Trying to cut the coffee :-/ soooo hard. Morning meal also included 3/4 c of egg whites.
Morning grind
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The Challenge Begins!!!
So…. my co-worker (RandomAurora) and I have started ” The Challenge“. This little fitness challenge is to see who has the best overall fitness results over a 90 day period. Aurora will be following the concept of Body For Life, eating lots of protein and taking supplements plus weightlifting. I will be following a variety of concepts, mostly ones by Brad Schoenfeld and Weight Watchers, but NO protein shakes and NO protein bars, just the food God gave me on this earth! After the 90 days we will see who had the best overall results and a PRIZE will be won! We are not sure what the prize will be yet, but it will be a good one. We are posting stats and updates and hopefully our blog for the challenge will be up soon.
Below is the adorable video Aurora made for our Challenge
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92uYaE9S_OA&fs=1&hl=en_US]
Below is a great tip from Bob Schonfeld about those women with square bodies.
If you have a naturally blocky waist, avoid performing weighted abdominal movements for your obliques (i.e. weighted side bends, etc.). Doing so will build muscle in this area and can reduce a tapered appearance.
Thanks RASHA!!!!!
A Trip…A Wedding…A New Semester…A New Routine
I have been away from the blog world for awhile but life has been keeping me busy. For the past months it has been work, school, and married life.
The month of August was my religious holiday, Ramadan. Basically, I am not eating from sun up to sun down. It is really hard, especially, when you are used to eating six times a day, drinking water all day, and working out 4-6 times a week. From being off the routine for a month I gained 5 pounds and felt totally out of my element.
But now I’m back. Its been 3 weeks and I have been working my butt off, not literally though, I’m trying to get it a little more perkier, lol. The reason why Im training so hard is because I was going to my cousins wedding tomorrow and I needed to make sure I was at my best. I did cardio 6 times a week and payed attention to everything I put into my mouth. I ended up loosing the 5 pounds and gained more insight into my health regime from my dedication. Now I am going to Egypt, and I’m hoping to continue my exersice routine while Im there, especially since I will be around all that yummy food. My goal is to come back and go full speed.
Some of my goals:
- Have a more balanced diet ( I eat really well, but I want to make sure I am consuming the right amount of carbs, protein, dairy etc)
- Incorporate interval strength training routines
- Loose the “pooch”
- Not becoming obsessive
How will I do this?
- Lots and lots of reading.
- Observing at the gym
- An “I Can ” Attitude
More to come..
The Aspartame Health Debate
Ok….. I’m at work drinking my Crystal Light Lemonade and my co-worker asks me what I was drinking and I told her “Crystal Light”. She takes a look at the ingredients and says “Oh it has Aspartame” and I am looking at her thinking and your point, so she says “Aspartame is bad for you, I do not drink anything with Aspartame” then another co-worker jumps in and says how bad it is. So I wondered what exactly is Aspartame and why is it bad, I was concerned. I went home and looked through all the ingredients of juices and foods I had in the house and to my surprise many of the items I consume on a daily basis had Aspartame, including my precious diet coke… ugh!
SO what is Aspartame
Aspartame (or APM) (pronounced /ˈæspərteɪm/ or /əˈspɑrteɪm/) is the name for an artificial, non-saccharide sweetener used as a sugar substitute in many foods and beverages. In the European Union, it is known under the E number (additive code) E951. Aspartame is the methyl ester of aphenylalanine/aspartic acid dipeptide. So in a nut shell its products like Splenda Equal all that stuff.
Here is a cool picture of the Aspartame components
So Why is Aspartame known to be bad?
Aspartame is known to be bad becasue supposedly breaksdown and dissolves into chemical that you body holds on to for long periods of time.
But is is really bad?
Of course anything in an excessive amount is bad for you but there has been alot of research out there that does not link aspartame to cancer or other types of diseases. The National Cancer institute even did studies to find out if aspatame was linked to cancer. Below are some key point the National Cancer institute provided on their findings.
Key Points
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A study of about half a million people, published in 2006, compared people who drank aspartame-containing beverages with those who did not. Results of the study showed that increasing levels of consumption were not associated with any risk of lymphomas, leukemias, or brain cancers in men or women. (Question 2)
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Researchers examined the relationship between aspartame intake and 1,888 lymphomas or leukemias and 315 malignant brain cancers among the participants of the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study from 1995 until 2000. Development of these cancers was not associated with estimated aspartame consumption, refuting a recent animal study with positive findings for lymphomas and leukemias and also contradicting claims regarding brain cancer risk
Basically, there is no real link between cancer and aspartame. Of course anything that is artificial is not really good for you and if you are going to have something with Aspartame just be aware of your daily intake. However, it is all a matter of opinion and this is just information I found, but live your life people, and just remember not to live in excess.
Extra…Extra…My Fitness Mags are HERE!
There are a certain times in the month when I get super excited and those times are the third week of the month when all my bills are paid and when I get my fitness/health magazines….Yes!!!!!!!! My fitness magazines are what give me the extra boost to keep things going during my health journey. I first look at the cover and think to myself ”I can look like that, no problem”. I then start to flip through the pages and pick out things I find interesting or relevant to what I am trying to accomplish. The funny thing is everything starts to sound the same, you come to find out these experts all say the same thing but in different ways.
Now my two favs are Shape Magazine and Womens Health Magazine. Both of these magazine are great because they have a wealth of knowledge that anyone can use in their daily routine . They also have a good balance of food tips, fitness tips, and girlie tips (hair, makeup, and guy advice) all in one.
I try to keep these magazines laying all over the house because the days I feel like ”screw the gym I’m having a cupcake” I can take a look at these magazines and say “damn I should go to the gym THEN have a cupcake “.
Here are some cool tips I picked up from the July issue of Womens Health Magazine.
Just an FYI:
1. Food Label are evil: Food labels can trick consumers into thinking they are dringking for one person when they are actually drinking a serving for three. One of my favorites, Arizona Iced Tea has a serving size of 8 ounces, meaning that lovely can that you buy at the gas station that you savor for yourself is actually meant for three people…. thats just mean!
2.There are healthy alternatives at the drive through, this is a tip that many people do not want to believe because if you are at a Burger King what makes you think your actually going to choose the veggie burger over the whopper, just don’t go to freaking Burger King. But I know time is not always on our side so opt for the veggie burger people your stomach will thank you later.
3. Eggs build muscle and enhance weight loss
4.There are more than 1200 variteies of watermelons around the world, crazy!
5. If you are soar from an intense workout the day before DO NOT think just because your in pain you shouldn’t go, you better get your ass up and go to the gym. As long as your not exercising the muscles you worked out the day before your all good. Remember to develop muscle you have to let them rest but that doesn’t mean you cant go to the gym and work out another body part.
Time to hit the sack and play some tennis tomorrow and hopefully get my but into the gear for the coming week.
PowerSong of the night
Michael Jackson’s The Way You Make Me Feel
The lady in this video has a wicked body….she has to be a dancer or a gymnist her soldiers are ridiculous!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzZ_urpj4As]
