is really dramatic. Then you hit your talent limit. You've fulfilled the easy part of your career—the part when gains come easy."

"The closer you get to some inherent genetic maximum ability, the more and more work it takes to make smaller and smaller increments of improvement."

Here's how to get off your own personal plateau.

First, Rest

Second, Build a Base

Tap Your Potential

Push the Pace

Work Over Your Workout

Let the Busting Begin

Ok, so now apply those lessons out to other areas of your life.  Even if you're not doing running races or cycling races or trying to perform at your absolute hardest and most efficient level, there are still other areas of our lives where plateaus hit us.  I'm thinking about hitting a plateau in weight loss.  Have you ever just stalled out w/ your weight loss (assuming you're not already in your goal range, that is)?  Follow the same formula as above!  First, rest.  Get off your plateau first by making sure you're getting as much sleep as your body and your family circumstances will allow- 6-8 hours for the average adult at least, and 8-10 hours if you're high-activity.  Second, build a base.  Do your basic calorie counting and food journaling.  Be gentle on yourself.  Just be dedicated, slowly trucking away.  Then begin to add in new-to-you workouts that invigorate and challenge your body.  Before you know it, Funktown could be in your rearview mirror.

Have any of you hit a plateau before, whether it's been in physical sports or in your weight loss journey?  Care to share?  What got you off the plateau? 

Just keep on trucking, ladies!!!  You've done the hardest part, and that's to start the journey!  You're all here on the blog, you're trying, you're learning, you've got the desire, and it doesn't matter where you are on your path- the important thing is that you're ON your path.  Go, you!  :)

Make it a great day, ladies!

Feel Good Friday

Hi, beautiful ladies!  I'm so glad you're in my life :) 
This weekend, snag a girl friend and plan a fun workout.  I dunno, maybe run a half marathon together?  Haha! 

Here are some awesome articles & ideas for friend workouts: http://www.active.com/fitness/Articles/Workout-With-a-Friend.htm
But seriously, there are some MAJOR motivation benefits to biking with a friend, running with a friend, doing a fun adventure with a friend.  Not only will you be more likely to GET to your workout, you'll get in some great belly laughs and perform harder than you would on your own. 
I asked a girlfriend here that I had met during my sprint tri to do a 50 mile bike ride with me in the foothills on Saturday morning, but she's out of town for the weekend :(  But next time!  I'm undeterred.  I'll do the great ride.  And I'll keep meeting more and more new girlfriends :) 
On Wednesday night, I met a girl in my yoga teacher training class who has completed FOUR ironman competitions! WOW!!!!!  I was in such awe.  Of course we talked about it for an hour!  And I'm so pumped up! Someday, ladies, someday :)  She's going to share her books, training routes, & training schedules with me.  She was such a positive, smiley, outgoing, fit, and motivating person---pumping me up with "you can do it" vibes. 
I've done boxing classes where I met a girl who's become a friend and we've met up for several boxing classes together, done some yoga classes, etc.
So I've got friends on my mind.  Get out and try new adventures!  Make new friends!  Reach out of your comfortzone and find some FIT and POSITIVE girlfriends to do workouts with!!!!!!!!!  (& subsequently you'll spend less time with the negative nancies who drag you down)
Surround yourself with positive people and you'll feel your life detoxify. 

Share your experience with surrounding yourself with positive, active girlfriends who support your goals!!!!

Feel the Burn Thursdays

Good morning, girls! First of all, good luck to Mini Me, Meghan, & Marianne who are running their half marathon this weekend! Go, girls, go!  I'm so excited for you! Looks like it's going to be gorgeous weather for it, too.

So Thursdays is the day that we share what workouts we've been up to.  So, ladies, how have you been sweating?!?

If we just cut calories alone, we'll lose weight.  But if we cut calories AND workout, not only will we accelerate our weight loss, but we'll also build and maintain more muscle, making it mostly fat in the weight that we lose.  Not working out during the process means that a good portion of the weight you're losing is muscle-weight :(  And we need our strength! 

Something else I've been thinking of personally is being sure to get in enough water!  Not drinking enough water will cause you to feel tired, sluggish, fatigued, irregular (mm hmmm), and to have headaches.  So drink up plenty of the good stuff, girls :)  I've posted this before, but here's a link to a calculator for how much YOU should be drinking each day.  And, if you're drinking gallons and gallons a day, that could be a red flag for a health condition, so see your doctor on that, too.  Should just be a normal, healthy amount of water intake :) 

BTW- Thanks for the vitamin reminder, Nicki!  I hope you're all taking vitamins!  Doesn't have to be the expensive GNC, etc. kind.  Just the plain old over the counter multivitamin kind at Wal-mart do the trick!   I'm a personal fan of the Target store brand multivitamin w/ an extra Calcium pill & an extra Vitamin D pill (so 3 total vitamins a day) based on that being exactly what my physician recommended due to my own personal deficiencies.  Next annual physical you have, get a FULL blood screening (not just the bare minimum) to show ALL your vitamins & minerals.  Then go off your physician's recommendations for what you should be taking & how much.  Being deficient in nutrients and vitamins can make you feel sluggish for sure!  This article reviews multivitamins and indicates that the store brand vitamins (like Target-brand or Wal-mart-brand) are among the highest in quality!

"more than 90 percent of women in their 20s, 30s, and 40s don't meet their vitamin and mineral requirements through diet alone -- and you need that multi even more if you exercise. "Vigorous workouts raise your body's vitamin and mineral requirements, so it's practically guaranteed that you won't get enough nutrients from food....""

So share what workouts you've been doing, ladies!!!

Feel the Burn Thursday

Hey, beautiful ladies!
Hope you're making it a great day. 
What workouts have you been up to this week?

I've been thinking about core-strengthening work I can do, since a strong core is key to running, yoga, well...everything active actually!  http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=4159

"The key to the requisite lithe footwork of trail running is a strong and supple core because the abdominal and lower back muscles are the essential centerpiece of the gyroscope that allows for balance and resilience. The core forms the foundation for posture, back support, and stability, and assists in absorbing the impact of descents...Most systems, Tai Chi, aikido, yoga, agree that the reservoir of vital energy is in the pelvis—the location of the intersection of most of these core muscles; so spending time cultivating the balance between the muscles that are built for short quick actions and those designed to sustain activity over long periods of time (core muscles) will support the body in tapping in to this deeper energy store as well as providing greater stability and sure-footedness that is essential for successful trail running." "

A strong core keeps your body in efficient alignment when running, not wasting energy, giving you extra umph & endurance.  What are your favorite core strengthening ideas?  How do YOU strengthen your core?

Also, have you heard that working your butt & thighs will burn more calories (larger muscles) than working other smaller muscle groups?  I had & this article http://caloriecount.about.com/muscles-burn-most-calories-q13611 points out the idea behind that, but I like that it qualifies the rumor by saying it's best to work out balancedly (I made that word up, like it?), putting equal emphasis on upper body & lower body. 

"... the large muscles of the thighs, butt and legs burn a lot of calories when they work. In fact, exercises that use the large muscles of the body in a continuous, rhythmical fashion and increase the heart rate, such as walking, jogging, stair climbing and speed-skating, burn more calories compared to other forms of exercise. But building up your lower body to burn more calories at rest is another issue and of less concern. Unless you are training for a specific sport, the best strength-training program is one that balances the upper and lower body. Be more concerned with burning calories through activity than at rest."

But here's something to try incorporating into this week & weekend's workouts!!!  Have any of you ever tried stair climbing as a workout?

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, girls!
I hope you're enjoying your week so far.
What workouts have you been up to so far this week & what workouts do you have planned for this weekend?

So today's post is going to be a modge podge of Food and Workouts, not just Workouts.
It is so important to fuel your body with wholesome, high-energy, nutrient-rich foods in order to be able to do great workouts and just feel good inside and out.  Yes, Amy C, you're perfectly right, diet soda is not a dieter's friend :)  Even if you got a free 24-pack from the gas station last week for purchasing a car wash....haha...that was me :) 

Amy C. shared this Athleta Chi Blog post about nutrition with me over last weekend and I think it's pretty good. 
http://www.athleta.net/chi/2010/05/14/dinas-food-journal-the-home-stretch/
Here's a good part of this woman's story about nutrition fueling the athletic lifestyle and just how much better you feel when you put good foods in your body instead of junk, no matter how much you're working out: "Despite a lifetime of sports and vigilantly training for sports, I’ve been neglecting a key aspect of wellness: good nutrition. Yes, despite my lapse into a batch of cookie dough today, I am eating better now than I was, say, four years ago (when I’d make several batches of cookie dough a week rather than a batch every several months). But four years ago 1) I didn’t mind working out four to six hours a day to compensate for my poor food choices and 2) (as silly as this may sound) I had no idea how much better (or worse) food could make my body feel."
Also, Kim shared with me last night a big email filled with great crock pot recipes, but I can't get it to post on here while maintaining all the links, so I'll just email it out to you all, so look for that today :)

Planning out a few days at a time for what I'm going ot eat when, and trying to keep it well-balanced, and heavier right after a workout, and filled with lots of lean protein, whole grains, veggies, & fruit has REALLY made a difference for me this week.  Yesterday was great.  It made it so that it wasn't a matter of entering into MFP what I ate and then begrudginly seeing if I could eat anything else that day or if I had to be done.  So it's just an attitude shift.  Planning ahead of time.  I know exactly what I'll have when.  I know it's probably just a short-lived bug, but I'm going to try really hard to maintain it through the weekend to see great results on Monday's weigh-in, then that should motivate me to keep it up again! 

For workouts, last night I did a trial run at my sprint triathlon.  Holy cow, I was spent.  It was nuts.  Actually made me really nervous for the tri because it was so hard (at least there was the American Idol finale on TV that I could watch to keep from watching the odometer :) ).  I swam in the pool at the Y for 40 minutes, then rode the stationary bike for 17 miles, then ran on the treadmill 3.1 miles.  I've got the fitness, and so I'm hoping with the tri obviously being outdoors instead of the mindnumbing indoors, and with some race-day adrenaline, that I'll be able to pull it off.  Nonetheless, I'm going to be doing some training bricks the next week and a half.  I'll do back-to-back rides then runs for the right distances.  Talk about muscle confusion!!!

Also, last Saturday I did a free intro class at LA Boxing.  It was so much fun!!!!! I totally recommend you all check out a gym near you for a free class.  It was the hardest workout I've had in....EVER!  But it was fun.  I got my hands wrapped, wore boxing gloves, did conditioning drills, and punched and kicked the crud out of a big boxing bag w/ the help of my pro MMA fighter coach!  I was keeping up with the big boys and even met a new friend who just moved out here w/ her husband from Michigan- woohoo Midwesterners :)  After doing their free intro class, they gave me a free 7 day pass, too.  So I'm going to do that Saturday through next week to do more boxing and kickboxing classes.  What a riot!  I felt like I was on Biggest Loser :) http://www.laboxing.com/ and click on gym locator.  Sadly there aren't any in WI, UT, IA, or DE, but Tara, Amy F, & Isolde, you're in luck in IL & IN!!!  Check it out.

Feel Good Friday

Good morning, girls!!!!!

Check out these fun ideas from Fitness Magazine.  Click on the image and it will get bigger.

I challenge all of you to call up a friend that you need to catch up with, and make a workout/active adventure date!  You don't have to catch up with friends over dinner.  Do it doing something active!  I think that's a great idea.

For all you runners currently training, check out the cool tips on hill running. 

And I love the comment here about how you can do ANYTHING FOR 30 SECONDS! So push it to finish strong :)

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, ladies!

You are awesome, just getting that out there :)

How many calories do you burn unpacking, lifting, standing, cleaning lightly?  Here's a calculator to tell you!  For me, it's 155 calories an hour.  SAWEET!

Even if you don't have moving boxes to unpack like me, pick a random closet in your home and organize it!  Or some other small organization project.  Whatever floats your boat.  So not only will you burn 155 calories + per hour, you'll enjoy some of these emotional benefits to having just one less clutter spot in your life.  "Increased Zest for Life?"  Hmmm....might be a bit of a stretch, but I'll take it!   And once you've spring cleaned your home and spring cleaned your workout, try these ideas for spring cleaning your life!  I like this, "Pursuing a simple, sustainable, flexible, happier lifestyle means that you have to choose it. And that means choosing to lose some other things. It means getting rid of things that no longer work for you, it means updating the way you do things, it means freeing up some space for new and exciting opportunities and challenges." It's all a choice- choosing to be fit, choosing to exercise, choosing to eat healthfully, and choosing to live a de-cluttered life.


Mini Me, Marianne, Meghan, & Tara (phew, that's a lot of M's): How is the half marathon training going?  Nicki: Did you decide on the marathon?!?!  YoU cAn Do It!!!!!!!  Amy C. & Isolde: How is the sprint triathlon training going?!?!?  Does anyone else have something coming up that I forgot to mention?! 

What workouts have you all been up to this week??!!

Feel the Burn Thursday

How are you shrinkin' sistas doin' this mornin'!!!!!!
So do you have any FAT PANTS? Pants that don't fit anymore becasue your body has shrunk? 
Here's a hilarious Fat Pants anihilation app that I LOVED!  And the rest of the Discovery Health site is pretty awesome, too.  Check it out!!! http://health.discovery.com/national-body-challenge/interactives/fat-pants/fat-pants.html 

I just watched the TiVo'd (after this Friday when I leave my friends' house and move into our own brand new place, I'm no longer going to have access to TiVo and I'll have to watch BL Live! The travesty! Ha ha, oh well) episode of Biggest Loser last night that aired Tuesday.  It was all about maintenance.  It was perfect for me!  I loved hearing it.  Past Biggest Loser winners came on and offered the success stories and the not-so-success stories.  I particularly liked the guy who had won the BL grand prize in season 2 and gained a lot of it back, and is in the process of losing it all again for the second time.  He talked about the "free passes" that we give ourselves.  Which I'm 100000000% guilty of.  He said he was at his goal weight, and he'd say, "Eh, this 800 calorie meal is ok, I'll burn it off later, it won't make a difference, it's just this once."  He cautioned everyone against taking free passes because they add up, and before you know it you've slid down the slippery slope and gained weight back.  Do you ladies take free passes?  What would be your tips & tricks for NOT taking free passes?  What do you tell yourself to stay the course?

So, FEEL THE BURN THURSDAY is upon us! What workouts have you been doing since last Thursday?????!!!!!  Share with us the specifics- I love hearing them all.

Feel the Burn Thursday

Good morning, shrinkin' divas!
I hope you're all having a great week!

A friend of mine just got recruited by her church to teach a "Frugal Fitness" lesson to a group of women, varying in age from 18 to 100.  She and I have been brainstorming ideas and I've had a lot of fun helping and learning from her.   One of the things she's going to talk about is lifting weights using water jugs, big cans, etc.  Another is doing workouts on a playground with your kids.  Have any of you ever tried either of these before?  Share your experience and what you did!  If you haven't tried, then share an idea for at-home or no-cost workouts.  At this link, www.ehow.co.uk/articles_2355-p63-exercise.html scroll down to the bottom of the page and there are a TON of playground workout ideas.  And at this link, http://www.ehow.com/video_4953237_water-jug-exercises-plie-squats.html are a lot of water jug workouts w/ videos.

What workouts have you been up to this week?  I hope you all decide to make today an active day :)  It's all about the attitude choices we make.  A 30 second workout is better than none at all.