Health and Fitness | The Kat Files

Archive for the ‘Health and Fitness’ Category

Let the Games Begin

Posted in Health and Fitness, Inspiration, tagged commitments, Danielle LaPorte, fitness, health, Jackie Warner on July 1, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Today is July 1st. Today, I begin my “eat clean” program. Today, I begin exercising AGAIN. Today, I start my hiatus from Facebook and Pinterest. Today, I go to the movies to see Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter. Well, I have to have some fun today.

I woke up this morning at 6AM. My husband, Comet (my little dog), and I went for a walk. After taking a shower, I ate two hard-boiled eggs, 1/2 of a grapfruit, and drank a cup of coffee with one packet of Truvia and a splash of half & half. Usually, I add some extra sugar or chocolate syrup, but not this morning.

I am following the health and fitness advice from the book This is Why You’re Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever) by Jackie Warner. For the first two weeks, I may continue eating the way I have been eating; however, I must start implementing the following foods in my diet:

eggs (two daily)
oatmeal (one cup daily)
hormone-balancing, detox veggies (2-3 cups daily)
fresh fruit (2 servings is 2 whole fruits daily)
water (two to three litters daily)
whey protein shake (8-ounce serving daily)
green tea (evening)

Even though I know I can eat crap for the next two weeks, I’m not using that as an excuse to go crazy. I have already started eliminating processed foods from the grocery list, as well as eliminating the extra sugar in my coffee. Of course, I will be eating peanut M & M’s at the movie theater later.

As for exercising the next two weeks, I need to perform cardio only five times a week for a maximum time of twenty minutes each workout. I will not do any resistance training in the first two weeks. My cardo workout must have maximum effort and include intervals. The first two weeks is prepping me for the “eat clean” lifestyle and the circuit type workouts I will be doing to lose weight.

This morning, I also weighed myself. I weighed in at 153 pounds. I checked my training log when I started running in August 2011. I weighed 143.5 pounds. My reaction: speechless, shocked, angry, sad. How did I let this happen? My only answer…complacency, emotional eating, not exercising, excuses. So, today I decided I want to weigh 125 pounds, which means I will need to lose 28 pounds (impressed with my math skills). A few weeks ago I found a cute idea on Pinterest to track your weight and stay motivated. It was weight loss jars. I decided to create my own using plastic ziploc containers and marbles.

Weight Loss Containers to track pounds lost.

Danielle LaPorte makes a very good point (and provides some inspiration) in a short video (Your Word Is As Powerful As You Say It Is) she made for the blog PositivelyPositive. Today, is my day to make a commitment to myself. The only way I will be successful at losing weight and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is by keeping my word to myself.

“The secret of success ….do what you say you’re going to do.” ~ Danielle LaPorte

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I Call This Meeting to Order

Posted in Books/Reading, Health and Fitness, tagged books, fitness, health, Jackie Warner, nutrition, resolutions, sugar, This is Why You're Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever), weight loss on June 19, 2012| 2 Comments »

Good Morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to our first meeting of Sugar Addicts of America. My name is Katherine, and I am a sugar addict. Yep, I am addicted to sugar and want to try to break that addiction. Now, let us bow our heads and pray.

Back in April, I picked up a health/diet book by Jackie Warner called This is Why You’re Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever).You don’t have to say it, so I will say it for you. Funky title. Agreed. However, after thumbing through this book several times on my visits to BAM, I decided to purchase it. Jackie Warner is a personal trainer based in Los Angeles. I own her fitness DVD Workout and have exercised with it several times. Although I have not completed the book, I’ve learned so much already.

One of the main components of the book is understanding your body’s chemistry. She writes about how your hormones and organs are affected by the foods and beverages you consume, which determine weight loss/gain. One of the main culprits of weight gain and medical problems attributed by weight gain is SUGAR. Not just the refined sugar that you spoon into a cup of coffee. It includes sugar in all of its disguises: high-fructose corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, sucrose, and the list goes on. Sugar is hidden in so much of the packaged and processed stuff we consume. Even the skim milk I drink has 12 grams of sugar per cup.

I will not pretend for one minute that the information I’m reading from this book is all brand new to me; however, I will admit that it has opened my eyes about how much sugar is being put into our food and how much sugar I’m consuming on a daily basis, as well as the negative effects it is having on my body. All my other heath/diet books, as well as my nutritionist, recommends skim milk. It’s suppose to be healthy. It is healthier than whole milk, but it still contains too much sugar.

So, my plan is to finish the book. It is full of menus of the right things to eat, as well as circuit training routines. The book does state that you are allowed to eat two treat meals in a one week period. For example, you eat clean from Monday through Friday, and then can enjoy two treats during the weekend. This does not mean unhealthy eating all day on Saturday and Sunday. You may want to have a cheeseburger for lunch on Saturday, and a slice of cake at your friend’s party on Sunday. It takes planning, and planning takes time. You have to make the time to be healthy. And, being healthy doesn’t mean you have to be skinny. It means eating clean and being active. It means making good choices when fueling your body.

I’m giving myself until June 30th to finish the book, throw out the bad foods in my house, buy the good foods, and get familiar with the fitness routines. Come July 1st, I’m going into rehab mode to kick this sugar addiction and to drop this unhealthy weight I’ve been carrying around for the last few years.

“The groundwork of all happiness is good health.” ~ Leigh Hunt

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Slow and Steady Finishes the Race

Posted in Happiness Project, Health and Fitness, tagged happiness, road races, running on October 28, 2011| Leave a Comment »

A huge serving of Middendorf’s fried thin catfish, a dollop of creamy coleslaw, a sore left hip flexor, and a tremendous sense of accomplishment were my rewards for running the Middendorf’s Manchac Run on October 15^th. I had been training since August 1^st to become a 30 minute runner. Becoming a 30 minute runner meant running 3 miles,which meant I could run a 5K. And, I did it…in 32:49. My happiness bucket had definitely been filled to the brim.

Honestly, at first I was a little bummed with my time because I really wanted to finish in 30 minutes. However, the race included something I did not prepare for during my training…a bridge.

Moments before the race started, I saw my ex-step instructor and stopped to chat. During out conversation, I asked her about the race course. Imagine my surprise (my face resembled Janet Leigh as she was about to be stabbed in Psycho) when I learned the course involved crossing the old Manchac bridge, not once, but twice. For a split second, I thought about running back to my car. All my training up to this point had been done in my subdivision on flat ground.

The race director called all runners and walkers to the starting line. The more I looked at bridge, the more it looked like a mountain. The national anthem played. I gave my hubby and my doggie, Comet, a quick good-bye kiss, and I was off.

Of course, the bridge was at the very beginning of the race. Going over it at the beginning was not too bad. I was slow. Once I got over the bridge and reached flat ground, I got my groove on and found my pace. At 1.5 miles, runners had to turn back around and run for the finish. There was a drink station at the turning point. I grabbed a cup of grape Powerade from a cheerful volunteer, took a swig, swished, and spit. The remainder went into the garbage can. I made the turn, feeling the runner’s high. Life was GREAT! I was on the other side of the road observing everyone on the side before the 1.5 mile split. EGO reared its ugly head…for a moment, for up ahead was the bridge, and this time it was not so easy to go over. Ahead of me was Frank, a 76 year old man I had met at NOTC’s Sneaker Speaker Series a couple of years ago. He was my motivation. I focused on him instead of the bridge. Literally, I felt like I was running in slow motion. I refused to walk even though I probably could have walked faster. Finally, I made it to the top of the bridge. Frank had finished descending and was not too far from the finish line. I started my descent, careful not to go too fast or get too sloppy. My left hip flexor started to feel tender. Once on flat ground again, I sprinted for the finish. My smile was wide, really wide. I FINISHED. So, even though I did not finish in 30 minutes, my time was not really too bad considering I had to run over a bridge, not once, but twice. I felt like a winner.

“Life begets life. Energy creates energy. It is by spending oneself that one becomes rich.” ~ Sarah Bernhardt

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Weighing In

Posted in Happiness Project, Health and Fitness, tagged exercise, Happiness Project, health and fitness, running, weight loss on September 30, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Frustrated…that is the word that best describes me at the moment. Frustration does not equal happiness; however, it can motivate oneself to make a change or two. What is the source of my frustration? Well, my weight. My goal weight on September 26th was 140 pounds. I weighed in Monday morning to the tune of 144 pounds. UGH! Now, I have not been eating like a sparrow, but I also haven’t been eating like a Spartan. All month my weight has fluctuated between 141 to 144 pounds. I find if I exercise and have a good poop before I weigh in, I get a much better result. Needless to say, I had neither this past Monday. So, I have decided to abandon a goal weight until I can really make a commitment to change my eating habits.

I eat out of anxiety and my peak time seems to be in the afternoon after picking up my little guy from school. The key is getting back to my original resolutions. Part of not keeping my resolutions in the “eating better” department is not being a good time manager. I’m working on being a better time manager. I have been drinking more water. Getting up earlier has not been a problem since school is back in session. Going to bed on time has also not been a problem since I have been working every day.

While my weight has not decreased, my running has increased. This has brought much happiness to my life. I have been moving every day. I am running at least three days a week whether it is in the heat, fog, or rain. Today, I registered for the Middendorf’s Manchac Run, which will be held in October. It is a 5K (3.1 miles). This week I am walking for 2 minutes and running for 8 minutes…repeating this three times for a total of 30 minutes. Of course, this does not include my 10 minute walking warm-up, cool-down, and stretch. Next week, I am walking for 1 minute and running for 9 minutes…repeating this three times for a total of 30 minutes. The following week I will be running 30 minutes with no walk breaks. My goal is simply to finish this race in 30 minutes. The only exercise resolution I have not been keeping up with is strength training two days a week. It has been hard fitting it in; however, I know it is important. Again, being a better time manager will help with this resolution, as well.

Even though I am not hitting the mark on all my resolutions, I’m still happy with myself for making the attempt. It really is a journey. The real goal is to find as much happiness along the way. If anything, this happiness project has made me rediscover the joy I get from running. Running puts things in perspective for me. This is one resolution I’m trying very hard not to break.

“Remind yourself that a run will make you feel better mentally and emotionally.” ~ Howard J. Rankin

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Positive Living

"Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive because your words become your behaviors. Keep your behaviors positive because your behaviors become your habits. Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny." ~Gandhi
Run/Walk Schedule

Week #1: Walk 30 minutes a day, at least three times a week.

Week #2: Continue week-one workout but pick up the pace, pump your arms. Break a sweat!

Week #3: Walk 10 minutes. Run 1 minute. Walk 2 minutes (repeat this 3-minute session 5 times). Walk 10 minutes.

Week #4: Walk 10 minutes. Run 2 minutes. Walk 1 minute (repeat this 3-minute session 5 times). Walk 10 minutes.

Week #5: Repeat Week #1 due to setback.
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