I saw this in Health magazine a few months as part of a "healthy cleanse" plan. The claim is that burns an additional 80 calories per day (drinking the whole pitcher), but either way green tea and citrus is great for you and it's a great way to change it up from water:
-Brew 64 oz of green tea (6-8 tea bags) and cool, either by placing in fridge or ice cubes.
-Wash and slice an orange, a lemon, and a lime and add to tea.
-Drink!
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
(Warning: Boring subject ahead) All about water!
I was trying to think of a clever title for this post, but there isn't much you can do with water. As per most things I post about, there are varying opinions on how much water you should be drinking per day. The old rule is 8 glasses (8 oz.) per day, and that's still probably okay. However, if you're working out you definitely need more. My book gives me the following guidelines:
17-20 oz 1-2 hours before you work out (body needs time to circulate it)
7-10 oz every 20 minutes while working out
16-24 oz after working out
So, potentially an additional 64 oz for a 40 minute workout. Sounds a little excessive to me, unless you are sprinting that entire 40 minutes. It's true that you need to stay hydrated, but it also depends on what you're doing and a whole bunch of other factors. Listen to your body. If you feel thirsty, drink. But what you can take from these guidelines is that you do need water before, during, and after a workout. When you sweat, that's water leaving your body that needs to be replaced (our bodies are something like 70% water!). Too little water can cause cramping during physical activities as well as other more serious symptoms. As necessary as water is for life, you can also have too much. When you're getting into the 150 oz range, you will likely start to retain some of it on your body (bloating), especially if you've been eating higher amounts of carbs and sodium, two things that hold on to water for dear life. And in super extreme cases, too much water can lead to hospitalization and worse.
What if you've grown bored of water? I certainly do! Some of your water intake can be replaced by tea (hot or cold), preferably unsweetened and fresh brewed. I've heard different things on whether or not coffee counts. On one hand, it's water based. But it's also a huge diuretic, which is the opposite of what you want when you are trying to hydrate. I personally don't count it, and I actually drink a glass of water in the morning with my coffee to counteract that effect. Fruit is also a good way to get some water in a tastier form. Watermelon, tomatoes, berries, and apples have a high water content and also have some fiber to fill you up.
Bottom line: I try to stay around the 80 oz mark for water per day when I do either no workout or a light one. If I'm doing something more intense, it goes to about 100. Your body will usually let you know if you need it, you just have to look for the signals. There are some times during the day when you think you're hungry, but in fact it's water you need. Another good reason to drink throughout the day--you'll likely eat less!
17-20 oz 1-2 hours before you work out (body needs time to circulate it)
7-10 oz every 20 minutes while working out
16-24 oz after working out
So, potentially an additional 64 oz for a 40 minute workout. Sounds a little excessive to me, unless you are sprinting that entire 40 minutes. It's true that you need to stay hydrated, but it also depends on what you're doing and a whole bunch of other factors. Listen to your body. If you feel thirsty, drink. But what you can take from these guidelines is that you do need water before, during, and after a workout. When you sweat, that's water leaving your body that needs to be replaced (our bodies are something like 70% water!). Too little water can cause cramping during physical activities as well as other more serious symptoms. As necessary as water is for life, you can also have too much. When you're getting into the 150 oz range, you will likely start to retain some of it on your body (bloating), especially if you've been eating higher amounts of carbs and sodium, two things that hold on to water for dear life. And in super extreme cases, too much water can lead to hospitalization and worse.
What if you've grown bored of water? I certainly do! Some of your water intake can be replaced by tea (hot or cold), preferably unsweetened and fresh brewed. I've heard different things on whether or not coffee counts. On one hand, it's water based. But it's also a huge diuretic, which is the opposite of what you want when you are trying to hydrate. I personally don't count it, and I actually drink a glass of water in the morning with my coffee to counteract that effect. Fruit is also a good way to get some water in a tastier form. Watermelon, tomatoes, berries, and apples have a high water content and also have some fiber to fill you up.
Bottom line: I try to stay around the 80 oz mark for water per day when I do either no workout or a light one. If I'm doing something more intense, it goes to about 100. Your body will usually let you know if you need it, you just have to look for the signals. There are some times during the day when you think you're hungry, but in fact it's water you need. Another good reason to drink throughout the day--you'll likely eat less!
Monday, June 27, 2011
Successful half marathon!
On a personal note, I completed my second half marathon yesterday! It went pretty well--I finished in 2:08, which was right around my goal. There's really nothing quite like training for and finishing a race. If you haven't done it or it's been awhile, I highly recommend it!! Whether you walk, run, bike or swim, it's a way to challenge yourself and stay accountable for your goals. Not only did I get to eat whatever I wanted yesterday (the reward for burning 1300 calories before 9 AM!), but it makes you realize how far your body can go if you have the right attitude and determination to push it there. It definitely is "mind over matter."
I will also say that while training took discipline, I had more mental hurdles while actually running the race. I started out kinda slow and had people passing me left and right. I had moments of discouragement (would I be the last to finish?!), but around mile 5 I got into the zone, started passing people and didn't get passed again. Lots of good lessons learned in that race! I was never a runner in high school or even college, so I fully believe ANYONE can do this. It takes commitment and patience, but it is so worth it!
I also signed up to take my personal trainer exam on July 14 (17 days!) so keep me in your prayers. :)
I will also say that while training took discipline, I had more mental hurdles while actually running the race. I started out kinda slow and had people passing me left and right. I had moments of discouragement (would I be the last to finish?!), but around mile 5 I got into the zone, started passing people and didn't get passed again. Lots of good lessons learned in that race! I was never a runner in high school or even college, so I fully believe ANYONE can do this. It takes commitment and patience, but it is so worth it!
I also signed up to take my personal trainer exam on July 14 (17 days!) so keep me in your prayers. :)
Gym/fitness equipment: What to use and how to use it
One of the keys to sticking with a health program is to mix it up. Once you've done the same routine or class several times a week for a month, not only will your body adjust to it and burn less calories, but chances are you'll get bored and start putting less and less effort forth. If you still love that class or elliptical workout, by all means continue to do it--just add in some new stuff once in awhile to keep your body working at its max capacity.
I've been practice training a friend of mine for the last month or so, and as I've planned the workouts it's occurred to me that there is almost an unlimited amount of exercise combinations you can do. Seriously, I'm pretty sure you can go your whole life not repeating the same routine. Therefore, there's no reason to get bored working out! Whether you have a gym membership or you like to work out at home, there are a lot pieces of equipment you can use to change up your workouts. Some you might be familiar with, and others might look intimidating. I've included a few below and why I think they're worth trying. If you are at the gym and see something you've never tried, don't be afraid to ask one of the staff to help you. You're paying to work out there, so you should be able to take advantage of everything they offer. Otherwise, you can usually find a youtube video to show you as well :)
At the gym:
1. Cable machines -- Unlike regular weight machines, the cables force you engage your core to stabilize you in order to execute the exercise. This burns more calories and engages more muscles (which is good!). Plus you can do many different exercises on this one machine-- there are cuffs you can attach to do leg work as well the arm exercise pictured below.
2. Assisted pull-up/dip machine -- I LOVE THIS MACHINE! It looks hard to use but it's not, and you won't find a better all around upper body workout. Regular pull-ups are pretty difficult, so this machine allows you to rest your lower legs on a platform attached to a weight column. The more weight you add, the easier the pull-up will be. Basically, the weight on the column is subtracting from the amount of weight you have to pull up(your body weight). For a beginner, start with 80-100 pounds. Follow the pictures on the machine to see technique- It should be somewhat difficult to pull yourself up but you should be able to complete 10-12 and really feel your arms and chest muscles. Plus you'll feel super tough! The part you don't see in the picture are the bars right next to her hips, which you can use to do tricep dips. Instead of pulling yourself up, you lower yourself down, letting your triceps do the work. Do in these a couple of sets of these two exercises and I guarantee you'll tone up your arms, shoulders and chest in no time.
Gym or home:
1. Bosu balance trainer -- Most likely your gym has these, but you can also buy one for home if you really like it (they are pricey though). This essentially adds a degree of difficulty to exercise you might already to. It forces you to balance yourself while doing that particular exercise, therefore engaging more muscles and burning more calories. Ball side down you can do push-ups or planks on it, or ball side up you can just sit on it and do some arm exercises. Click here for some other possibilities.
2. Body bar (or weighted bar) -- The next few are variations on the traditional dumb bell. The weighted bar comes in a variety of weights (I own a 12 pounder), and can be used instead of a set of dumb bells in most cases. Much like a bar you'd see on a bench press, the weighted bar is great for squats and lunges---you can just rest in on your shoulders and go. Here are a few more moves you can do with the body bar.
3. Medicine/Toning Balls -- The inspiration for this post came from me getting kind of sick of dumb bells and planning a workout using a 10 lb. medicine ball instead. You can do some very different things with a ball than just the traditional dumb bells (of course the reverse is also true), and it can be just the trick to break through a plateau or just keep you interested in working out. My favorite aspect of the medicine ball is that you can pass it back and forth--either to a buddy or just to yourself from hand to hand. You can do this as a form of cardio (i.e. passing it from hand to hand while you hop from foot to foot) or as strength training (i.e. standing on one foot and slowly passing it back and forth, holding for a few seconds in each hand). Here are a few others to try. A toning ball is basically a small version of a medicine ball. It makes it easier to hold while doing pilates/yoga type moves, and if you have a smaller amount of weight you can hold two. Both are great in my opinion, but if you are more of a pilates or yoga fan you might want to opt for an 8 lb toning ball or a set of 4 or 5 lb ones. If you tend to like higher intensity workouts, go for the bigger medicine ball.
4. Resistance Tubes -- The lease expensive option for a home gym. Resistance tubes can be very useful when used correctly, but you have to choose the right one. The tubes come in different levels, from easy (extremely stretchy) to difficult (not very stretchy at all), that vary the difficulty to stretch it and therefore work your muscles more or less depending. The basis of the resistance tube is having something stable to serve as the center point, whether it's your legs or piece of furniture. There's really no limit to what you can do with a tube--just holding toward the center and pulling it in opposite directions will give you an arm workout. The tubes take up little space, so it's an easy way to get a workout in while you're watching TV. Here are a couple moves to try.
I've been practice training a friend of mine for the last month or so, and as I've planned the workouts it's occurred to me that there is almost an unlimited amount of exercise combinations you can do. Seriously, I'm pretty sure you can go your whole life not repeating the same routine. Therefore, there's no reason to get bored working out! Whether you have a gym membership or you like to work out at home, there are a lot pieces of equipment you can use to change up your workouts. Some you might be familiar with, and others might look intimidating. I've included a few below and why I think they're worth trying. If you are at the gym and see something you've never tried, don't be afraid to ask one of the staff to help you. You're paying to work out there, so you should be able to take advantage of everything they offer. Otherwise, you can usually find a youtube video to show you as well :)
At the gym:
1. Cable machines -- Unlike regular weight machines, the cables force you engage your core to stabilize you in order to execute the exercise. This burns more calories and engages more muscles (which is good!). Plus you can do many different exercises on this one machine-- there are cuffs you can attach to do leg work as well the arm exercise pictured below.
2. Assisted pull-up/dip machine -- I LOVE THIS MACHINE! It looks hard to use but it's not, and you won't find a better all around upper body workout. Regular pull-ups are pretty difficult, so this machine allows you to rest your lower legs on a platform attached to a weight column. The more weight you add, the easier the pull-up will be. Basically, the weight on the column is subtracting from the amount of weight you have to pull up(your body weight). For a beginner, start with 80-100 pounds. Follow the pictures on the machine to see technique- It should be somewhat difficult to pull yourself up but you should be able to complete 10-12 and really feel your arms and chest muscles. Plus you'll feel super tough! The part you don't see in the picture are the bars right next to her hips, which you can use to do tricep dips. Instead of pulling yourself up, you lower yourself down, letting your triceps do the work. Do in these a couple of sets of these two exercises and I guarantee you'll tone up your arms, shoulders and chest in no time.
Gym or home:
1. Bosu balance trainer -- Most likely your gym has these, but you can also buy one for home if you really like it (they are pricey though). This essentially adds a degree of difficulty to exercise you might already to. It forces you to balance yourself while doing that particular exercise, therefore engaging more muscles and burning more calories. Ball side down you can do push-ups or planks on it, or ball side up you can just sit on it and do some arm exercises. Click here for some other possibilities.
2. Body bar (or weighted bar) -- The next few are variations on the traditional dumb bell. The weighted bar comes in a variety of weights (I own a 12 pounder), and can be used instead of a set of dumb bells in most cases. Much like a bar you'd see on a bench press, the weighted bar is great for squats and lunges---you can just rest in on your shoulders and go. Here are a few more moves you can do with the body bar.
3. Medicine/Toning Balls -- The inspiration for this post came from me getting kind of sick of dumb bells and planning a workout using a 10 lb. medicine ball instead. You can do some very different things with a ball than just the traditional dumb bells (of course the reverse is also true), and it can be just the trick to break through a plateau or just keep you interested in working out. My favorite aspect of the medicine ball is that you can pass it back and forth--either to a buddy or just to yourself from hand to hand. You can do this as a form of cardio (i.e. passing it from hand to hand while you hop from foot to foot) or as strength training (i.e. standing on one foot and slowly passing it back and forth, holding for a few seconds in each hand). Here are a few others to try. A toning ball is basically a small version of a medicine ball. It makes it easier to hold while doing pilates/yoga type moves, and if you have a smaller amount of weight you can hold two. Both are great in my opinion, but if you are more of a pilates or yoga fan you might want to opt for an 8 lb toning ball or a set of 4 or 5 lb ones. If you tend to like higher intensity workouts, go for the bigger medicine ball.
4. Resistance Tubes -- The lease expensive option for a home gym. Resistance tubes can be very useful when used correctly, but you have to choose the right one. The tubes come in different levels, from easy (extremely stretchy) to difficult (not very stretchy at all), that vary the difficulty to stretch it and therefore work your muscles more or less depending. The basis of the resistance tube is having something stable to serve as the center point, whether it's your legs or piece of furniture. There's really no limit to what you can do with a tube--just holding toward the center and pulling it in opposite directions will give you an arm workout. The tubes take up little space, so it's an easy way to get a workout in while you're watching TV. Here are a couple moves to try.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Reading list
If you've ever gone to the library or Barnes & Noble looking for a diet or health book, you know there are an infinite amount. Some are downright ridiculous (Lose 5 pounds in one day?) and some are actually pretty good. I've probably at least skimmed most of them out there, and here are a few that I like:
1. Jackie Warner "This is Why You're Fat" - It's a harsh title, but sometimes you need some tough love! If you're not familiar with Jackie WaIner, she's a personal trainer who has her own gym and has had a couple of shows on Bravo. She is in crazy, crazy good shape because her programs have a big emphasis on weights, which I to agree with to some extent. She explains how weight training can really impact weight loss, and she definitely has the results to back it up. I also like the focus on cutting out sugar. This modification is what I feel really jump started my own weight loss. I was a full on sugar addict, eating candy and other crap just because it fit into my daily calorie budget. Once I cut it out, I really got the momentum going. Another thing I enjoyed about Jackie's plan was the list of staple meals to eat everyday. It helped me tremendously to have a couple of specific "super meals" that I knew were good and that kept me from having to think about what I was going to eat every 2 hours.
2. Health Magazine "Carb Lovers Diet" - While I'm not in love with this book, it's still a good basic plan with tasty food that is essentially good for you. It's realistic in the real world, and that goes a long way with me. Basically, this plan calls for eating a "resistant starch" carb at every meal that will keep you fuller for a longer period of time. Luckily, potatoes are on that list so that's pretty exciting, especially since they are kind of a no-no on other diets. Anyway, it's a good starter plan but I'm not sure how effective it is if you only have a few more pounds to lose.
3. Bethenny Frankel "Naturally Thin" - I'm a huge fan of hers! She went to school to be a natural foods chef, so her plan is centered around clean eating. It's easy to read, funny, and easy to relate to as well. How could I not recommend someone who invented a line of reduced calorie cocktails?!?! (Side note: I also just finished her self-helpish book "A Place of Yes," and it was really, really good! It's especially helpful if you're thinking about making any changes in your life.)
4. David Zinczenko "Eat This, Not That" - This is more of a recipe book, but I highly recommend it! It's basically healthy versions of favorite restaurant and comfort foods. I personally modify the recipes even more, but it's pretty good as is, especially for beginners. He also has variations of this book for drinks, the grocery store, and an actual diet plan book. Needed have a male represent in this list :)
1. Jackie Warner "This is Why You're Fat" - It's a harsh title, but sometimes you need some tough love! If you're not familiar with Jackie WaIner, she's a personal trainer who has her own gym and has had a couple of shows on Bravo. She is in crazy, crazy good shape because her programs have a big emphasis on weights, which I to agree with to some extent. She explains how weight training can really impact weight loss, and she definitely has the results to back it up. I also like the focus on cutting out sugar. This modification is what I feel really jump started my own weight loss. I was a full on sugar addict, eating candy and other crap just because it fit into my daily calorie budget. Once I cut it out, I really got the momentum going. Another thing I enjoyed about Jackie's plan was the list of staple meals to eat everyday. It helped me tremendously to have a couple of specific "super meals" that I knew were good and that kept me from having to think about what I was going to eat every 2 hours.
2. Health Magazine "Carb Lovers Diet" - While I'm not in love with this book, it's still a good basic plan with tasty food that is essentially good for you. It's realistic in the real world, and that goes a long way with me. Basically, this plan calls for eating a "resistant starch" carb at every meal that will keep you fuller for a longer period of time. Luckily, potatoes are on that list so that's pretty exciting, especially since they are kind of a no-no on other diets. Anyway, it's a good starter plan but I'm not sure how effective it is if you only have a few more pounds to lose.
3. Bethenny Frankel "Naturally Thin" - I'm a huge fan of hers! She went to school to be a natural foods chef, so her plan is centered around clean eating. It's easy to read, funny, and easy to relate to as well. How could I not recommend someone who invented a line of reduced calorie cocktails?!?! (Side note: I also just finished her self-helpish book "A Place of Yes," and it was really, really good! It's especially helpful if you're thinking about making any changes in your life.)
4. David Zinczenko "Eat This, Not That" - This is more of a recipe book, but I highly recommend it! It's basically healthy versions of favorite restaurant and comfort foods. I personally modify the recipes even more, but it's pretty good as is, especially for beginners. He also has variations of this book for drinks, the grocery store, and an actual diet plan book. Needed have a male represent in this list :)
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Best choices for bread
As you may have surmised from the previous post, I'm definitely a carb lover. I've tried MANY different breads, and spent way to much time comparing labels in the grocery store. The first thing I look at is the ingredient list to see if "whole wheat" or "whole grain" is the first item listed. That's a must! If it says enriched, it's out (no matter what the large print on the front on the bread bag says). I then look to the nutrition label and check out calories, sugar, sodium--the fewer the better on all these items--and then the fiber content. The more fiber the better, and some breads will even have a decent amount of protein in them, which is a bonus. Be sure to check the serving size at the top, as some breads have one slice per serving and others have two.
For a long time, I went with Sara Lee 45 calorie multi-grain, which is a good choice according to the above criteria. However, most places it's almost $4 a loaf, which is kind of crazy for bread. So I recently switched over to Wonder Bread Smart Wheat. It's very similar to the Sara Lee 45 calorie breads (5 calories higher and a smidgen higher in sodium) and costs about half the price. Healthy eating has become a pretty hot button issue lately, and I really feel like some companies are taking advantage and charging way more than necessary for something that's only slightly better than it's less expensive counterparts. I don't mind spending some extra money if something is way better for me, but in this case it's just not crucial.
For a long time, I went with Sara Lee 45 calorie multi-grain, which is a good choice according to the above criteria. However, most places it's almost $4 a loaf, which is kind of crazy for bread. So I recently switched over to Wonder Bread Smart Wheat. It's very similar to the Sara Lee 45 calorie breads (5 calories higher and a smidgen higher in sodium) and costs about half the price. Healthy eating has become a pretty hot button issue lately, and I really feel like some companies are taking advantage and charging way more than necessary for something that's only slightly better than it's less expensive counterparts. I don't mind spending some extra money if something is way better for me, but in this case it's just not crucial.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Carbs: The good, the bad and the ugly
I've been meaning to write this post for like the last three weeks, and I finally think I have my thoughts together to do it. Carbohydrates are the one of the most misunderstood food groups (actually called a macronutrient) and because of that, people end up doing crazy things like eating a giant block of cheese in hopes of losing weight. Carbs are one of three macronutrients that the body needs to function, and the main purpose of the carb is energy. The other two macronutrients (fat and protein), can eventually be converted to energy, but carbs are the immediate source. If you think about your RMR (the amount of calories your body burns just keeping itself alive), you can see that you need well over 1,000 calories just to keep your heart beating and brain working, and a significant amount of that energy need should be met by carbs. If it's not, things just wont run as smoothly.
So why on earth are there low/no carb diets? Because truthfully, cutting all carbs will cause a drop in weight--in the short term. The reason for this is that it carb storage requires water. Therefore cutting carbs will let you drop the "water weight" which can be a significant amount. However, as soon as you start eating them again, that same water weight will come right back on.
So we know we need to eat carbs, but that doesn't mean any and all. This is where we get into good carbs/bad carbs. Overweight people who go on Atkins do lose real weight--but this is at least partially attributed to the fact that they are cutting out bad carbs-- doughnuts, white pasta, white bread, etc. These are carbs that are stripped of their nutrients in order to "enrich" them. Basically, taking a whole grain and getting rid of the good stuff (fiber for example) in order to make it white. You'll notice that all the white stuff has a whole grain or brown counterpart, whether it's rice, flour, etc. That is what the product was meant to be---what is was before it got processed. There's a lot of talk out there about processed foods, and I am definitely in favor eliminating as many as possible. When you take away the nutrients, the body digests food more quickly, which then affects blood sugar and hunger levels. I don't know about you, but eating one Kripsy Kreme doesn't even put a dent in my hunger.
So that's a rundown on carbs. I always feel like if I know how things work, it will help me make better decisions. If I have to choose between white bread and whole wheat, the fact that I'll be fuller for longer always sways me to the whole wheat. In some cases, the whole grain versions may be more calories, but overall it's worth it. More later on how many carbs you should be eating...
So why on earth are there low/no carb diets? Because truthfully, cutting all carbs will cause a drop in weight--in the short term. The reason for this is that it carb storage requires water. Therefore cutting carbs will let you drop the "water weight" which can be a significant amount. However, as soon as you start eating them again, that same water weight will come right back on.
So we know we need to eat carbs, but that doesn't mean any and all. This is where we get into good carbs/bad carbs. Overweight people who go on Atkins do lose real weight--but this is at least partially attributed to the fact that they are cutting out bad carbs-- doughnuts, white pasta, white bread, etc. These are carbs that are stripped of their nutrients in order to "enrich" them. Basically, taking a whole grain and getting rid of the good stuff (fiber for example) in order to make it white. You'll notice that all the white stuff has a whole grain or brown counterpart, whether it's rice, flour, etc. That is what the product was meant to be---what is was before it got processed. There's a lot of talk out there about processed foods, and I am definitely in favor eliminating as many as possible. When you take away the nutrients, the body digests food more quickly, which then affects blood sugar and hunger levels. I don't know about you, but eating one Kripsy Kreme doesn't even put a dent in my hunger.
So that's a rundown on carbs. I always feel like if I know how things work, it will help me make better decisions. If I have to choose between white bread and whole wheat, the fact that I'll be fuller for longer always sways me to the whole wheat. In some cases, the whole grain versions may be more calories, but overall it's worth it. More later on how many carbs you should be eating...
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