The Blog Has Moved

The blog has moved to http://capturelifewellness.com to make use of my own domain name. While there's not a lot there yet you can look forward to fit tips, recipes and ideas for staying healthy!

Where did my summer go?

I had big plans for this summer and now it's almost over! I've been hearing that a lot lately and I too had big plans. I am proud to say that some were accomplished and some were put aside for future use when I could make a better go of them but my summer is also slipping away.

Did your summer plans include getting more active and creating a better lifestyle for yourself? Don't worry there's still time! Start with small changes, trade in the $5 super latte extra foam jumbo coffee drink for a plain old cup of coffee, your wallet will thank you as well as your waistline. Or just drink water.... water is wonderful :) Take the stairs, park in the back of the parking lot, there are hundreds of little things you can do throughout your day to make changes and I'm sure most people know that. It's just a matter of doing them.

Now is your chance, before the nice warm weather turns to snow and darkness, get in a walk a week or a walk a day! Go play outside with the dog or your kids.

For those of you who are looking for a little extra help getting that walk in; join myself and others Friday afternoons to take a little walk around the Eau Claire trails and get some movement going! (Yes, this was one of the things I accomplished creating this summer - Yea!!!) If you wanna move with me send me an e-mail for the time and location we'll be starting at.

Enjoy the day!!

Running Clinic!

Here's your reminder on July 9th we'll be holding a workshop for runners at St. Bede's. There will be a presentation on proper footwear as well as a shoe check to make sure your shoes are the best fit for you. We will also have a presentation on pre and post workout nutrition as well as a yoga session!

For more information or to register visit: http://capturelifellc.com/eventregistration.html

The 2 Mile...

So yesterday I ran the two mile race, I'm very glad I decided to stick with that instead of the 10k... I managed an 18:54 (a personal best) and found it quite amusing that I was able to start my sprint on the walking bridge and pass about 6 people on my way to the finish mat. I checked out the pictures from the official picture taker that was there and there's a picture of me passing someone just as we finished, it looks like I'm throwing my arm out in front of her to stop her. Really I wasn't I was just weaving between her and the person in front of her to pass them both, yeah that's right, Both of them.

Anyway, it was a good run I pushed hard, had fun and was proud of my results. I feel good today too.

Push it.... or not.

The RCU charity classic is right around the corner. I have been struggling with whether I want to run the 10k or 2 mile. Oh, who am I kidding I want to run the 10k but I know I probably shouldn't. I have been slowly but surely getting over some shin issues and I know that if I sign up for the 10k I will push myself to the max trying to beat my time from last year... probably causing all the recovery I have been doing to fly right out the window.

I was feeling pretty confident in my choice of the 2 mile until last night. Some how I managed to stumble upon a runner's blog... I don't remember how and I don't remember the runner... but he mentioned how last year he ran the 10k and then decided why not might as well run the 2mile also. Suddenly I was feeling very pathetic and inadequate, even when I did run the 10k last year it was not a glorious run that I excelled at. It was something that I pushed hard to get my time of 1:03 and felt it the day after. So I made myself a mental deal, I will do the 2 mile and after that I will pick up the pace training... because I admit I have been slacking.

My goal for this summer is to run some races but not hurt myself :) and continue my training throughout the winter months. Something I actually did quite well last winter until my shins stopped cooperating. Then when spring rolls around again I will not only look fantastic in my wedding dress but I'll be ready for a few half marathons. Definately want to do the Eau Claire one.

Running Clinic

Grab your running shoes and your yoga mat! Join us at St. Bedes on July 9th at 5pm for a presentation on proper footwear and a shoe check to see how your shoes measure up. There will be a yoga session following the presentation along with a few other things including refreshments.

View Flyer and Registration Form

Registration is required as space is limited. On-line registration is available at: http://capturelifellc.com/eventregistration.html

One Year Anniversary

June is the one year anniversary of starting my business, Capture Life, in celebration of this I am giving away a prize (or two) every week for the month of June!

If you would like to enter all you have to do it E-mail me with your name and e-mail address!

It's swimsuit season...

Scary thought for some, but it doesn't have to be! Now's the time to make an effort to trim down your waistline with a new workout program.

Consider a circuit training program to combine strength and cardio training into your routine, try out some new yoga poses that will challenge your core.

Need help with ideas or where to start? That's what I'm here for!

Consider joining up with a friend to take walks, jogs or bike rides together because aerobic exercise is an important part of weight loss.

And always remember to eat right and stay hydrated.

Wii Fit

Well it was my birthday a few days ago and we were at Best Buy deciding what to use my 10% off coupon on. Of course I instantly went over to the camera supplies and lenses but Sam really wanted to get something we could do together and since he was paying I wasn't really in a position to argue.

So we wandered through the store and ended up by the video games. We finally settled on a Wii and as long as we were getting that I decided I wanted to try out the Wii Fit also. I was quite skeptical thinking that this would just be a really basic work out and would only challenge those who were way out of shape. I was wrong! I think that they way they guage things is a little inaccurate but the exercises do offer a challenge to even fit individuals.

They offer you points and assess your fitness level based on how many points you get for things like... speed, proper balance, timing and other things. It doesn't take that much to become a 'Bodybuilder' for some of the exercises.... well for a lot of them actually. But people would probably get frustrated if the game kept telling them they sucked. (In theory it would motivate them but probably they would just turn the game off) It also gives you a wii fit age, I managed to drop mine from 23 to 20 in a day. So not sure how accurate that is, I guess we'll see what it says today.

Overall I give it a pretty good score. I think it is an excellent tool for people who just need something to get them going, I also have to compliment the wii itself for the fact that everytime we switched games it said something along the lines of 'You've been playing for a while why don't you take a break.' It does have some annoying quirks like everytime you go into the wii fit program it tells you something... unfortunately it only seems to have 3 things to say to they repeat a lot.

Alright... I'm off to tackle the hula hoop. (It's fun!)

Bad weather = bad mood

Okay so far I have not made much progress on the training. I went for my first run... it didn't go well. I managed to accomplish 3 miles although most were walking. But hey, you've gotta start somewhere.

I have since gotten new shoes and was excited to break them in... and then it started raining. So I haven't gotten to try out my new shoes yet. I talked myself up about going running in the rain and how it would be so great and so on and so forth. Then I went outside. IT WAS COLD! So needless to say I didn't go.

My next few weeks are full of working overtime, graduation parties, family reunions, photography assignments and who knows what else. I am also trying to plan about 40 million (ok, I exagerate) new events to do. You'd think I have time for running in there somewhere....

I will go running. I may not run as much as I should. But I WILL go.

Hitting the pavement....

Well after a rough time with the training for the Eau Claire Marathon (1/2 Marathon) I have been to the chiropractor and gotten myself straightened out, literally, and I have a new goal. There is another 1/2 marathon in Chippewa Falls 12 weeks from now. I have decided to use Hal Higdon's Novice training program that is a 12 week program. So I start tomorrow!

This is something I really want to do and I have a feeling that this time around it will be good, I have a yoga program designed for runners, a work-out program designed for runners and a new heart rate monitor to help track my progress. I am also hoping to hook up with some other runners (or as I call myself a 'putter') to get some runs in to help motivate myself. Half the battle is just getting out there!

So wish me luck and I will continue to keep you updated. This week will be my first time running since my ankle stopped cooperating.

Take the Poll!

If you look to the left you shall see a wonderful poll. In order to give you what you want I need to know what you want!

I am working on setting up some wellness events and other great things so let me know what direction these things should take!

Heart Rate Training

I'm sure you've heard the buzz about heart rate training or finding your target heart rate and working in the zones... but what does it all mean?

There are different intensities you can work out at to achieve different results from your workout session. They are all good results but someone who just wants to lose weight would not work out at the same intensity as someone who is trying to shave some time off their best 5k.

The first step is to figure out what your goals are from your work out session and what your 'Target Heart Rate' is. There are many methods people use to determine their THR some more accurate than others. I prefer to use the Karvonen method which goes as follows: We'll use a 23 year old person with a resting heart rate of 70 for our example.

Take 220- your age (the 220- age has been shown to be inaccurate A more accurate formula, offered in a study published in the journal, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, is 206.9 - (0.67 x age). )

So for our example we would take 206.9 - .67*23 = 191
Then you subtract your resting heart rate 191-70= 121
Then you figure out what intensity you will be working out at to find a range use the lowest intensity you will work out at and the highest
121*65% intensity = 79
121*85% intensity = 103
Then add your resting heart rate back in.
79+70 = 149
103+70= 173

The target range for this person would be 149-173.

Okay... now I've got this number what do I do with it?

You should determine what intensity you need to work out at to achieve your goals (if you need help with this step Jessica who is an ACE certified personal trainer can help you out) and then check your heart rate throughout your workout.

There are 2 ways you can check your heart rate during an exercise, by checking your pulse or using a heart rate monitor. The easiest way by far is with a heart rate monitor, a very good brand is Polar which Jessica can now sell (yay!) but there are others out there.

This is just a basic overview of how to determine your target heart rate and other information. If you would like more detailed information or to know how this applies to you and your workout please contact Jessica.

About Personal Training

Are you ready to take the next step towards your health and wellness? Consider personal fitness training as a means to keep you motivated and provide you with a customized program to help you meet your goals.

Capture Life, LLC offers personal training in a one on one format to you at your home. This format allows for extreme individualization of your program, coaching and a close relationship with your trainer.

Services can work with the equipment you have already or with no equipment at all. No commuting, no dirty or broken equipment just one on one personalized service... and the chance to go outside and enjoy the weather when it's nice out.

Certification

I went and took my American Council on Exercise (ACE) personal trainer certification test yesterday and passed. I am now a certified personal trainer :)

Progress

Things are going good, even though it's cold outside. I have been making full use of my gym membership with the track and treadmills. I would like to run outside but I just can't handle the cold or afford to buy a fancy new winter running wardrobe :)

Hopefully it will start to warm up a little so that the majority of my training will be done outdoors instead of on the treadmill... it's just not the same.

So, in short, all is good and I'm on my way to my goals :)

Pre-training

Well I will officially start my training program in a few weeks but since I have been more than a little lazy so far this winter I have to pre-train to get myself good enough to complete the training program. I have been running 1 or 2 miles each time I hit the gym to get my body used to running again and am well on my way to being able to comfortably run 3-4 miles most days of the week.

Eau Claire Marathon

The Eau Claire Marathon is Sunday May 3rd! There is a full marathon, a half marathon and a 2 mile fun run.

I will be running the half marathon and it will be my frist time running this distance! I've got a great training program to help make my first attempt a great success...

Anyone wanna run with me??

You can view the program I am using here.

New Years Resolution

Did you make a new year's resolution to get in better shape?
Here are some websites to help make keeping your resolution a little easier.
All of the sites have free tools or trial versions

• http://www.calorieking.com/
• http://www.global-fitness.com/freetools_m.php
• http://health.msn.com/ - MSN has a lot of workouts/fitness information for you to browse.
• http://www.acefitness.org/ - ACE offers certifications and continuing education for fitness professionals but they also have a full library of fitness articles and healthy recipes.

Hope they help!