Give Credit Where Credit is Due

A couple of days ago, I had a great experience with McDonald’s. First, I am not a fan of fast food. I rarely eat at any of the fast food chains…probably Chik-Fil-A more than others.

So, yesterday was an extremely hectic day for me; preparing for a potluck, buying gifts for my job’s angel tree child, and many other things. I spent my lunch break in Wal-Mart and Dollar Tree. By the time I got back to the office I hadn’t eaten anything for lunch. McDonald’s is within walking distance from my job. So around 3:30, I walked to McDonald’s and fought with myself on what and how to order, because I was really hungry, yet I wanted to make a healthier decision.


I finally came to the conclusion to order a cheeseburger happy meal…yes I know I should have left off the cheese. I substituted a bottle of water for the drink…and what happened next is what made me realize that fast food chains are trying to offer healthier options, especially for children. The lady handed me my box and said “Would you like apples or carrots?” Now, this may not be new to you, but it was definitely new to me. I chose the apples. When I got back to my office, and opened my box, I found the smallest little French frie box. As I ate my fries I read the nutrition label on the fries….and much to my surprise it read “100 calories.” So, even though I chose a cheeseburger, I was pleased with the changes McDonald’s has made toward fighting the obesity epidemic.


There were also a few other changes that I noticed:

· For breakfast they have the option of oatmeal with fresh fruit.

· Apple dippers are a staple on the menu

· They have real fruit smoothies (I haven’t checked the nutritional content)

· They have no fat milk option for the McCafe coffees

So, all in all it’s about the choices that we make. Parents, if you are ordering your child a happy meal MAKE them eat the carrots or apples…substitute the drink for water or milk. Those small changes will make a world of difference. Adults, we can do the same thing. Take the time to scan the menu for healthier items and modifications as you see fit.

That’s my experience; I hope it encourages you to make healthy modifications for you and your children.

We always hear about whole milk vs. skim milk and almond milk vs. organic milk and so on and so forth…but which one is better? Or are they all the same? Well, I’m not a fan of milk…at all. As a matter of fact, I only use milk when I absolutely have to…I mean I only put enough in my cereal to keep it from scratching up the roof of my mouth! But, I received a question about the different types of milk and their benefits, so here it is!

I began researching for this article about a week ago and I should have written it then because Yahoo posted an article today that kind of threw a wrench in my plan. The article gave 4 milk myths…one of which is kind of "iffy" in my book (Myth #4)….but hey they have their theories and I have mine and I’ll let you decide which you do or do not agree with. Click here to read the article from Yahoo.

As you know milk is one of the major sources of calcium and Vitamin D, but those are only a few of the benefits. Other benefits of milk consumption are listed below.

Benefits of Milk:
• Help with skin, hair, and nails (calcium, Vitamin D)
• Helps rebuild muscles
• Helps with PMS
• Helps with sleep
• Helps build strong bones
• Helps with cavities

Now that that’s out of the way, lets get back to the matter at hand. What type of milk is the best? My answer is: It depends on what your needs are, but no person over the age of 2 should have whole milk as a staple in their diet. Yes, it is ok to drink from time to time and even to use for different recipes, but almost 50% of the 146 calories (in 1 serving) come from fat. Better choices include 2%, 1% , no fat or even almond milk.


I hope that this helps when deciding what type of milk you should drink
Below I have listed the nutritional value of different types of milk as well as some benefits of each.

Milk vs. Milk
Whole Milk	146 Calories per serving (71 calories from fat) Good Source of Vitamin D and Calcium, but high in saturated fat
2%	122 calories (43 calories from fat) Good source of essential vitamins and nutrients (Vit.D, calcium, protein), but high in saturated fat.
1%	102 calories (21 calories from fat) Good source of vitamins, but high in sugar (13g)
0% or Fat Free	80 calories (0 calories from fat) Good source of vitamins, but a large portion of calories come from sugar
Lactose Free	For lactose intolerant individuals
Almond Milk	70 calories, doesn’t spoil. Good source of magnesium, potassium and Vitamin E, flavorful
Organic Milk	110 calories, extremely limited exposure to any type of drug, ultra pasteurized. ** Make sure the milk is truly organic**Consuming this is more about personal choice
Chocolate Milk	192 calories (52 calories from fat). High in sugar
Soy Milk	131 calories (38 calories from fat). Contains no lactose and only vegetable proteins. Made from soybeans
Nutrition Facts from : www.nutritiondata.self.com www.livestrong.com

A New Attitude for Life

As most of you know, inspiring others to take charge of their health is what I absolutely love to do! I love hearing people talk about how making small changes have really had a positive impact on their life. Well, today’s post is very near and dear to my heart. I am featuring one of my BFF’s Miss Janice Hicks! Janice and I have known each other since college and I consider her to be one of my very best friends! Janice or JANET as I like to call her, started on a journey to a healthy lifestyle…a little over a year ago, I would say. I say a little over year ago because before she was committed to working out (even at 5:00 in the am), but for the last year I have really noticed a change in her. She is excited about living a healthier lifestyle…holistically, which is what we should all strive for. She has communicated with me the benefits that she is experiencing…with her “new attitude.”

About a month ago, I received an email from Janice with some before and after pictures and I must say…she looks ABSOLUTLEY AMAZING! Don’t get me wrong…she is one of the most beautiful women that I know (both inside and out), but just from looking at her pictures I can tell she has a “New Attitude for Life.” She has always been the happy go lucky type, but there’s a little extra twinkle in her eyes now…and I’m happy about that!

I know she won’t mind me sharing, so here are a few highlights from the email she sent me! I was so excited that I had to call her instead of emailing her back!

Janice has referred to me as her “long distance personal trainer,” but I give her 110% of the credit for her hard work and dedication to a healthier lifestyle.

From June 2009-October 2010 Janet has lost a total off 44 pounds with only 9 pounds to go before she reaches her goal weight!!!!

BEFORE

“I know focus is the key ......I feel great and am in good shape right now. I run a mile often which is something I had never done before last year this time!”

AFTER

“I have made several positive changes in my life and living a healthy lifestyle is one. The weight loss is only the physical change (and what people usually see). The mental and emotional changes are the really important changes and the reason I am able to lose weight! It’s definitely mind over matter!”

I am ecstatic about Janice’s transformation and even more excited to see what’s to come! I hope this has inspired you to get up and get active and lead a healthier lifestyle! It definitely has inspired me to keep putting the message out there!

Working for a Good Cause

I know that we are one week into November and Breast Cancer Awareness Month is over, but I had to post one last article that will inspire you to do something for a good cause.

I have known Courtney Coleman for quite some time now, we cheered together in high school and all that jazz, but her story has inspired me to do more for Breast Cancer Awareness. Courtney lost her mother to breast cancer over two years ago and she has decided to go on a year long journey for a cause in honor of her mother, Mrs. Susan Coleman. Check out her journey at http://courtneylynncoleman.blogspot.com/ and check out her story below!

I am kind of behind but October was a great month for me. Many wonderful opportunities to help with this awful disease that takes away loved ones from us each and every day. Many of you may or may not know me. I am Courtney Coleman from Corinth, Mississippi and I am currently working on my Master’s in Technology Education at Mississippi State University. I have two younger sisters, Christina, a track runner for MSU and Catherine, a junior at Corinth High School who has a passion for tennis. I lost my mother a little over two years ago to breast cancer.

My mother was first diagnosed 1996. I was a fourth grader and the news of my mom having cancer was something that I will never forget. It was like my world had come crashing down. My mom however, was such a strong and wonderful person and told the three of us that she had been dealt these cards and we were going to deal with it. My mother was such a caring person; she had a passion for helping children. Employed at that time by Fulton City Schools, she was a junior high counselor. Giving everything she had to others was just my mother’s personality. Everybody under the sun came before her and the news of the disease was no change to this.

My mother soon went into remission and this was great news to our family. For five years my family continued to live and thank God each and every day my mother was alive and well. That soon changed one November afternoon. My mother had a check up in Birmingham, Alabama. Sitting at school and getting the phone call and hearing the cancer was back was a new challenge for the family. This time it had come back as a different cancer and would require a more aggressive treatment as it was a stronger form of breast cancer. My mother went through a major operation and went to remission by the time I started college. This was great news as I was starting a new adventure in life and could leave my mom knowing she was alive and healthy.

Three years later the horrible phone call came again and this time it was the worst. By the time my mother found the cancer the third time it had already spread to her lungs and lymph nodes. Our family was in for a major ride. My mother soon began treatment however; the cancer was spreading and spreading fast. Within a short year my mother was gone. Gone to leave the family to pick up the pieces, gone to a better place, gone to have no suffering or endure the horrible battle she had spent 13 years fighting. Those that know my mother know that she wanted each and every person to live a full and complete life, to carry on, and to help and appreciate things that others do for us. That is the impact my mother had on others and I try to live each and every day for her!

LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH

I am very excited about Breast Cancer Awareness Month! This past Saturday, my bootcampers and I participated in the Breast Cancer Walk at the State Capitol (I even got my boyfriend involved). The event was such a blessing to be involved in! As I told you earlier, for all of October I will be dedicated to increasing your awareness of breast cancer while also highlighting the lives of those strong women who have battled breast cancer.

For my first highlight, I interviewed my aunt, Dr. Rosilin Wright. This lady is one of the strongest women I know! She is a true servant at heart and I am so thankful to have her influence in my life. Even through her battle with breast cancer she never stopped giving and helping others!

I must admit, her interview really touched my heart partially because I expected her answers to be 95% medically accurate (LOL)! But, I hope you can take away something from this short interview with her and share it with others who may be affected in some way by breast cancer!


NH: Once diagnosed a woman and her body go through several changes that take a toll on her mentally, physically, and spiritually. Throughout your process, what was the hardest change for you to adjust to?
RW: The hair loss had to be the most devastating change. Though you know your hair is going to come out there is nothing to prepare you for the loss. You lose all of your hair including your eye lashes and brows. For many of us, our hair helps define us. Once I lost my hair I really didn't look or feel like me!

NH: What helped you to get through each day? (family, friends, devotion, church, music, etc)
RW: My wonderful husband helped me make it through each day. He was very supportive and understanding.

NH: What would your advice be to a current breast cancer patient?
RW: No matter how tough times get, continue to keep the faith and pray. Enjoy your good days and surround yourself with supportive friends and family members.

NH: What would your advice be to women in general?
RW: I encourage all women to do their monthly self breast exams and become familiar with their own breasts and get their routine screening mammograms.

NH: How has this positively impacted your life? Has this given you a new philosophy for life? What can others take from your experience?
RW: My new philosophy is "Live, Love & Laugh." I was previously a workaholic and never really enjoyed life. Now I realize that time is precious. Every day I wake up happy, and I live each day to its fullest.

I encourage you to be proactive about your breast health….and “LIVE, LOVE, LAUGH”

I THINK PINK...DO YOU?

If you haven’t already gotten the hint, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Pink ribbons are everywhere…from twibbons on Twitter and Facebook to pink articles being embraced by the National Football League to bumper stickers saying “Save the TaTas.” As a health educator who has a vested interest in the topic of breast health, I feel obligated to give my two cents on the issue.

Last October, my 37 year old aunt….who by the way is a very healthy physician, was diagnosed with breast cancer. This came as a shocker to my family, being that she is the “in house physician” for all of my families members…including me!

So throughout this whole ordeal, I have learned a few things about breast cancer that I must share with you!



1. Breast Cancer has no preference: My aunt was only 37 when she was diagnosed and as I mentioned earlier, a perfectly healthy physician. Last year I also met a 24 year old breast cancer patient. This shows that we are all at risk and we should all take preventive measures.

2. There are different types of breast cancer: If you are someone you know is diagnosed with breast cancer research the type of breast cancer, this will help when deciding on treatment options.

3. Breast Self Exams are important: My aunt found the lump, which was so small the doctors wondered how she found it. Statistics (American Cancer Society) show that most women find lumps through breast self exams.


4. There are tests that determine the risk of recurrence
a. Oncotype test: measured on a scale of 1-100, the higher the score the higher the risk of recurrence
b. BRCA Gene Testing: if the test determines that a woman has the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation then the woman is at a higher risk of developing breast cancer or a higher risk of recurrence.

5. Family support is essential: Women diagnosed with breast cancer will experience many physical and emotional changes from the moment of diagnosis to treatment. It is important that family create a positive support system physically, mentally, and spiritually.

I encourage you to educate yourselves, sisters, aunts, cousins, mothers, etc on the issue of breast cancer.

Please take the time to visit my good friend Damarius Pernell’s Non-Profit Breast Cancer organization, the Gloria Ivy Breast Cancer Organization. He’s working for a good cause!

Also, take the time to do something for the cause, whether its just buying a t shirt or pin or participating in a breast cancer walk…just get involved!


O and by the way…my aunt is doing great! She will be celebrating her 38th birthday this Wednesday, Oct. 13th! Be on the lookout for interviews from her and other breast cancer survivors!

Lovely Day...Lovely Weather...

As I sat in my office today, I keep catching myself just staring out the window. When I went to lunch I let out a big sigh of relief…Why you may ask? Because this Mississippi weather is simply beautiful! We are getting a much needed break from the sweltering hot 110 degree temperatures we have experience for the last 3-4 months!

Fall officially began on September 22, 2010. Here in Mississippi the weather is absolutely gorgeous. Nice cool breeze throughout the day and an average of 80 degrees each day. What better weather to get out and hit the walking track, walk around your neighborhood, take a bike ride…or even attend my outdoor boot camp!

Today is October 1, 2010…which means that Thanksgiving and Christmas will be here in the blink of an eye. Before we know it we’ll be attending holiday parties, eating holiday food…and gaining holiday weight! O yea and thinking about our New Year’s Resolutions of losing X amount of weight before the summer hits again. It seems to be a never ending cycle.



If you don’t have a consistent exercise routine, now is the time to start. This helps you gear up for the holiday season. You will be accustomed to healthier living; therefore you will be more conscious of what you eat during the holidays and how much physical activity you are engaging in.

I encourage you to start NOW…if you haven’t already started! Make you a plan, put it in writing and stick to it! So when New Year’s Eve comes around, you can knock weight loss off of your resolutions list.


Get out there and enjoy this beautiful weather...it probably won’t be here for long!

It's a Mind Thing

As I have entered another month of bootcamp, there are some things that I have learned to accept. Although, I have always understood these things, they have now become clearer to me. Those two concepts are:

1. Living a healthy lifestyle begins with a healthy mindset.

2. Once someone commits to a healthy lifestyle and starts seeing results (physically, mentally, etc) they crave more.

Yes, these two things are on complete opposite ends of the spectrum, but I have found that when it comes to healthy living, there is little to no gray area.

Understanding and accepting things are very different. At this moment I am happy to say that I can understand AND accept both.

So how did I come up with these two concepts? I am observant…very observant. I have noticed that people want to live a healthy lifestyle, but they have a hard time giving up the things that are comfortable for them (fattening foods, sedentary lifestyle, etc). In order to make this change, one MUST make it up in their mind that they want to make a change. Unfortunately, very often it takes some significant event such as the loss of a loved one or a less than average health report to serve as a scare tactic to get a person to live healthy.

On the contrary, once one has made it up in their mind to live healthy and they begin to experience the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, they tend to want to keep that up. There’s just something about walking past a mirror and doing a double take because you see a muscle that you never saw before. As a people, we are results driven, once we start experiencing positive results we want to keep up the behaviors that yielded those results.

With all of this being said, it has been very hard for me to accept that everyone is not ready to live a healthy lifestyle.

Now that I have accepted that I cannot make up anyone’s mind for them; I can only continue doing what I love to do and continue to make people aware of the benefits of healthy living.

It's that time again!!

BOOT CAMP TIME!

If you are interested in participating in the September/October please contact me for a schedule, prices, etc!

This month I have more flexible times and Saturday sessions!

Please contact me before Monday, Sept. 13, 2010 if you are interested.

I look forward to hearing from you!

WEEK 3: My Reflections

As we come to the close of Week 3, I must say that I am thoroughly impressed with the progress the ladies have made. I have noticed a major improvement in the food journals as well as the how hard the ladies push themselves during our sessions. Even though they are rolling their eyes and snapping their necks they are excited about getting a good workout!

As I reflect on this journey, I would like to leave you and my participants with a few thoughts that I have learned from this boot camp and from my experience as a personal trainer and health educator.

“Being healthy MUST become a way of life…not just something you do for a short period of time to reach a goal.”

Every personal trainer has their own teaching style. For me, I do not use diets to help my clients obtain their goals. I use the substitution and modification method. This way you gradually work your way to a healthy lifestyle. Yes, the process may be a little bit longer than some, but in my opinion the long term benefits are more important.

"Focus on small incremental changes that you can maintain."

I have learned that you cannot force a healthy lifestyle on anyone. I use to take everything to heart when people didn't want to listen to my message or didn't want to attend my bootcamps, but I quickly learned that everyone must make that choice for themselves. With that being said, I encourage you to "make a healthy lifestyle change for yourself before its too late!"

** Be on the look out for information about September’s Boot Camp. Encourage others to participate**