Now that I have been counting calories, it’s pretty surprising to see how quickly what I eat adds up. I bought a heart rate monitor to use when I exercise to see how many calories I am actually burning. I use MyFitness Pal to track both calories going in and calories going out and at times, it’s frustrating because limiting myself to a certain number of calories in a day leaves me feeling like I’m starving by the time dinner comes around but it’s also making me more conscious about what I’m eating which, in turn, is helping me make better choices. For instance, one Double Stuffed Oreo has almost the same amount of calories as six pita crackers with a dab of cream cheese and raspberry jalapeño jelly on them. I would be lying if I said I didn’t grab an Oreo from time to time for a quick sugar fix, but having six crackers as opposed one cookie is definitely a lot more satisfying so my calorie counting ways is helping me think twice before reaching for those cookies when I want a snack.
Since burning calories is important if you are trying to lose or keep off weight, I am always looking for ways to burn a little extra. I came across the following article this morning listing 25 ways to burn 100 calories and thought it was interesting enough to share. Chewing gum, eating an apple rather than drinking apple juice, or playing pool? How great is that! I was especially pleased to learn bowling made the list because we bowl just about every Friday! And rather than sit down after it’s my turn, I usually stand “just because”. Now I know that standing is helping me burn just a few more calories!
Happy Monday and enjoy!
"25 Ways to Burn 100 Calories Just Like That" by Ava Feuer
Monday, May 12, 2014
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Interesting Article on Hydration
This was a very interesting article on hydration and how men's and women's needs differ so I thought I would share.
Are the Hydration Rules Different for Women
When I was doing the fitness challenge group last month, one of the "posts of the day" was about eliminating sodium from our diets; not just eliminating chips, pretzels, and high sodium foods, but leave salt out of recipes, don't use it to enhance the flavor of your food, etc. so reading the comment about how women should consume a little bit of salt before a good workout kind of caught my eye. If what the article says is true, I just might have to get myself a bag of Ruffles to eat before my next run. That counts, right? =O)
In all seriousness, I thought it was a good article and worth sharing.
Are the Hydration Rules Different for Women
When I was doing the fitness challenge group last month, one of the "posts of the day" was about eliminating sodium from our diets; not just eliminating chips, pretzels, and high sodium foods, but leave salt out of recipes, don't use it to enhance the flavor of your food, etc. so reading the comment about how women should consume a little bit of salt before a good workout kind of caught my eye. If what the article says is true, I just might have to get myself a bag of Ruffles to eat before my next run. That counts, right? =O)
In all seriousness, I thought it was a good article and worth sharing.
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
Personal Victory!
Today I signed up for the Race for the Place 5K.
The weather was nice when I got home from work so I decided to go for a run. I was feeling a little tired and a little unmotivated so I thought for sure it would be a short run. Oh, how I was wrong. I am not sure if it was runner's high that kicked in or because I was thinking of my friend, Kris, throughout my run and for some reason I was feeling inspired, but today I ended up setting a new record myself: 4.51 miles with a pace of 9:50! This may not be that big of an accomplishment to someone who is a seasoned runner but for someone like me who has only been on 10 runs in the last year, and for someone who only a few short months ago could barely get out of bed to do anything because she was in such a slump..yeah, this is huge!
Commence happy dance!
The weather was nice when I got home from work so I decided to go for a run. I was feeling a little tired and a little unmotivated so I thought for sure it would be a short run. Oh, how I was wrong. I am not sure if it was runner's high that kicked in or because I was thinking of my friend, Kris, throughout my run and for some reason I was feeling inspired, but today I ended up setting a new record myself: 4.51 miles with a pace of 9:50! This may not be that big of an accomplishment to someone who is a seasoned runner but for someone like me who has only been on 10 runs in the last year, and for someone who only a few short months ago could barely get out of bed to do anything because she was in such a slump..yeah, this is huge!
Commence happy dance!
The "Race" is on...
Today, I officially signed up for my first 5K. On National Cancer Survivor's Day (the first Sunday in June), The Gathering Place holds their annual Race for the Place.
Last year, I did the 1 mile walk. This year, I am running the 5K in memory of my dear friend and sister in pink, Kris Stefanac. Click the link below to go to my personal page and read more...and feel free to either join me (they offer a 1 mile walk too) or sponsor me for this great cause.
http://shar.es/SjS5A
Last year, I did the 1 mile walk. This year, I am running the 5K in memory of my dear friend and sister in pink, Kris Stefanac. Click the link below to go to my personal page and read more...and feel free to either join me (they offer a 1 mile walk too) or sponsor me for this great cause.
http://shar.es/SjS5A
Monday, May 5, 2014
Keeping the Wheels on the Bus
Why is it that I do
so well (for the most part) saying on track, drinking lots of water, and watching what I eat during the
week but then the weekend comes and the wheels completely fall off the bus?
Perhaps this weekend was just bad in general because my husband was out of town
and I didn't feel like cooking? Friday nights we bowl so we did our usual pre-bowling dinner. That was
supposed to be my "cheat night." My sons were both off doing their
own thing on Saturday so I met a girlfriend for dinner. They were home
different times on Sunday so I had a "date" with my oldest for lunch
and a "date" with my youngest for dinner. Over the course of the
weekend, I ate out four times (ugh) and while I didn't completely pig out, I
certainly didn't pick the least calorie options. I think I'm just going to have to chalk this
up as my "cheat weekend!"
Thursday, May 1, 2014
The benefits of ginger
Most of us know the importance of drinking plenty of water. I thought I would share this information with you.
The medical massotherapist my oncologist has me see and I were talking about the importance of water. She recently attended a seminar regarding our lymphatic system and one of the best ways to keep it functioning properly is by drinking lots of water. Many of us already know the health benefits of adding lemon to our water, but did you know that ginger has great health benefits as well?
The medical massotherapist my oncologist has me see and I were talking about the importance of water. She recently attended a seminar regarding our lymphatic system and one of the best ways to keep it functioning properly is by drinking lots of water. Many of us already know the health benefits of adding lemon to our water, but did you know that ginger has great health benefits as well?
Welcome
Happy first day of May 2014 and welcome to my blog. "Just Keep Swimming" from the scene in Finding Nemo became my mantra in 2012 after a series of unfortunate events in my life brought me to the point I was ready to raise the white flag. Rather than sink, I chose to swim.
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