Archive for June, 2011
Is MSG Really That Dangerous?
MSG, monosodium glutamate, is the salt of an amino acid that is commonly utilised as a flavor enhancer.
Glutamate by itself is even used as a flavor enhancer. Originating out of Japan, MSG has been employed for years without significantly scrutiny. When MSG was initial discovered, it was as an extract of seaweed.
Is MSG something we should prevent at all costs?
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Diet plan Blog
The Amazing Adventures of Philippa
Philippa, from Hampshire England, is a longtime Dietgirl reader. She’s just finished the Up & Running 5K Course and inspired my socks off with the wonderful modifications she produced over the eight weeks, inside and out.
I asked if she’d write about her running experience for you guys and she kindly obliged!
…
Running was for fit men and women. Cool, confident folks with bouncy ponytails who never broke a sweat. Not people who as soon as ate a entire takeout pizza, plus side dish, plus dessert for dinner, nor individuals who got breathless walking up stairs. Running was for other individuals.
So how did I end up in the park on my day off, wearing trainers and a sports watch!?
A year ago I’d been in significantly the identical position. I’d downloaded the Couch to 5K programme and gave it a go… for a entire 10 days. I turned purple, virtually hacked up a lung and proved all the points I thought I knew about running, which includes the truth that I couldn’t do it. I went back to the couch and the calorie counting. This had worked for the last couple of years, taking me from 220lb to 162lb. There was in no way significantly physical exercise involved I didn’t stick with anything for long.
So why would running be diverse this year? I was still a bit overweight, I still hated public exercise and I had already established that I just couldn’t do it. I wrote to Shauna about Up & Running and she assured me that becoming a bit overweight and unfit wasn’t a problem. My negative little brain insisted, C’mon, she does not mean you, you’re a whole new level of couch potato! But Shauna gave me a firm nudge, saying that if I genuinely wanted to do it, it was achievable.
I really actually wanted to. I signed up for Up & Running and for the next eight weeks I walked, skipped and stretched. I did arm swings, side-stepped and skipped some a lot more.
And I began to run. Slowly.
It was so slow that I could most likely have walked faster! But the initial time I ran I laughed out loud, proper there in the park. I was like a kid in the playground going down a slide, that feeling that makes you want to shout, Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, look at what I can do! That initial 10 seconds of running was amazing. That was what got me out there for the next session – I wanted more of that feeling.
Occasionally the training messed with my head. I had to push Little Miss Grumpy out the door when she didn’t want to go. I’d doubt my abilities as I read the training strategy, “They want me to do what?“. If I had a ‘bad’ workout I’d be convinced the magic was gone and every thing was about to come crashing down. Years of negativity about my abilities weren’t going to disappear in a few weeks. But it wasn’t magic that had got me running – that wasn’t going to disappear either! It was just an off-day and with the support and advice from Coach Julia and the other ladies, I got back out there and kept going.
Along the way I’ve learned so a lot more than just how to run. The individual who began the Course didn’t know what she was capable of. She was scared of so several issues, with failure becoming best of the list. She hated what she looked like and she positive as hell didn’t want to draw attention to herself either.
But now? Searching in the mirror I can still see the stretch marks and a belly roll and thighs, but when I run it does not matter. My thighs aren’t monsters any far more, they’re strong and powerful. And they work! I’ve never treated my body really kindly, damaging it and filling it with substandard fuel, but it is mine and regardless of what I’ve put it via it still works. Whenever I run it does what I ask it to do, rewarding me for treating it much more kindly.
The Course finished with us completing a 5K race. Every training session had covered a maximum distance of 4km, so I wondered if I had it in me. As I began my stopwatch I was terrified. The old feelings of self-doubt were there until I ran past a small old lady. She asked me how several miles I was running.
“Three miles!” I said.
And just like that the fear was gone. She saw a chick in running clothes, running. She saw a runner. So of course a runner would be running a few miles on a lovely sunny morning! God bless that lady.
I finished my run in 37 minutes 8 seconds feeling great. Not anything remarkable, just very good. I came residence and it all felt like a bit of an anti-climax.
But then the tears came. Wonderful tears, as an additional Up and Runner called it, “talking with water”. Thirty years of fearing failure poured out out with the realisation I’d accomplished some thing I’d by no means thought feasible.
I’m planning my running future now. I did a 5k neighborhood parkrun this past weekend, then in mid June I’m going to Scotland to run with some of the other Up & Running ladies. I’ll meet Shauna and thank her in person for being a massive component of my journey (and to apologise for making use of that cheesy word!).
I still have some weight to lose but it’s not the only objective now. I want to run well and I know that becoming a small lighter will aid, but I want to accomplish items with this body of mine. I want to run 5km Quickly! I want to do the Up & Running 10K course in September and I want to run a marathon some day!
I do not know how but or what else will occur along the way, but I do know my body can do incredible items now. And I won’t let fear quit me any far more.
Which Exercise is Supreme?
I get this question typically. It is typically followed by “…for getting rid of my belly/thighs/butt/tricep fat”… etc.
Regardless of what you are searching to accomplish, that question in its existing form is unanswerable.
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Diet Blog
New Years Goals Check-in: May
I’m performing monthly updates on my New Year Objectives.
I’m a wee bit stunned that I’ve made it to a fifth New Years Goals Check-In. Component of me thought it would have all gone to pot by now! But I guess keeping the goals little and sane has ensured they are do-able.
Might highlights
- The greatest highlight was, derr, the Fitbloggin conference. For both the men and women I met and the feeling of renewed enthuasism for living that I left with. Holy cornballs, Batman. But after a year or two in the wildnerness, the stinky depression and the utter disconnection from my body, I lastly felt like I was all joined up once more. I felt like I was in fact there. Cool.
- I accidentally started salsa lessons! My pal Claire and I went to attempt a new Zumba class this week and they had a special provide – stay for the salsa class afterwards for only £1. We’s planned to dash off to kickboxing afterwards but I’ve usually wanted to try salsa so I put down that extra pound. BARGAIN!
- The class went on and on for 90 minutes and with the hectic hour of Zumba beforehand I was utterly knackered but it was so a lot bloody enjoyable. I was so busy attempting to follow the steps that the time just zapped by. 4 days later my hip and stomach muscles are still singing!
- I’m undoubtedly back into those size 18 jeans. Despite the fact that I bought new jeans from a different shop the other day and they had been a 20. So the labels are meaningless as we have recently bitched about, but the takeaway here is that a pair of jeans that couldn’t be wrestled over my stomach in January now fit excellent.
- I went to the USA for a week and lost a pound. Last time I went to the USA for a week I gained ten pounds. Progress!
- The food diary, meal planning, consistent exercising and pause-to-believe-just before-eating are still going nicely.
June is going to be about blowing the dust and rust off my bike, dabbling with kettlebells and testing the limits of the food processor with vast amounts of instant frozen yogurt. What are you finding up to this month?
How to Eat More Greek Yogurt in Your Healthy Diet
Greek yogurt is perhaps 1 of the greatest foods to use for losing weight and eating wholesome.
Not only does it supply fantastic nutrition and advantageous probiotics, but it’s also a really versatile ingredient. There are some fantastic techniques to begin eating a lot more Greek yogurt everyday that you may have never considered.
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Diet plan Blog
Is Eating Fruit Making You Fat?
If you’ve read the most popular diet books for the past decade, then the answer is a resounding YES!
But is there scientific rationale for the demonization of something we’ve been told to eat every day?
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Diet Blog
Fitbloggin #1: Beagles and Walmarts
Wednesday
My Fitbloggin adventure got off to a slightly grumpy start off when my connecting flight was cancelled, my luggage was lost and the US Customs Sniffer Beagle rightfully busted me for attempting to smuggle a tasty salad into the country.
I’d bought the salad at Edinburgh Airport to eat on the plane but by no means got round to it, so I thought I’d scarf it down by the baggage carousel prior to I officially entered the country at passport control. But noooooo, Sniffer Beagle had to go be genuinely good at his job and quit me destroying American agriculture!
Note: sample Sniffer Beagle only.
I did not take photo of actual Sniffer Beagle, that would be illegal.
I eventually got to Baltimore by train, amused that it took 7 hours to get all the way from Edinburgh to Newark but 10 hours to get from Newark to Baltimore. Hehe.
Thursday
Believe I’ll require to bust out the bullet points now…
- I awoke at dawn but luckily there was a CVS and Whole Foods nearby so I could wander around jetlaggedly marvelling at American Goods. You can keep your Statues of Liberty and Yellowstone National Parks, give me your nicely-stocked drugstores and supermarkets. Swoon! Discover of the day: Justins Peanut Butter Cups.
- I met Carla! My beloved podcasting partner in crime. I opened the hotel room door and there she stood with her Pantene hair and stunning smile, searching exactly like her Twitter avatar. But then she began moving and talking! It took me a great fifteen minutes to get utilised to her having 3 dimensions. Right after that awkwardness passed we yammered for hours as if we’d known each and every other for the cliched all our lives!
- I met Denise! We go way back to the early 00s when we carved blog posts onto rocks with mammoth tusks. It was so excellent lastly meet her. She generously offered to drive me to the shops to purchase some workout clothes – I had sufficient typical clothes in my carry-on for a couple of days but no gear for the fitness activities coming up on Friday. Denise rules!
- On the way to the vehicle park I held open the door for somebody with fabulous hair and it turned out to be Carrie! Another lovely person met from my Meet Or Bust list!
- The Walmart Mini-Roadtrip was ace. It was peeing down with rain as we zoomed around Baltimore. The sky was black and lightningy, which virtually produced the Rapture billboards appear credible. BUT NOT Quite.
- I scored some wonderful workout clothes at Walmart, saw the most enormous bottle of milk ever, and learned from the checkout lady that Governer Schwarzenegger had been a cheating git (I’d been out of the news loop awhile). Thank you again Denise for a great afternoon!
- Afterwards I hid in my room for awhile to get psyched for The Room Full Of Stranger-Friends. I know I wasn’t alone with the entire sneaking-back-to-your-room-to-recharge thing. It’s weird you can be so delirious with anticipation to meet people but utterly shitscared at the identical time!
- But once in the fray it was all okay. The conference kicked off with a Name Tag Social, in which we decorated our name tags and mingled. It was very good enjoyable – becoming a conference for men and women who blog about fitness, you could usually uncover some thing to talk about.
- Every was so friendly and actual with none of the “And who are you?” dismissive glancing at your name tag that I’ve experienced at some events. It felt like we had been all on equal footing… a truly cosy, welcoming vibe.
- At 1 point I confess… I had a wee Fat Girl Freakout. I stated to Carla, “People maintain looking at my STOMACH! I know I’ve stacked on the weight but dude, I feel I need a t-shirt that says NOT PREGNANT, JUST FAT”. Carla with her usual patient wryness replied, “Are you positive they’re not just trying to read your name tag?“
- By 8pm I had reached that deliciously delirious stage of jetlag where you really like the world to bits. Good timing as I was lucky to wind up having a dinner with these really groovy folks – Carla, Charlie, Gail, Julie Julie, Kerri, Laurie, Lisa, Sean, Steve and TJ (please forgive me if I missed any person, it was a big table!). Tasty burgers and hilarious times ahoy!
- Back to the room… roomie Jennette had arrived! And she had brought an autographed Chocolate & Vicodin book and a jar of my favourite Trader Joe’s Almond Butter. What a legend
There will be another Fitbloggin installment or two but I promise to maintain it lean!