Thursday, July 11, 2013

Team S.J.G.R.: Thursday Huddle #2




I couldn't head out to D.C without huddling with my team!

But first let me tell you this:

Donkeys are now flying. Well, they sort of are. Because I have sort of gotten onto Facebook. But only to interact with the Team S.J.G.R. group page. So technically, donkeys aren't all the way flying. They're just sort of. . . hovering. Yeah. That's it.

I can only be found by those on Team S.J.G.R. So if you haven't joined and you are a Facebooker, make that happen. Thanks again to my baby sissy for all of her help with this. JoLai ROCKS!

Okay.

Hmm. How about a Top Ten so keep us all on the straight and. . .errr. . .narrow? Yeah! Don't mind if I do!

On this lovely Thursday I bring you:

THE TOP TEN RANDOM HEALTH THOUGHTS THAT I'M THINKING ABOUT RIGHT NOW INSTEAD OF SLEEPING OR FINISHING PACKING MY STUFF FOR D.C.

Like to hear it? Here it go!




#10  Food Comparison Apps and Websites

OMG. Have y'all ever visited this site called twofoods.com? There's also an app that you can get for your smart phones. So essentially when you're making a food choice and you're trying to choose between two foods,  this awesome app/site lets you throw them into the ring together.


I highly recommend this. I've found it quite helpful when trying to be mindful. And it's also good for when you're being bad but you're trying to decide just how bad you want to be. Ha ha ha. 

#9  Speaking of apps. . .

http://www.makeuseof.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/foodculate.jpg


Are you familiar with Fooducate? Dude. This puppy has a scanner that goes straight over the UPC code. You can scan an item right there in the store--or in your house if the damage has already been done. And don't think that I haven't scanned something at a potluck. 

Mmmm hmmm.

Recommend this, too. The point is that when you actually KNOW what you're eating, you are far more likely to make better choices with foods and portions. Two slurps of a Chick Fil A shake  makes me very happy. But that's all I'm having since it has 7billion calories per slurp. Ha ha ha ha.


#8  Army Ten Miler

I am signed up for the Army Ten Miler and can't wait! I'll be out there with all of our nation's heroes and a bunch of others, too. We get to run through our Nation's capitol while folks wave flags and cheer us on. 

Way cool.

Lots of military guys, injured vets, and so many others. I'm inspired by amputees that run distance races (or participate in wheelchairs.) I see them and really feel motivated to get up off my butt. 

Guess what? I'm running it with C.J.'s mommy, Davina. She's an Army officer and another person that inspires me to never, ever give up.

#7  Gazpacho season

Hey! Gazpacho is a delicious, healthy, filling low calorie summer meal. A quick Google search will find you a crap ton of recipes. I like Barefoot Contessa's the best.

P.S. Adding Spicy V8 makes it YUMtacular.

P.P.S. If you have high blood pressure, chill on the V8. It's mad salty.

#6  FitBit One



Okay. So my brother gave me this fitness tracker called the Fitbit which I love, love, love. It tracks your steps, your flights of stairs, your calories and . . .dig this. . .your SLEEP! How awesome is that?

It clips to your pocket or bra so isn't all obvious like those arm bracelets. If you don't mind the bracelets, Nike Fuel Band is great and so is the Flex band by Fitbit. Anywho. I like the Fitbit.

But.

Be sure to remove it from your bra or pants before they go into the laundry. I may or may not have reordered another Fitbit after laundering the original given to me by Will. 

May or may not have.

#5  150 or more.



Are you making sure that your heart is getting at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity? Remember: This is what the AHA recommends for your heart health. I made a little chart that I printed out and track my exercise with. Can't figure out how to put it on the blog but if you go on the Facebook Team Page it's there. Or just email me and I'll send it to you.

There's a place for your exercise -- or your excuse if you didn't. Don't make the excuses a habit because the only one who loses is you.

Wait. I take that back. Your loved ones do, too.

#4  Water



Drinking a glass of water before you eat any meal is a great way to not overeat. I like adding a splash of lemon juice or even a little splash of cranberry juice so it doesn't taste so . . .watery.

Drink your water. 

#3  Overdrinking water.

But.

Did you know that there is such thing as overdoing it with water? If you overhydrate, you can dilute your blood. This drops your sodium levels and can put you at risk for being anything from fatigued and out of it to on the ground seizing. 

Don't believe me? Peep this.

#2 Wii Boogie!

Dude! I got my groove on today with Just Dance and the Michael Jackson Experience on Wii. Great work out, man. 

All I'm saying is that I'm nice with my Beat It. Real, real nice. 

And Thriller? I KILLED it. What? What!

#1 Where do you carry your load?

Remember: Our focus is overall improvement in cardiovascular fitness to reduce the chances of us succumbing to the number one cause of death and disability in the U.S. So all this talk about what we eat and weight loss is to get the fat from around our organs and torsos for heart protection.

YES.

Let's be clear. I like to fit my clothes and feel good about my appearance. But. I don't care about that nearly as much as I do seeing my sons grow up and meeting my grandkids. I hope you feel the same.

Now. 

If you carry a lot of weight around your mid-section know that this is associated with a higher risk of heart disease. If you have a spare tire or a thick middle, you need to get a tape measure and find out just how thick. Then when tracking your progress, you need to follow that, too.

Peep this for some more info on this important marker of your cardiovascular risk.

And remember: S.J.G.R.! So we don't ignore things like waist circumference because we feel discouraged or scared. Because being discouraged and scared DOES NOT prevent heart disease.

Feel me? Okay. Where was I?

What helps the tum tum? 

Well. Cutting down on refined sugars and bread? HUGE. That means limit white flour, white rice, sugar, etc. Eat lean meats. Say no to processed foods when possible. This will whittle down your midsection. Oh. And fizzy drinks? That's another one to try to start limiting. Remember when I said I lost 5 pounds for good just from giving up Diet Coke and sodas? 

Easiest 5 pounds gone EVER.

For reals. 

Okay. I need to go to bed. Or finish packing. Or something. 

Sh*t is still real. I will not let you put this on the back burner. Your heart is too important to me. You can do this. We got this. We do.

Love y'all. For real.

***
Happy Thursday. Check in and tell me what's up with you!




11 comments:

  1. I know you will be walking all over DC, giving that FitBit the what for, watch it on the vino, I know what happens when girlfriends get together :) I love my FitBit and I may or may not have replaced my first one due to "water damage". I keep track of my exercise with the FitBit app, I also walk/run with my heart rate monitor to keep me in the target range.

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  2. Have a great trip!!!! And thank you to you and JoLai for S.J.G.R!!

    SApplewhite

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  3. I have been enjoying the MyFitnessPal app (I'm lisaisforlove on there if anyone wants to friend me) and it syncs with my Runtastic Pro app, so it tracks my steps and workouts when I remember to enable it. It's great for counting calories and tracking your weight and workouts. It also charts out your daily intake in carbs, sugars, etc. and lets you know where you exceeded (or didn't exceed) the daily recommended amount Very useful. But I'm going to look into the FitBit.

    I love this team and am patiently awaiting a workout tee or tank with S.J.G.R splattered across it...maybe even a visor too. I hope that's in your plans :)

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  4. I got weighed yesterday. I lost 4 pounds. I'm feeling pretty danged good about it and surprised at how good I'm feeling about it and I'm thankful for finding you.


    {{{{{{{{{{{{ULTRASUPERHUG}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

    Rebecca

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  5. Continuing to do my exercise and watch what I eat. Doing my 40 minute walks each night around my neighborhood (has a lot of hills). Started adding a few brief running intervals. I used to run years ago and then got bad back and knee problems and had to stop. I am hoping if I take it REAL slow I can get back in it. Hard not to get discouraged when I can only run for a minute or 2 when I used to be able to do a 5k. At least, I am doing something! The heat and humidity also make it tough for my asthmatic lungs to exert themselves but I am still pushing through (the idea of walking on a treadmill at the gym bores me to tears, I will deal with the heat!). So happy to see you on our Facebook page!
    -Amanda

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  6. Thanks for the warning about overhydrating. It's not one that people hear very much. And hyponatremia can be seriously scary.

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  7. OK... I've joined SJGR and I've been hesitating on what/how to get started.

    I've ordered the tracker and removed all soft drinks from my pantry and office. baby steps.

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  8. Can't find Team SJGR on my phone or ipad. I will try from the computer at home. I have ordered my Fitbit. Go Team!

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  9. Woot woot!!! The team is growing!!! Yay!!!

    ~JoLai aka Biz

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  10. Hello, fellow SJGR believers,
    I would like to happily report that since I declared myself part of team on June 24, I have lost 1.5 in from my waist line, and 1 in from my hips. Thank you so much to everyone for motivation, inspiration, and encouragement! We can do this for our hearts!
    I mentioned this on the fb page, but in case someone does not follow the page, if you would be interested in taking a class on nutrition and physical activity for your health, I signed up for a free online class on coursera that starts next Monday.
    Also, regarding our water intake... I read a book a while ago that I really liked- "The water secret" by Dr. Howard Murad. I plan to read the book again as it has some good points on how to keep our cells young and strong :)
    Dr. Manning,
    Have a wonderful time in Washington!
    Thanks for all you do for us!
    Livia

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  11. Hi, I'm a doctor of Spain and read your blog many times. I see you speak of gazpacho, a typical Spanish dish.
    I leave the recipe:
    a kilo of tomatoes, half a green pepper, half a cucumber, half a glass of olive oil, a little vinegar and salt. Many times we put a little garlic
    everything well liquefied

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