10,000 Steps A Day

All over our school district, the initiative to get people moving is catching on...and students and teachers alike are taking advantage of the work that Physical Education teachers are doing to help them.  The initiative is to get folks up and moving:  perhaps for a few minutes at the beginning of the day, for the first few minutes of a planning period, during a few moments during your lunch time, or after school.  The American Heart Association recommends getting 10,000 steps per day.  "Walking is one of the simplest ways to get active and stay active. With each step you take, you travel further down the path to a healthier lifestyle. Research has shown that walking can have a significant impact on your health by lowering your chances of heart disease. Learn more about the benefits of walking and how incorporating it more can lead to healthier living." 1  

"Research has shown that walking at least 30 minutes a day can help you:

-Reduce your risk of coronary heart disease and stroke

-Improve your blood pressure, blood sugar levels and blood lipid profile

-Maintain your body weight and lower the risk of obesity

-Enhance your mental well-being

-Reduce your risk of osteoporosis

-Reduce your risk of breast and colon cancer

-Reduce your risk of non-insulin dependent (type 2) diabetes" 2

So here's how it works:  

1. Teachers are creating maps at their schools to show how many steps are available on each hallway in a round-trip (both up and down the entire hall).

2. Next, the P.E. Teachers are creating and posting “Fit-Stops.”  These are stations along the way that explains an easy to preform exercise for strengthening different muscles in the body. The six basic stations are:  Calf Raisers, Wall Sits, Wall Push Ups, Leg Raisers, Balance on One foot, and Overhead Presses from the Wall.  More stations may be added as the program progresses.

3. P.E. Teachers, are putting out the map so teachers can see how many steps they can get during a walk to the office, or the gym or to the media center, etc. 

4. PE Teachers are creating School Challenges.  

Here are some of the ideas:

Charting teachers’ steps and watching to see how many steps it will take to get to Disneyland in Orlando, FL.

Charting steps and having friendly competitions between grade levels or subject areas at the school.

Charting steps and challenging another school with the average steps per week.

Whatever the challenge before you, the biggest challenge is with yourself...let’s get moving!

Get Fit…Stay Fit,

Keith 

1  https://goo.gl/sqLLM0

2  https://goo.gl/Lfreuy

Gimme that “Magic Weight Loss Pill”

OK…I’ve tried countless programs.  I’ve dieted for years.  I’ve tried all of the TV programs.  I have a library of videos and DVDs.  So let’s just forget all of that, and “Gimme my magic weight loss pill.”  There are claims out there on social media sites and on various media outlets that will tell you that “they have it!” Some may say that they “have finally created the magic pill that will cause you to lose weight and feel great!”   And some programs will tell you that you can do it in only 14 minutes a day, or in just one week. 

Well here’s the down and dirty…IT IS A PILL, but it’s going to be a hard one for most folks to swallow (figuratively).  It takes some effort and some perseverance.  To make sustainable changes, you have to eat right, do some type of aerobic exercise and do some type of resistance exercises.  An integrated approach is best.  Look at all of the major transformation programs and the experts that write and created them…most are a 12-Week program.  The successful trainers that have videos for sale, don’t just sell you a one-week set…they sell you a series that may last 8-12 weeks.

If you are out of shape and have a few extra pounds on you…you didn’t get that way or gain all of that weight in a week, so logically, it may take you longer than a week or two to do a 180 degree turn.

Here are some things to think about:

What was/is my frustration level?  What is it that has driven me to the point to have to get up off the couch and make a change? I have found that the more personal the reason, the more intense the desire to improve.

What is my purpose in getting in better shape?  I want to be as healthy as I can, for as long as I can, and be so that I can take care of and do for myself.  I want to be able to enjoy my children and grandchildren.  I want them to remember that I was a fun-loving person that cared for them and took care of them, instead of them having to take care of me.

Can I take on and sustain a lifestyle from the particular program I am using?  The program you adopt has to be one that you can live with from now on…a long-term deal.  Ask yourself:  Can I do this, eat this way, and exercise like this (in moderation as you get older, of course) for the rest of my life.  If so, go for it.  If not, find one that you can live with and make it happen.

Can you be accountable?  Find a friend or family member that will help you stay on track.  The hardest part of commitment is “Honoring Self-Promises.”  Everybody else doesn’t know that you promised yourself that you were going to get up an hour earlier and walk for 30 minutes before you got ready for work or school.  Only YOU know that.  And once you break one, then two and even three…it’s easy to slip and fall off the wagon.

What’s Your Focus?

You focus has to be YOUR FOCUS…not anybody else’s.  Each of us is different and because of that, your actual weight loss may not “kick in” and have you dropping weight until maybe the 3^rd, 4^th or 5^th week even.  Be patient.  I think about the story of the man who went to the well pump to draw a bucket of water.  He didn’t prime the pump (to get it ready) yet, he wanted water to flow on his first couple of handle-pumps.  Since he didn’t prepare it correctly, and only pumped the well for about 15-20 strokes without water, the man gave up and went on his way…unbeknownst to him, that the 21^st or 22^nd pump on the handle would have done it.  Sometimes our results are just below the surface, out of sight.  Be patient and stay with it!

Get Fit.  Stay Fit.

Keith

Quick Reference Guide

Quick Reference Guide

KEEP TRACK

Record your workouts, supplements, water intake and eating plans.  Use a Journal or the Fitness Log to keep track of progress.

WATER

6-8 (8oz.) glasses of water each day.

EATING PLAN

Eat 6 small meals a day.  Balance by having a protein and carb at each sitting.  Eat all the vegetables you want as long as they are not fried, sautéed or served in a cream sauce.

Eat correctly 6 days a week.  One day a week (for a period of three meals in a row) is your OFF or FREE DAY.  Eat whatever, as much as you want, etc.  The idea is that you will eventually choose better foods even on your free days.  Here’s a couple of examples:

If Monday – Saturday = Stick to the Plan............then Sunday = FREE Day

If Sunday - Friday = Stick to the Plan..................then Saturday = FREE Day

Here’s the way I do it, because we like to go to the movies on Friday night and out to eat breakfast on Saturday morning when we have company in town.  So I do it like this:

Monday           Tuesday           Wednesday     Thursday         Friday              Saturday          Sunday

7:00                 7:00                 7:00                 7:00                 7:00                 FREE                8:00

10:00               10:00               10:00               10:00               10:00               FREE              11:00

1:00                 1:00                 1:00                 1:00                 1:00                 FREE              1:00

3:30                 3:30                 3:30                 3:30                 3:30                 FREE              3:30    

6:00                 6:00                 6:00                 6:00                 FREE              FREE              6:00

9:00                 9:00                 9:00                 9:00                 FREE              9:00                 9:00

WORKOUTS

Resistance Exercise – Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Aerobic Exercise – Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday

Free Activity Day - Sunday

AEROBIC WORK  

Walk, Jog, Run, Bike, Swim, Treadmill, Exercise Bike, etc – 20-30 minutes of mild to medium to more vigorous aerobic work.  The idea is to get the heart rate up and sustain in at a higher rate for a good portion of your aerobic time.  Set as your goal, 10,000 steps per day.

*This blog is just to be used as a guide to help you fit a program that works for you.  As always, it is advised that you check with your doctor before starting a new fitness plan, and to also check with your doctor before using any of the supplements sold over the counter.  You do not want anything to affect any medications that you may be taking or to adversely affect your health.

I CAN'T keep starting NEXT MONDAY!

It's the first of January.  It's the start of the new year. Restart.  Re-energize. I am newly motivated.  and I can't wait to get started on my new exercise program.  I'm going to eat right.  I am going to plan my meals and take my lunch every day.  I may even get up early and walk before work. I am going to drink at least 8 glasses of water every day!  In fact I may even get myself one of those new fancy looking BPA-Free water bottles. I'll use my gift cards to get some new workout gear.  I will buy some new shoes for my exercise program.  I may even consider joining a gym.  This is my year!  and I can't wait to get started...and I will start on Monday!

Oh wow!  How many times have you heard these things...many times? How many times have you heard them because YOU are the one who has said them. Monday is going to be the start of a great new me.  What's so special about a Monday start day?

Many say its because it's the beginning of a new week...and it's a good starting point.  I can have one last big meal or one last night out with friends where I don't have to pay attention to what I eat and drink.  And then on MONDAY...I will start fresh.  What ever your reasoning, I say the best time is NOW.  Don't put off the inevitable.  If you have the mentality that "I will start Monday," and then something happens to prevent the start of your program, you'll push it off until the next Monday.  All of a sudden, you realize that its the middle of April and you haven't really done anything yet.

Get the mindset of "now"...of "today."  I mean...don't you think your'e worth it?   Of course you do. We are a people that expects instant gratification.  We want what we want, and we want it now. Guess what?  It doesn't work that way for the most part.  If you have a few extra pounds on you, chances are you didn't put those on overnight...and you won't get them off overnight.  It's going to take some effort.

One of the things I remember learning from Bill Phillips, author of Body for Life, is that you have to "Focus on progress, not perfection!"  Find yourself a picture of a person that has been there and done that...and has a similar age and body type as you.  Set your goals high, but work to achieve them in smaller increments.  For example:  If you want to compete in a marathon, you first have to train to run a mile without stopping, or passing out. Another great book for fitness is written by Pastor Steve Reynolds.  It is called Get off the Couch.  what I learned from Steve Reynolds is that "You make better progress when you work together and encourage one another along the way."  Research says this about people that start a 12 week transformation program:  Of those that start alone, only 6% will actually finish the full 12 weeks. But the percentages increase dramatically when start and work with an accountability partner or a group."  I have personally led a group where we started with 210 people and had 145 finish all 12 weeks (69%)...and another group of 119 that finished with 76 people (64%). Why didn't everyone finish you ask?  Because that's human nature. But what I know is that you can't do life alone, and you can't do a transformation program alone.

Both books can be found online if you do an Internet search for them. Both books, Body for Life and Get Off the Couch are 12 Week Transformation Programs.  Both are chocked full of motivational stories of real people making real changes.  I recommend them both whole-heartedly..,along with Steve's first book, Bod4God.

No matter if you get a book to guide you, or you get a trainer at a gym, or if you join a gym with a friend of family member...the same theme applies that I started with in this blog.  Start now.  don't wait until next Monday!

Get Fit.  Stay Fit.

Keith