Healthy Texas Week- Fitness Friday

Fitness is a state in which you live.

The State of Texas Fitness Flag

Your state of fitness is earned through exercise and proper nutrition. Here are 3 steps that will help you improve your current state of fitness. 

Count your calories. If you out spend your income, you go into debt. If you eat more than your body needs, you gain weight. 5 minutes of simple math can change your life. If you need help learning how to count calories check out my blog post on counting calories. I great app to help aid in counting calories is MyFitnessPal. 

Move. Are you working on your sit-ness or your fitness? If you work at a desk use half of your lunch to walk. Join an exercise class. Take the dog for a walk. Engage in exercise during commercials on T.V. Ride your bike. Use your body to produce motion and you will feel better, sleep better, and find a higher level of fitness. Need more ideas? Check out Healthy Texas Week- Move It Monday. 

Purge the Processed. Dump it in the trash. Momma always said, "It looks better in the trash than it does on you." She was right...like usual. Instead, purchase produce (fruits & vegetables), buy lean meats from the fish, meat, or deli counters. Shop for food that is not processed or minimally processed. Less than 5 ingredients. If it contains an ingredient you can't read or isn't real it isn't worth buying. Pretty much avoid everything in the middle of the grocery store. Stick to the outside. Try living processed food free for 2 weeks and witness the change in your health and fitness.

It has been my pleasure to blog through Healthy Texas Week. If you want more information on It's Time Texas or ACTIVELife check out their websites. (I linked to them.) I hope you enjoyed Healthy Texas Week as much as I did. But don't stop here. Let Healthy Texas Week be the first week on your journey to Finding Fit for the rest of your life. 

Healthy Texas Week- Thirsty Thursday

I argue that if you live in Houston that 50% air can still hydrate you. Seriously, 100% humidity! 

Someone please find out to see if humidity can in fact permeate the skin and re-hydrate you...  My glass if half empty on that possibility.

Hydration is vitally important for a healthy life. We, as a culture, tend to be dehydrated. While we drink TONS of beverages, many of them do not adequately hydrate us. Water is the simplest, lowest calorie form of hydration...period. 

Signs you are dehydrated:

Hunger. Just finished a meal. Still starving. Or...middle of the afternoon and your mouth is watering uncontrollably. You reach for something sweet or salty. Do either of these ever happen to you? You may be dehydrated. Thirst is often mistaken for hunger. Our mouth waters. We get cravings. We must be hungry. Try drinking an entire glass (or two) of water and waiting 5-10 minutes to see if you hunger subsides.

Headaches. Our bodies are made up of about 57% water. That's over half for those who are still contemplating the full glass above. Picture this- Your body is like a car. A car needs oil to run properly or it grinds to a halt. Your body needs water to keep your bodies parts functioning as well. A car low on oil grinds, slows, and burns. Imagine your headache. Does it burn? I know when I am dehydrated I can feel the grind in my temples. So, keep a glass or bottle of water with you. Drink small amounts constantly throughout the day to avoid the dehydration headache.

Tired. Teaching Physical Education means I am quite active. I basically run 10 exercise class a day. The days I forgot to drink water. I am a slug. I get cranky. Tired. Worst of all, I lose my enthusiasm. I carry a water bottle with me. Always. Usually in my back pocket. Yes, it looks funny. A good friend of mine once told me that when he is hydrated he feels more awake than when he drinks coffee. I believe him. That days I am hydrated, and well nourished, are the days I have to most energy.

The most interesting man in the world says, "Stay thirsty my friends!" For your benefit I say, "Stay healthy and hydrated mis amigos!"

This week I will post every day in honor of Healthy Texas Week. Each day will have a new health and fitness theme. Healthy Texas Week is an initiative by It's Time Texas for which I am a Health Ambassador. They are doing amazing things promoting health and fitness in Texas and especially Texas schools. So get up, get active, and encourage your friends and family to do the same. Have them swing by Move It Monday if they need some ideas. In closing- 

 Move more, Eat better, Live well, and Find Fit!

Healthy Texas Week- Workout Wednesday

I debated what alliteration fit the Wednesday title for Healthy Texas Week.

Walk Wednesday- Not enough oomph.

Wellness Wednesday- To drab and vague.

Wine Wednesday- Definitely not.

Water Wednesday- Water; so important, not a fit for Wednesday (Tune back in tomorrow for Thirsty Thursday!)

There was only one left. Workout Wednesday. Not any workout. A special workout. I give you the workout from last week's boot camp.

For this workout do the exercises as fast and as intense as possible without sacrificing form

Warm-Up (30 seconds each)

Butt Kicks, Walking Toe Touches, High Knees, Arm Circles, Mountain Climbers

Workout

For this workout do the exercises as fast and as intense as possible without sacrificing form

Jog 200 meters

Sprint 50 meters

Walk 25 meters

(I will reference this as jog, sprint, walk)

Box step up and down into push-up. One motion.

20 seconds, 10 sec. rest, 3 reps

Jog, Sprint, Walk

Plank Jack

20 sec., 10 sec. rest, 3 reps

Jog, Sprint, Walk

Lunge Jumps

20 sec., 10 sec. rest, 3 reps

Jog, Sprint, Walk

Plank Twists

20 sec., 10 sec. rest, 3 reps

Jog, Sprint, Walk

Jumping Jumping Jacks

20 sec., 10 sec. rest, 3 reps

Jog, Sprint, Walk

In and Out Abs (plank position, jump legs in and out)

20 sec., 10 sec. rest, 3 reps

Finish with a good static stretch.

Try the workout and tell me what you think. Intimidated to try it? Think back to our Try It Tuesday. You can modify this workout. You can do it at your own pace. Just workout this Wednesday. Have another workout lined up for Wednesday? Do it, you won't hurt my feelings. Just incorporate a workout into your week whether it is Healthy Texas Week or not.

This week I will post every day in honor of Healthy Texas Week. Each day will have a new health and fitness theme. Healthy Texas Week is an initiative by It's Time Texas for which I am a Health Ambassador. They are doing amazing things promoting health and fitness in Texas and especially Texas schools. So get up, get active, and encourage your friends and family to do the same. Have them swing by Move It Monday if they need some ideas. In closing- 

 Move more, Eat better, Live well, and Find Fit!

Healthy Texas Week- Try It Tuesday

Try it Tuesday! You never know you may just like it!

I am not saying try Life cereal. I am saying try something NEW!

We often get stuck in a rut. I am no different. I eat the same foods. (Turkey "re-thought" sandwich every day!) I even get stuck creating the same exercise routines for my boot camp every now and then.

The other day at boot camp we tried something different. Something radical for this tenured group. We incorporated super high intensity interval training. The workout included jogging with sprint intervals, full-body combination exercises, and intensity bursts of 30 seconds with a 10 second rest. We did this for 1 hour. (Want something to try today- Jumping jumping jack- do the entire jumping jack while in the air. We did it. So can you!)

I have to say I was nervous that people would quit. Or hate it. Or worse, hate me. I was dead wrong. They LOVED it. My wife and I (the instructors) were thanked and applauded that day more than any other. Since then we have tried to increase the workout intensity and vary the activities and each day elicits the same response.

We all have some recipe, some fitness class, or some activity we want to try but are too....apprehensive. Well, today is the day. Try It Tuesday means you single out the one thing you want to try today. (Mine will be--- Radishes) You never know you may like it; just like Mikey.

This week I will post every day in honor of Healthy Texas Week. Each day will have a new health and fitness theme. Healthy Texas Week is an initiative by It's Time Texas for which I am a Health Ambassador. They are doing amazing things promoting health and fitness in Texas and especially Texas schools. So get up, get active, and encourage your friends and family to do the same. Have them swing by Move It Monday if they need some ideas. In closing- 

 Move more, Eat better, Live well, and Find Fit!

Healthy Texas Week- Move It Monday

Movement can be done anywhere, by anyone, at any time.

No joke. I see kids all day that literally can't sit still. Many of us can't sit still. If I am sick for any more than one day at a time I go nuts. Movement is a part of life. Movement is a foundation of fitness.

Moving- Causing or producing motion. (dictionary.com)

Engage in an activity today that will get you moving.

Via your feet- Walk, Run, Hiking, Taking the stairs, or Dancing

Riding on Something- Cycling, Surfing, Rollerblading, or Skateboarding

Full-body Fitness- Exercise class, Boot camp, Sports, Wrestle with your kids

Out of the Ordinary- Trampolining, Ultimate Frisbee, Commercial break exercises (EVERY commercial), Using a Skip-It

But seriously we had a Skip-It tournament at work last year.....crazy hard exercise.

So whatever your fancy; Find something. A fit and healthy life will never come find you. You must move and make it happen!

This week I will post every day in honor of Healthy Texas Week. Each day will have a new health and fitness theme. Healthy Texas Week is an initiative by It's Time Texas for which I am a Health Ambassador. They are doing amazing things promoting health and fitness in Texas and especially Texas schools. So get up, get active, and encourage your friends and family to do the same. Have them swing by my blog if they need ideas. In closing- 

 Move more, Eat better, Live well, and Find Fit!