All Entries For excuse busters

Don't be a Quitter! Try Every Workout More than Once

You probably remember your parents' relentless requests for you to keep trying those lima beans or Brussels sprouts despite your protests that you hated them. They probably even told you that your tastes can change and you might change your mind about them. ("Yeah right!" you'd say.) Maybe you begrudgingly at them over the years, but they always encouraged you to keep trying. I scarcely ate a vegetable or fruit as a kid, but not I love almost every single one of them as an adult. Whether it's eating vegetables, riding a bike, or interviewing for a job, now that we're grownups, too, we understand the importance of trying things more than once—and not giving up.

Posted 6/23/2010  7:34:08 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 76 comments

Read More

Health Benefits of a 10-Minute Workout Last for 1 Hour

SparkPeople has advocated short bursts of fitness for the past 10 years because we've seen how it can change people's lives and help them reach countless goals. Recent research has been proving our hunch that those 10 minutes of exercise really do make an impact. Despite what naysayers might claim—that 10 minutes isn't enough to help people lose weight or get fitter—a new study shows that these short workouts have long lasting benefits. In fact, the more fit you are, the more benefits you might be getting from a short workout, according to the authors of the study.

Posted 6/11/2010  11:19:05 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 76 comments

Read More

Poll: Are You a Fair Weather Exerciser?

I'm running the Flying Pig Marathon this Sunday, and I'm looking forward to it. I've trained hard for the past four months and tried to develop a new attitude about running. This time I'm doing the race for the fun of it, not to try and prove anything to myself or others. There's just one small thing about it that I'm not so excited about: the weather. The forecast calls for a low of 56 degrees (which would ideally be the high temperature), a high of 74 degrees and a 70% chance of thunderstorms. I've done training runs in the rain, but I've never done a distance race in these kinds of conditions. Although I won't be one of them, I know at least a few people registered for the race won't show up if conditions are less than ideal. Would you be one of those people?

Posted 4/30/2010  1:18:10 PM By: Jen Mueller : 158 comments

Read More

Habits of Fit People: Don't Make Exercise Excuses

You want to be a fit person, right? That's why I'm sharing my own habits for keeping fit and staying healthy in the ongoing Habits of Fit People series.

Here's one that works for me: not making exercise excuses.

The difference between fit people and unfit ones isn't a matter of intention—it's about consistency. We all have the best intentions to work out, but fit people will find a way to exercise no matter what life throws at them. They are committed to following their fitness plan day in and day out, even when long work hours, childcare, holidays, travel, and other unforeseen circumstances throw a wrench into their plans. They don't confuse "being busy" with being active. Fit people plan their workouts, maintain a backup plan, and even commit to a shorter workout if that's all that time allows. Put simply, they don't make exercise excuses. So how can you be more like them?

Posted 4/30/2010  7:05:57 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 133 comments

Read More

The Secrets of Success: Look Forward, Not Back

When we were researching and writing our best-selling book, The Spark, we discovered 27 secrets of success that thousands of successful SparkPeople members have used to reach their goals, lose weight and keep it off.

We're sharing 15 secrets from the book on the dailySpark from March 1-15.

Secret #14: Don't look back.
We define "successful" members as the people who have reached their goal weight OR lost at least 100 pounds but are still on track to reaching their ultimate goal. Of all of the most successful members we surveyed, literally ZERO percent said they let setbacks derail their efforts. How did they get back on track?

Posted 3/14/2010  6:01:27 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 49 comments

Read More

All You Need Is Love…Toughlove, that is.

It’s pretty clear that progress towards any important goal goes a lot better when you can maintain a positive state of mind. Positive goals, positive (but realistic) expectations, and positive self-talk all help us stay motivated and survive the inevitable setbacks and disappointments we experience.

But there are also plenty of times when “happy talk” just doesn’t get the job done. We all do things that are just plain...well, let’s just say they aren’t very well thought out. When that happens, it doesn’t always make a lot of sense to just pat yourself on the back and say, “Don’t worry, you’ll do better next time.”

In order to learn from our mistakes and avoid repeating them, we also need to take an honest look at what went wrong, and point out to ourselves exactly how and why we are contributing to our own problems. And we need to do it in a way that will help us remember this lesson before we act the next time the problem comes up.

In my line of work, we call this Toughlove, and there’s definitely an art to it, whether you’re delivering the toughlove to yourself (OK for amateurs) or to someone else (recommended only for seasoned experts with martial arts skills and/or a good lawyer). Done poorly, toughlove can and usually does cause more problems than it solves. But done well, it can be very effective, so it’s definitely worth learning how to do it to yourself the right way.

Probably the best way to illustrate the art of toughlove is by looking at a very common problem that often responds better to a little self-administered toughlove than to happy talk…

Posted 1/28/2010  5:58:15 AM By: Dean Anderson : 114 comments

Read More

When Less Exercise is More

You have a busy week. Some last minute shopping to do (complete with many circles around the parking lot to simply find an empty spot), cookies to bake for your neighborhood cookie exchange, gifts to wrap, travel plans to finalize, a volunteer session at the local food bank, and a holiday party for work. You're feeling frazzled, but you want do it all for the spirit of the season. At some point, something has to give. When you're this busy, what's the first thing that falls off your to-do list? Yourself. And for many of us, that means our healthy diet and exercise plans fall by the wayside for days or even weeks at a time, making it harder to climb back onto the treadmill than if you would have just stayed on its belt to being with. Eventually, you need a reason (or resolution) to get yourself back on track and luckily, the New Year is just around the corner, so you decide to just wait until then. Sound familiar?

But what if you could have it all—or at least MOST of it? The truth is, you can. If you can learn to apply one simple rule to your workouts, you can say "yes" to all the holiday festivities and still keep your muscles in tip-top shape, helping prevent that notorious holiday weight gain and the climb back onto the wagon that happens in January. How?

Posted 12/18/2009  2:21:41 PM By: Nicole Nichols : 135 comments

Read More

Habits of Fit People: Sleep in Your Workout Clothes

You want to be a fit person, right? That's why I'm sharing my own habits for keeping fit and staying healthy in the ongoing Habits of Fit People series.

Here's one that works for me: Sleeping in my workout clothes. This is especially helpful this time of year, when it's darker and colder when I wake up to run in the morning.

I may not be a morning person, but I'm working on it. Two or three times a week, I like to run in the morning because I love getting it out of the way and having my evenings free. That's not so difficult in the spring or summer, when the sunlight wakes me up and the temperature is inviting. But during the fall and winter? Forget about it! Dark, dreary and cold mornings make want to stay in bed as long as possible. So to stick with my morning runs, I have to keep my workout on my mind—and my body—the night before. So does it really make a difference?

Posted 10/23/2009  10:44:13 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 355 comments

Read More

My Pity-Party Is Over--It's Time To Get Serious

My brief interaction with a fellow runner a few weeks ago has changed my attitude about running, at a time when I needed it the most.

Posted 10/6/2009  4:14:24 PM By: Jen Mueller : 121 comments

Read More

10 Sneaky Ways to Get Fit and Healthy—Without Really Trying

Faster than a speeding bullet, there's a new approach to healthy living can make you fit as a fiddle. And it's as easy as 1-2-3!

It's called "stealth health" and it's a philosophy that's gaining ground among experts, food manufacturers—and people who want to live a healthier life. Even if you haven't heard of it (I hadn't either), you're probably already using these principles into your life. The concept, as explained in this WebMD article is nothing new to most of us at SparkPeople. It's about taking small actions every day to improve your health, nutrition and fitness levels in BIG ways. We've been advocating a small-steps approach for years, whether in the form of 10-minute workouts or fast break goals. We believe that doing something is always better than doing nothing. And yes, that 10 minutes on the treadmill or that single serving of vegetables DOES make a difference.

When you start small, you feel accomplished. That initial success inspires you to make additional positive changes in your life. So you continue, getting healthier, fitter, and leaner over time—all by starting with a few small changes. Ask some of your SparkFriends, and I'll bet they'll say that this approach has worked for them.

As I read the article and tips about stealth health, I started to think about the ways I sneak a little bit of health into my days. I'm a big believer that small steps—in fitness, nutrition and motivation—really do make a difference, no matter where you are in your lifestyle journey. I use them all the time myself! So I came up with a short list of small things I do to affect my health in a positive way.

Posted 9/23/2009  7:33:51 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 186 comments

Read More

Habits of Fit People: Leave Your Gear at the Gym

You want to be a fit person, right? That's why I'm sharing my own habits for keeping fit and staying healthy in the ongoing Habits of Fit People series.

Here's one that works for me: Leaving my fitness gear in the gym locker room. I don't mean paying extra for a locker where you can stash your stuff overnight. I mean leaving it at the gym so that you have to return to get it—and therefore work out. So why does something like this matter?

Posted 8/26/2009  11:30:04 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 69 comments

Read More

Your Mind, on Exercise--Or--Why Exercise Won't Turn You Into a Cookie Monster

This blog is the second half of my personal response to TIME’s recent article on “Why Exercise Won’t Make You Thin.” In my last blog, I talked about the biological relationship between exercise and fat loss; here, we’ll be looking at whether there’s any truth to the claim that exercise causes excessive appetite and “compensatory” overeating, making fat loss more difficult.

For those of you who like to cut straight to the bottom line, my answer to this question is: No.

There’s really no reason at all for you to be afraid of exercise if you want to burn fat and lose weight. Just the opposite, in fact. You will need to make sure your meal plan is right for your activity level and weight loss goal, and then stick to that amount of eating as well as you can. But exercise is simply not going to turn you into someone who can’t control your own appetite and eating behavior—unless, of course, that’s what you expect or want it to do.

For those of you who like to know more about the nuts and bolts, read on about the “soul of success”, and find out what can help you stay in charge of your eating no matter how much you exercise.

Posted 8/13/2009  5:49:55 PM By: Dean Anderson : 62 comments

Read More

Habits of Fit People: Keep Fitness Equipment at Home

You want to be a fit person, right? That's why I'm sharing my own habits for keeping fit and staying healthy in the ongoing Habits of Fit People series.

Here's one that works for me: Keeping exercise equipment around the house. So why does something like this matter?

Posted 6/19/2009  5:50:18 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 130 comments

Read More

Fit to Travel: Suitcase-Suitable Fitness Equipment for Under $11

Even if you're not planning to take a full-fledged vacation this year, travel is a necessity for most of us, whether for work, weddings, or weekend trips to visit family and friends. And since you're pursuing a healthy lifestyle, you know that fitness should be a permanent part of your life whether you're at home or on the road.

Obviously, you can't take your gym with you. Dumbbells, mats, and balls don't always pack well, either. Luckily, there are a few portable pieces of equipment that you CAN pack to ensure you'll get a good workout away from home. Here are three that cost less than $11 each—you may even have them at home already!

Posted 6/3/2009  6:51:09 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 54 comments

Read More

Habits of Fit People: Mix It Up!

You want to be a fit person, right? Now that I've made fitness a habit in my life, I'm sharing my own secrets to keeping fit and staying healthy in the ongoing Habits of Fit People series.

Here's one that works for me: Mixing up your workout routine. So why does something like this matter?

Posted 5/15/2009  5:43:30 AM By: Nicole Nichols : 61 comments

Read More
Read More Entries >