SMART GOALS for 2022

Happy 2022. Can you believe we are entering our 3rd year of this crazy alternative universe, aka the Covid Pandemic? Many of us have made adaptations to our “new” way of living and learned a lot about ourselves, what makes us happy, what fulfills us, what our priorities are. The beginning of a new year always makes me reflective of the past year and entertain the possibilities of the new year. While I am not a person who makes resolutions, I do LOVE goals. I spent my little “staycation” these past three days setting my goals for this year. I have a few on my list, like running the NYC Half Marathon with my daughter in March and beginning to clean out the boxes and boxes of photos that I have stored away, organizing and tossing out bad or duplicate pictures. I have my training plan in place for the race and I have a goal of 1/2 a box every weekend from now until the end of April. Do you have any goals for this new year? I know you know this already, but when setting goals, make sure that they are SMART.

Our last half marathon, 3 years ago!

Specific.  Specific refers to what you are going to do.  Use action words such as exercise, eat, and coordinate.  Think about why you are choosing this particular goal.  A good idea of a SPECIFIC goal is: I am going to walk 3 miles in 45 minutes by March 1st.

Measurable.  If you can measure it, you can’t manage it.  Choose a goal with measurable progress.  You may have a long-term goal, but have smaller measurable steps along the way.  For example, if you want to run a 6-mile race in the spring, you should set your training program to build your mileage each week.  

Achievable.  Set goals that are achievable for YOU and you only.  Your friend may want to run a marathon in May.  This may not be important or attainable for you.  You may need to set a goal of running a 5k in September!

Realistic.  This does not mean easy.  It means Do-able.  Set the bar high enough to feel satisfied when you attain your goal, but not so high that the thought of your goal is overwhelming.  For example, rather than setting a goal not to eat sweets all month, it may be more realistic to set a goal to eat only one sweet per week.

Timely.  Set a time frame for your goal.  Next week, next month, by spring.  Putting a clear target in front of you gives you something to work toward and allows you start on it right away.  Remember though, if your time is more than a few weeks in the distance, set interim goals to get you there.

 I would love to hear from you about your goals for YOU in 2022. Good luck and let us know how we can help.

Plant Forward/Whole Foods Lifestyle

As you know, Paulo and I have been following our Plant Forward/Whole Food Lifestyle since September of 2017. (To read more about that decision: https://www.arlingtonpersonalfitness.com/apfupdates/2017/9/28/why-paulo-i-dipped-our-toes-into-plant-based-eating)

We believe that turning to a plant forward/whole food diet is one of the best steps you can take to improve your health, boost energy levels, and prevent chronic disease. Science shows changing your nutrition is a powerful way to live longer, help the environment, and reduce your risk of getting sick.

Excellent scientific evidence exists that many chronic diseases can be prevented, controlled, or even reversed with a whole-food, plant-based diet. Scientific research highlighted in the Forks Over Knives movie and The China Study book (among many other sources) shows that a plant-based diet can reduce the risk of type-2 diabetes, heart disease ,certain types of cancer and other major illnesses. Many people also report better fitness, more energy, reduced inflammation and better health outcomes at the doctors after making the switch to a plant forward diet.

Science also shows that one of the biggest obstacles to the adoption of a plant forward/whole food lifestyle is KNOWING what it means and HOW to implement it.

What it means is simple if you look at this list:

1. Meat & Poultry: Minimize or Avoid

2. Seafood: Minimize or Avoid

3. Eggs & Dairy: Minimize or Avoid

4. Oils: Minimize

5. Highly Processed Food: Minimize or Avoid

6. Whole Grains: YES

7. Fruits, Veggies, Starchy Veggies: YES

8. Legumes: YES

What is harder is implementing this into our daily lives. GOOD NEWS! We are here to help. Starting September 6th (after all, September is the new January) I will offer one week of a full plant forward meal plan for any one interested. The plan will include 3 meals per day, plus snacks options, plus your shopping list. All YOU have to do is shop and cook. Sounds intriguing right? An easy way to be healthier without having to work too hard. If you are interested after the first week, I will continue to offer the program for $10 per week for the remainder of the month. Let me know if you are interested in the trial period!

After all the work you put into your fitness, your nutrition is just as important!

Breathe!

Many years ago, I watched a Ted Talk called Shut Your Mouth and Change Your Life by Patrick McKeown. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBqGS-vEIs0 ) I started thinking more about breath, mouth breathing and I practiced some of the techniques he mentioned. Last summer during my Covid reading spree I read Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor. ( https://www.mrjamesnestor.com/breath/ ) Shortly after that, there was a series of articles in the NYT about breath which included breathing techniques and exercises. I may have sent these articles out to you (James Nestor is mentioned in these articles). All of this attention to breath sparked my interest in breathing (before then I didn’t breathe) and how it relates to stress, exercise and over all health.

Of course, we know that BREATH is life, but what a lot of us don’t realize is how breath affects our life. According to Dana Santas, (CNN Health Contributor whose article I have linked to this blog) , “Breathing plays a vital role in how you think, feel, rest and recover, and it even impacts your posture and movement.” How we breathe affects us at a cellular level. Changing the way we breathe can influence weight, athletic performance, allergies, asthma, snoring, mood, stress, and focus to name a few. Proper breathing is a key in weight training and cardiovascular conditioning, as well as yoga. In Dana’s article she talks about how she works with high level athletes whose performance is improved through better breathing techniques. Good breathing technique can assist in stress relief the same way improper breathing can create more stress in our body.

The first step in good breathing is to close your mouth. Breathing in and out of the nose filters and warms the air. It helps us takes fuller, deeper breaths. If you suffer from nasal congestion (almost 40 percent of people do) the first step is to clear that congestion. Neti pots, some essential oils and saline sprays can be helpful in clearing congestion. And of course, there are nose clearing techniques!

Take some DEEP breaths. The average person only uses 10 percent of the diaphragm. Shallow breathing puts stress into our neck and shoulders and can even keep us in a constant state of low level stress. Lie on your back, place one hand on your belly and the other on your chest. Breathe deeply in and out. Feel the belly rise and fall. Your chest should barely move. Practice this lying down until you feel comfortable and then move to sitting and standing.

Stand Up Straight. Poor posture restricts the diaphragm. Regularly stretch your chest muscles, upper back muscles and neck muscles regularly to improve your posture. We have pictures of these stretches on our website, but ALWAYS check with your trainer about how to stretch to improve your posture and breath.

James Nestor and the NYT article both include more techniques to enhance better breathing. Dana Santas from CNN will be writing a four part article on Breath.

I have attached the NYT article here, as well as the CNN newsletter. Don’t take your breathing for granted!

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/18/at-home/coronavirus-breathing-exercises.html

https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/16/health/breathing-better-training-wellness/index.html?utm_source=Six+Minute+Mile&utm_campaign=ff19bee771-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_07_28_03_29_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6e5b2f993e-ff19bee771-12246186

Is September is the New January?

Recently I was reading a blog post by one of my favorite authors and self help gurus, Gretchen Rubin. She discusses September as another January, a clean slate on which we can write new possibilities. To many of us, September IS like January. Through years of schooling we have been conditioned to think of September as a chance for renewal. Our vacations are over, a new season is upon us. Is this September different? Our lives have been upended for six months now. I know I have gone through peaks and valleys of my mood, my eating and my exercise motivation. Last year at this time I was training for the Gulf Coast Half Marathon with my daughter, feeling lean and fit and strong. Now it feels like every run is LONG enough. But while September will more than likely not return us to the life we knew before quarantine, I BELIEVE we can use it as a beginning. To begin to refocus on some of the things we may have let fall to the wayside as we began to suffer from quarantine fatigue. September FEELS like a good time to make a RESET. Perhaps with the change of temperature, we can get outdoors and exercise more, maybe meet a friend for a social distancing exercise session. With the onset of autumn vegetables, maybe we can be motivated to try new, healthy recipes and focus on the weight we wanted to lose when the change of habits in quarantine interrupted us. Perhaps we can add the virtual workout that we have lacked the motivation to find the time and space for, whether it is a class or a private session. Whatever the change you want to make now that we have seen the summer go by, in the words of Gretchen Rubin, “ September gives the same feeling of an empty calendar and a clean slate”. The air seems charged with possibility and renewal.” I am going to challenge myself, and I encourage you to challenge yourself, to add something to make your life healthier and happier. And, as always, I am here to help you in any way you need. Think about it.

Link to the original post by Gretchen Rubin:

https://www.betterapp.us/posts/7882769?notification_id=888754193&utm_campaign=notification_space_post_create_notify_all&utm_medium=email&utm_source=transactional_emails

It's Never Too Late!

This morning a client sent me this quote from F Scott Fitzgerald (although there is some debate who actually said this originally). This quote struck me as so relevant to the times we are living in. Having been working with many of you over the past 18 weeks of “quarantine life” I know that many people have felt as if their life has been put on hold. Many people have been waiting for the gyms to open to get their healthy lifestyles back. They are waiting for the time to be right to focus on their nutrition, waiting until covid-19 is under control to quit drinking, quit smoking, get to bed earlier, start meditating, etc. Well, it does not look like our lives will be quite normal for the foreseeable future! So if you have been “WAITING” for the time to be RIGHT, now may be the RIGHT time for you to make a positive change in your life for your health’s sake. While APF is not open for IN PERSON training, we are still taking on clients virtually for training or coaching . Health coaching is a great benefit for those of you who may be having a hard time staying motivated and sticking to your plan on your own. Paulo & I still do not know when we will feel comfortable opening the doors to our gym given that we cannot even get our kids in school here in Virginia but we are working daily to make our clients lives healthier and happier. Let us know if we can help you.