The Right Dose Of Exercise

I saw this article this morning in the NY Times regarding the correct amount of exercise necessary for a healthier life.  It's pretty interesting.  It seems that working out for one hour every day, some of it high intensity exercise, is the best for over all health and longevity.  So, I'm doing something right!

The Right Dose Of Exercise For A Longer Life

What are your thoughts on how much and what kind of exercise is best for a healthy life?

Six Weeks With Suzi (Take Two) - Day 1

Today, I am starting the Six Week Challenge once again.  Last month I lost 10 pounds and made a good start of firming and toning my body in six weeks.  I would really like to take off another 10 pounds and do more body sculpting.  My challenge this time is to find my abs!  I definitely noticed my core getting stronger and my mid-section getting firmer last time around.  But, my "six pack" is still hiding under a layer of belly fat.  I know it's under there and I WILL begin to uncover it over the next six weeks!

I probably won't bore you with daily updates of my meal plans this time.  For the most part, I'm going to follow the meal plans from the first challenge.  The ideas are the same from day to day: high protein, high fiber, low carbs/good carbs, and "healthy fats" in pretty much every meal.  Add in lots of colorful fresh veggies, drink lots of water, exercise every single day, and there you go... before you know it, you're living a healthy lifestyle!  

What I will do is check in weekly to let you know how I'm doing, if and how much I'm losing, and share any insights I pick up along the way.  I'll share recipe and workout ideas and try to provide motivation to keep us all going.  If you feel so inclined, I would love to hear about your progress, tips and motivational devices that help you stay on track.  I am also going to remember and take measurements today so I'll have more of a comparison basis other than just numbers on a scale.

Some days, I will go ahead and share my meal and exercise plan for the day for no other reason than to "keep me honest."  I found that there were days during the last challenge when I would have cheated if I hadn't been posting daily; but once I posted the plan for the day, I felt locked in and would stick with it anyway.  

So, here we go again!... 

Six Weeks With Suzi (Take Two) - DAY 1

Breakfast
Fat Free Greek Yogurt

Mid-Morning Snack
1 Boiled Egg

Lunch
Salad: Romaine, Spinach, Red Bell Pepper, Tomato, Celery
6 oz Tuna

Dinner
4 oz Roast Chicken
Carrots and Onions, cooked

Exercise
Walk 4 Miles with 5 lb Weights


Are you ready for another Six Weeks With Suzi?

Watermelon Spinach Smoothie

I have always loved watermelons.  They taste like summer.  When I was a child, my grandparents always had several large gardens and Granddaddy would say he planted an extra row of watermelons just for me.  Some summers we would have so many watermelons that they were literally served with breakfast, lunch and dinner every day.  I never complained!  And it turns out that these sweet delicious gifts from the earth are good for you!

Watermelon Nutrition and Health Benefits

While watermelons are low in most vitamins and minerals, they are a good source of vitamin C and beta-carotene (which your body synthesizes into vitamin A). Watermelons with red flesh have more lycopene than tomatoes, which is a nutrient believed to protect against prostate cancer.  Since watermelons are primarily water, they also provide necessary hydration.

Watermelons do contain two interesting nutrients which are found especially abundant in the edible rind: citrulline and arginine. Citrulline has been shown to boost heart health, the immune system and help with weight loss and type 2 diabetes. Arginine boosts nitric oxide in the body which helps relax blood vessels and can treat and prevent erectile dysfunction. Some say watermelon is nature’s answer to Viagra! Arginine also removes toxins from the body.

Today's smoothie combines watermelon with other super foods like mango, pineapple and spinach, all rich in fiber and other vitamins and nutrients also known to improve eye sight, lower blood pressure and help prevent cancer.  So, enjoy the health benefits along with the delicious tastes of summer in this watermelon green smoothie.

Watermelon Spinach Smoothie

8 oz Fat Free Greek Yogurt, Vanilla Flavor

1 c Watermelon, chunks

½ c Mango, chunks frozen

½ c Pineapple, chunks frozen

1 c Spinach, frozen

½ c Cashew Milk, unsweetened

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth.

(20 g Protein, 1 g Fat, 4 g Fiber)

Six Weeks With Suzi - Results

Congratulations on completing Six Weeks With Suzi!

It's the Final Weigh In Day! ... And the results are in ... Drum roll please ...

-2 lbs

Total Six Week Challenge Weight Loss =

-10 lbs

I am not at all unhappy with these results.  While my initial challenge set 15 pounds as the goal, I'm not going to argue over losing 10 pounds.  My ultimate goal was to get healthy and take control of my body, and I have achieved that goal!  And, I know that I could have lost more pounds if I had gone for a more calorie restrictive diet, also known as starvation diet.  But, I chose to do this the smart and healthy way, with no starving involved.  The problem with starvation diets is that they end...and leave you starving.  As a result, you are more likely to fall back into old habits as soon as the diet ends; gorging on everything you were denied during the diet.  Instead, I've tried to approach this as a "meal plan" instead of a diet.  The items and portions that I have been eating for the last 6 weeks will probably not change even though the challenge is over.  I don't feel drawn to cheat or "pig out" today.  In fact, I woke up planning my food and exercise for the day just like I've done for the past 42 days.  There will definitely be a celebratory cocktail or 2 (or 3...) in my life this weekend, but otherwise I will continue with healthy eating and exercising every day.  I feel confident that these 10 pounds will stay off!

I wish I had taken measurements when I started this challenge, but unfortunately I didn't.

However, there are before and after pictures.  They aren't as drastic as I might have hoped, but I think you can tell the difference.  

                      BEFORE                                                                AFTER

             

            

            

           

I would still like to go for about another 10 pounds next month.  But, for now, I will just keep doing what I've been doing.  Stay tuned for more challenges.

I will also be posting a summary of my exercises as well as recipes from this Six Week Challenge.

Great job and thanks for joining me on this journey!  

How did you do?

Six Weeks With Suzi - Day 42

Congratulations on making it to Day 42!  It's the last official day of this Six Week Challenge!
Let's make this last day really count...

DAY 42

Breakfast

½ c Kashi Go Lean Crunch, ½ c Skim Milk

Lunch

1 Boiled Egg, 1 Boiled Egg White

1 T Fat Free Greek Yogurt, Plain

Onion

2 Slices Whole Wheat Bread

Dinner

4 oz Roast Chicken

1 Carrot, Roasted Whole

Salad: Red Leaf Lettuce, Tomato, Mushrooms, Red Bell Pepper

Snack

1 c Sugar-Free Cashew Milk

Exercise

Warm Up:  10 Minutes JC Leg Cranks

Abs:  30 Minutes Ab-Work

Arms & Legs:  45 Minutes Lifting w/10 lb Dumbbell Weights

Cardio Finish:  5 Minutes JC Leg Cranks

Yes, I'm upping the workout from one hour to 90 minutes today. Let's make the most of this 42nd day!  Feel how strong your body has become as you push it just a little farther today.  

Let's talk about exercising and staying fit over 40.  I can tell you right now that it is NOT for the squeamish.  When I was in my 20's, even 30's, working out hard would result in sore muscles, but the pain went away quickly leaving only results.  At age 48, these old muscles and bones just don't behave the same way anymore.  They continue to hurt long after the workout ends, constantly reminding me that I'm an old woman and trying to convince me that I'm too old for this shit.  But, every day I laugh at this old body's complaints and make it work hard whether it wants to or not; and I try to ignore:

1) the pinch in my knees

2) the ache in my lower back

3) the shoulder that hurts every time I reach behind me

4) the stiff hips

5) that annoying decades old groin pull always threatening to act up

...and I could probably go on and on with my list of aches and pains.

But, this aging body has taken good care of me so far, and since it's the only one I'm going to get as far as I know, isn't it only fair to take good care of it and keep it strong and healthy?  Even when it complains, I know what is best for it!  So, suck it up, ignore those aches and pains (unless they get too bad - be careful of "working through the pain" - if it feels "wrong" STOP.)

So, get out there and make this a great day!

What are your thoughts on exercising as you get older?

Belly Blaster Smoothie

As I near the end of my Six Week Challenge, I find that I have really been missing my smoothies.

While I do believe that a diet including nutrient rich smoothies is healthy and can be conducive to weight loss, I have been largely avoiding sugar during this challenge.  However, even with the natural sugar from the fruit and the yogurt, the balance of vitamins, nutrients, protein and fiber make this particular smoothie a good weight loss tool.  Antioxidant rich raspberries and pineapple both aid in digestion and help prevent bloating, spinach and whole oats add fiber, yogurt and whey powder pack a protein punch, the cashew milk and banana give a great sweet flavor, and all together it will keep you full and satisfied for hours.

Belly Blaster

4 oz Fat Free Greek Yogurt, Vanilla

½ c Unsweetened Cashew Milk

1 c Raspberries, frozen

½ c Pineapple, frozen

½ Banana, frozen

1 c Spinach, frozen

2 T Flax Seed, ground fine

½ c Whole Oats, ground fine

2 T Whey Protein Powder, Vanilla flavor

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth.

(60 g Protein, 10 g Fat, 22 g Fiber)