Starting to Exercise can feel SCARY!

Hey all!  It's Erica again.  And I wanted to talk a little today about how it can be really scary to start exercising when you haven't done it in a while, or ever.  But it doesn't have to be scary, or even hard.  All you have to do is start.  It doesn't even matter what you do at first as long as you get your body moving.

I have been working out on and off myself for most of my life.  But recently I experienced this same fear when I wanted to start doing Power 90.  I don't even really know why this particular program made me so hesitant.  Maybe it was because it was made by a different trainer, but I've done other programs that are probably harder than this one.  I mean I started last year with Insanity and moved on to TurboFire from there.  But something about working out with Tony Horton really intimidated me.
So I kept putting it off for a week.  And then I finally said to myself "Enough!"  This past Monday I bit the bullet and started the program.  And you know what?  It wasn't so bad.  The best part is that, as with most programs, you can go at your own pace.  This is true even for those of you are thinking about just starting by walking.  Just go for ten minutes.  All that matters is that you START!
So why would I tell you about being nervous myself?  So that you know you are not alone.  Even those of us who exercise regularly can get that feeling from time to time.  And now that I have broken through that barrier, I've decided to go even further and start working on a C25K along side my program.  I haven't gone running for just about 17 years, but I think it's time to start getting back into it.  And all I needed to remind me was to get through the fear of this new program.

It's important to get out of your comfort zone if you want to make changes.  Because you can only grow by doing something different and new. 
So try it, and let me know how it goes.

Do I Need to Count Calories if I'm Eating Clean?

Hi guys! Rachel here, and today I want to talk to you about eating clean.  This is a question I get quite often: do I need to count calories if I'm eating clean?

This is actually a complicated question because ultimately, it depends on how your diet is laid out.  Clean eating generally includes eating quite a few fruits and vegetables and many vegetables are actually negative calorie foods, which means that they cost more energy (calories) to break down and digest than our bodies absorb from eating them.  However, not everyone is able to stomach a lot of vegetables in their diet.  At least, not at first.

Ultimately, calories are calories and regardless of where they come from, we all use them the same - as energy.  If we eat too many calories for our activity level, then we will store the energy for later use, meaning we will store them as fat. 

However, clean foods get stored differently than processed foods.  We have two different types of fat in our bodies: brown fat and white fat.  White fat you can probably see if you have or have ever had a tummy.  White fat has no blood circulating through it which makes it difficult to burn, why it takes so much longer for your belly to shrink when you're losing weight than it does for your chest or arms to shrink.  Brown fat does have blood circulating and after your body has used up your glycogen (what our liver turns carbs into), your body will turn to brown fat as fuel.  Excess clean calories get stored as brown fat.

If you are new to eating clean, new to being able to recognize portion sizes or vegetables don't make up the bulk of your diet, then I absolutely recommend that you count your calories even if they come from clean whole food sources.  Does this mean you'll have to count calories and track forever? No! But we have to learn first to recognize how much we are eating and when we have truly eaten enough. 

Want some more information on how to eat clean? Check out my latest article on my new blog: What Does it Mean to Eat Clean?

YOU CAN RUN 2: Ischiogluteal Bursitis- A Real Pain In The Butt

YOU CAN RUN 2: Ischiogluteal Bursitis- A Real Pain In The Butt: I have been plagued by a very "awkward" injury. By awkward, I mean a pain in my butt.  I thought at first it was just a hamstring/...

"Other" Proteins

Hey everyone!  It's Erica posting today.  I wanted to talk about all the ways you can make sure you get enough protein into your diet.
When most of us think about getting protein into our day, we immediately think of things like meat, chicken, turkey, eggs, and dairy products.  But there are so many other sources of protein out there that so many of us tend to ignore.
Did you know that you can actually get all your protein without even using any of the previously mentioned sources?  And that you should actually be trying to eat more of these other foods?   Well, now you'll know!  Ha ha!
You can actually get a lot of protein from vegetables, beans, nuts and even whole grains.

Here's a few that I know:
Food                                                     Protein (g)
banana                                                         1.2
corn on the cob                                           4.2
brown rice (1 cup cooked)                        4.8
frozen peas (1 cup)                                    9.0
lentils (1 cup cooked)                              16.0
tofu (1cup)                                                 18.0
frozen broccoli (1 cup)                               5.8
spinach (1 cup cooked)                            5.4

But for a more complete chart, I found this one at: http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/protein.htm

FOOD	AMOUNT	PROTEIN(gm)	PROTEIN(gm/100 cal)
Tempeh	1 cup	41	9.3
Seitan	3 ounces	31	22.1
Soybeans, cooked	1 cup	29	9.6
Lentils, cooked	1 cup	18	7.8
Black beans, cooked	1 cup	15	6.7
Kidney beans, cooked	1 cup	13	6.4
Veggie burger	1 patty	13	13.0
Chickpeas, cooked	1 cup	12	4.2
Veggie baked beans	1 cup	12	5.0
Pinto beans, cooked	1 cup	12	5.7
Black-eyed peas, cooked	1 cup	11	6.2
Tofu, firm	4 ounces	11	11.7
Lima beans, cooked	1 cup	10	5.7
Quinoa, cooked	1 cup	9	3.5
Tofu, regular	4 ounces	9	10.6
Bagel	1 med. (3 oz)	9	3.9
Peas, cooked	1 cup	9	6.4
Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP), cooked	1/2 cup	8	8.4
Peanut butter	2 Tbsp	8	4.3
Veggie dog	1 link	8	13.3
Spaghetti, cooked	1 cup	8	3.7
Almonds	1/4 cup	8	3.7
Soy milk, commercial, plain	1 cup	7	7.0
Soy yogurt, plain	6 ounces	6	4.0
Bulgur, cooked	1 cup	6	3.7
Sunflower seeds	1/4 cup	6	3.3
Whole wheat bread	2 slices	5	3.9
Cashews	1/4 cup	5	2.7
Almond butter	2 Tbsp	5	2.4
Brown rice, cooked	1 cup	5	2.1
Spinach, cooked	1 cup	5	13.0
Broccoli, cooked	1 cup	4	6.8
Potato	1 med. (6 oz)	4	2.7

So the next time you go to the store, stock up on some of these to make sure you are getting enough protein.  It's actually good for you to get it from different sources when you can.  And you just might get the benefit of giving your metabolism a little extra boost too!

Shakeology Fudgy Oat Bars

Shakeology Frozen Fudgy Oat Bars

The classic flavors of chocolate and peanut butter meld together in this brownie-like treat.

Total Time: 1 hr 10 min.
Prep Time: 10 min.
Yield: 4 bars

Serving Size: 1 bar
Ingredients:
• 1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
• 1 scoop Whey Protein Powder
• ½ Cup Peanut Butter
• ½ Banana
• ½ Cup Oats

Preparation:
1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Freeze for at least 90 minutes in an 8" x 8" pan.
4. Remove from freezer, cut into 4 squares.

Nutritional Information (per serving):

Calories: 249
Fat: 10g
Saturated Fat: 2g
Cholesterol: 13mg
Sodium: 76g
Carbohydrate: 25g
Fiber: 4g
Sugar Total: 6g
Protein: 16g

The Wonderful Effects of Green Tea!

Hey!!! J'Wana here, coming at you with some info on GREEN TEA!

For the past week or so, I have been sick:( Never Fun and Never Wanted.

Sore throat, chills, body aches, just everything. I am such a big baby when I am sick. I didn't want to eat or drink. It hurt too much. But I remembered whenever I would get sick, people would always suggest tea with lemon and honey. It would at least help with my sore throat, right? So I drag myself into my kitchen and whip out some green tea, with honey and lemon.   

I did start feeling better, thank goodness! But this got me thinking.....Green Tea is freakin AMAZING! Its so good for you and has a LOT of benefits! If you don't drink green tea, you should!!!

Benefits of Green Tea:

1. Its full of antioxidants, which are known for their anti-aging properties among other things.
2. Green tea can prevent and treat cancer!
3. Stress Relieverrrrr!!!! Enough said there! Lol!
4. Improves heart health and lowers high blood pressure.
5. Green tea is anti-diabetic so it helps regulate blood sugar.
6. It boosts immunity and fights off the cold and other viruses. It contains antigens that builds up your immune system.
7. Green tea is also a FAT BURNER! and it also allows you to exercise longer by reducing carbohydrate utilization, or how the carbohydrates are being used.

And those are just some of the benefits!  Like I said earlier, if you don't drink green tea, you definitely should start!!

What's you favorite kind of tea? What type of At-Home remedies do you like to use when you are sick?

Staying on Track While on Vacation

Hey everyone! Rachel here! I'm a little behind schedule because I've been on vacation! The last 5 days were spent with my family in Disney World, thanks to Beachbody!  That's one of the benefits of being a Beachbody coach, by the way. Beachbody gives coaches an opportunity to win amazing trips!  Anyway, staying on track while being in Disney was very challenging but I managed and I wanted to share with you all how I pulled it off!

Beachbody was awesome and flew out Shaun T from Insanity and Leandro from Brazil Butt Lift to work us all out first thing in the morning but because I am currently training for the Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon, I had to pass on those workouts and instead, had to fit in runs.  Because I knew that the entire day each day was going to be dedicated to being with my family and walking the different parks, I set my alarm each day for 6:00 am so that way my workouts would be done and over with and I would have the whole day to spend with my family.  It was incredibly difficult, especially since there is a three hour time difference between Florida and Seattle.  So when my phone went off at 6:00 am telling me it was time to get off, I had to have that debate in my head for fifteen minutes.

"How will I feel if I don't get my run in?"
"How will I feel at the end of the week if I don't hit my mileage goal?"
"How will I be able to make up for the lost mileage?"

Those questions got me out of bed because I knew that if I didn't hit my goal, I'd feel disappointed, frustrated, ashamed, guilty, etc.  A whole lot of negative emotions that can trigger binge eating. No thanks!

The scenery definitely made getting a run in more palatable and I was able to feel good about myself the rest of the day.

In between run days, I lift weights because it gives my legs a break.  Since I wasn't able to pack my P90X DVD's or a weight set and I wasn't sure what options the hotel fitness room would provide, I packed a resistance band and the door attachment so I could fit in a full body resistance workout in the hotel room.  I wrote myself a list of exercises from P90X and ChaLean Extreme that I could do with just body weight or with the resistance band and I managed to get myself quite a calorie burn!

The rest of each day was spent walking at least six miles around each park.  I did what I could to make the healthiest meal choices possible but it's difficult since it's hard to know if what I was eating included true serving sizes or more and how much of each ingredient went into each meal... Plus I was on vacation so I wanted to be able to live a little and enjoy!  Making time to fit in a workout each morning gave me peace of mind so I could relax and enjoy myself a little bit food wise.  All I ended up gaining was some water weight from the extra sodium.  Restaurants pack a lot of salt into their food!

If you're traveling, make sure you pack some extra snacks with you. Protein bars, Lara Bars, almond packs, things like that are great quick bites for when you're feeling a little hungry between meals.  Investing in something like a pack of resistance bands can also be really helpful because you never know what your options will be in a hotel or if there will be enough machines available at the time you try to get a workout in.  And getting up early so that way you have the rest of your day to enjoy also makes a difference! I know, I know, on vacation you want to sleep in but life is short! Sometimes, making a few small sacrifices can be all you need to enjoy yourself while also maintaining a healthy body image!