Secrets To Snacking All Day Long
Jun 9th
Ok, a few posts back I mentioned about eating 6 meals a day to help out your diet and get healthy. I'll admit, when I first head that I was a bit puzzled. Six meals a day? Are they nuts!
After really thinking about it, and getting clarity on it, I realized that the word "meal" wasn't actually a meal, but more of a snack of sorts. But then we have to understand what exactly is a snack. Sure, we got our soda and chips for a snack, but is that healthy? I'm no nutritionist, but I would say that's not the most healthy snack you can eat, right?
How about this option….
How about getting some sort of fruit and have that handy? Traditional fruits come to mind like apples and oranges, but what about non traditional fruits? Have you ever got a watermelon or a cantaloupe, cut it up and keep in the refrigerator? Believe it or not, you get some sort of plastic container with a sealed lid, those fruits hold for a while.
Now, all you gotta go for your "snack" or "meal" or open the refrigerator and start eating. See, you now got something completely different than usual…AND it's healthy for you!
Oh, if you're worried about the cost of this delight, I'm sure the prices vary all across the country, but I just bought a good size watermelon the other day for right at $5. This will last me for several days. Not a bad deal if you ask me.
Try it sometime.
Healthy Fast Food? Is It Possible?
Jun 8th
I was chatting with a friend of mine about healthy eating. This friend of mine doesn't cook anything at home. I was trying to get him to understand that a quick trip to a local farmer's market or produce place can make healthy meals for him all week long!
I said "Dude, you're 40+ years old and you're STILL eating all you meals at fast food places?" He then proceeds to try and convince me that he can actually eat as healthy at a fast food place, with the same amount of money, then I could by going to the local farmer's market.
We compared prices and he goes, every day, to a Mexican fast food place (I'll let you figure out which one) and spends $2 a day. So, for 5 days it's a total of $10. AND, according to him, it's just as healthy as anything I can get at the farmer's market for the same $10. He argument was, that this particular Mexican fast food restaurant was the healthiest of all the fast food restaurants.
Isn't that like saying "I'm the coolest of all the nerds?" [no offense to nerds, but you understand my point]
I was talking with my VPT (Virtual Personal Trainer), Coach Red, and told her about this. I thought she was gonna pass out from laughter. Oh well, what can you do sometime.
In the end, I came to the realization that I was talking with a healthy food idiot, but he's still my good friend. Like the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water….
Just Do Something To Get Healthy
Jun 7th
When someone mentions something about "getting healthy" or "being healthy", that is a bit vague. Sure, everyone wants to get healthy, that's just a give. BUT, not everyone thinks they same way when they want to "get healthy."
You see, not everyone likes to work out. Not everyone likes to watch every calorie they eat. Not everyone likes to do a combination of each.
Healthy can mean something different for each individual person. Oh, and something else I want to add, one can never be too healthy. I"m not doctor, and this is just my opinion, but I never knew there were different degrees of healthiness.
I bring this up because just because I talk about working out a lot, doesn't mean that's the only way, or the only thing to do to get healthy.
In my upcoming program, I'll be outlining all kinds of different forms of heath. Anywhere from exercise to cooking to meditation to attitude.
Yes, being healthy is a CHOICE you have to make, but in what category that choice is made in is entirely up to you!
Ouch Ouch! I Got A Cramp!
Jun 6th
I gotta tell you about something that happened to me yesterday. I completed my biking workout and was taking off my shoes and the calf muscle of the left leg cramped up…..HARD! If you've ever experienced this, you know how much pain that can be. If you don't know what it is, let me explain. (yes, I looked this up to make sure I was telling you correctly)
A muscle cramp is a sudden, uncontrolled contraction of a muscle. Leg cramps occur when the muscle suddenly and forcefully contracts.
If you've ever experienced this, you know what it is. If you haven't, and you are starting to train for something (physical), then always keep in mind that getting a cramp is a possibility.
To kind of sort of feel what a cramp in you calf muscle is, stand up on both feet. Then, with one foot flat on the ground, raise the ball of the other foot and put pressure on the forward part of the foot, near the toes. Now, focus on contracting the calf muscle on that leg. Do you feel it?
OK, now think of your body doing this at about 10x what you just did, and you can't control it! That's what a cramp is and believe me, it's painful. It will put you on the ground. This usually last for about 30-60 seconds. About the only thing you can do is scream in pain! (well, that's what I do. I'm sure I scared my neighbors!). Seriously, you should, as soon as possible, stretch that muscle….gently! Yes, I'm guilty of not doing anything gently. Also, massage it and put something warm on that muscle. A hot bath or hot shower works best.
I'm not trying to scare you, just making you realize that cramps are part of working out. Learn about them!
Fitness Training Technique
Jun 5th
OK all you distance folks, time to educate the non-distance folks. Today we'll touch on a training technique known as Fartlek.
According to Dictionary.com, Fartlek is: –noun: A training technique, used esp. among runners, consisting of bursts of intense effort loosely alternating with less strenuous activity.
The theory of this kind of workout, at least my theory (*grin*) is to give your body a "shock-wave" in the middle of the workout. What this does is, among other things, make your heart stronger. Think about it, you're going along at your own pace, whatever that means to you, and your body and your heart are doing just fine. You then give a burst of intense effort for about 30-60 seconds and WHAM! You totally shock the body and heart. (Oh, there is no set time, it all depends on what kind of workout you're doing)
They are saying "what the heck was that?" and work a bit harder to counter that burst. So what does this do for your training?
You may have to wrap your head around this concept, especially the way I'm presenting it, but eventually you'll understand. What it does is train your body and heart to EXPECT these little bursts. After doing it for a while, your body and heart will get used to that intense burst, which makes them stronger, which will give you the ability to do it again, even harder! Can you see how this will make your body and heart stronger? Which means you should be getting fitter and fitter.
If you've never done this kind of workout before, the first few times you do it you'll feel like you can't go anymore. No worries, just keep doing what you can and it will all work out in the long run. More tips to come!
Importance of a good Stretch
Jun 4th
One thing a LOT of people don't do when they work out is stretch. Oh sure, people "warm up" and "cool down" before and after a workout, and yes, that's critical. But what I'm talking about is a good ol' stretch for your entire workout.
Sounds crazy, I know. But my virtual coach (Hi Coach Red!) taught me LONG ago that a good stretching workout is just as affective, if not more affective, than a workout when you lift weights for an hour or do cardio for an hour.
Most believe that stretching is the same as yoga, and on the surface they do seem very similar. We'll talk about yoga in another post, but today's topic is about stretching your body and your muscles.
I'll admit, the only full body stretch workout I've ever done is from the P90X workout program. It's an hour long stretching workout starting from you neck and working all the way down to your ankles. Let me tell you, you WILL sweat doing this. Also, I've never knew my body could bend that way.
Won't get into details about all the stretches themselves but the just of this post is to let you know that if you choose to lead a healthy lifestyle, then ALWAYS make stretching a major part of it.
Stretching your muscles increases flexibility, which means less chance of injury (which is always good) which means you'll continue to feel great about your progress with your workouts. Not to mention that is just makes you feel so darn good!
We'll chat more about stretching in posts to come. Until then, Ciao!
Healthy Eating Tips
Jun 3rd
OK, now before we go on with this post, I do want to inform you that I am NOT a doctor or do I claim to be a doctor. Heck, I wouldn't know the first thing about doctorin', so don't ask.
One of the things I strive to do is eat healthy and eat properly. Do I always succeed in this? Nope, but that does NOT mean I don't have at least SOME knowledge about it, right?
One of the tips that eating healthy is one of the same tips people say about how to eat when you lose weight. So however you want to interpret it, that's your choice.
The human body needs fuel to survive. It needs fuel to run it's most basic daily functions. Most people focus on WHAT you eat. Now, let's make no bones about it, the better quality of the food intake you have, the better quality your body will function. (yes, that doesn't sound like a sentence that makes sense, but you get the just of it)
Think about it, if your body needs fuel to make it run, doesn't it make sense to give you body fuel? Sure it does. And, since you body usually functions 24 hours a day, having the fuel for this 24 hours makes sense as well, right? So, bottom line, give you body some fuel every few hours. Even if it's just a banana or a piece of fruit, give it something.
A lot of experts feel 6 smaller meals a day is better for you than 3 bigger meals a day. (I seriously doubt an Italian came up with that philosophy! LOL)
So, bottom line, try to eat 6 smaller meals a day. Now, a smaller meal can mean a snack of some sorts as well. Get it?
More Fitness and Health tips coming your way. Keep checking me out!
Which Workout Do You Do?
Jun 2nd
There are all kinds of different methods when working out with weights. (of course there are other workouts, but today we'll just focus on weights, ok?)
This post will NOT get into details with the different methods, but I'll introduce them to you.
One method is called the "pyramid" or "climb the mountain" method. In a nutshell, this one requires an odd amount of sets for a particular exercise. For instance, if you're doing basic dumbbell curls, you would do 5 or 7 sets. You would start off with light weights, then get a heavier weight on the next set and so on until you reach the middle of your sets (this should be your heaviest weight) then lesser weights on your way back "down the mountain" with your sets.
Another method is the push/pull workouts. I kind of like this one because it makes sense to me. It does require a bit of thinking, but you'll get it. This is an alternating day workout when one day you use your "push" muscles and the next day you use your "pull" muscles. For instance, a bench press would be a "push" muscle and dumbbell curls would be a "pull" muscle. Get it? Push and Pull?
One more method "beach muscle" workout. This is usually utilize by guys who are going out to the beach or going out with their buddies and want to get a good pump before heading out. It is NOT designed to be a full workout. All you're doing is utilizing the show off muscles such as your biceps, chest, and possibly shoulders. You'll do some exercises to get them pumped up and your done. Again, NOT designed to be an actual, down and dirty, workout.
There you go, a brief description of workouts. I'll get into more details with other posts in the future.
Fitness and Health?
Jun 1st
For all you wondering what's been going on since the last Blog30 Challenge, I've been a busy boy getting a RE-LAUNCH ready to go! A lot of you know I've been interviewing experts at "The Interview Series" and it's been a blast. But, I've decided to be more laser focused and, instead of interviewing just anyone, I'm directing all my attention to the Fitness and Health type experts.
That's right, "The Interview Series" is getting a total make over and will be re-launching in JUNE! I've already got some exciting stuff happening that you would sure like to see.
So, I also have a request….. if you, or someone you know, has something fitness or health related they would like to discuss, please contact me and we'll arrange something. OR, if you have a product/service you would like to offer, contact me and we'll go from there as well.
Yup, this is gonna be fun!
Check it out: www.TheInterviewSeries.com
Blog Challenge: The Start
May 31st
Well, here we are once again with another 30 day blog challenge! Yup, I'm doing it again! I'm looking forward to it as I have a LOT of stuff in store for you! I'm more focused this time. Not that I wasn't with the last challenge, but I was kind of all over the board with the stuff I was writing.
Oh, I'm sure I'll be doing some wacky stuff again with my writings, but you'll see something totally different this time.
During this challenge, I'll be re-launching "The Interview Series"! This time, it's focus is on Fitness and Health, which is already generating some exciting buzz! I'll get into more details as we get closer to the launch.
In the meantime, stick around, look around, and comment whenever you feel. I plan of visiting a lot more blogs and adding a lot more comments this time around as well. (now that I have a somewhat understanding of what I'm doing)
I'm sure I'll be coming to you for answers to basic questions as well. Until tomorrow…..ciao!