Finding the Time

If you have time to watch TV, you have time to workout.

Ever since my job changed from being in Oakland to being in Napa last fall, I have struggled with finding a way to work out consistently.  In Oakland, I used my lunch break to get a run in on Lake Merritt, which was conveniently across the street from my office.  After work, I went directly to the gym for a lifting session or some HIIT, and then I would RUN to catch my vanpool back home.  Those windows of time were firmly dedicated to my workouts, and I thrived on the schedule.  I leaned out, gained muscle and became as small as I ever have been during my adult life.

Fast forward to now.  I work in a lovely area with a nearby gym – but it is a single location with limited hours and unjustifiably high monthly dues.  My lunch runs are also a thing of the past:  Maintaining a professional appearance is critical, so my sweaty post-run ponytails of my old afternoons are unacceptable, effectively nixing  lunchtime runs here.   I now commute by car, and, after work,  I feel a rushed need to head home before traffic has a chance to worsen.  Stopping at another gym is logistically unreasonable.  

Once I get home, my time is devoted to my son.  And he hates it when mommy works out, because it’s not all about him anymore.  This, too, limits my workout options.

As a result, I have developed a list of possible solutions.  None of them are perfect, but all of them have some merit.

1.       Build a home gym.  This was my first solution to my workout conundrum.  I invested in a full weight set, power cage, bench, adjustable dumbbells, etc.  I built a small home gym that exactly suited my needs.  If I could have built it inside the walls of my home, I would be getting substantial use out of it.  However, my home gym is in an outbuilding, and I cannot leave the house to use it in good conscience if my son is asleep, which is the most opportune time for me to use it.  For anyone else, though, this would create a fantastic solution.  I highly recommend it.

2.       Carry your running gear in your car.  Pack a bag with your clothes, shoes, jog bra and whatever else you find necessary.  Before you leave work, change into the workout gear and drive on towards home.  Then… stop somewhere, preferably in a safe area near your destination.  Park the car and run away from it for 10 minutes.  Then run back to it.   Or if there is a track or a park that you would prefer to run around, do it there.  It’s simple, it bypasses the traffic concerns and you get your workout done before you get home.  It has worked for me in the past.  (Note: I made up this approach and have used it myself, but there is a possibility that it is not a wise approach for many possible reasons: limited cool-down time, no stretching, and security concerns about the safety of your car and its contents.  Be safe in your choices.)

3.       Workout before your day gets started.  People who develop the habit of working out in the morning show greater consistency and dedication to working out than do people who chose to workout any other time of day.  Studies show that willpower is strongest in the morning, so by getting your workout in at the crack of dawn, you take advantage of this.  Additionally, it provides you with endorphins and a sense of accomplishment at the very start of the day, creating a positive energy for the rest of the day.  (For me, I found that my early rising wakes up my son, who often crawls in bed with me at night.  He demands all of my attention just as he does during the evenings.  At present, it isn’t my solution.)

4.       Workout in the evening, when you have time to yourself.  I subscribe to the saying I heard originally at Weight Watchers, “If you have time to watch TV, you have time to work out.”  Most of my TV watching takes place in the evenings; therefore, I know that I can use that time to work out.  But I am limited to workouts in my living room, since I won’t leave my sleeping child alone in the house.  These are workout solutions I have found:

a.       Follow Bodyrock.tv workouts. Bodyrock.tv prides itself on being the home workout solution.  They do suggest certain pieces of equipment, but you can pick and chose through their workouts to find ones that don’t.  Be warned: you will do burpees and pushups and other military-torture-style exercises. But you will also get results.

b.      Follow a bodyweight workout. I know that these are available through Craig Ballentine of Turbulence Training, and I have a sneaking suspicion that more programs can be found online.

c.       Do a plate circuit, a Spartacus circuit or another weighted circuit.  I’m currently starting  John Barban’s Venus Index workout program, which uses nothing more than a bench and dumbbells, both items I keep in my living room.   It’s a 3x/week workout program

d.      Discover kettlebells.  Find a local trainer for instruction on the basic moves (go to DragonDoor.com for a good one), learn which size kettlebell will best suit you and buy one.  You then have access to a highly intense, strength-&-cardio workout that you can do in your living room.  Kettlebells rock, but form is important.  Get instruction.  Don’t try to learn off a video alone, even if DragonDoor has them.  

e.      Use Videos.  As much as I HATE relying on these, they have a place.  My personal favorite is Jillian Michael’s 30-Day Shred (the original, not the kettlebell one.)  In less than 30 minutes, it gives you a solid workout that will leave you sore for the first week or two.   You could also try P90X, though I also suggest you read this (long) review before you invest in it.  I haven’t tried it myself.

5.       Challenge yourself.  Last September, I set a goal that I would workout for 10 minutes a day, every day.  And I did.  On regular workout days, I just did my regular workouts.  ON the off day, I made sure I deliberately moved for 10 minutes.  I did things like: kettlebell ladders, jump rope ladders, 10 minutes of HIIT on a treadmill,  jumping jacks… anything to keep moving for at least 10 minutes.   One big positive of my 10 minute challenge was that, because it wasn’t hard to talk myself into (it’s only 10 minutes!), I was able to develop momentum.  And momentum helps us build habits developing those healthy lifestyle patterns we want. 

Why You Should Sign Up for a 5K

In 2005, to show support for a co-worker’s family, my office participated in the “Swedish Summer Run,” a Seattle 5K to fight ovarian cancer.   I had always hated running, but I wanted to show my support for the family, and so I talked my desk-neighbor Leslie into walking the 5K with me.  Neither of us was particularly fit, but we showed up and strode along the closed Capital Hill streets on a beautiful summer morning.  It was hot and we whined about that, but overall it was a fairly painless effort.

Our other friend Beth ran the 5K.  I remember thinking how great it was that she could do that and how I could never run that far!  But as it was, I really enjoyed the three mile walk.  Even more, I loved the huge quantities of swag we all received at the finish.  I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was hooked.

I now believe that everyone should consider signing up for a 5K.  Not a 10K or a half-marathon, but a simple 3.1 mile race.  Here are my reasons why:

1.       You are supporting a good cause.  There are hundreds of 5K races around the county, and all of them support something good.  Oh, I suppose the “Coalition of Couch Potatoes” could sponsor a 5K, but I greatly doubt it.  Your entry fee goes to a good purpose and paying the fee helps commit you to show up for the race.  Good thinking, race promoters!

2.       You support your community.  Most of these races are sponsored by local groups.  You will find community leaders present and volunteers galore.  Everyone there is helping a good cause and doing positive things for the community.  If you’re there to race, you are too.               

3.       You get a free tee-shirt.  Most races will provide you a tee-shirt included with your entry fee.  Sometimes you can pay to upgrade to a fancier version, but a basic cotton tee is almost always included.  This gives you something to wear around the house or at the gym afterward, to remind you that you did the race and how much you want to do another one.  It also makes you feel a little badass when you wear it in front of people who are still saying “Oh, I could never do a 5K.”  (Because you know they could if they made up their minds to do it.)

4.       A 5K is very achievable.  Five kilometers is the equivalent of 3.1 miles, which isn’t very long.  Most of us can easily walk three miles.  Could you walk a mile and a half to the store?  And then walk back home?  There!  You can do this.  And if you can walk it, maybe you could even run part (or all) of it?  It’s more do-able than you might think.  

5.       Registering for a 5K gives you a goal to train for.  Once you’ve registered, you need to know that you can do it!  If you simply plan to walk the course, then start going for walks.  Find a lake to walk around, map out some city streets, or just go walk for certain times.  Walking a casual 15-minute mile would allow you to complete a 5K in 45-50 minutes, so if you can walk for 45-50 minutes on a hike or around the neighborhood, then you’ll be ready. 

If you want to run the 5K and you’ve never run before, then you need to start running.  The best approach to this I know if is the Couch to 5K (C25K) program.   (There are also convenient iPhone apps to download which guide you through the C25K plan.)  The program will take a non-runner to completely running a 5K in only 9 weeks.  When I decided to start running, I followed this program first – then abandoned it to do my own version.  Runners World and Focus-N-Fly also offer programs for a fee, if you chose to go that route.  Alternatively, your local running shop may offer group training programs, like Fleet Feet in Vacaville, CA, which will allow you to run as a group under expert guidance and encouragement.

If you have already run one 5K, then registering for another gives you the opportunity to run the next one faster.  The first 5K I ran, I had planned to walk and didn’t have a timing chip.    At the next, I had no aspirations as to time; I just wanted to do my best.  But after that?  I want to see improvement on each and every race.   

6.       You will gain some perspective.  Despite what you imagine, you will NOT be the least fit person at the event.  You will NOT be the fattest person at the event.  NO ONE is going to wonder what you are doing there because of how you look.  When you arrive at the race, you will realize that people of all ages, sizes, fitness levels and abilities will show up at a 5K.  Old ladies will walk their dachshunds.  Enormous two-ton men will lumber along behind you while an 80-year-old sprints past.  At one race I saw a man in a power-wheelchair leading a cow and a goat.  (No kidding.)  You will be proud to be healthy.  You will be happy to be able to do what you are doing.  You will be glad you showed up.

7.       Experience group energy.  Whether you run as team or an individual, there is a positive group energy that you will pick up on at the race.  Everyone is a little bit excited, and that makes everyone just a little bit more excited.  It’s like a zest in the air which gives you a little more “oomph” as you start your run.  And if you run on a team, then everyone is your cheerleader, keeping you motivated and encouraged throughout the event.

8.       You will get some vitamin D and fresh air.  Running a 5K forces you to be outside.  Hopefully the weather is sunny and not too warm, but if not, you will learn that a spring rain is not as frigid as you imagine and that you can manage a hot day with good hydration.  One unique aspect of running a race like this is that you will get a close up look at roads and places that you might never experience otherwise.   In my experience, you run a closed road which is usually covered with automobile traffic, and it has a certain peace to it that you will only find there on race days. 

9.       Burn some calories!  During your training and during the race event yourself,  you will burn a few hundred calories.  This is one of my favorite features of doing a Turkey Trot, a 5K held on Thanksgiving morning.  You get up early and run, which will hopefully help offset the “feast day” calories you intake at Thanksgiving Dinner later in the day.  If nothing else, it relieves some guilt. 

10.   It’s fun to get swag after the race.  Some races are better about this than others.  Bigger, more urban races have lots of fun stuff – gift bags, catered meals, free beer – things like that.  Smaller suburban races don’t provide as many goodies, but they cover the basics and usually are still fun to check out.  Not everyone cares about swag, but I personally love getting free stuff.  It’s like a reward for finishing!

11.   Gain a sense of accomplishment.  It doesn’t matter if you set out to walk the course, to run the course to finish, or to run the course for time: when you cross that finish line, you have finished something worthwhile.  Be proud!    

Are you ready to sign up for a race yet?  The best single source of upcoming events that I know if is Active.com.  You can plug in your zip code and find dozens of upcoming races in your area.  The entire registration process is online.  You can also check your local running store for upcoming races in your area; they’re sure to have an inside scoop on which race is best for beginners too.

One last thing – forgive yourself if something obstructs you from completing the race.  One year I tore my gastroc (i.e., badly pulled my calf muscle) and wasn’t able to train for the Turkey Trot I had been so excited about.  The next year, I was sick with a nasty flu during Thanksgiving week and couldn’t even pick up my free tee-shirt, let alone run the race.  I was sad, but it couldn’t be helped.  Life happens, and it can get in the way of your best laid plans.  If it does, just look ahead at the calendar and find another 5K in the future.  There’s always something to look forward to!

This past Saturday morning, I participated in a local 5K run.  I am proud to announce that I beat my last-year’s time by five minutes exactly.  (I must admit, however, that I was pushing a stroller last year, so it’s not really an apples-to-apples comparison).  I ran my 5K in a very modest 37 minutes, 10 seconds, coming in 16^th in my age class.  I was in the top 35% of women who participated, and I’m more than happy with that.  Next year, however, I’ll be even faster. 

"Are You Fasting?"

“Are you fasting?”

The question caught me off guard, despite the fact that I knew to expect it.  I was checking in at the lab to have some “fasted” blood work done.  It was 8:00 in the morning and I hadn’t eaten since my early dinner the night before.  So, yes, for the lab’s purposes, I was fasting. But the nurse’s question still took me aback.

Having struggled with disordered eating in the past, I have a knee-jerk response to any question about fasting.  I don’t fast.  Fasting is what anorexics do, and I’m not one of them. I like food too much.  Fasting is how beautiful girls become hollow shells of themselves, obsessed with the scale and hating themselves.

Fasting is not necessarily a guaranteed road to anorexia.  (However, I don’t think you can become anorexic without fasting, which is something to chew on if you are prone to disordered eating and consider it.)   After I read  Starving Your Way to Vigor in the March 2012 issue of Harper’s Magazine, I briefly  considered taking up fasting as a way to tackle my body fat.  It almost sounded easy.  But for me, I think a long-term, serious fast (assuming I could actually abstain from food that long) would lead me into a certifiable eating disorder and probably a clinical stay.  Extended fasts are not right for me.

Intermittent Fasts, though, are a different matter and they’ve been getting a lot of attention lately.  Proponents of Intermittent Fasting (or “IF”) claim that there are numerous benefits to periodized, regular fasts.  Rather than fasting for a week or a month at a stretch, intermittent fasts last only between 16-36 hours, depending upon which approach you employ.  Proponents of IF claim that in addition to weight loss (due to the reduced intake of calories), intermittent fasting provides many of the benefits associated with extreme calorie restriction including improved longevity, increased insulin sensitivity, better stress responses and improved mental clarity.   They reject the “myth of starvation mode – the idea that not eating will slow your metabolism” as a misunderstood effect of the thermic effect of food upon metabolism ( i.e., the only reason your metabolism seems to slow down is because you stop eating and your body doesn’t need to expend energy digesting it. )   And they strongly emphasize the importance of learning what REAL hunger is, as opposed to eating when we THINK we’re hungry.  There’s a difference.

What is emphasized in all of these IF approaches is strength training.  It appears that intermittent fasting, combined with weight lifting, allows one to fast without losing muscle mass.  Lifting weights, heavy weights, three times a week is recommended.

For a great overview of different approaches to IF, check out the Precision Nutrition Experiments with Intermittent Fasting by Dr. John M. Berardi.  In it, Dr. Bermardi subjects himself to different IF approaches and tracks his own results and experiences.  One thing which appears clear about fasting – it is more than a diet, and you will experience side effects of not eating.  Based on his experiences (and those of Steve Hendricks’ in the Harper’s article above), most fasters seem to go through some uncomfortable side effects at the start, most of which seem to lessen or transform into positives over time.  

There are two IF approaches with which I am familiar: Eat Stop Eat by Brad Pilon and LeanGains by Mark Berkhan.  

Eat Stop Eat (ebook) is simple.  Fast one day a week.  Eat normally until dinner, and then don’t eat again for 24 hours.   During rest of the week, follow your normal eating routines and workout routines (being sure to include strength training).  Just pick a day and make it your fast day.   Brad Pilon also spends a lot of time in his e-book explaining IF and the reasons it makes sense. 

LeanGains (website) is a little more complicated.   Fast for 16 hours, then eat for 8 hours.  Then fast again.  You do this every day.  Mark also spells out a somewhat complicated plan for how to eat during the 8 hours, and suggests working out in a fasted state is beneficial if you take BCAAs during training.  I tried his plan once, but it didn’t take long for me to feel like I was just skipping breakfast every day (and breakfast is my favorite meal.)  Besides his plan being complicated, his website is slow, so that I get annoyed with LeanGains.com every time I visit it.

After I left the hospital laboratory with a Band-Aid on the inside of my elbow and my official reason for a fasting to be over, I considered it.  When I got to work, I opted for black coffee (no cream) and kept considering it.  When a co-worker offered to pick up lunch, I waved him off: “No, I’m good,” and kept considering it.  At the end of the day, I went to the gym for a short treadmill run, then to the grocery store to get dinner.  By then, I was just going with the flow.  And when I finally took a bite of a strawberry, a sweet, luscious strawberry at dinnertime, 23 hours since my last meal, I realized that doing Eat Stop Eat is really pretty easy.  Maybe I’ll do it again next week.