#10in10 - 10 Day Health Challenge!

#10in10

10 miles of cardio in 10 days!!

EVERY DAY YOU MUST ENGAGE IN:

3 strength exercises, at least one focused on your core area.

Cardio training: no more than 20% of quota on the bicycle.

Reduced fat intake and increased raw food consumption.

CARDIO TRAINING:

5 mi each of the first 5 days

10 mi each of the last 5 days

****Break up your cardio by working out at various times of the day.  Begin and end your day with a quick run, and hit a bike ride and the elliptical briefly in the middle of the day.

Results ONLY come from hard work!

DIETARY RULES:

*Do NOT eat after 8pm

*Drink 64-128 oz of water daily.  The more, the better: try to drink a gallon (128oz).  This is especially beneficial when combined with freshly squeezed lemon juice.

*Eat as many RAW foods as possible (THINK: If you were a caveman, what would you eat?)

*Limit your use of CAFFEINE (yes, I said it!)… this causes your body to retain water (dehydrating you) and makes it more difficult to detox.  If you must consume it, try to keep it to AM hours so as not to disturb your sleep, or substitute it with green tea, which helps lower your cholesterol.

TIP: Start your day with drinking a tall glass of water (preferably with freshly squeezed lemon juice) and a morning run (1-2 miles) before breakfast.  This will immediately jump-start your metabolism and you will burn off 20% more calories.  Your first meal of the day should be your biggest, so eat in balance before setting your digestive track right with a little yoga.  Adding 1oz of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar to your water everyday will help with regular detoxification and overall body composition.

TIP: Increase blood flow, metabolism and flexibility by doing yoga!  Download a yoga app and focus on relaxing your way through 15 to 25 min of this deep stretching every day.

TIP: Plan your meals carefully.  Breakfast should be your largest of the day, followed by a smaller lunch and even smaller dinner.  Portion your servings and don’t be afraid to stop eating before your plate is clean.  Our eyes are often bigger than our stomach and the common result is overstuffing (remember that excess calories are units of unused energy and turn to fat cells for long-term storage).  Eat some complex carbs in the AM so you will have enough energy for your workout, but stay away from starches (breads and pastas, also) for the rest of the day.  Fruits and vegetables keeps the digestive track flowing regularly and help detox the body of processed substances.

TIP: Want a quicker detox?  Buy ONE container of 100% Cranberry Juice (NOT the juice cocktail version!) and drink ALL of this throughout the period of a day, along with your normal amount of water.  This will flush your digestive track and rid your body of any slow-moving meats and starches.  Doing this at the start of the challenge will help you feel lighter and enable a more-efficient workout.

TIP: Download MY FITNESS PAL.  As you track your meals and exercise throughout the day, pay more attention to your nutritional values and needs than to your calories consumed.  Look at the pie chart and compare your ratio of nutrient consumption (fats, carbs & proteins) to the suggested ratio.  What are you eating too much of and what do you need to consume more of?

THE GOAL?

Let’s get right for the season!  We all know how important it is to FEEL as good as you LOOK!!  It’s time to get healthy after a winter of hibernation!  In 10 carefully managed days and consistent activity, you will snap back into shape and begin to form the habits of maintaining it.

****NO SIZE NO DIET: If you get in touch with YOUR health and body, treat it how YOU should individually, you will look INCREDIBLE how you should, naturally!  Let's be as beautiful as God designed us to be!

LOWER CHOLESTEROL BY RAISING AWARENESS!!

Cholesterol is word that we don’t typically give a second thought.  There are so many indicators we pay attention to when it comes to health, yet because we cannot physically see the fat content movintg within our veins, its regulation is not high on our priority list.  Yes, we all have the insight that high cholesterol leads to heart disease and other complications, yet we continue to consume foods that boost it to the sky.  However, if “you are what you eat,” and you want to be more than a sloppy pile of blob compounds, you must monitor and maintain your cholesterol.

HDL, or high-density lipoprotein, is considered the “good” cholesterol, while you are recommended to reduce your intake of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or the “bad” cholesterol.  HDL is basically made up of unsaturated fats.  Examples of these are olive oil and omega-3 fatty acids found in fish.  To keep your LDL low and your HDL high, eat heart-healthy foods that include as little trans- and saturated fats as possible.  Work out at least 30 minutes a day for as many days a week as possible.

To bring your cholesterol back down to healthy levels, it is crucial to make lifestyle changes as well as changes to your diet.  Some recommendations include that you: lose weight, quit smoking, drink alcohol in moderation (1 drink a day), exercise on most days of the week, change what you eat.  Some foods that you should target besides olive oil and omega-3 rich products include foods with added sterols and stanols (orange juice, yogurts, etc.), oatmeal and high-fiber foods, nuts such as almonds and walnuts, and green tea.  Also it is very important that you stock up on fruits and vegetables, select whole grains, eliminate trans fats and saturated fats, and limit the amount of straight cholesterol you consume.

Your body naturally makes cholesterol, but you also get it from eating eggs, meat, and dairy products.  When your body has a surplus of cholesterol, plaque begins to build up and causes blocked arteries, thus restricting blood and oxygen flow.  High cholesterol can lead to kidney stones, stroke, heart attacks, and cause other health complications that can be debilitating.  Yet something this serious is less likely to worry you because it doesn’t cause pain and you need a test to determine your current HDL and LDL levels.  This makes it less likely to seek treatment and care for this aspect of your health.  If you are feeling particularly groggy or slow-moving, you might want to get your cholesterol checked.

SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER:  When you have an excess of sugars, calories or alcohol, your body converts these things into triglycerides, which add to your “bad” cholesterol levels.  This is a type of fat carried in your blood and stored in fat cells all over your body.  People with high levels of triglycerides tend to be overweight, inactive, smokers, or heavy drinkers.  High levels of this (150 and up) are causal of metabolic syndrome, which correlates to heart disease and diabetes. 

OVERALL, it is important to regulate your cholesterol and get tested if you are over 20.  If your total cholesterol falls under 200, you are considered to be in the “healthy” range.  Levels of cholesterol over 200 have an increased risk of developing complications.  Because cholesterol comes from two sources, the body and food, it is vital that you get to know where your individual HDL and LDL come from so that you may adapt your diet and lifestyle to remain in good health.  The best plan of attack is a customized one ;)

Success Is A State Of Mind

Let me ask you a question:  What will it take for you to be successful?  In other words, what do you need to accomplish in order for you to consider yourself having reached success?  Perhaps a more relevant question is what is your definition of success?  The former dictates the latter.  What kinds of standards do you set for yourself?

All of these things inevitably affect how you will succeed, and what this success will entail.  If you only do the minimum to get by, you might accept the smallest triumph as a victory.  On the other hand, if you are a perfectionist, you might sense failure when you don’t cross your T at a square perpendicular angle.

The trick to this, as is with anything, is to find the balance.  Where is your ideal medium?  This will be dependent upon your lifestyle, routines, and natural habits.  How high can you place your goals and standards before they cease being beneficial and begin becoming inefficient, tedious, and inhabiting?

Where does success come from?

Success itself is comprised of opportunity, ambition, and potential.  Opportunity is related to what is happening, being offered, or who is present in the society.  Ambition is the hunger or drive to be successful and potential is defined as how capable one is to achieve their goal.

There are some characteristics that can be traced throughout history as being present commonly among successful people.  These Include:

An Unwavering Passion.  Pursue that which you love.  Be passionate for what you do, only then will you try your hardest to reach it.  If you pursue that which you have no passion for, you risk abandoning it for something more appealing.  Commit and be dedicated.

Open Mindedness.  Have the imagination of a child.  Even the most intelligent realize that they will be forever learning.  Be flexible, at times you might start from one direction and end up in another.   Make the most of wherever you are and be open to new ideas!  The result might be better than you imagined.

Hunger.  Starvation for excellence.  Desire to be an expert, to master the craft, and to make it bend to your will.  Never lose sight of what you are striving toward.  This trait in particular helps with “hopeless” circumstances.  Sprint, don’t run.  Most people walk and even wait motionless.  Sprint.

Progression.  A forward-looking approach.  Learn from the past and move on.  Take the wisdom and experience and leave the rest.  Use it to better your future approaches.  This is the only way you will grow to your fullest potential.  Optimism is king, and the means to become one.

Creativity.  A constant flow of ideas.  Amazing problem-solving and innovation.  Love for the art of your specialty.  Never stop creating.  This is the life-line to your brand.  The most successful people always have a constant flow of new products or services to keep them relevant and profitable.  How can you be innovative?  Better yet, how can you be innovative with your previous innovations?  Offer your audience complete originality.

GOOD LUCK AND NEVER GIVE UP!

The Life We Live...

I don’t believe in sizes, and I don’t believe in diets!  Anyone that has worked a day with me is aware that I eat constantly.  I have an immense love for food, but even more for taking care of myself.  If it’s not the amount of food you eat, it’s what you eat, and how frequently.  Every individual body is constructed uniquely and thus should be cared for in the same fashion.  Here is a diagram of a balance chart in the shape of a triangle. 

Create your own balance chart by starting with 2 centerpoints: caloric intake and caloric outtake.  Take in consideration the things you need to be consuming, staying away from, and genetic deficiencies you need to be aware of.  Build your scale to your custom diet and achieve the things that keep you balanced: peace, happiness, and relaxation!

The entertainment industry is especially competitive when it comes to setting the standard for looking good.  But the same industry has room for all people, not just beanpole models!  Unless you are a runway model, there is no professional need to be smaller than a size 4.  Realistically, if you take care of yourself the way you should, and know your particular body type, you’ll look amazing no matter who you are or what your shape is.

If you get to know your physical body entirely, you won’t have a problem sticking to the foods you should and feeling amazing every day!  There are so many ways this can be done in a healthy manner that fits into your lifestyle, and doesn’t include a chanced diet.  Everyone has individual nutritional genes and needs.  Some things that would be beneficial to learn about yourself are:

·         Any genetic or current health risks/concerns such as high cholesterol, diabetes, anemia, thyroid disease, etc. (make sure you counter these with specific super foods or medication).

·         How it feels when you have particular nutritional deficiencies (low blood sugar, low iron, etc.)

·         Your blood type (this greatly affects how your body takes nutrients from certain foods)

·         How you feel when you eat specific foods (meets, vegetables, etc.)

·         How you feel when you are ACTUALLY hungry (dehydration often shows the same symptoms, know how this feels too!)

Another tip is to replace harmful or damaging foods and drinks that may be countering your efforts to be healthy.  Drinking tea instead of coffee is one example.  A cup of java a day can boost your metabolism and give you energy, but the caffeine dehydrates you and an accompanied glass of water or two is recommended.  If you haven’t been sleeping much and hitting the extra java, you could be confusing dehydration for fatigue.  Make sure you get extra water in on days you over exert yourself or don’t get enough sleep.  Another example is eating a sweet fruit instead of a candy bar, or replacing pop (soda) with juice.

Have you ever noticed some people look amazing on vegan diets, while others look horrible?  This is because NOT EVERYONE should stick to greens and vegetables.  Although amazingly beneficial, you should read more about eating based on your blood type and determine the right diet for your own body.  Some people should implement more red meat into their diet, while others can cut it out with positive health effects.

Here are some general tips that can make anyone look thinner and feel better all of the time:

·         Drink more water throughout the day.  The more hydrated, the higher your metabolism.

·         Eat less sodium.  Dehydration causes water retention and bloating of the skin.  If you can’t resist a salty snack, flush it down with two tall glasses of water.

·         Eliminate pop (soda) from your diet, and especially drinks containing high fructose corn syrup.  This literally makes your body move slower.

·         Minimize the amount of coffee and excess sugar you consume.  Replace them with tea and fruit.