What is your favorite fitness day/activity?
My Wednesday run with my training partner Brandi.
We usually do between 4-5 miles and chat about work, kids, husbands and
anything else we can find to pass the time. I always tell her “thanks for
the therapy” after our runs, because that is really what they feel like. A
close second is Mondays, which are yoga days. I do my long runs on Sundays and
Yoga is such a treat after an extended pounding of the pavement!
What is your favorite fitness routine?
I have a great squat set that is killer, but my legs feel totally energized after: 10 regular squats
with weights (I hold a 20 pound kettle bell or use a squat rack, but you can
use dumbbells or no weight too). Then 10 single-leg Romanian dead lifts with a
10-pound kettle bell (again, can be done with no weight). Finish with 10 jump
squats. Rest for 1 minute and repeat, twice.
Why do you choose to stay fit?
Growing up exercise and
sports were a standard in my family. I was a competitive swimmer through
college and my sister was a three sport letter winner in high school. Our
parents never missed an opportunity to promote the importance of staying active
to us. After I had my first child, I started to make a lot of excuses why I
couldn’t exercise, and eating healthy seemed like too much work now that I was
a Mom with a full time job. After my second child was born, I couldn’t lose my
baby weight and and felt like I had no energy for anything. I finally decided
that I needed to stop believing in my excuses and start setting the same
example for my kids as my parents set for me. Once I started back on the road
to fitness, the choice to stay on it shifted to a more selfish track…I
started to lose weight, regain some of my competitive fires and signed up for a
5K, then a 10K, then a triathlon, and I did well in the races. So now my choice
to stay fit is not only to show my kids that it’s important, but it’s also to
show myself that I didn’t have to stop being an athlete just because I
graduated from college! My six year old did her first Triathlon this summer,
and I already have plans for she and I to compete in a Mother/Daughter race in
a few years 🙂 I actually no longer consider being fit a “choice.” It
is just the way I live my life.
Aside from physical exercise, what other ways
do you incorporate healthy choices into your life?
Eating
for convenience was my norm for many years. I wasn’t eating super unhealthy
foods, but working full time meant dinners often were rush-jobs that needed to
get on the table fast to appease hungry kids and busy mornings left no time for
preparing a healthy lunch to take to the office, which often led to fast food
fixes in the middle of the day.
Since I started exercising on a regular basis I
have made a point to make sure that what I put into my body fuels it in an
appropriate way. I pre-portion veggies and hummus for snacks and make sure
there is always a lot of easy to grab fresh fruit around for snacks. Planning
out our dinner menus a week in advance has helped to keep dinner making more
manageable, and therefore healthier. I also make myself get up an hour earlier
in the mornings so I have time to make myself lunch to bring to work. This has
not only allowed me to eat healthier, it has saved a TON of money (which I now
spend on new running shoes :).
I don’t want to mislead you and say I never eat
convenient foods anymore, and every once in awhile I still find myself
finishing off what is left on my kids’ plates after dinner, but my mindset has
definitely changed. I ask myself two questions before every meal or snack,
“Is this going to fuel my body in a good way?” and if the answer to
that question is “no” I ask, “Is what I am about to eat worth the
empty calories?” If the answer to the second question is “yes”
I don’t beat myself up about it. Being able to forgive yourself is a really
healthy choice in my book!
How have you dealt with any setbacks that have prevented you from working out, staying in
shape, or eating healthily?
I only started running about 10-months ago, so I have had to adjust
to new aches and pains I wasn’t used to having before (tendonitis in my ankle,
achy knees and hips), but I’ve learned to really listen to my body and give it
breaks when it needs them. I am lucky to have an extremely supportive family
and to work in an environment that is very conducive to exercise. My boss even
encourages all our staff to work out daily, which has been a huge asset for me.
I can exercise on my lunch break instead of having to get up at the crack of
dawn or take time away from my family in the evenings to get a work out in.
What advice do you have for someone just
beginning their journey into healthy living and/or exercising?
One of the things I hear
most from people is “I just can’t stick to a healthy routine like you do,
how do you do it?” I struggled with answering that question for a long
time because I didn’t really know what it was about “this time” that
has made me stick to it. I put “this time” in quotes because I can’t
even count the number of times I have started a diet and exercise regime only
to give it up six weeks into it. Then I realized that I stuck with it this time
because I gave myself small, sustainable, and realistic goals. In the past I
would get frustrated at the six week mark because I hadn’t achieved miraculous
results, so I figured, why bother? This time around, I didn’t set a weight loss
goal. Instead, I set a goal to “be able to run a mile without
stopping.” A small, attainable goal. Once I got there, the new goal was
“I want to run a 5K.” Then a few months in, when I started to see a
difference on the scale, I set a weight loss goal but didn’t give my self a
time parameter to reach it. I started a food journal (myfitnesspal.com) and
made a conscious effort to eat better. It took me 5 months to reach my goal of
running a 5K and 6 months to reach my weight loss goal. By that time, I had
created habits that I new I could stick with for the long haul.
So the best advice I can give to someone just starting out is create a healthy
living plan that you can live with. Crash diets and working out three times a
week with a personal trainer are not sustainable for most people. Find a food
plan you can incorporate into your lifestyle. If you love cookies, eat them for
crying out loud… just don’t eat five of them everyday. If you have no choice
but to eat out for lunch everyday, find out how many calories are in your
go-to meals and adjust what you eat the rest of the day accordingly. Find a
time to exercise that you know will work for you most days and don’t make
excuses to skip it. Better yet, find a workout buddy to help keep you
accountable. But most of all, celebrate your victories and forgive any defeats. Brag about the fact that you just ran your fastest mile ever on
your Facebook wall, or buy yourself a new top after you lose 5 pounds. And on
the flip side, just because you come home from a bad day at work and drink an
entire bottle of wine and eat half a cheesecake, it does not mean you have
screwed up so badly you might as well just quit. You need to tell yourself it’s
okay to mess up, it’s okay to have an off week, it’s okay to fail. As long as
you get back at it the next day, you are going to see amazing changes happen — I
promise!
