Body After Baby Yes

Exercising at home has a greater benefit.

kristine — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 16:25:58 +0000

Yesterday my 2 year old went to the basement and brought my exercise mat upstairs and said he had to do his exercises. He rolled out the mat and began doing crazy looking jumping jacks and some weird looking stretches. What I realized was that watching me workout has had a really great influence on him. It really is true that children that grow up in an active household have a greater chance of staying active throughout their lives. Just like everything else, kids learn the importance of health from what we do, not what we say. Do your kids see you exercising? Even if you workout at the gym, it might be worth something to have a “pretend” workout at home with them around. Also, make a commitment to have family exercise time, with a purpose, at least once a week, or at least bi-weekly. This could be a walk around the block, kicking the ball at the park, cycling, bowling, family Wii time, or an easy yoga video. This is great family bonding time and teaches them that exercise is a lifestyle that must last forever.

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Snowed in? Try to stay the course.

kristine — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:03:39 +0000

Wow, I haven’t seen this much snow in a number of years. We have been snowed in all weekend and school is out today and will be out tomorrow as well. Also expecting another 5-10″ tomorrow night. Uuugh! Because I do enjoy eating, I am so happy that I planned ahead. Didn’t buy any boredom-buster sweets or treats. The house is pretty nutritionally sterile. Making healthy choices is a daily decision and a long-term commitment to better living. I am happy with my choices today.

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Tip for satisfying that evening sweet tooth.

kristine — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 03:29:03 +0000

I have discovered my new way to battle my evening sweet tooth. Green tea sweetened with Agave Nectar. Agave Nectar is sweeter than sugar but it’s a natural sweetener and therefore chemical free. The body also absorbs it much slower than regular sugar so there are no highs and lows. Best of all, when I drink tea sweetened with a little Agave Nectar in the evening, I really feel like I’ve had dessert. I usually use 1/2 tablespoon which is, I believe, 30 calories; several hundred calories less than a traditional treat. I’ll drink to that!

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My quick mommy workout.

kristine — Tue, 05 May 2009 19:19:13 +0000

I had less than 15 minutes to get in some semblance of a workout and here’s what I did:

Warmed up real quick by jumping rope for 3 minutes
Alternated (a) squat to shoulder press with a medicine ball (15), with (b) ball crunches (20) – did a 3-set rotation
Ended with alternating lunges holding a dumbbell in each hand (45 total)

Quick and dirty. My heart rate stayed up during the entire time because of the high-energy warm-up and by not resting between exercises. I actually finished in 13 minutes. I think I might repeat this same workout this evening.

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Secret Lives of Moms

kristine — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 04:05:48 +0000

Today’s Oprah show, “Secret Lives of Moms” was right on the money. One of the main things that stood out to me was that the key to being a successful mom is being confident and feeling good about yourself. Motherhood is a maze with many twists and turns and every mom gets through it a different way. Each mom has a different style of parenting and each style is right for the mom who chooses it. You have to make the choice that’s going to give you peace, or, a bit of peace. On top of all the things that moms are supposed to do I’d like to add looking good to the equation. Personally, looking and feeling good changes my attitude during the day. I am so much happier during the day battling, I mean taking care of, the boys when I am exercising regularly and eating right. My attitude is much better, I feel better about myself and I have greater energy to boot. When I look a mess, I feel a mess and my kids can sense when I’m feeling less than 100%, and that’s when they crank things up a notch. Mothering is hard — you gotta keep the edge.

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New Initiative to Combat Childhood Obesity

kristine — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 20:26:10 +0000

Finally, the health care industry is putting its money into more substantial initiatives to help combat the obesity epidemic among our youth. A coalition of various insurers, spearheaded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, will be covering dietitian and physician visits to educate children and parents on eating healthy and weight management. This translates into 8 free visits aimed at helping you lose weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Can’t beat that. A few of the insurers participating so far, include Blue Cross/Blue Shield of NC and MA, Aetna and WellPoint. View the entire article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/19/AR2009021902924.html?referrer=emailarticle.

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Credit for Mom Strength

kristine — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 19:23:05 +0000

Moms have such great strength and stamina that it’s a shame that we aren’t all just blessed with a fit body as our reward. Moreover, it seems that for all we do, we can be some of the most out of shape creatures on the earth. I wish we could transfer all those hours of sleep deprivation, chauffeuring, cleaning and washing and navigating young humans [and older ones] through life, into equivalent cardio hours. But, unfortunately the body doesn’t work like that. So mom, for as much as we know we do, in order to stay fit, we’ve gotta add deliberate exercise to the mix. Just suck it up and count it a privilege to be able to exercise to benefit YOU. This is the one thing that you can do for YOU that will make all those other things come easier.

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Kids possibly turning to vegetarianism.

kristine — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 03:11:59 +0000

A recent study by the CDC states that 1 in 200 kids are vegetarians. I think this is a great thing. I know how hard it is to create healthy eating habits for our kids and this possible trend is very encouraging. Here’s a link to Sunday’s article in the Washington Post.

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Happy New Year!

kristine — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 15:54:35 +0000

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don’t set new year’s resolutions

kristine — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 19:24:58 +0000

As we look forward to the start of a new year, we all have made a habit of setting New Year’s Resolutions only to have them forgotten before February begins. If you want to experience real change, set outcomes not resolutions because we always achieve an outcome, whether good or bad.

What result do you want? Do you have a realistic timeframe? When you’re trying to achieve a desired outcome, there are a few steps you must take in order to make this a reality:

1. Paint a clear picture of the outcome you want.

2. Anticipate some of the obstacles you will run into on your journey.

3. Come up with an action plan to overcome these obstacles.

4. Take action.

5. Evaluate constantly. Do not let more than a week past before you check-in on how you’re doing.

To enhance this process consider adding some form of accountability. We all have the best intentions, but we need to share our goals and plans with those we trust. Having a great support system to encourage you along the way can make all the difference.

Also, consider hiring a personal trainer or a health & fitness coach. This gives you the expert direction and information that you want and the accountability that you need. They can assist you with defining a wellness vision for your life. Cheers!

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