The dreaded 4 letter word: DIET!!

I know, I know, you may be thinking of another 4 letter word when "diet" is mentioned.
But it's time to change your way of thinking.  Diet is simply the food we put into our bodies.  It does not mean starvation, suffering, deprivation, misery, depression or failure!  Got it?  Now that that is clear, let's talk about it.  What you choose to put into your body can make a HUGE difference in how you feel,  how you think, and yes, how you look.  The food you choose can fuel your body, or it can bog it down ~ literally (yuck).  I am not claiming to be an expert, but I can tell you what I've found works for me, and a few of the things I've learned in my years of natural "thinness" and my years (after 40) of having to think and work for it.  Let's talk pre-40's when I didn't think twice about what went into my mouth and stayed thin. Was it fun? Yep!  Eating anything you want is great ~ immediate satisfaction!  Did it always feel great?  No.  Eating whatever, aka, junk doesn't feel great.  Often it left me feeling lethargic, bloated, unmotivated and more importantly ~ craving more junk.  Yes, junk food (food with no nutritional value) is addictive.  As I mentioned in a previous post, hitting age 40 changed everything for me.  So whether you are currently thin or currently fluffy (the F word is not to be used here), it's time to start eating for the right reasons ~ no mindless eating ~ eating to fuel that wonderful body of yours for long term health!

First ~ you must start reading nutritional labels and ingredients, and there are a few items you should avoid, especially if they are listed in the first 5 items of the ingredients.  Avoid hydrogenated oil or partially hydrogenated oil (a trans fat, bad).  I am not going to go into all of the reasons to avoid these items.  The blog would go on forever, and again I'm not an expert.  So please do some simple research if you have more questions.  Next, avoid high fructose corn syrup.  Just another word for sugar, and high fructose corn syrup also has the tendency of making you crave more food, sugary food.  Next, and this is a hard one, do not purchase if it says enriched flour, or (an this is a kicker) enriched whole wheat flour.  Enriched means all of the natural vitamins and minerals from the whole grain wheat is removed and then they throw some vitamins in there to "enrich" it.  Why?  You should be getting the natural occurring nutrition, not some concocted supplements.  Look for 100% whole wheat flour ~ no "enriched."  Sugar ~ sugar in the first 5 ingredients is not a good thing.

White, don't bite!  Well, most of the time.  It seems like most white foods are not usually the best choice, so think twice before eating white food.  White flour, white refined sugar, white rice, are all foods to stay away from ~ obviously, this also means foods made with these ingredients (white bread, cake, cookies... you get the picture).  I also stay away from potatoes, ranch dressing, mayonnaise and creamy white sauces (and easy on the bananas).  Potatoes and bananas are high in starch and sugar and tend to raise blood glucose too much too quickly.
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/nutrition/a/starch.htm.
Most of the time, these foods types of food have been made with high fat ingredients, and are high in calories too.  If you are a lover of these types of foods, as I was, make minor adjustments to eliminate them from your diet.  You will adjust and not feel deprived.  Just do it slowly.  For example, I decided to use a spicy mustard as a condiment instead of mayonnaise (watch ketchup, sauces and marinades as they tend to be high in sugar - read the labels).  I love mayo, but I have found mustard alone is just as satisfying.  The foods mentioned above have a tendency of leaving you craving more of those types of food, and it becomes a vicious circle.  Once you get yourself out of that loop, you will be satisfied with the better choices you will be making because you are going to feel so much better (and look better too).  There are a few "whites" I do believe should be in your diet, and these are high in protein.  Cottage cheese (get the low or non fat) is a good source of protein.  I use cottage cheese in place of mayo in my tuna or chicken salad.  Don't say gross until you've tried it!!!  About 1/4 cup cottage cheese to a small single serving can of tuna, chicken or salmon with whatever you usually put in your tuna is fantastic.  I love it with avocado and Serrano chilies!!  A very high protein meal indeed, and that is the goal!  I also recommend Greek yogurt~!  This usually has about 12 to 16 grams of protein a serving (and the plain is white ~ ha).  The plain is terrific with fresh or fresh frozen organic blueberries from Costco (about 1/4 cup defrosted) and a little bit of Agave nectar, and you have yourself a high protein delicious treat.  Go ahead and get the flavored ones too, still high in protein!!  I do use half a frozen banana in my protein drink for texture and taste, just don't over-do bananas.  And I recommend a protein shake a day, especially after you've exercised.  I do use milk in my protein shake, but sometimes I'll go with almond milk or coconut milk instead of dairy (see the blog "So Sore" for the shake recipe).  Egg whites of course are high protein (and you can use the whole egg too), and I enjoy them scrambled with a little cottage cheese and hot sauce (Tapatio or Chalula).  Be sure to add lots of color to your healthy whites too.  Broccoli, red peppers, tomatoes, blue berries, strawberries, etc.  Eat your lean meat, chicken and fish and you will find you are very satisfied and not hungry.  You will be less bloated, and you will be putting food into your body that will compliment your workout routine. 

Please do not mistake all this talk of protein for no carbs.  You will get cranky and nutty if you eliminate carbs.  Just none of those white, refined, funky bad carbs!!  I try to eat only protein for dinner along with a big healthy salad or my favorite colorful veggies.  As much salad and veggies as you want is totally fine.  Just be sure not to put butter and blobs of salad dressing (which can be very high in sugar and fat) all over your salad and vegetables though.  I either put the dressing on the side and dip my fork into the dressing then the salad, or I use my favorite balsamic vinegar with a tad bit of olive oil.
When I have my complex carbs (100% whole wheat English muffin, or oatmeal, or brown rice, etc.) I do it early in the day.  When eating carbs, I try to limit each meal to 25 grams of carbohydrates ~ but try only protein later in the day. 

Another tip ~ do not eat standing up.  I catch myself reaching for something in the pantry or snack drawer and putting it in my mouth while working about the kitchen!!  This is mindless eating and Lord only knows how many calories we consume while doing this!!  Only eat standing up if you are cooking and you need to test something for a spice or whatnot.  NO MINDLESS EATING ~ careful of eating and watching TV too, same deal!  Sit down and enjoy your food!!

One last thought... if you are exercising, please make sure you are eating enough calories!!  If you do not, your body will hang onto the fat as it will be in survival mode.  I got to go to a trainer for about 3 months (oh how I miss him), and he bumped me up to 1700 calories a day.  You may want to talk to a professional on how many calories you need based on your activity level.  If you have no idea how many calories you're consuming a favorite site of mine is http://www.fitday.com/.  This is a free calorie counter and will track your protein, carbs, fat and alcohol intake as well.  I suggest you commit to logging your food for at least a week.  This will really help you see where you can make changes.  Listen you your body.  It will help guide you.  Try to get off the 3 big meals way of thinking, and throw in some healthy snacks between breakfast lunch and dinner.  The trick is to not get to that starving place ~ that will lead to over eating.  Think about how you feel after you eat something.  Drink plenty of water, and then have some more.  Often dehydration disguises itself as hunger.

Now, if I did all this 100% of the time, I would really look great.  That layer of body fat that is currently plaguing me would be gone, gone, gone.  As it is, my kids think I've flipped my lid and am a total health freak nut.  But they are young and pre-40, so they aren't thinking about this yet ~ lol!!  Remember it is a process. Take one of the things mentioned in this blog and make it your new routine.  When it becomes 2nd nature, choose another tip, and then another until you've changed your way of thinking about your "diet."

Good luck and healthy choices!!!
Shannon

Let's Talk Running ~ read even if you don't run!

Let’s talk running!!

FIRST though, I must mention something pertaining to the last blog posted.   Treadmill walkers, DO NOT HANG ON TO THE TREADMILL during the workout.  Set the speed so you can do it hands free.  Thank you.  It’s been bothering me I didn’t say that to begin with!

So, back to running.  I wish I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard someone say, “I can’t run.”  Seriously, they just blurt out, “I can’t run.”  I’d like to change your mind today.  Back in the day, when I thought I couldn’t run, I envisioned an elite athlete doing 4.2 minute miles for great distances.  This couldn’t be further from the truth for most people.  I believe if you are moving, you are benefiting your body (no matter the pace).  Now, obviously, if you’ve had a doctor tell you DO NOT run, please follow your doctor’s advice, do not run, and skip down to my blog on walking.  But if you (and really be honest about this) think you cannot run because you’ve tried it and it is too hard, please continue reading.  The reason you believe you cannot run is because you are starting out too fast.  I can almost guarantee this is the problem.  I was 33 when I began running “officially” as an adult.  I went out to Lake Murray in beautiful La Mesa CA., and I took off like I did when I was in jr. high at about a 7.5 minute pace.  Needless to say, within 3 minutes I was gasping for air wishing I would die or get over it!!  My dear friend at the time said, “For goodness sake, SLOW DOWN!!!!  You are not being chased by a mass murderer!”  I remember thinking, "slower?  Now there’s an idea."  It never occurred to me to just slow down.  Lesson number one, when you begin your new exercise routine running, go slow.  Even if you feel weird for running so slow, stay slow or go even a little bit slower.  It turned out my 33 year old non jr. high pace was about a 10 minute mile. It is not about how fast you are going; it is about how long you can sustain your pace.  If you are a beginner, I would suggest you set a goal such as, “I am going to run for 5 minutes (slowly) and then I will walk for 1 minute” and repeat.  If you think you can do 10 minutes without stopping (and you probably can if you are going slow enough) then try that.  Do this until you can run a mile without stopping.  In no time, you will be able to run a mile.  If you do this 3 days a week, I'd say in 2 weeks you will be successful with one mile.

Now that you are off on the right foot (no pun intended ~ ha ha), let’s talk about building up your distance.  To really see the cardiovascular benefits of running, you are going to need to be able to run for more than 5 or 10 minutes, or more than just one mile.  But when you can only run one mile, thinking about running 3 is overwhelming.  When you can only run 3 miles, thinking about running 9 is overwhelming, and on and on.  So don’t allow this mental image to hold you back.  It is actually very easy to build your distance.  First, pick a day you plan to commit to running every week.  You will be running on some of the other days too, but you need a day that is your running day.  I call this my "long" run day, and I do it on Saturday mornings.  So every Saturday I add one mile to my current distance depending on what my goal is (currently I plan on running the Rock n River half marathon,13.1 miles, on May 1, 2011).  I promise you will be able to add one mile a week (again, if you are a beginner and just trying to get down one mile, keep at one mile until you can complete it without walking).  If your "long" run is 2 miles, then your mid-week runs should only be one mile.  If you are at 4 miles "long", then do a couple 2 or a 3 mile mid-week runs.  Once you get to 5 or more miles on your long run day, then mid-week do 3 or 4 miles.  Another misconception is that you have to run every day.  Not true, especially when you start to log lots of miles.  It is important that you do not do long runs back to back, and once you get up beyond 5 miles, then I suggest you take a full day off before another run.  Take a walk if you'd like, or go to the gym, but allow some recovery time.  I run two or three days (usually 2) in addition to my “long run” day.  On my mid-week ~ or "short" days ~ I only run 2 to 4 miles depending on time, weather and various other life happenings.  And sometimes, I manage to skip and entire week before my next "long" run day ~ aghast ~ yes it's true, and it's okay!!  Don't beat yourself up if this happens.  Just go out next time and hit it.  You will be able to keep training.  Please do your best not to let this happen for more than a week.  It can be discouraging if too much time elapses, and you feel like you've gone backwards.  It's happened to all of us at one time or another and it stinks.

A favorite website of mine is http://www.geodistance.com/.  It allows you to plug in an address anywhere in the world (so you can still exercise while on vacation, no excuses), and it will give you the distance of your run.  I usually plot my run before I go, so I don't have to run any longer than necessary ~ ha ha!!  This site has the regular map view, and it also has a satellite view.  Satellite comes in handy when you have walking trails and such that don't show up on the regular map view.  If you are interested in training for a half marathon (do NOT shout "no way"), a great website is http://www.marathonrookie.com/half-marathon-training.html.  You can also find a full marathon training schedule on this site and lots of other great information on running.  I never would have dreamed when I completed my first 3 miles that I would run a full marathon.  But I did, and it felt great to set that goal and accomplish it~!

Just a few of the wonderful benefits of running:

* Weight loss ~ great way to get to ideal body weight

* Maintains bone density (very important for all women over the age of 30, yes 30!)

* Improves cardiovascular health

* Lowers blood pressure

* Helps cholesterol levels ~ raises good, lowers bad

* Increases lung capasity

* Improves coordination

* Stress relief

* Confidence ~ sense of accomplishment

* Great legs baby!!

Okay, okay... obviously I think running is an awesome and fun way to stay fit.  I want to say one last thing.  Running will help you lose body fat, and the longer you can run (even if you run slow like me), the more fat you will burn.  Think about that tummy roll you want to say goodbye too when your run is difficult.  Think about that junk in your trunk (a little junk is okay, right? I sure hope so!).  You will have great running days, and you will have days when it feels like you've never run a day in your life.  Stick with it.  Stay focused on your goal.  Remember to always have good shoes (a whole other blog, but I will spare you today) and comfortable appropriate clothing.  If you have any questions, please ask me.  I am not an expert, but I will do my best to help you along and encourage you in your goal!

Shannon