If you had the chance to change your fate, would you?

Any of my twitter followers would have already seen an article I posted regarding obesity and how naming it as a disease is actually causing more harm than good. Naming obesity as a disease is enabling those individuals to view their weight as less of an issue and lose their sense of responsibility for it, therefore consuming more calories because they think it's okay. Now this can be considered controversial but in my opinion obesity is NOT a disease in itself, but a side effect of another physical or mental ailment. Although it may be caused by something different, in reality our society is lazy, irresponsible, and knows no bounds when it comes to portion control. This brings me to my topic for today, if you had the chance to change your fate, would you?

It is common knowledge that obesity leads to numerous health issues such as heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, reproductive problems and even certain cancers. Below is a list I found through fitnessmagazine.com of some health benefits that start within only one hour of exercise.

1. Boosts your immune system and helps to fight colds, the flu and other infections
2. Enhances your serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine levels which put you in a better mood
3. Enables you to burn MORE calories while you are at rest. While you're blood's pumping, your muscles go into overdrive which in turn burns more fat/calories

The above are benefits for only one hour of exercise. Imagine what your body can do if you buckle down and workout 3 hours a week... 4 hours a week and so on. For more information go to 

http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/motivation/get-started/power-surge-the-hidden-benefits-of-exercise/

In the movie Brave, Merida is forced to marry one of three of the eldest sons of various clan leaders that she has no intention of ever being with. So in response, she takes matters into her own hands. She takes control of her situation and fights for herself, regardless of turning her mother and three brothers into bears AND trying to defeat an evil curse in the process. For those individuals who are overweight, or obese, or are just wanting to see a difference in themselves, fight like Merida and fight for yourself. Only you can change you fate if you only can just take the chance. 

Be a Man and Stay Motivated

When first getting back in the swing of things or just starting out, not just with fitness but really any goal, there is a build up of motivation. You're ready. You're willing. You're determined. Then life gets in the way. Whether it is just being busy, or wrapped up in yet another reason to be addicted to Netflix, it gets easier and easier to say, "I'll just take tonight off." or "Ehh... I'll just run 1 mile instead of 2, 20 sit ups instead of 50." They say it takes approximately 3 weeks in order to make something a routine. So what do you do in the mean time? BE A MAN! Or in my case a woMAN...

You must be:

Swift as a coursing river: When I am having a hard time staying motivated to go to the gym I turn my mind off. If I dwell on the fact that I am tired, or it is super cold out, I will convince myself not to go and run. I must change and get out the door as swiftly as possible.

With all the force of a great typhoon: It's easy to stick to the same old routine, same old weights. In order to really burn fat and build muscle you must increase either your weight or your reps. If I wake up the next morning after doing my arm work out and I don't feel a thing I force myself to go up in weight or throw in an extra rep. Force yourself.

With all the strength of a raging fire: Over the past week I have built up my endurance to run my 2.5 miles, or 30 minutes. It is time to man up and increase my mileage. It's easier said than done. There were many times I wanted to stop, to slow down, but I kept up my strength and kept running towards my goal. I ran 3 miles and it felt GREAT!

Mysterious as the dark side of the moon: One word: attitude. If you put your mind to something and keep your head held high, it is amazing what you can do. Push your body to the limits. Don't give up, man up.

Let's Get Down to Business, to defeat... THE BUNS!

Yes I just went there... If any of you read my prior adventures in Wonderland, you would know that I have had a severe issue with squats. I am pleased to update that I have finally conquered them. Although, I am pretty sure that the girl next to me thought I was a weirdo for watching her form, but I was able to really pick up my problems. 1) My weight distribution was off. The girl next to me held her arms straight out in front of her. Doing so made it easier to place more of my body weight on my heels and not fall backwards. 2) Stop thinking so much. I have always been worried about my form. My wellness professor from back in the day said an exercise only works if done accurately. I was always so focused on my form that I didn't just let my body do the work for me.

Like I said above, if you are determined, it is amazing what you can push your body and your mind to do. But it is easy to lose ones motivation and that is why you must find the strength to move forward and man up.

Battle the Dingle Hopper

No, unlike Ariel, the majority of us do not use a fork to brush our hair. We use it to eat. My issue particularly is during the week while at work when I have easy access to a lot of different foods.

For example, every other Tuesday is a town hall meeting where different subcontractors come and bring us donuts or bagels for breakfast. Thursdays are bagel days, and every Friday one of our sales guys brings in delicious donuts from a local bakery. With all these temptations how do I find the strength to say no?

I feel that it is easier for me to say no to donuts and bagels than it is to say no to go out to eat. Being in the heart of Detroit, I have so many restaurants and café’s at my disposal, if I ever do not like what I packed for lunch, no problem! I can run downstairs to Potbelly’s or across the street to Jimmy John’s.

Here are some tricks I have come across to save your waist line and your wallet.

1)      Bring a variety of snacks – I will bring oranges, bananas, and my favorite, ants on the log, on a regular basis to work. This allows me to HAVE to eat them over the donuts or bagels because they will go bad sooner rather than later. It also is a great way to ensure I balance my diet appropriately

2)      Limit yourself – I typically like to limit myself to eating out one day a week. If there is one thing I have learned from my Panera days it’s that there are so many hidden calories/sodium/fat in restaurant food. If it is low calorie, it is loaded with sodium, if it is low fat, its sugar. It is a lot easier to do since it is so cold and I don’t feel like going outside. This isn’t Frozen, the cold DOES bother me.

3)      Chew mint flavored gum – Who wants to eat something or drink something right after chewing mint gum? The flavor is way to strong and anything else tastes funny.

4)      Have a candy stash – Yup. You read that right. I always have something sweet at my desk for when I know I am going to crave it. Dieting is not about depriving yourself, it’s learning how to make healthier decisions. I would much rather see myself eat a small square of dark chocolate over going to a bakery and getting a cookie, or a chocolate shake from Potbelly’s.

Like I said before, these are just little tricks that I have learned over the course of the last few months. They may not work for everyone but they have helped me gain a better understanding of what all I was and do put into my body.

Erin in Wonderland: Adventures with Tweedle Beard and Tweedle Blonde

Upon setting out on my journey I came across two companions to help keep me motivated, Tweedle Beard and Tweedle Blonde.

Day 1: Tweedle Beard and I Concur Arm Day

I once had a teacher in college that taught me that once your blood is pumping through an intense cardio workout, it is the best time to strength train because your muscles are warmed up and ready to work. She also stated that strength training is a lot quicker of a way to see the results you desire rather than just cardio. This is why I almost always include strength training into my workout.
After taking a few days off of running I was pleased to find that 2 miles was not as challenging as I thought it would be (keep in mind that these two miles were at a rather slow pace of 5 mph, but 2 miles none the less.) We then proceeded to concur arm day with free weights. Between countless bicep curls, tricep kickbacks and extensions, overhead presses and upright rows, we could barely lift our arms (at least I couldn’t…) I would say mission accomplished.

Day 2: Working out near Tweedle Blonde

The one thing I enjoy about working out with Tweedle Blonde is we both tend to do our own thing and sporadically say hello, hence we workout near each other versus with each other. I will get to why this a good thing when it is my leg day.
Similar to day 1, I started off running. I was initially going to do another 2 miles but something just kept telling me to push on which resulted in adding an extra half mile. I feel like I could have kept going but I knew the battle ahead of me was a fierce one, one that putting off only makes it worse. Leg Day.
Now, I do enjoy leg day. I always have found it more enjoyable than other areas partially because half the time I’m sitting down. The one hard thing about leg day for me is that I have ZERO coordination and balance. I’ve tried squats and I fall. Lunges, I fall. This is why I tend to like being by myself on leg days, to avoid my embarrassment of looking really odd and whoever I’m with from being seen with me. My problem is that I am always so focused on the correct form that I don’t just let my body do the work for me. I need serious help.

Beauty and the Beast of a Machine

Welcome to The Treadmill Tales! My name is Erin, I am 22 years old, and I used to be a rather avid runner; however with life stresses (i.e. new job, last year of college, random other life changes) running/working out has been put on the back burner. I recently have been trying to get back in the swing of things to achieve my first runner's goal of FINALLY competing in a 5K. I know that is not a terribly long distance, but it's a start. 

Now I know that nutrition is a very important factor in fitness, but let's be real, I like to eat. Chocolate, carbohydrates of any kind, and a strong obsession with Mexican food prevents me from ever being a twig, but I do like to be conscious of what goes into my body and will share with you anything and everything I learn along my journey.

Let's talk about the beast of a machine called the treadmill, the true protagonist of this adventure. Over the course of its part in my tale, it will experience many battles of speed and endurance. Some will be short battles, others will be very long. It will be pounded on, complained about, and even thoroughly hated at some moments, but will never falter. 

Let our journey begin!