The Pursuit of Healthiness

The Pursuit of Healthiness
Your Guide to Getting Healthy

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Workout #3: Bellydance

Dear Pursuers,
I know you read the title at least twice and probably thought Is she crazy? How is that even a workout? But trust me it is! It's not hard and it doesn't have a very high impact but it's fun! If you did a hard workout yesterday and you are still a little sore, but you still want to work out today, then this is the workout for you. The moves range from easy to very challenging. I'm sure you probably think that it really doesn't do anything for you but it actually tones many spots. Moves like snake arms and facial gestures are good for toning arms. Moves like the ripple and camel tone the core. The Turkish bunk and the Egyptian step are good for thighs and hips. The Ethnic shimmy tones everything! All the moves make you feel sexy and feminine. Look up some classes nearby or look up some videoes on Youtube! There is a show on FitTv called Shimmy, and that might be fun to try too!

Friday, April 15, 2011

Tip #3: Add in "Workouts"

Dear Pursuers,
I hate doing long workouts. They're boring, tedious, and painful.That's usually why I try to do workouts that supply the best calorie burn for the shortest time. The other thing that I do is to incorporate excercises into my daily life. Instead of just sitting on the couch, break out the Wii and play a little Just Dance or The Michael Jackson Experience! It'll keep you on your feet and it's completely addictive, as you want to beat your score constantly. It doesn't feel like you're burning calories, but you are! No Wii? No problem! On comercials, find an excuse to go upstairs. On your way down, step on the stair below you, press down on it and lift your back leg, then place both feet on the top step and repeat on the other foot. Keep doing this to every single step. It actually, really tones your glutes and its easy and fast. Don't feel like doing that? Try a mini workout set to your shows.

Ex. (My favorite show is Doctor Who so I set it to that)
Every time someone says Doctor, do jump squats
Every time someone screams, do sit ups
Every time a companion solves a problem, do push ups
Every time the Doctor and companion start runnng, jog in place
Every time the Doctor goes on a tangent completely unrelated to everything the episode is about, jump rope.

Another idea is that you watch something that makes you want to get up and move. Like I always try to learn the steps of the dances in Dancing with the Stars. Also, singing burns some calories and works the abs. Try and sing along with Glee!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Workout #2: Cycling

Dear Pursuers,
The greatest way to lose body fat is by cardio. It gets your heart rate up and makes you burn calories. Cycling is a great form of cardio! It burns 350 to 400 calories an hour on an average effort. One of the greatest things about cycling? You can make this number even bigger by adding intervals! You can actually burn more calories using intervals rather than biking at maximum speed for an hour. Here's one that I do pretty often. It will leave you sweating a lot, but it gives me so much energy and torches so much body fat!

-Start with a five minute warm up using a medium speed.
-In the first minute of your workout, go to a slightly faster speed (one that pushes you slightly out of your comfort zone, but still allows you to keep a steady pace)
-In the second minute, push your self to a fast pace (one that pushes you completely out of your comfort zone. It should be hard to keep going on a steady pace)
-In the third minute, slow back down to a medium pace. This should help you catch your breath.
-In the fourth and fifth minute, quickly climb off of the bike and do a series of toning exercises (ex. push-ups, sit-ups, squats, lunges, tricep dips)
-Repeat this set as many times as you like to complete the workout. I usually do it for a half-hour , which is five more times.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Tip #2: Don't Inhale!

Dear Pursuers,
Everyone has cravings and its perfectly fine to give in to them sometimes! Yes, I am in fact giving you a free pass on this, but before you grab that brownie, think about a few things first:

1. Are you hungry or are you craving?
Ask yourself this the second you think about eating indulgently. If you find that you are craving something, ask yourself again if you really, really need to eat it to be satified.

2. If you answered no to either question, eat something satifying.
Keep a snack on hand that will satify you when you find that you are hungry, rather than craving. If you find that you are craving something, eat the satifying snack, too. If you are already satified, you will crave less and will be happy with a few bites of a brownie rather than the whole thing.

Here's an extra little trick I read about in Health magazine: Think about yourself giving into the craving. Focus on the food, the taste and textures. You can fool your brain into thinking that you already gave into the craving before you actually do. This will lessen the craving so you won't actually have to give into the real craving!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Workout #1: Kickboxing

Morning Pursuers!
I promised you workouts so here is your first one! Kickboxing is a great cardio workout. At a weight of 150 lbs, you can torch up to 650 calories in an hour (expect more if you weigh more, expect less if you weigh less.) It will be a challenge to keep moving constantly, so at first you may want to try it with a dvd or in a class. Working with a trainer may keep you motivated to keep going. Also, stay hydrated! You'll be sweating a lot, so you better have water by your side to refuel.
Here's a list of moves to try:
-Punches (cross, uppercut, jab) *keep your feet moving as you punch and really rotate your waist to tone it*
-Kicks (knee ups, front kicks, back kicks, side kicks) change sides
-Front kick, go into back lunge, change sides
-Back kick, go into foward lunge, change sides
-Side kick, go into curtsey lunge, change sides
-Cross punch alternating arms, go into front kick, repeat on opposite leg
-Uppercut alternating arms, go into back kick, repeat on opposite leg
-Jabs alternating arms, go into knee ups, repeat on opposite leg
-Alternate cross/uppercut/jab, go into side kick, repeat on opposite leg
-Start in a squat, lift one knee up off the ground while keeping other leg bent in squat, straighten bent leg while kicking out with the leg off the ground, return to one leg squat and bring kicked out leg back to bent position while still keeping it off ground, repeat on opposite leg
-Jump squats

Monday, April 11, 2011

Tip #1: Write Down What You Eat

Dear Pursuers,
Your bet for success is to pay attention to everything you eat! Keep a food journal! What is your goal weight? Once you have that in your head, calculate the number of calories you can eat in a day. Multiply your goal weight by 1000. Keep in mind though that you have to eat over 1200 calories, otherwise your body will think you are starving it and hold on to any excess weight. Keep your calorie limit at the top of every page of your journal as a constant reminder. Every time you eat something, write it down, along with the number of calories consumed by eating it. After a week, look over what you wrote. If you find that you are going over the limit everyday, look over the foods you listed and circle the "danger foods." Danger foods are any foods providing no nutritional value and overloaded on calories. Try and cut these foods out little by little. Also, don't track fruits or vegetables. If they are covered in sauce, track the sauce, not the fruits and veggies. Some fruits and veggies have a higher calorie count than others but they have such a high nutritional value that you can't obsess over they're calories. Good luck and start writing!

Welcome!

Dear Pursuers,
Welcome to The Pursuit of Healthiness! This blog was created to help anyone and everyone who wants to lose a little weight and gain better health. I'm going to post tips and workouts to help you succeed. Last year, I went from 230 lbs down to 150 lbs. I'm still trying to drop another 20. If you want to do it with me, comment or message me. I'm here to give you motivation and a means for success and I wanted to let you know that you are not alone in this. Any tips or workouts posted on here are the same ones that I'm praticing in my daily life. So lets get moving!