Thursday, July 26, 2012

Upping My Workout With Kids

It's going quite well with the BeachBody Challenge.  I am seeing changes.  I am down to a 29" waist already, but I only dropped 1 lb.  Go figure!  LOL!  What I love most is that I am getting stronger and I want to do more and see more results.  Yoga Booty Ballet isn't cutting it as an only workout for the day, but it isn't like I have a ton of time to devote to a major workout session with 4 young children and an entire household to run and homeschool to prepare for.  So here's what I've been brainstorming to get my rear in gear:

1. Devote my planned workout time to the DVD workout of choice.

2. Do 1 minute intervals throughout the day...how many push-ups can I do in a minute?   How many burpees?  Hold plank.  Squat thrust.  Plyos.  Lunges.  Crunches.  Roll-ups.  Sit ups.  How long can I hang from the chin-up bar, etc.

3. Go for evening walks with the kiddos.  If it isn't storming or sweltering out, I can strap the baby to my body, and load the other three into the stroller and go for a walk with them.  It's a mile round trip from my house to the top of the hill and back again.  1 mile with nearly 100 lbs of kiddos is a good workout, especially since it is a slight grade uphill on the return with a fairly steep hill finish.  Plus, it relaxes and soothes kiddos who are getting fussy and tired from their day.

Any other ideas?

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

PPPU Part 7

I joined the BeachBody 60 day fitness challenge under my coach:  http://beachbodycoach.com/esuite/home/sdelsavio

It started this Monday and for the next 60 days, I record my workouts, my 5 servings of fruits and veggies, my water intake, my lack of junk food and alcohol, and my Shakeology intake.  I can't do Shakeology because I'm one of the rare few who have problems with it.  Go figure.  So far, I've been doing great!  Earning all my points every day.  I really REALLY want to.  I want to stay dedicated.

It helps that I started my workouts before the challenge began, so I already had strength and stamina built up.  I've really been listening to my body this time and understanding more of what I need to do to really build lean muscle, burn fat, and stand tall.  Today, I discovered that 6 lbs isn't enough for bicept curls.  I had 6 lbs of weights in my hand and I kept curling and curling, but felt no burn.  I also realized recently that my spine is bent and compressed and my hip flexors out of alignment from the pregnancy.  This causes my belly to look poochy and gives me those "back boob" folds just above my waistline.  Since I started working on my core strength and correcting my posture, my belly isn't as poochy and the "back boobs" have pretty much disappeared.  They usually return late in the day when I'm tired and forget my posture.  I need to straighten my spine more to help get rid of the pooch just under my bust line.  Weird place for pooch, but it's like my abs got all mushed up funny.  I don't know.  But it is a post partum trouble spot.  I never did get rid of it after my 3rd baby's pregnancy.

I wasn't going to order anything from BeachBody since it wasn't necessary, though recommended, but I saw Yoga Booty Ballet and the complimentary price, so I ordered it.  It hasn't arrived yet, but I'm eager to see what it involves.  I haven't pushed myself to the max yet, so it is probably high time that I did.

A mistake I made was joining MyFitnessPal and logging in my calories.  It is only so individualized and only allowed me just over 1300 calories a day.  Well, I'm breast feeding, so I'd make the calorie goal and then allow myself a healthy snack to help cover breast feeding.  Well, even with the extra snack it wasn't enough.  Sure, I'd drop the weight quickly, but I also nearly passed out!  I had to take a nap and when I woke up, still exhausted and not feeling right, I ate a slice of sprouted grain bread with peanut butter and decided that so long as I eat healthfully and not pig out, I'm not going to try to count calories.  I've always been able to handle 2000 calories a day well and lose weight.

Results are showing and that makes me excited.  I'm eager to get rid of this post partum weight and flabby skin, so sometimes it gets frustrating when I sit down and still have that muffin top, or the size 4 jeans still can't quite get over my backside, or my kids giggle while they jiggle my belly or thighs, but it isn't necessarily about how much farther I have to go.  It's about seeing how far I've come already!  I'm healthy, I'm stronger, and it is only going to improve from here.


Monday, July 9, 2012

What's In Raw Milk


It makes sense to me that raw milk would be wonderfully nutritious  given that it is supposed to sustain and grow a 100 lb newborn calf, but I never knew what was in raw milk.  So, a little research and I was pleasantly surprised!  Raw milk is worlds better than pasteurized milk, which has most of its delicate nurtrients removed during pasteurization.

Here's a list of what's in raw milk:

    Water 87.3%

    Milk Fats 3.9%

    Non-fat Solids (Protein, Milk Sugar, Immune Factors, etc.) 8.8%
    A. Casein Proteins (~80% of Total Milk Protein-TMP)
    1. Alpha s1 [30.6%]
    2. Alpha s2 [8.0%]
    3. Beta [28.4%]
    4. Kappa [10.1%]
    B. Whey Proteins (~20% of TMP)
    1. Alpha lactalbumin [3.7%]
    2. Beta lactoglobulin [9.8%]
    3. Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) [1.2%]
    4. Immuoglobulins [2.1%]
    5. Proteose peptone [2.4%]

    Milk Sugar (Lactose) 4.6%

    Minerals 0.65%
    Calcium
    Phosphorus
    Magnesium
    Potassium
    Sodium
    Zinc
    Chlorine
    Iron
    Copper
    Sulfates
    Bicarbonates
    Trace Elements
    Mineral Content per quart (Typical range):

    Sodium__330-850mg
    Potassium__1040-1600mg
    Chloride__850-1040mg
    Calcium__1040-1225mg
    Magnesium__85-130mg
    Phosphorus__850-940mg
    Iron__280-570ug
    Zinc__1880-5660ug
    Copper__95-570ug
    Manganese__19-47ug
    Iodine __~245ug
    Fluoride__28-207ug
    Selenium__4.7-63ug
    Cobalt__0.47-1.23ug
    Chromium__7.5-12.3ug
    Molybdenum__17-113ug
    Nickel__0-47ug
    Silicon__700-6600ug
    Vanadium__trace-290ug
    Tin__38-470ug
    Arsenic__19-57ug

    Acids 0.18%
    Citric
    Formic
    Acetic
    Lactic
    Oxalic

    Fatty Acids:
    Butyric Acid 4 (# of Carbon atoms)
    Caproic Acid 6
    Caprylic Acid 8
    Capric Acid 10
    Lauric Acid 12
    Myristic Acid 14
    Palmitic Acid 16
    Stearic Acid 18
    Oleic Acid 18:1 (one double bond)
    CLA 18:2 (two double bonds)



    Vitamins/Enzymes 0.12%
    Vitamin Content per quart (Approximate):

    A__375ug
    C__19mg
    D__38IU
    E__940ug
    K__47ug
    B1__425ug
    B2__1650ug
    Niacin__850ug
    B6__470ug
    Pantothenic acid__3300ug
    Biotin__33ug
    Folic acid__52ug
    B12__4.25ug

    Amylase
    Catalase
    Lactase-(through bacterial synthesis)
    Lactoperoxidase
    Lipase
    Phosphatase

    It is said that many people who believe themselves to be lactose intolerant can actually consume raw milk without a problem because the digestive enzymes have not been compromised by pasteurization and thus makes the lactose digestible.

    People do well on raw milk fasts, cleanses, and even using raw milk as a meal substitute.

    My 3rd child drank a homemade infant formula out of raw milk after my milk supply dwindled and thrived on it!

    There is also a healthy amount of cholesterol in raw milk which helps keep the brain healthy.

    Reference:  http://www.raw-milk-facts.com/what_is_in_raw_milk.html