This is INSANE!!! :) "Winning" again today.

Never did I think I'd use an ignorant Charlie Sheen reference, but I can't help it.  I'm proud of myself.

Today, I beat a personal best.

Workout time:

 Time ABOVE target heart rate:

Time AT Target Heart Rate:

 Average heart rate:

Aaaannnndddd drum roll pleeeeeasseeeeeee :)
Total calories burned in one hour:

This is probably the most I've burned in any workout EVER.  What did I do to burn so many damned calories, you ask???  INSANITY (Max Interval Circuit to be precise)!!!  I hate this one, but I love it.  Nothing like having your own personal drill sergeant spurring you on just about the time you want to quit.

I think I could have pushed myself a little more but the floor work (suicides, walking pushups, etc) really start to suffer when I'm fatigued so I modify drastically or I rest.

If you are really ready for a challenge this is it.  It's conditioning at its best, and just about the time I think I cannot do another set, there's something a *little* less "insane" to keep me hanging on.  I really think it's about talking to yourself.  Just one more interval, just 5 more minutes, 10 minutes until the cool down, you just have to push yourself beyond what you think your capable of.  If you asked me 2 years ago if this would have happened, I would have laughed in your face.  I might have hurt you.  ;)

But I finally, finally, finally, stopped making excuses and started doing SOMETHING!  It doesn't have to be Insanity or P90X (although they are both great places to start if you want to get out of your comfort zone) but whatever it is, you just need to do it!  One day at a time, 10 minutes at a time.  You'll be amazed at what you can accomplish.  Just ask me.  ;)

This Means War!!!!

I always suspected that I may have multiple-personality or bi-polar disorder, but I really think that it boils down to this...  There is a girl who lives inside me.

She runs purely on impulse.  She needs instant gratification.  She eats anything she wants and says "I deserve it."  She's "too tired" or "too busy" or just doesn't feel like working out.  She takes the elevator instead of the stairs... because she can.  She is fat, unhealthy, unhappy with herself and that just made those poor decisions keep coming and coming.  And the worst part about it all is that she complained constantly.  "Why don't I have any energy?"  "Why can't I get anything done?"  "I feel fat."  "I can't look at myself in the mirror."  "I can't do this."

This girl USED to run me.

I can't remember precisely the moment that things changed.  I don't think that it was one day that I could pinpoint.  I think it just started with a single step.  I remembered how much better I felt when I worked out.  So I started one day.  And I hated it.  But I gave it one more day.  And that turned into another.  Then I started tracking what I ate.  I ate less.  I kept working out.

Then the girl came back.  She said, "You know, you're spending a lot of time doing this, but you aren't seeing a lot of results.  Is it really worth it?"  "It's really hard.  Your friends eat what they want."  So I bailed on some workouts, and I ate whatever and whenever the mood struck.  And I felt miserable.

So I punched the girl out and dove in headfirst.  I started the hardest workout I'd ever tried up to that time (P90X).  And it took time, and I was sore, and it wasn't fun to eat less and eat better.  But it shut her up for a while.  I gained some energy that helped to push me through from one day to the next.  I started getting stronger.  And I was losing weight.  People started to notice.  And that b!tch would poke her head in every once in a while and bother me, but I would push her down.

But sometimes I would lose.  It would last a day, or a week or a month, but eventually I would remember how good I felt and that I WAS WORTH IT to make these positive changes in my life.  I would tell myself, "Just work out for 5 minutes" "just drive past Mickey D's once, you can go the next time."  In truth, I was just using mental judo on her.  On myself.  AND IT WORKS!!!

Some people are hard-wired to want to eat fruits and vegetables with every meal and run 5 miles a day.  That is NOT me.  I grew up on fast food and home cooked comfort food.  I was uncoordinated so I never got into sports and instead would stay in my room all day and read.  I love chocolate, booze, and fried food.  But there SHOULD come a point in your life when you realize that all of this can't be good for you.  And almost every day is a battle between what you want and what you need.  It's not just about diet and exercise.  It's about self worth, determination and confidence.

So as time has gone on, I have been beating that girl more than she has beaten me.  And I have 50 pounds gone, a stronger, healthier body, more energy, a more balanced mind, confidence, and countless other rewards to show for it.  And through it all, I know that I don't have to beat her all time.  Sometimes I give her what she wants just to lull her into submission.  :)

I hope that this helps to motivate you.  Don't ever discount one small change, 10 minutes of exercise, taking the stairs, because as long as you make the right choices more often than not, you have won the war!

P.S.  I won again this morning.  Skipped the Tim Horton's cafe mocha and a bagel with cream cheese (600 calories) in favor of Shakeology (with peanut butter!!!!!) and a bagel thin with cream cheese for 415 calories.  I lost calories, gained nutrition, saved gas money and shut that girl's big mouth!  :)

What do YOU think?

Good morning!

I have been plugging away at posting, and truthfully, the subject matter has been coming pretty easily since  this has been a primary focus in my life for the last few years.  I have been gaining knowledge through experienced friends and lots of research.  It is really driving me to know that health and fitness really seems to be a priority in others lives' too.  It is my hope that I can help to make a difference, even if it's just a little nugget or some motivation for a person that is struggling.

That being said, I have been able to see that some folks are reading the blog daily, (although it may just be my moms viewing over and over) and I want to provide information that you feel is helpful to you and your goals.  I would welcome your questions and suggestions for areas to cover.  If I have some needs to be filled and some sources of inspiration, I will be able to continue to bring information to you daily.

Thanks!!!

Skipping meals? Calorie conservation or sabotage?

First, thanks to my friend Terese for posing this very question this morning on her Facebook page to get me thinking and wanting to share with you.

Lots of folks don't make the time for breakfast in the mornings.  Amidst the hustle and bustle of preparing for work, getting kids ready for school, commutes and getting out the door, at times it is hard to fit in breakfast in the first place.  Then... when someone is restricting their daily calorie intake, breakfast seems like a logical place to save a few hundred calories.

This is day two of good news... ;)  YOU SHOULD EAT BREAKFAST!!!  Even when you're conserving calories, spreading them out through the day is the best plan to keep your belly satisfied and will prevent you from overeating to catch up.  Think about it this way -- if you ate dinner at 6 pm, and didn't eat again until near noon... your body has been fasting for 18 hours!!!  That 18 hour fast every day can really make your metabolism sluggish.  Small frequent meals throughout the day are like adding fuel to the calorie burning fire and allows your body to do its job more efficiently.

So what should you have for breakfast?  Well, the cereal companies have done their own studies, and of course the outcome is as we would expect.  Eat cereal, lose weight.

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/lose-weight-eat-breakfast?page=1

Healthy cereals are a great choice.  Even a sugary cereal may be better than skipping (this wont work for me, for reasons I'll get into later) for some folks.  In either case it's hard to get a bowl of cereal down on a typical commute.  So you could choose to take some dry cereal and down a glass of non-fat milk, or look at some other alternatives.

1) Drink your breakfast -- Skip the bloody mary, of course, but there are MANY options available to you.  I personally drink Shakeology every morning, but there are also fruit smoothies, protein shakes of all varieties, and you can make them according to your personal taste and dietary needs.

2)  Belly up to the bar -- (okay, I'm sensing a theme here) be it granola, protein, fruit or flax seed nutritional bars are great on the go, but as I mentioned with cereal, try to pick something that tastes good but has some nutritional value.  Many breakfast bars are chock full of sugar and fat.

3)  Portable fruit - apples, bananas, pears, you name it.  Just grab something on your way out the door or while you are supervising the morning activities and you're set.  Add some cheese slices for a serving of protein to help keep you full for a longer period.

4)  Waffle with peanut butter - instead of a regular waffle loaded with syrup, add about 1TBS of PB and a little J if you wanted and get on the road.

5)  If must hit the drive thru, stick to the Egg McMuffin.  300 calories and lots of lean protein would be a great choice.

6) Yogurt - Greek or other low fat yogurt is a good food to start the day with.  Both are low in fat and high in protein to fuel your body.  

7)  Feel like a kid again by having some yogurt tubes.  While very portable, most kids' yogurts are nightmare of sugar, artificial colors and flavors.  But Kroger brand, Stonyfield Farms, Horizon Organic, and I'm sure there are others, make yogurt tubes without all of the junk that you don't need.  These are lower in protein than their "adult" counterparts, but would do in a pinch.  Maybe add some nuts or granola too.

Here are a few more, just for good measure.  Ants on a log, hard boiled eggs, a bagel thin with low cream cheese, a ham and cheese sandwich.

No matter what your breakfast choice, try to stick to things that are high fiber or protein.  A combination of both is ideal, but when eating on the run both may not be possible all the time.  Avoid high sugar without protein and fiber because these foods have a tendency to spike your blood sugar and the subsequent drop can leave you feeling hungry earlier and maybe crashing from that sugar buzz.

In closing, EAT BREAKFAST!!!  Millions of moms and teachers can't be wrong -- they've always said it's the most important meal of the day.

Ode to Easter -- Cheat Days :)

Is any holiday a source of unease and anxiety?  Chocolate bunnies and Grandma's super cheesy potatoes have you in a tizzy?  Take heart.  REALLY.

Cheat days are allowed, and in fact encouraged by many dietitians, trainers, and fitness enthusiasts (and ME).  Allowing yourself a period (a day, a meal, a treat) is a welcome break from the restrictions that you have placed on yourself, and honestly can be just what you need to keep you on track.  I do understand that this may sound counterproductive.  But I believe that there is nothing like making the choice to remove many foods that you've always loved from your diet and sticking to it, to make you want to sit down and EAT every food you've ever removed from your diet.  Better to allow yourself a meal, or a day, or treat that you have been sacrificing, then to go completely off the rails.

This is another important point to remember.  On severely calorie restricted diets for long term periods, your body will respond by slowing your metabolism (the exact opposite of what you really need) and this may cause you to store what you are eating as fat unnecessarily.  Some of the causes of weight loss plateaus are the opposite of what you may think.  The person in question is not eating ENOUGH calories so their metabolism stalls and their body starts STORING fat instead of eliminating it.  The end result is a double blow.  You are miserable because you are restricting yourself beyond what is necessary and your efforts are not being rewarded.

I just ran across a few most interesting articles that could absolve me of all guilty cheating.  :)
It may actually HELP you to cheat, within reason.  The extra calorie jolt that you'll get from a cheat may trigger an increase in a hormone called leptin.  This helps your body to realize that it is NOT starving and will in fact kick start your metabolism, helping you to release fat that you may be holding onto.

I am definitely not encouraging periods of calorie restriction and long periods of cheating.  That kind of behavior can lead to more serious or permanent metabolic issues.  I also realize that some folks feel the need to completely restrict themselves from those foods that they have trouble controlling and "cheats" may not be something that they are comfortable with.  Only some experimenting and getting to know your own body will tell what will work best for you.

In closing:
1)  Make sure you are getting enough calories!!!
2)  Do not feel guilty about indulging, and rejoice in it, but keep vigilant for your health's sake!

Lose 500 Calories - Physical Activity

So it's time to switch gears and talk about the physical activities that you can do to burn those 500 calories. Pair these together with some good food choices, and you'll be WAY ahead of the game with a 1,000 calorie a day deficit.  This could push you closer to a 2 pound a week loss which is still a safe rate of weight loss.

Truly, the options here are limitless because ANYTHING that gets you moving burns calories.  But to be fair, you cannot tally up your regular every day activities to burn *excess* calories, because they are including in your BMR.  Here is a long list of creative ways that you can burn extra calories.  Burning 500 in one shot will be time consuming and some folks will say that they don't have the time, so I have listed a combination of shorter and longer options.  Also, keep in mind that calorie burning is not an exact science, your current weight, your heart rate, and how much you push yourself in these activities will directly impact your calorie burn.

Brisk walking - 10 to 15 minutes - 100 calories
Jogging (10 minute mile) - 50 minutes - 500 calories

Housework - 20 - 30 minutes - 100 calories
Gardening - 30 minutes - 100 calories
Mowing - push - 30 minutes - 168
Vacuuming - 30 minutes - 119

Leisurely bicycling - 30 minutes - 150 calories

Dancing - 20 minutes - 100 calories

Standing - 50 minutes - 100 calories
10,000 steps a day - 300 - 400 calories

Eliptical trainer - 30 minutes - 439 calories
Lifting weights (general)  - 30 minutes - 89 calories
Ashtanga yoga - 30 minutes - 199 calories
Jumping rope at a moderate pace - 10 minutes - 100 calories

Jumping jacks - moderate - 20 minutes - 115 calories

"Boot camp" lunges, running in place, push ups and crunches in rapid succession - 10 minutes - 100 calories

Stairs - running as quickly and safely as you can up and down the stairs - 10 minutes - 178 calories

My personal record per hour was using a program called Turbo Fire, which burned 700 calories in one hour.

As you can see, the higher the intensity, the higher the calorie burn and the less time necessary to complete it.  It is for this reason that I am not a big fan of walking for an hour (though you can increase calories burning in a walking workout by carrying hand weights).  I am really concerned with getting the most bang for my buck so you'll find me push mowing the lawn, or doing a cardio program.

What is YOUR favorite way to burn calories?

Simple ways to beat 500 calories - FOOD

As I mentioned in my post yesterday, you need to lose or burn an additional 500 calories a day for 7 days to lose one pound.

It is my personal experience that if you are really depriving yourself, you are not going to stick to any diet or new habits.  I'm not a fan of the word "diet" period.  Through the years this word has been morphed from its intended meaning (the kinds of food that a person or animal regularly eats) to any kind of restrictions that we place on ourselves to lose weight.

So as a result, I am a huge fan of eating what you want - within reason and finding ways to make healthier substitutions or portion control to regulate your intake.  You are more likely to stick with small consistent changes to your daily routine than a wide reaching restriction.  That being said, here is a big list of examples to get you started:

For breakfast:
2 large whole eggs
an "Everything" bagel
2 TBS of cream cheese
(512 calories)
Instead make:
3 egg whites
Thomas's "Everything" bagel thin
1 TBS Philly 1/3 Less Fat Cream Cheese (200 calories!!!)
Just this simple substitution and you are down 312 calories after your first meal and you've got a great start to your day.  Healthy protein will help you to feel full longer!

Starbucks:
"Skip the Whip" - skipping the whipped cream on most drinks will save you about 90 calories right off the bat.
Asking for Skim Milk instead of 2% for a Venti drink will save you ANOTHER 100 calories
OR
Why not downsize and get a tall

Venti White Chocolate Mocha with Whip - 580

Tall Nonfat No Whip White Chocolate Mocha - 258 calories

If you still need that extra caffeine kick, making that tall a double will drop an additional 5 calories.
Skip the pastry.  Most Starbucks pastries weigh in at between 400 and 500 calories and are very high in fat.  This simple skip and a coffee substitution could save you 800 calories!  Pick up your coffee at the drive through instead of inside and make it a little easier to pass up those yummy treats.  If you must indulge, try the petite vanilla bean scone (about 140 calories) or the other new petite treats which are about 200 calories.

Soda:
If coffee is not your thing but soda is your weakness... a substitute is definitely in order.  Kicking your 3 a day soda habit will reduce your intake by over 500 calories a day.  I completely understand that drinking water instead is not a big party, so if you must drink soda, I believe that diet drinks are an acceptable temporary substitute to get you over the soda addiction.  Try to use Splenda sweetened drinks instead.  They have a sweeter taste and the flavoring is more natural than aspartame.


Meat:
This is another place to make an easy substitute without really sacrificing.  For deli meat, there are plenty of low fat substitutes (turkey and ham are easiest to find).
Ground beef is an easy switch.  The lower the fat percentage, the lower the calories and you don't have to give up on taste.
70/30 - 372 calories
85/15 - 240 calories
So for a quarter pound burger, that is an easy 130 calories.  Skip the cheese or mayo and save another 100 calories each.  Make all 3 changes and you are almost at your 500 calorie savings goal.

Ground turkey is also a great substitute (only 170 calories for 4 oz)

Here are some general tips:

Eat slower and listen to your body.  Eat until you are satisfied instead of finishing that entire plate.  At 3 meals a day, you can easily save hundreds of calories.  This has been one of the most significant changes that has brought me results.  You are an adult and you are no longer have to finish everything on your plate.  I occasionally feel guilty for being wasteful, especially at restaurants, but I remember that I am paying for the experience and the meal, not the 1500 calorie plate of food.  :)  If you absolutely cannot leave that extra food... get a box and become a big a fan of leftovers!  And speaking of plates...

Size Matters - Swap your 12-inch plate for a 10-inch one. You’ll eat 20 to 25% less—and save up to 500 calories.  Researchers say that you won't feel any less full.


I have many many more tips, but I am going to have to continue this at another time.  Tomorrow, I'm going to focus on movement to BURN those 500 calories, and I will revisit food substitutions many many times.

The Magic Formula for Weight Loss

Here it is folks, the moment you've all been waiting for.  The magic formula is really not magic at all.   As far as weight loss goes, this is the *only* easy answer:


Total calories in - BMR (basal/resting metabolic rate) - excess physical activity = total net calories for the day


If your total calories for the day after this equation are positive... you will most certainly gain weight.  Because your activity and your intake vary from day to day, you may gain weight at a rapid pace, other times your weight will fluctuate back and forth and the pounds will creep on over time.


It takes approximately 3,500 ADDITIONAL calories burned to lose one pound.  You could do this by reducing your calorie intake by 500 calories each day for one week.  Your other alternative is to burn an extra 500 calories through physical activity.  Ideally, you would want to implement both methods because cardio and strength training can provide other weight loss advantages and health benefits.


The first step is determining your BMR.  There are many calculators online that will ask for your sex, age, weight, height and activity level.  Here is mine:


Female, 34, 150 pounds, 5' 7":

Activity Level	Description	Calories Burned Per Day
Low	You get little to no exercise	1698 Calories/Day
Light	You exercise lightly (1-3 days per week)	1946 Calories/Day
Moderate	You exercise moderately (3-5 days per week)	2193 Calories/Day
High	You exercise heavily (6-7 days per week)	2441 Calories/Day
Very High	You exercise very heavily (i.e. 2x per day, extra heavy workouts)	2689 Calories/Day

 Given these figures, and taking into account that I exercise moderately throughout the week... I would have to eat about 1700 calories a day for 7 days to lose at a safe rate of 1 pound per week.


Seems pretty simple, right?  Well, I know that this can be easier said than done.  So tomorrow, I'm going to show you some EASY examples of how to reduce your calorie intake by those magic 500 calories a day or get extra physical activity to get you closer to that equal balance of calories in and calories out.

Lowering Impact without Losing Intensity

low-im·pact

adjective

Definition:

1. not strenuous: not requiring much energy or effort

2. easy on environment: causing little or no damage to the surrounding environment

3. easy on joints: describes exercise that involves little compression of the joints (source - MSN Encarta)

I have to be honest...  every time I hear about "low impact" workouts the first thing that comes to mind is "water aerobics."  Not really my idea of workout, more like a nice Sunday afternoon nap.  ;)

But there is good news!  You can have an intense workout without being high impact.  The key to this is modification of your routines.  It may sound difficult at first, but after some time and trial and error, you will recognize which moves do not work for you and make changes that will save your body in the long run.

Regardless of HOW you DO your exercises, the intensity comes from within.  It means pushing yourself TO your limits, not OVER.  Intensity comes from long strong arms and legs, exaggerated movements, not how high you can jump.

Here are some examples of exercise modifications:

1)  Jumping/tucking - instead of both feet leaving the ground, tuck one leg and then the other.  It may sound or feel silly at first, but it is much better than an injury preventing you from working out at all.
2)  Squats - the wider your stance, the less strain on your joints.  Plie squats are also a good modification.  This involves taking the feet very wide and pointing your toes out.  As you squat, your knees track out over your toes.
3)  Pull-ups - instead of doing pull-ups, take a resistance band and loop it around a rafter or bracket on the wall and sit on the floor with the bands as tight as you can handle and pull the handles of the bands back towards your chest (several youtube videos explain this and other modifications).
4) Pushups - of course we all remember this one from gym class.  Instead of full plank position, start the pushup on your knees.  If you have knee issues, be sure to put extra padding under your knees for cushion.
5) Jump rope - use the imaginary jump rope, and alternate skipping the rope one foot at a time.

Your options are really endless, as almost any exercise can be modified to save your joints and keep you active.  As you continue to watch and try modifications on your own, you will learn what works for you and it will become second nature.  The most important thing to remember is to KEEP MOVING!

7 Habits that are Making You Fat

Check these out.  Even the smallest changes to these habits have the potential to create a difference without making you feel deprived.  :)

Fat Habit #1

Putting the Serving Dishes on the Table

Researchers at Cornell University found that when people served themselves from the kitchen counter or the stove, they ate up to 35 percent less food than they did when the grub was on the kitchen or dining room table. When there’s distance between us and our food, the scientists theorize, we think harder about whether we’re really hungry for more.

Fat Habit #2

Getting Too Little (or Too Much) Sleep

A sleep schedule is vital to any weight-loss plan, say Wake Forest University researchers who tracked study participants for 5 years. In the under-40 age group, people who slept 5 hours or less each night gained nearly 2½ times as much abdominal fat as those who logged 6 to 7 hours; also, those who slept 8 hours or longer added nearly twice as much belly fat as the 6- to 7-hour group.

People with sleep deficits tend to eat more (and use less energy) because they’re tired, says study coauthor Kristen Hairston, M.D., while those who sleep longer than 8 hours a night tend to be less active.

Fat Habit #3

Not Multitasking While Watching TV

We don't need to tell you that too much TV has been linked to weight gain. But here's what you may not realize: You can have your TV and watch it, too. Just do something else at the same time. Washing dishes burns 70 calories every 30 minutes. So does ironing. Here's another thing to keep in mind: Cutting TV time even a little helps you burn calories, say researchers at the University of Vermont. In their study, overweight participants who cut their viewing time in half (from an average of 5 hours to 2.5) burned an extra 119 calories a day. “Nearly anything you do—even reading—uses more energy than watching TV,” says study author Jennifer J. Otten, Ph.D.

Fat Habit #4

Drinking Soda

Researchers say you can measure a person’s risk of obesity by measuring his or her soda intake. Versus people who don’t drink sweetened sodas, here’s what your daily intake means:

½ can = 26 percent increased risk of being overweight or obese

½ to 1 can = 30.4 percent increased risk

1 to 2 cans = 32.8 percent increased risk

More than 2 cans = 47.2 percent increased risk

That’s a pretty remarkable set of stats. You don’t have to guzzle Double Gulps from 7-Eleven to put yourself at risk—you just need to indulge in one or two cans a day. Wow. And because high-fructose corn syrup is so cheap, food marketers keep making serving sizes bigger (even the “small” at most movie theaters is enough to drown a raccoon). That means we’re drinking more than ever and don’t even realize it: In the 1950s, the average person drank 11 gallons of soda a year. By the mid-2000s, we were drinking 46 gallons a year. A Center for Science in the Public Interest report contained this shocking sentence: “Carbonated soft drinks are the single biggest source of calories in the American diet.”

Fat Habit #5

Taking Big Bites

Dutch researchers recently found that big bites and fast chewing can lead to overeating. In the study, people who chewed large bites of food for 3 seconds consumed 52 percent more food before feeling full than those who chewed small bites for 9 seconds. The reason: Tasting food for a longer period of time (no matter how much of it you bite off) signals your brain to make you feel full sooner, say the scientists.

Fat Habit #6

Not Eating Enough Fat

You don’t have to go whole hog on a low-carb diet to see results. Simply swapping a few hundred calories of carbs for a little fat may help you lose weight and reduce your blood-insulin levels, according to researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. People in their study who consumed just 43 percent of their calories from carbohydrates felt fuller after 4 hours and maintained their blood-sugar levels longer than those who ate 55 percent carbs.

Carbs can cause blood-sugar levels to spike and then crash, leading to hunger and overeating, says study author Barbara Gower, Ph.D. Fat, on the other hand, keeps you satiated longer. Some easy swaps: butter instead of jam on toast; bacon instead of potatoes; low-fat milk instead of a sports drink.

Fat Habit #7

Not Getting the Best Guidance!

Signing up for e-mails (or tweets) that contain weight-loss advice can help you drop pounds, a new study reveals. When researchers from Canada sent diet and exercise advice to more than 1,000 working adults weekly, they discovered that the recipients boosted their physical activity and ate smarter. People who didn’t receive the reminders didn’t change.

Setting Goals

I believe that the most important first step when you are looking to change your health is not stepping foot in the gym or throwing out everything in your fridge... it's setting attainable goals and visualizing where you want to be.

• Think about your own life and determine what your health goals are.  Here are just a few examples:
• Lose 10% of your body weight
• Eliminate the need for a medication (blood pressure, anti-depressants, blood sugar, etc)
• Increase physical fitness
• Reduce my risk for certain cancers
• Removing processed foods from your diet
• The next step is to make a list of small things that you can do every day that will help you achieve those goals.  These will vary depending on your own goal, your level of fitness, etc.

Planning is an important first step.  I will be doing this myself as I am building the blog up, so it seemed like the most logical place to start for both of us.

Your homework is to set those goals, get a to do list, and then share them with me.

Are you up to the challenge?