Photo Courtesy of Flickr

How much water do you drink and are you getting enough?

If you’re not, you could end up with excess body fat, poor muscle tone, digestive complications, muscle soreness — even water-retention problems.

“Proper water intake is a key to weight loss,” says Dr. Donald Robertson, medical director of the Southwest Bariatric Nutrition Center in Scottsdale, Arizona. “If people who are trying to lose weight don’t drink enough water, the body can’t metabolize the fat adequately. Retaining fluid also keeps weight up.”

Your intake should be spread throughout the day and evening. You may wonder: If I drink this much, won’t I constantly be running to the bathroom? Yes. But after a few weeks, your bladder tends to adjust and you urinate less frequently but in larger amounts.

This chart is courtesy of the ISSA www.issaonline.com

Recommended Water Intake:

Step 1 Select an appropriate need factor.

Need Factors

0.5 — Sedentary no sports or training
0.6 — Jogger or light fitness training
0.7 — Sports participation or moderate training 3 times a week
0.8 — Moderate daily weight training or aerobic training
0.9 — Heavy weight training daily
1.0 — Heavy weight training daily plus sports training or “2-a-day” training

Step 2 Multiply weight (in pounds) by the appropriate need factor to arrive at the recommended water intake in ounces per day.

Example 1 120 pounds x 0.6 = 72 ounces per day
Example 2 200 pounds x 0.7 =140 ounces per day

We recommend that you drink water eight to twelve times per day.

Example 1 72 ounces per day divided by 10 glasses = 7.2 ounces per glass
Example 2 140 ounces per day divided by 12 glasses = 11.7 ounces per glass

And by consuming those eight to ten glasses of water throughout the day, you could be on your way to a healthier, leaner body.

How much water do you drink? I get at least 90+ oz per day. This puts me close to my target which should be about 104oz according to the chart. How close are you to what your daily intake should be?

Here are some simple moves that you can do at home to give you those nice, toned arms you can be proud of!

Tricep Dips- This is the perfect exercise that focuses directly on your tricep muscle, where that “underarm flab” seems to hang. All you need for this exercise is a chair. You want to keep your body as close to the edge of the chair as possible and your hands close to your body. Then you slowly lower your body down towards the ground. The further your legs are away from your body, the more advanced the exercise will be.

Push Ups- This is another great exercise that will not only work your triceps, but your biceps, back and abs as well. Your entire upper body will take great shape by incorporating these into your routine.

Skull Crusher- This may sound a bit scary but is a really good tricep exercise. You just need to be careful not to konk yourself in the head. This exercise can be done anywhere as long a your back is flat on something. Next, take a barbell or dumbbell and hold it straight up over your body and slowly lower the dumbbell down towards your forehead, moving only your forearms.

By incorporating these three exercises into your weekly workout routine, you will not only have the most amazing looking arms, but you will be proud to wear those sleeveless tops!

Do you have a favorite upper body exercise that you do? Comment below and let us know! The more exercises we can do, the sexier we can get!

I do have to confess, I didn’t do without all dairy, as I did have some to finish up in my fridge, but I really limited my servings each day and spread it out over the week. Same thing with my fruit servings.

I DID not have any caffeine or wheat though. And I stayed away from added sugars.

My husband and I even went out to eat 2x last week. First was Red Robin, where I had a lime chicken with a salad. The second time was Perkins where I had a yummy chicken breast and spinach salad. I didn’t even take a french fry off of his plate, which is what I would normally do.

I also stayed away from the chocolate..dare I tell you that I was at the point before this challenge that I was having a small piece of dark chocolate after lunch, supper and then added after breakfast!! That is when I knew I had a problem! LOL

I did have 2 Prograde Cravers this week, which helped with my chocolate cravings and they were only used as last resort, I was starving at the moment, type snacks.

My workouts were great! I got in 3 cardio workouts, 2 strength training workouts and one Fit Chick Express workout (containing a lot of cardio).

My goal this week is to increase my cardio to 5-6x per week, 10-15 minute sessions of intervals. I also plan to track my calories this week, which is something I haven’t done in a long time, so I feel it would be a good idea just to see where I am .

I took my measurements, and while it was “that time of the month” they weren’t too bad. Looking forward to seeing them next weekend.

Weight 130.8 – lost 1 lb
BF% 22.9- lost .2 %
The only measurement that went down was my arms and I lost .5 inches in them. Weird..not sure why that is unless I measured wrong last time.

So again, not gonna be worried, going to bust it up this week and see what next weeks measurements bring me!

How are you doing in the challenge?

Photo Courtesy of Flickr

We can all sit down and sets fitness goals every single day, but until we know the “why” of that goal, it’s hard to achieve it.

When writing down our fitness goals, we tend to write down things that are very simple, such as: I want to lose belly fat or I want to be fit. By elaborating more on these goals and asking ourselves why, we are able to break our goals down into more detail.

Start by asking yourself, “Why do I want to lose belly fat?” Is it to fit into smaller jeans or to be able to wear tighter fitting shirts? When you find out your why, you can then put that goal into a vision. You can vision yourself wearing smaller jeans WITH a tight fitting shirt and it makes it more real.

By using the “why” question when writing down your fitness goals, you will have a better idea of exactly what your goals are and make them feel more achievable! Post your “why” in the comments!

Well, I had the geat honor or reviewing Shauna Weiss’s, Soccer Mom Weight Loss Program, and think this could be your thing, soccer moms!

This program is so detailed and easy to follow, from beginning to end! She starts out by explaining how you first need to “change your brain” and use some positive thinking. This is truly how I feel as well. If you are always being negative or looking at yourself in a negative way, its going to be so much harder for you to achieve your goals.

Setting your goals is the next step in her Soccer Mom Weight Loss Program. You need to map  out your goals and be specific about them so you will know when you have achieved them.

Shauna says thats when it comes to nutrition, its as easy as “consuming fewer calories than you use”. But she also stresses that you can do this without depriving yourself  and  finding that balance. I like how she broke down the Carbohydrates, Proteins and Fats and explained why each one is important to your body and how to use them properly to help you to lose weight. So many people are afraid of carbohdrates and fats, and just don’t understand just how important they are and how your body uses them to help you burn fat.

We all now how important it is to have a plan when it comes to weight loss, and Shauna shows you just how to do this!

She  has not only created 21 days of meal plans for you, but she also added in recipes for each day along with some motivating quotes, health tips and even some jokes! The variety of recipes and meal plans would be enough for me to pick up my copy of this book!

She finishes off her program with the workout part. This is my favorite part, as I alway like to see how other trainers put together their workouts and also to get some new ideas to incorporate into my own routine!

The Soccer Mom Weight Loss Program combines circuit training with HIIT training, which by my standards is the ultimate fat burning routine! She provides description of each exercise along with pictures to show you how each one should be done.

I would recommend this program to anyone, as it is very similar to my own teachings and practices and believe that you will be able to reach your fitness goals with this Soccer Mom Weight Loss Program!

(photo courtesy of flickr)

We all get those cravings for all the bad stuff that we know will just add the lumps to our thighs and not get us anywhere when trying to lose fat. But by planning for those times and having quick and easy snacks on hand at all times, it will make it much easier to get through those cravings and choose the healthy snack instead.

For instance, just last night, I felt like binging so bad! I looked in my cupboard where there are crackers and chips (by the way, the chips are my husbands, I don’t usually eat them) and then went to the freezer where I store my dark chocolate. But in the end, I decided on an apple and some almonds. Much better choice wouldn’t you say?

When choosing a snack, make sure its a complete snack. By that I mean choosing a carbohydrate and a protein.This will help ensure that your satisfied and don’t continue to crave other things.

Here are some snack ideas that I have on hand:

1. Fruit and almonds or walnuts
2. Cottage cheese and fruit
3. Triscuit crackers or whole wheat/grain crackers and cheese slices
4. String cheese and fruit
5. Carrots and Celery and peanut butter
6. Protein shake
7. Mixed nuts and dried fruit ( just make sure not to over do it!)

Another way to help those cravings pass and choose a healthy snack is to get a “binge buddy” (I just made that up, but its fitting!) Carmel and I will text each other or twitter when we are struggling with cravings. We will then help the other person to choose a healthy snack or support them until the craving has subsided. Having a “binge buddy” can really make a difference! You can come find a “binge buddy” here on Fit Chick Forums!

Don’t forget to allow yourself life’s simple pleasures once in a while or you will end up binging on them. I do allow myself some dark chocolate at least once a week to help me from craving it every day and it sure does make a difference!

This seems to a problem that a lot of people go through. They reach their goals through a challenge or just on their own and then they feel like they can just have a little of this and little of that and it won’t hurt. But eventually it adds up.

So this is why I decided to do a 30 day challenge. Heck anyone can do anything for 30 days, right? And, if you are in this same slump, feel free to join me! You can comment below what your plan will be, leave a link to your blog if you plan to blog about it or join me at Fit Chick Challenge and do your blogging there. I will also be adding some workouts there from our Fit Chick Express classes at least 2x a week that you can do at home if you are unsure about what to do for workouts and doing my blogging there as well. I suggest you Join Fit Chick Express Forums and sign up for updates to get your FREE 12 Days of Meal Plans to follow or try out the Elimination Diet, which you can pick up a FREE copy on the home page of Fit Chick Express Forums, or even make up your own nutrition challenge goals.

So here is my plan:

Training Goals:
4 strength training workouts per week (1 Fit Chick Express workout included)
3 interval/body weight workouts per week
**Keep in mind, none of my workouts will last longer than 30 minutes and the cardio will most likely be less than 15 minutes.

Nutrition Goals:

I plan to stay away from:
Caffeine
Added sugars
Dairy
Starchy Carbs- Limited to 1-2 servings per week
Limit my fruit intake to one serving per day

I plan to add more of:
Vegetables
Water
Green Tea (decaf)
More fats ( tend to need more fats when I limit my carb intake)

Here are my measurements as of June 21, 2009

Weight: 131.8

BF: 23.1%

Waist: 26

BB: 28

Hips: 37

Thigh: 23

Bicep: 11

I will also be posting my before pictures on the Fit Chick Challenge Site.

My goals for this is to drop my body fat percentage to at least between 18-19%, but this will not be my only goal. I have some pants and shorts that I would like to fit better, as in a bit more loose. That also be a goal, is to fit into them more comfortably.

How about this for some incentive for YOU to join me in this challenge? Whomever sets their goals and reaches those goals in 30 days will receive a FREE Fit Chick Express Workout, that will only be available to challengers! Now are you ready to join me? Then let’s get started! Remember, you can join me HERE or blog about your challenge on your own blog. Your 30 days will start the day you join or comment below!

(photo courtesy of flickr)

How do you know how well you are doing when it comes to achieving your weight loss goals? Why not take this little quiz to find out! You can use it as way to see what things you are doing well and what things you need to make changes to.

1. Were your healthy meals week planned out?

*Did you get in 5-6 small meals per day?
*Were your meals 90/10? Meaning were 10% of your weekly meals healthy?
*Did you drink all your water? I recommend at least 64 oz or more per day.

2. Did you get in all of your fat burning workouts this week?

*Did you get 3 strength training workouts?
*Did you do 3-5 interval training sessions?

3. Did you take your daily supplements?

*Calcium, Vitamin C, Fish Oil…etc…

4. What things did you struggle with the past week?

*Workouts?
*Meals?
*Stress?
*Time?

5. What can you do to improve on these struggles in the week to come?

*Plan meals and workouts
*Take time out for ‘you’?

6. Did you set a weekly goal and did you reach it?

*Do 3 strength training workouts
*Only have one ‘free meal’
*Lift 5 more lbs of weight

7. List 3 positive things from your previous week

8. List 3 things that you can improve on this week

9. Give your previous week a rating from 1-5

10. Ask yourself if your previous week brought you closer to or further away from reaching your goals?

Use this list to help you to continue moving forward and making progress with your fat loss goals or answer these questions below and let me give you some suggestions on how to make next week even better!

(photo courtesy of flickr)

What is the best way to put together some healthy meal plans? Well, you can start by choosing from my top 5 list of proteins, carbs and fats. It is important that you have something from all 3 nutrients in each of your meals or you will not feel satisfied or be giving your body all the nutrients needed to burn body fat! Check out my list below:

PROTEINS
1. Chicken Breast
2. Lean Ground Beef
3. Eggs
4. Protein Powder
5. Cheese/ Cottage Cheese

CARBS
(Fibrous)
1. Broccoli
2. Spinach
3. Peppers
4. Stir Fry Veggies
5. Tomatoes
6. Zucchini

(Starchy)
1. Eziekel Bread (toasted)
2. Sweet Potatoes
3. Whole Wheat Tortillas/Pita
4. Black Beans
5. Whole Wheat Pasta

FATS
1. Organic/Natural PEANUT BUTTER (MMM…my favorite!!)
2. Almonds
3. Walnuts
4. Olive Oil
5. Flax seed

Some examples of healthy meal plans are:

Breakfast:
*2 egg whites with 1 whole egg, spinach and feta cheese (cooked in olive oil)

Lunch:
*Chicken breast with stir fry veggies and walnuts

Dinner:
*Turkey Meatballs with broccoli, raisins and walnuts

Snack:
*Cottage cheese, yogurt, walnuts and fruit

Now its your turn! Start planning some healthy, fat burning meals today!