Tuesday's Tip

Exercise: It's not all or nothing. 

I have this friend who checks in with me every so often to do one of two things:

a. boast about how well she is doing with her weight loss

b. complain because she is a mess and will never lose any weight ever for her entire life and her world is falling apart and life isn't fair. It isn't, y'know, she looks at a cheeseburger and gets fat and it's just not right that other women can lose so much more easily than her and if she hadn't been sick last week or had that mysterious pain in her back, she would have gotten more done and why did her kids have to be so needy because it really took away from her workout time and life just is not fair and... it goes on and on and on... and on and on and on....

What she doesn't seem to realize, despite my repeated urging is that it doesn't have to be all or nothing. Living with a rigid diet and exercise routine is not something most people can maintain forever, and setting a daunting goal is only going to serve to frustrate you.  You have to walk before you can run and crawl before you can walk.

Each day, just stick something on your calendar that will get your blood pumping. It doesn't have to be hours upon hours spent at the gym; it can be as simple as playing basketball with your kids, taking a walk with a neighbor, or doing some weeding in your garden. Unintentional exercise counts just like intentional exercise does. It's all about movement and giving your body enough good for you food to keep you moving but not so much that you are overfull and sluggish. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Food is fuel for your body, not the enemy.

When you are ready, start adding in some intentional exercise. Head to the gym, even if you don't feel like it, and promise yourself  that you will complete 5 minutes of a workout. If after 5 minutes, you don't feel like continuing, go home. Almost without exception, once you have that first five minutes in, your body says "Hey, I can handle this, let's keep going..." 

This technique will work much better than starting off with a 6 days a week routine. And, if you can find something you love to do, you'll be even more apt to keep it up. And if when you get derailed, start over. Stop complaining about why you got off track. Just move forward.

I gotta be honest...

I need accountability. During the last 4 weeks, I have started marathon training. Along with that, I have stopped measuring my food and worrying about what I was putting in my body. I just *try* to be healthy. Sounds all good, right? Not so much.

Two different times in the past week-ish, I have gone waaaaaaaay overboard on my food consumption. I have gone from the table to the pantry, mindlessly eating granola bars, crackers and cheese, cereal, and a lot of other processed foods junk. Clearly, once I get started, I can't stop. Or maybe it's that I don't want to stop. Either way. I can feel myself slipping into the "I'm marathon training; I can eat whatever I want" mentality.

I am asking all of my readers to provide me with some accountability. I will do the same for you, if you'd like. I write a blog titled "Running for Cupcakes" where I am keeping a journal of my food while training as well treating myself to one cupcake a week, after a long run. I plan to review the bakery as well as the cupcake after each visit. If you look back on the pages, you'll notice 2 days where there is no food listed. That's because I was too embarrassed to showcase my pig-out. From this point on though, I promise to post the good, the bad and the ugly of it all. No more hiding. No more excuses.

Does anyone else food journal? Clearly, that is what works for me. Back to it....

Tuesday's Tip

Find your Inner Peppy Patty.

I am not feeling 100% today and my Tuesday's Tip brain is in a bit of a fog, so let's revisit one of my older blog posts today. The majority of my readers started following me after this post. Enjoy!

I am a Runner.

On my long run last weekend, a friend and I were chatting about how no matter how hard we work out or how many miles we run, we will never look like a runner. What we meant by that was to look like, well...this:

I mean, isn't that what a runner looks like?! Or is that just what society wants us to believe? I have a lot of running friends and readers so I asked for photos. In the photos, there are women ranging from Couch to 5K'ers to marathoners and even a few triathletes. Check them out:




I think this quote by John "The Penguin" Bingham sums it up best:

If you run, you are a runner. It doesn’t matter how fast or how far. It doesn’t matter if today is your first day or if you’ve been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run.

Tuesday's Tip

Eat more often.

Eat? More? Often? Yup, you read that right! I know it sounds silly and counterproductive as eating less typically equals weighing less. But, instead of the typical 3 square meals a day that you may remember from childhood, the new recommendation is 5-6 meals a day. Think of your body as a vehicle with a small tank. I think of my Ford Aspire from years ago but since you are probably much trendier than I am, you can be a Smartcar:

You need fuel to run your engine and since it's small, the tank needs to be replenished often. So, basically, eating smaller portions more often will keep your tank full of fuel all day long.

Eating every 2-3 hours will re-program your body into a more efficient machine.  It will speed up your metabolism and help you burn fat. When you eat often, your (very smart) body says “Hey, I’m going to be getting more in a couple hours so I’ll burn this as energy.” Going long periods of time without eating makes your body store fat, and your energy levels drop resulting in sugar cravings which in many cases result in an all out food fest.

If you feel like you a stuck right now, give eating more often a try and let me know how it works out for you. Thanks for reading.

A recipe I MUST share....

Italian Vegetable Bake
This vegetable baked dish dish is low-sodium and cholesterol-free vegetable and is prepared without any added fat.

• 1 can (28 oz.) whole tomatoes
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 1/2 lb. fresh green beans, sliced
• 1/2 lb. fresh okra, cut into 1/2" pieces or 3/4 cup (1/2 10 oz. pkg) frozen okra
• 3/4 cup finely chopped green pepper
• 2 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil, or 1 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
• 1-1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves, or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
• 3 medium (7" long) zucchini, cut into 1" cubes
• 1 medium eggplant, pared and, cut into 1" cubes
• 2 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese

1. Drain and coarsely chop tomatoes. Save liquid. Mix together tomatoes and reserved liquid, onion, green beans, okra, green pepper, lemon juice, and herbs. Cover and bake at 325 degrees F for 15 minutes.

2. Mix in zucchini and eggplant and continue baking, covered, 60-70 more minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir occasionally.

3. Sprinkle top with parmesan cheese just before serving.

Yield: 18 servings--Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Tuesday's Tip

Recovering from a "bad" weekend.

Do you ever have trouble getting back on track after a weekend of gluttony not so healthy eating and laziness lack of activity? Yeah, me too. But honestly, the answer to how to restart your healthy food and exercise routine is simple.

JUST. DO. IT.

Jump right back into your routine as though nothing happened. Don't fret about the past. You can't change it. What you CAN change is what you are doing RIGHT NOW. Sitting at computer? Get out and walk. No, seriously, do it! I know y'all enjoyed the Independence Day weekend... ;)