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It's time for another round of "what's playing on my iPod! Check out these tunes straight off my brand new 2014 running playlist! I'm still rocking my Fall 2013 playlist too - I can't get enough of Katy Perry's Roar! What's your favorite song to run to this season?
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If you've read my 'about me' page, you know that during the day, I am a bioengineer. I'm currently doing work on magnetic targeted endothelial cell delivery to stented arteries. During the day, I read journal articles, culture cells, analyze tissue and write up my findings in the form of manuscripts and grants, so I can get more money to keep doing what I'm doing. At night, I teach group exercise classes. It's a nice change of pace, and in most ways, completely different from what I do during the day. But every once in a while, my two worlds collide, and I can use my training as a scientist to take a look at the world of health and fitness. To give you a little background, I don't follow a specific "diet". I try to make the best choices for myself, my health and fitness goals, and that might be different than the choices you make for yourself. In general, I'm not against "diets" - if you find something that works for you, I'd encourage you to stick with it. If you tell me you feel better and hit your goal weight by removing gluten from your diet - excellent! If you tell me dairy makes you feel bloated, then don't eat it! If you tell me that you eat 2 pounds of butternut squash to carb-load for your long runs while marathon training, so be it (oh, wait, that's me)! So when people ask me about the Paleo Diet, the only advice I have is to give it a try if you're interested. If you're goal is losing weight, you'll know relatively quickly if it's working for you. But, if your goal is to prevent heart disease, well, you may never know if it's "working". Over the weekend, I came across a twitter post linking me to this article by Chris Kresser on MindBodyGreen. The title of the article is, "5 Things Everyone Gets Wrong About Paleo". Since I do like to educate myself on the current health and fitness trends, and I admittedly don't know everything about the Paleo Diet, I wanted to read on. I don't have much to say about #2 through #5 on the list, but #1 struck a nerve with me. Myth #1: "Our Paleolithic ancestors all died before they were 30."
I didn't read the referenced study word for word, but I read it enough to know that the study is referring to "modal age", where a year is not the time it takes for the earth to circle the sun. It's an "age equivalent". So to say that our hunter/gatherer ancestors lived to the same age as we are living today is a little misleading. Also, in addition to a decreased rate in infant mortality, tribal warfare and violence, etc., we also have EXTREME lifestyle and environmental differences, when compared to our ancestors, making it difficult to isolate any specific reason for a change in disease prevalence. Furthermore, our knowledge today on chronic, inflammatory diseases is MUCH more than it was "back then", and to say that we can get a complete medical profile from our ancestors' remains is an insult to current medical research. I think most people are in agreement that genetics play a large role in the development of some diseases. Let's not forget that our genetics have been shaped by our ancestors. Who's to say that the very diet our ancestors lived off of altered our genetics in such a way to make us more susceptible to certain diseases? It's a little "out on a limb", but the point I'm trying to make is that there is too much unknown to really draw any solid conclusions. Do I think that switching from a "typical American diet" to the Paleo Diet can improve your health? Absolutely! There are a lot of really great things about the Paleo Diet, and I agree that your diet plays a huge role in your overall health. But, I'm not so quick to agree that wheat and dairy are the direct cause of chronic, inflammatory diseases like obesity, diabetes, heart disease and autoimmune diseases. I think we're making a lot of progress in figuring out how to best nourish our bodies, and it seems like the even the USDA is making changes in their recommendations. But, at the end of the day, it's probably best to take everything you read with a grain of salt (although not literally, because salt is bad for you, right?). Anything beyond that depends on your goals, your personal situation and your genetics. But don't just believe me because you read it here - educate yourself! And Chris, no hard feelings - you are inspiring SO many people to get healthy! Keep at it! What are your thoughts about the Paleo Diet?
It started with a blog...
I was also experimenting with new workout styles. Running and yoga both take a lot of time, which I was very short on. Soon I was teaching these new workouts to my classmates, and I found that when I was teaching I felt much happier and more fulfilled. At the same time I was getting more and more questions about what I did to stay in shape. When people found out that I didn't workout in a gym they were perplexed. How was I staying in that kind of shape at home and without lifting weights? My background in yoga had helped me form a very holistic view of creating strength and balance in the body. In graduate school we had a wonderful anatomy teacher that expected us to do more than memorize muscles and planes of movement. We were required to understand the functional movements of each muscle, and which activities and motions would be limited if these muscles were weakened or paralyzed. We also learned which muscles were activated when moving your body through different planes and the biomechanics impact of inefficient movement patterns. We physically saw these muscles in our cadaver lab courses, which was very mentally and emotionally challenging for me, but expanded my understanding and appreciation of the human body.
As we entered our second year of graduate school, I was feeling tired. I knew that I needed to do something that was not school or work related for the pure pleasure of the pursuit. I wanted to help people on a larger scale, and share something that I loved and was passionate about. I wanted to right an occupational injustice that occurs when people think it takes a lot of time and money to be fit and healthy. Everyone has the right to a healthy and fit lifestyle, and that should be free. There is a lot of talk about prevention and wellness programs, but it is an emerging area. A lot of wellness programs have a mission, but they lack a method of sharing that mission on a large scale. I turned to my blog and youtube channel and I started sharing my workouts in the hopes of showing people that they could do this at home.
I am thrilled at the success my blog has experienced thus far. If you are a blogger, fitness or otherwise, my advice to you is to share something you love. Share something and be consistent. If your blog is driven solely by increasing your views it may be time to rectify your approach. Drive your blog by creating content that you are passionate about and offer your readers something that will benefit them. If you want to spice up your workouts and try something new you can join me at www.BenderFitness.com Thank you for taking the time to read this, and a special thank you to Jillian for asking me to share my story. Have a great day! Melissa Bender Be sure to follow Melissa: www.BenderFitness.com www.facebook.com/MelissaBenderFitness www.youtube.com/mdloughy Which Bender Fitness workout will you try first? We're 10 days into 2014, and goals and resolutions are still fresh on everyone's minds! In the spirit of '14, I've put together a brand new Fitness Friday workout for you! Notes about this workout:
Cardio - 14 minutesThe '14's
I recently started working with a company called FiTMAPPED, which is a comprehensive, fully searchable directory of fitness studios and gyms in NYC, Chicago, Boston and Los Angeles, and NOW Philadelphia! I'm so excited to be involved with such a great community and help them get the word out about different options for keeping up with your fitness. Part of what I'm working on is putting Philly gyms - big and small - on the "fit map".
After some light stretching, we moved into another room, where we worked our legs, back and biceps. The workouts were setup in circuits, where we tried to see how many rounds of each circuit we could do in a predetermined amount of time. This part of the class seemed to move quickly, and before I knew it, we were on to yoga. I generally don't love yoga, but it was basic and quick, and just what I needed to stretch after my hour-long workout. In general, I don't love it when the instructor for the class doesn't do the workout with the class, but I do understand that often in these small studios, instructors are teaching more than once class per day, and it would be impossible for them to do every class. After class, Juliet was happy to talk to us about membership and class-pack options, and also showed us how to use resistance bands to help with pull-up training! I have never used them before, but can totally see how helpful they can be! The studio even has lockers for you to use to keep your stuff safe during class! Overall, I had a great workout and I look forward to going back. I like the concept of the workout - it really touches on so many pieces of effective movement. While I wouldn't benefit from a membership, since I can realistically only make it there about once/week, I think it'd be a great option for anyone who needs a little push to help meet their goals! There are different programs you can sign up for, both nutrition- and exercise-based too! There is also a location in Mount Laurel, NJ, and rumor has it there will be more popping up soon! Have you ever tried Unite Fitness? FOLLOW ME ON MY PHILLY PHITNESS TOUR: Big news over at Beachbody - there's a new Shakeology flavor in town!
This flavor isn't out until January 13th, but feel free to contact me or comment below if you have any questions!
2. Run a half marathon in under 1 hour and 50 minutes
3. Run 1000 miles in a year I came up with this goal, on the fly - after saying it out loud, it sounded crazy, but after doing the math, I realized it's really not THAT daunting of a goal (on average less than 3 miles/day). With my commute to work, I do walk quite a bit, so I am also going to keep track of my walking, in case I need to steal any of these miles to hit my total! 4. Do 5 pullups in a row Last year, I was able to complete my first unassisted pullup EVER! It felt amazing, but I haven't really focused on my pull ups since. Every once in a while, I'll check in with the pullup bar to make sure I still can do a pullup (I can), but I want to work more on this so that I can do 5 in a row!
What are your health and fitness goals for 2014?
Unsubscribe from emailsDo you find that you spend a lot of time just deleting emails from your inbox? Sometimes without even reading them? Use unroll.me to unsubscribe from SO MANY emails! When I entered my email address, I was able to unsubscribe from 63 newsletters/store emails with the click of a button! Track your water intakeAim for half your body weight (in oz). If you weigh 150 pounds, try to drink 75 oz of water.Make it through two 32 oz water bottles and you're almost there! OR mark your water bottle like this to set yourself little goals throughout the day. Physcial challenges make you realize what you're capable ofThere were a few physical challenges we participates in, and each one helped me push myself beyond what I thought I was capable of.
Eat the rainbow
Clean out your fridge and pantry
Closet CleanupTake some time to go through your closet. Clean up the clutter by removing what you don't wear - consider donating these! Not sure what to give away? Put all of the hangers in your closet on the rod backwards. Once you wear and wash an article of clothing, return it to the closet with the hanger facing the right way. In a few months, you can easily see what you wear and what you don't! Meal PlanningIt's not secret that meal planning helps you get through the week, while sticking to your nutrition plan. Take time on the weekends to prep and plan you meals to set yourself up for a great week! Set a new fitness goal
How can you challenge yourself in the upcoming new year?
Who would benefit from DiscIts?
The people at Discits want YOU to try out their no-tie laces, so they're giving away a pair to three lucky readers! There are many ways to enter, and you can enter once/day from now until Monday. Use the widget below or follow this link! Why do you want to try DiscIts?
1. Get yourself a calendar for the week. Whether you use your planner, a calendar in the kitchen, or a blank schedule for the week. I usually print one out on Word that has the days listed, and a place for the workouts. 2. Gather your schedule and fill in any important times. Write down a day when you can’t work out because you have another commitment or maybe you work too long that day. We all have those days, so plan them out. I typically write down when I will work out, whether morning or night, before school or after school, etc. 3. Schedule your rest day. Everyone is different, and some require one rest day, or some require a few. The best thing for me to do is to physically schedule one in. I have a hard time taking days off from working out (I like it too much!) but if I schedule one in, I have no problem taking it off. My rest day is almost always Sunday. I enjoy making it a relaxing day! 4. Gather workout inspiration. I have a lot of saved workouts on my computer from various blogs, but feel free to use whatever! Maybe you want to come up with your own, maybe you are using some from a magazine, or maybe you are browsing Pinterest. However you have them saved, grab some. I have a lot of workout options here for you to get some ideas or new workouts!
6. Find a workout to match your schedule. Now that you have a brief layout of what you want to do, and you have your workouts in hand, match them up! Find new ones you are excited for, find ones you haven’t done, find some you have that are all-time favorites! 7. Do what works for you. Maybe you don’t like to do cardio and lifting on the same day; no big deal! Maybe you don’t want to lift 3 days a week; no big deal! Make it work for you and keep true to yourself! I hope you all found something new to help you work out during the week! I promise it might seem like a lot, but it really doesn’t take much time, and saves you plenty during the week. I stick to my workouts a lot easier when I know it’s a lifting day, and I can’t just move it to the next day without mixing up the entire week. Now that you know how to schedule your workouts for the week, head over to my blog where Jillian shares her tips of sticking to a workout when things come up during the week! |
Jillian [FitYaf]fitness enthusiast. Archives
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To my readers, please note this website and blog is for educational and informational purposes only. For medical advice, dietary restrictions, and/or medical diagnosis, and before beginning any diet and/or exercise program, please consult a doctor or healthcare professional.
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