1. I eat. A lot. I enjoy a large volume of food and this helps to keep me from binging. My secret? My plate is piled high with non-starchy vegetables, and I have gi-normous salads often. To season my veggies I sprinkle on various seasonings, but most often I just use salt, pepper, and lemon pepper (the secret here- no butter or oil!).
2. I eat out often. I have to. Right now I am raising my daughter alone, plus I have an adult handicapped son that she and I frequently spend time with (my husband lives and works far away). As the sole driver for her many activities I just don't have time to do as much cooking as I would like. Plus, I really enjoy letting someone else do the dishes. I always look for places that have healthy options at a great value.
3. I rarely share my meals. I'll let you have a taste, and I might taste yours, but it's my food, and I'm hungry! If it's a day where I need to be careful I'll order a grilled chicken salad and have them hold the cheese and crunchy things (Dressing is always on the side and I fork-dip), or get the baked chicken with broccoli and baked potato (toppings again, always on the side and I use sparingly). If I feel like splurging I work it into my daily macronutrients, but I'll be eating the whole danged thing, thank you very much!
4. Likewise, I don't need a to-go box. On the rare occasion that I don't eat everything on my plate (including the parsley!), I'm not taking it with me. It may look like a waste, but I don't consider it a value to have tempting stuff sitting in my fridge.
5. I have an intense sweet tooth. A couple of times a week I'll have a few cookies or a small ice-cream cone or some other yummy thing. I've found that as I've gotten leaner I can afford to do this less and less, but the fact is that I have a sweet tooth and to deny it entirely is unreasonable, if not impossible.
6. I usually take weekends completely off from exercise. I do long and hard workout sessions most weekdays, but I don't want to have to worry about going to the gym on the weekends- they're for me and my kids.
7. I binge. This is a hard one to admit, but it does happen sometimes. Thankfully, not as often as it used to, but occasionally I do go nutz with the eating. This is a psychological (and sometimes hormonal) issue, and I'm working on it. But it still happens from time to time. (It usually starts with peanut butter.) The difference from now compared to when I was heavy is that I no longer view it as utter failure and allow it to send me into a downhill spiral of continuing to eat like crap for days on end. I start fresh the next day and really clean up my diet to help off-set the damage by reducing carbs, being careful about sodium, and making sure to get plenty of lean proteins, non-starchy veggies, and water to help the garbage I ate move out of my system. I also try to get in a little extra cardio the next few days to help burn the stored glycogen from the binge out of my system before too much of it can get converted to fat.
8. I take at least a week off of exercise every 10 weeks or so. This varies according to A.) How intensely I have been working out and 2.) What is going on in my life. When I am hitting the gym super-hard, the break will come closer to the 8-week mark. When my intensity level is lower, I'll take a break every 12. These breaks are important to both my fitness and mental well-being, and I look forward to them.
9. I usually go for the full-fat/higher calorie version. Fat free sour cream? Way to ruin a perfectly good taco! Light mayo? Nasty! Deserts made with Splenda for sugar and apple sauce in place of the oil? Forget it! I'd rather have a little of the "real" stuff than a bunch of bad-tasting and unsatisfying low-cal stuff. And don't lecture me about how much worse this stuff is for my body. I know, and I'm eatin' it anyway.
10. I eat a great, big breakfast. I mean, huge. It's calorie dense and yummy, although usually very healthy. A typical breakfast for me is 1/2 C of dry oatmeal with a chopped up apple cooked in it and about a teaspoon of Smart Balance Margarine and cinnamon mixed in (this makes a pretty big bowl of oatmeal, BTW). I'll eat along side this a whole egg scrambled with 1/2 to 3/4 C of liquid egg substitute or egg whites. I like to start my day with a full belly.
Being fit is work, but I am far from perfect and there are some things I just won't compromise on. Maybe some of these things will change as I progress (#7 would be a great one to lose!). But if none of them do I'm not kicking myself.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Make Sure Your Trainer Or Nutritionist Is Qualified
Make sure that who you hire as a Personal Trainer or Sports Nutritionist is qualified to help you. Here's a few tips:
- Ask to see their certification. In person, either a personal trainer or sports nutritionist should be able to show you a little card given to them by their accredited organization that tells when their certification expires. When working with a trainer long-distance they should be able to send you to a profile on-line with the organization they are certified by. I'm not trying to solicit business, but just so that you can get an idea of what I'm talking about, here's mine: http://www.acefitness.org/findanacepro/ACECertifiedProfessionalProfile.aspx?acecp=dxwz6zz
- Watch out for their phrasing when they discuss who they are certified with. For instance, if they say "I have been certified with", and then rattle off a bunch of accredited organizations, beware! This probably means they are not currently certified. It also means they are trying to be deceitful. Do you want to pay money to someone who is trying to deceive you from the get-go?
- While personal trainers can legally give you some help with diet, to hold the title "Sports Nutritionist" in almost every state a person needs to have both a degree in a related field (duh!), and an additional certification as a Sports Nutritionist. If you ask to see the certification, you can pretty much know that they have the degree. So a chef who is also a personal trainer does not a Sports Nutritionist make.
Here's an article on it, if you want a little more info: http://www.ehow.com/about_6587653_education-plan-sports-nutrition.html
And trust me, you won't have to ask if they have a degree- any accredited Sports Nutritionist will let you know right off of the bat that he or she has a bachelors in Sports Nutrition. If they don't, either start asking questions or run away!
- Just because someone is a sports nutritionist does not mean they are a personal trainer, although changes are they will also have that certification, as well, because it just makes sense.
Why is certification so important? Because we have to keep our certifications current, which means we are taking CEC courses, which means we are learning the latest in at least one area of our field. I have taken CEC courses in lifestyle and weight management, women's fitness, targeting exercise specifically for the clients needs, and senior fitness. Additionally, at least with ACE, we get a monthly publication that keeps us abreast of all that is the latest and greatest in the health and fitness world. When someone has access to the very latest information (I usually find out about it before non-certified people do) , they can give you the best help possible.
- Ask to see their certification. In person, either a personal trainer or sports nutritionist should be able to show you a little card given to them by their accredited organization that tells when their certification expires. When working with a trainer long-distance they should be able to send you to a profile on-line with the organization they are certified by. I'm not trying to solicit business, but just so that you can get an idea of what I'm talking about, here's mine: http://www.acefitness.org/findanacepro/ACECertifiedProfessionalProfile.aspx?acecp=dxwz6zz
- Watch out for their phrasing when they discuss who they are certified with. For instance, if they say "I have been certified with", and then rattle off a bunch of accredited organizations, beware! This probably means they are not currently certified. It also means they are trying to be deceitful. Do you want to pay money to someone who is trying to deceive you from the get-go?
- While personal trainers can legally give you some help with diet, to hold the title "Sports Nutritionist" in almost every state a person needs to have both a degree in a related field (duh!), and an additional certification as a Sports Nutritionist. If you ask to see the certification, you can pretty much know that they have the degree. So a chef who is also a personal trainer does not a Sports Nutritionist make.
Here's an article on it, if you want a little more info: http://www.ehow.com/about_6587653_education-plan-sports-nutrition.html
And trust me, you won't have to ask if they have a degree- any accredited Sports Nutritionist will let you know right off of the bat that he or she has a bachelors in Sports Nutrition. If they don't, either start asking questions or run away!
- Just because someone is a sports nutritionist does not mean they are a personal trainer, although changes are they will also have that certification, as well, because it just makes sense.
Why is certification so important? Because we have to keep our certifications current, which means we are taking CEC courses, which means we are learning the latest in at least one area of our field. I have taken CEC courses in lifestyle and weight management, women's fitness, targeting exercise specifically for the clients needs, and senior fitness. Additionally, at least with ACE, we get a monthly publication that keeps us abreast of all that is the latest and greatest in the health and fitness world. When someone has access to the very latest information (I usually find out about it before non-certified people do) , they can give you the best help possible.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
The Importance of Water
One of the keys to losing and now maintaining my weight has been drinking copious amounts of water (rarely less than 1 and sometimes up to 2 gallons a day). I promised someone a while back who was surprised I considered it so important that I would post a blog on the subject. I'm finally making good on that promise.
Here are a few of the many benefits of drinking plenty of water (not zero-calorie beverages: WATER!)
- Let's start with the most motivating one: Water helps waste move through the body in a mighty way. This means that a bunch of crud won't be hanging around inside you and you're more likely to weigh less on the scale in the mornings (after you've peed), because the content of your intestines will weigh less. Full intestines can cause several pounds of scale weight gain if you are.... er..... stopped up. So drinking water helps to give you a truer scale weight.
-Water helps to break down the nutrients in your food better, thus increasing your metabolism. Not only that, if you are getting the nutrients you need the chances of cravings is reduced.
- Water helps regulate blood sugar, which helps insulin levels to stay steady, also reducing your likelihood to overindulge in sweet stuff.
- Water helps to give your stomach a full feel so that you are less likely to overeat.
- Plenty of water in your system helps your body to keep you cool during workouts, therefore allowing you to work out harder and get more bang for your exercise buck.
- Water is the primary ingredient in the synovial fluid around the joints, which allows them to move freely and gives them cushioning during your workouts.
There are a TON of other ways that water benefits the body, but these are ones that specifically relate to weight loss and fitness.
Can you drink too much water? Yes- There is such a thing as water toxicity. But to get that you have to drink stupid amounts of water. The kidneys can process quite a lot of water an hour (over a quart) easily. You'd pretty much have to TRY to drink too much water to get water toxicity. Stay away from water-chugging contests and you'll probably be fine. :-)
And lastly, do I pee a lot? YES! But you don't pee out all that you drink- water goes out of you in other ways, like sweat and respiration, too. And I will say that my bladder size has increased since increasing my water intake. So while I still visit the bathroom more often than most other adults I know, I'm not seeing the inside of the ladies room as often as I did this time last year.
Here are a few of the many benefits of drinking plenty of water (not zero-calorie beverages: WATER!)
- Let's start with the most motivating one: Water helps waste move through the body in a mighty way. This means that a bunch of crud won't be hanging around inside you and you're more likely to weigh less on the scale in the mornings (after you've peed), because the content of your intestines will weigh less. Full intestines can cause several pounds of scale weight gain if you are.... er..... stopped up. So drinking water helps to give you a truer scale weight.
-Water helps to break down the nutrients in your food better, thus increasing your metabolism. Not only that, if you are getting the nutrients you need the chances of cravings is reduced.
- Water helps regulate blood sugar, which helps insulin levels to stay steady, also reducing your likelihood to overindulge in sweet stuff.
- Water helps to give your stomach a full feel so that you are less likely to overeat.
- Plenty of water in your system helps your body to keep you cool during workouts, therefore allowing you to work out harder and get more bang for your exercise buck.
- Water is the primary ingredient in the synovial fluid around the joints, which allows them to move freely and gives them cushioning during your workouts.
There are a TON of other ways that water benefits the body, but these are ones that specifically relate to weight loss and fitness.
Can you drink too much water? Yes- There is such a thing as water toxicity. But to get that you have to drink stupid amounts of water. The kidneys can process quite a lot of water an hour (over a quart) easily. You'd pretty much have to TRY to drink too much water to get water toxicity. Stay away from water-chugging contests and you'll probably be fine. :-)
And lastly, do I pee a lot? YES! But you don't pee out all that you drink- water goes out of you in other ways, like sweat and respiration, too. And I will say that my bladder size has increased since increasing my water intake. So while I still visit the bathroom more often than most other adults I know, I'm not seeing the inside of the ladies room as often as I did this time last year.
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