What I am giving up for Lent

Every year I try to give something up for Lent. This year I am going to give up chewing gum!
I seem to have an addiction to gum and I am going to try hard to try to give it up. Forty days of no gum and hopefully I will be able to give it up completely after 40 days. I gave up gum for about 1 week last year. My trainer insisted that I give it up for about 1 week before my last competition (mainly because it causes bloating). Unfortunately on some days a chew as much as 1 pack of gum a day! Maybe it's the sweetness that I am really addicted to? Maybe I am really addicted to sweets! To help determine if it's really an addiction to sweets, I am also going to give up candy.

What's the big deal about chewing gum? Well the problem is the artificial sweeteners in the gum. Some artificial sweeteners are not really good for you. I finally made up my mind after reading the following:

"Artificial sweeteners always seem to have a significant downside to them whether it is causing cancer (saccharin), seizures and headaches (aspartame), tumors (acesulfame K) or possible immunologic disorders (splenda). Now research shows they also promote weight gain."

I really don't use artificial sweeteners except for some stevia I add to my oatmeal so all I have to do give up gum! It's that easy! Not!

Hard Work or Genetics?

I recently heard a fitness expert say that if you want to look like a sprinter "do sprints", if you want to look like a yoga instructor do yoga, or a Pilate's instructor do Pilate's. Pretty crazy, so if I start playing basketball, I will look like a basketball player? I wish it was that easy. I know my husband wouldn't mind having shoulders like Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic's but he certainly isn't going to get those shoulders just by playing basketball! Basically genetics has a big part in a person's physique. With that being said, this does not mean that you should not work with what you have and try to make it better, some hard work will go a long way! Each of us has limitations. Since I tend to store most of my body fat in my mid section, I may not get that six pack that I long for, but I am not going just give up and say well, I have poor genetics so why bother? I may not have the genetics to become a professional figure competitor, but I will try to look the best that I can. BTW, my goal isn't to become a professional figure competitor but I wouldn't mind having abs like this Alicia Marie

Latest Diet Craze!

People will try almost anything to lose weight. On the radio this morning there was an ad for a diet shake that will supress your appetite. There is always some new diet shake, pill, tea, or strange procedure to help with weight lose. When are people going to stop wasting their money and just exercise and eat healthily?

"North Americans spend $50 billion a year on pills, potions, diets and programs promising nothing short of miraculous weight loss. Many of them are nonsense, according to an editorial in this week's Canadian Medical Association Journal."

'The majority of commercial weight-loss providers manipulate vulnerable consumers with impunity, cultivating unrealistic expectations and false beliefs.

" Vulnerable consumer" is the key word. I had a friend who spent lots of money at a clinic that hooked her up to electrodes, which were suppose to melt the fat off her. When I told her that it was a waste of money and would not work, she proceeded to tell me that I wouldn't understand because I wasn't fat. I will certainly agree with that, I don't know what's it's like to be fat. But what I did understand was that she should stop eating at Popeye's, and that might help! Unfortunately people will always be duped by the latest diet "craze".

I am an exercise addict!

I was speaking to my sister today and she called me an addict...an exercise addict! I know some may not think being an exercise addict is a bad thing, but I don't believe that any types of addictions can be good. I am definitely not an exercise addict, and I know that the first step is to admit it. Now, I don't think I can stop exercising, I always have to be active whether it's just going to the gym or playing a sport. Last night I was actually looking into taking up a new sport. Perhaps taking tennis or swimming lessons. I know how to swim, but I want to be be able to do all the strokes and swim laps. I am definitely not a strong swimmer. Considering all the couch potatoes out there, being an exercise addict may not be that bad, but I really don't think it's good either.

Here are signs that you are an exercise addict:

• You feel that more exercise is better. An addict feels that more exercise is better therefore they spend hours in the gym, everyday and don't take a day off!

Excessive exercise is actually not good for you and can lead to injuries. I personally only workout 1 hour a day and after 1 hour of working out, I am out! I do not exercise everyday either. Your body needs time to recover!

• You workout even when tired or injured. This is generally not a good idea. Unless you are a professional athlete who gets paid then why risk it.

I don't like getting injured and don't like pain, hospital, stitches, etc so I am usually really cautious about this. When I am tired, I know it's time to rest.

• You prevent interactions and fail to attend functions and invitations because you cannot miss a day of not working out.

Sometimes I do exercise because I don't have anything better to do, but I don't turn down invitations because I need to workout. I do sometimes avoid situations where it involves drinking alcohol and eating foods that I don't usually eat.

• You believe in the "no pain, no gain" principle. Some people actually believe that unless it hurts, they are not working out hard enough?

So these are some signs that you are an exercise addict! The answer is no, I am not an exercise addict!

So I still have not completely decided whether I will compete in May. I worked out really hard on Monday and during my workout, at times, I thought to myself, "do you really want to do this...it's not easy"! You see, I tend to workout harder when I am preparing for a competition, and I make sure I do every rep. Do I really want to make all those sacrifices I will need to in order to prepare? The diet part is the easier part of competing (except for the last 2 weeks). What is even most difficult is maintaining muscle and not losing muscle. I do have to decide soon but in the meantime, I am going to continue to train as if I am going to compete on May 10th!

The Biggest Loser

Okay, I watch The Biggest Loser, it's actually one of my favourite shows. The shows provides good information about eating more healthily and helps motivate people to workout and lose weight. The most recent show was interesting because it exhibited many examples of people making excuses - excuses for not working out hard and excuses for not following their diets. One of the contestants had her 1 month "weight in" and she had not lost any weight, Her excuse was that she put on muscle, yeah right! Not that it's not possible, because people can gain muscle and lose fat and therefore show no difference on the scale but really now! What was the basis of determining that she lose fat and replaced it with muscle? Now if they had taken her measurements and there was a reduction in her measurements then it would justify making such a statement but lady, stop fooling yourself.

What amazes me when I watch the show is how ignorant people are when it comes to nutrition. I shouldn't be surprised since I witness is everyday. Recently I was at a restaurant and the person with me was eating a fajita and they were trying to tell me that it was healthy! Whatever!