Friday, December 28, 2007

NO MORE QUESTIONS!!
First of all, if you can tell me what movie the title of this post is from, I'll make you one of those little fabric bags! You'll get to pick your colors from my ever expanding fabric stash! I'm going to put a few together this weekend... so, whoever gets it correct first, wins!
Second, I just wanted to clarify on my list of goals: I have 100's of other things I could add to that list. I don't want y'all to think that I only have 4 things to work on! I've just discovered something about myself over the years. When I start out with a list that is 100 miles long, I get easily overwhelmed. Then I get discouraged. Next comes defeat, followed closely by feeling like a complete failure. So, I've learned to keep my lists short and sweet!
Now... onto the questions!
  1. For those of you who exercise in the mornings: Do you eat before you exercise? We've gone 2 days in a row (woohoo!!) and I haven't eaten anything... when I'm done I feel like puking my guts out. Any suggestions? Or is that just how I'm gonna feel till I get in shape?
  2. Does anyone have a good website that has healthy recipes? Or even a cook book I could check out? I don't want anything to complicated or with exotic (read expensive) ingredients...
  3. What is your favorite healthy meal? Would you be willing to share the recipe?
  4. Is it better to count calories or watch your fat intake or your cholesterol or sugars or salts...??? One person says to do this, another says that... does anyone really know?
  5. Now to a different topic... I bought a hair straightener and it makes my hair mostly straight, but kind of frizzy and the static it creates could power a small city. Any ideas on how to get it silky smooth and not have it fly away?

Okay... I think I'm done with the questions for now... I have another post brewing in my brain right now... it will probably go up later today... but if you can answer any or all of these questions, I would be most appreciative!

15 comments:

Yvonne said...

I'll probably kick myself when I see the answer to the movie quote, but I don't have a clue!!!

You're so right about goals, short term realistic goals are so much more feasible. I love your list.

I usually don't exercise until later in the day, so I have no answer. I'm excited to read the answers to your other questions--so I'll be checking back.

Randi said...

Well, I don't know the answers to all your questions, but I am a hair frizz professional. The best products I've found for frizz and static is the John Friedan brand, which you can actually buy pretty much at any Walmart. The Secret Weapon finishing creme is the best!
Also- when I am in marathon training I always eat before I run. It really made a big difference in both my short term energy and my weight control efforts. Nothing big. Maybe a small bowl of oatmeal or a banana.
Good luck!!
I'll be watching to see some of the other questions get answered. I've been wondering the same thing about question 4.

Heather said...

I don't eat before I run, but I haven't ever been in marathon training, either.

We have the Biggest Losers cookbook and that has been good because they are basically modified recipes of things you already eat. Maybe your library has that.

flip flop mama said...

My advice is to eat before you exercise...especially if you feel the way you do. Your blood sugar is probably low and you just need some good energy to get your body going in the morning. I can't exercise without eating or I get really sick. My favorite healthy meal is this. It's called Shells with Salsa Cruda:

5 cups seeded chopped tomatoes (about 2 lbs)
½ cup chopped red onion
½ cup thinly sliced fresh basil
½ cup chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup cupped fresh mint
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
8 oz medium shell pasta
½ cup (2 oz) shredded sharp provolone cheese

Combine first 10 ingredients (through garlic) in a large bowl; let mixture marinate at room temperature. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Add cooked pasta to bowl; toss gently to coat. Divide evenly among 4 plates. Top each serving with provolone. Serving size 2 cups pasta mixture and 2 tbsp cheese.

And the answer to #4 depends on your goal...Are you just trying to be more healthy or are you trying to lose weight? The key to losing weight is burning more calories than you take in. Obviously those other things are important too. If you eat too much sugar it turns to fat. If you eat too much salt or high cholesterol foods it's bad for your heart but you need a healthy amount of salt and cholesterol each day. The thing you want to think about is when you eat something is "Is this empty calories? Is my body going to be able to use this to give me energy?" Questions like that.

If you are not gaining weight right now then just cutting out the junk and eating better with exercising will help you lose weight. If you are gaining weight then you will need to both eat better and LESS and exercise. I'm a big fan of the balance method. Meaning don't cut things that are healthy out. You don't want to diet, you want to eat right. Eat smaller portions and more healthy things like fruits and veggies--mostly veggies. But don't cut out carbs because your body needs those for energy and you need protein too each day.

Okay I think this is a post all it's own this comment is so freakin long! LOL Sorry to get on my soapbox, can you tell I have strong feelings about these things?? :) But seriously I did major in Exercise Science in college so I know a little.

Oh and about the hair thing...I once got something from a salon that was a smoothing serum and it took away the frizz. I don't have the bottle anymore but you could just go to Ulta or something like that and they'd probably be able to help you find something.

Holly (2 Kids and Tired) said...

Um, Big Daddy?

As far as your questions go, I don't exercise. Well, I sometimes walk in the morning. I don't usually eat before hand. I think that most people would tell you not to.

I think that the key to weight loss (and now I just need to apply it to myself) is moderation and balance. I don't think that all meat or no meat, or all carbs or no carbs, or no fat and no sugar, no salt, or whatever is the way to go. They're all so extreme. I think that portion control is key. Have two cookies, not the whole box, for example. Have one coke, not 5 in a day. Take smaller portions and eat slower. Drink water and see what happens. That's my take.

Kimberly Vanderhorst said...

Definitely eat first. I like the Fix-it-and-Forget-it crockpot cookbook series. Yummy, easy, usually healthy stuff. My favourite easy healthy meal is a nice salad with some grilled chicken breast tossed in. So easy. So yummy. So healthy. I'm all for educating oneself about calorie levels, fat content, etc...but not counting all the time, you know? Learn what's good and what's not. Cut out the processed stuff and eat food that "remembers where it came from", cut out the pops and juices and get hooked on water, and your body will love you. Oh, and fiber. Can't stress the importance of fiber enough. But add it to your diet gradually if you don't want to be throning it for too long. As for hair straightening, I've heard that spraying a light mist of water onto your hair first can help with the frizzies...but I've never done it so I don't know. Good luck!

Busy Bee Lauren said...

First off, if I am running, I DO NOT eat because then I get a cramp. But, if it is some sort of other exercise I eat.

I just eat healthy portions. I don't really watch calories or fat intake. When I was on a diet last year, I just followed the food pyramid. Instead of snacking on regular salty snacks I munched on veggies and fruits or natural almonds. If you eat what the pyramid says, you will lose weight.

Hmm, I used to have the same hair problem. I blow dry mine so that it is bone dry, then i straighten very small sections of hair. It takes a while, but it is super smooth. Small strands are the key.

Jean Knee said...

I remember reading it's good to eat a small banana about a half hour before exercise.

I think most any diet will take off weight but once you stop it's harder to keep it off. Try to eat healthier and make portions smaller.

Unknown said...

I exercise first thing and don't eat. However if you're having problems with it, grab a Pria bar or something. They're low-cal, tasty and filling. That will help give you some energy!

Nancy Face said...

I completely agree with Jamie J on her nutrition advice. I follow most of the things she said, and it's been very effective for me.

If I'm exercising very early in the morning, I don't eat first. If it's going to be a bit later, I go ahead and eat. Like Lauren, I never eat before running, because it makes me very uncomfortable. (But I'm not in training for a marathon!)

... said...

i have to figure out the eating before exercise question, too. i've done it both ways and didn't feel good either way. so i guess it's what you eat. let us know what you end up doing.

wynne said...

Hmm. Pee Wee's Big Adventure?
It's a Wonderful Life?
Cinderella?
The Secret of Roan Inish?

Can you tell I have absolutely no idea? And as for questions...no, I don't think you want any of my answers, because I NEVER exercise in the morning (if at all), don't know what a "healthy meal" consists of, and have never yet figured out to get my hair straight.

Sorry. You still have to be my friend, though.

Heather Brown said...

First of all Im pretty sure the movie is Big Daddy! And second of all a good cook book my sister just told me about is called Eat for Life. It goes off the Body for Life which is a really good lifestyle too pick up not a diet! We are starting a family biggest loser next week! Way excited. Good luck!

Ally said...

My guess on the movie is Kindergarten Cop.

I don't have anything to ad to the above comments, except that I can't exercise because I have fibromyalgia and exercise causes me great pain right now. So I am left to use food as my main weight loss strategy.

I did find a good book, though, that I would like to implement if I can hopefully get to a point where exercise doens't hurt, in the future. It's called The Abs Diet for Women. The idea is that building muscle, in your biggest muscle groups (thighs, rear, shoulders, etc.) burns the most fat for the longest time afterward (not just 30 minutes after the workout, but hours longer). And that is what burns off the fat. You also need to eat proteins because that is what the muscles uses to 'build up.'

Anyway. Since having twins, I've been able to lose 10 of the 18 extra pounds I was left with just by eating better and managing portion control. It has taken me over a year, because I just cannot exercise, so it's really slow going. But it is possible to lose some just by healthy eating.

Good luck with it all!

Tasha said...

Sparkpeople (www.sparkpeople.com) is a great website to visit!