Exercise for the Soul: Finishing Friday

Ok so it's the end of the week. You're tired. The weekend is almost upon you. Do you feel like maybe this week hasn't gone as planned?

Well every Friday I am going to suggest an exercise for your mind and spirit.

Today I want you to think up on thing you need to do today. It can be something on your to do list or a goal you want to meet.
Here's some suggestions from my previous Fridays:
Track down funky smell from kitchen
Wash all ten baskets of laundry
Get through entire day without sugar
Get through entire day without yelling at kids

Be serious or have fun with it. The important thing is to make sure it gets done. Move heaven and earth if you have to. Just get er done.

The goal of this exercise is to prove to yourself that you can achieve your goals with a little will umph and intent. I promise that after you finish it you will feel a rush of satisfaction of actually doing what you said you'd do.

I personally do this everyday. I find it makes me feel more accomplished and helps build my self esteem because I feel like I made a difference and have control in my life

Like the little kid off the cereal commercial says "Try it, you'll like it"

Food for Thought:Costco Pizza

Thursdays are going to be my random thought, fact or observation.

 Here's a little FYI  The by-the-slice Food court Cheese Pizza at Costco is 700 calories. That's for one slice people.  I used to estimate it at 350 tops.  ehhh wrong. The next time I'm in costco looking at that pizza, I'm gonna decide if that cheesy goodness is worth 700 calories of my daily budget. Some days yes, some days no. But at least I won't underestimate it again

Dress for Success: Lose the Muffin Top

This ones a little close to home today.
When buying clothes, go for fit rather than size.

I worked hard to go from 2X to a small pant size/ medium top. So when I went shopping for an outfit at a new store, Lucy, I was ticked when the medium active tank with built in sports bra fit more like a sausage casing than a supportive and lightly compressive yoga top. I did not NOT want to admit defeat and buy the much more flattering large. It took a few minutes to realize that, no, I had not changed shape since the last time. This was a new brand with a different size chart

But oh, my pride did not want to listen. I wanted to go find a store where the mediums fit. Even though this "large" top was probably the most comfortable well made and flattering item I had tried on.

In the end I did what I am advising you to do...ignore the size. In some brands you will be a M in others a L or XL. But guess what? The only person that ever sees that little tag is you. What everyone else sees is how it fits. So would you rather squeeze into the size 8 jeans that give you a horrible muffin top, just so you know you are wearing an 8. Or would you rather find a pair of jeans that make your butt look fabulous, even though it might be a size or two bigger in that brand.

Unless you leave the sales tag on, the general public will never know your size. And if you want, you can cut out the tag so you don't have to either. A proper fitted garment will make you look slimmer than an ill fitting smaller size or much too big size that swamps you.

Snack Smart: Starbursts

Mindless snacking can be a killer You eat five Starbursts thinking "Eh, I don't need to worry about it. It's only 5".

Well did you know those 5 starburst equals 100 calories. You would need to run a mile just balance your budget.

If you are hungry, candy is not the way to go. Empty calories and you'll only crave more. Try fruit or a light yogurts. Still sweet but fills your tummy a bit more

Fitness tip: A mile is a mile is a mile

Here's a quick fitness tip. A mile is a mile no matter how fast you go. Walking you'll burn roughly 100 calories. Jogging at 10 min pace, roughly 110 calories. Killing yourself at 7 min pace 125 calories

So don't go faster and push yourself more than you are able for calories sake. You will burn far less calories running full speed for 2 mins and keeling over than if you walk until you are tired

S.O.S Stuck Ostrich Syndome

  

I'm trying something new. I want to mirror my blog a little like my marathon training; one long run a week, and several short ones. So from hence forth, Monday-Friday will be filled with short blurbs with fitness tips and food for thought  Saturdays are reserved for the long posts - the long run. And just like my running, on Sunday I will rest.

Today's long run is about weight loss S.O.S - Stuck Ostrich Syndrome

Now I am not ragging on ostriches. They're pretty cool birds. They can run up to speeds of 40 MPH, their meat is super lean, and the males egg sit at night so the females can have girls night out. But I think almost everyone had heard some version of a proverb about the ostrich with it's head stuck in the sand. The idea is that the ostrich, afraid of something, buries its head in the sand so it doesn't have to see the big scary monster. Interestingly, this is a myth. The ostrich only looks like its head is buried in the sand because of its light color. Because it does lay down its head to hide, it can still see what's going on.

Now you're are probably saying, Wow that's fascinating. Thanks for the National Geographic update Betsy/ But what's this have to do with weight loss?

Well I'll tell you. In past incarnations of my attempts to lose weight, I would tell myself and anyone who would listen, that I had no idea why I wasn't dropping the pounds. I was doing all the right things: exercising, counting calories. I figured my body had some defect that demanded I be fat. My size was not in my control and I put blinders on to the prospect that I could be responsible.

But you probably guessed, I had my head buried in the sand. I didn't want to examine some of the behaviors that were keeping me fat. Sure I was exercising, but was I really putting in a full effort, or just kinda jogging in place? And when I was counting calories, did I actually measure a serving size, or did I eyeball it and estimate?  If it was a homemade meal I'm sure I drastically under estimated the calories while way overestimating what my portion size should be. Not to mention I never counted the handfuls of marshmellow cereal I would grab on the way past the pantry. There weren't enough calories in a single handful to make it worth my time to add right? Or if I finished of the kids plate? Midnight snacking?  The list goes on.

Then there's the excuses as to why I'm fat. Because my parents are fat. Because its all muscle (muscle can be really jiggly right?). Because I'm getting older and my metabolism is slowing.

It was easier not to know what exactly I was putting into my body. If I knew that each slice of banana nut bread was 200 calories, then I wouldn't be able to eat it. Easier to assume the Cafe rio salad was healthy since it was salad than to find out it was a whopping 1000 calories.

But like the ostrich (see told you I'd get back there) my head was not really buried in the sand. I may have been hiding, but I think I knew what was going on. I may have been covering my eyes, but I was peeking.  Even in my own self denial I saw the truth and that's one of the reasons I hated myself so much for it. The problem wasn't that I was fat, the problem was that I was lying to myself. And just like when you lie to someone else you feel horribly guilty (hopefully), your insides will twist up when you lie to yourself too.

So don't be an ostrich with its head stuck in the sand, or lying on top of it. Hold your head high and stay informed. If you want to lose weight, the only way you are going to do it is by knowing what your eating and how many calories your body is actually burning a day.  Be  specific, be informed. Take control. See if that cinnamon roll tastes as good now that you know its 800 calories. If it does, rock on. At least you are consciously making that choice instead of deceiving yourself.

Information is power. Get some. Like GI Joe used to say, "and knowing is half the battle"

I Want It All, and I Want It Now

Queen was right on the money with that song, "I want it all".

Everything about our lives is all about instant gratification. About the destination rather than the journey. We all want to be rich, to be thin, to be accomplished. We want it all, and we want it now. Don't worry, I count myself within the royal "we".

I'm getting ready for my run, it's an 11 miler. The way a marathon training program generally works is that you start out small with your miles. 4 runs a week : 2 shorts, 1 medium, and 1 long. Then every week you up the mileage about 10 percent or so. So you can imagine that going from 5 mile runs up to 20 mile runs, takes about 4 months or so.

So I find myself frustrated. I've already run a marathon. Why am I stuck back here again, doing training runs working up to the big cheese? Can't I just run 20 milers for my long runs every week and be done with it? I would enjoy adding the calories burnt to my budget I'm sure. But what I wouldn't enjoy is the injury to my legs. My body needs to work up to the longer, more taxing runs. If I try to do too much too soon, well just read about the eager beaver from last time.

Guess what? This applies to everything, weight loss especially. You want to be skinny, beach ready by summer. Let's see, do some math... that's maybe 10 lbs a month right? (Random numbers for you. It will vary) That's doable, that's setting a goal and making a plan. Wrong. I guarantee tears if you give yourself a required pound amount per month. Don't limit your success to an arbitrary timeline. Go ahead and make a budget that will help you maximize your weight loss. But relish each pound as it melts away instead of focusing on how many more are to go.

Would you be disappointed if summer came and you'd only lost 20 of your unwanted 30 pounds? You shouldn't. It's a process and if you're doing all the right things and sticking to your budget, then it will come off when its ready to. Each body is different and yours might want to hang onto those last few pounds for a really long goodbye. Let it. Don't beat yourself up. Your efforts have already made you a success and probably a much healthier person too.

So whatever you're doing: running, losing weight, writing, school, whatever -- don't rush over the little dips to get to the end. Celebrate each chapter, mile, and pound. Every one is an accomplishment and every one is essential to the pathway of your goal. Enjoy the ride.