Fitness Cure

I have a fascination with food – especially food I CAN’T EAT (at least only in moderation)

I have compared food to relationships, to careers and most recently…how you choose to date certain people. As Valentine’s day approaches, I was thinking about relationships, my free meal that day and this new study from Science Daily (posted below) It made me think of something I recently wrote.

On my myspace blog I talked about a funny comparison between chocolate and broccoli:

Is your man chocolate or broccoli??? 

I have an inside joke.

So here’s the deal: I have TONS of girlfriends…tons of single gals who go on dates with guys who are either:

1) Hot and Sexy

or

2) Average and Nice

I have coined the term CHOCOLATE and BROCOLLI. (I used these metaphors due to my fitness-y background. OH! And this is a phrase copyrighted by Maria Kang J/K!)

Men who are Chocolate are those who are just SINFUL to be with. Like chocolate, it tastes good, you crave for it, you LOVE IT, but in the long run…it’s just NOT good  for you.

Men who are Brocolli are those who are GOOD for you. Like Brocolli, it’s bland, kinda tasteless, you don’t really like it, but you’ll eat it…because in the long run…it’s IS good for you.

haha – now the joke’s out! Whatya all think?

mmmmm….yummy!

hmmm….sure, why not?

—
From And For The Heart, My Dear Valentine:Broccoli

 ScienceDaily (Jan. 24, 2008) — Wishing your Valentine good heart health on February 14 — and throughout 2008?

Then consider the food some people love to hate, and hand over a gift bag of broccoli along with that heart-shaped box of chocolates. Researchers in Connecticut are reporting impressive new evidence that eating broccoli may protect against heart disease.

Researchers have known for years that broccoli is a rich source of antioxidants, vitamins, and fiber that may protect against cancer, Dipak K. Das and colleagues note. Other studies also suggest that broccoli may benefit the heart, although scientists do not know how it works.

Das and colleagues now report evidence on that topic from animal studies. They gave broccoli extract to lab rats for one month and measured its effects on the rats’ heart muscle. Compared to a control group that ate a regular diet, the broccoli-fed animals had improved heart function and less heart muscle damage when deprived of oxygen. Broccoli’s heart-healthy effects are likely due to its high concentrations of certain substances that seem to boost levels of a heart-protective protein called thioredoxin, the researchers note.

The article “Broccoli: A Unique Vegetable That Protects Mammalian Hearts through the Redox Cycling of the Thioredoxin Superfamily”  is scheduled for the Jan. 23 issue of ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Adapted from materials provided by American Chemical Society.

 
Eat it.
It’s good for you!

While I was laying sick on my bed I started reading all the gossip magazines my sister subscribes too – and here I find a really inspirational lady: Miss Trista Sutter.

I found this article to be very inspiring – but as usual, I am very skeptical as to the humongous differences between her and regular people.

Firstly: she doesn’t have a stressful 9 to 5 job.

Secondly: she has more pressure to get back into shape.

Thirdly: she scheduled a photoshoot that kept her accountable

Fourthly: whatever her motivation may be (i.e. fame/money) is different from all of you.

Lastly: her genetic make up is different so you have to always take that into consideration.

READ ON!

After just five months of dedicated dieting and exercise, Trista Sutter has met her weight-loss goal of shedding all 30 pregnancy pounds.

In the new issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now, Sutter shares the exact diet and exercise routine she maintained to overcome her fears she’d never be sexy again.

“I’m happy with my body,” Sutter, 35, tells Us. “I’m confident and proud of the work I’ve done.”

Sutter was eager to drop her pregnancy pounds after giving birth to son Max in July via C-section.

“Every night before I go to bed, I do abs, pushups, and tricep presses. I feel better when I wake up if I’ve done something to set my muscles and make them feel active,” she tells Us.

Her 2,000-calorie-a-day diet and four-times-a-week workouts with trainer Brock Fetch have also helped her marriage to Ryan. read more here

—-

** this interview wasn’t taken from this magazine – it was posted on realitytvworld.com

“All new moms just want to feel normal and sexy again,” said Trista in the November 5 issue of Us Weekly. “I’m really focused on getting back to where I was before I got pregnant. I want to look even better!”

After Trista, a 34-year-old purse designer gave birth to Maxwell Alston Sutter she said 15 pounds “fell off immediately” but losing the rest of the excess weight has been a struggle.

Part of the reason behind her difficulty was that several months into her pregnancy, Trista was diagnosed with HELLP (hemolysis, elevated liver enzyme levels and a low pallet count) syndrome, a complication of preeclampsia that attacks the mother’s vital organs. Due to the diagnosis Trista delivered Max via a C-section, and had to wait an additional six weeks after the birth to begin working out, which she described as “hard” because other new moms are able to exercise sooner.

“So compared to them, I’m thinking it’s going to take me forever — especially since I hadn’t worked out since Dancing with the Stars — a year before I got pregnant,” the first-season Dancing celebrity participant told Us. “I’ve been exercising now for about a month with a trainer friend.”

Trista said her exercise regimen consists of yoga, pilates and power-lifting exercises, but due to “abdominal pain” she’s unable to “do the more aggressive exercises.” In addition, she’s also “eating smart” and avoiding sweets.

“I know if I try a crazy crash diet I will rebound from it. Those diets are just not realistic with my lifestyle,” she explained to Us. “I’m trying to keep it a little looser — so I don’t burn out — but the main philosophy of my diet is that it’s higher in protein with healthy whole-grain carbs.” read the rest here.

She didn’t gain THAT much weight during pregnancy – but she proves that exercise and a clean diet can get your pre-baby body back!

I loved this article below for a few reasons:

- I like motivational author, Zig Ziglar

- Y’all know I am proponent of Motivation

- Creating good habits is what ultimately helps you.

Read on:

——

Keeping one’s motivation in high gear 24/7 is an incredible challenge given all the obstacles we face traveling the road to success. The lack of motivation appears to continually cross our paths as we grow forward. Recently I read about Zig Ziglar’s simple answer as to his own motivation technique. Zig said: People often say, “Zig motivation is great, but it does not last.” I just tell them, Bathing does not last either, that is why I recommend it daily.

To stay highly motivated according Zig requires a daily habit. How you construct that daily habit is up to you. Bottom line is that you need to reinforce, reinforce and reinforce your own thoughts and desires so that you stay focused, focused and focused on where you want to be 365 days from today.

Developing a habit is understanding that attitudes are habits of thought (another Ziglar definition). These attitudes are merely reflections of our foundational belief system that holds all of our experiences and knowledge. Much of this belief system has become so internalized that it is subconscious or what some call on automatic pilot.

For it is truly our Beliefs that drive out Attitudes demonstrated through out Actions that create our results. (BAAR) If we belief that we cannot do something, the result will be that it will not be done.

Motivation techniques are essentially the internal fuels that keep our thoughts on the conscious level so that we do not allow unconscious thoughts from years of previous negative conditioning to take over. This is why changing actions or behaviors is so difficult. And why results continue to allude so many.

Not only does our brain respond to conditioning so does our body. After wearing braces for 8 years in junior high, high school and my first year in college, I had them removed. Teeth were straight. Then at the age of 40, I had to wear them again for another year, because teeth have memory and wanted to return to how they were. And we all know about losing weight and how the body is comfortable at certain weight levels no matter how much we do not eat or how much we exercise.

One motivation technique that I use is scheduling time to read and improve myself. Another technique, believe it or not, is Internet article writing. A third motivation technique is the use of belief statements or what are called positive affirmation statements.

Regardless of your motivation techniques, to be successful requires that you use them each and every day as you travel the road to success. Keep that fuel as a constant stream into your conscious thoughts and life will be good for you if not even better.

Each route will determine where you will go in life.

“The size of the mountain you’re facing isn’t as important as the size of your conviction to conquer it! Yes — conviction determines ultimate conquest!”

Fitness Motivation:
“…conviction determines ultimate conquest!”

what does that mean?

what are your convictions?

who are you?

what are you willing to live for?

what are you willing to put up?

how much do you know your worth?
If you hold yourself up high -

then you wouldn’t settle for anything less.

You would Exercise because you know your body deserves it.

You would eat clean food because you know your internal system loves it.

You would follow through on goals because you know you are strong enough to make things happen.

What you believe in -

What your conviction are -

Will determine if you will conquer your fitness goals or…

NOT?

State your convictions – be proud of the beautiful human being that you are and start moving mountains.

You can move mountains right?

BELIEVE IT and you WILL ACHIEVE IT.

I just recorded a podcast about women and weight training with my girlfriend Janelle – it should come out in the next week or so. In the meantime, I added a new page (on the header bar) for all y’all who want to listen to inspirational stories. Check it out!

	Ernest “Mongo” Chang Interview Date: 1/03/2008 – Show #6
	Eryk Bui Interview Date: 9/26/2007 – Show #5
	Jason Allen Interview Date: 9/15/2007 – Show #4
	Mona Liza Reyes Interview Date: 7/05/2007 – Show #3
	Sandra Augustin’s Hero Challenge Date: 6/01/2007 – Show #2
	Thomas Tran’s Terrific Transformation

With my friend, Janelle Haney at her new gym, Powerhouse, in Rancho Cordova, CA.