There is no Silver Bullet

One hour every day. 6 days a week for 12 weeks; a no non-sense butt kicking workout coupled with eating clean has paid off. The combo of the two – workout & eating clean is the only potion that can truly help you transform into a healthy and fit you. One minus the other is incomplete. When coupled the result is simply magical. You believe in magic? Well, there is no magic; there is no silver bullet that will help you lose weight and stay fit. If you believe in hardwork then the combo will get you there. It is a proven theory.

Me & my hubby just completed our 12 weeks of a seriously butt kicking workout called X-Series, offered here at our local Gym – Excel Body Fitness. I have lost 10 pounds and my body fat % has dropped down by 5. My hubby has lost 15 pounds and  his body fat % has dropped down by  7 – IN JUST 12 WEEKS.

Yes, beautiful bodies are not made in heaven. Hard work does pay off. There is a catch – and that is you need to strive for the pay off.

Then & Now

Then & Now

CLEAN 30. Do it to believe it. Dare yourself!!!

Lemon pepper & ginger shrimp with garlic n sesame seed spinach salad; with side of quinoa. CLEAN!!!

CLEAN 30? What in the world is CLEAN 30? Simple. It means for 30 days you eat CLEAN. Eating CLEAN by no means mean starving yourself; a misconception I found among a few friends of mine, when I tried to explain to them that we were on a CLEAN 30 diet. Dieting does not translate to “green salad” only. We in CLEAN 30 got so mocked at that from some point I did not even make an effort to explain to the quizzical looks that questioned what it was all about. CLEAN in the eating world is a rhetoric word that has a deep connotation. It can be used several different ways to define eating habits. For some it might mean no meat; for some it might mean no wheat. However the CLEAN 30 that me and my hubby did during our X-Series session at Excel Body Fitness meant eating right. For 30 days eating Real, Wholesome, minimally processed foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds & lean meats. No refined grains, added sugars, and highly processed foods (e.g. white rice, white flour/pasta/bread, tortillas, cakes, cookies, candy, ice cream, frozen yoghurt, pies, sodas, pastries, potato chips etc). No artificial sweeteners,  no fried or trans fats and no alcohol. The whole idea behind this was that once you master the ‘art of eating right’ its up to you to make the decisions on the food you eat.  Food and eating clean is such a vast topic to discuss that a mere few sentences do not really say much about it. There is a billion dollar food industry and a billion dollar marketing on this topic; so you figure it out. But I will tell you this much that eating the right food does make a difference in how you look and feel. There is a big truth behind the saying that you are what you eat.

The pledged 30 days of eating CLEAN have been long over; but we have still been able to stick to it. In fact getting into the mode of eating CLEAN was not a difficult start for us as we were already eating CLEAN most of the time. During the clean 30 giving up white rice & white flour during parties and meet ups were somewhat difficult. It was more difficult explaining to people why we were not eating it than actually not eating it; as they did not understand how one day would make a difference? (and yes a day would not make a difference as long as you have been really good the rest of the time) And of course the Super Bowl without alcohol was a something my hubby was not very happy about. 🙂 Once we got past the clean 30, we realized that it had already turned into a habit. Habit of eating CLEAN. Does that mean we NEVER eat anything but CLEAN? Never is not true…seldom is true. But when we do; we know how much to 🙂 “What? So you are going to do this for the rest of your life? You must be crazy…” I have heard this way too many times. Clean 30 is just the first step; an eye opener on how the food you eat defines your waistline that you absolutely hate or absolutely adore; defines your overall health and your fitness. Do not waste your hour of workout by not watching what you are eating.

Yes we spend more time reading labels and driving to several different stores to pick the foods that we love. Is it worth it? Absolutely…we would do it over and over again. Does it take a long time to prepare CLEAN food? Not at all. It’s all about picking the right food and coming up the creative menus. Eating CLEAN does not have to be boring. In our home, it has just got more exciting. And the results? You got to see it to believe it. Stay tuned. Coming next – the journey into 12 weeks of X-Series at XBF with CLEAN 30 and the results.

WHERE was I? Hmm…

It’s been quite a while since I last blogged and that was in August of 2011. Wow…really, that is a long time!

In Sept of 2011 I went to Omaha, NE to run a full marathon with my friends – Sushma and Karma. It was a family get away that was planned along with the run. It was a FUN trip. Enjoyed the run more than anything. I will have to admit that I was taken by surprise that the run in Omaha turned out to be one of the MOST enjoyable runs that I have run so far. That morning it was just cold enough. And the rest is all relativity. When you are with friends you can talk for ages the rest of the run becomes just leg strides and hearts that talk to each other even in silence. But boy were we loud? We were screaming “All the way from NC…all the way from FL…” and dancing along with the music on the way. What worse can happen than a stomach cramp in the middle of the run? I could not breathe. And that was not all…Nature had planned it all out for us. It was tampon time! Yup…now that says it all. Making all those pit stops which we had to…for obvious reason; we still managed to finish it in under 5 hours. Not something that a runner seeking for a PR would be proud of…but hey…that was my first marathon 🙂 and the most important thing of all is we had a blast in that run. When I think of it, I cannot help smiling all fun memories…Singing, joking, grunting and pushing each other we made it all the way through. All priceless!

I had felt good after the run; which obviously means that I did not push myself hard enough to finish it sooner. One should not FEEL GOOD after that long of a run :-). It should FEEL LIKE HELL; if you give all in 🙂

After the run that night we had a unforgetable girls hang out at Blue Sushi. Boy, was it fun!

In October I took a break from long runs. On Oct 1st we drove to Florida to do a 86 miles MS: PGA Tour Cycle to the shore ride. I love riding bicycle and the experience of riding it on the coast from St. Augustine to Daytona Beach was simply beyond words to express. I was immensly happy.

In November I was supposed to run a rock n roll full marathon in Savannah, Georgia. But my run and my son’s soccer final game coincided on the same day. I could not break his heart and go for my run as he wanted me to be there for his game. We did not go to Georgia…it rained all night..his game was cancelled the next day…and I was mad all day. I guess things happen for a reason…may be it was not meant for me to be in Georgia that day 🙂

In November I had my ear surgery so from mid November to end of December I did not run at all. With all the training runs before the Sept Marathon and all the runs after that I thought I would get to where I want to be at; but I had reached a plateau. I was stuck at 110; with my midsection still to lose. I had to try something different. I made a new year resolution for 2012 – that I would do P90X. But then as the Alchemist says: …”when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it…” in the mid of December my hubby handed me a flyer that would change my whole world of workout. It was like a prayer being answered. It was the flyer for Excel Body Fitness. And it said “Excel in Fitness. Excel in Life”. What followed then has been nothing but the very best for me & my family. Stay tuned…I have lots to share in the blogs to come.

My Unleashed Run

The past weekend I decided to go on my long run – unleashed.  My motivation to get up at 5 on a Sunday morning when everyone else in the house was sound asleep was basically zero. I wanted to sleep in. I wanted it to rain hard with thunderstorm so I could justify my sleeping in. But it did not rain and my alarm kept buzzing off after every 5 mins of my snoozing it. At 5:30 I was finally out of the bed. With my fuel belt I was out of the house at 6 in the morning. I did not pick up the car keys. I wanted to run without keeping track of my mileage so I changed my garmin to show me just the time of my run. I had to put in 20 miles for my training run. It was a cool morning. Still dark. I wanted to go back to my bed. Instead I kept running through the neighborhoods and the roads, around the lake and the trees and again the main streets. I wanted to get lost in the unknown neighborhood. I wanted to run to solve the street puzzle. I wanted to run to explore. Suddenly the whole running of the morning began to present itself like a game to me. I dared myself to go on a steep slope and I dared myself to go into the unknown roundabouts of an unknown neighborhood. I dared myself to run through the quiet greenways and I dared myself to sprint. I dared myself to run slow – very slow (sometimes running slow is a challenge…believe me…it is). I dared myself to run past another runner and I dared myself to speed down a slope.

When I was an hour and half into my run, it started pouring. I prayed there would be no thunder and lightning as I fear them. Yes I do and I am not shy to admit it. I was so happy that it rained. I ran in the rain. It was pouring hard and fast on me and cooling me off. It took me back to my childhood days when we used to play in the rain – no worries – just play. I had such an immense feeling of freedom running in that rain that people would have questioned my sanity if they had seen my wide grin and happiness on my face while my feet just kept taking me further. I went to a store, re-fueled my bottle and bought a banana. After one banana and some Gatorade I was on the road again. I had been running for 3 hrs 20 mins. I calculated  that I should be done in the next half hour or so. I was tempted to see how many miles I had logged in. If I told you that I did not, I would be lying. So here it is…yes I checkout how many miles I had logged in so far and I was past my 16 miles…16.55. I could not believe. I wow(ed) myself. All those dare games I played, the free mind I had, not having to run back to make 20 miles, the fun I had running in the rain, my unleashed run – they all were responsible to take me to all those miles without me realizing it.

I wanted to explore another street, another neighborhood, so off I went. I kept running. I crossed many other runners on the way. We smiled, we waved. I felt I could run forever. After about half an hour I checked the mileage on my garmin. I had finished 20 miles at exactly 1 min left to 4 hrs. I know it’s not the timing that people can brag about; but for me, it was my longest run that I had ever ran. I did not know what it felt like to run 20 miles and even that 3.59 hrs that I finished in felt heavenly to me. I called my hubby and started walking off, waiting for my ride. In 10 mins my family was there to pick me up. They had brought coconut water for me and we drove back home to my ice bath. It was one of the best and most enjoyable runs I have had done.

*photo provided by:Microsoft clip art

Running & the Miraculous healing power of ice bath

I took my first ICE BATH after a 13 miles training run. Got 2 ten pounds ice bags, dumped both in a tub half filled with cold water and got in to the waist deep water in my running pants and a T-shirt. First I dreaded getting in as I have never liked cold bath; but since that first plunge I actually look forward to the long training runs on the weekends so I can get in that ice bath and chill myself for 10 minutes. There is no scientific evidence to back up the benefits of ice bath/ice immersion after a workout. However athletes who have been taking ice bath swear by it for the benefits it brings to their recovery.

When I took my first ice bath, I went in the bath with sore hamstrings & sore feet. After 10 minutes when I was out of the water, I felt so relieved that if I am to describe in words it felt as if all my soreness had dissolved in the cold water and I was pain-free. I felt so good that I did not even realize that I had just come back from a 13 miles run.

It is believed that  hard physical activity causes microscopic muscles and soft tissue damages and emerging in the cold ice water helps to minimize the inflammation and the associated pain. It is also believed that cold ice bath has the flushing out effect on muscles and substances like the lactic acid which are believed to build up in muscles following exercise. The cold helps shut down the superficial blood vessels; which in turn diverts the blood to deeper positioned muscles which then causes the flushing out effect. Flushing out the lactic acid helps in post training recovery; reducing soreness and stiffness.

Unless a scientific study comes out claiming that ice-cold water bath is harmful than beneficial, I think I am going to keep turning to it after my strenuous workout/trainings.

Last weekend I did my 15 miles run and after 10 minutes of ice bath; I felt no pain. Took a day off to rest and I was ready to run 6 miles on Monday again. This weekend is my 16 miles run and I know that my ice bath is going to be there for me. 🙂

Shame on You!!!

“I do not have time to…” This statement has become a cliché among all of us today who live and breathe a busy life.  “A”  has time to do gardening but says he has absolutely no time to read books. “B” says he has time to play basketball but has absolutely no time to practice piano lesson. “C” has time to watch his favorite TV shows but absolutely no time to workout. I do not know…you make the list…it keeps going. Doesn’t it? 24 hrs a day. That’s all there is. How you slice and dice those  24 hrs all depends upon your priorities. The most important thing that matters to you the most in life will get that piece of “time pie”.

I would love to grow a vegetable garden. Really. I know my kids can learn a great deal of science and learn to appreciate nature in more ways than they do now. It’s not that I did not try it out. I did spend almost $150 on pots and soils and seeds but at the end of the season all I got was withered plants that had nothing in them; they had died because I had not invested my time in taking care of them. I did not have time. Or did I really not? Honestly, I was not too passionate about it. That was something that was not on the priorities topper in “my list of priorities”. Ask me to put on a cartoon channel on my TV at my home and I will be embarrassed.  I have no clue how to operate the cable box. So every time my three years old wants me to put her a show on demand for her, I have to call out for my seven years old to do so; actually i have to request him 🙂 Honest to god, I still have not figured it out. Watching TV – I absolutely have no time for. Now I love to watch movies on Friday nite. So for that I make sure I find the time to.

I absolutely have time to workout. No matter how freaking busy my schedule of the day looks like (a full-time job; two kids on the go; time for hubby & kids; house chores; kids activities; at times my photography; my books; my soccer games with my seven yrs old; my blog; call and socialize with my frens – I have to make time for all of them) I make sure I invest one hour of my day for my workout – be at the gym, go out to run or run on the stairs at home.  So next time you say you do not have time to workout, think about it. It’s all priorities. And what I witnessed in the gym today; it only brings shame to all men and women out there who say they do not have one hour of their day to invest in themselves…to make themselves look good…to make difference in their lives and their livings and to the lives of many who care for them. I met a lady at my gym who completely awed me. I could not help asking her how old she was and complimenting her how strong she was. She said she was close to her 60s. She was doing the core strength training with such passion and expertise that I have yet to meet someone as strong and as in-shape as she was. She was doing pull ups in sessions; heavy weight lunges with push ups and jumps in the same sessions; endless push ups; balance squat on the exercise ball holding medicine ball; side planks…you name it. I could see the guys in the gym literally watching her. Boy, she was strong. She rocked and I was so impressed with her that I could not help making this an entry in my blog.  The lady looked so fit she could be at fitness level of a 25 yrs old. I do not know; I am no training expert but she was phenomenal.

I just wish that everyone had that passion and enthusiasm for oneself; a sheer desire to; a want to live better. How does that one hour a day become so impossible to invest on yourself? Are you not worth even that one hour of your time pie?

         *photo provided by:Microsoft clip art

Tempo run to help me run like a Kenyan?

 

Born to Run?

 

Running the 34th Annual Gate River Run in Jax, FL this March made me realize that my legs and knees were holding up much stronger than my heart. I was getting a little breathless even at a little under 10 mins/mile pace. I thought I could hold up much better with all the miles and training I have been putting into my runs. I finished the run in 1:35:29; which probably would have been a little more better if we did not have to run through the maze of people in the run. My friend, even with bad knees was doing much better than I, leaving me a few steps behind, most of the time. If we had not made our “girly promise” to stick by each other and finish the run together, she could have finished the run a good 5-10 mins ahead of me. She was more relaxed than I. The difference in her training and mine was that she had incorporated many tempo runs in her training while I had been busy focusing on the long runs. Tempo Run was not new to my “Runner Vocabulary” but I had never given it much of a  thought. It sounded elite to me. What next? I google(d) Tempo Run and ended up reading several articles on it which have finally convinced me that I need to incorporate Tempo Runs in my training if I want to perform better in the upcoming runs. “Your Perfect Tempo” an article in Runner’s World is a must read. Quoting the article here “…You’ll be even happier if you make tempo running a part of your weekly training regimen, and get results that make you feel like a Kenyan–if not quite as fast. “

So frens, looks like Tempo Run it is; on my way to feel like a Kenyan even though I will not be able to run like one. 🙂

                                      *picture provided by: http://kenyapage.net/athletics/commentary/

The “Ahh…” of Coconut Water

The drink that made me go "Ahh..."

You had me at the first drink ;-)Coconut water anyone?  

I LOVE coconut water. There are several brands & types in the market shelves. The “Real” and “Zico”; the two brazilian products have so far been my favorite. They are refreshing drink and if you could afford to trade in your empty calorie soft drinks with coconut  drink; you will be amazed at benefits the drink can bring to you.

Coconut water is nutritious drink packed with vitamins and minerals. The antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant in Coconut Water is health beneficial. This nutrient rich drink has been used to regulate blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels, and it has been found to boost energy levels and increase metabolism in the human body. It is also said to be beneficial in treating kidney stones, controlling diabetes and cleansing your digestive tract.  Want smooth skin? Try coconut water on daily basis.

Coconut water has no cholesterol and is low in calories, carbs and sugar. It is packed with potassium more than in a banana and 15 times more than in sports drink; which helps prevent cramping and promote muscle performance. Coconut water has all the important electrolytes – potassium, sodium, magnesium, calcium and phosphorous; all of which our body needs to keep our nerves firing, muscles moving and of course, managing stress.

It could very well be replaced for my sports drink; although coconut water contains less amount of sodium than sports drink to replenish sodium lost through perspiration; in that matter even the sodium content in sports drink is not enough to replace the sodium lost through sweat.

However many the health benefits of coconut water might be; to me the craziness of it all started when I drank a COLD pack of  “Real” after a 10 miles run on a humid afternoon. It made me go “Ahh…”.  It cooled me off instantly and I felt so good that I could not help googling for “Real” when I came home. The individual pack was expensive and I wanted to find the best deal on the net. It was then that I read  about coconut water and why it is so fast becoming the “new sports drink”.  I had heard that coconut water is good for you; I just did not know how good. 🙂 The only complain I have so far is “it is one expensive drink to get habituated to”. I cannot make it my regular drink yet. Not just yet 🙂

Zico Rocks. Love this drink

What’s your post workout drink?

Smoothie on its way

Yogurt, frozen strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries,  a portion of banana, a scoop of Whey Protein, crushed ice and a little water smoothie is my post workout drink. It has basically everything I need after a workout for muscle recovery. Yogurt is the source of calcium & protein. The berries score the highest in antioxidant power protecting the body against inflammation and free radicals, molecules that can damage cells and organs. They are loaded with fibers. Strawberries contain more vitamin C in a one-cup serving than one orange, and are particularly high in folic acid. Blueberries contain 20 types of anthocyanin – antioxidants. Blackberries and Raspberries each contains 8 g of fiber in one cup; one-third the daily recommended amount (25 g). Banana is loaded with potassium, dietary fiber, Vitamin C and Vitamin B-6. A scoop of  Whey Protein adds 26 gram of extra protein to my drink that helps muscle recovery after a long run or a strenuous weight training session.It’s easy and fast to make

Muscles are hungry after a good workout. It is best to feed them within an hour of the workout time. Want to share your post workout drink?

And here is mine. 😉

 

Here is Betty’s blueberry-banan smoothie recipe.

Pump up the Iron. Really? reALLy. reAlly. (Last Part)

 

 

 

 

To all my girl frens who think that weight training is going to butch them up – Unless you have an abnormal testosterone production/ you use steroid and train the very way to get butch(y)- it’s not going to happen. Testosterone plays a very important factor in the development of muscle shapes. Women have very low levels of this hormone; which means their muscles will develop differently. So a little resistance/weight training is not going to lead one to a bulky, masculine physique. Resistance/strength training is as important to women as it is to men and may be even more because women seem to suffer more from osteoporosis. Here you can find some good information on women, osteoporosis and weight training.

With age muscle mass naturally diminishes. “If you don’t do anything to replace the lean muscle you lose, you’ll increase the percentage of fat in your body,” says Edward Laskowski, M.D. Read the article here

Another good source of information on weight/strenght training is here and here

 Because strength/weight training can increase our Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR is the amount of  calories that our body burn no matter what the other variables are) by almost 15% , one will lose body fat faster with weight training instead of doing cardio alone. Muscle is the furnace. The more muscles one has the more calories per pound is burned. And we gain muscles from weight/strength training. In the past I did not incorporate any weight trainings in my routine. I worked out hard but the result was sluggish and it was only frustrating me.  I wasted all those years pushing away weight training – dreading it will bulk me up. Today I know it better.

But Hey…IT’s your decision still. 🙂