My first ever Marathon!!!

brightroom event photography


Well I did it!!! I completed my first ever marathon Sunday April 25, 2010 at the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon. It took me 5 hours and 21 minutes, but I jogged the entire thing and I finished!!!!!

I can honestly say that I would have never dreamed of even attempting a marathon a year ago. Then I started P90X. P90X has gotten me into the best shape of my life and I am almost 38 years old. I have never felt better about myself. I know now that I can do anything!!!!

I have figured out that if you work hard enough, ANYTHING is possible!!!!

Jenny

5 Simple Rules for Eating Sugar!

By Denis Faye

Few topics boggle dieters and fitness enthusiasts the way sugar does. Is this simple carbohydrate the key to unlocking elite sports performance? Or is it the chains that drag our country deeper into the obesity epidemic? Annoyingly, the answer is both. But before you throw your hands up in frustration and grab yourself a Twinkie®, let's take a minute to talk about sugar. It's not as complex as it seems. In fact, with just a few guidelines, it's incredibly easy to use these simple carbohydrates for good instead of evil.

Rule #1: Just say "know."

Here's a grossly oversimplified look at how sugar, also known as simple carbohydrates, works. Just as with all carbs, you eat sugar and it's absorbed by your blood, where, if you have the right amount of it, the insulin in your system converts the sugar to energy. However, if you introduce too much sugar into your system, the insulin stores it as body fat. A little stored body fat is fine; the body likes some emergency fuel. However, if your blood sugar spikes too often and the insulin has to work too hard converting fat, this can lead to a variety of health issues, including type 2 diabetes and heart problems.

As we'll discuss later, when your body obtains sugar from natural sources, like fruits and veggies, the process tends to be checked by fiber, which slows absorption. However, when you eat foods with added sugar, this can overwhelm the usual checks and balances, causing problems like those nasty blood sugar spikes. To make matters worse, consuming too much added sugar can cause a host of other problems, including tooth decay, increased triglycerides (or stored fat), and malnutrition (from overconsumption of foods filled with empty calories and deficient in nutrients).

If you wanted one overarching rule to work from, you might choose to avoid added sugars entirely. You'll get all the energy you need from foods with naturally occurring sugar. That said, there are times when refined sugar is okay or even beneficial. If you're able to build yourself a lifestyle completely free of added sugar, nice work. But for the rest of us, the trick is moderation.

Rule #2: Less is more.

One teaspoon of table sugar has 15 calories. Honestly, if you have a couple of cups of tea or coffee in the morning and you dump the proverbial spoonful of sugar in each, that's 30 calories. If the rest of your diet is tight and you're active, it won't matter. If you're trying to lose weight and eating at a severe deficit, you'll probably want to skip those few spoonfuls of sugar, because table sugar is nutritionally void and you want every calorie to count nutritionally. Other than that, though, life's short—enjoy your java.

Rule #3: High fructose corn syrup is the enemy . . .

In a recent study out of Princeton University, two groups of rats were fed a sucrose solution and a high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) solution. The rats that consumed the corn syrup got fatter. "Some people have claimed that high-fructose corn syrup is no different than other sweeteners when it comes to weight gain and obesity," said study leader Bart Hoebel, "but our results make it clear that this just isn't true, at least under the conditions of our tests."

There are a few possible explanations for this. One is that the ratio of fructose to glucose in HFCS is slightly higher. Another is that in the HFCS manufacturing process, fructose molecules are free and unbound, making them easier to absorb. The fructose in table sugar is bonded to the glucose, which means it requires an extra step to be used.1

Rule #3.5: . . . and it's hiding behind every corner.

And you thought Invasion of the Body Snatchers was creepy . . . Avoiding the obvious sweetened foods like soda, cake, cookies, and pies is only half the battle. Manufacturers add HFCS (as well as other sugars) to a mind-boggling amount of foods because it adds flavor. If it's in a bottle, box, or can, read the ingredients. You'll find sweeteners in everything from ketchup to peanut butter to bread to salad dressing. With a little effort, you can usually find versions of the same food with no added sugars or HFCS that are more nutritious and taste just as good.

Rule #4: No, the sugar in fruit isn't bad for you.

When the low-carb "revolution" hit in the early aughts, fruit was demonized for its sugar content. This is, in a word, ridiculous. Yes, fruit is loaded with sugar, but it's also usually loaded with fiber, which slows sugar absorption, making it an ideal way to get your simple carbs without straining your little insulin buddies. Fruit is also loaded with easy-to-absorb vitamins and minerals. Most fruit is also filled with water, yet another benefit.

Even relatively low-fiber fruits like bananas offer far too many benefits to deny. Bananas, in particular, are rich in electrolytes, which are crucial to sports performance. As I always say, I defy you to introduce me to an overweight person whose biggest indulgence is fruit.

You can think of the ingredients in Shakeology® the same way. Sure, there's a little sugar in there, but the protein and fiber slow absorption, and the massive amount of nutrients makes it all worthwhile.

Rule #5: Occasionally, a hit of straight sugar is a good thing.

You're sitting around watching television. You haven't done much today. Your glycogen stores are up, and because you've eaten normally, your blood sugar level is balanced. Time for some Results and Recovery Formula™? Probably not.

Conversely, you just blasted a killer workout. You've blown through your blood sugar and your glycogen, leaving you shaky and tired. Now, getting some sugar in there to recharge quickly wouldn't be such a bad idea. Furthermore, since it'll rush in so fast, it's a great opportunity to add some protein and micronutrients to that sugar blast, because they'll rush into where they're needed just as fast.

If you genuinely gave the workout your all and you're truly wiped out, you won't even come close to storing that sugar as fat.

So there you go. Not so tough, huh? With a little forethought and self-control, keeping an eye on your carbs can be, ahem, a piece of cake.

The Sleep Solution: 4 Ways to Get the Rest You Need to Boost Results!

By Denis Faye

Sometimes, people get so caught up in hammering workouts and cutting calories that they forget that half of getting great results is recovery. And one of the greatest tools in the recovery arsenal is a good night's sleep. It heals your mind and your body and, frankly, just makes you feel good.

But getting 8 hours between the sheets isn't always as easy as it sounds. If you're like most of us, you probably slept like crud last night. The National Sleep Foundation's 2010 Sleep in America poll talked to over a thousand people across the ethnic spectrum between the ages of 25 and 60, and found that the average American sleeps 6 to 7 hours a night. This lack of a solid 8 hours leaves them feeling continually fatigued and has a wide-reaching impact, from the workplace to the car to the bedroom. (Which is to say, the things you do in the bedroom besides sleeping, if you know what I mean.)

For you health and fitness fanatics, a lack of sleep also impacts your ability to stay in tip-top shape. A study last year out of Stanford noted that when the school's women's tennis team sawed logs for 10 hours or more a night over a 5- to 6-week period, their baseline sprint times improved by more than 1.5 seconds. Their hitting accuracy and depth also improved.

"Traditionally, elite athletes dedicate numerous hours to daily practice, strength training, and conditioning as well as work closely with nutritionists in hopes of optimizing their athletic performance," said study lead author Cheri Mah, in a rather long-winded and difficult-to-truncate quote. "However, very little, if any, attention is focused on an athlete's sleeping patterns and habits. While most athletes and coaching staff may believe that sleep is an important contributing factor in sports, many do not realize that optimal or peak performance can only occur when an athlete's sleep and sleep habits are optimal."

But if picking up a couple seconds on the tennis court isn't important to you, a good night's rest can also improve your ability to eat right. A number of studies have shown that a lack of sleep lowers levels of leptin and ghrelin, two hormones in your brain that act as appetite suppressants. Research from the University of Chicago showed that sleeping for a measly 4 hours over the course of one night increased subjects' appetites for high-carb foods by 45 percent!

It's hard to argue with these facts, but even as I write this, I can hear you grumbling, "Whatever! I'd love to sleep more, but 8 to 10 hours a night? Like that's going to happen." Honestly, I'm prone to agree, but even if that block o' eight isn't attainable, here are a few tricks to try to sneak in a little extra sleep or at least improve the quality of the slumber you do get.

1.Power naps! So you stayed up to catch the Late Late Show and then had to get up at the crack of dawn to pack your brood off to school. Now you're pooped. If you have 20 minutes, grab yourself 20 zzzs. A small study out of the University of California, Berkeley, showed that people who grabbed themselves a quickie performed 20 percent better on a series of memory exercises.

2.Go snackless. If you can't go for quantity, at least go for quality. Many people, particularly those who like to eat before bed, have written off late-night snacks warnings as old wives' tales. Well, before you plow into your Taco Bell® Fourthmeal, consider a study out of Northwest University showing that mice that ate a high-fat diet when they were supposed to be sleeping incurred a 48 percent weight increase. Mice that ate the same diet, but at the proper time, only experienced a 20 percent weight increase. The theory behind this is that night eating interferes with your body's circadian rhythms, which again affects your leptin levels. So, while it may seem like you're scratching an itch with that taco, you're actually increasing your hunger in the long run.

3.Push Play. Simply put, exercise poops you out! The Journal of the American Medical Association did a study on the impact of exercise on older adults with moderate sleep-related complaints. They split 43 healthy men and women between the ages of 50 and 76 into two groups. One group exercised moderately, meaning 30- to 40-minute aerobics classes four times a week, for 16 weeks. The other group made no changes to their lifestyles. By the end of the study, the exercisers reported more improvement in their quality of sleep than the control group.

Of course, it's best not to do this before bed. The time before sleep should be all about repose, so make sure you . . .

4.Wind down right. A lot of people feel the boob tube is ideal for easing into bedtime. In fact, it's a fairly stimulating activity, and just like cruising the interweb or hunting human prey, it's not an ideal way to change gears. "The hour before bed is an important time to relax and wind down before going to sleep," explained Thomas J. Balkin, PhD, Chairman of the National Sleep Foundation. "For those who are having problems sleeping, it's a good idea to consider whether your bedtime routines may be too alerting."

So tonight, consider reading a book, meditating, listening to some mellow music, or gentle stretching instead. You'll be sleeping like a rock in no time.