Posts tagged Health
Health, Nutrition
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by Melissa
on
tags:
exercise, golds gym challenge, Health, Miley Cyrus, weight loss, workout
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“The Climb” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
So I was listening to the Miley Cyrus song The Climb. (I have a 7 year old daughter…it’s a requirement) and couldn’t help but see how it related to the challenge. “I can almost see it, that dream I’m dreaming but there’s a voice inside my head saying you’ll never reach it”. Somedays I feel like I’ll never reach my weightloss goals and the negative self-talk can get in my way. I feel like I’m constantly fighting the “uphill battle” of my weight and a healthy life. But I realized like the song says that “I’ve got to be strong and just keep pushing on”. A healthy life is a journey. It’s about being proud of myself right now in this moment. The fact that I’m even doing the challenge! Maybe it’s as simple as completing a workout, an interval or about resisting that extra cookie because you know it’s worth it in the end. All of us can look back and say “I did the Gold’s Gym Challenge in 2010, look at what I accomplished!” This can be the turning point that we look back to. We’re halfway there already! So, in the words of Miley, “Keep on moving, keep climbing, keep the faith, baby. It’s all about the climb!”
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by Melissa
on
tags:
exercise, golds gym challenge, Health, motivation, workout
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“Blahs” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
So we’re halfway through the challenge. I feel like I have the “mid-challenge blahs”. The newness and excitement of doing the challenge have started to wear off. I’m getting too comfortable with my workouts and a little lazy with my food. The scale is still moving in the right direction, but never as quickly and drastically as I want it to be. I’ve had a bit of a bad/frustrated attitude this week. I got a birthday email from the gym yesterday with a “pass” for one day worth of couch sitting, extra snoozing, movie watching, ice cream cake eating ditching the gym day. It was very cute and I sooo badly wanted to cash it in. But I’m doing this darn challenge and I need to stay committed to it. Ugh! I realized that this is the part of the challenge where perseverance kicks in. It’s time to regroup. Change up the workouts, get some new music on my iPod and get disciplined with my eating habits. It’s a new day, and there are new ways. The March class schedule will be out any day, maybe there’s a new class to try. We’ve been blessed with some beautiful weather so maybe it’s time to workout outside. I need to commit to a positive attitude… “I’m half way there and look how far I’ve come”. OK, even writing it I’m feeling a little better, but I’m still saving that “pass” for April…
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by Melissa
on
tags:
exercise, footwear, Health, shoes, trainer, workout
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“Shoes” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
For the past week or two, I’ve noticed a lot of fatigue in my knees. I didn’t know if I was doing an exercise wrong or if the increase in workouts was just making them tired. I described my knee pain to “Trainer Kari” and she suggested that it was probably time for new shoes. I was surprised because I bought my shoes at the end of summer/ early fall. But she said that typically shoes need to be replaced every 4-6 months. So it was time to go shopping…YAY! I went to Performance Footwear and got fitted for new shoes. I was REALLY surprised with the results. First, they had me walk in just my socks to assess my gait and determined the right kind of stability I needed. Then, found out that my last pair of shoes was a whole size bigger than what I needed. Next, discovered that I measured for needing a wide width shoe, something I never knew. Yeah, I was wearing an 8 ½ and I actually needed a 7 ½ wide width shoe. The best part was when I put on the shoes and felt instant relief in my knees. They felt so good I didn’t want to take them off. The salesperson told me that a lot of our body’s aches and pains can be a result of our shoes. I admit that my typical method for choosing shoes was more about style, color and cuteness. I happened to catch an article about running shoes that says you should replace your shoes every 350-550 miles, so if you’re doing a lot of movin’ and groovin’ for the challenge it might be time to replace those shoes.
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by Melissa
on
tags:
Biggest Loser, diet, eating, food, Health, Nutrition, recipe, vegetables
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“Greek-Style Pasta” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
Who else watches the Biggest Loser? I love to watch that show. I call it my “motivation”. It makes me want to head to the gym in the morning. It’s so amazing to watch the transformations. I wish I could drop 10-15 pounds a week like they do! I’d be done already! But if you think about it, those of us on the challenge are doing our own “real life” Biggest Loser minus the giant scales. (Thank goodness!) I recently got the Biggest Loser Simple Swaps book and it has a lot of good ideas and recipes. Here’s one I tried and liked. I’d love to see what everyone else is eating, so feel free to share your favorite recipes in the comments.
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by Melissa
on
tags:
Aerobic, calories, cardio, exercise, Health, Kickboxing, punching, rhythm, workout
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“Kickboxing” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
I love Tuesday nights, because it’s my kickboxing class. I was surprised to discover how much I enjoy kickboxing. Remember I’m the girl with the two left feet in class usually, but somehow I manage to survive and have fun in this class. I guess I can kick and punch just not dance or step on boxes. There is something really empowering about doing all the punching and kicking and blocking. It’s a great way to rid yourself of any aggression. Mary does a wonderful job of explaining the moves and makes it fun and easy. But by “easy” I don’t mean that you won’t feel it, you will definitely be sweating and burning lots of calories. It is an awesome full body cardio workout! The only problem is that the class is really full. Last week, I “literally” got kicked in the rear. So I’m holding out hope that more classes will pop-up on the schedule. (I loved Angela’s Wednesday night Turbo Kick too….please come back Angela!) If you’re like me and have a hard time finding your “rhythm” with your two left feet, maybe give kickboxing a try. Come join me in kicking and punching calories away!
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“Me” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
This challenge has showed me how hard it is to make your self a priority. As a wife and mother, I feel guilty taking “me” time. Despite my husband’s assurances that it’s OK for me to take time for me, I feel guilty asking for help. I feel guilty taking time away from my family. I feel guilty putting my kids in the child care room because I want to workout. And don’t forget about our endless lists of tasks waiting for us like grocery shopping, cooking, laundry, bills, and cleaning that have to fit in around school and work schedules. I feel like I got so busy taking care of everyone else’s needs that I forgot to take care of myself. But if you don’t take care of yourself, it’s hard to take care of your family. For the past month, I found that when there’s a will there’s a way. I’m amazed at where I’ve been able to squeeze in a workout when I really want to. I even went to a 5am spin class this morning, and anyone who knows me knows I am NOT a morning person. I realized the laundry and other tasks will still be there when I’m done with my workout. I realized that a “date” with my husband at the gym can be fun too. I realized that my kids will be fine in the childcare room. (A shout out to Michelle and Caryn in the Wenatchee childcare…my kids love you!) And I realized that I’m making a happier, healthier wife, mother and ME.
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by Melissa
on
tags:
breakfast, dinner, discipline, eating, exercise, fast food, food, Health, Nutrition, workout
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“Discipline” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
Wow! What a weekend! I felt like I was put to the test. Saturday was especially difficult. We had big scheduling issues. My daughter had a school activity that required her to be there all day, my husband needed to be at the office all day and I had my two-year old to entertain and his naptime to work around. So when was there time for me to workout? How was I going to work in my healthy eating? How was I going to take care of everything and still take care of me? Thankfully, I have a wonder husband. He was able to go in to work a little later than planned. I got up early and went to the gym, and then finished my workout at home while the kids ate breakfast. I packed lunches for all of us and somehow we made it to school on time and even had cookies for the bake sale. Then I was faced with my next temptation…dinner. We had a small break between school performances in the evening. The kids really wanted McDonald’s and, well, I really wanted McDonalds. I admit it….I have a problem with fast food. “Hi, my name is Melissa and I love french fries.” It would have been so convenient to run and grab fast food. But “It’s not willpower, it’s discipline”, right? So we reluctantly headed home for dinner. Yes, it required more preparation on my part, but in the end I felt great about sticking to my meal plan and it was healthier for everyone. I realized that I will continue to be faced with temptations and challenges in the next couple of months and beyond. My own discipline will be my weapon against them.
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by Melissa
on
tags:
calories, dinner, eating, food, Health, Nutrition, recipe, soup, vegetables
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“Recipes” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Participant
I’m always looking for new, healthy recipes. I’m probably one of the pickiest eaters on the planet, so when I find something I actually like I’m really excited about it. If anyone has a recipe to share, I’d love to see it. I tried the Lentil & Chicken Sausage soup recipe from the Challenge playbook and thought it was great. I decided to try and make a favorite soup recipe a little healthier. So, I took Paula Deen’s Taco Soup recipe (you know, the southern gal from the Food Network) and changed a few things. It’s great because you can dump everything in a crockpot and at the end of the day you’ve got dinner. So here it is:
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by Melissa
on
tags:
bike, cardio, Classes, exercise, golds gym challenge, Health, rpm, spin, workout
Comments (2)
“Spin” by Melissa Schwab, Gold’s Gym Challenge Particpant
I love spin class! I remember the first time someone suggested that I try a spin class. I laughed and said that I HATED to ride bikes. My husband and I were just laughing about a time when we were first married and we decided to go for a bike ride. Let’s just say it ended with me on the side of the road with my bike and telling my husband to go back and get the truck because I wasn’t going any further. I hadn’t been on a bike since then. So I reluctantly went to the spin class and now it’s one of my favorites. There is a great energy to the class and it makes the time go so quickly. It’s all about the music, finding the beat of the music, sprinting, and climbing mountains. The instructor talks you through the workout giving gear changes and RPM goals. There was a new release last week that definitely gets your heart pumpin’. My only problem with the class is when I’m too late to get a bike. I happen to attend a lot of Bethany’s classes. She’s a rockstar. She talks you through the entire workout, and somehow still remembers everyone’s name. So come join me for a spin! Be sure to save me a bike….
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