Healthy Eating

Easy Tips for Planning a Healthy Diet & Sticking to It

Healthy eating is not about strict nutrition philosophies, staying unrealistically thin, or depriving yourself of the foods you love. Rather, it’s about feeling great, having more energy, stabilizing your mood, and keeping yourself as healthy as possible—all of which can be achieved by learning some nutrition basics and using them in a way that works for you. You can expand your range of healthy food choices and learn how to plan ahead to create and maintain a tasty, healthy diet.

Healthy eating tip 1: Set yourself up for success

To set yourself up for success, think about planning a healthy diet as a number of small, manageable steps rather than one big drastic change. If you approach the changes gradually and with commitment, you will have a healthy diet sooner than you think.

Simplify. Instead of being overly concerned with counting calories or measuring portion sizes, think of your diet in terms of color, variety, and freshness. This way it should be easier to make healthy choices. Focus on finding foods you love and easy recipes that incorporate a few fresh ingredients. Gradually, your diet will become healthier and more delicious.

Start slow and make changes to your eating habits over time. Trying to make your diet healthy overnight isn’t realistic or smart. Changing everything at once usually leads to cheating or giving up on your new eating plan. Make small steps, like adding a salad (full of different color vegetables) to your diet once a day or switching from butter to olive oil when cooking. As your small changes become habit, you can continue to add more healthy choices to your diet. Every change you make to improve your diet matters. You don’t have to be perfect and you don’t have to completely eliminate foods you enjoy to have a healthy diet. The long term goal is to feel good, have more energy, and reduce the risk of cancer and disease. Don’t let your missteps derail you—every healthy food choice you make counts.

Think of water and exercise as food groups in your diet.

Water. Water helps flush our systems of waste products and toxins, yet many people go through life dehydrated—causing tiredness, low energy, and headaches. It’s common to mistake thirst for hunger, so staying well hydrated will also help you make healthier food choices.

Exercise. Find something active that you like to do and add it to your day, just like you would add healthy greens, blueberries, or salmon. The benefits of lifelong exercise are abundant and regular exercise may even motivate you to make healthy food choices a habit.

Healthy eating tip 2: Moderation is key

Harvard Healthy Eating Plate

People often think of healthy eating as an all or nothing proposition, but a key foundation for any healthy diet is moderation. But what is moderation? How much is a moderate amount? That really depends on you and your overall eating habits. The goal of healthy eating is to develop a diet that you can maintain for life, not just a few weeks or months, or until you've hit your ideal weight. So try to think of moderation in terms of balance. Despite what certain fad diets would have you believe, we all need a balance of carbohydrates, protein, fat, fiber, vitamins, and minerals to sustain a healthy body.

For most of us, moderation or balance means eating less than we do now. More specifically, it means eating far less of the unhealthy stuff (refined sugar, saturated fat, for example) and more of the healthy (such as fresh fruit and vegetables). But it doesn't mean eliminating the foods you love. Eating bacon for breakfast once a week, for example, could be considered moderation if you follow it with a healthy lunch and dinner—but not if you follow it with a box of donuts and a sausage pizza. If you eat 100 calories of chocolate one afternoon, balance it out by deducting 100 calories from your evening meal. If you're still hungry, fill up with an extra serving of fresh vegetables.

Try not to think of certain foods as “off-limits.” When you ban certain foods or food groups, it is natural to want those foods more, and then feel like a failure if you give in to temptation. If you are drawn towards sweet, salty, or unhealthy foods, start by reducing portion sizes and not eating them as often. Later you may find yourself craving them less or thinking of them as only occasional indulgences.

Think smaller portions. Serving sizes have ballooned recently, particularly in restaurants. When dining out, choose a starter instead of an entree, split a dish with a friend, and don't order supersized anything. At home, use smaller plates, think about serving sizes in realistic terms, and start small. If you don't feel satisfied at the end of a meal, try adding more leafy green vegetables or rounding off the meal with fresh fruit. Visual cues can help with portion sizes–your serving of meat, fish, or chicken should be the size of a deck of cards, a slice of bread should be the size of a CD case, and half a cup of mashed potato, rice, or pasta is about the size of a traditional light bulb.

Healthy eating tip 3: It's not just what you eat, it's how you eat

Healthy Eating

Healthy eating is about more than the food on your plate—it is also about how you think about food. Healthy eating habits can be learned and it is important to slow down and think about food as nourishment rather than just something to gulp down in between meetings or on the way to pick up the kids. Eat with others whenever possible. Eating with other people has numerous social and emotional benefits—particularly for children—and allows you to model healthy eating habits. Eating in front of the TV or computer often leads to mindless overeating.

Take time to chew your food and enjoy mealtimes. Chew your food slowly, savoring every bite. We tend to rush though our meals, forgetting to actually taste the flavors and feel the textures of our food. Reconnect with the joy of eating.

Listen to your body. Ask yourself if you are really hungry, or have a glass of water to see if you are thirsty instead of hungry. During a meal, stop eating before you feel full. It actually takes a few minutes for your brain to tell your body that it has had enough food, so eat slowly.

Eat breakfast, and eat smaller meals throughout the day. A healthy breakfast can jumpstart your metabolism, and eating small, healthy meals throughout the day (rather than the standard three large meals) keeps your energy up and your metabolism going.

Avoid eating at night. Try to eat dinner earlier in the day and then fast for 14-16 hours until breakfast the next morning. Early studies suggest that this simple dietary adjustment—eating only when you’re most active and giving your digestive system a long break each day—may help to regulate weight. After-dinner snacks tend to be high in fat and calories so are best avoided, anyway.

Healthy eating tip 4: Fill up on colorful fruits and vegetables

Shop the perimeter of the grocery storeFruits and vegetables are the foundation of a healthy diet. They are low in calories and nutrient dense, which means they are packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber.

Try to eat a rainbow of fruits and vegetables every day and with every meal—the brighter the better. Colorful, deeply colored fruits and vegetables contain higher concentrations of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants—and different colors provide different benefits, so eat a variety. Aim for a minimum of five portions each day.

Some great choices include:

Greens. Branch out beyond bright and dark green lettuce. Kale, mustard greens, broccoli, and Chinese cabbage are just a few of the options—all packed with calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, zinc, and vitamins A, C, E, and K.

Sweet vegetables. Naturally sweet vegetables—such as corn, carrots, beets, sweet potatoes, yams, onions, and squash—add healthy sweetness to your meals and reduce your cravings for other sweets.

Fruit. Fruit is a tasty, satisfying way to fill up on fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants. Berries are cancer-fighting, apples provide fiber, oranges and mangos offer vitamin C, and so on.

The importance of getting vitamins from food—not pills

The antioxidants and other nutrients in fruits and vegetables help protect against certain types of cancer and other diseases. And while advertisements abound for supplements promising to deliver the nutritional benefits of fruits and vegetables in pill or powder form, research suggests that it’s just not the same.

A daily regimen of nutritional supplements is not going to have the same impact of eating right. That’s because the benefits of fruits and vegetables don’t come from a single vitamin or an isolated antioxidant.

The health benefits of fruits and vegetables come from numerous vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals working together synergistically. They can’t be broken down into the sum of their parts or replicated in pill form.

Healthy eating tip 5: Eat more healthy carbs and whole grains

Choose healthy carbohydrates and fiber sources, especially whole grains, for long lasting energy. In addition to being delicious and satisfying, whole grains are rich in phytochemicals and antioxidants, which help to protect against coronary heart disease, certain cancers, and diabetes. Studies have shown people who eat more whole grains tend to have a healthier heart.

A quick definition of healthy carbs and unhealthy carbs

Healthy carbs (sometimes known as good carbs) include whole grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables. Healthy carbs are digested slowly, helping you feel full longer and keeping blood sugar and insulin levels stable.

Unhealthy carbs (or bad carbs) are foods such as white flour, refined sugar, and white rice that have been stripped of all bran, fiber, and nutrients. Unhealthy carbs digest quickly and cause spikes in blood sugar levels and energy.

Tips for eating more healthy carbs

Whole Grain Stamp

Include a variety of whole grains in your healthy diet, including whole wheat, brown rice, millet, quinoa, and barley. Experiment with different grains to find your favorites.

Make sure you're really getting whole grains. Be aware that the words stone-ground, multi-grain, 100% wheat, or bran can be deceptive. Look for the words “whole grain” or “100% whole wheat” at the beginning of the ingredient list. In the U.S., Canada, and some other countries, check for the Whole Grain Stamps that distinguish between partial whole grain and 100% whole grain.

Try mixing grains as a first step to switching to whole grains. If whole grains like brown rice and whole wheat pasta don’t sound good at first, start by mixing what you normally use with the whole grains. You can gradually increase the whole grain to 100%.

Avoid: Refined foods such as breads, pastas, and breakfast cereals that are not whole grain.

Healthy eating tip 6: Enjoy healthy fats & avoid unhealthy fats

Good sources of healthy fat are needed to nourish your brain, heart, and cells, as well as your hair, skin, and nails. Foods rich in certain omega-3 fats called EPA and DHA are particularly important and can reduce cardiovascular disease, improve your mood, and help prevent dementia. Add to your healthy diet:

Monounsaturated fats, from plant oils like canola oil, peanut oil, and olive oil, as well as avocados, nuts (like almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans), and seeds (such as pumpkin, sesame).

Polyunsaturated fats, including Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, found in fatty fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, and some cold water fish oil supplements. Other sources of polyunsaturated fats are unheated sunflower, corn, soybean, flaxseed oils, and walnuts.

Reduce or eliminate from your diet:

Saturated fats, found primarily in animal sources including red meat and whole milk dairy products.

Trans fats, found in vegetable shortenings, some margarines, crackers, candies, cookies, snack foods, fried foods, baked goods, and other processed foods made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

Healthy eating tip 7: Put protein in perspective

Protein gives us the energy to get up and go—and keep going. Protein in food is broken down into the 20 amino acids that are the body’s basic building blocks for growth and energy, and essential for maintaining cells, tissues, and organs. A lack of protein in our diet can slow growth, reduce muscle mass, lower immunity, and weaken the heart and respiratory system. Protein is particularly important for children, whose bodies are growing and changing daily. Here are some guidelines for including protein in your healthy diet:

Try different types of protein. Whether or not you are a vegetarian, trying different protein sources—such as beans, nuts, seeds, peas, tofu, and soy products—will open up new options for healthy mealtimes.

Beans: Black beans, navy beans, garbanzos, and lentils are good options.

Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and pecans are great choices.

Soy products: Try tofu, soy milk, tempeh, and veggie burgers for a change.

Avoid salted or sugary nuts and refried beans.

Downsize your portions of protein. Many people in the West eat too much protein. Try to move away from protein being the center of your meal. Focus on equal servings of protein, whole grains, and vegetables.

Focus on quality sources of protein, like fresh fish, chicken or turkey, tofu, eggs, beans, or nuts. When you are having meat, chicken, or turkey, buy meat that is free of hormones and antibiotics.

Healthy eating tip 8: Add calcium for strong bones

Add Calcium for Strong BonesCalcium is one of the key nutrients that your body needs in order to stay strong and healthy. It is an essential building block for lifelong bone health in both men and women, as well as many other important functions.

You and your bones will benefit from eating plenty of calcium-rich foods, limiting foods that deplete your body’s calcium stores, and getting your daily dose of magnesium and vitamins D and K—nutrients that help calcium do its job.

Recommended calcium levels are 1000 mg per day, 1200 mg if you are over 50 years old. Try to get as much of your daily calcium needs from food as possible and use only low-dose calcium supplements to make up any shortfall.

Good sources of calcium include:

Dairy: Dairy products are rich in calcium in a form that is easily digested and absorbed by the body. Sources include milk, yogurt, and cheese.

Vegetables and greens: Many vegetables, especially leafy green ones, are rich sources of calcium. Try turnip greens, mustard greens, collard greens, kale, romaine lettuce, celery, broccoli, fennel, cabbage, summer squash, green beans, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, and crimini mushrooms.

Beans: For another rich source of calcium, try black beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, white beans, black-eyed peas, or baked beans.

Healthy eating tip 9: Limit sugar and salt

If you succeed in planning your diet around fiber-rich fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and good fats, you may find yourself naturally cutting back on foods that can get in the way of your healthy diet—sugar and salt.

Sugar

Sugar causes energy ups and downs and can add to health and weight problems. Unfortunately, reducing the amount of candy, cakes, and desserts we eat is only part of the solution. Often you may not even be aware of the amount of sugar you’re consuming each day. Large amounts of added sugar can be hidden in foods such as bread, canned soups and vegetables, pasta sauce, margarine, instant mashed potatoes, frozen dinners, fast food, soy sauce, and ketchup. Here are some tips:

Avoid sugary drinks. One 12-oz soda has about 10 teaspoons of sugar in it, more than the daily recommended limit! Try sparkling water with lemon or a splash of fruit juice.

Sweeten foods yourself. Buy unsweetened iced tea, plain yogurt, or unflavored oatmeal, for example, and add sweetener (or fruit) yourself. You’re likely to add far less sweetener than the manufacturer would have.

Eat naturally sweet food such as fruit, peppers, or natural peanut butter to satisfy your sweet tooth. Keep these foods handy instead of candy or cookies.

How sugar is hidden on food labels

Check food labels carefully. Sugar is often disguised using terms such as:

cane sugar or maple syrup

corn sweetener or corn syrup

honey or molasses

brown rice syrup

crystallized or evaporated cane juice

fruit juice concentrates, such as apple or pear maltodextrin (or dextrin)

Dextrose, Fructose, Glucose, Maltose, or Sucrose

Most of us consume too much salt in our diets. Eating too much salt can cause high blood pressure and lead to other health problems. Try to limit sodium intake to 1,500 to 2,300 mg per day, the equivalent of one teaspoon of salt. Avoid processed or pre-packaged foods. Processed foods like canned soups or frozen dinners contain hidden sodium that quickly surpasses the recommended limit. Be careful when eating out. Most restaurant and fast food meals are loaded with sodium.

Opt for fresh or frozen vegetables instead of canned vegetables.

Cut back on salty snacks such as potato chips, nuts, and pretzels.

Choose low-salt or reduced-sodium products.

Try slowly reducing the salt in your diet to give your taste buds time to adjust.

Burn Fat Without Losing Muscle

Sprint To Lose Fat, Not Muscle

Some very interesting theories and thoughts are presented here and they do make a lot of sense as well. When I look back at my "weight loss," I quickly attribute that to walking. As I have mentioned in earlier posts, it was walking with a little bit of resistance, but it was walking that was the key. I don't think the added resistance was truly interval stuff but I can see the comparison there.

As I was reading the article (posted below), I was left thinking that I know I am building up my stamina to run and don't think I've seen a substantial reduction in muscle loss. What I have noticed is that I have plateaued for basically a year now with only a marginal loss in weight. There are some people that say I am building up muscle, but I do think that is the next step and I am going to have to go to the gym and start doing the "circuit" that is referred to in this article.

In the meantime, I leave this article here as a reminder and guide that there is a better way to approach my running routine and maybe mixing it up by going to the track (to start) and running sprints. I know when I was younger, I could sprint like the wind ... okay maybe not like Usain Bolt, but I felt I was pretty quick. To stay on track, this article is about understanding your body and approaching interval training smarter so that you can burn the fat but not lose the muscle.

To burn fat without losing muscle there are two options when it comes to cardio and they’re at extreme opposite ends of the spectrum. You can either do very high intensity cardio (sprint) or you can very low intensity cardio (walk). It’s the midrange stuff that presents a problem for most people.

When you hop on a machine and go at it with moderate-high intensity for 30-40 minutes you will get all of the negative effects associated with cardio (increased cortisol, muscle loss, overuse injuries, decreased power output- meaning you’ll be less explosive, etc.).

Why I Hate "Interval Training"

Many people know that traditional cardio sucks so they recommend intervals. I personally hate intervals. On a bike, stair climber, ski machine thingy and whatever else they stock Bally’s and Gold’s with these days.

Especially the rowing machine. Thirty minutes of repeated spinal flexion sounds fun but I think I’ll pass. According to typical interval training prescriptions you’re supposed to push as hard as you can for 30 seconds followed by a lower intensity period of 90 seconds, or something along those lines.

No matter what anyone says that will also sap your power production because the lactic acid buildup is massive. Lactic acid is the arch enemy of fast twitch muscle fibers.

Sprint to Lose Fat & Keep Your Muscle

A better option for intervals would be to rage against the machines and get outside and sprint. But who do you know personally that can sprint for thirty seconds straight? That would be over 200 yards! Talk about an injury waiting to happen. Yet that’s what interval training enthusiasts regularly advise their normal 40 year old office worker client to do.

To sprint for 30 seconds, followed by a 90 second rest period, over and over for 10-20 minutes straight is nearly impossible for most non-Olympians and risky as hell. If you want to sprint like a sprinter, not a nitwit, start Slowly.

Start with short distances and slowly work your way up over time. Take adequate rest periods and slowly decrease them as you get in better shape. If you’re an average dude it will take you in the neighborhood of 6-7 seconds to run a 40 yard sprint. And that would be a very far distance for your first time sprinting. I’d recommend sticking with 20’s your first few weeks. So instead of the silly recommendation of sprinting for 30 seconds straight I advise you to sprint for two or three seconds straight.

It’s funny that intelligent strength coaches who work with high level football players rarely let their athletes sprint at balls out intensity, 40 yards or more during the off season (because the risk of injury is too high), yet fitness trainers recommend that the average lay person head right out to the track and start running 100’s from day one. People have got to be more responsible than that.

It’ll take months to work up to that distance. Assuming you are sprinting proper distances and taking care to be safe the next question is how long should you rest? The truthful, nonspecific answer is - as long as you need to.

Keep track of it and try to improve over time. Everyone’s different.

That’s why when people ask me about specific guidelines for hill sprints I tell them I don’t know. I don’t know what kind of shape you are in and what hills you have available to you. Because you’re really limited by the hills you have.

If I told you that you should be sprinting for 15 seconds yet you could make it up the only hill in your neighborhood in eight seconds would you not sprint up the hill?

You can’t always be a slave to exact prescriptions; sometimes you need to just man up and do work. Your sets, reps, intervals, whatever, are based on your hill and your fitness level. Now, eventually you may work your way up to being able to sprint your hill for 30 seconds, followed by a 90 second break and repeat that for 20 minutes straight.

So I guess you could say you’re doing intervals at that point. But who cares? I call them hill sprints. Like Walter Payton did. If you’re sprinting on a football field or a track just say you’re sprinting. Don’t actually say to anyone that you’re “doing intervals.” That’s so 2004 and so not cool.

If you had absolutely no other option, for whatever reason, than to do intervals on a bike I’d keep the sprints very short and the rest periods as long as necessary, removing almost all tension from the bike while cruising. You really want to avoid that extreme lactic acid buildup if you want to maintain your power.

A Better Way to Do Interval Training

The best way to come close to traditional interval prescriptions is achieved by performing a variety of exercises such as swings, burpees, med ball slams, battling ropes, mountain climbers, etc. in a circuit. Mixing it up prevents the massive accumulation of lactic acid in any one area and is far more beneficial than be locked into the versa climber for twenty minutes.

For athletic purposes I prefer to keep the intervals or work times/set duration lower than 30 seconds. Ten to twenty seconds would be a better idea for power athletes. This type of "interval training" is often associated with the training of combat athletes.

Low Intensity Cardio

As far as the low intensity stuff goes you can walk with a sled, a light weighted vest, walk up hill, walk through the woods or trails or just walk the streets like Omar from The Wire. Be sure to whistle The Farmer and the Dell to let the suckas know you’re coming.

The best time to do it is first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. Try to keep your heart rate at around 65% of max for 30 minutes.

The nice thing about this is there is no negative effect at all. No cortisol, no muscle loss, nothing. And you start your day with some nice fresh air which is great for your health and your mind.

This should be done three times per week, minimum. This will help keep you lean while you’re in the process of trying to gain size and will also help you recover more efficiently.

The old days of bulking and cutting are dead. A smarter approach is to include some high and low intensity cardio methods year round, skip the traditional cardio machines and never let yourself become an out of shape fat ass.

I have copied and pasted this article from Jason Ferruggia for my purposes and for those who come by it.

Walking vs Running

When I started on my path to a healthier me, I started by walking. It was short distances on relatively level grade but soon realized that I needed to add in the resistance of inclines. I quickly found that I enjoyed walking the trails around my neighbourhood that included some difficult hills. Walking was my ticket to head down the path and paved the way for me to make some noticeable weight loss gains.

Although I did try to add in the next level of resistance being running, I still find myself enjoying a nice walk daily and sometimes twice daily with my dog. Walking is still an enjoyable activity for me and I have been known to start wandering off and not returning for hours and many kilometers later. This article compares the benefits of walking and running and shows that it isn't necessarily the speed or distance that's covered but the time spend on the activity that provides the benefit.

Once again this article is not mine, but one that I am posting here for my reference. It was originally posted on the National Post website in their Running section (click here).

Walking vs Running
by Jill Barker

Comparing walkers to runners is like comparing Barry Manilow to the Rolling Stones. One gets all the respect and the other … well, not so much.

But a new study out of the University of California, Berkeley, has given walkers a much-needed boost in respect, not to mention added validation that walking is bona fide exercise.

The study, published this month online in the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology, examined the health outcomes of 33,000 runners and 16,000 walkers over six years, and researchers discovered that despite the difference in exercise intensity, both walking and running offered similar reductions in risk for high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.

The results fly in the face of the assumption that runners are healthier than walkers, which is what many previous studies have indicated. The trouble with those results, say the authors of the Berkeley study, is that they compared the two modes of exercise based on time, not distance.

When the health benefits of running and walking the same distance were compared, the results accrued were similar. But when the health benefits of running and walking the same length of time were evaluated, the walkers fell short.

“The superiority of vigorous over moderate exercise, in some studies, may simply reflect the fact that more calories can be expended per minute of activity with vigorous exercise. Consequently, when exercise is compared by time spent in activity, vigorous exercise seems more beneficial.”

This is an important distinction, especially since most health-based exercise recommendations are prescribed by time, as in 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise a week, and not distance. It is the contention of the Berkeley team that distance may be a better measure of the long-term benefits in more than just running and walking.

“Most epidemiological studies estimate exercise dose by time and intensity, which our analyzes [finds] would substantially underestimate the true health benefits of physical activity,” say the authors of the Berkeley study.

Before walkers can rejoice, however, it’s important to understand that to get the same benefits as runners, walkers need to budget more time for their workouts. It takes longer to walk a given distance than it does to run, so walkers need to pick up the pace or put in more time.

Therein lies the kicker in this good-news story. The added length of time it takes for walkers to achieve the same health benefits as runners is no minor detail, because most people claim lack of time as their No. 1 barrier to meeting the recommended amount of exercise needed to benefit health. And according to the Berkeley research team, walkers lagged behind runners when it came to meeting or exceeding those guidelines.

“Specifically, there were substantially more walkers whose walking was at or below the [recommended health] guideline levels than runners whose running was at or below the guidelines and substantially fewer walkers than runners whose walking or running exceeded the guideline levels by twofold, threefold and fourfold,” the Berkeley researchers state.

That important detail takes on even greater significance because the Berkeley study revealed that the more distance walkers and runners cover the more their risk of chronic disease is reduced.

So what does that mean practically for walkers who want the same health benefits as runners but without the bone-jarring, heart-pumping, oxygen-gasping side effects that come with speeding up a walk to a run?

Well, it means setting distance rather than time goals and then slowly working on improving the time it takes to cover that distance.

The first step is to start planning your workouts like a runner, even though you’re going to keep your pace squarely in the walking zone.

Here are some tips on getting more distance out of your walking workout:

• Map your route based on distance, not time, using 1, 3, 5, 7 and 10 kilometres (depending on your present level of fitness) as your goal.
• Reorganize your workouts to include one long walk and one speedy walk per week.
• Quicken your pace, gradually improving the time it takes to walk your goal distance.
• Take shorter, quicker steps when picking up your walking pace.
• Increase the pace of your arm swing to naturally increase your foot speed. Bend at the elbows, swinging the arms close to the body in a forward and back (not side to side) motion reaching the hands no higher than the sternum in front and your back pocket in the back.
• Use fartleks (the Swedish word for speed play) as a way to gently introduce more speed to your walking workouts. Pick out a landmark (mailbox, street sign or distinctive house) in the distance and speed walk until you get there. Reduce your speed to a more comfortable pace for three minutes. Repeat gradually, working up to six to eight fartleks done in the middle of your walking workout.
• Look after your feet by wearing lightweight, breathable and comfortable footwear with polyester (not cotton) socks designed to wick sweat and maintain their shape.
• Use smartphone apps such as Sports Tracker (my favourite), Google My Tracks, RunKeeper, Runtasktic Pro and iRace Me to chart your distance and pace.

Getting Started as a Runner

I find myself reading more and more interesting articles on running and preparing for running. I don't consider myself a full fledged runner as of yet, but am interested in getting there and can almost picture myself running some decent distances. I am very interested in running a 10K length next at the Labour Day Classic in Prince George so of course I'm looking at getting consistent with the 5K length and then stretching that out.

Part of the process is making sure I have all the right tools to be able to handle the longer distances both physically and mentally. So finding any article that provides tips and strategies is a good one. This is an article about getting started running and so I am posting it here for my reference. It was originally found on the National Post website in their Running section (click here)

The First 10 Steps to Getting Started as a Runner
by Ben Kaplan

With running groups beginning in earnest for fall’s crop of races, there’s no better time to lace up and head out the door. That said, we don’t want to lead you into the street naked, so we’ve gathered our favourite experts and asked: What do we need to know to enjoy running, and start right now?

10. Get off the treadmill and head outdoors.

Even if you’re only walking around your neighbourhood — and a great way to start running is by walking first – it’s important to move from the gym to the great outdoors. For one, that’s where the races are held, and by signing up for your first 5K, perhaps 10 weeks from now, you’ll have incentive to keep up your hard work. Also, it’s summertime! On my run this morning I saw a deer.

9. Find the right shoes.

“In the past, there was conflict between runners who wanted shoes that were comfortable and soft, but felt like a dead fish – no more,” says Gerd Manz, senior innovation director for Adidas. This summer, Adidas rolled out Manz’s design for the Boost, which is shot through with polyurethane pellets and took four years to bring to market. “Runners that are at the beginning of their career, they’d like to have shoes that support them, that make running easier, make it fun, and not a clunky, heavy product,” continues Manz. “A new runner should try on a sneaker and, before they buy it, it should feel light and comfortable right away.”

8. Take it slow.

I have a friend wondering whether to shoot for the half-marathon or marathon as he begins to run. He’s a guitarist and got frustrated as he ran for the first time. I asked him, “Did you write your album before first learning a few chords?” Running seems easy, and it is, but you need to build stamina and endurance. My friend’s now training for his first 5K.

7. No, really. Pace your goals accordingly.

Even Canada’s fastest marathon runner says so. “Keep in mind that running doesn’t feel great at the beginning and it takes time to achieve fitness. Patience is required,” says Reid Coolsaet, who ran the marathon for Canada at the 2012 London Olympics and is eying Jerome Drayton’s 38-year-old marathon record at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon this fall. “Injuries are the worst, so make sure you have some strength training incorporated to compliment all your running. Other than that, have fun and listen to your body.”

6. Be safe, don’t chafe.

Skin rubs against skin when you run and, when you run for a while, this happens over and over again. If you don’t use Vaseline, Body Glide or some sort of salve, you will bleed. Before you run, put a little wax around your bra line, nipples and underarms. It’s a much more pleasant way to run.

5. Don’t run alone.

Running’s a solitary sport, but it improves, as will your finishing times, with the support of a community. The Running Room hosts clinics at most of their 125 locations, where like-abled new athletes meet three times-a-week and prepare for either 5K, 10K, the half-marathon or the marathon. It’s easier getting out of the house if you feel beholden to a larger group, or even a single person. Besides, after you’e finished running, you can’t give yourself a high-five.

4. Experiment with wacky trends.

The new craze in racing is putting the emphasis on fun over competition, as The Color Run and Color Me Rad, short distant races where participants are doused in paint, grow in popularity. No one ever said the endeavor had to be miserable; thanks to this new style of racing, running can become more like a dance party than a race.

3. Make a plan.

If you want to start running, set a goal, so you don’t feel like aimless. (If you do, what harm is it if you skip a workout?) Instead, find yourself a realistic finish line you can work towards. This will add a little competitive fire to your runs. “Get a training program with an end goal, and be persistent,” says Alan Brookes, race director of Canadian Running Series. “Work determinedly, but patiently, towards slowly and consistently reaching your long-term goal.” It’s more fun when you run for a reason.

2. One more thought about shoes.

“There’s right weight and lightweight, you want the right balance between the two,” says Scott Meyers, Nike’s product specialist, from the company’s Oregon headquarters. In recent years, minimalist sneakers – shoes with scant heel and little padding — have come to dominate the market, none more than the Nike “Free” series. However, tread carefully: Even Meyers says it’s important to have a gait-analysis observed before selecting your footwear (and minimalist sneakers offer little support). “It’s very subjective, and new runners should try different shoes,” says Meyers. “There’s no ‘best sneaker,’ only what’s best for you.”

1. The path can lead toward positive mental health.

In psychology, the term “mastery,” is a feeling a person experiences as they notice incremental improvement. Not surprisingly, mastery, even at something as repetitive as running, feels good. “Mastery, especially as compared to that back and forth indecisiveness, can give you energy,” says Dr. Kate Hays, founder of Toronto’s The Performing Edge. “People who don’t run don’t necessarily believe running can give you energy, but it does — and mental energy, for sure.”

Core Power

In my transition from a sedentary creature to one that engages in a more active lifestyle, I'm at the point where I know I need to step up to the next level and start doing fitness training. Outside of daily walking and regular running, I need to worry about the muscles in my body and strengthen them with weights. I also have to do the stretching and exercising that will provide me with a full range of motion and build up flexibility as well as strength.

I'm not sure I'm ready to take on a Cross Fit program, but will be looking into that some more. Instead I prefer a cheaper method and one that doesn't require costly gym memberships or equipment. Working the core seems like a sensible place to start as it uses mostly movements that only require the resistance of your own body weight but appear to be very effective at targeting the one area that I know I still need to target - the visceral fat or abdominal fat that is still very much a part of the body weight I carry and the reason I'm not at a healthy BMI. The goal is to reduce my overall body fat index.

I just came across this article listing five exercises that can be done at home and with or without any additional weights for added resistance. The article provides some good insight to properly perform the exercises, it also explains why they are important as building a solid core is more than just focusing on the abdominal muscles but also the muscles in the back and those that support the entire body as well as the core.

This article is being posted here for easy retrieval and reference for myself but if you have found it and find it useful, please note that it is not my and that it was copied and pasted from the ALIVE website and can be found here (original article).

CORE POWER, 5 exercises to tone your torso
by Gail Johnson

Call it a spare tire, mummy tummy, beer belly, or muffin top: abdominal fat is easy to poke fun at. It’s also a big motivator when it comes to working out. But there’s much more to a strong core than having so-called six-pack abs.

To achieve and maintain a solid core, it’s crucial to work not just the abdominal muscles but those in the back as well. And good old-fashioned sit-ups alone aren’t enough to address a bulging belly. The abdomen consists of different muscle groups, and it takes various exercises—not just a bunch of crunches—to target each one. (It takes cardiovascular exercise and a healthy diet to slim down, too.)

Beyond the crunch

Crunches—where you lie on the floor with your knees bent, then lift your torso upward—do have their place. They’re one way of working the rectus abdominis, a long, paired, flat muscle that runs along the front of the entire abdomen.

But there are the external and internal oblique muscles to focus on too. These muscles run along the side of the torso. Then there’s the transverse abdominis, which is the deepest layer of muscle in the abdomen—and also usually the most neglected.

All the abdominal muscles help support the torso, but not without the help of the muscles in the back. The erector spinae consists of two groups of muscles that run along both sides of the spine.

Doing a series of exercises that targets different muscle groups is the most effective way to acquire core strength. Like other strengthening exercises, you can do 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 15 repetitions of each of the following exercises.

Be careful

If you ever feel pain in the lower back while doing any abdominal or back exercises, stop immediately. This is a red flag. You will need to modify the exercise or find an alternative. For example, if the lower back hurts while doing the Dead Bug, keep the legs bent and just lower them slightly—don’t go as low as before.

Posture is crucial when it comes to performing abdominal exercises safely and effectively. Always keep your shoulders back as opposed to rounding the upper back.

Avoid holding your breath. Always exhale on exertion, during the hard part of the exercise.

Take breaks. It’s okay to take a rest if you need one.

Hydrate. Drinking plenty of water before, during, and after a workout doesn’t just apply to cardio. Drink up for strengthening and core sessions too.

1. Butterfly Crunch

This exercise targets the upper portion of the rectus abdominis. You’ll notice right away that it’s a very small range of motion, but you should start to feel these muscles working right away.

Lie on your back with legs bent and the soles of the feet together.

You have three options for your arms: they can be outstretched by your sides, or folded across your chest, or you can bring your hands to your ears while keeping your elbows back (not folded inward toward your temples).

Lift your upper body upward while looking up to the sky. Try to get your shoulder blades completely off the floor. Lower and repeat, trying to keep your belly button pulled in toward your spine throughout. This helps engage the core and helps protect your lower back. Exhale as you lift upward; inhale on the way down.

2. Hip Raises

This exercise complements the Butterfly Crunch in that it works the lower portion of the rectus abdominis.

Lie on your back with your legs extended up toward the ceiling, with your knees slightly bent.

Have your arms at your sides, pressing your palms into the floor.

Flex your feet.

Lift your hips up off the ground, as high as you can. Think about pushing the ceiling away with your heels.

Exhale as you lift your hips up.

You want the power to come from your abdominal muscles and not from momentum, so avoid swinging the legs. Keep the movement contained as if your legs are moving in a cylinder.

Keep your belly button pulled in throughout. Avoid tilting your neck by keeping your chin tucked into your chest.

If you’re comfortable, you can lift your arms up off the floor, clasping your hands together over your chest.

3. Oblique Crunches

Lie on your back with your feet on the floor and knees bent.

Drop both knees to the left, so that the left leg is resting on the floor.

Keep your chest square to the ceiling.

With arms outstretched by your sides, or folded across your chest, or with your hands at your ears and your elbows back, lift your chest up toward the ceiling. Keep your gaze on the ceiling and not your knees.

Think about your rib cage moving toward your hip.

Exhale as you lift your torso up.

Repeat on the other side.

4. Dead Bug

This funnily named exercise works the transverse abdominis. If you’re new to this exercise, you might feel like you have mild cramps the next day. This is simply because this muscle typically doesn’t get a lot of attention.

Lie on your back with your belly button pulled in and legs extended toward the ceiling with your knees slightly bent.

Slowly lower one leg toward the floor. Start by keeping the leg bent; if it feels comfortable, straighten the leg and point the toe. Bring the leg back up.

Repeat with the other leg, moving slowly.

Alternate sides.

Exhale as you lower your limbs.

Keep your arms by your sides, palms pressed into the ground.

Another option is to reach the arms up, as if you’re trying to touch the ceiling.

You can add opposite arm movements:

Start with both arms reaching upward.

As you lower your right leg to the ground, lower the left arm toward the floor, over your head.

Bring the arm and opposite leg back in together.

Lower your left leg to the ground as you lower the right arm.

5. Superman

This exercise works the erector spinae.

Position yourself on the floor on all fours, with your knees directly underneath your hips and your hands under your shoulders.

Slowly extend your right leg out behind you as you reach out your left arm in front of you.

Bring the arm and leg back in, then repeat on the other side, extending your left leg and right arm.

Be sure to keep the hips square to the floor.

Equipment

The beauty of these core exercises is that you don’t need a single piece of equipment to do them. If you don’t have a mat, you can use a towel.

If you’d like to incorporate equipment for variety or added challenge, consider using a light set of free weights for the Dead Bug. You can also hold a single free weight against your chest for the Butterfly Crunch or Oblique Crunches.

About the Author

Gail Johnson is a Vancouver journalist and a certified group fitness instructor who loves sharing her passion for fitness.

Race Day

Just slowing down after completing my first official 5K race

Well today was the day and I did it and better than expected! I was able to complete my first 5K in a time of 26:50, which is a new personal best for me.

I felt good for the entire race. There was only one real incline and that is Massey up to Ospika; the incline starts almost right away and you are over a kilometer into the race when it levels off and then starts dropping back down to the finish. In hindsight, I think my training helped me out quite a bit because I was tackling the big incline after the 3K point in my training.

When I was about three kilometers into the race, I started counting the bodies in front of me and that is when I realized that I was in the front of the pack. Turns out I wasn't as far up as I thought I was ... I thought I was in sixth place but later discovered that there were some speedsters that had long gone ahead of my little group. If I had maybe thought this a little sooner in the race, I may have tried to increase my pace to see if I could get into medal standing. Once the race results started coming in, I found out that I was two minutes back of running a medal race but still finished 7th in my age category (19-49).

As I started out on the race course, I was very conscious of my pace and wanted to make sure I wasn't going too fast or too slow. I used a man and a lady to help me guage my pace but soon ended up passing the guy who was waiting for his son to catch up. The lady also started to slip behind me as we started our incline. About two thirds of the way up Massey I passed this one guy who had noticed earlier was running quite fast but was now just walking. As I turned the corner onto Ospika, he once again ran by, but that was short lived and I passed him again just before the water station.

Grabbing the cup of water and trying to drink while running is apparently an art form that I gave up on before drowning myself. The volunteers along the race course did an exceptional job and there were three that stood out for me. The first one was directing traffic at the intersection of Westwood and Massey who we ended up running by twice, the second was the lady at the water station who expertly handed off the water to me and the third was the lady that was using a walkie talkie to relay the bib numbers of the participants just before they entered back into Masich Place Stadium for the finishing sprint.

Sprint I did do, but not until it was too late. Earlier on the course I found myself encouraging a younger runner who I passed. He dropped off but started to turn it on again and as he came up beside me, I told him he could do it and that he was almost there. He thanked me and ran on up ahead. As I turned to the track I noticed this same runner almost throwing up. When I came up on him again, I put my hand on his back and asked if he was going to be okay. With a bit of a head nod he eased up but kept on running. This is when I started to open up and realized that it was coming easier than I thought it would. So I tried to go full tilt. I noticed that the lady on the microphone was commentating about me and apparently somebody behind me who was also sprinting to the finish. I didn't look back and I didn't ease up until I crossed the first finish line.

I slowed down to cool off, stopped my watch and also stopped my Sports Tracker app that said I ran 5.11 kilometers in 27:20 and at an average speed of 11.2 km/hr. I was stoked! I took a complete lap around the track to cool off and then went into the infield to find water and some food. The organizers also had a monitor that was scrolling times for the participants; after a few minutes I noticed mine - 542, Ron Gallo, 5K, 26:49. 26:49 ... could this be right? It certainly was although they added one second to the official race results online. Either way, this was a great time for me.

When I first signed up for the race, I told myself I just didn't want to finish last. I finished 21st overall among all 5K runners and shortly after finishing Allan Bristowe came up to me and asked if I knew that I had killed him by over a minute. Over a minute on somebody I consider to be in better shape and does this kind of stuff (Posted Race Results). Dave Branco also approached me and told me that the next one will have to be a 10K or even a half marathon. I think the half marathon is still a little optimistic, but I am totally looking forward to running in a 10K and will be registering for the Labour Day Classic as long as there isn't any Spruce Kings road game scheduled that day - Sunday September 1, 2013.

Nightmares vs Dreams

My dream is to be able to run in my first running event and stay above the curve, but last night I had another dream. To be a little more accurate, it bordered on being a nightmare.

Years ago, in my early days of deejaying, I would sometimes have these dreams where anything that could go wrong would. From music equipment that wouldn't work to me not be able to find the next song to put in the mix.

In my dream last night, I was running in the road race and everything seemed to be going good until I got to near the midway mark. Along the route there were these race officials that were wearing like linesmen jerseys. They were there to make sure that the participants stayed on course.

For the most part I remember being alone in the run; there were other runners but I was alone in the run. The course seemed to take a turn into an apartment building that had tons of stairs. When I was at the top I noticed other runners down below so my goal was to get to where they were. That's when things got really interesting.

As I continued along the course, every once in awhile I would see these linesmen and figured I was going the right direction. I kept thinking to myself I should have pre-ran the course, but it was too late for that now.

I was closing in on some other runners ahead of me. As I caught up to one of them I asked them what race they were running fully expecting them to say either 5K or 10K. To my horror one of them said the hockey run and that's when I knew I was in trouble.

Way off course and and in no hope of catching the original group, that's when I was saved by waking up.

It is comical in nature and I don't fear it actually because those dreams that I used to have about deejaying almost always led to one of my best nights of spinning. So maybe my nightmare will lead to my dream of setting a new personal best in my first ever YMCA Road Race.