weight loss wednesday: extreme makeover

do you know what i hate? reality television. can't stand the bachelorette [what a hoe-bag! skankin on 6 guys at once], i don't think they can dance and i'd rather listen to pierce my eyes out then listen to another voice. but there's this little phenom in the summers that i can't get enough of. move over bob, there's a new friendly face in the workout town. and his name is chris powell. have you met him? he's a stud. and oh so nice with those piercing blue eyes. extreme makeover: weight loss edition runs all summer long and follows people as they dramatically lose weight in a year's time. justin & i eagerly stay up til 11pm watching this addicting show, even if it's ridiculously clouded with commercials.

it's amazing to me what they can do in just a year's time. not just lose a few pounds, but lose whole people! and change their lifestyle for the better. as justin said last night, it is so easy to gain weight but ridiculously hard to lose it. did you know i got my degree in exercise science? you wouldn't know it with the extra 30lbs i've been carrying but i did. i love gyms! i love playing sports! and i love love love the human body!

in order to maintain your current weight and keep your heart healthy, you need to exercise for 30 mins a day. so those 10 minute power walks are just not gonna cut it if you want to lose weight. 60 minutes are recommended for weight loss. that may seem daunting and pretty hard to achieve when you work 8-5, get home at 6, cook your food and clean up your house. by 8pm you just want to veg out before going to sleep. well folks, you're not going to get skinny by dreaming about it. that's why justin & i have made the goal to run a 5k in september and kick out tubby butts in gear! i've dabbled in weight watchers and regularly workout but my downfall is food. oh how i love food. before i used to be able to eat whatever i wanted as long as i worked out like a gym rat- which i loved. that's not quite possible now so that's what i'm working on. we've been going strong for 2 weeks now and over 10 lbs have been lost between us! [mostly justin's- working out with your husband is quite depressing bc he will lose weight faster then you, esp when cutting his soda consumption alone saves him 5lbs]

in the writing world, you're urged to write what you know. and we all know i know landon, how to be cranky, and more importantly, how to be fabulous. but i also know a thing or two about exercise. so welcome to a new segment called weight loss wednesday- that won't happen every wednesday and won't happen just on wednesdays.

our workout goals on our fridge, landon helping mommy do pushups, landon's yogurt-stache, and asleep on our runs

so my tip for today [because curious george on pbs is about to be over...] is about the form of exercise. personally, i love yoga. not too intense, lots of stretching and those pants.... love those pants. just bought some new ones yesterday. but it's very rare to find a good yoga class or video that really gets your heart pounding [try hot yoga- that's the worst]. so that's my form of relaxation and stretching- with some muscle toning. i hate hate hate running but it's by far, the best form of cardio there is. it's high intensity and will burn the most calories for the time you put into it because it will help you continue to burn calories for a while after. most people are afraid of running bc

a- the outfits are so skimpy and spandex doesn't look quite as attractive around saddlebags
b- it's hard!
c- you think you can only go for such a short time it's not worth it. might as well sit on a stationary bike and pedal for 30 minutes [the stationary, back-supported bike is hardly used to the extent it does much work]

well i agree. i hate running. i have to double bag my ladies because the running kills my back and it hurts my legs, my feet, gives me calluses and it sucks. it's just the worst. but it's so worth it for the results. what i like to do because i loathe it so much is i run at a comfortable pace for at least a song [so 3 min but you can work up to this] then walk for a bit until i feel the urge again [usually another song]. i think most people push them too much so they can't maintain their pace. you want to be at a pace that is comfortable and one that you can sustain for a long time. it's better to run at a moderate pace every 3 min with a 3 min rest between for 30-45 min then running til you pass out for 10. like i said, we're going for quantity- 60 min!

landon is such a great workout helper

right now i try to do a video in the mornings [when i have the most energy and don't get pretty for the day]- my favorites are p90x & the 10 minute solutions on netflix [p90x is ridiculously hard so i'll do 30 min one day, 30 the next. i don't skip over any parts and attempt to do all the reps. i usually don't but i try my hardest], followed by sets of push-ups [switching between normal and girl] and different forms of sit-ups. at night, justin & i go on walks with landon. we each take turns running in front of the stroller and running back to the person after our song. running outside is much more difficult then a treadmill but it's more similar to what we'll be doing come sept. we always walk at a speed-walker pace and takes sips of water [it's still about 105+ degrees at 7:30pm so that's essential].

i think the stumbling block for most people is that they view diets and exercise as a temporary thing until they lose such-and-such weight. which could work if you are built that way but it's not the healthy thing to do. despite your weight, exercise and eating right should just be a way of life. i have to let go of the notion that i can eat out 3x a week and exercise the same amount. it's a daily thing that just becomes a routine so it's not "do you want to go running tonight?" to something that you just do.

and i say this as i am making mini-pizzas for my mommy group today. in my defense, it's weight watchers friendly. i know i'm never going to be a size 6. i'll settle for a 10-12 [currently a 14-16]. in the end, it's about feeling good about yourself.

in case you're wondering, some of my favorite places to find healthy recipes are skinny taste, laaloosh, slender kitchen, emily bites, and of course, pinterest.

so seriously, check out the show. it's amazing- we're watching it right now.