The Strength

Monday, October 3, 2011

Motivation Monday

Meet my friend Lori Carpenter!

"As Oprah likes to say, 'have you had an aha moment?' Well I did but it was more like a WHOA-HO! moment!

I knew over the years I had gained some weight. Then I had kids and put on more weight, but not much, right? W-R-O-N-G!! Not only had I gained weight, but between the cookies, cakes, comfort food, bread-oh lordy the delicious bread (I can smell it now) I had become obese. GULP-OBESE-ME???

Yes, me, shoving my face full of all the foods that, honestly, now I do not even like. But not only the type of food, but the portions of that food as well, was WAY more than I needed.

So as I saw pictures of my triple chins, surpassed the double shin and went straight to the triple. Kinda like skipping the double dog dare and going straight to the triple dog dare, I got my big ol' jiggly butt to Weight Watchers and joined Tammy's kickboxing class.

It started to work, I lost 25 lbs within a year-yeah! But wait...I am still in the overweight category! ;(

Started working out a little more, got a little more weight off but, ahh, I could not get down where I wanted to be. Then I took a weight loss class that Tammy was teaching, and that was awesome! I learned that it is so vital to watch what you put in your body as well as how much you put in your body. I lost 12 pounds in 10 weeks! Now I'm rockin it!

Until I forget all that I learned of what Tammy taught me and I slip back into old habits.

Finally, I said, enough is enough! I so not want to be obese, I do not want high blood pressure, I do not want diabetes. So I pull out all of my 'Tammy recipes', work out with a great blend of cardio and weight training. Now I am seeing the difference.

The most important thing I did though, was cut out all processed foods. Not only do I look better, but holy cow, I feel amazing!

I am proud to say this coming May I am turning 40 and have never felt so good. Even better than when I was in my teens. So here is my weight in numbers so you can all see if YOU decide to make a change, YOU CAN DO IT!! Five years ago i started out at 184 pounds and today I am 131 pounds. That is 53 pounds gone to never come back! You can do if I can do it! Do it for YOU because you are worth it!
Lori Carpenter

Friday, September 30, 2011

What I'm Lovin'

I HATE these shoes! And I LOVE the fact that a court of law has dis-proved their claims!! As a personal trainer and a group exercise instructor I have seen several women wear these shoes in hopes of a change in their rear-ends! Not happening!!! Read on...

This article was taken out of the Pittsburgh Post yesterday in the business section:

Reebok will settle in case against EasyTone claims

Reebok International Ltd. will pay $25 million to customers to settle charges by the Federal Trade Commission that it made deceptive claims in ads that its toning shoes would measurably strengthen the legs and buttocks of those who wear them. Reebok, based in Canton, Mass., has centered much of its business on toning shoes, which include its EasyTone walking shoes with a rounded, slightly unstable sole. Under the settlement announced Wednesday, consumers can seek a refund for shoes or apparel at http://1.usa.gov/pj2owK

Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Roasted Butternut Squash

Oh my garden was so good to me this year! I have a ton of butternut squash! One of my favorite ways to cook butternut squash is to roast it. It's so simple.
Preheat your oven to 400
Peel butternut squash with a vegetable peeler
scoop out the seeds (don't throw them out!)
cube squash into small pieces
and bake for about 30-40 minutes!
I spray the bar pan with my misto olive oil spray.
That's it! Perfect side dish, or a great addition to a salad!

Now for the seeds...I roasted them in a separate bar pan lightly sprayed with my misto
sprinkled some sea salt over top of the seeds.
Roasted them a bit shorter than the squash,
about 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
Great snack!
Next time I may sprinkle them with a truvia packet and nutmeg... :)

You're never beaten until you admit it.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Do you eat out of boxes?

I was talking with some of the football Mom's last night at practice, when one stood up and said "I've got to go to the grocery store.." Another Mom said, "Gosh, I can't remember the last time I got grocery's". "Really?!" I replied, "Where do you get your fresh vegetables and fruit?" I was expecting her to say...Oh, I have a garden, or I shop at the farmers market, or I belong to a co-op. Nope! Non of that BS...She replies "We love Hamburger Helper and canned or frozen fruit and vegetables". "Are you serious? Nothing fresh?" "Nope, I just don't have time for it!" "Do you realize the amount of sodium and chemicals you are ingesting"?! She looked at me blankly..That's where I bit my toung...till it bled!

Don't get me started on sugar! This is a snip of an article I read over the weekend:
"At this point, sugary beverages are the number-one problem in the American diet. They're the number-one source of calories on average. Sugary beverages are also the number-one sales item in terms of dollars in grocery stores, and a lot are consumed at McDonald's and other fast food places.

They're like cigarette smoking. They're only bad and they have no redeeming virtue. And the adverse effect are weight gain, diabetes, heart disease, gout, cavities, and maybe some cancers as well."

This means DIET soda too!

Come on people!Eat REAL FOOD!!!!!!

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

Monday, September 26, 2011

Motivation

I would like to invite you to participate in Motivational Mondays. I know several women that have fantastic stories of weight loss, strength gains, and positive attitude changes! All because of a decision that they have made to clean up their diet, or start an exercise program!

I would like to feature a different story every Monday. If you would like to be featured on my blog, please email me at tfriedt@embarqmail.com your story and a before and after picture, if you wish to be seen.

Come on celebrate your accomplishments! You ARE worth every piece of confetti!

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”

What I'm Lovin'

You already know that I love my food log...Well, I also love my Fitday! I log all of my food into this free site http://www.fitday.com/ (they also have an app!). I know exactly what my calorie count is and how much protein, carbohydrates and fat I consumed for the day. Super simple to use!

Come on try it out. If you don't know what you consume how can you make changes to your diet to lose or gain weight?

"Tough times never last, but tough people do."

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Healthified Zucchini Bread

Healthified? You bet!! I found a recipe that was healthy...but I tweaked it a bit.

2 1/2 Cups Shredded zucchini (about 2 medium)
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup Almond milk (they used canola oil)
3/4 cup egg whites or egg beaters
2 teaspoons Vanilla
1 1/2 cups Stevia (they used ...gasp!...Sugar)
1 1/2 cups all purpose wheat flour
1 1/2 cups Almond flour (they used white flour)
3 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional, I did not use either)

Heat oven to 350. spray bottoms only of 2 8x4 inch loaf pans with cooking spray (you could also use muffin pans to control the serving sizes)
In a large bowl, mix zucchini, applesauce, almond milk, egg whites,vanilla and stevia until well blended. stir in all remaining ingredients except nuts until well blended. Stir in nuts. Spoon batter into pans.
Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Loosen wides of loaves from pans; remove and place on cooling racks. Cool completely, about one hour.

Nutrition facts per 24 slices (12 slices per loaf. My way)
1 slice:
Calories: 66
Carbohydrates: 18
Fat: 5
Protein: 3

Their way:
Calories: 180
Carbohydrates: 26
Fat: 6
Protein: 3

My entire family loved it! Did I tell them it was "healthified"? Heck NO!

Your goals, minus your doubts, equal your reality.

Motivational Quotes

You must act as if it is impossible to fail.
Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself!
Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.
Whether you think you can or you think you can't, your probably right!
If you are sick of starting over, you have to stop quitting
You won't fail if you're not perfect, you'll fail if you're not committed to improving yourself slightly each day.
We can reverse years of damage to our bodies by deciding to raise our standards for ourselves, then living differently. Old wounds heal, injuries repair, and the whole system improves with just a few changes in what we put into our bodies and how we move them.
Failure is not fatal; failing to change will be."
Food for Thought: The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Strengthen Your Desire! Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat.
Success is not a race, be patient.
It's not about how good you are, but how bad you want it!
Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go..."
"Never trade what you want the most for what you want at the moment"
"Success is not a place that we aspire to, it is a process in which we live by. Often the only ingredient being the ability to not quit"
Be specific in what you want, and use specific words. Empower yourself, and become the person you dream about
That which we persist in doing becomes easier to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed, but that our power to do is increased."
The odds of hitting a target go up dramatically when you aim at it." ~Mal Pancoast
At the beginning of any task, more than anything else, your attitude will affect it's successful outcome.
Do or do not. There is no try.~Yoda
Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means, effort, pain, difficulty.
Focus on where you want to go, not on what you fear."
There is no one giant step that does it. It's a lot of little steps."
Start doing what's necessary, then do what's possible, and suddenly you'll be doing the impossible!
"My life tomorrow will be the result of my attitudes and the choices I make today."
People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing, that's why we recommend it daily. Zig Ziglar
"Clear your mind of can't." ~Dr. Samuel Johnson
"Any experience can be transformed into something of value. Everything depends on the way you look at things. You cannot have the success without the failures.
What are stumbling blocks and defeat before you, can be stepping stones to victory if you remain determined.
Listen closely: the only time it's too late to change yourself is when you're dead. Until then, you're simply making excuses or lying to yourself.
If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got!
"Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently". ~Henry Ford
What we think or what we know or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do. ~ John Ruskin
Your goals, minus your doubts, equal your reality." ~Ralph Marston
One definition of insanity is: Doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result.
"If we defend our habits, we have no intentions of quitting them."
Your past does not equal, nor does it dictate, your future
Do you choose to simply know the path, or do you choose to walk it?
Your body keeps an accurate journal regardless of what you write down...
When one approach is not working to reach the desired goal, that's not a reason to abandon the goal. Instead, it is time to devise another approach."------Ralph Marston
Discipline is remembering what you want.
Knowing is not enough, you must apply.
Make the decision, then do something - no matter how small - toward accomplishing what you want.
Don’t live down to expectations. Go out there and do something remarkable. ~Wendy Wasserstein
Food for Thought: The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Strengthen Your Desire! Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat.