My 2010 (Mostly superficial) Predictions
Big purchase: designer jeans.
Won't be able to live without: coffee, decaf.
Won't be able to go to sleep without: flossing
Gray hairs: to the power of 3
Gonna try: skiing again, more date nights.
Gonna avoid: unhealthy food I don't absolutely love.
Gonna spend more time: focusing on what I'm doing at the moment, with my guy.
Need to: renew my professional certification, save for three plane tickets.
Can't wait to see: what happens next!
Another year – wait, another decade - has just sped past us. Ten years ago we had just moved to Mississippi; we earned just enough to pay rent and buy beer. Our days are now filled with play, having snacks, picking up, and taking naps. By the end of the coming decade we will be fulfilling an entire new set of ventures. Butthat’s okay! We love what today brings us. We’re enjoying family visits and visitors, our growing list of friends and ‘little’ friends, and our favorite Portland spots.
Despite the circling tornado inside our house, we continue to survive. But fear not; we have a solution: designate a room to hold all her 'stuff,' complete with a door and a toy box, and lots of room to destroy things.
I want my Pie Safe back. Unfortunately her memory has surpassed that of a goldfish's, so I assume it'll take some training and definitely a lock, before we can reclaim the space.
In between disaster clean-up we've been doing fun things like riding the Holiday Express steam train through Portland, and working on the car seat.
And we got our tree up!
... And "why we haven't posted video files in like, forever."
Because if we did, you'd remember the 5 days of so much screaming that you dug out the ear plugs, and you'd remember sitting us down shirtless on the kitchen floor and feeding us a frozen candy bar in order to help 'bring down the fever' (and to have 5 scream-free minutes), and you'd -remember being awoken in the wee hours with shouts for "water-water-water-milk-water-milk-milk!"
And then, six days later, after it was almost all over, you would have rewarded yourself kindly with a bowl of something warm and healthy. Nothing beats a salad.
It's good to be back to normal around here.
Remember how last week I gave you two great ways to burn more fat during your workout??! 
If your exercise routine begins with rolling out of bed, please, for goodness sakes, please eat something! Research shows that after fasting all night, morning workouts will be 20-25% less effective (you'll move >20% slower & therefore burn >20% fewer calories) unless you eat something before the workout.
If you're dieting (ie, significantly reducing the number of calories you eat per day with the goal of losing fat), please incorporate exercise into the program.
but otherwise our trip out to The Pumpkin Patch on Sauvie Island was just about perfect! Paul had Columbus Day off (yesterday, you un-patriots!) so we made the most of it. That meant taking the opportunity to go get a pumpkin without parking a mile from the barn, without paying $1.50/pound, without getting muddy up to our knees, and without tromping through fields of pumpkins that had "done been picked through."
Oh yeeeeahhhhh...
We got one.
Nevermind. The stem (the best part) broke.
Must find a new one. Where to look?!
Ok, now we're good. Kisses.
Hay ride, petting animal barn, & market were fun too! Just forgot that Kettle Korn...
Now off to see Aunt Marci for dinner! We are about to work hard on her to babysit. A bedtime babysit. We are not afraid.
Aren't those sibs cute together?
A
Well, so? Let's get walking! More fat burned, less fat on me. Sounds good!
Most popular cardiovascular exercise equipment notoriously offers "Fat Burn" mode. You step on the elliptical trainer and the first thing it asks for is your weight. Disgusted, you hit the up arrow until your neighbor glance over, and then you stab the "Enter" button. This really leaves you little choice when next the machine asks you which workout you'd like to select. You choose "Fat Burn," of course.
"Fat Burn" mode programs the cardio machine to maintain a low resistance or speed throughout the workout. This workout programming is based on a scientifically supported theory that says we burn a greater percentage of fat during low- and moderate-intensity activities compared to high-intensity exercise. In fact, the lower the demand of the activity, the greater percentage of fat we burn. So deductively, sitting still is the perfect fat-burning exercise (at 1oo%)! Right?
No, not exactly.
You see, exercising to lose body fat should not be a leisurely read-your-People-Mag-while-listening-to-your-iPod-type of experience. For fat loss through exercise to be successful, you have to work hard. I'm really sorry. :)
Here's why: math. This is one example.
If you don't want to visit the link, cheat now and read the verdict: the person who chooses to work at a higher intensity burns more calories and more fat calories despite burning a lower portion of fat, when compared to the person who exercised at a lower, fat-burning intensity. Yahoo!
Here's more good news: your body can be trained to be more efficient at burning fat. Simply, "the more fit you are, the better you will become at burning fat at the same exercise intensity." Two effective methods are:
Both interval training and Going Long can be difficult to approach on your own. Please email me if you have questions about ways to go about it: athletewithin (at) gmail (dot) com.
Happy Fat Burning!
Anne
Many fitness myths have been formed, clung to, debunked, and subsequently desperately clung to over the years. One like no other is the Fat Burn myth, perpetuated by "fat burn" programming on cardiovascular equipment, poorly informed exercise professionals, and the vast availability victims, young-to-middle-age women.
That's right fellow xx's, us. We are slaves to the fat burn program, and don't you try to deny it! Too many times I have seen us fall into its ugliness; we go to the gym, get out our magazine, our iPod, climb aboard the elliptical trainer and start slogging along at breakneck slow. Because we are burning fat, the mortal enemy.
Ladies. We are such suckers.
