Week Seven - Running Clinic - Fair Weather Friends

Hey all here is the Workout Log for Week Seven! Our run this week was a lot of fun and we got to talk a lot about nutrition at the end. Next week if anyone wants to bring their nutrition logs to discuss we can.

Run! Weather Or Not!

Our run this Saturday morning was drizzly and cool. We stretched a lot quicker than we normally would and we began the run quickly. It is amazing how much more motivated we are to get a workout going and over with when we are outside in cool, wet weather.

We live in the Pacific NW and that means a lot more grey skies and dampness to workout within if we are going to be outside. I thought I would take the time in this blog to give you a few brief tips for working out in our PacNW weather, because even in the damp greyness of our days, our outdoor activities are still so much fun to do!

Portland, Oregon is such a great city to live in a for riding bikes, running and walking. We have platinum rated bike paths on our streets. We have volcanoes to hike up in the center of the city. We have huge forested parks in every neighborhood and we have so many differently rich and diverse neighborhoods to explore. Portland really is a wonderland of discovery for the active adventure in all of us! Especially in the rain!

Some precautions to take for any damp grey day activity here in Portland (or wherever you may be) are:

1. Dress Appropriately and with Layers - It's Portland where it may be sunny in SE and pouring in NE, and although my experience here has not been as drastic as say the Caymen Islands where it was sunny and 100 degrees at my front door and pouring at the back, the extremes between neighborhoods can be pretty obvious. There are certain places in N and S east that are just giant wind-tunnels no matter what the weather is like the wind could blow you over. So, make sure you have, at the least, a light sweater and leg coverings for the moments when the weather wants to be a drama queen. And, if you dress in layers you can always strip away what you don't need. And stripping is one of Portland's most profitable and ever present businesses!

2. Maintain an Even Pace in the Rain - Whether riding your bike, or just pressing through your tennis shoes on your own two feet, trying to out race or out pace yourself in the rain is silly and sometimes just dangerous. When I rode in the downpour that was to be my triathlon, my bike's ability to stop was extremely different from what it had been when I was practicing for months with it on the nice dry ground. And this past Saturday morning, while running the waterfront, it was very noticeable, while pushing sprints across the Hawthorne Bridge, just how slippery our feet had become. So, it is always commendable and recommendable to keep a pace that may be challenging but isn't racing when being active in the rain. Yes I know you want to get done sooner because it is raining, but, when you have injured yourself and our now stuck laying in the rain hurt, well, you are going to wish you would have just slowed down.

3. Get Use to Mud - You can put fenders on your bike and wear a coat for the run and somehow mud still splashes up on you, sometimes in your face! During my triathlon my bike covered me in mud, as well as the bikes of those I passed and those who passed me. Also, the vehicles that passed by managed to coat me. During my run the mud was splashing up my legs with each stride. People would pass me or I them and their own shoes would throw mud on me as well. When I got home to shower their was mud in places that had remained completely covered! I just smiled and told myself that the cost of a mud treatment at a spa and the exfoliating I was getting for free just from being out in the rain were worth it! Seriously, those services are not cheap!

4. Wicked Witches Stay Home - The water does something to some people that I could only wish was melt them away like the Wicked Witch. Instead, the water seems to bring out the Wicked Witch in even the most cheery of people. So, if you are heading out in the rain do so without bringing the Wicked Witch. Seriously, you know you are headed out in the rain, you know it is going to be cold, wet, muddy and you are not going to be able to get done any quicker than if the skies were clear so deciding to bring the Wicked Witch with you, or not, really is your choice. Put a smile on your face for 15 seconds before you head out the door and convince yourself you are going to have fun! The rain is fun! Little kids splashing in puddles and Labradors racing through ponds is proof of this!

The damp dark months we have really are fun to be out and about in! So get out in them and enjoy the activities the city has to offer!

~TigressSky~

Running Clinic - Week Six - SMART Goal Setting

Here is the Workout Log for Week Six - just 6 more weeks until we do our 5k! Can't wait to be out there with you all smiling, running and crossing that finish line.

GOAL SETTING

Our runs have been so much fun! We get together and talk about our goals and motivations and you all have really be making me think   about what it means to set meaningful goals. My last blog post focused on this topic and today I would like to add just a bit more to the idea.

One of the first things I learned when I sat down with a personal trainer and nutrition coach was about setting SMART goals. This wasn't a new concept to me as I work as a Business Analyst and we try and help companies set SMART goals all the time. Yet, for some reason, I had not even thought about applying the idea of SMART goal setting to my fat loss journey.

WHAT ARE SMART GOALS

Smart goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time Based. In other words SMART goals are goals that are very clear and easily understood.

Specific - Goals should be straightforward and emphasize what you want to happen. Specifics help to focus efforts in a clear way so that we can define what we are going to do. The specifics define the how, what, when and where of our efforts and sometimes they even state why the goal is important. I would take it one step further and say that they should ALWAYS state why the goal is important.

          Example: To wear my size 8 jeans again by March 15th - within 6 months.

Measurable - The measurablity of a goal applies not only to the end result but also to all the milestones along the way. Measurable progress allows you to see the the change occur.

       Example: To get back into my size 8 jeans within 6 months I will accomplish the following goals:
                         - Journal & track my nutrition intake daily
                         - Exercise for at least an hour 5 days out of the week


Attainable -  This sounds rather straight forward but you should be sure that the goals you set are achievable. Yet it happens often that goals get set which are way out of reach and if you set your goals to far out of reach you most likely won't even attempt to do them.

Attainable goals are achievable and important to you. These are the types of goals that you will take the time to develop the attitude, abilities, skills and capacity to make come true. These goals are possible and give you a feeling of being worth the effort.

Relevant/Realistic - Goals should be relevant to what you want to achieve in the short and long term. They should allow you vision and purpose in accomplishing the goal. Realistic does not mean easy either; it means do-able. Do-able goals are ones where the learning curve is a curve, not a vertical slope! As well a do-able goal is one where the skills needed to achieve the goal are available. The goal should be realistic to who you are, where you are at in your life and what your overall needs are in the moment.

Example: If you love to eat sweets setting a goal to never eat sweets again may not be realistic or relevant to you. However, setting a goal to eat 1 serving of fruit as a substitute to a sweet could.

Time-Bound/Timely -  Quite often this piece overlaps with the goal being Specific, but it aims to ensure that you are setting a time-frame to achieve your goals. Someone once said, "a goal is a dream with a time-frame to it!" Putting an end point on your goal gives you a clear target to work towards. Without setting a time-frame the commitment you are making becomes to vague. It tends to not happen because you feel you can start anytime. Remember, whatever time you set should also be measurable, attainable and realistic.

If you find difficulty in setting a SMART goal then it is more than likely that your future plans are not clear enough and need to be worked on more. If you are having a challenge setting your goals please do not just jump in and get on with it. Without a goal you are going to just feel like you are adrift, working hard yet accomplishing nothing.

WHY IS GOAL SETTING SO IMPORTANT?

Goal setting is a powerful process for thinking about your future and motivating you to make this future a reality. By knowing precisely what you want to achieve you know where to concentrate your efforts. Once you have a goal you'll also be able to quickly and easily spot any distractions that could lead you astray. Goal setting gives you long term goals with short term motivations. It allows you to focus your time and resources so you can accomplish your goal. It gives you something you can measure and take pride in with each step you reach in achieving the end result. Most importantly it allows you to see forward progress in an endevour you may have previously simply felt like a pointless grind.

Personally I think the most important thing that goal setting will do for you is to boost and build your overall self-confidence. With all of the progress you will be making, and with each milestone you accomplish, you will become more and more aware of your own ability and competence in achieving things you have always wanted to do!

So, if you don't already set goals well start doing so and start now! As you make this technique a part of your life it will become easier and your accomplishments and celebration of achievements will come faster. You can apply this to any part of your life, not just fat loss, so, try it now with something small and find out all YOU really can do!

~TigressSky~

Running Clinic - Week Five - Motivational Goal Setting

Our runs are becoming more ambitious! As well I have upped our challenges to give us a strong finish. Here is the Workout Log for week five.

THE SCALE OF DOOM!!!

I've talked a lot this week with individuals about goals, which prompted me to want to blog about it. I find, just as I use to do, people set their goals based on immeasurable and damn near unachievable ideals. One of the worst goals we all tend to set in the beginning is, "I want to weigh x-number of pounds."

First off if you are using your scale as a measurement of success you are already setting yourself up for failure. I promise you this.

A scale is ONLY a fat loss and weight maintenance TOOL. A scale should never be used as a measurable GOAL. In short, monitoring your weight is just one of many tools you can use to achieve your goals but it should not be a goal.

Why? Well, weight fluctuates on a regular basis for everyone. We celebrate a pound lost today and beat ourselves up for a pound gained tomorrow. The majority of the time this flux in weight has nothing to do with losing or gaining fat. Instead the scale increase is showing us our water retention, food intake and processing, or even just simple swollen joints caused by tension or stress in our muscles.

When you spend all your time focused on "losing weight" you miss out on all the good things you ARE accomplishing. Your weight and your scale should be looked at as tools to help you succeed, not goals you want to achieve.

WHAT IS A GOAL THEN?

I tend to ask myself this question when setting a goal: "Is this something tangible that I can be complimented on easily?" If it is not, then it really is not a goal.

When you achieve a goal it should be like a light going off! It should be something people can see easily and celebrate with you. Things like finishing your first 5k, fitting into a brand new sexy dress or cooking everyone a new tasty healthy meal.

Yes, people may see something new about you and say, "hey have you lost weight?" but it is not your actual weight shown by the scale that they are complimenting. (Heck, half the time they ask this question you may have actually gained weight!) Instead, what people are noticing is how good you look in something you are wearing or how light and happy you seem that day. These are tangible things people can see you have accomplished.


I WILL NEVER LOOK LIKE HER.

That is right you will never look like her. Nor should you want to. Looking like someone you are not should never be your goal. You are guaranteed to fail this goal no matter what. It is literally impossible for you to look like someone else.

We are horrible to ourselves. Always comparing ourselves to another, always seeing tons of flaws and beating ourselves up with a focus on "dieting" and "losing weight" to obtain an impossible ideal we have set in our head.

I do it. I look at women shorter than me, at how cute, petite and gorgeously feminine they are. I look at women who are taller than me, like my little sister for example, and I wonder why I can't be thin like her and have her beautiful flat stomach. It is here, in thoughts like these were we preset ourselves up for failure as we focus on wanting to be something that is literally impossible.

This journey should NOT focus on becoming the best somebody else we can be. It should instead focus on becoming the best YOU can be! And guess what, you don't even know who that person is that you could become because you spend so much time focused on trying to make that person you could be into someone else.

This is not about being who you want to be and who you see in the shapes of others. This is instead about discovering the you that you can be! You and I have no idea who that person is, in fact, you won't even recognize her when she gets here because you NEVER thought she would! You NEVER thought she existed! That woman/man you keep telling yourself you can't be is stopping you from discovering the woman/man you CAN BE! So stop letting them!

Seriously, when I started this journey I NEVER thought I would be smaller than a size 12. I NEVER thought I would run a mile. I NEVER thought I would wear a small sized anything! Yet the woman I became showed me that SHE is a size 8, that SHE can complete a Triathlon and that SHE can wear a size small if she damn well wants to. After meeting this new woman I am becoming I am even more excited to learn all about her and what else she can do! Seriously, the woman I am now is so excited to meet the woman I will become that I just can't help but keep letting her shine through! Yes, every now and then the woman I am wants to be Angelina Jolie, but, the woman I am becoming knows that I am becoming something more than the impossible and that anything really is possible.

I promise you, anything is possible if you just stop limiting your possibilities and instead start letting yourself shine! What's your motivation?

~TigressSky~