Should I Say "10" or "2010"?!

Happy New Years! The holiday season had me M.I.A. No worries, i'm back and ready to blog my heart out about running and nutrition, again. Dork :). I hope the holidays were great for everyone and that you all are ready for a new year! If you didn't stick to your exercise regimen, or ate too much food during the festive season this is the perfect time to make a change. Oh yes, it's New Year's Resolution time. I have mixed feelings about this idea mostly because 90 percent of people don't stick to their resolutions. EXERCISE usually takes the topper among all resolutions. Everyone wants to start the new year off with changing something they can control, themselves. So, people vow to start exercising and eat healthy. This, of course, excites me. I love when people want to start taking exercise serious. However, majority of the people who make the resolutions to start exercising quit by February because they are not at their ideal weight or whatever their excuse may be. Lets make 2010 or "10" different. As a society lets stick to it and not quit. I mean, maybe the US can meet the quota for Healthy People 2010 by this year if we all stick to it. Okay, probably not, but we can meet Healthy People 2020. Here are a few tips:

1. Make REALISTIC goals. If you want to lose weight set a goal, for example, to lose 10 pounds in 2 months. It may seem small, but when you accomplish it in less than 2 months you will likely be more proud of your accomplishment than setting a goal to lose 30 pounds in 3o days and you don't meet it.

2. Make PROGRESSIVE goals. Start low then build up to your ultimate goal. If by the end of 2010 you want to run a half marathon set little goals within that bigger goal. Start with running a 5k (3.1 miles) by Spring, then a 10k (6.2 miles) by Summer/ Fall, then finally end the year with a half marathon (13.1 miles) by late Fall/Winter. Use the same concept for strength training. If you are out of shape, or have not lifted weights ever/ in a long time, start slow. Start with lighter weights and build your endurance/strength up properly. Remember to work all major muscle groups including your shoulders/ neck, arms, back, abdominals, quadriceps, hamstrings, and lower leg muscles to have an adequate strength balance. Try a rotation between upper body and lower body muscles. On even days (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) work only upper body and then on odd days (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday) work only lower body muscles. This concept helps let your muscles rest, heal, build, and rejuvenate properly. By having progressive goals it will help you avoid injuries and not feel defeated from the start.

3. EXERCISE and DIET are like 2 peas in a pod. To lose weight you can't just change your exercise routine or just your diet. You have to change both. Start making healthy changes to your diet. Drink less soda. Eat less sugar. Choose wheat over white. Try adding fruits, veggies, and/or nuts to your diet as a snack instead of chips or sweets. Choosing better alternatives are key.

4. DON'T QUIT when it gets hard or you are not seeing results as fast as you want. Stick to it. Your hard work will pay off in the end. Make exercise part of your routine. It's going to take a few months for it to feel "normal" that you want to exercise. Set a certain part of your day aside for exercise and dedicate that time 5-7 days a week to only exercise. Plan other tasks and obligations around that time frame. That way you can't use lack of time as a main excuse to not be active. You can use the time before work/school, your lunch break, or the time after work/school as your exercise time. Fit it into your routine and forget all the excuses to not exercise and be active.

It is going to be hard at first, but just remember exercising and losing weight will start to feel natural as long as you stick to it! You will start to feel better all around. So go out and start exercising, and start motivating others around you to do the same!

Happy Running,
Jayme

"If You Can't Fill It, You Can't Squirt It"

If you can't fill it, you can't squirt it thus resulting in cardiac failure (Oh, Clinical Exercise Physiology class)! It's your heart that keeps you alive, right? So why waste it? A sedentary lifestyle can lead to CVD (Cardiovasular Disease), possibly progress into congestive heart failure, then ultamently resulting in asytole/flatline/death (however you want to fancy it up). Start an exercise routine and stick to it. Don't give up or skip out because you find a way to talk yourself out of doing PA (physical activity). ACSM minimum recommendation for a healthy lifestyle is 30 minutes a days on most days of the week of physical activity. The 30 minutes can be broken down into 3 ten minute bouts of exercise. Some people may find the recommendation too much to handle so make exercise fun! Find a good reason to participate in some type of exercise! Here are a few ideas:

1. Do it for a good cause! The proceeds from most races are to help some type of charity, help the hosting city's community, or help research some type of disease/illness (i.e. childhood obesity). You can help not only better yourself while helping a good cause. It's a win win situation. You can find local events at Active.com.

• November 8, 2009 is the 11th Annual World Run Day 2009! This is a great reason to get out those running shoes and participate in this global epidemic. The idea is to help get people out in the community and exercise while possibly contributing to a local charity. You can either join a running group in your community, or even just run on your normal route. Go to RunDay for more information.
• National Running Day was on June 3, 2009 and got a lot of attention throughout the nation. This is another organization that is trying to fight the sedentary epidemic and help get people active in the community. The concept is the same as World Run Day. It helps bring people together in the community to be active. It's something to work towards without having the pressure of training for a 5k, 10k, half, or even a marathon. Not all people are active for competition. Casual "running days" are a great cure to help get people out on their feet. National Running Day 2010 date has yet to be released, but check for the future date on my blog or the hosting website.
• DOW Live Earth/ Run For Water is a cause that makes you want to be active. The event is on April 18, 2010 across the world. There are different hosting cities that will draw more attention to the event than others. The run/walk is a 6 km for water because roughly 3.4 miles is the distance many woman and children walk every day to obtain water. The event is also offering educational information regarding water shortage around the world. Everyone should participate regardless if it's through the organization or on your own. RUN FOR WATER!

2. Do It for yourself! You can exercise to lose weight, to reward yourself, to relax after a long day, or for just pure enjoyment.

• Most people exercise to lose weight. When trying to lose weight don't always go by what the scale tells you. The scale measurement is a weighing of your entire body not just body fat. Judge by inches and how your clothes fit! Refer to the earlier blog -LB = Pounds Lost (10/17/2009) for more information on weight loss.
• Reward yourself after a hard workout or long run. Don't over do it because then you will just cancel out your workout. Believe it or not coffee, chocolate milk, beer, and even pizza are a good post run/workout snack. Being a Cajun we love beer. So here is a BEER CALCULATOR to help you enjoy a good beverage guilt free after a hard workout :) (Thanks Brandie!) You input your weight, how long you exercised, and chose the type of exercise you performed and you will get the results of what type and how many beers you can drink!
• Exercise is a good relaxation technique. Lifting weights allows you to use the bottled up strength to help release tension. Kick boxing or a similar activity lets you beat the crap out of something while pretending it is your "problem". Yoga will help you relax and mediate. Running gives you a lot of time to think through your day/ problems and help you cope. No matter your type of exercise it will help you relax and ease some tension.
• Maybe you exercise for just pure enjoyment. My advise: continue!

Regardless of what your "surface" reason is to exercise just continue to do it. In the long run you will be doing yourself a favor. Good exercise and diet will aid in longevity of your life. Keep your heart, mind, and body healthy. Now that's the key to life :)

Training Exercise of the Week: Mountain Climbers. This is a good exercise for your legs, arms, and abs. If you have back problems I advise you take it slow or not perform this exercise.

• Performing Mountain Climbers: (1) Place your hands on the ground in front of you. (2) Then place your legs out behind you while your butt is in the air. (3) Now move one leg forward like you are climbing. Your hands are to stay put on the ground and your butt is still in the air. (4) Next move your back foot forward at the same time you move your front foot back. That completes 1 mountain climber. (5) Complete 3-5 sets of 20-30 reps.

Training Tip of the Week: Remember to keep setting new goals. Don't set goals that are not obtainable, or will take too long to reach. If you are training for a marathon remember to set smaller goals within that training. It can be you want to run x amount of miles a week, or you want to run x amount of miles in a long run, or you want to run a 1ok by a certain week. You get my point. Set smaller goals within your larger goal. This way you will stay motivated and will feel you have accomplished more than just a marathon in your journey.

Training Song of the Week: I just want to thank Sister Sister for my music choice of the week! Repin' the 90s Jams. Enjoy! :)

1. STOMP- Kirk Franklin

2. Too Close- Next

Happy Running,

Jayme