Fab Fit Squad

This week, I had an opportunity to see Suzy Welch speak. She opened her speech by saying that she can’t do it all. I repeat she said she can’t do it all and she doesn’t even try. Instead she picks what’s important and moves on. What a freeing way to live.  So, if you can’t get to it, you don’t dwell on what you didn’t do? AMAZING. That statement felt like the glowing box in Pulp Fiction.  Since that day I’ve been really thinking about what she said and then yesterday I read a great post from Lululemon about what are you going to stop doing.  It stopped me in my tracks, because as women we are always trying to figure our how we can do more!! You know we have 24 hours in 1 day and how I am ongoing to do a million and one things to make everyone happy as well as achieving my own goals.

So now I thinking, I don’t have to it all, so what am I going to stop doing!!!

1. Stop being afraid. Yes, I know I me, afraid, but I am! I have been procrastinating on taking this test because I am afraid I will fail. Guess what if I fail I can take it again. So stop talking take ACTION!
2. Stop spending more than 30 minutes on Twitter and Facebook. I love you all, but I need to get focused on taking my test and growing my business
3. Stop purchasing things and not using them. Now this is going to be tough! I have purchased so many things that still have the tags on them or books that I haven’t even cracked the spine.
4. Stop wanting everything to be perfect. If I doing something just okay. That ’s fine. At least I’m taking steps.
5. Stop feeling like I always have to do something. Say what…It’s a rare day that I can just sit and relax, so take more time to sit and relax. I think about my grandmother, she is 88 years old and I don’t think I’ve seen her sit down for more than 10 minutes at a time. So I don’t want to look back in 48 years and say that I haven’t sat down!
6. Stop multitasking!! That’s right I’m a professional multitasker, if I’m not doing 5 things with my hair on fire I feel like I’m standing still. Moving forward I will set an old fashion kitchen timer and work on 1 thing at for 30 minutes before I move on to the next activity.

So tell me what are you going to stop doing?

I was reading the blogs that I keep up with regularly and read the Orlando Sentinel’s posting about fitness bucket list and it got me thinking.  I love being active and challenging myself so, that article got me thinking.

These are not written in any particular order.

1. Consistently run the Falmouth Road race in August with Philip, my husband. It’s a 7.2 mile race on the Cape, that allows 10,000 people to run in it and its a lottery to get a number. So fingers crossed we get a number consistently.
2. Run a half marathon, I would like to find one that is fun and interesting through the entire way so if someone knows of one, Holla.
3. Beat my times in next July’s Women’s Tri Fit competition. Fingers crossed my husband decides to compete in it as well.
4. Learn to kayak — this is interesting as I never go in the water past my waist.
   
5. Learn to swim — yes, I’ve gone all this time without learning how to formally swim! Basically if I want to kayak, I think I should learn to swim first, just saying.
6. Organize/promote a fitness competition — I’ve been is so many that, don’t focus on the details. I would love to do one that focuses on the details.
7. Practice yoga consistently — I love yoga, but its always the first thing I dump when I get busy prepping for a fitness competition.
8. Relearn to squat – I lost it and I want it back!
9. Do a handstand — ever since I watch Nadia Comaneci score a perfect 10. I have been obsessed with gymnastics.

Here are a few other sites that listed their fitness bucket lists.

Oh She Glows
Healthy Tipping Point

What’s your fitness bucket list? comment below

My husband and I have been talking about running the Falmouth Road race for years and we DID IT!!! It was 7.2 miles of FUN.  The entire course was lined with cheering fans which was AWESOME, especially when this woman at mile 5 told us all that it would get better if we smiled. Which made everyone around us smile. Along the course there were numerous musicians playing motivational songs. Best of all was following a gentlemen who was dressed like David Lee Roth circa 1984.

The race was so well organized, while you did wait in line it was only because you were waiting with 10,000 people to get on the bus to the finish line and to use the portapotty prior to the race. Typically a race thins out once you get to the 1 mile mark, but no so much with this one because the course is so tight.

Best of all is that I enjoyed training with my husband, this was the first time we have ever trained for an event together and it was so much fun to spend quality time training together and yes we crossed the finish lines together. This year we finished the race in 01:16:09. Now I have a number to try to beat next year. Fingers crossed I get lucky in the lottery. In the meantime I’m looking for a new goal. Any suggestions?

Today is our last big run before the race. We will be running 6.2 miles. The humidity is suppose to break or it will be a long, hot sweaty run. If you are in Boston and want to tag along meet us on the river. BTW have I told you that the race doesn’t allow headphones so we have been training without our ipods. I thought it would be hard, but not so much. You really get into a nice rhythm listening to your footsteps and your breathing its kind of meditative.

<a href=”http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/ma/mid-cambridge/868124900372960214″ mce_href=”http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/ma/mid-cambridge/868124900372960214″>Kim and Philip 6.2 miler</a><br/><a href=”http://www.mapmyrun.com/find-run/united-states/ma/mid-cambridge” mce_href=”http://www.mapmyrun.com/find-run/united-states/ma/mid-cambridge”>Find more Runs in Mid-cambridge, Massachusetts</a>

Review of Last Weeks Goals:

* I will update my Falmouth Road Race training schedule
* I will review my Tri Fitness training and see how to improve
* I will read 1 chapter in my wellness coach manual
* I will make an appt with my training buddy to practice coaching
* I will update the Fab Fit Squad blog 3x/week
* I will take 1 yoga class/week

This mean completed
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Source: About.com

I am in the process of completing my wellness coach certification and during this process you are to create your own wellness vision so that you can better understand what its like to create one and how to guide your clients in the process.

So you may be asking what is a wellness coach?  Wellness Coaches not only support your fitness efforts, they help you understand and take steps to embrace and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

The crux of understanding how to embrace and maintain a healthy lifestyle is painting a picture of what your life would look like and how would you feel when you achieved your healthy lifestyle.  While painting this picture you will also look at what is YOUR motivation, not someone’s for achieving this lifestyle and what steps are you willing to take to make this picture become a reality. The vision helps you think about how you are going to motivate yourself to achieve your wellness vision.

Here is my 3 month wellness vision.

• To fix my muscle imbalances so that I may stay active for a long time
  • What is motivating to achieve this goal. I’m (like it or lump) getting older and still want to be as active as possible
  • My main obstacle is finding the time to take care of myself– yes you read that correctly. I struggle with that life balance, taking care of myself versus the needs of my clients, business and family. Just like you I will and can find plenty excuses to do other things, like train my clients or work or things around the house. Yes, as much as I love working out I too struggle with this.
  • My strategy around this is to put my workouts in my calendar and make an appointment with myself, this isn’t an option.

The key to achieving my wellness vision is to break my vision into small digestible goals. I will break them in what I want to achieve in 3 months and the steps I will take weekly towards achieving my goals. If you notice my goals are SMART goals. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely.

Specific = My goal is phrased in a way that answers these questions — Who, What, How, When, Which, Why and Where

Source: Beginner TriAthlete.com

Measurable = This is how you are going to measure progress and action towards your goals
Attainable = This is where I look to you want to challenge yourself, but if there set your goals too high you may lose interest in attaining them
Realistic = The goal needs to be realistic for where you are, as stated above it should challenge and motivate you to keep moving forward, but should not kill you to achieve your goal.
Timely = You need to set a timeline, a goal without a timeline is just a dream.

3 month goal

1. To compete in the Women’s TriFitness Competition on July 10th
   
   • I will focus on the areas of the competition that I am weakness
   • I will bench press 3x/week
   • I will do the box jump 3x/week
2. I will be able to complete 10 squats with weight in good form
   • I will begin doing corrective exercises 3/week
   • I will take a yoga class 2x week to increase my flexibility and stability
3. I will rid myself of sciatica pain
   • I will make an appointment for the week of July 12th to meet with Aaron Brooks, posture specialist
   • I will stretch for 30 minutes a day
4. In the off-season, I will not exceed 10 pounds above my contest weight.
   • I will stick to the 7 day sugar shutdown program devised by my coach. This will help me with my sugar cravings, yes I do CRAVE sugar
   • I will workout 5 day/week by doing a combination 30 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of weight training

Weekly Goals:

• I will update my Falmouth Road Race training schedule
• I will review my Tri Fitness training and see how to improve
• I will read 1 chapter in my wellness coach manual
• I will make an appt with my training buddy to practice coaching
• I will update the Fab Fit Squad blog 3x/week
• I will take 1 yoga class/week

Each week, I will keep you up to date on how I progress on my wellness vision. Need help crafting yours. Let me know.

Americans spend between $33 and $40 billion on diet programs, books, products and other gimmicks.  We are obsessed with getting leaner and meaner, but we aren’t obsessed with the hard work that it takes to achieve the slim trim figure that they are seeking. Below are the top 10 reasons why diets don’t work.

1. You follow a diet that you can’t stick with because a friend of yours has seen results.
   You’re better off finding a diet that works for the type of eater that you are.  Carb junkie, try the Mediterranean diet the high good fat content will help keep you satiated. Meat lover, try a slightly, again slightly higher protein intake level. Take your weight in pounds ÷ 2 = grams of protein/day.

1. You don’t eat breakfast or eat enough for breakfast.
   Eating breakfast can help you lose weight, yes, it can.  If you answer for why you don’t eat in the AM is because you don’t feel hungry, take a look at what you are eating in the evening prior. Breakfast eaters have lost on average 30 pounds more than non-breakfast eater.  Be sure to include a carbohydrate, and a protein. Below are to examples of great breakfasts.
   No cook breakfast recipe
   Ricotta Pancakes
2. You don’t count calories.
   Trust me, when you don’t write down what you eat, you may be eating MORE than you think. Especially if you are a nibbler, you know who you are, you pick all day long. Guess what it ADDS up!! Or are you that person who doesn’t eat ALL day and then gorges yourself in the evening. Get a grip on what you’re eating by keeping a food log, this will tell you what type of eater you are and how many calories you are actually consuming.
3. You skip meals.
   The USDA recently reported that waiting 4-5 hours between meals will cause you to overeat.  If your excuse is that I can’t get away from my desk or I have back to back meetings and don’t have time to eat.  Stock your drawers, glove box, gym bag what have you have with healthy snacks ~ whole grain cereals, pre-packaged nuts, Greek Yogurt or fresh fruit.
4. You load up on superfoods.
   These may be good for you, but too much of a good thing is bad for you. Make sure you are eating, nuts, avocados, dried fruit in MEASURED quantities.
   Superfood: Blueberries
5. You workout so you can eat whatever you want.
   So you just go back from a kick out spin class or lifting weights, so now that means you can eat whatever you want right, I mean you EARNED, right! AHHH, NO!!!! Unless you are wearing one of those heart rate monitors that can accurately measure that amount of calories you expended and you are tracking what you eat with a fine tooth comb, you are very likely to OVEREAT! A great post workout meal includes quick acting carbohydrate such as a piece of fruit and a protein like a yogurt. Instead of rewarding yourself with food have about a nice massage after a certain number of workouts.
6. You live it up on the weekends.
   Monday-Friday you are watching every morsel you put in your mouth, then the weekends come and you lose your GOD DAMN mind. These activities bring all your dieting efforts to a screeching halt.  Be sensible on the weekend, give yourself a cheat meal, no one needs to be deprived.
7. You’re a stress eater/drinker.
   You had a bad day so you dive deep into the chocolate, the ice cream or cocktails. Give in, but put a limit on it. Instead of shotgunning a whole pint of Ben and Jerry’s go and have 1 scoop, yes 1 scoop will help feel better without putting it on your ass.
8. You are sleeping enough.
   You go to bed to late, stress or children keep you from sleeping. Poor sleeping conditions will cause you to overeat or under eat. See I’m Exhausted for more tips on how to get a good night sleep.
9. Not getting enough exercise.
   Just watching what you eat will not help you lose weight, you will need to MOVE. You heard me MOVE. You will need to budget 25 minutes 5/week to exercise. Now am I saying go out run 5 miles, not at all. You can start simply by walking at lunch or going a extra few blocks with the dog during your morning or evening walks, Fido would appreciate it.
10. Not drinking enough water.
    When we don’t drink enough water, its easy confuse hunger with thirst. I know they say you drink a gallon. Pick yourself up off the floor, I know a gallon is a lot, but I’m not saying walk around like the bodybuilders you see at the gym loaded up with their gallon of Poland Springs.  But what I am saying is that if you purchase a waterbottle that holds exactly 1 quart and you give yourself a goal to drink 4 of your waterbottles in 12 hours, guess what you’ve drank your gallon of water SURPRISE.

Do you have any other reasons why you think diets don’t work. Do you have any tips that might help others achieve their goals.

I remember when I was in high school and Oprah walked out onto to her talk show in those black Calvin Klein size 10 jeans and boy did she feel like she arrived!  Now fast forward to 2008 and she is now over 200 pounds.  Has this ever happened to you?

You lose some weight and then start to eat everyhting you’ve been mising on your diet?

DIETS DON’T WORK!!!

Oprah has more money and can afford to a trainer everyday, a cook and an in home gym and she still struggles, do you want to know why?

It boils down to change and your commitment to making change, as we approach resolution season ask yourself 3 questions:

1. Why is it important to change
2. What barriers will you encounter
3. How will you over come those barriers

Let’s be honest life happens, but what are prepared to pick yourself up when life knocks you down?

Talk me, how did you answer those 3 questions.

New Year Resolution making is just around the corner.  Let me ask, how’d you do last year? Do you achieve all that you set out to resolve?  Well how me make 2009 the year that you make all your new year’s resolutions?

Here are few steps to help you make them.

1. Define your goals and write down your goals so that they are visible
   • a flab stomach is a wish
   • losing 5 pounds of fat is a goal
2. Create a  tracking system
   • without a tracking system how will you know how you are doing against your goal
3. Grab a partner or board of directors
   • someone or a group of folks who you tell your goal and will how you accountable.  I talking touch love, not someone who will say “that’s OK, you’ll do it next year”
4. Evaluate
   • take a look at your tracking system and see how you are doing are you making process, if not why what do you need to change to hit your goals, if you are hitting your goals, how can you keep going.

Quick advice:

Don’t set more than 2 resolutions this year.  If you find that you are accomplishing what you want to do, then set 2 more.  Most folks want to change the world after their hangover where off, so put the cape back in the closet and pick 2 things you REALLY want to accomplish this year and work your fanny off to get it.

So, tell what are you thinking about this year?  Do you want someone hold you accountable?  I can help you need me to give you a hug while I kick you the A%#$^&.

Stay tuned, I have some goals I am working on and will share them with you next Monday!