“What saves a man is to take a step. Then another step.”

–  Antoine de Saint-Exupery

I ran 11 miles this past Saturday.  That’s a new personal best in distance for me.  Previous was 10 miles.  Can’t help but look back and remember when I would struggle to just run 1/2 mile.  Doesn’t matter how small that first step is, just take it. 

Have a great Monday.

“Exercise More.  Leave the conveniences behind.”

Important message for women and everyone else to take better care of your heart.  Read more from Stacey Shipman here and also, don’t forget to check out Go Red for Women. 

Hey triathletes and other endurance athletes….  Check out LittleTriathlete.com for cool baby triathlon clothes and outfits.  Now your little ones have gear to wear while they watch you swim, bike, and run to the finish!

“Lifestyle changes can help you control and prevent high blood pressure - even if you’re taking blood pressure medication.”

– via Mayoclinic.com

I know I’ve talked about this before about a thousand times, but it’s still important.  You can do something about high blood pressure.   You can start right here and right now (don’t have high BP?  Send this to those you know with high BP):

1.  Eat healthier foods.  Try the DASH eating plan.

2.  Decrease salt intake.  Here’s a thought… vegetables (and everything else) don’t need tons of salt and butter to taste good. 

3.  Maintain a healthy weight.

4.  Physical activity.  More of it.  Find something you enjoy doing.

5.  Manage stress in your life.  I don’t know how you want to do this one, but you’ve gotta do it.  Read a book, put cucumbers on your eyes and relax, deep breathing, etc.

These tips and more found at Mayoclinic.com Lifestyle and Home Remedies for High Blood Pressure.

Pass this on. 

High blood pressure or not, we could all probably do better with these things. 

“The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it.”

– Moliere, French actor, playwright, and writer (1622-1673).

I saw this product at Walgreens a few days ago.  Jillian Michaels on the cover and here’s what the product promises:

“Two capsules before main meals and you lose weight… That’s it!”

“Helps reduce caloric intake.”

“High energy formula fights diet fatigue.”

With Jillian Michaels on the cover, it must really work, right?  Doubtful. 

First, as we all know, no pill is going to magically make you lose weight, or make you fit.  Second, want to reduce caloric intake?  Eat less junk food and more nutrient dense foods.  Third, want more energy?  Exercise.  Regular exercise. 

I’ve read a lot of articles calling Jillian a “sell out” for pushing supplements like these.   I’ll be honest, I agree.  If she’s as good of a trainer/fitness expert as everyone thinks she is, she shouldn’t be pushing stuff like this.

Win for Jillian.  Win for marketers and product makers.  Lose for the consumer.  Consumer loses money.  They don’t lose weight.  They don’t get fit.  Then they have to buy more products and lose more money.  And still, no results. 

I hope they paid you well, Jillian. 

Made turkey burgers for dinner the other night.  Oven-roasted red potatoes along with them.  Delicious and easy to make. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

1-1.5 lbs Ground Turkey

1 Zucchini

1 egg

Worchestershire Sauce

Garlic Powder

Onion Powder

Salt

Peppper

Whole wheat buns

Whatever toppings you want.

What I did:

Put ground turkey into a large bowl.  Shred up zucchini into turkey.  Add the egg, and everything else.  Mix together with hands.  Gets gooey.  Sorry about the measurments on the spices and stuff.  Just add it until it smells good (how amateur is that!).  Doesn’t need very much.  Just a bit of everything listed.

Broil in the oven until cooked (just a few mins).  Top with whatever you want (we had spinach and tomatoes), put it on your bun and enjoy it.  

If you have questions (because my recipe writing is terrible) holler at me. 

A study out of Louisiana State Univeristy took a look at the benefits of losing weight by diet only or by a combination of diet and exercise.  They found:

“Both the diet and diet plus exercise groups lost the same amount of weight, pounds of fat, and belly fat.  The diet plus exercise group increased fitness level by 22% with no change in the diet or control groups.”

“Total and bad cholesterol (LDL-cholesterol) decreased significantly in the diet plus exercise group only.   Good cholesterol levels increased significantly in all three groups including the control group.  However, blood pressure and insulin sensitivity improved in the diet plus exercise group only.”

– via Cooper Institute Blog Fitness vs Fatness: Diet vs Exercise for Weight Loss

Click the link to read more details about the study they reported on. 

The bottom line is creating better eating habits AND regular exercise will help you not only lose weight, but also create good physiological changes to your body. 

We all need to eat better and get plenty of exercise.  No pill can do it for us. 

“Your chances of success in any undertaking can always be measured by your belief in yourself.”

– Robert Collier

Happy Monday!