The Heat Is On

It may get up to 96* today in New York City. The meteorologist on our NBC4 said this morning that in all of 2008, it never reached 96* once and this may be our warmest day of the year. Can you believe that? On May 26th! And people say global warming isn't real! Whatever!
I started my day with the gym, as usual, and then a trip to the Union Square farmers market. I really wish I had taken my camera with me because it was a perfect morning for the market. I've decided I actually like it on Wednesday mornings better than Saturday's. I get there just as they're opening, it's still a little cool and the crowds are pretty tame. It was delightful!

Today I'm going to talk about warm weather workouts. There are certain precautions that everyone should take when working out (or even walking for longer periods of time) in the heat of summer - or spring, in this case! We've all heard these a dozen plus times, but a reminder is always good because you could really do some harm if you're not prepared.

1. Protect yourself! Be sure to wear sunscreen, a hat or visor, and if possible, clothing with an SPF. It is also good to wear synthetic fabrics and thin socks that are able to wick sweat.
2. Start slow. Don't expect to break speed or distance records, especially on the first few hot/humid days of the year. Start slow and increase your speed or intensity as your body acclimates to the heat.
3. Have a bite to eat! Make sure to eat something small before your workout, a little salt to increase your sodium levels is also a good idea.
4. Stay hydrated, but don't drink too much. Be sure to start your workout hydrated and continue to drink water or a sports drink throughout. Since drinking too much can also cause problems, don't drink more than 8oz of fluid every 15-20 minutes.
5. Take rest breaks. Don't overdo it. If you're running, take a walk break every once in a while. If you're walking, feel free to stop and rest while you drink. Take it easy on yourself. You don't want to faint!
6. Pay attention to your body. If you start to feel faint or dizzy, stop right away and make sure you've had enough to drink or eat something if you haven't for a while. Eat something salty as you may be low on sodium. Don't worry if you have to cut a workout short. It's okay.
7. Exercise in the morning or evening. It's best to workout in the outdoors during the coolest parts of the day. While the sun is at its highest point at noon, the hottest part of the day is usually later in the afternoon. So, it's best to do your outdoor activities either early in the morning or later in the evening, rather than from noon till 4 or 5pm.

Taking a quick break during our run in Montreal last summer

How do you like to cool down after a hot workout?

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Workout Stats -

17mi bike

3x12 cable pull twists

3x12 hammer curls

3x12 upright row

3x12 hamstring deadlift, bicep curl, shoulder press combo

3x12 lateral raise

3x12 leg press

foam roller & stretching

Have Fun While Staying Fit

I am absolutely astonished by how popular this Peanut Butter & Co. giveaway has been! As of right now, there are 100 entries! In 1 day! I knew you loved your peanut butter!! My favorite part of this giveaway is that it gives me an excuse to go to the PB & Co. shop/restaurant in the Village to pick up the winner's choice! You know I'm not leaving there without having a sandwich!! Anyway, keep the entries coming - the giveaway is open till Friday night at 8pm. If you haven't entered yet, go HERE.

Recently I was perusing the Rodale website when I came upon an interesting article: "What's Your Exercise Personality? Find Out, Get Fit" We've been told everyone needs at least 150 minutes of exercise per week (or 30 minutes, 5 days a week) to maintain our weight. Then back in March, some genius published a study in the Journal of American Medical Association that women actually need 60 minutes of exercise every day of the week to maintain a healthy weight. I know what you're thinking, "in what world are they living where this is possible?" The average person is to busy to get in 60 minutes, 7 days a week. For some, even finding 30 minutes, 5 days a week can be a struggle. Needless to say, many health professionals were worried that this news would deter many women from exercising at all, feeling that it would just be too difficult to achieve (scary mental flashback to this woman). But, women, and men, need to keep in mind that this was just one study and participants were responsible for keeping track of their own data over a 13 year period.

The gist is, we all need to be physically active as often as possible to maintain a healthy weight and live healthy lives. But, we don't need to spend hours trapped on a cardio machine in a gym of sweaty strangers if that doesn't seem appealing. According to this article, Michael Bracko, EdD, says all we need to do is figure out what type of exercise is most enjoyable and then it's much easier to make time for fitness. This makes total sense because often people think of exercise as a chore, rather than a hobby or something to enjoy and have fun with.

Bracko breaks exercise down into four categories:
1. Functional Fitness: gardening, walking the dog, cleaning, raking, shoveling, and even bowling and golf. These activities are great for people just starting to add fitness into their lives as well as older people trying to stay active. But, some are also every day activities and bowling and golf are great social activities, so they're often done without even thinking about the fact that they are exercise!
2. Health Related Fitness: yoga, tai chi, walking. These are often pursued by people who have a health issue, those with high blood pressure, people who live stressful lives, and those who don't like high intensity exercise. They are also enjoyed by people of all ages and because they involve a lot of movement, they burn calories!
3. Physical Fitness: pretty self-explanatory - cardio, strength training, stretching. This is for people who enjoy high intensity workouts, love feeling strong at the end of a workout, or perhaps enjoy setting specific goals. People who enjoy physical fitness also tend to see it as an important component of physical and mental health.
4. Recreational Fitness: sports, team or individual. Often people who have interest in a particular sport and are motivated to learn it find the most joy in recreational sports. They may enjoy being part of a team and the thrill of competition.

(I'm not quite sure where running, hiking, biking and swimming fall, physical or recreational, but either way, they are great ways to be active!)

Many people enjoy more than one of these types of fitness, but even if you don't, finding one thing or another will help motivate you to be active and you'll have fun getting (or staying) in shape. You don't have to be a runner (although it might feel like it if you read a lot of blogs), you don't have to spend hours in a gym each week. Just figure out what fits your personality, what you enjoy and start moving!!

I just happen to enjoy running and kayaking!

Have you ever pushed yourself to follow a particular fitness routine because you thought you had to, not because you wanted to? What was the result? What is your favorite way to stay fit and active?

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Workout Stats -
17mi bike
3x10 cable-pull twists
3x10 (ea side) weighted side bends
125 crunches (various)
2x60sec planks (1 stability ball, 1 floor)
foam roller, stretching

Workplace Perks

Believe it or not, some companies have recognized the link between employee health and productivity.  These companies have taken steps to help their employees pursue healthy lives by focusing on preventative healthcare and providing easy access to health and fitness opportunities.

Just this week, Intel announced the opening of their new gym facility for employees at their company headquarters. This new state of the art gym expands upon the company's focus on employee health that already features an onsite medical care facility and is meant to be an example for other corporate wellness centers. With Intel technology and Core Performance equipment at the heart of the facility, users are able to get personalized training plans, evaluate their progress and even personalize the entertainment - such as ondemand videos, music and more - that they workout to.

Intel's new employee gym

Other companies offer similar opportunities for their employees, although probably not quite so high tech. Software developer SAS provides their workers with a myriad of benefits meant to increase productivity and allow for their 35 hour work week. Their headquarters boasts an onsite medical facility with doctors of all types, a daycare at reduced costs and a large cafeteria so employees don't have to spend time driving to and from work to attend to these responsibilities. Additionally, they have a large fitness facility including a gym, swimming pool and full size basketbal court. Fitness and swimming classes are offered to employees.

REI, the outdoor sporting goods company has a dog park where employees can bring their dogs while they work and go play with them throughout the day. Mid-day group bike rides are frequent - work-talk is prohibited. Of course, there is a strong emphasis on fitness and outdoor activity, employees at all levels are encouraged to be active. Paychex, a payroll processor, hands out bonuses from $100-$300 each year for participating in healthy activities such as attending fitness classes, running races, biking to work and more. Rodale (home to our beloved Runner's World and Men's and Women's Health) provides workers with multple benefits meant to inspire a healthy work-life balance including onsite fitness facilities, health screenings, healthy foods, and all employees are encouraged to take advantage of the Rodale Institute farm in Pennsylvania.

There are many other companies out there who are realizing that the health of their employees has a direct effect on the productivity and success of their company. Jim Goodnight, the CEO of SAS, conveyed in a video on Fortune.com that the company recognizes that happy, healthy employees guarantee happy customers and thus, a happy company (because profits will be good). By paying attention to the health and wellbeing of employees, companies will boost productivity.

Do you work at a company that encourages you to pursue healthy habits in some way? Do people take advantage of it? If your company doesn't provide any health programs, what is one thing you wish they would do?

Don't forget, Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution starts tonight (Sunday was a 'preview') on ABC at 8pm eastern. And Michigan State takes on Northern Iowa at 9:45pm! GO SPARTANS!

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Workout Stats -
6.5mi elliptical
4mi bike
3x10 tricep kickback
3x10 front arm raise
stretching
1.5mi walk

It's Okay To Skip The Gym?!

Woody and I are an old married couple - we usually turn in pretty early each night in order to get up at 5am for the gym. Last night I stayed up a bit later since I had been out in the evening and didn't get to eat dinner until 9pm (I know, not healthy but it's definitely not a habit) and I needed to decompress a bit before I went to sleep. So, I caught the local NBC 11pm news which I don't typically do and they did a segment that bothered me just a little bit.

The lead in headline for the segment was "It's Okay To Skip The Gym" and "Looking for an excuse not to work out? We have it for you." That was what the newcasters were actually saying! I couldn't believe it and had to watch the segment.

Turns out they were really talking about studies that show (and I don't really think you need studies for this) women over the age of 40 are unable to lose weight with exercise alone. If they expanded the studies to younger women and men, I have a feeling they'd come to similar conclusions.

The segment included short interview clips with medical professionals as well as Sherry Glover (some of you NYers may know as one of the NYRR running class coaches) during a running class in Central Park Tuesday night. She was quoted saying that the majority of class participants are women and many of them are looking to use running as a way to lose weight. She also supported the claim that running, and fitness in general, must be accompanied by healthy eating in order to lose weight.

The segment bothered me a bit because the lead in was saying "hey, here's an excuse you can use not to workout. Since you have to exercise and eat well to lose weight, if you're not going to do both, why spend the hours at the gym?" Personally I think that's a pretty lazy way to look at things and only supports those who are looking for an easy out when all they may need is a little boost. Hey, I was one of those people just a few years ago.

I think everyone knows that they can't really lose weight without getting a bit of exercise and watching what they eat. But I also think that sometimes people believe they have to jump in and make huge changes immediately in order to do so or it won't work. It is possible to start with small changes that are easy to incorporate into every day. Yes, it's true, you don't have to go to a gym to do it. Just take a walk during the day, park as far away as possible at the grocery store and walk a bit further, take the stairs instead of the elevator, start to take a jog one or two days a week and make small food changes along with it. Make a few more each week and the weight will start to come off. 

While you may not technically need a gym (as the title of the segment suggested) to get exercise, the fact that weight loss and general good health requires us to get exercise and watch what we eat shouldn't be an excuse for anyone to do nothing. Eating well and being fit is a good feeling! I have definitely found that I feel at my best when I'm doing both and not indulging in too many treats (um, holiday time!) but still working out.

I planned ahead yesterday since I knew I'd be home late, so I boiled a few eggs to make a healthy and quick dinner. I wasn't too hungry, so I put together this simple dinner that was delicious and hit the spot.

Eating well doesn't have to require a lot of work. I had carrots, hummus, two egg whites and one full egg, and a pear. It was a perfectly healthy and quick meal for me last night and a found a great new flavor combo - hummus and egg!

What is your 'go to' healthy and quick meal when you have a busy day but still want to eat well?

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Workout Stats -
3/23 (Catching up since I was MIA yesterday, unless you follow me on Twitter. And if you don't, why not?!)
7mi elliptical
6mi stationary bike
3x10 (ea side) weighted side bends
3x10 tricep extensions
3x12 tricep dips
stretching
1.5mi walk (afternoon)

3/24 - rest day from gym, will get a walk in later this afternoon and enjoy a day without rain!

(Some Of) The Best Things Require Planning

Being healthy requires planning. 

We hear it all the time. People either put off a new healthy lifestyle or quickly abandon one because of the time it takes to plan things out. Meals for home and work need to be planned, grocery store trips - sometimes going to multiple stores to get the healthiest foods, what to eat at a restaurant or party, scheduling time to exercise, having the right shoes and gear, where to exercise, and what to do there. Maybe a babysitter needs to be hired. Maybe there are multiple family members to cook for who eat at different times each night. Maybe a plan is needed on how to get everyone to sit down at the same time. The list goes on.

On the flip side, it doesn't take much time to decide which drive thru line to join, which candy bar or soda to pick up at the convenience store, which tv show to watch and which seat to watch it from.

It's true. A lot of planning goes into a healthy lifestyle and it can require a good amount of time. It can sound a bit exhausting. But after a while, there are favorite healthy meals and knowing what gym or trail to go to becomes second nature. Plus, a new sense of strength, vitality and overall health that provides more energy to spend on living a healthy life and tons of other exciting experiences. Isn't a long, healthy and fun life worth a little time spent planning? I definitely think so.

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Don't forget to enter my giveaway for two amazing CDs. Maybe you haven't heard of Jamie Cullum or Imelda May yet, but believe me, their albums are well worth a listen! You'll be hooked.
Enter HERE, it only takes a minute.