Challenge Week

This week's challenge may not be very hard for some of you, but for others it might be pretty tough.  Keep out of the candy bowls! That's right, I said STEP AWAY!! 

Believe me, this is definitely more of a mental challenge than anything.  We can have candy ANYTIME we want it, yet for some reason, this week is always the hardest to stay away from it!  Those who really struggle with the candy bowl will definitely be amazed at how good you feel by being able to have the control to say no.

Knowing that some people won't be able to do this, here's your challenge.  1 mile for every piece of candy that you eat.  Discipline, right?

And by eating too much candy, you will definitely be a sick pumpkin...

        

Fitness Fall!

I've decided to rename the season...this current season will now be known as "Fitness Fall!!!"  I think it has a nice ring to it.

 
We definitely see the most weight gain during the later part of the year.  It feels like there are so many more "food" holidays, office parties, layers of clothes, lazy days, etc.

Then comes December 31st and we're forced into making resolutions about weight loss and fitness that we could have completed avoided.   

Therefore, my plan is to motivate you as much as I possibly can to stay active during the upcoming months.  How are you best motivated when it comes to fitness/food?  Having challenges? Keeping a food log?  Setting a fitness goal (such as running a race in January)?  Friendly Encouragement? Yelling?

Tips:
-Make sure to dress in layers. 
-Try not to drink your calories!
-Try something new and different (hiking, a new group fitness class)
-Get your friends involved.
-Do things you enjoy!  

Enjoying Exercise

A huge challenge when figuring out a workout plan for someone is enjoyment.  How much someone enjoys doing an exercise definitely plays a role in how often they will actually do it as well as the time it takes for them to feel/see results.  For some people, thinking of exercise related things in which they enjoy doing is a really hard task- especially when it comes to cardio.  A lot of the people that I have worked with will tell me on their very first visit that they hate doing cardio (oh, and they normally aren't huge fans of lifting weights either, but that's another post in the making...)

A lot of people don't realize how many options are out there for them to choose from, AND that you don't have to get stuck doing the same thing everyday.  So I start by just asking them what cardio they have been doing and offering a few suggestions of what they could be doing.  If they don't like any of my suggestions, my next questions is "What activities and hobbies did you enjoy as a kid?" 
"Playing outside, tag, riding bikes, hopscotch, jump rope, playing sports, going swimming, climbing trees, etc."

 "Oh, guess what?!?!?  ALL of those can count towards your cardio time!!"

Go for a run, take a spinning class (or actually ride a bike outside!), draw a hopscotch on your driveway and just do the movements, jump rope (inexpensive way to get in some intense cardio!), join a community adult sports league, swim laps at the local pool, go rock climbing....   

If you do what you enjoy, you're much more likely to stick with it!!  As an adult, it may just look a little differently.  Try to think a little outside of the box, find things that you enjoy, and don't be afraid to go out and try something new!