Fitness Goals – Motivation or Wash out?

FHB Contributer/Spokesmodel Andrew Reid:

Having once been serious about my exercise and nutrition goals before falling into years of bad habits (also known as grad school, career, and marriage — wait, better edit the last one out — although many of us gain a bit when we settle down), I’ve experienced before the benefits of using goals to help motivate myself and provide a series of milestones to build on. Honestly, milestones can be like the sun peeking out on a cloudy day hinting that whatever you are doing is good for you and that the benefits, like the sun’s rays, will be with you long after it has passed behind a cloud again.

So, when I started riding again, I decided to use goals to help keep things fresh and give me something to shoot for. On a bike, the logical targets are  miles and time. Ride so far without taking a break. Break your personal best on a ride you have ridden before. It always feels good when you do, but it is important not to beat yourself up if you don’t — everyone has an off day, sometimes the wind is blowing hard, it  rains, you get a flat tire, or you see a really beautiful deer or fox  beside the road or trail. Come back to the fact that even world class sprinters don’t set records on every run, but they are out there  practicing and learning everyday how different variables impact them. 

For October, I set myself a goal of 500 dirt and road miles on my bike. With 31 days to achieve that, my month was off to a roaring  start in Maine (see previous blog)! However, with two travel days,  three days of flu, and some wet weather (as in World Series stopping wet weather!), the last week of the month finds me scrambling to hit  the target, and with a day to go I am 23 miles away from meeting it  despite already braving the cold and wet… but goals are powerful things and I’ll be out there tomorrow working to meet my goal and  better my health. Because Saturday starts a new month and the odometer  goes back to zero again! What will your odometer say in November?   Don’t let the rain wash out your fitness… — AR

Live a Longer Life – The Basics

I’m home today with a sick little girl who has a fever and nasty cough.  I found myself slaving away at the laptop working virtually as if I were in the office.  I can see my work email, my files, etc.  Then, a particularly wise colleague sent me an email and added on to the end, “Hope she gets better! There’s always something wonderful, though, about spending that time with a sick child, in terms of just plain having time together.”

So, of course, I got off the computer and joined her on the couch.  He’s right.  She was dull eyed a a bit out of it as we watched Clifford the Big Red dog.  With two kids and a busy life, we don’t often just get to sit down, the two of us only, and watch the Big Red dog, or Sid the Science Kid for that matter. 

So she is napping now and I go out to the mailbox and get my Kaiser Permanente Personal Wellness Profile based on a health fair at work a couple weeks ago.  I review my scores from the blood screen, blood pressure, other tests, and self-reported info.  I score good to excellent on all categories:  coronary risk, cancer risk, nutrition status, fitness status, stress status, substance abuse, and safety status.  But this doesn’t surprise me because I have been playing Fantasy Healthball for a couple years now and I feel in top shape.  All those daily challenges in Fantasy Healthball add up over the days, weeks, months, to scores like I am looking at now in my Wellness Profile. 

But here is what DOES surprise me.  It says, “Current Age:  40, Your Health Age is 33.5 (your age based on health practices).”  It goes on, “You can expect to enjoy five to six years of added life, longer than the average person, because of your healthy lifestyle.  Congratulations!”  Wow.  Now that really hits home.  Five or six years!  I think back to the morning and that cherished time with my daughter.  That is what Fantasy Healthball is all about.  Be kind to your body, do the right things, and live a longer, happier life.  Join us today if you haven’t yet.  — Jim Ballard

How To Tell Husband/Wife it is Time to Get Healthy, Diet

In many relationships, your partner’s health can be a tricky subject.  How do you show concern without criticizing?  Even if you are gentle about it, will he or she feel attacked.  Will all the guilt, depression, and self esteem issues getting whipped up and fired back at you in a counter-assault? 

A MSNBC report by Bridget Murray Law yesterday presents a number of do’s and don’ts when it comes to helping your partner slim down.  She says:  “Having the talk is worth it. Not only can your partner’s health be affected by excess weight, but packing on the pounds can weigh on the relationship in other ways. An overweight spouse may not be as physically appealing to you or may not even feel like being physically intimate.”

Here is her advice: 

Don’t criticize - praise any exercising or healthy eating you witness. Most important, shape up yourself. If you’re living healthily, it’ll be easier for your partner to do the same.

Don’t nag -  The targeted person will likely feel ugly, angry and depressed, leading to more weight gain.

Be loving - Jennifer Blair, 59, of Alexandria, Va., largely credits her husband’s tender ways for helping her drop 33 pounds since May.

Don’t judge – We all get tempted by sugary, fatty foods, and it doesn’t help to scold when somebody gives in.  It only adds to their guilt and doesn’t help them avoid the problem in future.

Help problem-solve – Offer strategies to resist temptation, such as suggesting fruit as a snack instead of cookies. Buy healthy, low-calorie snacks such as berries or low-fat yogurt, rather than chips.

Don’t sabotage – Bringing junk food into the house only fuels a partner’s weight problem.  If you’re inhaling potato chips on the sofa, your partner will most likely want to join you.

Be a role model – If one partner starts exercising and eating better, the other partner also tends to lose weight.

Don’t play cop – Most people don’t like being told what they should and shouldn’t eat as they could rebel.

Team up – Pitch a joint health kick as a fun adventure and your partner will more likely sign on. 

Talk frequently about Fantasy Healthball- okay, you caught us, we added that one on the list.  But it is COMPLETELY consistent with all the rest of the advice.  When you suggest Fantasy Healthball, you are suggesting a football game created by football lovers for other football lovers who want to lose weight.  As far as we know, it is the only completely safe way to bring up health issues with your spouse!  “Honey, it isn’t just me, but Peyton Manning wants to help you get in shape too!” 

So, if you want to “have the talk,” make sure you then send them our way.  We’ll take it from there.  -  Jim Ballard

Staying Healthy Gets a Little Easier in California

Jeff and I often talk about how culture and environment influence healthy decisions.  Having both grown up in Illinois, we know what it is like to play basketball on a driveway that is a sheet of ice or how hard it can be some days to get motivated to play baseball on a day with triple digit heat and humidity – where it just feels like you may melt into the sidewalk.  Regional cultural differences also come into play.  Do you have more health food stores or fast food restaurants in your neighborhood?  Does your local restaurants have healthy items on the menu and how can you even tell? 

Recently, in California, the Governator passed a state law, the first of its kind in the nation, that says chain restaurants have to display calorie counts with each menu item.  It covers more than 17,000 restaurants in California. 

State Sen. Alex Padilla proposed the legislation.  He said, “All Californians will soon be empowered with reliable, accessible nutrition information . . . that will help them make more informed, healthier choices.”  Gov. Arnold signed the bill at a Sacramento-area Chili’s Bar and Grill. 

The new law applies to restaurants with 20 or more locations in California. Beginning July 1, 2009, they will be required to provide brochures containing nutritional information including number of calories and grams of saturated fat.  Starting Jan. 1, 2011, all menus and menu boards above front counters will have to include the number of calories for each item.

This sort of legislation recently passed in NYC as well.  These laws get a big “Fantasy Healthball High Five” from Jeff and me.  We hope they sweep the nation and make things a little easier for you too.  For those about to eat [healthy], we salute you.  — Jim Ballard

Fantasy Healthball Spokesmodel Challenge

a.k.a –  What You Can Do When You Think You  Can Do It

by Andrew Reid, Fantasy Healthball Spokesmodel (see Andrew here).

I think everyone has an event they dream of doing, an exercise goal, an accomplishment they’d like to add to their resume that they can remember fondly while sitting in the rocker on the front porch or playing bridge at the retirement home, or even just something that can be a building block for other future challenges. Some people spend a ton of time training for that event, whether it be a marathon, triathlon, or even just that long hike or backpacking trip with your friends. Sometimes the trainings and workouts are marked off the calendar with “X’s” as the big day approaches, signifying that a prescribed program is being followed as the start draws ever nearer. But what happens when the event or goal isn’t on your calendar and is something that comes up at short notice? When you’ve been following good principles such as Fantasy Healthball, sometimes you decide to take a shot at it regardless and see how you do. That is how I came to ride, with just a few days notice, the Cadillac Mountain Challenge in Acadia National Park in Maine.

When a friend casually invited me to join him and other members of the Maine Cycling Club at the annual season ending Cadillac Mountain Challenge in Acadia National Park on October 5, I was drawn to the opportunity. The Challenge is a 100 mile or 72 mile ride around Mt. Desert Island and Acadia National Park in Maine. I had set a goal for myself of trying to ride some longer distance rides or events in 2009, but hadn’t been planning on trying to do so in 2008. When I really started seriously spending time on my bikes in June 2008 after finishing my move from CA to PA, I weighed about 325 pounds. By the end of September, that figure had dropped to almost 260! The opportunity to see what I could do on a big ride was just too tempting. So, I accepted. Hasty plans were made, with me driving up to Maine on Friday, October 3 to meet friends and then continuing up to Bar Harbor on Saturday morning. The plan being to ride mountain bikes or cyclocross bikes around the extensive network of carriage roads in Acadia National Park on Saturday and to ride the Challenge on Sunday.

Having made the drive up on Friday and met up with friends, a caravan of MCC riders headed out for Acadia on Saturday. After enjoying some spectacular fall foliage on the way up and a lunch in the National Park, the “warm up” ride had the mountain bikes and cyclocross bikes coming off the roof racks. I elected to take a cyclocross bike. The carriage roads (created by the Rockefeller family) sound a lot tamer than they are. I was soon hanging onto the back of a group of ten as we proceeded to hammer up hills and sail back down through some amazing scenery of ponds and lakes. Some of the hills were fairly long, and steep, and the corners in the descents were often sandy and a little treacherous as a couple of people discovered. Still, there is nothing like hitting 40mph on dirt while on skinny (but knobby) tires. However, the hills certainly foreshadowed what might be in store on Sunday! After almost two hours and about 20 miles of exploring, the group retired for the motel, showers and dinner.

Sunday morning dawned all too early. With the Challenge starting at 8am, it was time to pull the gear on and head for the starting area (Acadia National Park Visitor Center). As the temp was about 38F, I elected to dress warm with polypro bike tights, a winter weight jersey, a winter weight skullcap, wool bike socks, and Gore Windstopper gloves. Bright sun made sunglasses a good idea too. The bike was fully loaded with water bottles and the jersey pockets stuffed with wallet, phone, food, glasses, and more water (plus all the usual emergency repair items in the seat pack). Pump up the tires to 130psi, good to go!

After a brief rider’s meeting, about 300 riders rolled out. The Cadillac course has two options, a 100 miler and a “metric” 100k which is actually about 72 miles. The 100 miler has over 7,000 feet of climbing, the 72 milers about 6,000 feet of climbing. The “decision point” comes at Mile 18 which is where the two courses split (rejoining at Mile 46 on the 100 miler). From the start, the course headed upward. My stiff legs spun along as a host of MCC riders I had met the day before passed me, some patting me on the back as I climbed, slowly, in my usual smooth cadence. At my size, an efficient pedal stroke is a big asset!!! However, like most climbs, it didn’t last forever and eventually the course started rolling down. By this time, the crowd of riders had thinned substantially and I settled into a rhythm as the route went up and down along the coast. By about the one hour mark (15 miles) I was starting to gauge whether I should ride the 72 or the 100. Legs feeling good, but not super fast. Hills definitely a challenge. Before I can really analyze the question, I’m at a junction where a ” <—72″ and a “100 —>” are marked on the pavement (the route markers are white arrows to avoid the need to use a map at every intersection). Instinctively I turn right and head out on the 100 course. By Mile 26, I am questioning the wisdom of this decision as I fight my way through the wind and up and down hills down the west shore of Mt. Desert Island. At Mile 32, a welcome aid station is in place, where I refill a water bottle (only used one bottle in 32 miles, not drinking enough?) and grab a few fig bars and animal crackers but don’t linger long. I continue to work hard as I head past the Sea Wall and climb some more along Somes Sound. At Mile 46, the 72 mile course merges back in. Gee, I could have taken a 28 mile shortcut, but I would have missed all this great scenery — and saved two hours! The ride heads down the east side of Somes Sound, a spectacular piece of Acadia, into Northeast Harbor and a welcome rest stop at Mile 55. My legs are still still feeling decent. Tired, but decent. I grab more fig bars and refill water again. Haven’t quite finished another bottle, so only two used in 55 miles and close to 4 hours of steady riding. This is actually a danger sign, but I don’t pay enough attention to it. I suck down an energy gel and strike out again.

Right out of the gate, more climbing. My legs surely don’t appreciate the steepness now as I have to use a fairly low gear and stand to power my way back up the hill. The course climbs steadily as it heads towards Bar Harbor. Funny, it looked like I was over the crest, but the bike is going 6mph so I must still be going up. Two riders pass me on the climb. Stupidly, I kick it up and chase back up to them. It works for a couple minutes, then I’m gapped again. Finally, the road heads down hill. My size and speed on the descent help me catch the pair of riders. We thunder into Bar Harbor. Flying down Main Street, there are tourists everywhere as a cruise ship is in. We dodge Europeans and hang a left at the harbor. Once again it begins to climb steeply. The two riders pull away. My legs noticeably tighten as I notice I am around Mile 69. Now I am suffering and as I make a left onto the Park Road to start the final loop, I realize that as I am now doing about 5mph up the hill that I may have “hit the wall” or have ”blown”. Luckily, I am about 5 miles, largely downhill, from the finish if I don’t do the final loop or the climb up Cadillac Mountain (a 1,000 foot climb over 3.5 miles). As I pull over to ponder, a group of MCC riders riding the 72 are heading the other way. I turn around and join them. We speed to the finish (well, the last climb wasn’t so fast for me).

While combining the best of both loops, I have completed 72 miles with over 6,000 feet of climbing. Total time in the saddle of 5 hours and 2 minutes. I feel like I have accomplished something — something I 
never thought I’d even attempt in 2008. So while I didn’t hit a grand slam (the 100 will have to wait for Fall 2009 with this amount of climbing), I do feel like I finished off the season with a solid base hit. Now on to Winter challenges. Remember, your attitude is a big part of your success and even though the skinny racer may finish first, you get to ride the same course and enjoy the scenery that they miss! — Andrew