Lead a Fit and Healthy Life
Health/Nutrition
A Goal Attained
Sep 6th
I told myself that I would get in a bikini this summer and not be embarrassed and here I am – this past weekend in a BIKINI!
Stick with it — there is no way you will regret it.
Aug 26th
I have a friend at bootcamp who seems to get down on herself too much — I saw her slowing down today and I said ‘Come on, you can do it — if I can, you can’. She said no way — and it got me thinking, does she really think that I have something she doesn’t have? Well maybe I do- maybe it’s a stronger commitment or desire to do it, but physically I don’t. It really is a mental thing — how bad do you want it? How much is it worth to you?
I look at pictures of myself today and I look so different than the Stephy of 2 years ago. Different in a great way. I look happier, less bloated. My face was so puffy years ago and the truth is – I FEEL Happier, Better physically and mentally. I am a completely different person who surrounds myself with healthier people. And with all of the changes in me — my family has changed. My kids are aware and conscience of living a healthier lifestyle. They love that their Mom has muscles. Hannah says — Mom show me your after muscles — (when I flex). And Nate loves to ask me to show his friends and teachers my muscles.
Here’s a pic of me September 2009 – I love the Picasa photo program because it has a people id feature. I can view all the photos of me that are in the directory and I can see the the changes. Who is that person to the left? That was one full year into my bootcamp — so I was well on my way –but look at the difference in my face now.
Why I am talking about this? Because it reaffirms that continually recommitting to my goals for a healthy and fit life works. 1 year I saw changes, 2nd year – I see even more defined improvements — and we all know that exercise has long term benefits that extend beyond the things you can see. Don’t give up because if you stick with it — there is no way you will regret it.
Coffee Addiction: How to Naturally Kick the Habit
Aug 24th
I am not one to say cut out all caffeine. I believe moderation is the key to anything — so if you enjoy the one cup a day — I personally do not think that’s an issue but then again I am not a doctor. Some people say you have to cut it out completely — that it has a ton of health implications and most of them not good – so why bother. Well if you do find yourself being one of those that goes a bit overboard with coffee — and are looking for some suggestions on how to kick the habit — here’s some advice for you.
Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D.: Coffee Addiction: How to Naturally Kick the Habit.
How do you know you’re addicted?
Simple, when you try to stop, you get a pounding headache — that can’t be healthy.
The only way out is to cut it out! The good news is that you don’t have to go cold turkey. Here’s my prescription. Start by taking magnesium supplements. You’ve been losing magnesium for as long as you’ve been drinking coffee, so it’s time for payback. Magnesium citrate powder is a good form to begin with. You can also find magnesium glycinate and magnesium dimalate pills in health food stores or online. Unless you are extremely constipated, stay away from magnesium oxide because it’s only 4 percent absorbed so the other 96 percent can act like a strong laxative.
Tips to Feed Your Family Healthfully and Happily: A Flat Belly Diet Cook Review
Aug 20th
Some good ideas and recipes found in this article — All of us parents need recipes for dinner and meals to get us out of the rut –And why not make a back to school effort to make healthy but good meals a priority in your house –
5 Flat Belly Diet! Family Tips
1. We all need fat, but kids especially do. An incredible amount of brain development occurs in the first two years of life and good fats are essential for it!
2. Eat a MUFA at every meal. MUFAs aren’t just good for you and your brain, they help you feel full! The Flat Belly Diet! recommends eating one serving with each meal or snack.
3. Preggo? Make sure you’re eating plenty of nuts, avocados and dark chocolate for the bambino. And remember, pregnancy isn’t the time to diet!
4. Be a role model. Did you know that kids tend to like the same kinds of foods and take in roughly the same number of fruits and veggies as their parents? Someone is watching…and mimicking you…so take note!
5. Encourage slow eating at the dinner table. Some students only get 20 minutes to eat lunch at school (that was my public school experience unfortunately!), so your kids may be trained to scarf fast and furious. Eat together at the table as a family and remind them that at home, they have the time to slow down and enjoy.
Too Fat For 15 Documentary
Aug 13th
Have you seen this documentary Too Fat for 15? Some friends at lunch today were telling me they watched the first episode and how disturbing it was to see these kids struggle. It follows kids at a weight loss boarding school — so they get educated in proper health habits while they are getting their traditional education. Complete immersion. As this article says: these kids are so brave to let cameras follow them as they struggle to live their lives and learn about balance. It’s a hard battle to grow up in general and then add the extra challenge of being overweight in a weight/looks conscience world…I am going to check it out.
The much-hyped Too Fat for 15: Fighting Back debuts tonight, August 9, 2010, at 8/7 p.m. CT on the Style Network. This comes at a time when new research shows children as young as 7 years old are showing signs of puberty, a result of the staggering increases in childhood obesity.
At first glance, the image chosen to represent the new 8-part docu-series Too Fat For 15 bears a shocking resemblance to ABC Family’s dramedy HUGE. It turns out, the shows are quite similar: Too Fat chronicles five obese teens enrolled at Wellspring Academy, a weight-loss boarding school in North Carolina. (Wellspring helps students continue their education while losing weight.) The star students — the youngest is 11; the heaviest, Tanisha a 17-year-old girl weighs 510 pounds and was in such need of help that she had to be driven to the cafeteria which at the top of a hill. She wound up losing 150 pounds in four months. The two of them shed a combined 500 pounds during filming. ‘
Viewers will watch the emotional ups and downs of these kids as they are pushed through grueling fitness routines, regular weigh-ins, and learn about food, from how to eat to why they eat. The kids’ parents are also involved, with the show helping them explore their own issues with food and the role they’ve played in their children’s pain.
I give these kids all the credit in the world for allowing cameras to document their experiences. Weight Watchers doesn’t even make you weigh in in front of your fellow members to help protect privacy, and yet these teenagers are putting it all out there for the whole world to see. Kids can be incredibly cruel, and being an overweight teenager is probably one of the worst things in the world in terms of getting teased and ostracized. But 14-year-old Scotty, who starts the show at 366 pounds after being told by doctors that he could die if he fails to lose weight, and 17-year-old Tanisha ultimately prove their haters wrong.
Obesity may be linked to lower sperm count
Aug 11th
Obesity is the latest health woe being blamed for low sperm counts among men of child-rearing age,
Body Fat: A Threat To Future Babies?
Maybe, at least according to a study on 2,157 young men published in this month’s Fertility and Sterility.
Men with higher body mass indexes also had lower sperm counts, although still within the normal range. And BMI doesn’t necessarily offer an accurate indicator of body fat levels — although previous studies have already found a link between men’s body fat distribution and poor semen quality.
Focus on losing the last few pounds
Aug 10th
It was a hot and sweaty workout – but I felt good and finished in the 30 min time limit. My upper body is sore from yesterday’s workout – a good sore! I felt really good about today’s workout. It was hard and challenging but it was great. I feel good and was in a great mood.
After talking with Kimmy during my run on Saturday – I decided to get focused on losing the last few lbs I want to lose and that means really being aware of what I am eating and eliminating my usual night-time, post dinner dessert. It is usually a Skinny Cow ice cream cone. I love ice cream and this satisfied my craving while keeping the calories low. Kimmy is right though – if I really want to lose the rest – I need to be on lockdown and eliminate those extras. It’s a matter of how much I want it.
I am tracking it on livestrong.com – My Plate so that I can be more aware of what I am eating. As Kimmy said – there is a reason they call the last few lbs the stubborn ones!
warmup:
side shuffles
pushups
checkpoints
jump skips
core x2
Partner dynamax ball 14lb ball twists
Side toss
25 high five push-ups
workout
800,400,200,100m run
15,12,9,6,3
SDHP 65lb
25lb db split jerks (each side)
woodchucks (20)
Sandbag dead lifts (45lb) x2
Celiacs Disease
Aug 6th
Last weekend, we headed to Maryland to visit Scott’s cousin Stacy and her family. His Aunt and Uncle were in town from California to celebrate Stacy’s daughter, Sophie’s 2nd birthday. It’s nice to spend time with family – the kids love it. It’s too bad we don’t live near more family.
Stacy has Celiac Disease and it looks like Sophie does too.
Celiac disease is a digestive condition triggered by consumption of the protein gluten, which is found in bread, pasta, cookies, pizza crust and many other foods containing wheat, barley or rye. If you have celiac disease and eat foods containing gluten, an immune reaction occurs in your small intestine, causing damage to the surface of your small intestine and an inability to absorb certain nutrients
They have to use different plates, cooking pans and other stuff just so nothing with gluten can mix with what they are eating. Gluten free living is so much better than being sick all the time. For the birthday party – they had a regular cake and a gluten free one – which was not half bad!
What I am finding out is there are a ton of people out there that either have Celiac Disease or an allergy or sensitivity to gluten. So I came across this website – Gluten-Free Girl that has some good information and recipes about living a Gluten free life!
Food is the path to healing in celiac. There is no pill we can take, no surgery we can endure, and in fact, no cure other than living on an entirely gluten-free diet. Some find that distressing. I find it a blessing.
Weight Loss Finding: Cash Incentives Fail to Help Some Lose Pounds
Aug 6th
(Aug. 6) — Americans have never been fatter. Here’s one reason it will be hard to turn that around: You can’t even pay people to shed weight.
Out this month in the journal Applied Economics Letters is new research by Nicholas Burger and John Lynham. The study’s conclusion is that even when people bet they’ll lose weight — sometimes putting down big money — they still can’t take off the pounds. A full 80 percent of overweight bettors lost their wagers. “Humans are impatient,” Lynham, an economics professor at the University of Hawaii, told AOL News. “And we have impulses that go against our long-term best interests — even when those interests include money.”
via Weight Loss Finding: Cash Incentives Fail to Help Some Lose Pounds.
