Why French People Stay So Thin

When the topic of international food comes up, soemone never fails to ask how it can be that French people stay so thin when they eat a diet of croissants, crepes, cheese and wine? (Before we go too far, research is showing that obesity is slowing becoming an epidemic there as well--just not as fast or as widespread as in America.) But, having spent a week and a half in Paris last month, I can say that almost all Parisians are very thin--I remember thinking a few days into the trip that a very overweight person would almost stick out in that population. I've got a few theories as to why they keep their weight in check even amongst the deliciacies of French food (as seen here):

1. Portion control. You don't see people eating large amounts of food, even at dinner time. The meat portions were significantly smaller than ours. Even their McDonalds are healthier than ours: their "large" versions of fries, sodas and McFlurries would be America's small size. Free re-fills are unheard of anywhere. Unlimited soft drinks, neverending pasta bowls, endless shrimp and bottomless fries are phrases that you would never hear there--and really, do any of us NEED a second bowl of pasta at dinner or more fries than what originally came out? You might say that you need a few refills on your soda, but would you say the same if you had to pay for each one?

2. Leisurely eating. Studies show over and over that when you rush, you overeat. We've all heard that it takes around 20 minutes for the brain to signal to the stomach that you are full. French people are notorious for sitting around at dinner for 2-3 hours, and when you are in no rush and have nowhere to be, you have more time to savor each bite and get an earlier signal that you are full. A very common sight in Paris is someone leisurely eating at a sidewalk cafe while they read a book or catch up with a friend (granted, they light up a few cigarettes in there too, but that's besides the point here....).

3. All-natural ingredients. True, French people may eat a lot of breads, desserts, wine and rich add-ons like Nutella and Bearnaise sauce, but what you don't see in restaurants or sidewalk food stands is an abundance of processed food. Croissants are made out of the real stuff: eggs, flour, sugar, cocoa, milk, etc. Not diet this or fat-free that, and in general, no overdose on chemicals that you can't pronounce. If you order a pizza at a restaurant, it's fresh dough, baked with fresh meats, cheeses and vegetables--not something that's been pre-made and then loaded with preservatives to make its shelf-life longer.

What if we thought less about "diet" food how much we're "allowed" to eat in a day and thought more about eating real food and eating intuitively?

Food for Thought

If you think you can always trust the FDA to tell you how many calories you're consuming in some of your favorite prodcuts, think again. Here are a couple tid-bits I learned from Jillian Michaels' Maximize Your Life tour. This is not meant to bash any of these products, but rather to learn tricks that companies are legally allowed to use to better market their product....but negatively affect your waistline.

Take, "I Can't Belive it's Not Butter" spray for instance. (Personally, I love to use this product with corn-on-the-cob. Spray the butter with one hand while you spin the corn with the other. Genius.) It says zero calories, and why would you think to question that? Here's why you should: if a serving size of any food/drink has less than 1 calorie, they are allowed to round down on the nutrition label. One serving size of this butter spray is 1 1/4 spray, which has 0.9 calories. So, the FDA allows them to call it zero. Consider that if you spray your baked potato 10 times, that's basically 10 calories--pretty insignificant, but Jillian says the entire bottle has something like 1,200 calories! Much different than the "zero" on the label.

This one is pretty obvious, but it's something I hadn't really thought about until Jillian said it. We all know that nutrition labels list the ingredients in the order of highest amount. On any given granola bar nutrition label, you'll see that the main ingredients are things like oats, flour, etc. Seems like actual, real food, huh? But you might also see names like dextrose, fructose, sucralose or any other "-ose" word. New flash: these are all names for SUGAR. So, why do they include 4 different kinds of sugar in one product? Because if they only used one, it would be listed as the MAIN ingredient. But, when they use smaller amounts of different kinds of sugar, the main ingredients are still allowed to be listed as things like oats. Sneaky.... If granola bars are one of your staple foods, you're better off making them yourself. Try this homemade granola bar recipe.

To Go Organic or Not Go Organic?

That is the question. Often in the world of health, it's just assumed that organic is always better. It's become this belief that if the O-word is in any part of the food's name, it's automatically "cleaner," "more natural," and less likely to cause disease, obesity, you name it. You can't blame the people who assume this, because in a world of information, how does one decipher the truth unless you have formal education on the topic? Some people choose organic just for the trend. Others might want organic, but can't afford the price sticker. Still others (probably most) are just confused on the whole thing.

Here is my stance, as a fitness professional and also someone who works at a large agricultural company. I've learned that when used properly, many chemicals, pesticides and genetic modifications have NO adverse effect on the human body. The company I work at engages in very responsible care of their products and techniques and have employees whose sole job is to study and report any adverse effects. We all hear horror stories of what goes into non-organic food...things like human feces, garbage, any chemical under the sun. You might as well drink a can of bug spray, right? However, when you look at specific case studies of where negative impacts were found on human health, many times it's because the offending product was used in a way that it was never intended to be used, like in too large of an amount that obstructed the product's directions for use. Can you always be sure that the food you buy was grown properly? No. But I would tend to blame the parties responsible for growing the food, not the product or company of the product itself.

I am by no means an expert on crop growing or organics--I leave that to the people who make it their profession--but here is what I can say. After working at this company for 5 years now, I have never met more educated, innovative people who are passionate about science and health--not just today but also for the future. If there was any question as to whether or not what they are doing is harmful to anyone's health or welfare, they would not be doing it. Is it too hard to believe that in 2013 we are capable of making chemicals that don't harm your health? No!!

Taking a different angle, choosing whether or not to eat organically is fine for someone in a country such as America where we have that luxury. Consider the fact that without any form of chemical or modification for crops, an overwhelming percentage of the world's food supply would be gone. Wiped out. Again, for America, food supply is never an issue, but imagine how quickly conditions would deteriorate worldwide with attempts to only go organic.

The world needs both sides, organic and otherwise, to function at its best. My only request is to do your research. When you say you are researching going organic, are you also researching the other side? Not many people do, leaving them with a very "educated," one-sided viewpoint. If you do choose to buy organic, do you know why you are doing so? If your answer is simply because you truly prefer the taste, that's fine, as long as you have a reason! If you are buying organic foods because you are concerned about chemicals or poisons in your body, then are you also doing the same for any other products you put on your body? Shampoo, soap, makeup?

Read. Research. Repeat.

2013 Fitness Highlight Reel

After a 6 week stretch of no blogging, I'm back! For the sake of time, I'm going to highlight the biggest events of the past month and a half and answer the most FAQ's from my friends and co-workers...

What happened to Insanity? I tried my best, I really did. But as I've mentioned before, trying to tackle an Insanity workout 4-5 days per week, plus Mini training, plus that other thing called my JOB where I teach classes all week did not work out. After dealing with a lot of lower back pain, multiple colds, and a constant feeling of exhaustion, I had to give Insanity up completely. Chad, however, kept at it at least 4 days per week and saw great results. He didn't lose many pounds, but his percent body fat, overall appearance and stamina really improved for just a 60-day time span. I would like to incorporate one Insanity video per week into my workout schedule--on a day where I'm not already teaching spin class or doing a long run. You're always guaranteed to get a great, hardcore workout, and we all need someone like Shaun T telling us what to do every now and then for a good kick in the butt!

Did the weather during Mini training ever improve? Short answer: no. On our 11 mile run, starting at mile 2, we had a torrential downpour, thunder and lightning. Although the rain cleared off into occasional light sprinkles after that, we were drenched for the entire run. Like clothes sticking, shoes sloshing, WET. Surprisingly, bad weather aside, the 9, 10 and 11 mile runs were all great ones for me--comfortable pace, felt good on my body and the time always seemed to fly by each week.

Then, something called vacation happened. And not just any vacation, but an international trip to Paris where my total time off work (and exercise) spanned 12 days. I returned to work on April 24th: the night of our 12 mile run. It was a day where we had a late April cold snap, but at that point, we were all used to running in frigid weather, so the low 40's didn't feel so bad. I had only intended to try to do around 8 miles, but at 8 I still felt fine, so I just kept making deals with myself: get to 9, then you can have your gel pack as a treat, get to 10, then leave the group if you need to. Then, once I made it past 10, there was no turning back, because my only choice was to keep running to get back to our starting point where my car was. It wasn't pretty towards the end, and my legs felt like concrete, but I ran the whole 12.67 miles that night (the person who mapped our route underestimated the mileage a bit.....).

As luck would have it, for our very last training run before the Mini, the temp was in the 80's and humid. Even though it was just 3 miles for taper week, it was the only run where I actually had to stop to walk a couple times because I thought I was going to get sick. Just when you think you're well-trained, throw in one tiny element like weather you're not used to, and you feel like such a weakling!

So, how did the Mini go? The race went well--I felt good the whole time, I had 2 friends from work that I ran the race with, and I was happy with my finish time. It was my second-to-worst time ever for a half-marathon...2:06. But I'm not disappointed, because with the slower pace that I had been training at (9:30), the way my last few runs had gone, and my overall attitude this year of not really wanting to run the Mini in the first place, I knew there was no way I was going to break 2 hours. So, that automatically made it my worst time ever, since the only time I've been over 2 hours was my very first Mini when I finished in 2:15. But, not every year can be a PR. To finish and to run all 13.1 is an accomplishment any day! This is the headband I bought for the Mini, which pretty much sums up my feelings this year.



What is Jillian Michaels like in person? Yes, one of my life-long dreams to see Jillian Michaels was finally realized. Between that and going to Paris, I can now die happy. (I'm just slightly exaggerating.) She is pretty much the same on-stage speaking as she is on Biggest Loser. Not quite as mean, but not exactly someone you would call lovable. But the woman speaks the truth, and is pretty comical on-stage too. This was her Maximize Your Life tour, so I didn't really know what to expect, nor did I really care what she talked about, as long as I got to be in the same room as her. It turned out to be a 2.5 hour session where she spent the first half talking about all the nutrition and exercise basics (sort of like sitting in a college class for me) and then saving the second half for her motivational speech about getting out of ruts and obstacles to realize the life we all deserve. Most of what she said about nutrition dealt with not eating "poison." Instead of stressing what types of food groups to eat, it was about eating on a scale of 1-10 where ones are "superfoods" (blueberries, almonds, spinach, salmon, etc.) and tens are absolute junk like soda and donuts. So, the goal is eating more 1-5 foods, and avoiding eating chemicals in your meats, dairy and produce. Here are the lists that she left us with. I will be writing another post shortly about my stance on organic, but for now, here are Jillian's lists for produce shopping:

What Half-Marathon Training is Like in Indiana

We Hoosiers complain about it all the time...the weather. It's too cold (like wind chill of -20 this past January) or it's too hot (100+ degrees last summer). So I'm not going to bore everyone by complaining about the weather again. What I AM going to complain about is the fact that in the past 3 months, the snow and/or freezing temps always choose to arrive on Wednesday. It's like the curse of nasty-weather Wednesdays. Which is unfortunate for me and my co-workers, because that is the night of our Mini Marathon training. Let's take a look at my "weather journal" for the past 9 Wednesdays:

1/30: 3 mile run. Alternating between snow and rain, with wind so hard that when the snow hits your face, our participants described it as microdermabrasion.
2/6: 4 mile run. Just plain cold.
2/13: 5 mile run. Just plain cold.
2/20: 6 mile run. The day's high temp was in the 20's. SO incredibly cold that I could not feel my legs, fingers, lips or eyeballs. Until I got back inside and everything thawed out and BURNED.
2/27: 7 mile run. Warmer (30's! Woo!) but with a constant downpour of huge, heavy snowflakes that blew in our faces the entire time no matter if we were down-wind or up-wind. By far the most soaked I've ever been after a run.
3/6: 4 mile run. The day after a big snowfall, so although it was not falling during the run, we were running ON snow and ice patches.
3/13: 8 mile run. Just plain cold.
3/20: 9 mile run. Temp is currently 31--highest it's been all day--and windy. What I can only expect will be another miserably cold, numb run.

At this point, I would just be happy with high 40's or any temperature that eliminates the need for my hat, gloves and thermal fleece vest.

And, because it's Indiana, this date last year was 85 degrees...which I would not have wanted to run 9 miles in either....

How Much Exercise is Too Much?

Ok, I finally admit it. Agreeing to do Insanity every morning with Chad before work was a bad idea. I'm still mustering up as much energy as I can each day to exercise with him for the accountability and encouragement, but speaking for my own fitness and health, it's really NOT working out. To think that I could do Insanity 5x/week, combined with Mini-Marathon training 3x/week and Jillian Michaels' Hot Bod in a Box 1x/week (this month's boot camp series) on TOP of teaching my group fitness classes was really overestimating the strength of one human body.

I've started to live in a constant state of lower back and hip pain/tightness from the sudden increase in running and then all of the up/down, bending over cardio in Insanity (things like burpees, ski abs, hit the floor drills, etc). I've been suspect to IT band sydrome in the past with running, and now with the overload on my muscles, I can feel major issues coming on in my left hip. As for my low back, the only time it's comfortable is either when I'm stretching it or when I'm sitting in my car with the heated leather seats on full-blast. Every time I stand up from my office chair, I have to hobble around until my back loosens up enough to stand up straight and walk normally. My saving grace has become yoga, foam rolling and weekly visits with the guys at CHAMP Chiropractic and our massage therapist Beth Weaver.

For the "Recovery Week" in between months 1 and 2 of Insanity, I did just that--recovered by NOT doing any of the videos. (Because of course I still had my weekly runs and classes.) Shaun T's definition of recovery is not at ALL the same as mine. You still do many of the same cardio drills but at a "slower" pace. Chad successfully completed all 5 days of recovery, and we're now into the first week of month 2. After Mon-Tues of incredibly hard Insanity videos (oh yeah, they're 60 minutes now instead of 40), I took Wed-Thurs off and made Chad go it alone. We will get in the 5th workout tomorrow (Saturday) since it dawned on us that we both are free--so why get up early and work out Friday morning if we can on Saturday around 11?!

I have to realize I'm not an Olympic athlete in training. While I would like to say that I completed the entire series of Insantiy, it's not looking like a feasible or wise choice. Training for the Mini has to be one of my top priorities this year, since I'm leading a pace group each week. I can't get injured this early into the training when we're only up to 6 miles. I'm still struggling to figure out how many Insanity workouts per week I can realisitcally do, and also which days.

As fitness professionals, we always preach listening to your body. But when our own bodies tell us to stop or slow down, we aren't as compliant.

Insanity Week 3 Updates

We're on week three of Insanity now. My body has at least adjusted to the early mornings--I now wake up between 6:30-7 (instead of my usual 8:00), even on days where we don't have to do the workouts. We've been finding oursevles going to bed around 9:30pm and being more conscious of what we eat for dinner, because you have to think about how it's going to feel in your stomach when you're jumping around doing a plyo workout the next morning. Chad and I have both gotten colds/fevers since starting Insanity, but that's hard to say yet if it's just because flu season germs are still going around, or if it's because our bodies are so exhausted.

The workouts themselves don't get easier; I think your body just gets more used to them. You can always go faster or harder to match the speed they are going at on the video, so as your fitness level improves on each workout, you can work harder and still be just as tired as you were in week one. Each day we do a video, we'll say "THIS is the hardest one." But we've narrowed it down to the Plyometric Cardio Circuits as the hardest/worst one, with Pure Cardio as a close second!

I have to say, I'm not a fan of a lot of the body positions Shuan T has you in. For instance, when you're doing hamstring and hip flexor stretches, he has you keep your arms straight out away from your body while you bend down. The first few days of the workout, I started having low back pain, and once I stopped holding my arms out the whole time, it got better. When I got my YogaFit certification, that was one of the BIG no-no's: having someone bend down with their arms straight out. It's usually recommended that you would do what's called a "swan dive" and bring the arms out to the sides of your body as you lower down for less strain, (i.e. shortening the lever).

I'm also not a fan of his Cardio Abs workout for that same reason: uncomfortable body positions. By the end of the 10-minute ab workout, I'm feeling it in my tailbone and hips because he has you sit in "C shape" the entire time (see below). Again, that was something we were taught as group fitness instructors; you can't have someone in the same body position for more than just a couple minutes, otherwise you start feeling the workouts in places like bones/joints, not the intended muscles.

What I do really like about Shaun T's style is his constant focus on form and the core. If we're doing high knees, he keeps stressing using your abs to pull up. His constant reminders make you focus on the whole body, not just "getting ripped" like you might expect from his personality and appearance. I treat core the same way when I instruct people--for example, even if you're doing a shoulder press, your abs should be engaged so the spine stays straight and the back doesn't arch. Constant attention and engagement of the core practically eliminates the need for standard crunches and traditional ab workouts.

That's my "review" so far. Still have to see what the dreaded month 2 brings...

NIFS Mini Marathon Training

This year, my Mini-Marathon training is going to take a different twist. Instead of just training alone, I'm going to be one of the pace group leaders for the NIFS Mini-Marathon Training Program. They host these trainings on Wednesday nights starting Jan. 23, at two locations: downtown at NIFS and in Carmel at Cherry Tree Elementary. I will be at the Carmel location leading the 9 min/mile pace group.

There are still spots available, so if you think you might want some added help in improving your finish time, or just want the company for the long runs, sign up!! Not only does the registration fee cover your training runs, but it also includes a post-race celebration dinner at Maggiano's!

I have to admit--I'm  a little nervous about running in the snow, if it should come to that. I generally don't start my Mini training until March, and by that time, all the snow has cleared out. I'm a wimp about running in snow, so my biggest fear is slipping and falling on a patch of ice and making a fool of myself in front of my entire pace group! :/

Digging Deep in 2013

When I logged onto my blog today, I realized that my last post has been almost a month ago! My apologies! I'm sure you've all been as busy (or sick with the flu) as I have this holiday season.

So, now that the holidays are over, and sadly, so is the Colts' season, what's next? Well, I think I might be officially insane. It's full-swing back to work for January with all the New Year's resolutioners demanding high-intensity classes, then Mini Marathon training begins on Jan. 30th (more about that in a later post), and to top it off, I have decided to support my husband in his weight loss/health goals by completing the next 60 days of Insanity with him. Yep, insane.

So, my weekly workout schedule is now looking like this (and this is eliminating ALL of my normal workouts aside from the classes I have to teach for my job):

Monday: Morning Insanity workout; 1-hour spin class at lunch; 45-min yoga class at evening
Tuesday: Morning Insanity workout; 1-hour core/BOSU/stability ball class at lunch
Wednesday: Morning Insanity workout; 30-min yoga class at lunch; mini training long run at evening
Thursday: Morning Insanity workout; evening Boot Camp
Friday: Morning Insanity workout (finally...only 1 workout per day!!)
Saturday: Rest or short run or yoga
Sunday: Rest

(We elected not to do the Saturday workouts like the Insanity schedule dictates, in order to avoid burnout. So, although we are completing all 60 days of workouts, it will take us longer than the 9 weeks to finish.)

And, honestly, I should be squeezing in a couple more short runs. Because although I'm doing a crazy amount of exercise, when you don't train specifically for something like an endurance race, you don't have as much success. So, why did I do it at all, you're asking? First and foremost, I'm resolved to do anything and everything to support Chad in his 35-pound weight loss goal. Insanity was his idea (he completed 3/4 of the series a couple summers ago), and he made it clear that I didn't have to do them with him. But, I know how I would feel if I had to get up for an early morning workout while my spouse was still cuddled up in bed. I realize that even though Chad knows how healthy I am, I can't talk the talk at work and not walk the walk at home.

Secondly, I'm doing it out of pure curiosity. I've always made fun of people who get on bandwagons like P90X and Insanity, like they think it's going to be some miracle worker, when just regular exercise and diet could have helped them all along. And, I'll still feel that way. But at least now I'll know exactly what the workouts entail, have more educated answers when people ask about the program, and I'll see how the intensity stacks up to my own boot camps--new ideas! :)

Last night we took our "before" pictures (apparently if you send in B&A pics, you get a free Insanity t-shirt...wooo), we have the training schedule posted in our kitchen like some sort of tacky decor, and we knocked out the first workout this morning. I'll definitely keep posting about how the 60 days are going!

I have a feeling my coffee intake will be on the rise....

Unveiling Our New Home Gym!

When we moved into our house last summer, we had several ideas for this small, extra room off of our basement: possibly an office, possibly a music room for Chad's drums and guitars, or perhaps a small gym? A year later, we had still done nothing with the room, but we had a strong inkling that there was mold behind the wall, so at the bare minimum, we had to rip out the drywall and insulation and scrape/clean any mold we found. And boy, did we find mold:

 

After cleaning up the insulation and ridding the room of all mold, this is what it looked like. We left it with all the ceiling tiles and drywall still in the floor, unmotivated to do anything else with the room once we at least knew that it was mold-free.

Then, almost out of the blue, Chad decided to jump on my dream of having a home gym. While I had always wanted some workout equipemnt for the house, I knew the chances of me using it often would be slim--I exercise at work Mon-Fri and I like the save the weekends for runs/walks with Charlie. But, Chad realized that if the equipment was available at home, he would be more likely to use it and workout hard, plus we could cancel his membership at LA Fitness, saving that money. Once he had the idea, we moved quickly. In 2 hours, the room went from the above picture to this one, all cleaned and swept:

Then, thanks to a whole day of devoted work and equipment-purchasing by Chad and our friend Drew, this is what the room became less than 24 hours later!

All I had to do was add my finishing touches to the "ambience" of the room, and it was set! It turned into my perfect idea of creating a small, industrial-looking space into a gym with everything you need for a great workout!

The only con of a home gym is that my husband now thinks it's acceptable to workout in an undershirt, paint-stained shorts, and tall black socks..... :)

I'm Thankful I Work Out Because....

Here's another top 10 list for the holiday season: Reasons why I'm thankful I work out regularly. Sometimes it's good to take a step back and imagine what your life would be like without your exercise. What aches and pains would you have? What weaknesses? Would you feel more sluggish? Would you have problems sleeping well? Would you start to become more depressed and negative emotionally? Once you have the full picture of the "you" that doens't exercise, be thankful that you're NOT that person and that you've successfully made exercise a given part of your day and life!

I'm thankful I work out because...

10. There's no question about whether or not I can do push-ups on my toes.

9. I don't have to think twice about picking up a 45 pound box (I use that as an example, because I just did that today).

8. Even at my most "out of shape" moment, I know I could run a 5K at the drop of a hat....perhaps even a half-marathon (although my time certainly wouldn't be great).

7. Fast metabolism! Let's pray that sticks around beyond my 20's!

6. Things that once made me self-conscious about my body are now non-issues.

5. I've been able to make a great career out of it!

4. I rarely get sick. (In fact, I have to really stretch to find reasons to use my "sick days!")

3. The renewal and stress relief that tells me everything is going to be ok.

2. Accidents aside, I'm set to live a long, happy life with my husband and future children.

1. The positive, accomplished and empowered feelings I get after every single workout. It never gets old.

Happy Thanksgiving! I challenge you to make your own Top 10 list of why you're grateful for exercise!

My Top 5 Healthy Fall Recipes

As we're approaching Thanksgiving, and the fall season will soon be winding down, I wanted to post my list of my favorite healthy fall foods! I did this for summer as well, so I figured it was worth putting a fall list together too.Some of these are tried and true over the past few years; others are new for me this season (thanks Pinterest!).

1. Pumkin Pancakes. A lot of people assume that pancakes aren't healthy, but it really depends on what kind of toppings you use (i.e. a lot of butter and syrup will start tipping the scale to "unhealthy.") Pancakes themselves normally only have a little bit of brown sugar, and I try to sub in ingredients like skim milk, egg beaters and whole wheat flour when I have them available. Since I love both pumpkin and pancakes, it's no surprise these are on the list.

2. Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal. Again, surprised? This was a good change of pace for fall from my typical banana or blueberry oatmeal. I used pumpkin pie spice instead of dealing with all of the separate ingredients it calls for (cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.). It definitely made me excited to get out of bed and make breakfast!

3. Rachael Ray's Chili for Veg Heads. I've been making this recipe since college.The chili is so rich and tasty that half the people I make it for don't realize it has no meat! Aside from the broth/beer, everything that goes into it is either a vegetable or a bean. I mix in a little bit of light sour cream to complement the southwest flavor.

4. White Chicken Chili. This is what I've been eating for lunch this past week. It wins the award for the easiest recipe on this list--dump it all in a crockpot and come back 8 hours later. This doesn't include any cream-based soups in the ingredients, just cream cheese--and I use the light version.

5. Warm Black Bean and Corn Salsa. I make this often for parties or football games--definitely a favorite among my friends. Here's the recipe:

-2 cans black beans

-2 cans white corn

-1 medium jar of salsa

-1/2 packet of taco seasoning or just a hefty sprinkling of cumin

-1 to1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (optional--I used to always include cheese in the mix, but to be honest, it tastes the same to me either way, so lately, I leave the cheese out to save calories.)

Put everything in a crock-pot and heat on low for 3-4 hours. Serve with tortilla chips.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! I'm thankful for the people who take the time to read the little thoughts I have during the day!

Stop pinning and start DOING!

I admit: I'm a Pinterest addict like the rest of us. But seriously people....stop pinning and start DOING! Do your Pinterest boards look a little like this?

 

Well, don't be ashamed, because these were taken directly off of my own boards. A lot of people say it's ironic that we all pin workout ideas follwed immediately by a recipe for "oreo cookie dough stuffed brownies." I don't....because life is all about moderation. I workout 5-6 days per week, so on occassion, I will make a fantastic dessert and not feel shy about getting seconds.

HOWEVER:

If you are just pinning great workout ideas (or any ideas for that matter....food, crafts, fashion, etc.) and not doing them, it doesn't count! I think Pinterest gives us this reality world where if we've got it on our board, it basically counts as doing it. You can take pride in how many great things you've pinned...but until you've tried at least 25% of what you pin, you're fooling yourself. I can proudly say that out of my boards, I've tried 6 recipes, copied 5 fashion ideas and made 10 crafts--if you don't believe me, come to my house.

Pinterest should be more than just satisfying our visual fixation. I know...it takes time to do any of it. But if everyone spent as much time exercising as they do pinning workout ideas, motivational phrases and pictures of ripped bodies, we would be one healthy group of people. Food for thought.

A Fall of 5K's

I know....it's been awhile. October 13-14 marked the first weekend since July that I wasn't out of town or insanely busy. So, I'm finally finding time to do more enjoyable things...like blogging.

Not many new things have happened in my world of fitness; I ran two 5K's, which I'll talk about more below, but otherwise have been maintaining my normal workout routine. I was asked to be a pace group leader for NIFS' Mini-Marathon training this winter/spring, so at some point I will need to step up my runs before training kicks off. But for now, I'm just enjoying a season off from any kind of long-distance race. On several occassions, I almost signed up for one of the fall half-marathons, but I just had to be "ok" with sitting this one out. I need the mental break more than the physical one-- having free weekends now that aren't taken up with training feels so good. Fall is by FAR my favorite season anyway, so to be able to slow down, enjoy fall walks with Charlie, and try every pumpkin recipe out there has been so refreshing.

Most of you know that Corporate Challenge is my biggest work event of the year. As the team captain for Dow AgroSciences, I spend the entire months of August and September gearing up for it. This year we had a lot of fun, perfect weather and plenty of new people participating. Our team ranked 14 out of 22 in our division, so we definitely have room for improvement, but it's always a fun day nonetheless. This year, I ran the 5K along with one of my personal training clients. Here's a picture of the sun rising over IUPUI's Carroll Stadium that morning and then a shot of me, my co-worker and our intern after a day that went off without a hitch.

And now...my favorite 5K ever: Wine at the Line. This year for my birthday, I told my husband that the only thing I wanted was for him to train for this 5K and run it with me (it fell on October 6th, just two days after my birthday). If you know Chad, you know running is not his thing. Even if he was being chased, I think he would take his chance and stay and fight rather than run. While he did procrastinate a bit (he started an 8-week training program precisely 8 weeks prior to the race), he successfully completed the Couch to 5K program. This meant that even during our Florida vacation over Labor Day weekend, he was running. I couldn't believe it! He finished the race without stopping to walk at all (I captured his finish on video!), but what I was more excited about was seeing how proud he was of himself. Until his traning, he had never run further than the required mile in gym class--so with each run that he completed, 1.5 miles, 2 miles, 2.5 miles, he was so ecstatic and couldn't stop talking to me about all the details of his run after he got home each time. The fact that we could share a hobby for 8 weeks and that he would do something he hated only because it was important to me was more special than anything he could have bought for my birthday.

Here are some pictures from the race. It was by far the most scenic 5K I've ever run....beatiful farmland in Bargersville, IN. Plus you literally get wine and a commemorative wine glass after you cross the finish line.....score.

All for now!

Conclusion of 100 Push-Ups Challenge

Our 100 Push-Ups Challenge at work is DONE! No more having to do push-ups until fatigue (or rather, muscle failure) on Monday, Wednesday and Friday every week! So, on our final day where everyone showed up to see the results of our training, my grand total was....75 consecutive push-ups (then 25 modified to get to 100). 60-80 seemed to be about the range that most people were getting into. There were two men in class who did get to the full hundred...actually they both did 101, just for bragging rights, probably.

I knew going into today that it probably wasn't physically possible for me to get to 100. When I got to 75, I was almost tempted to try to get to 80, but I'm not sure I could have even done 76 without face-planting, so I stopped with a nice number of 75. On one hand, it's disappointing to not reach the end goal of a training program, but on the other hand, who would have thought that I could have done 75 consecutive push-ups in my life?!

My thoughts on the 100 Push-Ups training program are that it makes significant changes in your upper body strength and makes a regular set of push-ups seem like a total piece of cake. I still don't see how someone can be expected to get to 100 after only have gone up to 60 push-ups in the training program. That seemed to be the consensus of the class participants when I polled them today: that the program was great and hugely enhanced their upper body strength and push-up ability (the attendance in the class alone spoke to that), but they didn't see how in just 8 weeks of training they could be expected to pull off 100 push-ups. I would really be curious to see if someone kept repeating the last few weeks of the program, could they ultimately get to 100?

When I asked participants for their feedback on the program, another big comment I saw was that people were shocked that push-ups alone could tone their arms as much as they do and build up that much strength in a short time period. Yep, that's the beauty and benefit of body weight workouts--they're tough, they're multi-joint exercises, and they get the entire body involved. We know push-ups most obviously work the chest, triceps and shoulders, but whoever says they don't work everything from your back, to your core, to your legs, clearly hasn't done this program!

I recorded everyone's initial push-up test numbers and then everyone's final number today. Here's the breakdown:

Participant average of initial push-ups on 7/11/12: 33
Participant average of final push-ups on 8/29/12: 71

I would say that's a program success!!! Most people doubled their total number of push-ups...which, if you take into consideration that this was only in an 8 week time frame, that's incredible!!

On that note, I'm off to bed....we have to leave our house to catch our flight to Florida in 5 hours...yep 4am. Have a great Labor Day weekend everyone!

100 Push-up Challenge this week!!

(Thanks to my husband for his mad photoshop skills.)

Eight weeks ago, we kicked off the "100 Push-ups Challenge" class at work. Last Friday marked the end of the training program. We did 8 sets of push-ups that day, according to the training program by Steve Speirs: 20-20-22-22-18-18-18-60. Yep. We ended with SIXTY push-ups. After having already done 138. Surprisingly, we all made it through. I have to admit that on those last mega sets, I purposely start out going a little less far down to the floor--it's like with a long training run where you take off slower than normal in order to make it to the end. Trust me though, my muscles will still tell you that it felt like they were going all the way to the floor.

So, this Wednesday is where we all get together one last time to do the actual challenge. The last time we did one set of as many consecutive push-ups as we could was at the very beginning of the 8-week program. There's been no real test since then as to how far we can go for just one set of push-ups. We shall find out on Wednesday!

I said from the beginning that just by looking at the last week's training schedule, if you can make it through that, than surely you could do just one set of 100 push-ups. But I don't know if I feel any more prepared now. At the end of the day, it's all about improving the number that YOU started with. To go from 25 to 50 push-ups would be incredible for someone, so I'm super excited to see the difference between everyone's initial test and their push-ups on Wednesday!

My Top 10 Healthy Summer Recipes

As summer is winding down, here is a list of my top 10 favorite summer recipes--all mostly healthy too! After #1, they are in no particular order. If you have variations of these recipes, feel free to post those! (Click on the food names to be directed to the websites for those that have actual recipes.)

1. Carrot Cake Protein Pancakes These are seriously un-freakin-believable. I love both carrot cake, pancakes and cream cheese, so put it all together in this recipe and WOW! This is a flour-less recipe with plenty of healthy things packed in: oats, low-fat yogurt, whey protein and tons of carrots obviously. It's very low-fat and low-sugar. These are at my #1 spot for a reason!

2. Lemony Fusilli with Chicken, Zuchinni and Pine Nuts The combination of lemon, basil, zuchinni, pine nuts and a dash of crushed red pepper make a real flavor explosion! I use whole grain pasta.

3. Strawberry Salad with Strawberry-Tarragon Dressing I don't make my own salad dressings very often, but this one is super easy and it makes TONS. I didn't use the exact recipe found here, but it's close enough-- the variation I use is from the book "Forks Over Knives". They have pages of oil-free dressings that still taste very flavorful. You can add chicken or shrimp to this salad if you want some added protein. Blueberries, almonds or red onion make nice additions too.

4. Baked Sweet Potato Fries Who doesn't love these? This recipe is one of the best I've found. Make sure you follow her directions of spacing the sweet potato slices on the cookie sheet without touching, rather than in a pile, otherwise they don't crisp up. (My dog also loves these!)

5. Grilled Teriyaki Chicken and Pineapple This is one of my favorite dinner meals of all time. My husband is a master griller, so any of these recipes that involve grilling are his specialty. Just douse chicken breast and pineapple with your favorite teriyaki sauce and put on the grill. I also grill red bell peppers with it. Serve with brown rice, or even mix it all together with the rice.

6. Grilled Chicken and Zucchini. I didn't include a link, because there are many ways you could go with this one. Grill some chicken with your favorite sauce or seasonings. Some of my favorites are fat-free Italian dressing; apple cider vinegar with garlic and other seasonings; or Scotty's Brewhouse MoFo Mustard--just be careful with this one because it is a creamy sauce and heavier on the fat content. As for the zucchini, I toss it with parmesan cheese and I Can't Believe it's Not Butter spray, then put it on the grill. My favorite sides to include with this meal are bi-color corn-on-the-cob and watermelon.

7. Blackberry Oatmeal. This is a simple twist to my normal morning oatmeal. I always use plain oats with water and mix in 1 packet of Splenda rather than using packaged oatmeal---WAY better for you without the added sugar and sodium. In fact, once you get used to plain oats, you will be amazed at how sugary and salty the packets taste when you try them again! For this variation, I mix in fresh blackberries (straight from my Grandma's garden!) and slivered almonds. I like my oatmeal pretty thick, so this ends up tasting just like blackberry cobbler! Perfect comfort food for the morning while still using fresh summer produce.

8. Shrimp Spinach Salad. So many variations for this one. I use fresh spinach, shrimp sauteed with olive oil, garlic and basil, any number of other vegetables and balsamic vinaigrette. Some of my favorite summer vegetables to include in salads are bell peppers, cucumbers and black cherry tomatoes--if you've never tried this version, look for some at your local farmer's market!

9. Fajitas. Enough said. Mexican food is my favorite, so I'm a little biased, but fajitas really are such a great summer recipe and these can always be super-healthy. You can put either chicken or lean skirt steak on the grill to make it the healthiest. It's always best with a sprinkle of cilantro and fresh lime. My favorite salsa for the summer is black bean and corn varieties. Margaritas optional (but highly suggested!) :)

10. Italian Grilled Cheese Now this one is also a great comfort food recipe for winter when you need something warm and gooey. But, the fresh basil and tomato always remind me of summer anytime of the year. To make this healthier, you could use whole grain bread, but honestly, it tastes better with crusty French-style bread. This recipe recommends grilling, but keep in mind that if your bread is really thick, you might want to just stick it all in the oven--otherwise the bread will burn before the cheese and tomato get warm.

Bon appetit!

The Most Important Lesson of the 2012 Olympics

What has been your most inspirational moment so far in the 2012 Olympics? We've certainly had some awe-inspiring stories from the American athletes so far: Michael Phelps beating the record for the most overall medals; Rebecca Soni breaking the 2:20 time barrier for the women's 200m breast stroke; and of course Gabby Douglas--love that girl! But, the first Olympic moment to bring tears to my eyes this year was quite the opposite of a gold medal or shattering another world record.

If you haven't heard the story already, Liu Xiang was the Chinese superstar equivalent to Michael Phelps, but in the 100m hurdles. He missed qualifying for the Beijing Olympics completely, so this was his year to rightfully earn his medal--except he didn't. He tripped after the first hurdle due to an old injury and just like that, his Olympic career was over. But this race wasn't finished yet. He picks himself off the ground and hops, single-foot, to the last hurdle where he gives it a symbolic farewell kiss.

That's perhaps the most important lesson from the Olympics this year and for any race or fitness endeavor of yours. Finish what you start. Crawl, hop, claw your way to the finish line. If you're going out, go out admirably.

Recap of the Color Run 5K

After all the "serious" races I've run, it's nice to have a slew of no-pressure 5Ks lined up for this year....like the Color Run 5K this past Saturday. What could be more fun at a 5K than getting splashed with a different color at every K you pass? And in case someone did show up being all "serious" about their finish time, they would have been disappointed to find out that the race wasn't even timed at all (and it certainly showed, because at least 50% of the people there were walking).

We showed up in all white...




















...and left like this!

Congrats to my friend Sarah for running her first ever 5K! She's proof that the Couch to 5K program really works!











While I definitely had a great time, here are my 'critiques' of the run:

1. I'm fine with people walking a 5K--sometimes it's just about being active and allowing all family members to participate--but volunteers should have instructed all walkers to stay to one side of the street. Families and friends were leisurely walking like 5 people wide, so all of us runners had to run on the grass just to get around them. The biggest workout of the day was just weaving in and out of walkers--and again, it's not like I was sprinting, I was just trying to maintain a slow jog, but that was almost impossible at times. Plus, I almost took out a few kids...not safe.
2. The bottleneck at the end made it extremely anti-climactic. We were in the last wave of people to start, so earlier people may not have experienced coming to a complete stop around mile 2.75 like we did. People need to be instructed to move THROUGH the finish line.
3. After all the promises of "There will be PLENTY of color in the race," we were let down. At the first color station, all I got was a speck of orange on my shoulder. Most of the color on us was from our own packets that we threw at the end.
4. The run in between each color station was pretty ho-hum. It was oddly quiet. I know it's only a 5K, so I don't expect to have bands set up at every street corner like the Mini, but would it hurt to have had a little entertainment or cheering throughout the course?

Just some suggestions for next year. I know Indianapolis was thrilled to finally be added to the list of cities that the Color Run visits!

Next 5K on the agenda: Wine at the Line! Sign up with me! (They also have a 5 mile option if anyone is interested.)

Combining Two Loves: Fitness + Crafting

Thanks to the Pinterest craze, everyone has tuned into their crafty side lately. I've always enjoyed crafts and I am definitely frugal (ok, cheap) enough that DIY-ing is one of my favorite hobbies. Now, again thanks to Pinterest, I found a way to combine my cheap/crafty side with my love of exercise: DIY workout tank tops made out of old t-shirts!! If you're like me, your t-shirt drawer will barely close. And half of them I wouldn't wear to workout in (mainly because I don't workout in t-shirts in general). But when I was browsing through the t-shirt collection, I found one perfect for the task at hand: a black/white/gray tie-dye number with weird fitting, wrinkly sleeves. See below for my finished project and directions on how to make your own!

Directions for DIY workout tank-top