Training Outdoors in the Fall and Winter

Every year when fall weather hits, I begin to hear complaints about not being able to get outdoor workouts in anymore. Even though the days are shorter and the weather is less desirable, you can still enjoy your outdoor training activities throughout the fall and winter; you just have to take a few extra precautions to help reduce your risk of injury or illness, and to keep you cozy.

The following tips are for those of us in California, where generally the temps get between the 30's and 50's temps in the winter, and who are running, or doing some other type of continuous movement activities, not including cycling. The clothing you will need for cycling will be slightly different including more wind protection.

I'm going to break this up into temperature ranges. Now keep in mind every one's tolerance and comfort in cold is not the same, but that having being said, play around with your choices during shorter workouts until you have it figured out before you embark on longer adventures.

Let's start with 55+ degrees.
Most people will be comfortable with a pair of shorts and a tee or tank. These cloths can be your typical runners shorts and loose fitting tee, to the more form fitting triathlon shorts and tops. Really whatever you prefer here goes. Yes your first few minutes may be on the cool side when it's closer to 55 degrees, but keep in mind once you have warmed up you will be perfectly fine in the shorts and tee in this temperature range. If you will be doing your cool down with stretching outside as well, having a layer to throw over this would be a good idea.

 45 degrees to 55 degrees.
In moderately cool weather the question of what to wear is largely a personal choice, although when it's particularly windy, runners may want a windbreaker jacket. While a t-shirt won't generally cut it, a quality long sleeve base layer will get runners through most of this temperature bracket. The top should be made of a synthetic material as cotton will absorb and hold all your sweat and not allow you to stay warm and dry.

Shorts will also still get the job done since the legs tend to warm up quickly from the work they're putting in, but consider 3/4 length pants if your knees tend to get cold and stiff feeling. Also gloves may be helpful if your hands tend to get cold easily.

35 degrees to 45 degrees
Below the 45 degree point you should cover more of your body, particularly the hands and neck and head. Light running gloves and a light synthetic beanie or ear cover will help to keep you warm. On your body, a base layer under a windproof jacket will protect your torso, and light running tights ensure that your legs don't get too cold. To help cover your neck, having a mock neck base layer will work, or a light scarf that won't come undone while moving. If it's raining, you may want to wear a rainproof jacket and pants, few things are more miserable than being soaked through in 35 degree weather.

Thinking about your feet is going to be helpful in this temperature too. As our extremities get less blood flow and can end up feeling painful when cold and wet. Using wool socks will do the trick for both the cold AND the wet. Today's wool is made softer and less smelly that older types of wool cloths. One great company is Smart Wool. No I am not sponsored nor do I get any kickbacks from them. I use their socks because they work.

25 degrees to 35 degrees
When it comes to water resistance, windproof running jackets do better in the snow than in the rain, so your rain proof jacket is unnecessary for these temps. However just a base layer and your wind jacket won't be enough. You will need to either go with a thicker base layer and your jacket, or one light and tight base layer with a looser thicker layer over the top, and finally the jacket over that. Make sure you still have a little space between your jacket and your next base layer so you can trap in some warmth.

Your tights will need to be full length now covering all the way to your ankles. They should also have some insulation or wind resistance in them. Now is also not the time for your no show or ankle running socks. Your socks should be quarter length at the very least, up to knee high and don't forget the wool will keep you cozy and warm but not sweaty.

This is also the time to put on a thicker pair of gloves preferably something with some wind resistance. Last, let's not forget about your head and neck. This is definitely the time to cover them with a nice beanie and neck gator, or a full balaclava would be perfect here.

Below 25 degrees.
In this temperature range, moisture control becomes a big factor in your overall comfort during exercise. So does staying warm, so it's imperative that the middle and outer layers keep you well ventilated as well as warm. You're going to want to pick an outer shell that's still breathable but weather resistant. Ski touring and mountaineering shells do well because they are designed for exercise. Your thicker running gloves may not work at these temps, so grab your ski gloves and make sure they pull over your jacket cuff or under, you don't want to let heat out through your wrist area.  Also at these temps you will need another layer of pants over your tights. Something again that is windproof and possibly lined but has space between them and your base layer pants.

You may even find that your eyes start to burn. Grab those ski goggles if your regular sunglasses aren't doing the trick anymore. Something I haven't mentioned yet but is important especially in the below freezing temps, your music. If you like to listen to music while you exercise your phone or ipod wont work as it's too cold for the battery to function. You will want to make sure you have an interior pocket in your outer jacket, this will keep the battery warm enough to allow your music to continue playing while you continue exercising.

Now if you are more of a visual person like I am, I came across a pretty good picture that represents what I am talking about. Check it out below.

Thank you for reading, and as always if you have questions or suggestions please leave me a message.

Paleo Zuppa Toscana Soup

It's that time of year when I like to start making hot comfort food meals. By comfort food I don't mean get crazy and overload with cheese and heavy whipping cream to totally derail my health. Instead I like to make soups, chili's, one pot heart meals and lots of root veggie dishes.

I was surfing the web and came across a recipe for Zuppa Toscana Paleo style and I just had to try it. This recipe used parsnips instead of white potatoes and coconut cream instead of heavy whipping cream. So of course I had to give it a try. As always I change things even on my first time making something new. I like to be able to have leftovers so most of the time it is just a doubling of the recipe as I did this time. The following recipe will give you 6 servings. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Ingredients:
1.5 lbs Hot Italian Chicken Sausage, removed from casing
1 small White Onion, chopped
3 Medium Parsnips, chopped
4 cups Chicken Bone Broth
1 can full fat Coconut milk, DO NOT shake it as you will only use the cream off the top
1 bunch of leaf Kale, chopped or ripped, I used 4 leaves from the bunch
A shake of red chili flakes if it's just not hot enough

In a large pot over medium heat, cook the sausage and onion, using a spatula to break the sausage into bite size pieces. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the sausage starts to brown and the onions have softened.

Add the parsnips, coconut cream and chicken bone broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 25 minutes.

Add the kale and cook for about 5 more minutes, just enough to wilt the kale.

Serve and enjoy. and If it's not spicy enough for you add a dash or more of red chili flakes.

P.S. I enjoyed the soup so much I completely forgot to take a picture of my soup for this post. Instead I had to take this from the original author, but mine did look EXACTLY like this, just in a different bowl.

P.S.S. I enjoyed this with a nice hot gluten free baguette and butter. YUM!

P.S.S.S. Oops! How did that bottle of wine get in there? Yes in addition to the soup and baguette the wine was enjoyed with it too.

HOLIDAY HEALTH

It's that time of year when travel is at an  all time high. You may be visiting with family locally, taking a getaway, or even having to travel for work. Not to mention all the holiday parties, and end of year parties that may be derailing your workouts and normal eating schedule. By eating just 200 extra calories a day - a piece of pecan pie, a glass of eggnog, or a couple butter cookies - you could pack on two to three pounds over this five to six week holiday season. That doesn't sound like much, except few people shed that extra weight in the following months or even years.

You don't need to deprive yourself however. Instead practice some of the following tips to help you get through the holidays without making "go on a diet" one of your New Year's resolutions.

1. Budget calories wisely: Don't eat everything at buffets and parties. Be choosy and spend calories judiciously on the foods you truly enjoy or maybe only get at this time of year.

2. Take 10 seconds before taking seconds: It takes a few minutes for your stomach's "I'm getting full" signal to reach your brain. After finishing round one, take a 5 minute break, converse with friends, drink some water. Then recheck your appetite. You might realize you are in fact full, or maybe only want a small taste of that yummy dish not a full second serving.

3. Distance yourself from the buffet: At your holiday party, don't stand next to the buffet. It makes it harder to mindlessly reach for food. If you know you are prone to overindulging, pop a mint or stick of gum in your mouth so you won't keep reaching for the "insert your favorite go to here".

4. Drink alcohol wisely: A glass of eggnog can set you back about 500 calories; wine, beer, and mixed drinks range from 100 to 250 calories and up per drink. If you drink alcohol, have a glass of water between drinks, this will keep you from getting to the drunk stage and slows down your consumption of extra calories. Also since alcohol increases appetite and diminishes ones ability to control what you eat, don't drink on an empty stomach.

5. Put on your walking or dancing shoes: Dancing is a great way to burn off some holiday calories. If you are at a holiday party with music, get out on that dance floor. At family gatherings, suggest a walk before the feast or even between dinner and desert.

6. Be buffet savvy: At a buffet, wander around the food table before putting anything on your plate. By checking out the options, you might be less inclined to create a huge pile of overflowing food.

7. Cook from (and for) the heart: To show family and friends that you really care about them, be creative and try cooking with recipes that use less butter, cream, lard, vegetable shortening, and other ingredients rich in saturated fats. Also try preparing turkey or fish instead of red meat.

8. Keep track of your consumption: If there are multiple appetizers or drink at a party keep track of how much you are consuming. Keeping the wrappers from candy, chicken wing bones, or wine glasses provides you with an accurate visual count of what you've already eaten.

9. Engage with your family/company: The more time you spend talking and staying connected with the people around you, the less time you have to pop something in your mouth. This conversation may bring you closer to your family or friends, and them to you.

10. Enjoy the food, don't take what will make you feel guilty: This time of year is a special time where we celebrate many things, celebration is different for all of us. So enjoy that food item you only get once a year and don't feel guilty, but do eat it in moderation. Will you regret taking that full second serving of it?

So this holiday season don't use "but the food was right there" as an excuse to consume more calories than necessary and then feel guilty about it after. Enjoy your holidays, enjoy the food in moderation, and enjoy the time with your family and friends. Before you know it all this will be behind you and you want to feel good about your holiday season and health.

Do you have any tricks you use to help curb your intake? Please feel free to share them with us.

STAYING ACTIVE WHILE TRAVELING

Traveling for work can be stressful, unpredictable and tiresome. You may be at the mercy of a daunting conference schedule, less than ideal weather, or a demanding client. On top of that how are you supposed to stick to your current health and wellness routine?

If left unchecked, bad habits that form during business travel can seriously impact your quality of life and the productivity of your work trip.

It can be easy to view business trips as "cheat days" and allow yourself to slack on your regular fitness regimen and diet, but in most cases, you will be more productive on your business trip if you find a way to be active. 

Fortunately, there are creative exercise options for business travelers that go beyond the traditional hotel gym workout. Below I'll explore my top five tips for maintaining your fitness routine while on the go.

1. STAY ACTIVE WHILE YOU COMMUTE.

For someone who is always on the go, incorporating light physical activity into your commute will help offset the detrimental effects of sitting for long periods of time, as well as provide structure to your fitness routine. For example, those expecting a layover on a flight can plan ahead by packing their walking shoes and walk laps around the terminal. Some airports now have yoga rooms (at SFO terminal 2 and terminal 3 have yoga rooms), or other fitness related rooms for the busy traveler. 

If you're expecting a long layover, see if there is a gym near the airport and try to get in a quick workout or group class, or go for a quick jog around a local park.

Once you've reached your destination, small changes in your daily activity can make a big difference. If you're traveling to a city and are fortunate enough to find a place to stay downtown or in an active neighborhood, take advantage! Walk to meetings when you can. Get out and explore the city.

2. USE WHAT YOU HAVE. 

Don't over complicate things. Business travel usually requires traveling light, which means carting around exercise equipment probably won't be a sustainable option.

So be flexible. Incorporate body weight exercises you can do in your hotel room, such as crunches, push ups, or yoga.

If there are trails or a park near your lodging, go for a walk or a jog. If your hotel has a swimming pool, swim some laps, or if it's to busy for that, tread water. If you like cycling, many cities now have some form of user-friendly bike rental system, rent a bike and get out to see the city and get your exercise in at the same time. 

3. PRIORITIZE YOUR WORKOUT.

Make time for your workout routine, whatever that may entail. Ideally, you should work out around the same time every day, even while traveling. Working out in the morning is typically recommended, as it allows you to clear your mind before you start the day, but you will be most likely to succeed if you tailor your workout to your schedule.

Also, technology is your friend. There are plenty of excellent apps that can help keep your fitness routine on track. These range from simple pedometers that encourage you to meet your daily step goals to apps that provide personalized daily routines with push reminders.

4. START RIGHT AWAY.

Once you've settled in after a long flight or train ride, it can be difficult to find the motivation to do anything other than relaxing.

Make things easy on yourself by packing your exercise clothes in luggage that's easy to access, such as a carry-on, or wearing them during your commute if you can. This way, you are dressed and ready to exercise as soon as you reach your destination.

5. TAKE CARE OF YOUR BODY.

When we're outside of our normal environment, it can be easy to forget that the same rules apply as they do back home. Staying active requires maintaining a diet that makes you ready to work out.

Eat right, drink plenty of water, and go to sleep at a reasonable hour, even while traveling. To make it easier on yourself, buy groceries when you can to decrease the temptation to eat out for every meal.

Go easy on the after-work drinks. If you simply can't avoid going out or you just want to blow off some steam, order wisely.

Although these strategies may feel like sacrifices at first, they will be worth it in the long run. Your body will thank you, and you will be fresh for your meeting the next day.

Do you have any routines that work for you? Please feel free to share them.

Homemade Energy Snack Balls

If any of you are like me, busy through the day running here and there. Many days you feel like you are out of control and when you are hungry so is your snacking a bit out of control. You wonder what can I do about this.

Maybe you are lucky and have an office that has snack food at the ready. I'm going to guess the snack food consists of cookies, crackers, chips basically anything in a package that was easy to order and is able to be left out for long periods of time without spoiling. I'm sure you already know that is the worst stuff for you to snack on. Right? Or maybe you are lucky and your company orders things like Cliff bars and things similar to those. OR maybe you are really lucky and your office has vegetables and hummus dip or peanut butter and fruit.

Most of us would agree it's easier to have these things readily available so we don't have to think about what we are snacking on. The veggies and such are obviously the healthiest choice of snack, with the cliff bar and their equivalent being the next best choice. Hopefully you would agree that the chips and such should be avoided on a daily basis.

So then what do you do when you don't have these at your finger tips? I have been playing with a few recipes on homemade no bake snacks. These snacks are higher in protein and lower in carbohydrates that their store bought equivalent and take about 30 minutes to prepare a batch of 6 servings.

You are probably wondering why I mentioned higher in protein and lower in carbohydrates. I mention that because many of the store bought snacks can be as high as 13:1 carbohydrate to protein ratio. This is quite a high ratio even for someone who is doing an Ironman event of several hours. For the most part many Americans get more than enough carbohydrates in their normal american diets, but fall short in their protein intake, especially women. My goal with these snacks was to get this ratio closer to a 4:1 ratio for better nutritional balance.

What you need:
1 medium sized, medium to ripe Banana
5 TBSP Peanut butter or Almond butter
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
1 TBSP Cinnamon
1/4 Cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
2 scoop (44 g) Vega Protein Smoothie Vanilla protein powder
1 Cup Old Fashioned Rolled Oats
1/4 Cup Raisins, Blueberries or dried fruit of your choice

How Do You Do This No Bake Thing?
1. Mash the banana in a bowl, then mix in the nut butter. You can also use seed butter if you are allergic to nuts. If your nut/seed butter is quite dry, warm it up in the microwave to soften it, then mix it in with the mashed banana.

2. Next up add your Vanilla Extract, Shredded Coconut, Protein powder, and dried fruit. Mix these up well.

3. Last add the oats and mix well. If you find its too dry and the oats aren't sticking together, I added a tsp of water at a time until everything gently sticks together. Be careful not too add too much water as this will make the finished product too moist and sticky.

4. Use a tablespoon to scoop out the mixture and roll it into little balls. This recipe will give you 12 tablespoon size balls. Once they are all rolled up, place them in the refrigerator for 2 hours to set.

5. At this point you now have 6, two ball servings. They will last 3 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.

Happy Snacking!

                                                     NUTRITION FACTS
                                                  SERVING SIZE 2 BALLS

                                    PEANUT BUTTER       ALMOND BUTTER 
CALORIES                             224                                     216
CARBOHYDRATES            25.5g                                    26g
FATS                                       9.5g                                    8.8g
PROTEIN                              10.5g                                    9.6g





 

Information Overload. How do you navigate it?

In this age of social media and advertising, do you ever find yourself overloaded with all the best ways to get fit or newest diet plans? Have you ever tried to look up the ins and outs of the plan in question and find yourself drowning in way too much information?

There is just so much information floating out there in cyber space. That's when it occurred to me; how does someone decide where to start, what to believe and how to apply it to them? We all have different reasons to start a health and fitness program. Just do a quick Google search on the topic that you are interested in and hundreds of pages of information will pop up.

Go Ahead. Try a search.

Open another screen, ask Google what you have been wondering about. Now you have hundreds of pages pop up with "answers" to your question. But, what do you do with all of that information? Is all that information relevant to you? How do you know if it is just someone's opinion, or is it tested with proper methods and results, and has been verified? Are those verified test results going to apply to you specifically?

Do you start with the first line on the page that pops up? Do you scroll down to the middle of the page, or do you go to the last page? We haven't been taught how to navigate this crazy amount of information that is at our finger tips in milliseconds. I want to help you with that.

Here is a little tip: In general the top half of the first page is going to be paid advertisements. SKIP those. Someone is paying for you to click on their product or service. Sometimes it's just to get more traffic on their site, sometimes if they get a click they get paid by one of their affiliates, and the rest of the time it's to get you to sign up for something or buy something. The way you know it's a paid advertisement, there will be a large bolded "AD" right next to the link to the website.

As you look down the page, read not only the main bolded title of the article, but also make note of the website. Is the website wikipedia, is it a fitness magazine, or is it someones blog or a medical article such as WebMD?

First, I look at the dates of publication. When was this article, web page, blog recently posted? I like to stay current, so I stay within the last 3 to 5 years. Then I look at the author. I look for the medical sites first, with my second choice being the blogger, and last the magazines and others.

I'm going to use the example of Keto diets since it's a hot topic today. Type in "Keto Diet beginner information". Look at the list on possible articles you can read. If the first few have the word AD next to them, skip on down a few entries.

The first one I came upon after the adds was this,  https://www.bulletproof.com/diet/keto/keto-diet-beginners-guide/. I noticed this was an article about the keto diet with lots of information on the do's and don'ts. This article is also hosted my the company BulletProof which sells products high in their proprietary fat complex. Right there that tells me even if they have good information in this article they are trying to sell me something and therefore will not be likely they have sussed out who the diet is best for. So I move on.

The next article on my page was, https://www.atkins.com/how-it-works/library/articles/how-to-start-a-keto-diet-7-tips-for-beginners. This article is hosted by Atkins, this group used to tout their diet years back and so they are going to have a specific bend to their info. Most likely they will try to lead you to their products or their way of doing keto, and try to get you to buy into a nutrition program lead by them. This article has a lot of information but the info is all general, meaning not specific to any one population. Let's move on again.

Next up was, https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto. This article though LONG, had embedded into it links to the peer reviewed journal articles where this writer got their information. Because of these links I would consider this a great article to read through and determine if the info in there applies to you. Click the links when needed to see if the subjects used in the studies reflect who you are, male/female, young/old, diabetic/non-diabetic, etc.

Those peer reviewed journals are where the real research and development starts. Once that research hits the streets is where it can lose it's credibility. People will try to apply it to EVERYONE. That doesn't always work. Why? Many times the subjects will ONLY be young healthy males. When I say young healthy males we are talking about men 18-23 with no health ailments.

How do you move forward if the study was done on only young males? Look for another article. Trust me there is SO MUCH being studied now that you will find something relevant to you. Don't give up, keep looking. Take your time, be diligent. And ask questions.

I hope this has helped you to have a better idea how to navigate the health and wellness articles so you can better choose the information that applies to you.

If you have an article or topic you would like help understanding, please feel free to leave a comment.

Exercise Consistency

Why is it important to have consistency in our exercise routine?

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
- Aristotle”

I think of training whether it be for endurance sports or general health as a game
of upwords. You have to build a good base before you can build up, and once
you have that base there are many options you can then take. There is no one
specific way that works for everyone, there are so many other pieces that factor
into good health and fitness.

One success factor that I’ve both observed and am personally working on is
consistency. It is what we do each and every day over and over again that allows
us to achieve our goals. I can attest to this being true as I’ve seen it in my clients
over the last 13 years of training, and also in my own training.

The good news is that consistency is something we have control over, there are
no skills or talents required to achieve consistency. Instead of skills or talents you
just need to start with the following habits that will help you increase your
consistency.

Plan and Schedule Your Workouts

Scheduling workouts on the same day every week will help consistency. For
example, every Wednesday, Friday may be your strength day. Tuesday and
Thursday are your cardio days. Then you save outdoor activities like hiking
for Saturday and/or Sunday, and finally rest day on Monday. By creating a
repeating schedule that works for you, you minimize the chances of missing
a workout.

Be Purposeful

Each and every workout should have a purpose. Putting unnecessary volume to
your schedule increases your risk of injury, over training, or burnout. Instead,
focus on the workouts you need to do and consider the quality, not quantity, or
each session. In doing so, you free up time to do everything else that you need
to do rather than create unnecessary conflicts.

Follow Your Plan as Best as You Can

For most of us who do not make our living as professional athletes, the reality is
that we may not be able to complete 100 percent of our workouts each week. A
good target is to complete 75-85 percent of your planned workout in a given week.
Take note of the most important workouts during the week and focus on getting
those workouts in. You’ll receive the desired training effect while allowing more
flexibility in your life. After a month or two reevaluate your workout schedule and
make adjustments based on what days and workouts you have been doing and
create your schedule with those in mind. 

If You are Short on Time, Do a Shorter Workout

This may seem obvious, but I’ve been guilty of skipping workouts altogether rather
than getting in a quick 30 minute session. Rather than feeling down about not getting
in the full workout, be positive about the fact you just got out there and did
something good for your body.

While these are pretty simple steps to follow, they are so important to gaining that
healthy lifestyle you have been trying to attain that has seemed just out of your reach.

Paleo Spaghetti Squash Bolognese

RECIPE
Paleo Spaghetti Squash Bolognese

Total time from Start to Finish 90 minutes

Serves 8 people

350 calories per serving (more if you use wine, or if you use dark meat)

**This recipe is adapted from Diane Sanfilippo and her Practical Paleo cook book.**

Ingredients

• 2 Medium Spaghetti Squash
• 1 medium Yellow Onion, finely diced
• 5 Stalks of Celery, finely diced
• 3 Large Carrots, finely diced
• 5 cloves of Garlic, finely diced
• 2 lbs Ground Turkey (dark or light)
• ½ cup Almond milk
• 2 Tbsp Butter (I use Kerrygold Irish butter)
• 6 oz. tomato paste (1 small can)
• ½ cup dry white wine (optional), I always use this gives it a wonderful flavor

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Slice spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Sprinkle with pepper and salt. Place on baking sheet meat side up and roast for 35-45 minutes. The Squash should become lighter in color, and the insides scrape easily from the skin.
3. While the squash is baking, use this time to chop all the vegetables.
4. Once the vegetables are chopped, using a large skillet melt the butter. Sauté the onions, carrots, garlic and celery for about 10 minutes.
5. Add the turkey and cook till brown. Making sure to break it up into small crumbles as it cooks. Once the meat is done, add the milk, tomato paste and white wine (optional), and simmer over medium-low heat for 20-30 minutes. Be sure to stir on occasion to prevent the bottom from burning.
6. While the sauce is simmering, take the squash and “scrape” it till you get the noodles. Add more pepper and salt if needed.
7. Add pepper and salt to the bolognese sauce as needed.
8. Once the sauce is done, place the squash on a plate and top it with the bolognese sauce. Add a side of garlic bread and a glass of wine (might as well finish the bottle, can’t let it go to waste) and ENJOY!

Progress Photos:

Uncooked Squash.

Starting to chop the veggies.

Must protect the eyes from the nasty onions.

Oops I didn’t melt the butter first, but it still works out well. Make sure to stir well if the butter is not melted before tossing in the veggies.

Add the meat and begin breaking it up as it cooks.

Once the meat is cooked, add the milk (I use homemade almond milk), tomato paste, and wine if you choose. I use Portlandia Pinot Gris in mine, but any dry white will work. What’s your favorite?

The squash are done roasting and now it’s time to scrape the “noodles” out.

With the amounts that I use for this recipe I am able to get 8 meals at about 350 kcal per meal.

The squash has been scraped, and the bolognese sauce is done.

Everything is now in its proper storage container, with dinner on a plate. Enjoy!

Enjoy!