“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company… a church… a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past… we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you… we are in charge of our Attitudes.” Charles R. Swindoll |
Triathlon and other little snippets
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Just a reminder...
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Spring is here....maybe??
It was snowing last night....again...
So instead of burrowing inside after my walk with Taz, I made a snowman !
The best part about snow this time of year is it's super sticky and heavy. Which is perfect for snowman making.
Spring is on it's way though. While I was out running on Saturday I saw seagulls, and geese and robins! Yes I know super cheesy, but only a few short weeks ago it was pretty quiet on the river. Not anymore! So there is hope! We will be cycling outside soon. Ahhh I can't wait!
So instead of burrowing inside after my walk with Taz, I made a snowman !
The best part about snow this time of year is it's super sticky and heavy. Which is perfect for snowman making.
I can't remember the last time I made a snowman. You gotta get out there and build one. It's so much more fun than I remember. I could actually lift the giant, heavy snowballs for his body. Couldn't do that when I was 3 feet tall!
Taz helped too.
Now go build your snowman/snowwoman/snowpeople!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Food fuels
It's March already. Still early season for some of us. So I was thinking this is the perfect time to really look at what I'm eating for food/nutrition requirments and reassess things again. But boy can it get awfully complicated here. Nutrition vs. Fuel. Carbs, proteins, fats. Looking at how much of what to consume, and when things are best consumed. It's a little overwhelming. Again, balance. So I look to my references for some simple rules to follow.
1:) Eat a decent amount of calories.
2:) DO NOT try to lose weight while training with extreme calorie restrictions.
3:) Eat a balance of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
4:) Drink plenty of water.
5:) There is no such thing as "bad" food. However a lot of foods should be consumed with discretion
6:) Good fats are a must for optimal health.
7:) What you consume every day should be well rounded, and contain little to no processed foods.
These are not my rules. I've adapted them from one of Gale Bernhardts books. I believe that if you are a highly active individual, you must eat, and eat well. Again balance. Don't eat ice cream after dinner every night! How is that going to get you through your next workout? So I focus on getting in as much good stuff as possible, then I won't have room for the unnecessary. However, if that piece of chocolate is calling, I will eat it, and enjoy it! I'm trying to slow down and really enjoy my food too. Give it a try, and see what happens.
Rules adapted from : Training plans for multisport athletes, by Gale Bernhardt, USA Olympic Triathlon & World Champion
1:) Eat a decent amount of calories.
2:) DO NOT try to lose weight while training with extreme calorie restrictions.
3:) Eat a balance of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
4:) Drink plenty of water.
5:) There is no such thing as "bad" food. However a lot of foods should be consumed with discretion
6:) Good fats are a must for optimal health.
7:) What you consume every day should be well rounded, and contain little to no processed foods.
These are not my rules. I've adapted them from one of Gale Bernhardts books. I believe that if you are a highly active individual, you must eat, and eat well. Again balance. Don't eat ice cream after dinner every night! How is that going to get you through your next workout? So I focus on getting in as much good stuff as possible, then I won't have room for the unnecessary. However, if that piece of chocolate is calling, I will eat it, and enjoy it! I'm trying to slow down and really enjoy my food too. Give it a try, and see what happens.
Rules adapted from : Training plans for multisport athletes, by Gale Bernhardt, USA Olympic Triathlon & World Champion
Monday, March 7, 2011
Eat something already!
This week it has been in my head that I must post my thoughts on athletes and eating. Personally, I obsess about eating. I am always talking about food. Conversations often revolve around discussing food, and recipe's. But what's really mind boggling to me, is that there are some that don't eat.
So how is it that some people can get away with little to no food before, durning and after workouts? How do you make it through the rest of your day? How the heck do you keep up with your munchkins? Or can you? How do you get to your next workout of the day with nothing stored in the tank? How can you not eat breakfast? The best meal of the day! The only thing that get's me out of bed some mornings is looking forward to sitting down to my eggs, fruit, or whatever mishmash I've put together, and pouring over Bicycling magazine, or City Palate, before I head off to cram myself onto the C-Train. Yah, I know, alot of questions. But that's what I thought about all last week. Oh, and trying to be more aggressive in the pool. Ha! But that's a topic for later.
As a woman, I have been guilty of weight and body image obsession. Yes, I know, big surprise!
I'd say that the body image issues started in my early teens and went well into my late 20's. I did the calorie counting, fat intake obsessing, nutrient obsessing, thinking that if I just ate starchy carbs, fruits, and veggies, all the time, that it was going to be enough to get me through, blah, blah, blah. Exhausting, nieve and dumb. But that came at a cost. I damaged my body to a point that there are things that I can't fix now. Like loss of bone density! Big woops.
But lately I'm really trying to stop obsessing, and just eat! Get away from the scale, (don't have one in the house) start listening to my body, and telling myself to eat already! (Don't throw your scale away, because we don't need more stuff in our landfills! Hide it, or use it to weight your animals or something. They at least won't get offended.) Don't get me wrong though. I still have moments where I let stupid, ignorant remarks about my body slip from my lips. Or I walk by the mirror and cringe a little because the sun caught my hiney at the wrong angle. Silly me. And then I move on. Enough. Oh, and sidenote ladies, boys can't stand listening too the "I'm so fat", remarks. Get over it. Move on. Yah, maybe a little harsh, but why not use that negative energy for something a little more productive and positive??? Like trying to get a little faster at swimming.
As very active people we try to squish in as much as possible. Our days often start super early so we can fit in a run, bike or swim, weights, yoga, and everything else in between. As someone wise once said, "If you find you're really busy all the time, then turn off the TV!"
I do my best to make sure that my food comes first. If I don't, my workouts suffer, and I am in a constant state of hangry. (Hungry and angry put together) I never miss meals, and I never miss an opportunity to snack. I eat before my early morning swims and runs. I always bring some nuts, or seeds, fruit or veggies, or vega bars with me for after workouts. Always making sure that my meals and snacks are well rounded. I am no nutritionist. I'm far from perfect in anything that I do. I use discretion. Not moderation. I try to mix things up a little. I'm trying to be better with time management. Balance. It's by baby steps that you get a little better, and grow a little more. Not by leaps and bounds.
Or maybe your workouts and things are fine just as they are. But if they aren't....just eat something already!
I will be doing more on food stuff in future posts. This is only the begining.
So how is it that some people can get away with little to no food before, durning and after workouts? How do you make it through the rest of your day? How the heck do you keep up with your munchkins? Or can you? How do you get to your next workout of the day with nothing stored in the tank? How can you not eat breakfast? The best meal of the day! The only thing that get's me out of bed some mornings is looking forward to sitting down to my eggs, fruit, or whatever mishmash I've put together, and pouring over Bicycling magazine, or City Palate, before I head off to cram myself onto the C-Train. Yah, I know, alot of questions. But that's what I thought about all last week. Oh, and trying to be more aggressive in the pool. Ha! But that's a topic for later.
As a woman, I have been guilty of weight and body image obsession. Yes, I know, big surprise!
I'd say that the body image issues started in my early teens and went well into my late 20's. I did the calorie counting, fat intake obsessing, nutrient obsessing, thinking that if I just ate starchy carbs, fruits, and veggies, all the time, that it was going to be enough to get me through, blah, blah, blah. Exhausting, nieve and dumb. But that came at a cost. I damaged my body to a point that there are things that I can't fix now. Like loss of bone density! Big woops.
But lately I'm really trying to stop obsessing, and just eat! Get away from the scale, (don't have one in the house) start listening to my body, and telling myself to eat already! (Don't throw your scale away, because we don't need more stuff in our landfills! Hide it, or use it to weight your animals or something. They at least won't get offended.) Don't get me wrong though. I still have moments where I let stupid, ignorant remarks about my body slip from my lips. Or I walk by the mirror and cringe a little because the sun caught my hiney at the wrong angle. Silly me. And then I move on. Enough. Oh, and sidenote ladies, boys can't stand listening too the "I'm so fat", remarks. Get over it. Move on. Yah, maybe a little harsh, but why not use that negative energy for something a little more productive and positive??? Like trying to get a little faster at swimming.
As very active people we try to squish in as much as possible. Our days often start super early so we can fit in a run, bike or swim, weights, yoga, and everything else in between. As someone wise once said, "If you find you're really busy all the time, then turn off the TV!"
I do my best to make sure that my food comes first. If I don't, my workouts suffer, and I am in a constant state of hangry. (Hungry and angry put together) I never miss meals, and I never miss an opportunity to snack. I eat before my early morning swims and runs. I always bring some nuts, or seeds, fruit or veggies, or vega bars with me for after workouts. Always making sure that my meals and snacks are well rounded. I am no nutritionist. I'm far from perfect in anything that I do. I use discretion. Not moderation. I try to mix things up a little. I'm trying to be better with time management. Balance. It's by baby steps that you get a little better, and grow a little more. Not by leaps and bounds.
Or maybe your workouts and things are fine just as they are. But if they aren't....just eat something already!
I will be doing more on food stuff in future posts. This is only the begining.
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