How Fit is Your Family?

Whether you have kids of your own, nieces or nephews, or even grand kids I think we can all agree we have our hands full with things we need them to learn.  We teach them generosity, manners, how to be a good friend, respect, and the list goes on.  Somewhere in there we are doing a poor job of teaching health, nutrition, and wellness.  I know this because as these children mature into young adults they are among the heaviest and highest paying health care populations in the world.   I think it's about time to bring self care and family wellness to the front of the line with regards to the important characteristics we need to teach.  It is no longer ok that kids can't name a green vegetable or that some think fruit snacks are in the "fruit group".  FYI...There is no food group for fruit snacks! 

As I really push hard to lose weight, train for a race, and grow my business I realize the importance of teaching young children wellness concepts.  Just think, if every American taught their kids to eat 3 veggies/day and 2 fruits/day and lean animal protein everyday we might just save our kids the headache of high health care costs in the future.  Toss in some exercise and fresh air and you've got yourself a pretty healthy nation ready to keep passing it on down the line. 

The new addition to my business is called Fit 2b Kids.  The idea is to teach young children (3-5yrs)wellness concepts that will last a lifetime.  Do your kids a favor and consider making the 3 things below your goals for the summer.

1. Your 3-5 year old should be able to name 6-8 vegetables.  (start with the ones on their plate..who cares if they dont' like them...)

2. Pick a day and take on 1 new "family" activity each week.  (bike ride Sundays, Frisbee Saturdays, Soccer Fridays etc.)

3.  Fresh, Fresh Fresh & Fresh!  Fresh cooked meals (no more boxed foods).  Fresh fruit always out in plain sight and reach for little hands.  Fresh meal ideas (buy a new summer cookbook).  Fresh fruit and veggies at every meal. 

If your interested in exercising while your child attends a fun active class contact me to find out about Fit 2b Kids.  Classes start in May as our Fit 2b Moms classes move outdoors!  Really, it's win win.  Moms exercises on her own or with her stroller aged child while her older child has a great time learning how to make health and wellness a habit!

http://www.fit2bmoms.net/

Time Crunched? Go Intense....Less time!

Someone asked me this question yesterday and I thought it deserved a more detailed answer.  It's also something I'm sure many of you have pondered.  "Is it just as good to exercise everyday for 10-20 mins vs. 30 mins 3-4 days a week?"  Seems like a logical question. Mathematically it all comes out to the same amount of time but is it the same quality?  Research is ongoing on this subject.  If you want my opinion as a personal trainer, and busy mom you can rack out a pretty great workout in less than 30 mins.  However, (you knew there would be a however) it needs to be very intense and constant for that 10-20 mins.  That being said if your someone who is typically sedentary and you have over 30 lbs to lose your going to see improvements to your body with either form of exercise.  So if getting started seems less daunting with daily 10 min workouts with greater intensity...go for it.  My suggestion, be sure to have a few different weight variations available. 

For beginners: 5lb and an 8lb
Intermediate: 8lb and 10lb
Advanced: 10lb and 15lb

*exercise ands and tubing are awesome and cheap ways to vary your weight.  I love the Muscle Bar!  It's a weighted bar that you can attach a resistance band to.  Go to www.musclebar.com and type in Momsinmotion upon purchase for a discount. 

So if your having a busy week and just need to get in a few quick workouts check out the one below. 

Overall, if you want to see long term gains and increased weight loss, endurance, or speed...go for the longer duration more frequent brand of workout. 

10 Min Intense Workout:
(have a wall timer or something you can see count down the time.  Start the timer at 15 min (march/jog in place for 5 mins before starting timer)
*The idea is to rest when you need to.  For example: if you need to rest 30 sec. into the squat jump rest and come back.  If the minute has already passed you move on to the next exercise.

1 min squat jumps (squat down jump up)
Push-ups (1 min)
Bicep curls with squats  squat down curl, stand up curl....(1 min)
Run in place with hand weights (lighter side based on above level) (1 min)
Chest press from floor in bridge position (use heavier end weights)  (1 min)
REPEAT series 5 times (no rest between unless your body needs it. 

Have fun and if you need clarification on these exercises email me. 
Be sure you've been cleared by your doctor to exercise with this intensity. 

It's Not in The Box!

Wouldn't it be so easy if we could just take a pill, eat special food from a box, and get that great toned body from a 10 min guaranteed workout?  Of course it would but let's be honest, nutrition isn't found in a box or frozen Lean Cuisine and a fit lean body isn't obtained in 1 or 2 short workouts every week.  That's right you're actually going to have to work hard, say no thank you to that cupcake and get you butt off the couch to workout 5 days a week or more. 

Given that there are lot's of variables to weight loss let's just shoot down the food in a box thing right now.  In my opinion....the main reason to pass on boxed or frozen meals is the sodium and empty calories.  In all honesty you can do it better yourself.  Your version will taste better, be made with fresh veggies and whole grains (If your follow your Make it Stick plan), and be much lower in sodium. 

Here's the thing.  Our bodies do need sodium.  Athletes or those that workout on a regular basis sweating off fluids need sodium to maintain balance in their bodies.  However, 600mg of sodium for a 300 calories meal seems a bit excessive.  The total amount of sodium suggested per day (FDA) is about 2400mg.  When your trying to lose weight excess sodium adds water weight to your body and in some cases edema (pockets of fluid often in ankles).  Do yourself a favor...make it from scratch and you'll have that easy access meal in your fridge to take to work or eat for lunch.

Here's what I'm having tonight for dinner.  I'll make a bit extra so I can have it for lunch tomorrow.

Shrimp and veggie pasta: (could use chicken)
Saute shrimp in a pan with a little olive oil, garlic, and fresh squeezed lemon.  Set aside
Saute fresh veggies of your choice ( I use, zucchini, squash, asparagus, peppers, spinach) in olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and add fresh basil.  Cook until veggies are still crunchy.  Add shrimp back into veggies mixture to heat.  Mix with whole wheat angle hair pasta (portion size of a cupped handful) add feta cheese and serve!

Drink your 80-90 oz of water every day and you'll notice that scale dip, another few inches off, and the added bonuses such as a clearer complexion etc. 

By the way for those of you paying attention...I'm down another pound since last week and 2 1/2 inches overall.  Certainly slow moving but I know that what comes off slow...stays off forever. 

have a great week!

Track your nutritional servings...lose weight? I think so!

One of my favorite nutrition reference guides and recipe books comes from the Eat Clean Diet series by Tosca Reno.  Her recipes are awesome, the food is fresh and easily prepared.  One thing I've noticed about my diet is that although fairly planned I did not have a method of keeping track of the number of servings I was getting from each food group.  Her 'cooler plans' do just that.  I highly recommend reading the book and really getting a better idea of what and why we should eat what we eat.  Below is the checklist I have on my fridge.  It's covered in a plastic slip cover so I can use a dry erase pen to mark off what I've eaten during the day....then I know where I'm falling short.  So far I'm down another 1.5 lbs in a week.  Because I'm getting my fruits and veggies in (ie. fiber) I'm not craving sugar and I'm not hungry.  I'm still sticking to eating every 2-3 hours getting in 6 meals a day. 

6 Portions/ day Complex Carbs
1 cupped handful or piece of fruit (berries, melon, apples, grapefruit)
2 cupped handfuls of veggies
(The X's help me count my portions for the day for easy mark off)
X           X           X        X           X          X

2-4 Portions Complex Cabs from Whole Grains
1 Handful of high protein sugar free cereal (muesli and granola)
1 handful of cooked cereal (oatmeal)
1 piece of whole grain bread or wrap
1 handful sized serving of (yams, sweet potatoes, carrots banana, squash)

5-6 Portions of Lean protein
1 cup dairy (soy, rice milk, cottage cheese, kefir, ff yogurt)
1 handful of unsalted nuts
2 Tbsp of nut butters
1 palm sized portion of animal meat
Protein powder

2-3 liters of water

My workouts are getting more frequent however we were out of town last week so this week is a fresh start:

Monday: strength and core
Tuesday:  Run
Wed:  Bike
Thurs: Strength and OFF
Friday: Swim
Saturday: Bike
Sunday: OFF

(ideally I need another swim day but I'll have to wait until May when our neighborhood pool opens for time sake)

Accountablity is EVERYTHING!

My son has a reading folder that we log his time spent reading in each night.  One night he asked me why we had to write down the time he spent reading.  Then he asked how his teacher would know if we just put a time down but didn't really read that long.  After the talk about honesty I mentioned the word accountable. 

 According to dictionary.com Accountable is an–adjective

To report, explain, or justify something; responsible; answerable.

or

capable of being explained; explicable; explainable.

  As humans our success rate increases when we have to report our actions to someone.  My advice to those starting any exercise program, training plan or nutrition plan is find someone to be accountable to.  Whether it's your neighbor, a co-worker, best friend, sister, mom or husband it must be someone who will not pass judgement but doesn't refrain from keeping you on track.  My effort to be accountable with my training has a place here as well.  On Sunday's I'll be posting my workout schedule for the week.  A few times during the week I'll update my meals and my workout progress for the week.  Congrats...Your my new BFF!

This week:

Monday:  Sculpt Class

Tuesday: Stroller Class and 20 min Run

Wed: Swim (15 mins swim...it's been a while) Mostly drills

Thurs: "OFF"  Teach 2 classes (Core and Strength workout)

Friday: Bike (35 mins) attempt to get back in the saddle at 7 weeks Postpartum

Saturday: OFF

Sunday: Swim

**Just feeling out my baseline this week.  If' your just starting out go easy on yourself.  You should also really have 1 full day off. 

Meals Today:

Breakfast: Oatmeal with soy protein (tbsp), peanut butter, and a little maple syrup

Snack:  Forgot my stinken snack today.

Lunch: Left over backed chicken breast, slice 2% swiss cheese, w/w tortilla, 1/2 grapefruit

Snack: Hummus and carrots

Dinner: Pasta with veggies and chicken sausage

Snack: ff Greek yogurt with strawberries.

The Training Begins Here!

Putting off any triathlon races for the past 2 years has been hard.  This is the year to kick it back into gear.  Although I'm not planning anything longer than a few sprints this year I'm mentally preparing for a much longer tougher race.  Taking my body from fair or moderate shape to excellent shape in 12 weeks could prove to be more of a challenge than I thought.  My baseline training should be complete by now (ie. 3 mile run, 30 mins on a bike, and 15 min pool time).  As you might guess my butt hasn't touched the saddle of a bike yet (could be a few more weeks), my legs are still struggling through a 30 min run with varied walk times and I have yet to meet the acquaintance of the pool. 

The plan:  Next week begins my first real training week so I'll start from where I am and take it slow realizing my first race may very likely not be my best time. 

My workout today: 
Got back into my Restore the Core DVD  (see if you can find them on ebay or online...great for getting your core on the right track) 

Followed by a 30 min run:  2 min run, 1 min walk (twice), 3 min run, 1 min walk (twice), 4 min run, 1 min walk (twice), run out the last 6 mins. 

My Meals today:
Breakfast: Smoothie (in a hurry...great option...see recipe below)
Snack:  Seriously...I can hardly remember to put my breast pads in before leaving the house, I'll remember tomorrow.
Lunch: Spoons (w/w flatbread salmon sandwich with greens and cup of butternut squash soup non dairy, vegetarian.
Snack:  Pretzel Crisps with cottage cheese
Dinner: Stuffed Red Peppers (black beans, corn, onion, brown rice and a little 2% cheese)
Snack: Green tea with soy milk, rice cake.

Smoothie Recipe:
scoop of f/f cottage cheese   
scoop of f/f greek yogurt (plain)
1 tbsp flaxseed (meal or seed)
1 tsp peanut butter
1 tbsp aguave syrup
frozen berries
(The bullet blender is awesome for smoothies!)

Sore is Good

There is a fear among women in particular that to be sore is to have over done it.  Let's be sure and qualify sore here.  When you're so sore that you have to bounce down the stairs on your butt...that's too sore.  If when you walk up the stairs your legs gently remind your of a workout...That's Perfect.

When our muscles are sore it simply means that during our workout we pushed it enough that tiny tears were created in the muscle belly structure.  By doing that our body has to repair such tears.  Guess what it uses......Calories and nutrients from our diet!  Yes, that's right...your actually increasing your metabolism by doing this. 

How do we make those constant changes in our muscles?  Weight and strength training is the number 1 best way to increase that metabolism on a regular basis.  These programs are best managed by a professional.  Taking a class or getting a personal trainer to get you started is the best way to do it safely without any experience.  Variety is the key.  Variety in weight, variety in range of the motion, variety in  the number of reps, and variety in equipment used will all get the job done.  

One last reminder....Working out is not a license to eat whatever you want.  You want results...You have to watch what you eat and realize your body needs fuel not high fat junk filled with sugar and salt. 

Looking for variety?  Of course this is where I raise my hand and say come to one of my classes!  They are all listed on our website http://www.fit2bmoms.net/  or www.meetup.com/ncfit2bmoms

If your at a stand still and your not losing the weight you want to lose....embrace the variety. 

My Meals Today:
Breakfast: 1 egg, 2 whites (added a little Parmesan cheese), 1 cup Special K cereal (not my fav.)
Snack: nuts and a banana
Lunch: Left over Chinese (white meat chicken and veggies...no rice)
Snack: Cottage Cheese and about 12 Pretzel Crisps
Dinner: No idea...Mamas not cookin' tonight.  Also not going for BBQ
Snack: Air popped popcorn,

LOT'S OF WATER TODAY....CHINESE FOOD IS SALTY!

My Workout Today:
Treadmill workout:  2 min run, 1 min walk, increasing to 3 min run 1 min walk.  (30 minutes) Finishing with abs and Gluts.

Watch for the best glut workout ever this weekend!