I enjoyed the comparison between now and “then”.

In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that she should bring her own grocery bag because plastic bagsweren’t good for the environment.

The woman apologized to him and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.”

The clerk responded, “That’s our problem today. The former generation did not care enough to save our environment.”

He was right, that generation didn’t have the green thing in its day.

Back then, they returned their milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.

But they didn’t have the green thing back in that customer’s day.

In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building.

They walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks.

But she was right. They didn’t have the green thing in her day.

Back then, they washed the baby’s diapers because they didn’t have the throw-away kind.

They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts – wind, solar power really did dry the clothes.

Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

But that old lady is right, they didn’t have the green thing back in her day.

Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house – not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief, not a screen the size of the state of Montana .

In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn’t have electric machines to do everything for you.

When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not polystyrene or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, they didn’t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power.

They exercised by working so they didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

They drank from a fountain when they were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water.

They refilled their writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But they didn’t have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service.

They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances.

And they didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.

Hear me now and believe me later…

It was many moons ago, but I recall reading from Protein Power that only about 20% of your cholesterol reading is from what you ingest.  The rest is your body creating cholesterol because the liver can not handle the amount of carbohydrates you have ingested.

The Paleo Solution is explaining this to me in more detail.  So, here it is… regurgitated all over you.

We get high blood glucose levels when we eat too many carbohydrates.  The liver converts this to a fatty acid and attaches proteins and cholesterol. This is called a VLDL (very low-density lipoprotein). It is sent out into the body and we can burn it for fuel or store it as fat.  This is where the nasty, small, dense and very damaging kind of cholesterol comes from… the kind that damages your arterial lining.

If you have high LDL cholesterol, you should read Protein Power or The Paleo Solution.

I have never been one to be a “fan” of a person.  I like and appreciate all types of people, celebrity or not.  This is the first time I am going to make a special trip to the book store to buy an autobiography.  I am a Steven Tyler fan!!

Aerosmith music has always been on the top of my itunes, not just because of alphabetical order.  But now, we can all view Tyler’s personality first hand on American Idol.  And tonight I saw him on Dateline.  Tyler OWNS it!  He owns his life, flaws, attitude, failure and success.  He is sweet, compassionate and consistently laughing… and I love it!!

I got this from yahoo…. here is the direct link: click here

Warm Up With Cardio, Then Go To Weights. Right? Wrong.

Wednesday, April 20 2011 8:25 AM

Written by: Kaitlin Sandeno

Having been an athlete for most of my life, I figured I knew my way around the gym. On a typical day, I’d hit the treadmill or elliptical machine for 30 minutes, then move to the weight machines. And that’s what I started to do when I recently joined a gym. Then I got my assessment — you know, the review of your habits a lot of gyms do. And the review told me I was doing something wrong.

Hit the weights hard, the assessment said. Then go to cardio.

What?

“The body needs to burn through its sugar source first before it taps into the fat,” says Iman Nikzad, who runs the fitness program at my LA Fitness near Irvine, Ca. “You burn the sugar while doing the weights then burn the fat while doing the cardio.”

I did some more research and, turns out, he’s right and I was wrong. The optimal workout is a 10-minute warm-up on a low-impact cardio machine followed by 30 minutes of weights and then 30 minutes of intense cardio.

Yes, really.

“Efficiency is the key when structuring any workout, so long-duration cardio should not be done in the beginning of the session,” says certified strength and conditioning specialist Jim Smith. “The most intensive training should be done first in the workout, when you are at your best.”

By starting with weights, you alert your muscles to trigger the proteins that churn through calories while you train. So even though you’re probably spent after 30 minutes of weights, your body is ready to eat fat faster than it would if you started by “telling” the body to attack sugar.

A lot of people get this wrong, thinking weight training diminishes the effect of the cardio work. It’s the opposite. Just remember the phrase: “Muscle eats the fat.” If you want to lose the flab — and who doesn’t? — you want your muscles as active as possible. That means starting with weights.

And if you only have 30 minutes total, go for weights instead of cardio. That sounds counterintuitive, since we feel sweating is “proof” we’re losing fat. But you will lose a lot more fat by pushing and pulling weights and then going on a brisk walk in your neighborhood (or even at the mall). The guy or gal who is dripping buckets on the Stairmaster is getting a good workout, but you’re likely getting a better one by getting sore and not getting soaked.

Nick Bromberg contributed to this story.

I love it!!  I love it when men bitch and moan!!  Then they run home and pound on the keyboard, getting their panties in a wad, venting their problems.

Click here to read such an article… The Soft Shutdown (whatever that means)

I skimmed the article, but don’t have too much interest in the controversy of a woman’s place in the gym.  I will show you my place … then you may reevaluate YOUR place.

Listen, really.  Training and tolerance for the environment around you IS a personal… creation… almost a fantasy world we build for intensity.

I do know a good friend, Shannon Hartnett, who was sued for owning a women’s gym in San Francisco.  For shame, it was a good business.  And hell yes, open your men’s only gyms.  Do it all!!  Do what ever is in demand.

I am taking action.  MMA is great and fun, I love the people!  However, I stalled out.  Remember, I said I was going to lose 30 lbs?  Well, I lost 20 lbs.  Then, gained back 5 lbs.  My training dynamic changed via personalities and personal decisions.  I still trained, but I wasn’t losing weight.  Time for punishment.

Until I lose that other ten pounds, I am not allowing myself to return to MMA practice.  My vision is that I will return and my coaches will be like “damn you look leaner”… but is it really about them? I need to prove to them…. er umm, MYSELF, that I am in control of my body.  I need them (me) to see I know how to melt it off when I choose.

Plus, it is time to look the part again.  I know I look big and strong.  But, as one gets leaner, they look bigger and stronger.

HEY, the Paleo Solution eating program is working like a charm, by the way.  I have buckled down for full 8 days and I am already 3 lbs lighter than I had been before starting Paleo.

Progress report:  I have 8.8 more pounds to lose before I am allowed to return to MMA.

You have choices… You can eat a whole lot of carbohydrates and feel hungry and lethargic.  Or, you can eat keep your carbohydrates to a minimum and ingest higher amounts of protein and fat to feel satisfied and energetic.  Is it that simple…. ah YES!  Here are some things I have learned:

From Protein Power by Michael and Mary Eades:  Eating protein and fat will lower your blood sugar.  The body wants to push that blood sugar back to normal, so it releases Glucagon which allows us to burn fat for energy.  On the contrary, eating carbohydrates will increase your blood sugar.  The body, again, wants a normal level, so it releases Insulin which puts us in a fat storing state.

From The Paleo Solution by Robb Wolf:  A hormone is released when you eat, peptide YY (PYY).  It tells you “I’m satisfied” and it also helps us improve our ability to sense how much fuel we have stored.  When you eat protein, you release the highest amount of PPY.  When you eat fat, you release a lot of PPY, also, but not as much as protein.  Eating carbohydrates releases a significantly lower amount of PPY.

The gist!!

Eat Protein and Fat = burn fat = feel satisfied
Eat Carbohydrates = store fat = feel hungry

I am not going to make a bunch of excuses as to why I did not post for a while. But I will tell you, I traveled across the country, from Connecticut to California via car. And I took my own sweet time… three weeks. No computer and barely touched my phone. Jealous?

That brings me to now. After sitting in a car and most of the time eating fast food, I am super motivated to eat clean! Especially, because I stopped at my sister’s in Colorado and she looks amazing!! She does the Paleo eating program, which I have tried before and liked. My sister is wife/mom/engineer with a vein popping out in her lower ab. I will be seeing her at a wedding in June and I can not have her looking better than me!! So, I am on the bad wagon, but she showed me a much more fun and tasty way to do Paleo right.

I am reading The Paleo Solution, see the link below. It is super techinical, but very informative. I think it is a great eating program. So, it is important to read and reread until I am able to regurgitate the information correctly to my gym clients.

Fair warning, I will be regurgitating all over YOU!!! I’ll share the highlights of my learning process. I have already read some information to support some beliefs I have learned and preached over the last 15 years. Next blog I will answer the question, “Is eating 2,000 calories the same as eating 2,000 calories of protein/fat?”

Every week I go to a motivational meeting. Such a great experience. I learn a lot about myself and get to meet great people. Here is a short video we watched. Enjoy!!

Now, go think positive!

We did a fun workout today at Paragon MMA/Jiu Jitsu.  It was a circuit; we went around 5 times.  My heart rate was up there!

Station 1:  Push-ups on Dumbbells – each time you did a push-up, at the top you did a dumbbell row

Station 2:  Punches with Rubber Band Tension – band is looped at shoulder level behind  you while continually doing a jab and a right straight

Station 3:  Deadlifts

Station 4:  Dumbbell Rows

Station 5: Rows and Front Squats with an 80 lb Cylinder Bag – the bag had straps, it starts hanging just above the ground, clean it up to sit on the shoulders and do a squat

If you try it, let me know.  So much FUN!!  Way better than going nowhere on a treadmill… in my opinion.