Loving Life!

11 days until the Danskin! I have learned so much about myself, nutrition, exercise, pushing yourself to the limit, and the power of comraderie. I can't wait to share it all with you....but I gotta make it through these last 11 days, 2 more days of school, and our vacation to South Padre Island.

Just a couple of stats: Weight this morning was 171.8, exactly 4 lbs over my LIW, so I am good there. I have lost another inch and a half over all, but mainly from my hips and thighs! Woohoo! So I am definitely building muscle.

I miss all of you guys! And I promise to be a regular again soon. I have so much that I want to share with you all!

Busy Busy Busy!

Hi All!

Sorry about the disappearing act...but I swear that the month of May always wears me out! We have so many activities in our family, and all of them are winding down!

Then when you add in my training, it makes everyday jampacked. We are at the high point of training right now. So that means maximum effort, training, etc. But it is going so well! I am having a ball.

On Mother's day we went out and rode the bike course. It was soooo windy! But I am stronger than ever. Gee, I wonder if losing almost 30 lbs. had anything to do with that? One funny part is that while it is much easier going UP the hills, I don't get as much UUUMPF going DOWN the hills ( From the weight) as I used to!!

I am the most pleased though with my swimming. I have a congenital birth defect, and am missing some muscles in both wrists, and one arm. So I swim the breast stroke. The past 2 years, I have finished the 1/2 mile swim feeling like my heart is going to explode out of my chest, and I have been slower than molasses. This year, I am markedly faster! But best of all, I am a relaxed swimmer! So even if I don't finish the swim any faster on race day, I know that I will be better on the bike because I will be able to transition faster and easier!

The runningpart is what it is. I'll save any improvement in running for next year!

Food. I promise that I will continue my exercise and food musings. But I need to get through at least this weekend. all of my daughter's year end functions will finally be over by Sunday.

I will tell you that I was very suprised at the lack of fueling knowledge by women in my group. We had a talk given by a sports Nutritionist, and very few knew even what I knew. And some of these women are very intense about their training!

You all will be happy to know that I am now very consistent at 172-172.5 in my weight. Which is 5-6 lbs over LIW. My measurements are essentially the same. Hips and thighs are a tad less, (about .25) waist is a hair more. (about .5) I think that small increase in waist measurement IS the carbs. I think that you bloat more with carbs. So I do believe that my 5 lbs are now muscle.

I hope all of you are well out there. I promise to make the rounds today or tomorrow!

Protocol and Exercise Part 2

Sorry for not posting yesterday, but we have ramped up Danskin training and work is a bear!

So I left off with at the point that shows the different forms and places our body stores fuel. As I said, aerobic exercise is steady and moderate, slow and easy. You can easily carry on a conversation while exercising. Once your breathing becomes the least bit labored, you are moving on to anaerobic, and for that, you need carbohydrates.

So, this all makes sense to me, especially when I remember how tired I was walking up a big hill while on this protocol, yet in doing normal day to day activities, I was never once tired. Think about it, on this protocol, we are consuming at best 150-175 calories of carbohydrates per day. Blood glucose stores approximately 80 of those, and is the most accesible. My lifestyle calorie burn is approximately 500 cals per day. My BMR calorie expenditure is approximately 1700. From everything that I have read, even aerobically, you will first burn the glucose. But if you are exercising in an anaerobic state, your body can't be as efficient in converting fat to fuel. That's when you hit the wall.

Let me put this disclaimer in right now. First, this is based upon my VERY BASIC understanding, and, this is a work in progress!

Now then, there are people who are marathoners, etc, that subscribe to a low carb diet philosophy. That is something that I am researching.

More coming soon!

Thanks everyone for your kind comments!

Everyone has an Opinion, Part One

And today, you get to hear mine!

Do exercise and P2 mix? Well, according to Pounds and Inches by Dr. Simeon, no, they really don't. He says not to start any exercise program while on this protocol. He does say that you may continue any program that you are currently doing. So you say, well, what if I have been working out, lifting weights, running 2-3 miles, I should be able to continue, right?

Well I say WRONG! First and foremost, when Dr. Simeon wrote this, Jack Lalane was the exercise guru of the world! Who remembers seeing his black and white exercise show on TV? ( OK folks, I'm not THAT old...I was really little, and it was already syndicated!) Well, he would do jumping jacks, sit ups, and then this "jiggle belt" thing. It was a piece of equipment that had a belt that went around your hips, and it "jiggled" your hips away, ( I guess)

No one ran 3 miles after work, or bench pressed 300 lbs., or did jazzercise, cycled, or swam! People "strolled" after dinner for exercise!

So what happens within your body when you exercise?

First, lets understand where your body stores its' fuel, and in what quantities.

Carbohydrates:
Blood glucose: 80 calories
Liver glycogen: 300-400 calories
Muscle glycogen: 1200-1800 calories

Fat:
Blood fatty acids: 7 cals
Serum triglycerides: 75 cals
Muscle triglycerides: 2,700 cals
Adipose tissue triglycerides: 80,000 cals

Protein:
Muscle protein: 30,000 cals

As you can see, even skinny people have enough adipose tissue to fuel ALOT of SOME kind of activity! I know that you are thinking, "See, you CAN exercise, look at the fuel! "

But hold on! Basically, your body uses 2 distinct energy systems to function. aerobic, and anaerobic. Aerobic refers to moderate and steady. Walking, talking, cleaning, cooking, and the rest of daily activities are aerobic, while running, doing any type of cardio, weights etc, involve both the aerobic and anerobic systems.

And guess which system uses which fuel? You got it! Aerobic uses primarily the fat fuel, and anerobic uses the carbohydrate fuel.

Tomorrow I'll talk about how your body draws upon its' fuel reserves.

Becca, Biz and Monica: My theories and $2.50 will get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks! LOL

Working on Some Theories

Hi all,

Just a short note to let you know that I am ok, and training is going well. I am working on some research, and trying to formulate some opinions on exercise and the protocol.

Bear with me!