Walking to lose

No doubt, walking is a good starting point for a newbie to exercise.   It gets you moving, keeps your heart healthy, and it is easy on the joints.  But taking a stroll around the block after dinner isn’t going to cut it if you’re trying to lose weight.       

When you walk, try increasing your intensity.  Walk briskly,  fast enough that your heart rate increases.    Walk up hills.   Challenge yourself.   Time yourself walking around the neighborhood, and the next day try to beat that time.  The next day beat it again.   Get to the point where you can walk around the neighborhood twice in the time it originally took you to walk it just once.  Then try to make it three times!   That is exactly what I did when I first started exercising.   I was in a race against myself.  :) 

Next, start varying your steps.   Throw in some high knees (lifting your knee up to the waist) as you walk.    Try some kickbacks, lifting your heel up to your bottom with every step.   It sure looks funny, but you will be developing muscle and burning way more calories.  The neighbors will be wondering what has gotten into you!   

Additionally, try increasing the amount of steps that you take each day.  Buy a pedometer (you can find them for a couple of dollars), and put it on when you first get up in the morning, and wear it until you go to bed.   After a few days, you will get a baseline of how many steps you normally take during the day.    Increase that number every day.  Make it into a game, finding new and interesting ways to walk more.   Park further away in a parking lot.   Use the steps instead of the elevator.  Take an extra walk or two.    The goal is to slowly increase the number of steps you take every day until you reach around 10,000 steps.   It is harder then it seems!    

The key is to walk more, and walk briskly.   Doing one without the other won’t significantly help with weight loss.    Eventually, you will get fit enough that walking alone won’t produce the results that you want.    Walking is good for you, but it doesn’t burn very many calories, so when you get in better shape, start throwing in some other cardio/aerobic exercises and weight lifting.     More on this next time!

Having an exercise plan

Maybe running isn’t for you.  It’s okay, I understand.   There are other options for exercising at home even if you have small children, some of which we’ll explore this week.  First, though, you need to have a plan.

The hardest part is finding time.   If you’re waiting for the perfect time to exercise, it will never come.  Not ever.   There’s always something to do besides exercising.   You need to just look at your schedule and decide on the time, and then make it a priority.

The best time for me to exercise is after I put Spitfire down for a nap. I tried exercising a few times when he was awake, and he thought it was the funniest thing.  Every time I bent over he climbed on my back.  When I stood up he would cling to my legs.  I tried to get him to do the exercises with me, but he thought it would be better to use me as a jungle gym.   

Instead I made it a habit to put on my exercise clothes the minute after I put him down.   I went straight downstairs and got to work, ignoring all of the other tasks that were screaming my name.   Exercise is just as important as those dirty dishes, maybe even more important.   Besides, a workout only takes thirty minutes, and afterwards I always have more energy to do the other stuff.

Once you’ve figured out a time, stick to it.   If someone calls wanting to have a play date, tell them you’re busy for the next half-hour or so.  Better yet, don’t answer the phone.  Or the door.   Protect this time, or the exercise won’t happen.   And if you are trying to lose weight, it needs to happen!

The next step of the plan sounds like medieval torture, but it is necessary.   Take your measurements.   Really, don’t skip this.  Get the flat measuring tape out of your sewing box, and then get out your calendar.   Under today’s date, write out the measurements for the following areas:

*Upper arm (where it is the biggest)

*Bust (don’t squish)

*Chest (measure right under your breasts)

*Waist (find the skinniest part, and measure there.  If there                        
   isn't a skinny part, use your belly button as the guide)

*Hips (measure where they are the biggest)

*Thighs (where they are the biggest)

*Knees (sounds silly, I know, but you’d be surprised)

*Calves

I feel your pain.  I’m cringing as I’m typing this.  Just write them down, along with today’s weight, and try to forget about it.   Next month, do it again, and it will be exciting!  All of the changes will make you want to do a little dance.   Sometimes our bodies are stubborn in losing pounds on the scale, but the differences measurements prove progress is being made.

Tomorrow we’ll talk about some home exercising options.  Aren’t you excited?  :)

Give Running a Try!

It seems like people either love the idea of running, or they hate it.   I’ve heard a lot of, “I could never . . .”  when I mention that my husband and I have taken to jogging.    I was in that camp, figuring I couldn’t run either.   The idea of distance running intrigued me, yet I was pretty sure the sport was relegated to people who enjoyed torturing themselves and ate only raw nuts and apples to survive.  Not only that, but I have exercised-induced asthma, and the few times I joined my husband on a jog after we were first married, I felt like my lungs were going to explode.   

Thing was, I decided to lose weight, and that meant exercise.   Now, if you’ve read any weight-loss magazines in the last couple of decades, you’ve read a hundred times that you will lose more weight if you pick an exercise that you enjoy.   Usually, the same article will proffer a list of fun sports to choose from.   My picks would be ice skating, hockey or volleyball.   All expensive options, and not very practical when I have two young boys with me.   No, I needed an exercise that was free, and something I could do with the kids in tow.   

I watched contestants on The Biggest Loser, of varying ages and physical conditions, train to run a marathon.   Then I found out a couple of my cousins had begun training for a marathon.    I remembered my roommate in college trained and ran a marathon.   I realized I was limiting myself.  If they could, why couldn’t I?  

So I tried.  I found a running program online (couch to 5k), that started out super slow,  each day running a little more until after 9 weeks I could run a 5k.     The first day of the program says to run 30 seconds, then walk 90 seconds for a total of 20 minutes.   I couldn’t run to the end of my very short block without being completely winded.   But I didn’t give up.   I kept thinking, “I can do anything for thirty seconds,”  and I did!  

Since then, I’ve run several 5ks, and I’m convinced that running is something that most people CAN do.  In our last race, there were several runners in their seventies, and there were three runners in their eighties that completed running the entire three miles, and that was a relatively small race.  Of course, some people have injuries that prevent them from running,  but if you are healthy, it is worth a try.   There are so many benefits!

Running helps you lose weight quickly.  It requires a lot of energy which burns off calories quicker then any other exercise except for cross-country skiing.  Its also good for heart health and lowers your blood pressure,  helping to prevent heart attacks and diabetes.  I’ve even read that it helps prevent breast cancer in women.   The most compelling benefit for me, however, is the effect it has on your mood.  When you run, endorphins are released making you happier, more focused, and less stressed.   If you are prone to depression, running keeps your moods more even and upbeat. 

So, how about giving it a try?   All it takes is thirty minutes, three times a week, and in 9 weeks you will be able to run three miles.  We started the couch to 5k program  over this week, because our Little Man wants to run with us.   Its something we can do together as a family.   We’d love to have you join us!

Did I mention it was raining?

There were a lot of reasons why I didn’t want to do this run. 

We hadn’t run for a while, and by the time we found out about the race we only had three weeks to train.   January nights were really cold this year, and we had a lot going on, physically and emotionally.    There were many nights I’d rather be doing anything other than be out in the cold, every breath visible to the naked eye.   

Three days before race day I caught a cold, the kind that keeps you up all night coughing and spitting up gunk, but I forced myself to go out and run a full three miles, just to make sure my body was ready for the task.    Several times I was ready to throw in the towel and just go home, but I pushed through.   I was surprised at the end when I could actually breath better then before I started.  

Two days before the race, my voice was gone and the weather forecast predicted rain for Saturday morning.   What had I gotten myself into?   I’ve never run in the rain before, and the prospect sounded miserable.   I mean, who wants to stand in wet socks for a minute, let alone running in them for a half-hour?

Saturday morning came, as did the pouring rain.    Still, I got in the car at 6 am and drove downtown with my running shoes on.   I was on an adventure, doing something I thought I’d never do.  There was a moment before the race when I looked up at the dark clouds peeking between tall buildings, and thought there was no place I’d rather be.   The anticipation of the coming race,  the cold splash of rain on my cheeks, and adrenaline charging through the crowd worked together to make me feel truly alive.  

I’d like to say the running was a breeze, worth every step, and in the end I beat my personal record.   Didn’t happen.   The race was tough.   My jacket soaked through, and it felt like I was carrying an extra ten pounds on my shoulders.    I inadvertently stepped in a few puddles, so water was sloshing between my toes and each step was an effort.    I ran the entire race at a decent time (for me), but it took everything within me to keep going that last half-mile.

Why?   Why run in the pouring rain, sick as a dog?    There really is something in pushing yourself to do the impossible.    Last year I couldn’t run around the block.   I couldn’t run to the end of the street without hyperventilating.     It took pushing, going out of my comfort zone a little bit at a time, but now I’ve run several 5ks at times better then I ran in high school.    That feels good!   I’m not a super-athlete, but I don’t sell myself short anymore.    

Part of losing weight is self-discipline, saying no when you want to say yes, or visa-versa.   Saying no to the donut, yes to the veggies.   Foregoing the snooze button in exchange for an invigorating workout.    Strange as it sounds, denying yourself comfort becomes empowering.  You realize that you’re stronger then ever before, and find that you’re doing things you never imagined possible.   The food is not in control.  Your body is not in control.   You are the one that makes the decisions.   

I ran the race because I knew I could, and I decided I would, no matter what.   And some days, that is all it takes.  

Excuses, Excuses

For a long time I was in denial about my weight.   Sure, I knew I wasn’t in fighting shape.  Clothes shopping was a cruel punishment, and my wardrobe had transformed from cute to comfortable-  a.k.a. frumpy mommy-wear.    Strange as it sounds, I didn’t see myself as horribly overweight when I looked in the mirror.   The extra pounds bothered me, but I figured they were a part of the package, the adult “me.”    

That was only one of the lies I was believing about myself in relation to my weight and body image.   In the past I used those lies as excuses--  reasons to not be serious about my weight loss because in the end, I didn’t believe it would ever really happen.   

Excuse #1:  The excess pounds were a result of my body settling in at it’s comfortable weight.    

I had tried dieting and exercising off and on, but my body never went below a certain number.   The message I told myself was that it wouldn’t ever get below that number, no matter what I tried.  That message was a lie.    The truth?   I really, really wanted to get below that number, but I didn’t have the tools in place to do it yet.     

The television show, “The Biggest Loser” was a reality check for me.    Every week, I would tune in and watch a group of morbidly obese people do the work it took to get to a healthy weight.   I wasn’t as big as the contestants on the show, but after I while I realized if those people could do it, with all that weight, some who were decades older than me with real medical issues, then what was my excuse?    The workouts on the show weren’t anything new to me-  there was no “magic” I could see to being on the ranch.   The thing those people had that I didn’t have was a plan for eating right and exercising, and they had encouragement from their trainers and peers.    I knew I couldn’t devote the amount of time they could to training,  but I could do something.   Watching that show was the first step in changing my mindset about my weight.

Excuse #2  I didn’t look that overweight in the mirror.   

I wasn’t looking in a full length mirror.   I never saw the whole picture, mainly because I didn’t want to.   I was always the one behind the camera, and for years I had very few pictures taken of myself.   When I finally saw a picture of myself at my biggest, there was no more denying the truth that I was overweight.   The picture was shock enough to spur me into motion.  

Excuse #3:   My hormones are out of whack, which is why I can’t lose weight.    

My hormones have always been wacky, and have caused medical issues over the years.    No doubt, hormones make it more difficult for some people to lose weight.   The key words there being more difficult, not impossible.    Hormones are not an excuse, like I bought into for a long time.   It may take longer for a person with something like PMDD or PCOS to lose weight, but it can happen.   I am living proof of that!

There are countless websites and books written by “experts” that claim the only way to balance your hormones and lose weight is to buy their special formula for a specific supplement, or to follow a very rigid eating plan tailored to your hormone issues that can only be found by buying their book or paying to access their website.  

I’m a researcher by heart and by training, so I’m weary of anyone with dubious credentials whose claims are not yet established by the medical community and not supported with ample scientific evidence.   I bought in to some of this, however, because I was desperate.  Losing weight was hard, and not quick.  Those "experts" seemed to get what I was going through, and I bought the books and followed a few different plans to the T.   Guess what?   It didn’t work.  I didn’t feel any different, and the weight didn’t come off.   Not following those plans, anyway!

Excuse #4:   I couldn’t afford the extra cost to lose weight.  

Yes, this was one of my excuses.   I’m a stay-at-home mom, and we are on a budget.  The thought of paying for a gym membership and changing my carefully calculated food budget sent me into overwhelm mode.   Add on to that the cost of Weight Watchers, and I thought there was no way we could make it work.

When I made the decision that I wanted to lose the weight,  my hubby and I agreed that the issue was important enough to spend the extra money.   In the long run, how could we afford not to?   The health risks, doctor visits, and lower quality of life would far out-cost the WW membership dues.  We moved some things around, made sacrifices in other areas to pay for Weight Watchers, knowing that it would not be a forever expense.   Did you know that once you reach your goal weight, you no longer have to pay for WW meetings?   That’s a great incentive!  

I quickly found that you don’t have to have a gym membership to exercise effectively, and I was able to find food solutions that still fit in our weekly budget.    I wouldn’t have known this if I didn’t just bite the bullet, and do it on faith.   

Excuse #4:   I don’t have time to exercise.    This is a big topic that I’ll explore another day.

  

I was not able to get serious about weight loss until I had debunked all of the excuses I once held as truth.   The excuses held me back, and gave me a reason to stay static.   Don’t let that happen to you!   What are the excuses you've started to believe?