Posts tagged fitness
Bye Bye Soda
Jul 19th
I’ve been adamant about drinking a lot of water and iced tea lately. I was bombarded twice in the same day with anti-soda messages from different sources. Both indicating that I was drinking calories that i should have been eating instead. Not to mention there are 16 grams of sugar in every 20 oz bottle. Today our little girl enjoyed 2 cups of milk and nothing but water instead of her usual sugary juices and a quick sip of soda pop from Dad.
We’ll see how the rest of the week plays out but for now, bye bye soda!
My New Workout Buddy
Jun 25th
I´ve mentioned my desire to lose between 15-20 pounds and get back in shape and wanted to update my progress. So far I suck at this running thing. I have one excuse for every pound I want to drop. My goal now is to drop every excuse with those pounds.
Special thanks to my friend Brandon over at FitHacks I am the proud owner of the Sony Walkman headset. This little guy is a much better workout buddy than my iPod Touch. I don´t have to worry anymore about an earphone cord getting tangled up with my arms or legs while I workout. The earbuds fit more snug and secure while I am running as opposed to the iPodś buds flopping out with every other step. Another great feature is the water resistance. Just in case I break a sweat I won´t have my ears fried.
The player syncs up well with Windows Media Player, Banshee or Rhythmbox and I can drag-n-drop up to 2GB worth of songs into it. Yes, the iPod can carry 30GB of music but I don´t plan on working out that long to be honest with you. =)
I´ve had this for almost a month now and am very pleased with it. Thanks again, Brandon for one more excuse I get to drop and get to my goal.
Keeping Pace
Apr 20th
Begin cardio that you can stick with – Lately, a lot of people have been downplaying the effectiveness of long, slow cardio as a means of losing weight. Maybe they’re right. Maybe there are faster ways that people can drop weight. But if you attempt something that is so intense that you’re out of commission for a week, then it probably isn’t something that you’ll be able to stick to.
This applies to me. I was pretty gung-ho about dropping some weight after seeing the positive effects it has had on my brother-in-law. I ran 4 miles last week and haven’t done it since. Pace yourself!
Let’s Do Something
Jan 1st
*
We cannot keep doing what we are doing and expect change. Come to think of it, we cannot expect hope and change from those who would promise better things. The time is coming and has now come that we go back to what made us strong. Hard work. Are you as tired as I am with the status quo? Are you exasperated that for some time now you feel like you have lost control? Our households will not get better by themselves. Your bank accounts will not increase by themselves. The careers we have will have to be dictated by us, not at the whims of over-extending bigwigs. It’s time to wake up, Uh-merica. This year I am resolving to get back control over myself.
For far too long I have sat back and watched as the waistline increased, my brain cells decrease and my personal happiness go bye-bye. In 2010 I will be healthier, smarter and happier with the help of hard work and determination.
Because I have lost control of myself I have allowed outside forces to take control. I will reclaim my independence and start working harder and smarter for me & mine. I have never been afraid to work hard, I just have forgotten how. Time to relearn.
I enjoyed Chris Brogan’s article on making construction sexy. “Get your hard hat. Get your blue prints. Find your crew. Let’s make construction sexy. You with me?”
* Thanks to Hugh at Gaping Void for the illustration inspiration
Stress Management & The Art Of Relaxation
Dec 3rd
I had mentioned in a previous article about my desire to relieve stress from my world. I wanted to share some tools I have discovered that may be useful to others. I started off with my basic issue of sleep deprivation and discovered some great apps for my iPod Touch. These apps are mostly sound-based such as WhiteNoise which plays a variety of background noise such as wind chimes, rainfall, airplane travel and more. Another discovery and one that was a little awkward to get use to is iBrainWave which allows you to “tune your brain”. It is a binaural brain stimulator by playing constant tones at frequencies you choose, you can sleep, meditate, or relax. If you need energy, just simply raise the megahertz frequency.
I have even downloaded a few yoga and meditation apps to guide my breathing, posture, stretching and body/mind relaxation. I’ve even downloaded a few relaxation/meditation podcasts that incorporate verbal instruction as well as soothing music to help relieve stress.
Perhaps as a new year resolution to self I will pursue light yoga as a means to stretch and relax my body more. In the past I will admit I had had reservations about these techniques but when I hear of professional athletes using these as a means to stay healthy in addition to their workouts…well, it deserves consideration. I will avoid all references to Eastern spiritualism as I know it is not relevant in my world. Instead I will probably meditate on God’s Word just as the writers of Psalms instruct.
I’ll be honest when I say that this is an endeavor I will struggle with and could use some support and guidance. How do you manage your stress?