Fitness, Family and the Future Health of our Youth

This weekend iHealthchic will help sponsor a youth triathlon put on locally by the Girls in Motion organization. Girls in Motion has the following mission:

“Girls in Motion is a not-for-profit organization that trains college age women to mentor preadolescent girls with the goal of promoting positive body image and preventing obesity and eating disorders.”

At iHealthchic.com, we support this important mission and think this group is doing a tremendous job in making a difference in the lives of Dallas area youth, one person at a time. That’s why we’re looking forward to volunteering at their “Trick or Treat” youth triathlon this weekend, October 26, 2008, at Greenhill School in Addison, Texas. 

Exercising together with your children and training for a race is a wonderful family activity that gets you moving, enjoying the outdoors and setting/achieving goals.  This weekend, my friends and I participated in a youth and adult triathlon. There were close to 500 children and over 500 adults who participated–in all shapes and sizes!  It was loads of fun and the camaraderie and support was contagious.

My 13 year old recently did some research for a school project on the obesity epidemic in America. What he learned is that in 20-30 years, it is estimated that only 10% of our population will be at normal weight. The remaining 90% will be split between overweight and obese. It isn’t too late to turn this epidemic around, however it will take a united effort at the family level, the school level, and at the government level. For more information and ideas on healthy eating, school lunches and family fitness, you can visit these sites: 

• Experience Life Magazine-A Better Bag Lunch

• Experience Life Magazine-Tracking Childhood Obesity

• Mayo Clinic- Childhood Obesity

• KidSource-Childhood Obesity

• ShapeUp-Tips for Family Fitness

According to the Mayo Clinic, one of the best ways to positively impact your family’s health is to be a positive role model yourself. Here are their “Cliff Note” recommendations:

• Eat nutritious foods.
• Don’t bring junk food into the house.
• Control your portion sizes.
• Save treats and high-calorie snacks for special occasions.
• Turn off the TV.
• Be physically active every day.
• Stress the importance of healthy lifestyle choices, rather than a number on the scale.

That’s it, short and simple. This is what our local Girls In Motion organization is trying to achieve through their mentoring program. There are programs like this all over the US. Search online to find a similar organization nearby–or better yet–lead by example at home and in your neighborhoods. The statistics are astounding. It’s time to make a difference NOW.

Be the change you want to see.  And, have a GREAT week.

By now you know that “serendipity” is one of my favorite words…and that a great day is one that begins with no alarm clock, a cup of green tea sipped leisurely, followed by a nice long run with my ipod. 

I am really enjoying the new “genius” feature on itunes which puts together songs I haven’t listened to in a while. I enjoy music. All kinds of it. It can be so moving and powerful.  Today’s compilation was  “serendipitous”! I THOUGHT I had selected one of the saved “genius” compilations.  By mistake I had pressed songs to play in alpha order begining with  “O’s”…what I heard for that hour or so was a wonderful, odd mix! Usually I pick moods or certain tempo music. Today was one surprise after another and ALL “perfect” for various reasons.  Right in the middle of my run, I even heard a version of Pachelbel Canon with the sound of ocean waves in the background. It was beautiful fall morning. I almost felt like I was getting my beach fix!   Then, as I headed down the last stretch into my neighborhood, “Perfect Day” (Josh Bates) came on. It was a perfect end to a perfect run. 

Here are a few of the “P” songs I heard:

Pachelbel Canon 

Paradise (Ana Serrano)

Peaches & Cream (John Butler Trio)

Perfect Day (Josh Bates)

And the “O” song I started with?  Jason Castro’s version of “Over the Rainbow” with his ukulele.

Happy Saturday. Stay strong.

If you are able, then TRY. 

That’s it.  Just a thought to ponder the next time you are tempted to pass on an opportunity before you.   These wonderful moments of serendipity, opportunity, coincidence or fate–ask yourself, “Why not?” And then enjoy the ride. 

And while experiencing your life journey, don’t forget to look up, give thanks, and view the beauty of the sun setting each day.

As I sit here typing, I am thankful for so much in this life…at the top of the list are my friends and family.

Happy Friday!

Ok, well maybe not exactly…although I do often find other “pearls of wisdom” and humor in the FeMail Creations catalog (www.femailcreations.com ) .  Here are a couple more of my favorites:

“I only have a kitchen because it came with the house!”  (That one resonates with me!)

“The time to be happy is now.”

“Some days are not even worth chewing through the restraints!”

“You have everything you need to be everything you want.”

“Unattended children will be given an espresso and a puppy!”

“Where there is great love, there are great miracles.”

“If you stumble, make it part of your dance.”

But back to the subject at hand…I came across a CCN article about why some women stay well.  For everyone who appreciates “Cliff-Note” versions, it boils down to these 7 things:

1.) Get a massage. (I got one last night…mmmmmmm…even better than chocolate!)

2.) Take a cold shower.  (OK, I tried the whole 10 minutes thing and it was a tad too long –and cold–for me but I was able to do the 2 minutes at the END of my shower and hope it reaps similar benefits!)

3.) Treat your GI problems “gingerly”.

4.) Lather up…a lot. (See last week’s post!)

5.) Try a cold-blasting cocktail. (I was hoping this was where the wine came in…)

6.) Eat more garlic.

7.) Stay positive.

Have a wonderful weekend. I know I will. My son becomes an “official” teen this weekend.

P.S. Good luck to my tri-chicas racing this weekend.  JA, no more dark runs for you. T, see you next week.

And, to the most important man in my life….HAPPY BIRTHDAY, son!  You make me proud.  I love who you are and the man you are becoming.

Seriously, it is. And brought to you by the Soap & Detergents Association, of course…!  Kidding aside, their bottom line message is important– especially as we roll into cooler weather, more time spent indoors and the the advent of the cold and flu season.  According to the SDA telephone study, Americans get a C- on their hygiene.  Yuck.  Close to 40% of Americans don’t wash their hands after coughing or sneezing into them. And fewer of us THIS year are washing our hands after we use the restroom. Seriously, yuck.   Don’t you think? Except for teachers who understand the importance and proper “protocol” for maximum results.  Figures the teachers get an “A”–I’m glad they will be reminding our youth!  So, just to brush up on your “Hygiene IQ” here is what the SDA suggests:

The SDA outlined how to wash hands to effectively remove germs:

• • Wet hands with warm running water before applying soap.
  • Rub hands together to make a lather. Do this away from running water so the lather isn’t washed away.
  • Wash the front and back of your hands, between your fingers and under the nails. Wash for at least 15 to 20 seconds.
  • Rinse hands well under warm running water.
  • Dry hands thoroughly with a clean towel or air dryer.
  • Hand sanitizers or hand wipes are useful alternatives if soap and water aren’t available for washing your hands.

If you’d like to share this info with a youngster, they even have a site available: http://www.cleaning101.com/sdakids/ !  And if you are really, REALLY interested in all the facts about how and why washing makes good health sense, you can learn more at the Center for Disease & Control.

Just remember wash well, dry thoroughly, cover your mouth when you cough and STAY HOME when you are sick!  Add in a good night’s rest, a nutritious diet filled with real food iwith a variety of color, good fats, and lean protein and you are SET!

Have a wonderful weekend and happy hand washing!

Or so the saying goes…but I have to say I certainly agree!  This weekend I raced in a sprint triathlon with 6 other girlfriends. Some I work with, some I work out with, and some I just met.  Regardless, we entered this race with different aspirations and goals–to win, to place, to better our last time, to finish, to conquer and overcome….but most of all to have fun and celebrate life.  We met at Jayne Ann’s at 4:45 for last minute prep and our “before” shot. We were excited, anxious, tired (me…yawn) and ready to take on this experience.  We couldn’t have had better weather. The pool was comfortable–not too hot and not too cold.  The weather warmed up enough so that no additional layers were needed after the swim. The bike route was hilly and beautiful. And the run was off road, through some woods, on trails and along side a small lake.

You know the poem that talks about friends who come and go. Some are for a lifetime and some for a period of time. No matter how long, each brings a special gift.

My Saturday morning friends are amazing. One has a fear of water…and yet, that does not stop her from swimming several times a week and racing.  One of them has never run before, yet she put everything she had into this race, finished it and did fantastic. Another one I want to be like when I grown up. She runs a 6 minute mile and has a rock hard little bod.  Several of these ladies beat their best times and set personal records. Another one still looks like an amazing beauty after an hour and a half of strenuous racing!  These ladies are so motivating, so encouraging, so STRONG!

Here’s to a great weekend, a lot of fun, girlfriends who rock & more PRs!

Folks often get confused  regarding the carb-no carb issue.  Carbohydrates play an important role in your body.  It’s the MANUFACTURING process of foods that is not so good. You see, when foods are manufactured, that process manipulates the biological integrity of the foods. This usually means the glycemic response is affected. And that’s not a good thing.  Once the biochemical complexity is reduced and the glycemic index goes up, the food becomes a more simplified food source. In other words, THESE types of carbs are more quickly digested and absorbed into the blood at a faster rate.  I don’t know too many of us that can afford to have extra blood sugar (blood glucose) circulating around because that just leads to increased fat storage. 

Along those lines, sucrose and high fructose corn syrup can also wreak havoc on blood sugar levels. If you consume high amounts of simple sugars, the body has to work extra hard to remove glucose from the blood. Once your glycogen stores are filled, the body metabolizes sugar for fuel or converts it into triglyerides.  Triglycerides are stored as FAT.  Insulin is lipogeneic (increases fat storage). So, if you raise blood sugar, insulin gets released to try and remove it.  And that, my friends, causes an increased potential for fat gain.  

Your challenge this week: think before you eat. Rarely does anything taste as good as healthy and energetic feels!

Stay strong!

Last week, I came home from work to find a couple of plastic bags containing two huge phone books. Typically I recycle the bags, then bring in the latest books inside and swap them out for whatever ones are in the house.  I throw the older versions into my recycle can.  This time, I stopped. I never use the things. Between the internet and 411 Free Info. (If you are not familiar with this resource, RIGHT now enter 411-FREE into your cell phones 1-800-373-3411.  After a brief commercial from the sponsor of the day, you get a free directory assistance. It works about 90% of the time and you can have them tell you the info, get details like phone # and address, or have that same info texted to your phone!  We rarely use our phone books–yellow pages or residential.) So back to the yellow pages, I decided to do a little research and was pleasantly surprised to find the Yellow Pages gang is on top of it.  You can go to www.yellopagesgoesgreen.org and get your name removed from future telephone books. Sweeeeeeet!! They’ve got a pretty nifty little site set up and they also have an option to opt out of catelogs, as well.  See how simple it is to make a difference?  Just one small act, every day. Tell your friends. Together, we CAN make a difference!