For the love of food

I love food. I have always loved food. For as long as I can remember, holidays and family gatherings have largely focused around food. We eat when we celebrate, when we're happy, sad, whatever. I can remember being upset as a child and being comforted by things like ice cream. Eventually that catches up with you in one way or another.

Luckily for me, I realized the detriment of my ways fairly early on. In high school I started looking at what I was eating and really considered whether or not I really needed those french fries. Granted, I haven't been that successful with my controlled eating until lately. I would go through phases of really clean eating, where it would be chicken breasts and vegetables nearly all the time. But then I'd "fall off the wagon," as they say, and resume a not-so-perfect diet. I've never been a really bad eater, though, fortunately.

Something has shifted recently, however, and I've finally start to see some pretty serious changes in the way I look. It might be easy for me to say this now seeing as the body I have inhabited as of late has spent more time pregnant than not in the last 2 and 1/2 years (luckily NOT as of now!). But, those 50-plus pounds of baby weight are gone. I can finally tell my husband I weight less--dramatically less--than him once again. Even my pre-pregnancy #1 clothes are getting loose. And my two-pack abs are making another appearance (I've never seen more than a barely visible 2).

So... how do you make the simple changes in your diet to really make progress? I've read a lot about fitness and nutrition, have tried different "diets" and methods, but have only had success when my plan has been simple and sustainable for my everyday life. This is what I do.

1). Eat often. For me, this is an absolute must, just ask my husband. I get extremely irritable if I do not eat regularly. Headaches, light-headedness, lack of energy--it all sucks and it all can be avoided simply by eating. I try to eat every 2 to 3 hours. I know this sounds like a lot, but it's not like I'm sitting down to a steak dinner that often... I wish. I eat small meals throughout the day to keep my blood sugar levels even and to keep my metabolism going. When you start to eat more regularly, your body looks for the fuel to burn and keeps on stoking your internal furnace.

2). Balance, balance, balance. You need to eat a balanced diet--and that's just my opinion. I've tried no-carb, low-carb, etc., etc. I just cannot do diets that completely eliminate entire food groups. It doesn't work for me, practically or personally. I love carbs. I could eat rice, potatoes and bread all day long, but I don't... not anymore at least. I try to keep my carbs under control and enjoy them early in the day, like pre- and post-workout when I know my metabolism is going to be running highest. And if I do eat carbs, I make them quality carbs. I try not to eat highly processed foods. I stick to whole grain brown rice, steel-cut oats and the like.

3). Don't fear the fat. When I first started to think about "eating healthy," I remember eliminating all things I deemed fatty. I quit eating cheese, red meat, pork and anything I felt was overly oily. Granted I lost weight, but after a while the losing stopped. You need to eat fats, good fats, to be healthy and lean. Just like protein and carbs, fats play an important part in the upkeep of your body. Healthy fats help keep your cholesterol in check, protect your heart and often improve your mood. Olive oil, avocados, nuts and seeds are just a few foods that contain "good" fats and should be included in a balanced diet.

4). Cut the sugar. Just cut it out, seriously. Most people either have a sweet tooth or look to the salty when it comes to cravings. I, unfortunately, go for both. But sugar can wreak havoc on your body. While it gives you a quick burst of energy, the aftermath of sugar consumption is usually not worth it. Your body responds to sugar by releasing insulin, and the insulin in turn converts the sugar to fat. Bad, right? And the body tends to respond the same way to artificial sweeteners. So, the easiest way to help yourself out is to try and limit the amount of sugar and fake sugar you eat. This has been a huge help to me.

5). Don't be afraid to cheat. But don't turn a cheat meal into a cheat day and a cheat day into a cheat week. Sometimes one of the rewards of eating clean is enjoying an occasional treat. For me, that means, perhaps, my favorite pizza from Pepe's or a piece of chocolate. Or both. I let myself have them when I know I've been on-target for several weeks. But just because I let myself eat pizza or chocolate doesn't mean that I'm going to eat like crap all day. That sort of thinking often creates a snowball effect. You think, "I'm going to have pizza for dinner so why not just eat pancakes and syrup for breakfast? If I ate pancakes and syrup for breakfast, why not eat a burger and fries for lunch?" Then things just get out of hand and you feel horrible about yourself and what you've done to your body. It's not worth throwing away weeks of discipline for one day of poor eating. Just don't do it. You'll thank yourself later.

6). Make swaps. There are things most people eat on a regular basis that, on second glance, may not seem like the healthiest, best option. One of the things I have revamped as of late is yogurt. I practically lived on no-fat, no-sugar yogurt for years. Then I switched to sugar-sweetened Greek yogurt when that became popular. Now the only kind of yogurt I buy is plain, non-fat Greek yogurt. Here's why: plain, non-fat Greek yogurt (the Kirkland signature brand) contains no fat, 7 grams of sugar, 25% of your daily calcium requirements and, the knockout punch, 24 grams of protein. I say booyah to Greek yogurt. Another switch I've made is to almond milk, which I use in smoothies in place of skim milk. I can't rave enough about it: 40 calories, 3.5 grams of fat, no sugar, 30% DV calcium, 25% DV Vitamin D and, the clincher, 50% DV Vitamin E--which works in the body as an antioxidant. Research what you eat and find out if there is a better version out there.

I'm not a nutrition expert. I'm not an expert on anything. What I know is what works for me. And just maybe that can work for you too.

The power of 2

Last Sunday I hit a milestone, broke a plateau, cleared a hurdle... insert whatever cliche you see fit. Regardless, I really did reach a new high in my "racing career." I use the word "career" loosely here. I've only been seriously running for three years. Out of that three years, I've spent 18 months pregnant and many other months recovering from being pregnant. I've run five 5ks--two while pregnant and unaware of it--and one 10k--on Mother's Day.

My husband and I ran a 5k on Sunday at our old high school. It was a small race and served as a fundraiser for the basketball team. I haven't been running much as of late, maybe 4 miles once a week, but have been doing a lot of spinning, jumping rope and weight lifting. I figured I'd go out and have a nice, easy jog on a beautiful, albeit windy, Sunday morning. Little did I know I was going to destroy any other race time I'd had before.

So I ran the race in 25:29. I know, not fast by any means, but fast for me. And I have no one to compare my race times to but my own. The last race I ran was the Fourth of July, and that one I finished in just over 28 minutes, in ridiculous heat and humidity, on a course with a ridiculous amount of hills. Sunday's course was similar, maybe one or two less hills, but what it lacked in "hilly-ness" it made up for in wind--if that makes any sense.

When I crossed the finish line on Sunday, I felt like I was going to puke--a feeling I haven't felt from running in a long time. I had a killer stitch in my side and my hands were shaking. And then I saw my husband, who had already crossed the finish line, smiling at me. He told me he wasn't looking for me because he figured I wouldn't finish for several more minutes. He was surprised and proud of me. And it was him who pushed me to that finish line, two and a half minutes sooner than I'd ever gotten there before.

Herein lies my point, which I know it takes me a while to make:  find someone better, faster, stronger than you and work out with them. It will make you better. Week in and week out for the last three years my husband has been my running partner, at least once a week. In the beginning, before the babies or the thought of babies, I was faster than him. I ran more, had more time to do it and was the one pushing him.

Flash forward three years and he's the one who's been running continuously, shaving his best 5k time down to under 20 minutes. When we run together I'm generally behind him, cursing him for going too fast, struggling to maintain his pace at times, putting on my sour face because my pride won't let me quit. And lately, he's been pushing 50 pounds worth of children in a double jogger, I task I have undertaken myself, but am glad to relinquish on our Saturday morning runs.

That fact of the matter is that, despite all the pain and discomfort of struggling to keep up with someone faster, I have gotten faster. Running is easier for me now, two children later, than it has ever been in my life.

Next time you think about how much you hate running or how much you don't like lifting weights, find someone better than you and just try to keep up with them. I don't mean go out and kill yourself going fast or going hard. Learn from them. Feed off their energy and their skill. Enjoy being in the company of someone who can teach you something about yourself that you will never learn on your own: just how good you can be.

Monday, Monday...

It's Monday and unlike most people I know, I really don't mind Mondays. Yeah, it means my husband is back to work after the weekend, but for me, there are no weekends. And Monday means a gym day for me, with the help of my mother-in-law of course, who so graciously watches my two girls so I can get a few hours away.

That being said, I have to make the most of the time I do have in the gym since it's really not as much time as I'd like it to be. I remember the days when I could go to the gym whenever I wanted and spend upwards of two hours there. I would leave feeling totally spend and go home and probably take a nap. Gone are those days.

So instead of plugging away for hours at the gym, I have to make the most of the time I do have there. With the exception of the two hour-long spinning classes I take during the week, here is what I do to get the most out of my workouts:

1). Superset, superset, superset. Nearly every exercise I perform at the gym is done in combination with another exercise, a superset, or two, called a tri-set. By putting two exercises together, you eliminate a rest period and tax your muscles longer. Long story short, you burn more calories and get more work done in less time. Yeah, supersets and tri-sets are harder, but you get the added benefit of an elevated heart rate and less time spent in the gym. Example: on chest and back day I'll do a superset of pull-ups and some sort of push-ups--yesterday it was plyo push-ups on the BOSU... OUCH!

2). Go ahead and jump! Rope that is. I warm-up with 5-10 minutes of jumping rope and not just an easy, breezy skip. I jump, single-leg jump, double jump and pretty much run the floor all while jumping rope. You can burn upwards of 100 calories in just 10 minutes of jumping rope depending on your size and intensity. I even throw in a minute or so of jumping rope in between sets of weights to keep the calorie burn up there--every second your heart is pumping harder counts! And even through a jump rope is inexpensive and easy to carry anywhere, that doesn't have to be your only means for a short burst of cardio. Try plyometric moves like jump squats, tuck jumps, mountain climbers or any other exercise you can find on Shaun T.'s INSANITY (available here:  beachbodycoach.com/jhaus33 and only if you can handle it!)

3). Save the conversation for the coffee shop. So it's nice to chat with friends at the gym or make new ones there, but sometimes people get carried away. I try to ignore people as often as possible when I'm working out. That may make me sound like a b****, but hey, I don't have time for idle chit-chat or to explain why I'm working out so hard. I'm not going to talk to you, and I'm working my a** of because I don't have a lot of time and I value what little time I do have in the gym. You start a conversation with someone and before you know it, bam--15 minutes are gone and you could have gotten through 3 supersets. Seems like a waste to me. So, if you're serious about getting your workouts in and want to make the most of the time you have, politely decline conversation with that strange dude by the leg press machine, turn on your iPod and put on your best stone-cold b**** face. Works for me every time.

4). Get some class. That's spinning class for me. I take two hour-long classes a week at the gym and in my last two classes I've burned over 800 calories in just an hour (according to my heart rate monitor). Who's to say the HRM is completely accurate, but it can't be that far off. Point is, taking a cardio class will whoop your bootie if you put in the work. The instructor plans everything for you so there's no thinking involved on your end. You just get on the bike and go. Well, it's not that easy. It's actually hard work, but if you do put in the work, the results will come. And you're not limited to just spinning. Try out whatever your gym has to offer. Odds are it's something you've never done before and wouldn't do on your own. Therefore, you're bound to burn more calories and maybe even have more fun, all usually in the space of one hour.

Moral of the story: take advantage of the time you have. Don't make the excuse, "I only have an hour." You can get so much done in an hour. You'd be surprised. Just get up and go. Don't let Monday get in your way.

Exercise Therapy

So... it's been a while. Life has gotten in the way. And with little feedback you tell yourself, "Why write?" Sometimes you write for yourself, just to have somewhere to put it, just so it's out there. So that's what I'll do.

I had an odd experience a few weeks ago during spinning class. It was during my now usual Sunday morning class. We were about 45 minutes into class. I was dripping in sweat... literally. It was blinding my eyes, leaving a salty taste in my mouth. Look up "hot mess" in the dictionary and you could have seen my picture at that point.

And then something funny happened. A song came on over the speakers, a recognizable beat followed by unmistakeable lyrics: Jay-Z and Alicia Keyes singing "Empire State of Mind." I listened to the words of a song I had heard a hundred times before, but this time something was different. I could feel my throat tightening. I squeezed my eyes shut to keep the tears from coming. No one would notice though, I was sweating too much, and we were all working too hard.

This particular Sunday happened to be the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 World Trade Center attack. And I'm not a very emotional person, but the irony of the situation that morning was just too much. Things were just too much the same that day.

Flashback 10 years to a different state, a different city and a building only several miles from Ground Zero. I'm a 19-year-old girl waking up on September 11, 2001, to beautiful blue skies and a full-day of classes, work and whatever else in the city that never sleeps. As it was on so many other days when I was at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus, I put on my running clothes and shoes, grabbed my Walkman (those were pre-iPod days) and headed for the school's tiny fitness center. It was sometime after 8 a.m., and I planned on putting in about 7 miles.

How far I went and how hard I worked are beyond me, but how my workout ended will never be forgotten. The world came crashing down around me and I listened to it all unfold on my old yellow Walkman. They say on days like these--9/11, the Kennedy assassination, Pearl Harbor--you never forget where you were. And for me, exercise will forever be linked to that sinking feeling of knowing the world as I knew had changed irrevocably.

I spent the rest of that day gathered around the TV with my roommates and friends, watching as normalcy diminished and our lives were filled, albeit temporarily, with despair and cautiousness, and then later, a new sense of hope and strength. We walked out on the street, the white smoke rising in the distance, people walking around in varying states of shock. It was incomprehensible.

I was far enough away from the immediate danger that day, but ask anyone and they will tell you they were in some way affected by what happened at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in a remote field in the middle of Pennsylvania.

And so, ten years later--almost to the exact moment of first impact--I found myself thinking of that old yellow Walkman, tasting the same sweat and gasping for the same air. I realized that beyond just making my body healthy, exercise had helped heal my soul.

There is so much that is unknown in the world, so much in life that we cannot control. To be able to put on your running shoes and hit the pavement, or clip into the cages and pump your legs through an hour-long spinning class is comforting. I can dig in and just let go of the weight on my shoulders. I can thank God for giving me another day to do this.

I can't change what happened that Tuesday morning 10 years ago. I can only do what I know how to do to get by.

Stepping up to the bar

One of my biggest fears as a young girl was... gulp... the physical fitness test in gym class. I dreaded that day nearly has much as the day when the school nurse would make us wear our bathing suits for the annual scoliosis screening. Who cared if I had curvature of the spin? I was not going to be seen in a swimsuit in front of my classmates. 

I was never really a sedentary child. I played soccer, softball and basketball, but it seemed I ate more junk than I burned. Thus, I was chubby as a teenager and didn't shed those extra pounds until late high school/early college. That being the case I was never able to pass the physical fitness test because I couldn't do a pull-up. 

It was those damned pull-ups that broke nearly every girl in my gym class--not like we ever practiced how to do a pull-up or were given the chance to build some strength to be able to do one. The day of the physical fitness test came and our gym teacher called out each of our names to meet our fate at the bar. It was pure embarrassment. 

Well, I finally conquered that embarrassment once again at the gym this morning. I stepped up to the pull-up handles, extended my arms upward, jumped, grabbed and pulled myself up, up, up. 3 times! And then I did my own end-zone dance on the gym floor... inside my head at least. 

The last time I could do a pull-up was right after I was married, three years and two babies ago. And that took a lot of hard work to accomplish. A round of P90X with its countless pull-ups crammed into 3 different workouts. Hours at the gym with my husband lovingly grasping my ankles and helping me eke out the last few inches to reach the top of the bar. Dieting and cardio to get my weight down because let's face it, it's easier to lift less weight. 

Ladies (if anyone is reading this), have you ever tried to do a pull-up? Using an assisted pull-up machine is a good start, but eventually you have to break away from that and just go for the bar. Find a friend and let them help you. Yeah, they're going to have to lift some of your weight for you, in the beginning at least. 

But over the course of several weeks or months, you'll be able to pull yourself up all on your own. And once you've gotten one down, two and three come much more easily. Before you know it, those horrible memories from gym class will be gone and you'll be kicking some a** in the gym. 

The point...? Do the hard stuff at the gym. Don't be afraid of what people will think or how you will look. You might look silly in the beginning--ask someone, a trainer or fellow gym-goer who looks like they know what they're doing. You might not be able to do too much--take baby steps at first. But over the course of time you will get stronger. And you will be doing your own end zone dance--real or imagined. And it feels great. 

Pushing beyond

So... as I finished my second round of Insanity a week ago, I began work on another goal I had set for myself after giving birth to my second daughter: to run a half-marathon before I turn 30. Well, 30 is fast approaching. November 19 of this year it will be here. I'm not worried about getting older; it's a fact of life and a welcome one considering the alternative. I'm just not good at setting goals for myself. With a "milestone" birthday approaching, I figured why not give myself that deadline to accomplish something.

I was kicking myself yesterday when I set out for a 7 mile run in 80-something degree heat and humidity. I'm not a fast runner and yesterday I was even slower than usual, given the fact that it felt like I was running through the seven circles of hell. It took only about 25-30 minutes to start telling myself to give up. My breathing was much more labored than usual, and my heart rate seemed to be out of control. Aside from my mind telling myself to quit, it seemed my body was sending the same message. But I kept on.

What is it within us that pushes us to keep going? Before you start something like a long run or a heavy weight-lifting session it's easy to tell yourself that you're going to accomplish this or that. But when you get in it and the pain starts, it seems like the smartest thing to do is quit.

But you don't. Why is that?

The change for me came after giving birth when I realized just what your body can do with pain. Prior to that pain had been a fear. What childbirth taught me, though, was that if you focus enough on the pain you can beat it. Don't be afraid of it. Embrace it. Look it right in the face and accept it. Know that your body can handle it and will handle it as long as you let it.

So... what do you do when the pain comes? How do you push yourself? Or do you...?

And the fat just keep getting fatter...

News flash:  "We," as a country, are getting fatter.

And surprisingly, this surprises me. I would have thought that over the last several years people would have smartened up. Reports (and common sense, if you have it) have consistently shown the dangers of being overweight or obese. Cancer, diabetes, heart disease.... death. And that's not to mention the cost of health care, prescription medication, etc., etc., etc.

I can't say that I've had any experience with being obese, nor any experience with cancer, diabetes, heart disease or death. What I would say, though, is that as a teenager I was overweight. And as a teenager I hated that feeling. I didn't like not being able to buy the clothes I wanted because they didn't fit me right. I didn't like pretending to have my period so I didn't have to put on a bathing suit during that one week in high school when we had to swim. I hated being uncomfortable in my own skin.

As I have gotten older I have realized that there's more to life than being able to put on a two-piece bathing suit and hop in the pool in front of a bunch of guys. Marrying my husband and having my children have made me realize there is more to health and fitness than just looking good.

Don't get me wrong, I want to look good. I want to look the best I can. I want to be able to put on my bikinis from before having my two daughters and to wear sleeveless shirts because my arms look jacked. But at the same time I want to be the best I can be. I want to be the best wife, the best mother, the best person I can be. And I can't be the best at anything if I'm obese, diabetic or dead.

That's what surprises me. Don't people realize that in order to live the best life possible, they have to take care of themselves? You might not like moving your fat butt, sometimes I don't, but you have to in order to keep your heart healthy. You might not like eating salads and fish and chicken and berries and so on, but you should if you want to stay lean.

There are so many things in life that we cannot control. But what we can control is what food goes into our bodies, how much exercise we get and whether or not we continue trending upward when it comes to obesity statistics.

The taste of food lasts only a few seconds. The pain of a workout lasts only the length of that workout, the soreness maybe a day or two longer. But life is forever. Take care of it now, because if you don't, you may not get another tomorrow.

Gym Don'ts

When it comes to working out, I am by no means an expert. I learned the basics when I became a personal trainer and Tae Bo fitness instructor, and continue to learn about exercise by reading and doing. I pride myself on knowing the basics and being able to execute them when I hit the gym floor.

That said, there are some things I see when I'm working out at the gym that just make me CRINGE! It doesn't take an expert to know when a person is just doing something plain wrong, and here is my attempt to help those people who really don't have a clue when it comes to pumping iron.

1). It's an elliptical machine, not a lounge chair. When you're on the elliptical, bike, treadmill, etc., you're there to get your sweat on, right? By resting not just your arms, but your entire upper body on the machine, you make the work easier. The point, for most people, is to work at a moderate intensity. Leaning on a machine means you're decreasing your intensity. Use the handrails to stabilize yourself, if you need to, but not to make the exercise effortless. Try sweating a little bit more and getting a little burn in those muscles. It will do you good.

2). Rest periods are not coffee breaks. You need to rest when you're working out. It gives your muscles a chance to replenish themselves with oxygen and prepare to break themselves down all over again on the next set. A rest can be just what you need to get your form right and push through the pain to achieve optimal results. The less rest you take, the more calories you're going to burn by keeping your heart rate elevated longer. There is no need to take five minutes in between sets while relaxing on a machine or bench, chatting with a fellow gym-goer. This borders on rude and would be a topic in post on gym manners--we'll leave it at that.

3). Biceps curls are not a full-body exercise. And you can insert any exercise into that statement because sometimes people just don't know what the mustard they are doing at the gym. When it comes to the curl, you're isolating your biceps by moving your arm only at the elbow joint. There should not be movement at the shoulder and your body should not be rocking back and forth. If you start involving other body parts in an isolation exercise, you defeat the purpose of the exercise and therefore make your efforts worthless. Well, maybe not worthless, but you're not going to see the results you could if you focusing the movement correctly.

4). It's called range of motion--learn it. Sounds complicated, I know. Not really. Range of motion refers to the direction and distance a joint can move between flexion and extension. Okay, maybe that still sounds complicated. Example: the range of motion for a biceps curl is the space the weight travels between your arm being fully extended (straight) and flexed (bent). In order to more fully work your muscles and get the greatest benefit of exercise, you should move your body parts through a full range of motion. And this goes for most weightlifting exercises. When you do a shoulder press, start with the weight at shoulder height and push it up until your arms are straight, but not locked. When you do a pull-up, pull from a straight-arm position at the bottom of the move. You'll full a greater burn during the exercise and eventually see better results.

5). Don't live and die by one workout routine. They say variety is the spice of life and yeah, this applies to working out, too. Your body generally starts to get used to a specific workout routine after about six weeks. What this means is that you won't see the same results you saw when you first got started with this particular routine. Try new things in your workouts. Use free weights instead of machines or run outside instead of on the treadmill. Insert a heavy weight/low rep workout into your repertoire--you'll feel the burn sooner and workout shorter... what could be better? However you choose to do it, keep your body guessing and the results will keep coming.

Like I said, I don't know everything when it comes to working out. No one does. We're all out there, doing our thing, getting our sweat on, and trying to build our best bodies. Don't undercut your efforts by performing an exercise wrong or not working out to your fullest potential. Educate yourself on the ways of the gym and you will reap the rewards.

Baby Steps

Let me begin by saying that the title of this blog has a double meaning--my younger daughter, who will be 10 months old on the 25th, has officially started walking. And soon enough she'll be running around with her older sister, who will be 2 in August. Life will now get more interesting.

But the real reason I write tonight is because of dinner. Tonight it was grilled chicken, steamed spinach and marinara sauce (homemade at least). It made me think about all the changes I've made in the last five weeks.

I've always been a relatively healthy eater and have always had a healthy appetite, as they say. So maybe healthy isn't quite the right word. At times I have had a downright obsession with food. I've gone from one extreme to the other, counting calories like my life depended on it to thinking as long as I worked out as hard as I could, I could eat whatever I want--so not true.

I remember I used to get mad if someone ate a bite off of my plate or, gasp, threatened to share a meal with me. I was so worried I wouldn't get enough of whatever it was I happened to be eating. I don't know why I felt this way, and I'm sure I'd get to the bottom of it if I sat long enough on someone's couch. But, alas, that's for another time.

Anyway... five weeks ago I really cleaned up my diet. Gone is the endless supply of Polly-O string cheeses--my go to snack any time of day (I would eat 2 or 3 at a time). No more fat-free Greek yogurt sweetened with sugar. So long homemade muffins, muffins that were made with whole wheat flour, egg whites and agave nectar. Bye bye bread.

I got rid of the stuff that over the years we've been conditioned to believe we need. Don't get me wrong, I love bread, cheese and chocolate just as much as the next gal. Though I will still enjoy both on occasion, they don't need to be a staple in my diet any more. I've added things like plain, nonfat Greek yogurt; nuts; berries; steel-cut oats; unsweetened, dried fruit; and a bunch of other whole foods, not to mention my nutritional saviour, Shakeology!

The point is, for me, that food is fuel. Yeah, it should taste good, but it shouldn't be the only thing that makes you feel good. Make small changes in your diet and see how you feel. Understand that what you put into your body affects what comes out of your body--your energy, performance, mood, etc. Reshape how you eat, and this will in turn reshape your body and your life.

Working (out) for the weekend

It's Friday afternoon and all quiet on the home front. The two babies are napping, for the time being, and I've just finished up workout #2 for the day--Insanity Max Interval Plyo (INSANE!!! as you might imagine)--and workout #8 for the week. Yeah, I might be crazy, but I decided to kick it into high gear and try to blast away this stubborn "baby" fat--I'm still blaming the baby... nearly 10 months later.

The real benefit of two workouts a day is to actually give me some "free" time on the weekends--the extra calorie burn is just an added bonus. I cram them in during the week so I can't make excuses for myself on the weekend. "I don't have time." "I'm too tired." Blah, blah, blah... I hate excuses.

Too many times we let excuses govern our actions. You can't join a gym because it's too expensive. You can't get outside and walk because it's too boring. You can't commit 30 minutes a day, three days a week because you just don't have time. Seriously, people? Are we all that busy?

I like to look to my husband as my role model when it comes to losing the excuses and just getting stuff done. His alarm goes off every weekday at 3:45 a.m. Granted, some mornings it continues to go off until 4:15. But for the most part, he is out of the house and at the gym by 4:15 a.m. After his workout he rides the train for 90 minutes, works his job, and  reverses. And he never complains about being tired or not having enough time to workout. He's a machine and that's one of the reasons I love him.

My point is, do what you can do, when you can do it. If you can spend 15 minutes in the morning jumping rope, you can burn 150 calories. If you can do that again after work, that's a total of 300 extra calories you burned for the day. And a jump rope costs about $10.

There is so much you can do with your body with very little equipment, very little time and no financial investment whatsoever. Walking, running, squats, lunges, burpees, push-ups, pull-ups, triceps dips and virtually any exercise where you move your body through the air at a high speed (i.e. plyometrics) is going to burn energy and energy=calories and calories=fat (at least the excess ones do).

So, the next time you tell yourself that you don't have time to workout and instead sit down at your computer for 15 minutes to "surf the net," remember that you could have burned 150 calories jumping rope... just like the good 'ole days in the school yard.

In the beginning...

So... this is where I start.

For as long as I can remember... wait, scratch that cliche. Since college, when I finally decided that I wanted to be a writer, I have known that I have wanted to write about health and fitness. I plugged away at local papers, local magazines, business magazines and even a television station. I've sent my stuff to anywhere I thought I might have a chance.

And now I'm 8 years removed from my collegiate days and 2 kids deep in the game. Life has been busy. Great, but at times I can barely catch my breath. Days seem to never end and sometimes the nights are endless--if that makes any sense at all.

And though I haven't quite (can you insert sarcasm into a blog?) made it big career-wise, we've all got to start somewhere. So this is it. I figure that no one is going to hand me a column in Oxygen or Muscle and Fitness Hers. Why not get at it now? Write what I want, when I want and try to help someone along the way.

I've spent years struggling with my weight and since giving birth finally feel strong, powerful and beautiful.  There's something really magical about pushing an 8 and 1/2 pound human being out of your body without the assistance of anyone or anything... twice.

I do have some fitness qualifications, including holding a personal training certification and a Tae Bo fitness instructor certification. But most of my "expertise" comes from trial and error and a desire to know just what my body and my mind can accomplish when they work together.