Working through an injury isn't easy

As a recent post revealed I have an injury and it has persisted far longer than my training schedule wants to allow. I couldn't figure it out at first, I mean what I actually did to it. There was no moment of snapping ligaments or tearing tendons--no shrieks of pain to signify any one event that caused this workout menace. But after a relunctant visit to the doctor, I suspect the culprit is what my mother has coined as my "Jack Johnson" problem.

"Who is Jack Johnson?" you ask. Well he was a boxer in the early 1900s who changed the sport for black fighters and became the first black heavy weight champion. What does that have to do with me and my injury. Well, I guess along with being a great fighter, he also was a man bent on doing it all and all on his own. So, whenever I refuse help, or try to do what most women would rather let the men in their lives do--the heavy lifting, Mardie likes to leave "Jack Johnson" ringing in my ears.

Oh yeah, so the injury, well on Memorial Day I woke early in the morning and by 10 am I had dug up a plot of grass; gone to Wal-Mart where I bought sand, pavers and a new grill for the occasion; laid said sand and pavers and set up the grill. There was a lot of sod left from my endeavor and on this past Monday I finally got around to trying to dispose of it.

I scooped the rock infested sod into a garbage can and I dragged, heaved and hoed that pile from the backyard to the front. Stopping several times to regroup I kept thinking, "Man I'm getting a really good workout."

The yard waste disposal truck came round and the man walked to the garbage can, removed the lid and made a feeble attempt at moving the garbage can. Watching from my office window and unbeknownst to said man I saw him look around in disbelief wave his hands dismissing the heap and drive off leaving me with the task of disposing it myself.

I tugged and dragged it even further to the wooded area across from our house and grunted through lifting it to dump it. I felt pretty empowered and thought, "What a very little weak man. Little ole me, I was able to do it by myself."

I proceeded to jog a mile, and go through a complete weight workout ala Tiki Barber. Well, about 3 in the afternoon is when it all came down on me. As I sat at my computer working I began to feel this nagging pain in my back, neck and arm. After about 10 minutes I couldn't sit up straight and eventually took four ibuprofen and hit the sheets to try and sleep it off. It has been a full week now and I still can't sleep through the night without pain or sit in one position without pain. I guess I showed that litle yard waste guy. He may have wimped out on the job, but at least he's not having a MRI tomorrow and I'm sure he's sleeping just fine even though little ole me showed him.

For the record, though, I have not taken off the week entirely from my workout. There wasn't anything wrong with my legs, so I still ran everyday and did my crunches. To be sure, don't aggrevate or go against doctor's orders with any injury but don't let it set you back to the point of ceasing all motion. It is hard to get and stay motivated when you have been limited by injury. Know your body and only do as much as you can without causing further harm.

Cutting Calories or Moving your butt?

Well it looks like a toss up when it comes to which is easier or harder: cutting calories or moving your buns. Personally I have a harder time with the calories. I do love to eat. My family loves to eat. I mean we enjoy food and everything about it: cooking, the smells, textures, tastes and most of all the great fellowship that happens around a well spread table. So, . . .I find it much easier to eat and work it off later.

Neither is easy, though, to be sure. You should see me sucking wind as I climb these hills. I actually wouldn't choose one over the other in your overall plan to stay healthy though. Making sure you cut calories and that the ones that make the cut are the good kind is just as important and increasing your heart rate and sculpting your temple.

There is research that shows if you were to just choose one, cutting calories would ultimately make you lose weight faster. But here's what I found. Exercise is healthier in the long run. If you just cut calories and lose weight, you are still left with saggy remnants of a bigger you. Your metabolism will slow down and your energy stores will be depleted. I think being thin without the ability to run, lift, or enjoy the active part of your life is missing the point entirely.

If you do, however, incorporate daily exercise into your routine and marry it to a healthy diet you will have more energy, feel better, look better and live longer (of course there are things beyond the far reaches of exercise and diet that dictate this last one, but they help anyway).

So I posed the question to not only see what you all would say, but to also deal with each others' weaknesses.

If you answered that cutting calories is harder, tell us on the facebook page what you do to motivate yourself for a great workout. If you answered that moving your buns was harder, help those of us who have a hard time saying no to our cravings.

Thanks for continuing this journey with me and remember to participate.

What would you do for a Klondike bar . . .

Or a double portion of chocolate fudge brownies slathered in Reese's cup ice cream in my case?

It being "that" time of the month for me, I stood gazing at the bowl of goodies and thought, "Is it worth it?" I suddenly heard a loud shout coming from deep inside me with a resounding "yeah baby." After my indulgence, I went outside and mowed the lawn. Since I was already sweaty and stinky I decided to get in some hill work.

Well, 10 hills later (jog down and sprint up) as I jogged home panting and dripping, I thought, "I'd do it all over again!"

That's the key . . . don't worry about eating those "good" things every once in a while. Just be willing to make the full commitment to it and have no regrets!

What's for lunch?

A good thatching of the yard, pulling some weeds, mowing the overgrowth and topping it all off with a succulent, homemade blackbean burger. That's what I had for lunch today. This illustrates exactly what I'm trying to get you all to incorporate into your everyday lives. Eating should walk hand-in-hand with physical activity.

What you consume is fuel for your body. The only time a car needs fuel is if you drive it. It doesn't need much energy to just sit in the driveway. Same goes for us.

For breakfast--half the Tae Bo tape (ran out of time but every bit counts), a whey protein smoothie and a couple rounds of tennis (well sort of) with the boys while we watched Savannah's lessons.

That's what it's all about. You eat, you move. You move, you eat. And eventually your body will become more efficient at burning calories to energize your day.

Food tip: Try to think of substitutes for your favorite snack or meal. For instance, I love burgers. So, I tried the blackbean burger--homemade of course. It was actually quite filling and not bad at all. And with only

Other substitutes I've made:

• Doritos with hotsauce to Baked version with hotsauce. Pretty close and eventually it will fill the craving.
• Regular Lays potato chips to 1/2 calorie version (made with Olestra of which only one none side affect so far--more poopie and I like the poopie).
• Chocolate candy bar or fudge brownie craving to Skinny Cow chocolate ice cream sandwich (only 140 calories)
• White bread to Sara Lee Delightful whole wheat (only 45 calories per slice).
• Water with all meals. I only splurge my calories on beverages maybe a couple times a month. This may seem extreme to most, but I rather eat my calories. Plain tea or black coffee have little to no calories (like 2). If you want something other than water, get 1/2 calorie juices that are 100 % juice and PLEASE NO NUTRASWEET (aspartame is the devil in sheep's clothing!)
• Margarine or butter to vegetable spread.
• Ground beef to ground turkey.

Post some of your substitutes to the fan page.

Running on the beach--this is the life

Took the family to the beach this Good Friday and while I sat there basking in the sun and watching the kiddos, it hit me. I could be running up and down the beach to get in some good moving.

The uneven, soft sand works great for core building while you run too. I know, many of you don't want to run while you're at the beach, and I certainly didn't have it in my mind to do so. But, how can I miss an opportunity? I ran up the beach one way and noticed all the cool shells as I passed making a mental note to grab them on the way back.

Sure enough, I ran pausing ever so often to collect those small treasures for my little girl.

I only ran for about 10 minutes, but the smell of the water, cool breeze off the ocean along with the sun caressing my skin--absolutely exhilarating and well worth it.

Get it in whenever and wherever until you don't even give it a second thought.

Vacation time

I know we all need a break from everything once in a while. When we go on vacation we often view this as a time to take a break on our exercise as well. Don't view it as a regimen though, or a chore. It should be a part of you--a part of what you want to do after a while.

I'm not asking you to continue with your stringent routine, but I am asking that you still get something in while you are away.

We just got back from a weekend in Orlando and I was able to maintain my weight while eating all hours of the day and night. I also ate volcano chocolate cake and ice cream (bad idea since I'm lactose intolerant, *ugh*) but it was goooood! I had turkey legs and churros, great asian cuisine and Giordano's deep dish pizza.

I love to eat and I use my vacation time as a time to catch up on the best the area has to offer. What I did maintain, though, were two staples in my exercise and diet life. I did not drink any of my calories. I drank water morning, noon and night and so escaped the trickery of pop, juice, and other calorie infested beverages. I used every last calorie to eat. And it was goooood! I think I said that already.

I also woke up (not early mind you--I was on vacation) and ran around the neighborhood. I never measured the distance but I put in about 20 minutes of running each round. Couple that with the day of walking through the parks and I was able to keep it all together.

What I have been trying to build you all up to is making movement a part of your every day. Since starting this venture with you all, it doesn't even feel right on days I "bum it." So look at moving as an essential, something that happens every day even when those days fall on vacation days. I mean even on vacation you have to breathe, right? Might as well breathe a little harder and a little faster.

Happy spring breaks and remember everything in moderation.

Let off some steam

O.k. so how many of us find ourselves angry sometimes? Not mad enough to really let go, but just fed up enough that you wanted, no, needed to let off a little bit of steam?

Know what? A little mean is good enough to power you through a nice brisk walk, a short run or a few sets on the weight bench. Your heartbeat is already racing so before you reach your boiling point, cut the offender some slack and head for the hills or drop and give me 20. Your heart will start to speed up but your mind will begin to calm down. This works much the same as counting to ten real slow but this time it's ten minutes.
As I rounded the corner tonight with my blonde braids loose and blowing behind me, a family of deer fled the scene. I probably looked more like a fierce lion on the attack than a harmless surburban dweller running laps. I found out tonight as I circled my dark block alone that I was only mad enough for four rounds. After that I was content. So this was a four-round anger management session. A bonus was that my cool-down jog shed a few slices of pepperoni pizza I had for dinner.

So, the next time you find yourself in a funk or just needing to take the edge off, don't resort to words or irrational behavior. Use your lungs instead to breathe in and out some night air and your energy to burn a few calories leaking over the edge of your plate.

Lunges, the real butt buster

We've talked a lot about running and cardio for our legs and bottom. We've even added in some squats. The next move I'd like for you to start incorporating is the lunge.

Lunges are great, but you have to make sure you're doing them correctly to maximize the results. With lunges (as with any exercise, but especially with lunges) you need to warm-up the muscles.

I hate that I negated emphasizing the warm-up phase before we began. I took it for granted, but warming-up is essential before you continue because the lunge will tax your legs and bottom especially if you haven't been doing them. For a quick warm-up, run in place or jog for about 2-5 minutes. Then stretch your arms and legs thoroughly. I'll give you a more extensive routine next week when we hit the track.

The Correct Way to Lunge

1. Start the lunge standing tall with your feet together.
2. Lift your right knee until your thigh is parallel to the floor (a high knee).
3. Step out with the right leg and down keeping your right knee bent.
4. Get close to the ground with your left knee but be very careful not to bang it or touch it to the ground. In this position your back should be straight with your chest lifted. Make sure you are not bending your torso over your knee.
5. Push off the ground with your left foot using the ball of the foot (area right under the toes) with as much force as you can. Make the movement a quick one.
6. Pull the left knee into the parallel position. At the point you should be back standing tall.
7. Repeat the above steps.

Complete a full set of 12-20 reps and 2-3 sets depending on your current exercise level. It is also important to cool down after these as well. Stretch the muscles in your legs when you have finished the workout.

For a more advanced exercise put dumbbells in each hand while lunging. Start with 2-5 pounds for beginners.

Break up that workout

Can't find a full 30-60 minute interval everyday to workout? Break up your workouts, then. Doing shorter workouts throughout the day will still add up to some serious calorie burn.

I usually wake up and after getting the kids started on brushing their teeth and breakfast, I grab a couple stairs or run my block a couple times. While we wait for the bus, I run back and forth on the sidewalk and get another 10 minutes in (there's a slight hill which is a bonus).

If I don't feel like running, I do side-step squats or high-knee jumping jacks in place. It's o.k., just wave to the cars as they pass by staring at you. After seeing you do this a couple weeks in a row you'll become a fixture and may even inspire them to get moving.

At about 11 am, I sprawl out for some crunches and push-ups. If a good song comes on while I'm working I take a 3-5 minute dance break! Love it!

If you work an 8-hour day, most times you get several breaks throughout the day. Use these times to get in some moving.

For your morning break, take a brisk walk outside or around the office if it's cold. Walk the stairs for 10-15 minutes for a good burn in the middle of the day. For your afternoon break, skip the coffee and grab a water bottle for another round of walking.

When you get home, defrost your dinner and do some microwave squats while you wait.

After dinner, go for a walk with your hubby or your kids.

The idea is to find a way to fit it into your routine. It is often times very challenging to carve out an half-hour or full hour of your day to devote to working out. On the days you can't, remember the 10 minutes here and there add up by the end of the day.

If you are doing 5-10 minutes, make it as intense as you can physically handle. The more intense the more calorie burn and muscle building you do. Each time you raise your heart rate, you continue burning calories even after you have stopped. If you can push it hard for a good 5-10 minutes you gain the advantage of burning calories for another couple minutes while you're resting.

Welcome to the gun show-Part II

O.k., it's been over two weeks since we started on our arms. That should be plenty of time for you to have gotten a good start on your push-ups. Don't stop what you're doing, but now it's time to move on.

Here's the next step: pull-ups and curls.

Pull-Ups

It will be hard if you don't have access to a gym or any equipment to get pull-ups in, but if you are at the playground with your kids, using the monkey bars is a great substitute. No doubt about it, pull-ups are hard because you are using all of your body weight and gravity as resistance. When you first begin, you probably won't be able to do a full one. Start out half way up if you need to and then use some help to complete the rest of it (like a bench or chair or step). Try to use as little help as possible. Pull-ups work the shoulders, triceps, and back muscles.

Set a goal. Try 5 to begin with. Do as many as you can without assistance and then complete the rest with some assistance. Eventually you will see gains where you will do two, then three and so on. Always remember to complete your full set. If you set a goal to do 5, then do 5.

Curls

It's also time to start adding some light weights. This is where the curls come it. Get a set of barbells (one for each hand). Use about 2-5 pounds if you've never lifted before. Standing with your feet shoulder width apart, place your arms so that your elbows rest just inside your sides. Lift the barbells one at a time without rocking to complete the motion. The only thing moving on this exercise is your forearm to pull up the weight. Use your body as an anchor so that the movement is correct and complete. These work the biceps. If done correctly you will start to see results in a couple weeks.

That's it. Complete 3 sets of 10 resting between the sets for about 1-2 minutes (in the future we'll start what is called a superset where there is no rest so enjoy the breather while you can).

Who said gardening was for the elderly?

O.k., today I can hardly move in any direction without feeling my body crying for mercy. I have been gingerly lowering myself to the seating position and standing up. My core hurts, my sides hurt, the tiny muscles under my underarms ache. I crossed my legs today in church and my quads screamed in protest. The back of neck hurts, shoot my fingertips hurt as I type this post.

Say it with me, "No pain, no gain!"

So what is the source of all this glorious agony? You can guess from the title, gardening (I also danced for 2 hours straight the night before at my sons' elementary school function). Yesterday we started on our new venture and it was truly a way to get moving. I've seen my elders spend hours in their gardens and people profess that it is a stress reliever. Well, either I'm doing it wrong or the only reason you don't stress is cause you can't. My stress muscles hurt!

We have bought a new construction since moving to the NC and the ground around our house is packed red clay. The yard, as a bonus, is filled with rocks hidden beneath the surface. As I attempted to plunge the shovel spade into the ground to make the first dent for the plot, my shovel stopped dead on top of one of these incognito rocks. I had to keep stabbing the earth around it to make any progress. After getting the first piece of ground to budge, it didn't prove any easier.

I managed to remove the top layer of grass from a plot about 9ft x 6ft. I recruited my four children to remove rocks and rake the turned over dirt as I shoveled and took belligerent stabs at the relentless clay. Ok now I know why farm families have so many children. My children, though, would starve or produce a very pitiful crop if our livelihood depended on it. They haphazardly raked the dirt and picked up rocks ever-so-often. Savannah found she preferred throwing the dirt at her brothers and jumping on the lid of the garbage can to the actual task at hand.

Matt joined me after he returned from Wal-Mart with our ten bags of top soil and Miracle Gro. Never hurts to add a miracle when I'm involved with plants. My thumb has been brown and withered in the past. Anyway after watching my children for about an hour I released them, even though I remember very vividly that this entire venture started when Max brought home the apple seeds from his lunch in November. He and the other kids have been bugging me non-stop about having a garden since the first leaves sprouted in our windowsill jar of dirt. Please--they ran to the front yard and happliy passed the shovel, rake and dream of that garden on to me and their father without so much as a glance backward.

Matt attacked the rest of the shoveling and I raked and squatted to remove rocks for another 3 and half hours. The process was bearable as I reminded myself of the great workout I had to be getting. It was only slightly marred as Matt started crazy talk about moving to a farm. He attempted to be somewhat serious until we finally finished digging and raking the ground. As the sun retreated and the natural light became more of a haze Matt was ready to quit, but I made us persevere until the last of the new soil was laid and raked and smoothed into place. He gave up talks of a farm after that.

That's my motto, though. Chug along until what you've set out to do is done (that and my attention span is short--had we stopped I would've lost the garden battle before it began).

So, today's get moving and food advice: buy a house with a crappy yard and: burn some calories and build some muscle, save some bucks in the fruit and vegetable aisles and eat healthier as you enjoy your future bounty.

Working out with your kids makes it fun

Looking at one of the fan photos posted to Get Moving Mom's fan page reminded me about the best way to get in a workout and be a great parent. Work out with your kids.

This is possible at every age. When they are infants, I mean you plop 'em, then you prop 'em in a front carrier and get moving. The added weight gives you a better workout and the babies love it. They get to be close to mom and go for the ride of their lives.

When they get older, they are able to get on the floor and crunch or climb on your back while you struggle through push-ups. Yesterday on our jog back from the bus stop, my five-year old daughter said, "Mommy. Carry me on your back while you run." At first, I looked at her cross-eyed then I thought about the great bun burner and went for it. I made it huffing and puffing to our mail box and slowly squatted to allow her to dismount and proceeded to fall out on the ground from exhaustion. It was fabulous. As soon as I hit the concrete my butt tightened like it used to after running the 400 meter dash. YES!

When you feel it like that, you know it's on. Yeah, you'll feel it in the morning, but it's not a good workout unless you break those muscles down. If you finish a workout and you can breathe normal, your legs and arms are barely misted and not shaking threatening to buckle under you--well in my opinion you haven't even had a workout.

My other favorite thing to do is to meet my kids outside and try to beat them at whatever it is they are doing. Everything they do usually involves running, jumping, spinning and throwing. The older they get the harder this gets, but that's the idea. Your kids will have a great time as they go from getting whipped by you to the day when they are whooping you. I used to leave them all in my dust and toy with their emotions as they grappled for me during our games. Now my thirteen-year old can beat me running and he is loving it--me, not so much. I'm not looking forward to the day I can no longer wrestle him to the ground and pin him easily. He is though and that makes it fun!

Welcome to the gun show!

O.k. y'all, I'm back. It's time to start our quest toward sculpted arms. I know everyone is waiting to get those nice chiseled triceps and biceps. So let's get moving.

Before we get into the exercises, let's talk about the difference in strength vs. appearance. There are different exercises and different ways to do these exercises in order to accomplish strength and appearance. I want to start off with making you strong first. Doing resistance training using your own body weight is a great way to start for beginners and not-so beginners as well. It's great muscle maintenance and something you can do anywhere-no gym required.

For appearance there are two types: toned and chiseled. For toning, you will need to do more reps with lighter weight (or less resistance). For the chiseled look, you will need less reps with more weight (more resistance).

Strength First

Before you all take off to the gym to tackle weights though let's talk about gaining strength first. There are many of you out there that can't even do a real push-up right now and that is the goal before you ever touch a set of weights. When you do graduate to weights, my recommendation will be for you to use free weights instead of machines. You'll gain way more strength and you'll see results faster. The range of motion on free weights can be greater also, working the full range of muscles in your arm (for tone). You can also isolate the same muscles to concentrate on appearance. I'll elaborate on this later.

Start at the beginning

So where do you start? Push-ups if you haven't already guessed. For my short stint at the army academy we never touched the weights and I have to admit I was the strongest I'd ever been at that time. (I've been stronger since :-)

When you start push-ups, I'd like for you to set a goal: 10, 20, 30, 50 in one set. Keep a journal. Document where you start. Maybe you can't do a full push-up, then start with your knees on the ground behind you, feet crossed at the ankles. Extend your body until your upper body is as parallel to the floor as it can be in this position.  Keeping your arms wide is a good way to start, but a more advanced level will have your hands in closer--preferably right under the shoulder blades. (Closer still if you're feeling strong.)

If even knee asistance feels impossible for you, try the wall version of the push up. Stand about a foot or two from the wall. Put your hands on the wall shoulder width apart and bend your elbows leaning into the wall and pushing back out til your arms are straight. Don't get discouraged you'll soon be on the floor with the rest of us.

For those of you who can do a real push-up (without knee assistance), do it. Even if you can only start with one, do it. Make sure your bottom isn't sagging or perched upward giving you the hilltop affect. Keep your body as straight as possible. Take it slow, down and up - pause, then again down and up. Complete three sets a day if possible. Make sure you give yourself ample amount of time between sets (doing the ab workout between sets is a good way to guage; give yourself about 10 minutes between the sets). You may need more time, but make sure you are able to complete the same amount in each set if possible. Add one more to each set if you can. This will help you get stronger and increase your reps in each set over time.

After each set stretch your arms good, this helps your muscles retain what you just did better. That's it the first step to those killer arms. I suggest you at least reach 20 push-ups in one set before moving on to weights.

Next we'll add the pull up and curls!

Moving to a weekly blog

I've given you all something everyday to get you moving> It was important for me to start off with a post every day to get you in the habit. Now the idea is to keep it going. Adding in the short burst runs, snow shoveling and walking, the fab ab workout, the microwave squats and the food advice to your everyday routine will give you a base to work with.

I will plan to give a full post once a week with daily reminders and tips on the Get Moving Mom Fan page.

Please don't fall off between our weekly posts and interact with the group on the fan page. Communication is also one of the best workout tools you have. Keeping daily food logs, partnering up for accountability and talking your way through it are all just as important as the movements themselves.

Peace and less grease til next week!

Microwave Squats

These are just what they sound like. They are short bursts of squats, or any movement for that matter set to the timer on your microwave. The next time you nuke something, use that time to zap some calories as well.

Whenever I put in my tea or popcorn, or if I'm just warming something in the microwave, I run down the timer with some basic moves. I visit the microwave at least four to five times a day so this takes advantage of otherwise unused time.

For a full one to seven minutes I go full blast with it.

Example workout one:

• Put in tea and set timer for 2:00 minutes.
• High knee jumping jacks for the first minute
• Deep squats for the last minute. (kick right leg out to the side and bend both knees. Sit into the squat like sitting in a chair with arms flexed in like a curl.
• Return to standing position and repeat movement with left leg leading.

Example workout two:

• Put in a popcorn bag and press timer (these range from 2:30 to 3:00 minutes)
• Run high knees for the first minute
• Deep squats for the second minute
• Bring it home with scissor kicks (crossing one leg in front of the other and then switching feet quickly. Arms should cross out in front of you).

Example workout three:

• Put in meat to defrost (about 6-7 minutes for one pound of meat)
• Run high knees for 1 minute
• Frog jump for 30 seconds
• Run high knees for 1 minute
• Military run for 30 seconds (hands on floor, alternate legs pulling knees to chest, keep butt low)
• Run high knees for 1 minute
• Deep squats for 1 minute
• Run (jog) for the last couple minutes

Bringing in the Groceries, No help please!

O.k. this everyday activity can work the arms and provide you with some cardio depending on which version you choose.

I like to bring in the groceries on my own. Since my focus is on my arms most of the time, I always grab as many bags as I can carry at one time in each hand and do bicep curls all the way from the van to the kitchen.

It may look crazy to the untrained eye, but it is a really good arm workout.

One time in Wal-Mart--my favorite alone outing, I decided to forego the shopping cart because I only needed a few items. Well like any Wal-Mart trip I ended up with way more than I intended. By the time I made it to the Dairy aisle I had my hands full of four individual natural fruit and veggie drinks, a bag of grapes, string cheese, two cans of refried beans and, "oh yeah, some baked chips.

Shifting the items in order to open the refrigerator door with my index finger, I grabbed two gallons of milk hanging them from my index and fingers on either hand.

I know crazy right? I started trucking to the checkout and caught some stares as I passed by a few shoppers. I ran to the counter and dumped my stuff on the belt. The clerk smirked and when she was done bagging them asked, "Will you be needing any help out tonight?"

"Uh, didn't you just see how gracefully I handled them--without bags," I thought, but  "No thanks," is what I offered.

"Well, go ahead He-woman," she offered rolling her eyes and still smirking as I grabbed my bags. Don't know if she meant it as a compliment, (probably didn't) but I certainly took it that way. 

The trip to the car was a breeze compared to my sprint through the aisles. And yep, I solicited even more stares as I curled my bags all the way to the van.

To sneak in some cardio, substitute the fewer trips carrying more bags with more trips carrying fewer bags. Tell your husband and kids to remain seated and complete the task alone. Make sure to jog from the van to the house, from the house back to the van.

I know it may sound crazy, but you get it in whenever you can when you are as busy as I am. And who cares if those people stare. Soon they'll be staring for totally different reasons. Can you say toner arms and legs?

The Buddy System

Find a partner to help you reach your goals. It's easier to stay on task if you have someone pushing you.

When I was in school, I could always hear my mother's voice in my head, "I know what you're capable of, I accept nothing less."

These words are true in all aspects. And if you can find a person that is truly sold on what you're trying to accomplish, they will be your best push toward that goal.

Make sure she or he is also someone that will tell you like it is. We don't need cosigners when we are on a quest to lose a few--helping you to make excuses to fall off course.

You need to find someone that will tell it to you straight and there will be no hard feelings in the morning. That's how we find ourselves way off base. We think, "how in the world did this creep up on me--my chins, my stomach, my thighs, my butt. It all starts with enablers we've set around us. A real friend should shake us up every now and again and say, "Naw, girl, those pants are getting too tight. I'll see you on the track."

These are the partners that will push you sometimes until it hurts. They'll be your hardest coach and your best cheerleader when it's all said and done.

So, go find you a good friend or two. If you can't physically meet, get an online buddy. We all talk everyday through Facebook. Send updates to check in on one another's progress. Set your goals together. They may be different goals, but the results are the same--to look and feel better. I'm not proposing outlandish dreams like looking like your favorite supermodel. Let's start with what you have and work with that.

Buddy up and remember to have fun with it.

Dance Like David

How many of you watched the Grammy's this week? Well this year I did. When one of my favorite groups performed, I was up dancing like nobody was watching. Actually there were five people watching, but who cares. I love the dance beat of The Black Eyed Peas and for the full 5-7 minute show they put on I was dancing - hard. My thirteen year old was like, "huh?" My 10-year old completely ignored me, and my 6 and 4 year old joined in. It was great and I was sweating and breathing hard. I mean I was keeping up with the background dancers and flinging my hair like Beyonce'.

Taking another concept from my book and bringing it to you here, just dance.

I can remember in the old days when we partied from Thursday night until my 8am class on Monday. I remember dancing into the place, out dancing anyone that would challenge and dancing all the way home. Boy, I was skinny then. Think about it. You spent hours moving constantly without any thoughts about how many calories you were working off. It didn't matter and it was fun.

Time to dance again. I don't frequent the clubs anymore, but I still have the God-given talent to out dance the best of them. I find dancing with my children the most rewarding, cause they are uninhibited and think anything I do is cool (right now anyway).

During the day, I put on some dance music (always upbeat) and ever so often, I push my chair back and jam to a favorite tune. My husband and I work from home now and let's just say he's not been prone to sudden bursts of rhythm. He'll look over the computer monitor at me while I'm shaking my groove thang and say, "Uh, this is a work environment."

To that I say, "Yeah, and I'm working it!"

So, take time to enjoy your favorite song. Go wild with it. Finish the song out panting and parched. Remember it's all for fun!

Simple addition adds up to simple subtraction

When do you get a smaller number by adding 1? When you are adding one more rep, one more set, one more minute.

That is today's everyday to take away. Just add one more.

If you are circling the block and you plan to do four suck it up and add one more round.

If you're walking 20 blocks, keep walking to the next stop sign.

If you do 10 reps in a set, add one more. Feeling strong? Add a whole set more.

If you're doing 20 minutes on the treadmill add another minute.

Over a very short -time you'll notice more weight loss, better endurance and stronger muscles. You'll also strengthen your mind. A stronger, leaner, healthier you all starts with how you think about you.

Mind over fatter!

Another Great Snow Workout

Today I decided to take a walk in our weird winter wonderland. It was actually amazing to see southerners navigating the snow covered streets. I was a little leary of walking too close to the street because of this, so I convinced my husband to walk in the uneven snow banks and the neglected sidewalks of our neighborhood.

It proved to be yet another way to get some moving in. The fact that we had no idea when the snow might crack beneath us and that we were walking working to keep our regular balanced gait, really worked our core and legs. I also concentrated on sucking in my gut and breathing in my nose out of my mouth. Twisting slightly at the waist is something else you can add as well as wrist weights (this will incorporate the arms).

Walking on this uneven ground with unpredictable dips and bumps work very similar to the new $100 Reebok and Sketcher shape up shoes. So save some money and use what just happened to fall out of the sky.

For runners, mimicking Rocky Balboa in Rocky IV is also a great workout. Put on your snow boots and go running in the snow. Lift your knees with each stride and feel the burn baby!

Let it snow!

I almost forgot about the exercise that is near and dear to my heart. Since we've moved to the south I thought I'd never be able to take part in it again. But, lo and behold it has snowed in Raleigh, North Carolina today. Enough to pile up and make driving near impossible on the neglected streets in our neighborhood.

I couldn't believe how much I had missed shoveling snow, but it truly was my saving grace in the winter when we were holed up in the house most of the time in Iowa.

Like Christmas morning, I donned my pitiful collection of winter weather gear (we didn't even bring gloves with us) and started project snow removal. When we left Iowa we graciously gave all our winter tools away to neighbors laughing as we did so. Well, the joke was on me as I performed the advanced level of this everyday workout. I made my way slowly through the snow covering the sidewalk leading to our front door with none other than a regular metal garden shovel. It actually worked great for the heavy ice and slush under the top layer, but you can imagine the type of inefficiencies this caused. After 30 minutes, I had only managed to clear our walk. All for the sake of getting a great set of arms, right?

Well, even I'm not that crazy, so I finally walked over to borrow a neighbors snow shovel. I was flying through the chore now with ease. After my 30 minutes of the advanced, the next 30 minutes was a breeze.

Here's how to make the most of it.

1. First, change how you think about shoveling snow. Instead of a horrible task that has to get done, think about the fabulous workout you're getting doing something that had to be done anyway.
2. Make sure you're using your legs and arms, NOT YOUR BACK!
3. Squat, scoop, lift and throw.

By the time you've finished your sidewalk, stoop and driveway, you've put in about an hour or more of a good leg, butt and arm workout.

So the next time it snows, beat your kids outside to "play."

Suck in that gut soldier!

O.k. there are a couple problem areas for women after having kids. I have to vote for the tummy as the number one.

There are of course crunches, knee raises and all sorts of fancy moves on the bosu ball. But there is something you can do all the time.


Stand up straight, walk tall and suck in your gut.

That's right, correct posture while you walk or sit and the simple act of sucking in your stomach will show results. The key is not to just suck in air and try to touch your belly button to your backbone. You want to concentrate on contracting the stomach muscles and hardening them into the six pack you're dreaming of. Believe me, you have them, they've always been there--never leaving you but truly forsaking you for all others: childbirth, chips, cake, cookies, bread, pasta . . .

Anyway, if you can train those muscles by making them fall in line and whipping them into shape, they will eventually turn from their wicked ways and begin to break through the surface.

Of course, I'm going to recommend you do stomach exercises too, but I wanted to give you something you can do even when you're doing nothing.

Now, for my fab ab workout (courtesy of the United States Military Academy). We will only do crunches, no full sit-ups. Crunches are better for your back and past a certain angle in the sit-up is waisted motion. The goal is to work up to 30 reps of each move continuously (that's 150 crunches before it's all done):

The key is to do a complete set of these without stopping. If you can't at first do as many as you can before stopping. Stomach muscles are stubborn and a long hard workout is better than multiple short sets. You want to feel the stomach muscles burning threatening to rip you in half. It's the only way to cut the stubborn fat suffocating your abs of steel.

1. Start with your legs on the floor and your knees bent. Place your hands behind your head or across your chest (for beginners to lessen the chances of neck injuries). Complete 30 reps pulling your shoulder blades off the floor and driving your lower back into the floor. Remember to breathe out of your mouth on the way up expelling all of your air and breathing in through your nose on the way down.


2. Pull your knees in the air still bent crossing your ankles and complete another 30 reps.


3. Keep your knees in the same position, now touch your opposite elbow to your opposite knee each time you come up for another 30 reps.


4. Uncross your ankles and begin to pull in your knee on one leg to your chest while extending one out straight to simulate the bicycle motion in air. 30 reps.


5. Straighten your legs up to form an L-shape with your body and complete another 30 reps.

Stretch your stomach muscles right after you've completed the set. This is important and helps the muscles to retain what you've just done to them.

After a long rest, turn to lie on your side and complete 30 reps crunching on both your sides (total of 60 in all). This will work the obliques and begin to help sculpt your abdomen area.

It is o.k. to work the stomach muscles everyday, but at least take the weekends off.

Enjoy and remember to let me know how it goes.

"Run, Mom, Run!"

This journey we are beginning to get you moving mommy is going to take some change of thought and action. The nuggets I plan to give you are meant to become a part of you. Eventually without thought you will find yourself moving any way and every way you can.

One day my mom started to laugh at me as we made our way back to my van from a Wal-mart shopping spree. As was my custom, I had parked the van a good piece away from the door. I had just beat her to the van when she yelled out, "O.k. Edith Bunker." I didn't know what she meant at first cause if anyone has seen the show "All in the Family" you'd know that being called Edith Bunker isn't exactly a compliment.

When she made it to the van I asked her what she meant and she said, "You run everywhere. You've never noticed that? Don't you remember how Edith Bunker ran everywhere?"

I started to laugh and it made me start to take note. I truly do run everywhere. I run from the house to the van, from the van to the house. I run from the van to the store and I run from the store to the van. I run to the door of the schools and to the door of restaurants. If I forget something I run back into the house. I run up the stairs at home, I run down the stairs at home. Stairs - this is an incline which adds a boost to this activity. Running with high knees really burns the butt (we'll talk more about the real stairmaster in another post). But you get the point that I run everywhere.

Without thought, I break out into a sprint, light jog or trot depending on how the knees are doing that day. But, I very seldom walk any short distances.

I was a sprinter in high school and college. I've tried to run miles like people my age do, but I just don't have the endurance to get a long enough run in to make a difference. These short bursts act just like they did for me in track practice those years ago. It's like doing a 10x100's workout over the course of the day.

The time you spend walking all of these places, you could make into a short burst of calorie burning activity that adds up by the end of the day.

Today, for instance, I ran to my sons' busstop with my little yappy dog in tow. I always send them out ahead of me while I put on my shoes so that I have to run to catch up to them.

While waiting for the bus I gave my dog to one of my sons and began to run back and forth down the street where we were standing. By the time the bus came I had gotten in a quick 10-minute workout for the morning.

So, my peeps, the lesson today is don't walk, somber, lob or shuffle to your destination.

"Run mom run!"

Who I am not

Let me begin this blog with an excerpt from my book "Get Moving" modified a bit.

. . .a little introduction as to who I am and who I am not (a necessary disclaimer). I am not a nutritionist, personal trainer or professional bodybuilder by any stretch of the imagination (although I did take first in two benchpress contests--another story, another day). What I am are many things, some or all of which you can relate with. I am a full-time wife, mom, house manager, chauffeur, chef, clothes washer, dishwasher, fan, coach, mentor and teacher. My side job (or what some call "my profession") is web designer/technical writer. Because you may identify with one or more of these labels, this [blog] is for you.

More importantly, you will find a camaraderie in this blog because you are a mom seeking to regain some semblance of the you pre-baby.

I don't plan to preach to you or give you impossible routines and diets. I plan to share with you exactly what works for me--doing something, anything everyday.

So many times I'm asked, "Are those all four of your children?" After an affirmative, they usually follow with, "You look great. How do you do it?" These compliments have been the inspiration behind it all.

We'll look at easy, everyday things you can do to improve the way you look and feel. I'll help you gain strength even if you've never had any before.

When you're tired of hearing, "you look good for just having a baby," and are ready to just hear, "you look good," then you're ready to Get Moving Mom.

As we journey together, don't forget to tell me how it's going.