Guess who worked out today?

this guy!

Would you call it a dream come true? You could call it that.

We had set an appointment earlier in the week (mind you, we've done this many times before)....for noon today. Guess who was still asleep at 11:50?

So I woke him up, said it was time to work out, he tried to disagree half heartedly and then he got up and I trained him.

It was fun. We both agree to that. Peanut had fun too....playing around while Zeb was doing exercises on the floor.

We started with a 30 minute session, no equipment, just body weight. It was challenging, but doable and not at all intimidating.

Session #2 has yet to be scheduled, but will be scheduled.

I'm so happy!

PASS!

I passed I passed I passed....well I haven't talked about it much, if any, on here, but I was studying for my ACE personal trainer certification for, oh I don't know, the past year.

Do you think a post about how I studied all day would have been interesting?

me neither...

Let me take you back for a moment; I bought the material last fall and studied on my own for a few months and then put off taking the test.

Then I took a 10 week course that began April 1, 2010 and then I studied even more on my own and then this morning I woke up marched in and passed the test....

or maybe a little more like, I woke up too early, (read 5 am) left the house one hour before test time, got lost on the way to the testing center, finally found the building and walked into the room and ...the passed the test....less authoritative, more nervous.

www.acefitness.com

I was asked today why I got another certification (because I can't charge people at Scott Fitness more money) and here are my answers...

1. To continue growing and learning in this field.

2. To have a more nationally recognized certification

I guess just those 2 reasons for now....mostly to learn more...and I did. I learned a ton and studied a ton (maybe too much)....

I am so glad it's over!!

ACE Certified Personal Trainer!

That's me!

I love Michael Pollan.

Today I'll be stealing a page from his book Food Rules again.

This time...

Rule #57:

Don't get your fuel from the same place your car does.

American gas stations now make more money inside selling food (and cigarettes) than they do outside selling gasoline. But consider what kind of food this is: Except perhaps the milk and water, it's all highly processed, imperishable snack foods and extravagantly sweetened soft drinks in hefty twenty-ounce bottles. Gas stations have become "processed corn stations": ethanol outside for your car and high-fructose corn syrup inside for you. Don't eat here.

http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/014311638X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278426491&sr=8-1

It is honestly hot out there!

My goodness....the humidity is high....not just affecting those of us that exercise outside but those who work hard inside as well....

it's hot, plain and simple.

What's important now is to DRINK LOTS OF WATER! I've said it before and I'll say it again.....water is your friend.

According to the Food Guide Pyramid (www.mypyramid.gov) you should consume 2-3 quart of water PER DAY......that's EVERYDAY, people.

There are also guidelines concerning the amount of water you should drink before during and after your workouts. The most important one, I believe is after your workout water consumption. This is important for several reasons.

The first one being that I do believe people will listen to their bodies and drink water when they need to during their workout sessions.....the rule here happens to be 7-10 oz every 10-20 minutes.

However, after your workout it might be fun for some of you to see the dramatic weight loss you achieved after a good sweat....well....that water needs to be replaced. Losing water weight is not the goal of exercise, the goal of exercise to to get strong muscles, challenge your heart and perhaps fat loss for some....

Water loss will occur, but for a fully functioning body, you need to replace it....16-24 oz of water for every pound of weight loss after exercise.

Hydration is key....

my first "injury"

Well I am not the type of person that gets injured. I really believe in listening to my body and how I am feeling each day and building my workout around that. If at the beginning of the week I think I could run 5 files 3 days that week and on the second day of this running escapade, I feel heavy and sore and like this could be the longest 5 miles of my life, I might only run 3, better yet, I might just do a yoga class instead.

I never want to be hurt or feel bad....I exercise to feel good.

So last week I got injured....and took 3 days off from working out. I was a little bit upset about the whole thing, but knew I would do myself no good if I injured myself even further.

Let me tell you how it all began.... So I have been studying for this ACE personal trainers fitness exam pretty intensely for the last week. During day 2 or 3 of this intense study session, I was at a local coffee shop and thinking about how small the table was and how that caused me to really crunch up my body and hunch over, but I just kept right on studying....taking notes, making note cards...

Fast forward to Tuesday and I have the worst pain in the right side of my neck which radiates down to my right shoulder... which affects my ability to turn my head, lift my arm or even sleep comfortably. This was not good. So I rested. I didn't even run, which I thought I could probably do except I do have the tendency to tighten my shoulders when I run....and I just didn't want to risk it.

So I rested....and still studied, just more mindfully, and watched a little bit more TV....for healing purposes, of course.

Cut to Saturday and a friend invites me to coffee....so I decide to run to her house (about .5 miles) and then we walk about 2 miles to the Roasterie with me sometimes carrying an approx 20 lb baby and I am feeling good. I can still feel a little pull with certain activities.....but not like Wednesday. We walk 2 miles home and then I run the .5 to my house and feel renewed....like I can workout again.

And I will.

Watch out, Monday.

image from www.weheartit.com

Interesting article...

http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/06/10/sitting-health-physiology.html

Rule #19

If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made in a plant, don't.

Food Rules

Michael Pollan

http://www.michaelpollan.com/