Veggie Bee

Now that I have your attention, I have to say I love Fitness Magazine and the fact that they have simple ab exercise videos right on their web site in a structured workout. I know that they know how to get your attention and sell magazines, or bring you to their site. I have no problem with that, I’m trying to do the same thing! I do however, want you to consider doing the exercises in their videos not just because they might promise you sexy abs, but because they will help you feel strong, confident and capable, no matter what your abs look like. You’ll strengthen the core of your body, the muscles that help you with your posture and the muscles that take care of your back.  These muscles give you the strength for “playing”, which is what fun workouts really are, things like dancing, swimming, sports or simply running around chasing after your kids.

 The truth of the matter is that abdominal exercises alone won’t get you a “six pack.” Those sexy abs you’re looking for are actually in the food you’re eating and the foods that work to get you sexy abs aren’t really all that sexy sounding: lots of veggies, fruits and lean proteins. I’ll just use Michael Pollan’s phrasing: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. And by food, he means whole food instead of packaged, processed food. If your “six pack” is hidden under some extra weight, you’re going to have to lose that in addition to toning your core muscles.  Sign up for the 6-week challenge and Fitness Magazine will send you menu ideas for losing the weight.

Having said all that, I do like the idea of a structured exercise plan for your core to help you build some momentum around working these muscles, which I need to do more of myself. I added the Week 1 exercises to my workout yesterday… are you ready to get started??

Check out the Sexy Abs exercises for Week 1

I know, I know… many of you are probably like my sister-in-law, you’ll never run from anything but danger!  But in the event that some of you are thinking about adding running to your exercise routine, I wanted to share an article in Runner’s World, Running 101, to help you get started. The article includes tips for running as well as a 10 week training schedule to get started safely and without injury. 

Happy running!!

Mama Bee has been using a hula hoop for a while now for core strengthing. She uses a weighted hula hoop and spends about 20 to 25 minutes hula hooping during one of her morning shows that she watches daily. Apparently she’s a trend setter! Now I’m hearing about hula hooping everywhere and everyone seems to be trying it.

I got an email from Livestrong.com about how to hula hoop and now that I’m looking into it more, there’s a lot of info out there!  Here’s the video for How to Hula Hoop and more information from Livestrong.com on hula hooping.

Have you planned your fitness for the day or already accomplished it?!! Don’t let the day get away from you without planning some type of exercise, even just 10 minutes…   I know when we’re really busy it’s easy to talk ourselves out of exercise, but you’re worth 10 minutes of exercise in your day!! Start problem-solving right now how to get in that 10 minutes today!

I ran 3 miles this morning and now it’s time for some jump rope and abs!

I’m also working on a post for super tasty salad dressing ideas. I’ll have that up by tomorrow, just in time to plan your salads for the weekend. 

What’s your fitness plan for the day?!

Have you planned your fitness for the day or already accomplished it?!! Don’t let the day get away from you without planning some type of exercise, even just 10 minutes…   Let me know how you’ve done or if you need help or suggestions!

If you haven’t fit exercise into your day yet, remember it only take 10 minutes to build or maintain your exercise momentum. Start problem-solving right now how to get in that 10 minutes today!

I’ll be running about 4 miles later and doing an abs DVD… David got up at 5 a.m. and went to the gym…  I stayed asleep ~

What’s your fitness plan for the day?!

Do you have a bad habit you need to break? Take a look at Margarita’s Breakup Letter to her bad habit…  and then write your own!

Phit-N-Phat asks What Motivates You to Be Healthy and Fit? There’s a nice quote on getting to your goals: “Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” - Jim Ryun.

Need even more to help you get motivated? Read the article Get Motivated (pdf) from Body + Soul magazine and then take Tamara Lowe’s Motivational DNA test.

Need a workout you can do in 7 minutes?! Check out Lean & Fit in 7 Minutes at Women’s Health Magazine. You can even download it to your iPod!

This weekend, I’m planning to try some version of Shape Magazine’s Eggplant-Ricotta Rolls with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce. I’m not sure I’ll use ricotta cheese, but I like the idea of the rolls.  Let me know if you try it and any changes you might make to it.

Win FREE Reebok SmoothFit SelectRide Shoes at Active.com. Ends March 31, 09.

• Go to the Active.com Reebok Crosstraining page.
• Click on one of the links to enter the giveaway.
• While you’re there, take a look at the Free Cross-training plans that are available.
• Five winners will be selected after the giveaway ends at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on March 31, 09.

Enter to Win daily prizes at Fitness Magazine’s Daily Sweepstakes!

• Today’s prize is a pair of women’s ASICS GEL-Nimbus 10 running shoes.
• Tomorrow’s prize is a women’s RRS 3-layer jacket.
• Enter to win daily at Fitness Magazine online!

Have you planned your fitness for the day or already accomplished it?  Let me know how you’ve done or if you need help or suggestions!

If you haven’t fit exercise into your day yet, remember it only take 10 minutes to build or maintain your exercise momentum. Start problem-solving right now how to get in that 10 minutes today!

Update: I ran 3 miles this morning and I’m going to do an abs DVD with the stability ball tonight. David got up at 5 a.m. (!!) this morning and hit the gym like he’s been doing regularly… that is so early! I’m still dreaming when he gets back, go honey!!

Something is better than nothing

Whether you’re just starting an exercise program to lose weight or you’ve been on an exercise hiatus from your regular routine, many times it’s best to start small and build your exercise momentum by making it a minimum daily commitment. Using a minimum daily effort of 10 minutes may seem like an insignificant impact on your overall health or weight loss, but often this small amount of time serves as the impetus to your entire future exercise program.

When to use the “10 minute” strategy

• You’re just starting an exercise program and seem overwhelmed by the effort you think you should be devoting to it.
• You use the excuse that you “don’t have time” to exercise.
• You had previously been on a regular exercise program, but something changed in your routine and you’ve been out of the habit (sometimes for as little as a week!)
• You work out sporadically because you only want to do “real” workouts that require more time or energy than you have.
• You only workout when you can devote a large block of time to it.

It’s easier to talk yourself out of an hour long run than a 10 minute walk, but even a little bit is better than nothing. Oftentimes, that 10 minute walk will turn into a longer session of exercise since getting started is sometimes the hardest part. But even if it doesn’t, it gives you a chance at keeping your momentum going for the next day so that you have a chance at building consistency into your weekly routine.

5 simple ideas for adding 10 minutes of exercise

• Put your walking shoes & clothes on as soon as you get out of bed. Walk 5 minutes away from your front door and 5 minutes back. Commit to 7 days in a row and if you miss a day, recommit to 7 straight days.
• Put your walking shoes in your car and walk instead of waiting at appointments.
• Park an extra 10 minutes away from your appointments. You’re guaranteed 2 bouts of 10 minutes of exercise.
• Find a DVD (or “on demand” cable channel) with 10 minute segments on it and commit to doing 1 segment each day for 7 days.
• Set a timer for 10 minutes and do jumping jacks, lunges, pushups and crunches while you watch television.

Has incorporating small bouts of exercise into your day ever helped to keep you on track with your program? Which suggestion above would you be willing to try to get your momentum going?

Welcome to Veggie Bee, a blog that will focus on practicing healthy living and developing the skills you need to be successful wherever you may be on the journey to a healthier life.

Veggie Bee is a guilt-free, positive-thinking zone, which means accepting where you are on your journey to living healthier. It means that getting and staying healthy is an ongoing learning process where we’ll focus on what’s going right as well as the challenges and obstacles you face as you practice healthy living.

So what does practicing healthy living really mean? 

• Making changes that work for you. You may simply be contemplating the idea of losing weight and changing your lifestyle. You may be ready to go, but have no idea where to start. Or you may be currently maintaining a healthy life. Together we’ll come up with strategies to help you start or maintain a healthy lifestyle and the nutritional and fitness behaviors that go along with it.
• Food versus products. With all the focus on components of our diets, from carbs to proteins, from trans-fats to omega-3’s, it’s easy to forget that there are whole foods out there that are naturally created for optimal health. Food that doesn’t have to be enriched, that doesn’t have ingredients that sound like a foreign language – just whole, natural food. Don’t worry, we’ll also talk about products that are created to help us live a healthy life conveniently!
• Moving. As in, being active and moving your body more. Walking, finding activities that you actually enjoy doing, or ones that you at least don’t hate.  It’s inevitable, healthy living includes exercise for those of us blessed to be able to do it.
• Eating, not dieting. Finding foods you enjoy and strategies that you can practice that will keep you healthy over the long term, not just as a temporary fix for weight loss.
• Reality checks. Using the tools of health management to measure your progress and allow you set goals for yourself based on the reality of where you are. For some of us, it takes practice to look at our health without bias, denial or guilt. Learning to detach your worth and worthiness from the number on a scale may take time, but it is necessary at times to maintain momentum in healthy behaviors.  Weighing yourself regularly, keeping records related to healthy behaviors, knowing your health-related numbers like body mass index (BMI), blood pressure and cholesterol are all healthy reality checks to ensure you’re on the right track.
• Accountability. This may mean finding a walking buddy, joining a community of support, finding a nutritionist or personal trainer or it may simply mean setting up goals that make you accountable to yourself. It also means finding a way that works for you to keep records related to what you eat and when you move.

You can be healthy and vibrant!! I hope my passion for whole foods and fitness can help you as you make positive changes in your life. It’s time to be fabulous ~ and positively healthy!