With the start of the new year, I'm going to take this opportunity to revamp my blog. Expect a post in the new style next week!! I'll be switching from focusing on lifestyle tips to training plans and nutrition information for right now. I want to help inform each of you about proper training and eating to help you stick with your resolutions. Rather than have you all head to the gym and then wander around doing pointless bicep curls or endless, boring, and painful jogs, I want to give you a plan to keep you motivated and excited about fitness. Being educated in what to do is the biggest step in reaching your goals.
It's time to rock the hell out of the new year!
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Monday, December 19, 2011
Peace, Hope, Cookies!
In this time of rushed shopping in overcrowded malls, it's easy to
forget what it's all for. Leave the stress behind and remember your
faith, whatever it may be, is the reason to celebrate. May the shorter
days continue to bring families together for an evening of laughs and
holiday memories this season.
PRESTIGE WORLDWIDE. My big sister is coming home for the first time since moving last January (other than a VERY brief stopover in May). We've been beside ourselves getting excited to plant our butts on the couch and watch tons of movies and eat all of the dozens of cookies I baked. We've also been planning how to workout together during the holiday season. I'd like to dedicate this post to my kick ass family who has managed to LOSE weight this December. That's right - my family is watching the scale tick downwards, even with all those cookies in the house!!
Though studies have shown the actual holiday weight gain is 1-2 pounds, not the fabled 5-7 pounds, it's just as easy to let that spiral out of control. Why not have a plan in place to fight the weight creep and start out your new year with a slimmer waistline than before you carved the turkey!
What's your reason for the holiday gain?
Not enough time?
1. GET OFF FACEBOOK! If you claim you don't have enough time to fit your workout in during the holiday season because of shopping, parties, or whatever other plans you have...eliminate 20 minutes of Facebook time a day.
2. Schedule your workout as part of your day - treat it as an appointment with some sort of monetary consequence if you miss it ($5 in the missed workout jar will seem like $50 during the holidays when money is already tight).
3. Record your favorite TV shows and fast forward through commercials - another 20 minutes saved.
Can't resist all the cookie and cocktail temptations at the office or parties?
1. Eat smart earlier in the day when you know you'll be attending a party. Have a protein and fiber packed lunch to keep you satisfied into the afternoon so that you won't be ravenous when you arrive and grab a fistful of pigs-in-a-blanket.
2. Amp up your workouts in the days leading up to your big night out. Tack on 10 minutes of serious cardio (cycling, swimming, running) at the end of your workout.
3. If you're older than 6, you know what your favorite cookies are. Be selective about what you choose to indulge in. If you didn't like gingersnaps last year, you probably wont like them now. Save the calories and enjoy one treat you can trust you'll be satisfied by.
At the very least, stay active. When you're chatting on the phone - stand up. Take the stairs when possible, especially at the mall. Park at the far end of the lot and walk. Most importantly, don't let the calories you burned from getting active entitle you to treats as rewards, you'll end up eating more in the end!
Happy Holidays! Here's to a svelte 2012!
PRESTIGE WORLDWIDE. My big sister is coming home for the first time since moving last January (other than a VERY brief stopover in May). We've been beside ourselves getting excited to plant our butts on the couch and watch tons of movies and eat all of the dozens of cookies I baked. We've also been planning how to workout together during the holiday season. I'd like to dedicate this post to my kick ass family who has managed to LOSE weight this December. That's right - my family is watching the scale tick downwards, even with all those cookies in the house!!
Though studies have shown the actual holiday weight gain is 1-2 pounds, not the fabled 5-7 pounds, it's just as easy to let that spiral out of control. Why not have a plan in place to fight the weight creep and start out your new year with a slimmer waistline than before you carved the turkey!
What's your reason for the holiday gain?
Not enough time?
1. GET OFF FACEBOOK! If you claim you don't have enough time to fit your workout in during the holiday season because of shopping, parties, or whatever other plans you have...eliminate 20 minutes of Facebook time a day.
2. Schedule your workout as part of your day - treat it as an appointment with some sort of monetary consequence if you miss it ($5 in the missed workout jar will seem like $50 during the holidays when money is already tight).
3. Record your favorite TV shows and fast forward through commercials - another 20 minutes saved.
Can't resist all the cookie and cocktail temptations at the office or parties?
1. Eat smart earlier in the day when you know you'll be attending a party. Have a protein and fiber packed lunch to keep you satisfied into the afternoon so that you won't be ravenous when you arrive and grab a fistful of pigs-in-a-blanket.
2. Amp up your workouts in the days leading up to your big night out. Tack on 10 minutes of serious cardio (cycling, swimming, running) at the end of your workout.
3. If you're older than 6, you know what your favorite cookies are. Be selective about what you choose to indulge in. If you didn't like gingersnaps last year, you probably wont like them now. Save the calories and enjoy one treat you can trust you'll be satisfied by.
At the very least, stay active. When you're chatting on the phone - stand up. Take the stairs when possible, especially at the mall. Park at the far end of the lot and walk. Most importantly, don't let the calories you burned from getting active entitle you to treats as rewards, you'll end up eating more in the end!
Happy Holidays! Here's to a svelte 2012!
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
The family that works out together...
Laughs really hard.
5 weeks ago, my mom approached me with a goal - to feel confident in a swimsuit in time for a January cruise to the Bahamas. The objective was to lose around 20 pounds in 2 months (which happen to cross Halloween, Thanksgiving, AND Christmas). Misson: ACCEPTED.
We discussed her physical goals and the reasons behind them. The routine of coming home and parking it on the couch for several hours and then going to bed everyday was becoming excessively boring. As a big time commuter with upwards of 15 hours/week of travel, how can she boost her energy with the winter coming on?
Where to begin? Meal makeovers. 3 main (350-450 Calories) meals, 2 small (100-200 Calories) snacks. Always remember, you simply cannot out-train poor eating. As a general rule of thumb, I eat as much whole and unprocessed food as possible. I'm not about to bake a loaf of bread myself, so I look for healthy versions in store (Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Flourless is my preferred). I also try to keep snacks to fruits/veggies and portion controlled nuts.
I strongly reject the idea of a "diet". Restricting or denying yourself any particular food group is just setting yourself up to fail. Your body needs all the food groups in moderation, you hear me low carbers?! The only exception to this rule is a diet preference such as vegetarian, pescatarian, or vegan. However, those who are on a specialized diet are presumably educated on how to properly compensate for the food groups they are eliminating. The big issue we needed to conquer was Mom's tendency to eat like a bird. She doesn't prioritize food in her day, so she eats out of necessity and chooses foods based on convenience. The easiest change we made was emphasizing the need for a vegetable at each meal instead of a starch. We've always been a very meat and potatoes family, but double starches at a meal is a sin! If you've got a burger on a bun, you best be passing on the fries if you plan to eat that bun! You get the point. The other factor was the emphasis on lean proteins at every meal, especially breakfast. Now, Sunday nights are when she cooks up a big batch of scrambled egg whites with spinach and crumbled turkey sausage that she can reheat with a slice of toast each morning instead of grabbing a bowl of sugar laden cereal because it's fast.
Next up: Training!! This is the fun part. We started slow with simple body weight exercises like squats and lunges. We work together Monday - Thursday, leaving Friday for her to complete some form of activity of her choice (usually biking) and Saturday for a good hour on the treadmill. Sunday is for recovery. Within three weeks, Mom had progressed from never having done a real pushup (not on the knees) in her life to doing 10 and by now, 12!! She also made small life changes like taking the stairs to her office everyday and going for a walk at lunch. We've moved up to more difficult weighted exercises and suspension training on the TRX, which can occasionally produce hilarious coordination related issues. She has also proven incredibly strong willed, going from huffing through a 16 minute mile to being ready to complete her first Turkey Trot 5K (sub-45 is the goal) this Thursday!
So here's the re-cap. Mom wants to get in shape. We fix diet. We work out. We get results. I say "we" because support is just as crucial as the actual work. We eat the same dinners and we work out together. We text each other when we've made good decisions in a restaurant. Support breeds success. Success sparks interest in those around you. Now Dad is on board!!
And about those results? As of week 4, 12 pounds and 6 inches lost. Week 5 weigh-in is tomorrow! I'll be sure to update with our 5K run times.
Happy Thanksgiving!!
5 weeks ago, my mom approached me with a goal - to feel confident in a swimsuit in time for a January cruise to the Bahamas. The objective was to lose around 20 pounds in 2 months (which happen to cross Halloween, Thanksgiving, AND Christmas). Misson: ACCEPTED.
We discussed her physical goals and the reasons behind them. The routine of coming home and parking it on the couch for several hours and then going to bed everyday was becoming excessively boring. As a big time commuter with upwards of 15 hours/week of travel, how can she boost her energy with the winter coming on?
Where to begin? Meal makeovers. 3 main (350-450 Calories) meals, 2 small (100-200 Calories) snacks. Always remember, you simply cannot out-train poor eating. As a general rule of thumb, I eat as much whole and unprocessed food as possible. I'm not about to bake a loaf of bread myself, so I look for healthy versions in store (Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Flourless is my preferred). I also try to keep snacks to fruits/veggies and portion controlled nuts.
I strongly reject the idea of a "diet". Restricting or denying yourself any particular food group is just setting yourself up to fail. Your body needs all the food groups in moderation, you hear me low carbers?! The only exception to this rule is a diet preference such as vegetarian, pescatarian, or vegan. However, those who are on a specialized diet are presumably educated on how to properly compensate for the food groups they are eliminating. The big issue we needed to conquer was Mom's tendency to eat like a bird. She doesn't prioritize food in her day, so she eats out of necessity and chooses foods based on convenience. The easiest change we made was emphasizing the need for a vegetable at each meal instead of a starch. We've always been a very meat and potatoes family, but double starches at a meal is a sin! If you've got a burger on a bun, you best be passing on the fries if you plan to eat that bun! You get the point. The other factor was the emphasis on lean proteins at every meal, especially breakfast. Now, Sunday nights are when she cooks up a big batch of scrambled egg whites with spinach and crumbled turkey sausage that she can reheat with a slice of toast each morning instead of grabbing a bowl of sugar laden cereal because it's fast.
Next up: Training!! This is the fun part. We started slow with simple body weight exercises like squats and lunges. We work together Monday - Thursday, leaving Friday for her to complete some form of activity of her choice (usually biking) and Saturday for a good hour on the treadmill. Sunday is for recovery. Within three weeks, Mom had progressed from never having done a real pushup (not on the knees) in her life to doing 10 and by now, 12!! She also made small life changes like taking the stairs to her office everyday and going for a walk at lunch. We've moved up to more difficult weighted exercises and suspension training on the TRX, which can occasionally produce hilarious coordination related issues. She has also proven incredibly strong willed, going from huffing through a 16 minute mile to being ready to complete her first Turkey Trot 5K (sub-45 is the goal) this Thursday!
So here's the re-cap. Mom wants to get in shape. We fix diet. We work out. We get results. I say "we" because support is just as crucial as the actual work. We eat the same dinners and we work out together. We text each other when we've made good decisions in a restaurant. Support breeds success. Success sparks interest in those around you. Now Dad is on board!!
And about those results? As of week 4, 12 pounds and 6 inches lost. Week 5 weigh-in is tomorrow! I'll be sure to update with our 5K run times.
Happy Thanksgiving!!
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