Did you miss any of these so far?
- Part 1 – Our son’s dream come true
- Part 2 – Meeting Ronaldinho & Marta – soccer superstars!
- Part 3 – My fitness evaluation and a 10-minute workout
- Part 4 – Do you take supplements as an “insurance policy”? NOTE: While part 1 & Part 2 don’t relate directly to Health & Nutrition (maybe a little, but not like my typical posts), both this one and part 4 are more on track!Want to learn how to lose 10 pounds instantly? Sounds hokey, but it works. Keep reading…
Part of our visit to the Nutrilite facility included personal fitness evaluations.I was pretty normal, except for when I got a bit miffed about my body fat percentage: 28%! Somehow they know this just from the fat on my arm (and looking at height & weight) – now if they had measured other areas, then it would make sense, but my arm? This was still in the normal range, but on the high end, dang it (normal is 22%-28%). (Have I mentioned that I’ve been far too sporadic this summer with my running, and that I need to get back onto the low-carb foods quick-like? Read below to find out how to follow my progress, unexciting as it is.) Kal was at 7%, the little snot (amazing for someone who eats non-stop), which is in the normal range for athletes…yeah, so I never said I was an athlete.The picture above is an arm strength test, I can’t remember what I got on that, but I’m pretty sure it was pathetic. I haven’t been consistent with weight training lately, either!
So this brings me to another part of the morning at Nutrilite that was very interesting to me, being a blogger and all…and someone who sits a LOT.
Sean Foy is a fitness expert who showed us a way to get a quick 10 minute workout in each day. Or twice a day, or even better, this can get you through until later when you get your real workout in. For some, though, this may be all they do, and it’s better than nothing. “Motion effects Emotion”, he told us.
- 4 minutes of interval training: 30 seconds of high-energy cardio, 30 seconds of slow movement. He confirmed what I’ve heard, that this type of workout burns 9x more fat than an hour of moderate exercise. (Which is why when I run, I always add in some sprints these days…when I’m sure no one is looking. Although, I’m sure it looks like a normal pace for the average runner.) He had us run in place as fast as we could for 30 seconds, then walk in place for 30 seconds.
- 3 minutes of resistance: some type of work with weights or exercises, such as squats. He also showed us a good move we can do with our arms using the front of our chair, sort of like push-ups using the chair behind you.
- 2 minutes focusing on core strength: first sit at the end of your chair and “lose 10# instantly” by having good posture. (Don’t believe it? Look in the mirror when you try it!) Contract the muscles in your abdomen for as long as you can and release, do this over and over.
- 1 minute of stretching and deep breathing. (Sean, if you read this and I don’t have something right, please comment below and correct me!)
Motivation!
This evaluation was another good bit of incentive to get me eating better again, mainly to lose a few pounds, and to get back to exercising more regularly. Although I firmly believe what Mark Sisson says, that losing weight is much more about what you eat than how much you exercise. So I’m avoiding sweets, the biggest problem, and also pasta and breads (even sprouted/soaked/sourdough/whole grains, just for a little while) and focusing on healthy fats and protein, along with lots of veggies from our garden, of course!
I’ll keep updating everyone via Twitter now and then to let you know how it’s going!
Dieting With No Carb or LOW CARB Foods – my own experience with lowering carbohydrates along with a list of great low carb food options.
Have some good low-carb snacks or meals to share? We all need new ones!
FOX News & Low Carb Diets
More posts on DIETING
Julie, I do think resistance training is good, I don’t know much about the slow method specifically, but I love how when you build muscle, you will burn calories even when sleeping. 🙂 I don’t go to the gym, though, I use my home machine, which I wrote about here: https://kellythekitchenkop.com/2010/01/2-new-years-day-questions112010.html
Have a great day!
Kelly
I just now read this post about the benefits of just 10 minutes of good exercise. It’s terrific. Thank you, thank you. Also, have you ever heard about the super-slow method of resistance training? It’s intriguing to me, apparently it’s heavy weights done slowly and with not many repetitions. It’s gym based exercise with machines and supervision because of the weight and the machines. I have heard that you don’t break a sweat but people see great results. Food for thought (weighty issues, of course, lol)
Vin, good idea, I’ll start standing up at my computer once in a while instead!
Tara, lettuce wraps sound yummy right now!! You asked for more low-carb ideas: check out the links above. 🙂
Bill, I’ll bet that makes a HUGE difference for your health. I definitely need to implement at least the 10 minute work-out or something like that when I sit for a long time. (Which is daily, working on the blog.)
Ben, thanks for reading!
Kelly
I work at night for 12 hours. During my time at work, I do push-ups and some ab work. There is no way I can sit behind the computer for 12 hrs a night and not do some physical activity.
We bought our current scale when I was 8 months pregnant with our 1st child. I remember standing on it and making a joke how with the baby I had 33% body fat. I was NOT laughing, however, when after having my daughter I was still 32% body fat. My favorite low carb snacks are lettuce wraps (either chix, mayo, tomato, cheese or BLT), a couple macadamia nuts, spoonful of almond butter, 1/2 C ricotta cheese w/ a splash of almond extract is really yummy too. I’d love to hear any other ideas out there!! After all, you can only eat so many hard boiled eggs…
Thanks Kelly, I missed that! I think it was too late at night here in Hawaii when I read your post. A little too much caffeine too late at night kept me up. Also, thanks for your column, I really enjoy reading it. Lots of good info here!
OK, maybe it doesn’t meet the technical definition of a roll (whatever that may be), but no matter how lean you are, your midsection will bunch up when you sit and have more of a bulge, especially if you don’t sit up straight. Like Ann Marie, I was just suggesting that you not be so hard on yourself! There’s nothing wrong with pursuing an ideal body composition, but it’s not worth stressing over.
Maybe you should just stop sitting! 🙂 It’s not good for you anyway!
You only have 7% body fat, no way do you have rolls when you sit! LOL
We all have rolls when we sit!!
Ben, it was in #3 above (about losing 10#). 🙂
Ann Marie, I agree that many try to be too skinny, but the reason I know I need to lose a few is because lately when I sit, my rolls are annoying me, simple as that! (I can’t believe I’m telling you guys that.)
Vin, yep, you are a snot too!
Thanks for sharing, everyone, I loooooove to read your comments.
What a motivator! I sit ALL day long since all my work focuses on the computer, but at least I use a yoga ball instead of chair. It forces me to have good posture. I really need to hit the gym too.
I love interval training! My neighbors probably think I’m crazy for doing sprints in front of the house, but I don’t care! Interval training improves both anaerobic and aerobic fitness and can cause you to burn calories for up to 48 hours (the EPOC effect). It’s much better than the “chronic cardio” that people are wearing down their bodies with … and not losing any weight!
I’m a big fan of short resistance workouts too. I like to focus on just a few functional exercises like squats, deadlifts, chin ups, etc. and keep it brief. For people who are limited by time or energy, it’s amazing how good of a strength workout you can get in just 10 or 20 minutes.
I guess I’m a snot too. 🙂 My body fat is 7% and the reason why I’m mentioning it is because I owe this to limiting myself to real food. I’ve been an athlete and a fitness nut all of my life, so exercise has never been an issue. Cutting out processed foods, especially sugar and refined carbs, as well as extra carbs in general has made all the difference!
Great post!
Kel, the 28% is fine. You don’t need to lose ANY weight. You look perfect!
Sally Fallon and Julia Ross were speaking at the last conference about how dangerous it is to be too thin. They said as women age, it’s normal to put on extra pounds. They said it’s the body’s way of cushioning us. And they said if you’re too thin as you age, you look wrinkly and saggy. So it’s better to be on the higher end of “normal”, or even the lower end of fat.
The reason I say this is that I remember them saying that the charts out there are wrong — that the modern charts want you to be underweight.
I’ve stopped worrying completely about losing weight. Now all I care about is getting in shape. So I’m going to the gym more. I want to be in good shape for my next pregnancy. But I don’t care about what I weigh.
Also – I love the 10 minute workout idea. I’m was just thinking I wanted to start doing that.
Oh, and I’ve read that if you do want to lose weight, weight training works better than any cardio.
But I don’t think you need to lose a pound!
Kelly,
I’ve got a mention of your blog in my post today. 🙂
Happy Friday,
Genny
If you are stuck in an office all day and have time to do the push ups on the chair, another good tip is to lower your office chair as low as it can go–then sit down and stand back up for 10 repetitions. This is a great way to do some squats in the office and to play with your office chair, too! 🙂
Oh and be sure to put the chair against your cubicle wall or desk to ensure it does not roll away from you before you sit down–no need to fall onto the floor.
>>>(Which is why when I run, I always add in some sprints these days
Hey, what happened to losing 10 pounds instantly? Did I miss something? 🙂