#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!

Better Yourself. Better Your Lifestyle.

HEY GUYS LISTEN UP!  Today’s blog is REALLY going to help you out.  Trying to tone up or build that muscle?  Below are some tips that are simple to follow =).

REMEMBER: The KEY is being consistent!  It’s easy to lose muscle mass with only one week of inactivity!  Get to know your body and stay in tune with your fitness and health.  No one knows you better than yourself!

SUPPLEMENTS & NUTRITION

Water – essential in every aspect.  Your body canNOT function properly without being hydrated.  Drink plenty BEFORE your workout, only drinking enough DURING the workout to prohibit the presence of thirst.  Drinking too much water during your activities can cause severe and painful cramps.  Consume more water after the workout.

Protein – your main muscle builder!  Make sure you are getting enough: to maintain your current shape, to replace the amount used during your workout, and to continue building more muscle.  It is extremely crucial that you monitor your protein intake so as to ensure you are getting a healthy amount!

Calcium – your muscles will NOT grow without this!  A good supply of calcium is vital to muscle construction and long-term bone density.  If you are not receiving an adequate amount, your body WILL take it from another source!!

B Vitamins – great source of energy!  Don’t forget to take your B12!

Sports Drinks – use sparingly and with care.  Although riddled with beneficial factors and keep us moving from time to time, this drink is often abused.  Drinks such as Gatorade have the power to dehydrate you.  They are designed to RE-hydrate, so pick a time to have one and stick to it: during your workout or shortly afterward.  Just remember to get your fill of water, also!

Coffee – really??  Believe it or not, coffee might be the trick to your success if you normally have difficulty executing a great workout.  Besides the digestive benefits, it is a wonderful supply of energy to get you moving.  It also slightly increases your metabolism.  HOWEVER, this is a dehydrating drink, as well, so have a cup of water with your mocha!

ACTIVITY

Warm-up – Running is a good way to loosen your muscles before training; it engages your core, back, arms, and legs.  Also, it creates a nice balance between cardio and the remainder of your workout. 

Muscle building (Strength)– heavier weights, fewer sets.  As you are lifting, go slowly to increase tension and resistance.  Concentrate on using your muscle fully and keeping it properly positioned.  The slower your pace, the more you strain (workout) that body part.

Toning (Strength)– just as important as muscle building!  Since mass and shape are two separate concepts, we have to make sure we implement both aspects into our workout.  Focus on endurance; lighter weights with more reps.  TIP: Go as quickly as you can for as long as you can, UNTIL YOU ARE FORCED TO STOP.  Take a FIVE SECOND break and start again.  The initial set will be the longest.  The important thing is the feeling of strain you are acquiring.  It is okay (and typical) to do fewer repetitions for each additional set.  Do about 4 or 5 sets.  THE OBJECTIVE here is to burn out your muscles to the max, allowing your muscles to continue their own workout throughout the day.

Cardio – a fancy word for keeping your heart rate above normal.  It takes a minimum of 30 minutes of cardio to begin to burn fat, so plan accordingly.  Cardio is the ONLY way you burn fat during a workout.  It is important to alternate between cardio and strength exercises on a daily basis.

6-Day Muscle Building Cycle – When you exercise, you cause your muscles to break down, a necessary step in the process.  It takes about THREE days for your body to rebuild the lost muscle, and an ADDITIONAL THREE days for you to finish gaining the excess muscle.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Pick 6 areas of your body.  Concentrate on one of these each day, creating a 6-day rotation.

Run daily.  Accompany this with a daily core workout and push-ups.  It may be helpful to break up your run with periodic points at which you pause and do some push-ups or sit-ups before resuming.

Alternate between strength and cardio exercises.  On days specified for strength training, alternate between muscle building and toning.

Drink water!  You lose a LOT of it while working out.  It also acts as a regulator and flushes out abnormal levels of chemicals in your body.

Stretch properly.  Make sure you do not rush or improperly execute this process, which is crucial to your future comfort and health.  Without stretching, you are more likely to pull, stretch, or damage muscles and tendons.  You are also more likely to experience discomfort in the form of Charlie Horses, caused by the accumulation of lactic acid.

Chocolate milk.  Yup, I said it =)  Chocolate milk might just be the secret to a post-workout remedy.  It provides an EXCELLENT source of protein, calcium, etc.  Nesquik provides a higher amount of the pair, and Silk’s almond milk has an extra dose of calcium, as well.  Go ahead, tend to your sweet tooth after a valiant attack on those calories!

Beer.  Thought the chocolate milk was an interesting item to add on this list?  If you are a marathon runner, beer is proven to have restorative properties that promote cell recovery.  Best news you heard all day?  The perfect excuse to hit happy hour to celebrate your completed 10K!

THE BEST ADVICE I CAN GIVE YOU IS “EVERYTHING IN MODERATION.”  Even the healthiest of things can cause damage when abused or overused.  Taking care of yourself is a full-time job, but it gets easier when you get to know your body personally and learn what it means to maintain your body composition.  This is the most basic and easily attainable information; all you need to determine future nutrition and workout plans.

Have more questions?  Always feel free to ask!