January 4 Summary

Plank Challenge: 30 secs
Calories In and Out: 600
30 Day Squat Challenge: Rest Day
Winter Wellness Challenge: Incorporate a winter activity into your workout today.

• Went for a walk outside.
• 10 Ways to Melt Mega Calories this Winter 
• All utilize your major muscle groups and multiple joints
• Be sure to warm up, stretch and cool down during each workout
• Dress for the weather
• Snowshoeing
• 510 calories per hour
• Snow adds resistance, feet are heavier in snowshoes
• You recruit more muscle fibers
• Burn more calories
• Hiking
• 445 calories per hour
• Winter is great time for hiking as long as it's not icy and you can still see the trail markers
• Hiking in snow (especially deep snow) requires more effort from legs and heart than simple walking
• Make sure you have good, insulated boots to keep your feet warm and dry
• Shoveling
• 380 calories per hour
• With an ergonomic shovel and proper form, you'll elevate your heart rate and burn calories
• Use your legs, not your arms and back
• Sledding
• 455 calories per hour
• As long as you're walking back up  the hill, you'll have fun as well as get cardio when sledding for an hour
• Working hard when you're walking up the hill makes it like interval training
• Downhill Skiing
• 385 calories per hour
• Improves muscle strength and co-ordination
• Targets every muscle from abs down
• Can be expensive if you have to rent equipment
• Because most skiers spend many hours at a time on the slopes you can burn many calories in one day.
• Ice Skating
• 450 calories per hour
• Boosts endurance, balance, coordination
• Aerobic equivalent of a light to moderate jog
• Targets abs, calves, hamstrings, and quadriceps
• Can be done indoors or out
• Snowboarding
• 390 calories per hour
• Improves balance and core strength
• Cross Country Skiing
• 510 calories per hour
• Provides an intense cardio workout without stressing your joints
• Provides more of an endurance workout than downhill skiing because you don't have the downtime of the chair lift ride back up the hill
• Ice Hockey
• 380 calories per hour
• Great aerobic workout
• Improves coordination
• Broomball
• 470 calories per hour
• "Poor man's" version of hockey
• Rules of play are very similar
• Use brooms to hit a ball
• Wear rubber soled shoes instead of skates

The Good Belly Reboot.

•  Follow Your Gut Quiz
• I scored 8/14.  Good gut.  You have a basic idea of how the digestive system works but dig a little deeper here to learn how to keep your gut functioning properly. 

What I Ate:

•  Breakfast
• Cereal and milk
• Yogurt
• Lunch
• Crackers and Peanut Butter
• Pineapple with Cottage Cheese
• Snack
• Pepsi
• Dinner
• Chicken Breast topped with cheese
• Long Grain and Wild Mushroom Rice

Janary 3 Summary

Plank Challenge:  30 secs
Calories In and Out: +535 (bad night at karaoke and ended up eating double my calorie goal)
30 Day Squat Challenge: 60
Winter Wellness Challenge:18 Low-Calorie Snacks That Will Satisfy

•  Just because a snack is 100 calories, doesn't mean it's healthy
• 18 ideas for healthy 100 calorie snacks
• 2 tablespoons of whipped light cream cheese rolled into two slices of extra-lean ham
• 2 stalks celery, sliced into strips and dipped in 2 tbsp of light guacamole
• 3 ounces of chilled, pre-cooked shrimp dipped in one tablespoon of cocktail sauce
• 1 oz goat cheese on 1/2 cup sliced cucumber
• 1 hard boiled egg, sliced and sprinkled with salt, pepper, paprika
• 1/2 cup fat-free cottage cheese topped with 1/4 cup blueberries
• A warm and comforting cup of your favorite broth-based soup brightened up with a squeeze of fresh lemon
• 1 medium tomato sliced and topped with 1oz fresh mozzarella, salt, pepper, and drizzled with 1tbsp balsamic
• 1 small whole-wheat tortilla topped with 2 tablespoons of fat-free bean dip and sprinkled with 2 tbsp of low-fat free cheddar cheese
• 1 slice turkey wrapped up with 1 slice light Swiss cheese
• 1 cup diced watermelon with 1oz reduced-fat feta & 1 tsp chopped mint and a squeeze of fresh lime
• 1/2 cup of plain yogurt topped with a drizzle of honey and three almonds finely chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, cut into strips and dipped into 1/4 cup hummus
• 1 ounce of prosciutto wrapped around a wedge of cantaloupe or 1/2 cup of peach slices
• 1/2 cup blueberries & 1/2 cup raspberries &  1/2 cup strawberries
• 1 cup sliced jicama dipped in 1/2 cup salsa
• 10 baby carrots dipped in  4oz 0% Greek yogurt, flavored with 1 tsp ranch mix
• 1 cup sliced apples & 1oz low-fat cheddar

I've also started a new 21 Day Challenge called The Good Belly Reboot.

•  21 day plan to help reset your system
• When you have a poor diet you can feel your system is off
• discomfort
• bloating
• gas
• What Does Digestive Wellness Look Like? 
• Digestion isn't something you really have to think about
• You eat, you digest
• We notice it when something isn't right
• There are chronic conditions that affect digestion
• Heartburn
• Ulcerative Colitis
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome
• After you eat you should feel comfortably satisfied but not bloated, stuffed or gassy
• If you feel extremely full after you eat, you could be eating too quickly or eating too much in one meal
• Chewing slowly will allow your body tell your brain when you've had too much
• Eating too quickly can cause air in the stomach which causes gas
• Food should help you feel good
• Not normal to feel burning in chest or nausea
• Heartburn/GERD
• Hiatal Hern
• Ulcer
•  Diabetes, food intolerance and high blood pressure can cause food to stay in stomach too long causing nausea
• Eating makes you feel energetic, not sluggish or lethargic
• If you feel tired after your meal you're eating too much.
• Takes a lot of energy for body to digest big meals
• Feeling sluggish, headache, unable to concentrate is a sign of unbalanced carbs, fat, protein
• When you lie down, you should be able to relax easily
• Not normal to feel food or acid in your throat because you're lying down.
• Sign of acid reflux
• You feel generally happy most of the time
• Sadness, fatigue and other symptoms of depression can be linked with poor gut health
• Your weight stays constant over time
• Unexplained weight loss or gain can be a symptom of an underlying issue
• Celiac disease
• Thyroid disorder
• Mal-absorption of nutrients
• Tapeworms or other parasites
• You have regular bowel movements that don't take effort
• It's not the number of bowel movements you have a week, but the regularity of them.
• Everything varies per person, but very loose, hard to control or painful stools are not normal
• You should never see blood or black stools
• Can be a sign of several diseases and conditions
• Ulcers
• Cancers
• Hemorrhoids
• Diverticulitis 
• You sleep soundly through the night
• Digestive disorders can wake you at night due to acid reflux or needing to have a bowel movement

What I ate:

•  Breakfast
• Cheese
• 2 clementines
• yogurt
• Snack
• Clif Bar Chocolate Chip Protein Bar
• Lunch
• Stouffer's Barbecue Chicken Frozen Dinner
• Snack
• Pepsi
• Dinner
• Irish Nachos
• 2 pepsi
• Snack
• Special K Chocolate Crisps

January 2 Summary

Plank Challenge:  20 secs
Calories In and Out: 492
30 Day Squat Challenge:  55
Winter Wellness Challenge: 10 Dead of Winter Workout Motivators

• Sleep in your workout clothes
• Go straight to the gym
• Enjoy the great indoors
• Pump up the music
• Get in gear
• Exercise during your lunch break
• Set your sights on Spring and Summer
• Take up a Winter sport
• Join an indoor sports league
• Make a fitness date
• Just get out the door 

What I ate:

• Breakfast
• Yogurt
• Cheese
• Snack
• Pepsi
• Lunch
• Cheese
• Lean Cuisine Sweet and Sour Chicken, Pineapple and Vegetable Medley Frozen Dinner
• Snack
• BioX Protein Blast Peanut Butter Fudge Bar
• Dinner
• Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce and Lentils

Article of the Day: The 10 Most Common Cardio Crimes.

Original Post Here

Top 10 Most Common Cardio Crimes

• Leaning on Machines
• Decreases workout intensity
• Burn fewer calories
• Use handles temporarily
• When you first start
• When you pause
• Skimping on Resistance
• Resistance does not cause you to bulk up
• Resistance or incline burns more calories
• Makes for a more challenging work out
• Stretching Before Working Out
• Stretching is not the same as warming up
• Your muscles are warm and joints are lubricated after your cardio session so you don't need to stretch to do it again.
•  Stretch at the end of your workout when you'll benefit most.
• Carrying Weights While You Walk
• It is only safe to hold less than 3lbs
• This small amount isn't adding any challenge or benefit
• Ankle weights are a no-no.
• Only Doing Cardio
•  More muscle helps boost metabolism
• You lose muscle mass as you lose weight
• Not as much muscle mass lost with strength training
• Not Drinking Water
• When you do cardio you sweat and you need to replace the fluid
• Sip every few minutes
• Don't wait until you're already thirsty to start drinking
• Doing the Same Cardio Workout
• You get better results by mixing up your cardio
• Prevents overtraining
• Keeps your body guessing so it doesn't plateau
• Add 1-2 days of cross training to your cardio
• Zoning Out
• Reading, watching/listening to media can hurt your results
• Start to slack off
• Forget what you're at the gym to do
• Don't pay attention to form
• Posture slouches
• Arms and legs don't move through ideal range of motion
•  Don't strike with feet or engage core properly
• Lifting Weights Really Fast
• Slow, controlled form is essential
• Sacrifices safety and can cause damage to muscles
• Confusing "Activity" With Cardio
• Only activities that meet requirements for cardio activity give health and fitness benefits
• Only burning "extra" calories when you're working pretty damn hard
• Not when you're leisurely walking through the mall or doing light house cleaning

January 1 Summary

Plank Challenge:  20 secs
Calories In and Out: 839
30 Day Squat Challenge:  50
Winter Wellness Challenge:  10 Minute Jump Start Cardio Workout

What I ate:

• Breakfast:
• Yogurt
• Snack: 
• 1 clementine
• 1 pepsi
• Lunch
• Weight Watchers Teriyaki Chicken and Vegetables Frozen Dinner
• Snack
• Fruit and Nut Delight Bar
• Dinner
• Lean Cuisine Meat Lasagna Frozen Dinner
• Pineapple and Cottage  Cheese
• Snack
• Special K Chocolate Crisps

Article of the Day. 9 Surprising Ways Your Refrigerator Can Help You Lose Weight

The original blog can be found here

9 Surprising Way Your Refrigerator Can Help You Lose Weight

The way your food is in your fridge can actually make you lose weight.  Here's how.

• Top Shelf 
• Store Healthy Drinks Here
• You are 3 times more likely to take the first thing you see in the fridge.
•  Stock with
  • Skim milk
  • Fruit and vegetable juice with no sugar added.
  • Water pitcher and bottled water
• Staying hydrated curbs your appetite.
• Low calorie drinks will help shed pounds.
• Cut out 1 can of soda (even diet) to speed up weight loss.
• Add measuring tools
• Keeping measuring cups and spoons in the fridge will encourage you to measure before chowing down.

• Second Shelf
• Pile it with Produce
• Place a bowl of fresh produce here so it is the first thing you see.
• Third Shelf
• Pack it with Protein
• Hard boiled eggs
• Pre-cooked meats
• Reduced fat dairy
• People who eat 2oz of protein with every meal eat 31% less calories.
• Protein stimulates the intestines to release a hormone that shuts down hunger pangs.
•  Crisper Drawers
• Stash Diet Saboteurs Here
• Put junk food here because they're at the bottom, harder to get to.
• Inside Door
• Fill it with Flavorings
• Hot Sauces
• Spicy Mustards
• Salsas
• Marinades
• Tangy Dressings
• If you flavor meals you will feel fuller with 200 fewer calories.
• Freezer
• Cram it with Healthy Conveniences
• Individually wrapped fish fillets
• Frozen vegetables
• Figure Friendly Treats
• Fruit bars
• Chilled berries for smoothies
• Outside Fridge Door
• Create a pause point
• Put up a sticky note reminding you to think if you're really hungry.
• Whole thing
• Keep Tidy
• Disorganization makes it easier to not eat properly

On the bandwagon...

So every year I say I'm going to lose weight.  Every year I fail at it.  Hoping to make this year a different.   As always I'm going to try using SparkPeople to do it.  This time I'm going to try and add friends who will hopefully help keep me accountable and active. 

So here are my starting stats:

Weight: 206lbs
Chest: 45"
Waist: 40"
Hips: 49"
Thigh: 28"
Upper Arm: 16"
Neck: 13.5"
Calf: 15"
Waist to Hip Ratio: 0.82
Body Fat %: 49%

My first goal is to hit 156.  That would be 50lbs lost.  I haven't been in the 150's since I was 16. 

I've joined a few challenges in the groups I'm in. 

• January Plank Challenge
• Calories in and out
• 30 Day Squat Challenge
• SparkPeople's Winter Wellness Challenge 

 I will weigh in every Wednesday morning and do my measurements on the 1st of each month.  I will be posting recaps of articles and info I read on SparkPeople.