Boom-Diggity-Boom

Wassup?

While working (yes, working) on a project at work, I came across this blog/something-or-other that I think is pretty awesome . . . however, please beware, if you are sensitive to swears, the title of this link begins with a naughty word.

That said, CHECK IT OUT! --->  human bodies are AMAZING

P.S. This week is going well for exercise . . . Mon run, Tues yoga, Weds took dogs on a snow-hike in field/woods area, today led/did fat burner circuit at TWC.  However. . .my FEET and HIPS hurrrrrrt! Uggggh.

Doggies playin' in da snowy woods!

Keep on keepin' on.  Need some fun, motivating tunes?  Check out Escala - saWEET!

Even Babies Need to be Active!

If this doesn't make you wanna move to the beat, I don't know what will :)
Evian Babies


Yes, even the little munchkins need to be active every day!  Especially the little ones -- what they do as youngsters influences their activity levels as adults!  (I didn't say that it DETERMINES what they do as adults...)

As for me and my accountability for exercise, I'm doin' alright this week!  Led 5:30am "Fat Burner" workout for Total Wellness Coaching yesterday morning - its a circuit class. . .that luckily I get to do with the participants!  I also led yoga yesterday as a sub, but I didn't get to partake :-( Took the dogs on a nice 2-mile walk in the afternoon with my roomy.  Today, I led Fitness Fusion for TWC *which I also get to participate in!* - good stuff, friends!  Group exercise can be really motivating.  Just getting their because other people are expecting you to show up get you moving, at the very least :-)

Tomorrow, I am *going* to yoga! and if I can get my be-hind outta bed, I want to go to the Cardio Scuplt class that starts before yoga - they often use the big, weighted hula hoops - I want to try it out and see if I like it because my mid-section could use some whittling!

Get outside, get some fresh air, and move your body this weekend!

no title because my brain won't come up with one

Hidey-Ho! Thanks for swingin' by to read my blog!  For the loyal 3 fans that read when I post regularly, my apologies for being so absent lately!  I have honestly been wrapped up in my new jobS and reading and prepping for work and working out! 

As for the New Year, New Ideas post (followed by Beets and Avocados) - those ideas are still on track!  Just on hold, for right now.  The beets, as a matter of fact, are in the veggie drawer in my fridge and I have a recipe picked out . . . just haven't made it yet! 

Perhaps more importantly, I haven't been writing to hold myself accountable for exercise!  I have been working out daily (with perhaps one lazy day) for the last two weeks!!!!  My body feels stronger and more flexible and I am sleeping so soundly.  *(Sleeping has been amazing since I moved back to Minnesota . . . my DIStress level has been nearly non-existent and my mind and body have felt very peaceful.)  Back to exercise, I've been able to attend one or two group exercise classes per week, leading an exercise class once per week in which I partake (soon to be two), walk dogs daily (anywhere from 10-40 minutes) and yesterday, I did yoga in my living room before work!  I've been more mindful about why I am exercising and how my body feels both before and after activit[ies].  My 'plan' and hope is that if I am more intrinsically motivated to move than I am extrinsically motivated (because lets be real, external motivators will never be nonexistent!), I will remember to be mindful, patient, and persistent in how/how often/when I exercise.

Of course, I have goals of completing another sprint triathlon, completing a half-marathon, and participating in a Tough Mudder and a Warrior Dash, I know my body and mind - if I try to do too much to quickly, my body reacts with pain and my mind becomes discouraged when I miss workouts or "don't feel" like exercise. 

As I am writing, my words don't seem to me like they flow - like I am forcing this post.  I'm not!  But I wanted to get back into writing more regularly . . . both to work on my writing, chronicle my thoughts, hold myself accountable for exercise, & provide some motivation and reality for my clients and readers -- all of those things.  I hope :)

Until next time (hopefully within a week!) - Be Well !!! :-)

Stress Affects/Effects

Heeeey! :)


Welcome back to the reading of my writing of my narcissistic all-knowing and definitely all-telling (because if I KNOW it all, why wouldn't I TELL it all, too?  Sharing is caring, right?!)  Thanks to my loyal readers that stalk check in somewhat regularly to see if I have any interesting words of wisdom to pass along :)

Today, I am sitting at the library, ostensibly working, and needing to be working on a literature review OR an evaluation proposal OR studying for a finance exam >:-O Rawr.  I have been drooling over Canyon Ranch for the last 30 minutes (not to mention applying to two more jobs with them) and need NEED need to focus on my homework.  So, what do I do?  Check my email, of course!  And I find that my goodie Stacy has sent me a neat link to a Mindfulness Center website and a link to an article that I will post here --> Treating Depression with Prescription to Exercise <-- :) :)  Which prompted me to open my blog and get to saying, "HEY! Guess what?  I would prefer not to be sitting at the computer right now but I am and I'd rather be sharing exciting stuff with YOU than trying to regurgitate other people's research into another paper!" 

I've had the next link for quite a while just waiting for the right 'post' to set it free into the world of blog-readers. . .and today is the day . . . I'm not sure if it is because I complain often about my growing belly size (aka 'food baby') or if it is because of all of the recent chatter about the holidays+food+impending-new-years-resolutions-to-eat-healthier-and-exercise-more.  Either way, the next little piece is from Dr. Oz: A little info about how stress[ors] physiologically affect the body and literally have a role in weight gain - not just a foo-foo, willy-nilly, you-just-want-an-excuse-to-eat-more-so-you-say-you-are-stressed-so-you-stress-eat ~ no, no!  This is real, folks!  And I do NOT say this or share this because I think any of us need another lame excuse for our ridiculous reliance on food and quick-weight-loss solutions.  I say this because it is real, and stress has *REAL*HORMONAL*PHYSIOLOGICAL*MANIFESTATION* within the body!!  Check it out.  And-you don't need to buy any of the products that the website is advertising.  But check out 'cortisol' and 'stress' and how they are associated.  Pretty interesting. 
Next time you are feeling stressed and want to eat a big bowl of ice cream, maybe going for a walk or doing some meditative breathing is more likely what your body needs. . . :)

Have a wonderful weekend!  Turn on some tunes while you clean house or rake your neighbors leaves or take your dog to the dog park and walk around while your doggy plays!  Find new ways to move :)



http://alwayssick.com/2011/02/19/the-dr-oz-belly-fat-cure-how-stress-and-cortisol-affect-belly-size/

Walking Gators

Eeeeeep!

I haven't written in sooooooooo long!!  Don't think I haven't been moving - that would not be accurate!  I have just had a lot of homework and don't feel like sitting at a computer any more than necessary!

Have to give a shout-out today to Walking Gators and Living Well <--link to LW blog!

Annnnd look at this!  http://news.ufl.edu/snapshots/2011/10/06/  Cool beans!

Nicole Burow, a graduate student in health education and behavior from Minnesota, hands out T-shirts at the Reitz Student Union Colonnade to people who registered for the Walking Gators program on Thursday. Walking Gators was created in January 2008 by the Healthy Gators Coalition to help faculty, staff and students de-stress and exercise during the workday and during their free time.

Since last posting, I've done some hard workouts (thanks to a friend and future CPT with PTAGlobal.), some longer walks with the dog, and some swimming!

Have to go, now, though - study time.

Until next blog, KEEP MOVING! :)

FRUSTRATED, much?!

DANGIT!

You have no idea that I actually had those little symbol thingies %*&!#$ in the "post title", erased, re-wrote them, deleted, and re-re-wrote them.  I think about dumb stuff like that a lot.  Too much.  And then they didn't even work! %*&!#$!!!!!!!

Today came after a really strange and crappy yesterday.  And don't mock me by saying that today always comes after yesterday, or yesterday wouldn't be yesterday.  I KNOW.  I'm having ISSUES!  Yesterday was another crapshoot to get out of bed and get going in the morning, followed by not just one but two attempts at my life by individuals on 2-wheeled vehicles, a mess-up at the Stadium for football tickets, a reprimand from my immediate supervisor for something that was *none of my concern*, felt too cruddy to visit with a friend in the evening, and ended up being awake until 3:30am.  3:30!!  Just sitting at the computer, typing letters to my health insurance company and the President of the United States.  No big deal.  Oh, and watching The Tudors on Netflix.  Crazy, delusional pseudo-insomnia.

TODAY.  Started off a bit better than yesterday, although sleeping in meant a) missing morning workout and b) not really getting extra sleep because I stayed up all damn night.  But, I woke up and got to work and it was okay.  Came home and had a delicious salad (mixed greens, cauliflower, avacado, sunflower seeds, garbonzo beans *yummy*, and of course, dressing--I've been using olive oil + vinegar  Newman's Own.)  *Oh, by the way, I ate McDonalds yesterday.  Embarrassing.  I wanted it and kept thinking about it and got it.  And felt SUPER guilty after.* BACK TO TODAY quit being so distractable!  I decided today to try on the dress that I will be wearing for my brother and sister-in-law(to be)'s wedding in October.  I had this overwhelming craving for chicken and fries.  And they weren't even very good.  Stupid.  See?  Even health educators and personal trainers succomb to pressures and lack will-power!  THE DRESS.  Tangent, much?  While talking to my mom on the phone, I wieldly maneuvered myself into the dress and started attempting to zi...iipp...fat gal in a dress-too-smaaaaalll >>Tommy Boy shoutout<<.  Dangit!  Okay.  So, at this point, I am laughing and swearing and wanting a cheeseburger and wanting to go for a run all at the same time.  Do I try some diet modification and continue increasing my workout routine?  (Yes).  Do I want to? (Sort of).  Maybe I can go back in and get a dress in a size bigger?  (Yes, please!)  Problem with size bigger is that my mental health will suffer.  Win with size bigger is that I don't need to stress about getting enough exercise and not indulging in fun foods.  Problem with size bigger is needing to go to the store (hassle) and see if they have a bigger size (embarrassing).  Win with size bigger - well, maybe just a neutral - is that the dress I have is a size "smaller" than I 'was', anyway, because it's an A-line, so it's really 'okay' to get a size bigger (riight).  Problem with size bigger is that I will have to figure out a way to keep the top from falling off my boobless chest.  Hmm.

So.  After taking off the dress, hollering a couple of explicits, and laughing, I put on my socks and shoes, rounded up the dog and roommate, and we went for a 45 minute walk.  BTN (better than nothing).  My hips really started to hurt around the 25-30 minute mark, but we weren't going fast, so we kept the pace.  *Mom suggested that I try Watkins Linimax for the pain that I have.  I think I'm going to give it a try.  More on supplements another time - I gotta get this posted "today" (I know - obsess, much?!)

Meanwhile, this evening, I skyped with my sis.  We laughed, grumbled, and commiserated.  I'm not sure what I am going to do about the dress, at this point.  I do know that I need to get my behind to bed and I need to keep moving.  KEEP MOVING!  Couple of really good thoughts from the sis: "Remember, the pain [I have] does not necessarily mean that something is wrong (ie. broken); movement and low impact activity is good," and, "What are you going to do to remedy this [binge eating/crummy food sneaking into diet]?"

Good NIGHT.  :)  Hope you rest well.  I hope I do, too.  Felt good to walk.  Why don't I feel the good effects of the walk PRIOR to walking, or at least some of them, to encourage me to walk?  Hmm.