Fitness – Page 7 – Jenna Jamieson, Author

Park to your advantage!

By Jenna Jamieson | September 24, 2013 | Comments 0 Comment

When you are running errands such as going to the grocery store, shopping at the mall, eating out, etc park as far away from the door as possible. Take the opportunity to get in some exercise without wasting the time of circling around the parking lot or waiting for a close parking spot! This allows you to get some walking in, and while it may not seem like very much, it is still a great way to get some extra steps in during the day. I also like to park in one lot and walk to all the places I need to go rather than re-parking each time when I have several places to go that are within walking distance of each other (i.e. strip mall, my grocery store is located next to Kohl’s). So next time you are making several stops, remember to get some exercise in too!

~jj

Fitness and nutrition goals to the rescue!

By Jenna Jamieson | September 10, 2013 | Comments 2 comments

One thing I always like to do is set goals for myself whether it be in my personal life, fitness/exercise life, career life, etc. These goals can be daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly goals. I like setting goals because they are a great way to push me forward, provide a stronger purpose during my workouts, and give me something to strive for. So, today’s tip is to make sure to set fitness, nutrition, and wellness goals. You might be asking yourself, what is the difference between a fitness goal, nutrition goal, and wellness goal? A fitness goal might be walking for 45 minutes 3 times a week. A nutrition goal might be to eat at least 5 fruits and veggies each day. Lastly, a wellness goal might be to sit and relax for at least 15 minutes a day to allow your mind and body to unwind and de-stress.

Typically, I like to take it a step further by setting objectives within my goals to help challenge myself even more. For example, my fitness goal might be to workout five days a week. Within that goal, I may make several small objectives, such as doing a 25 minute trail run on one of those five days. That 25 minute trail run will then help set an objective for the following week. Since I did a 25 minute trail run on week 1, the following week (week 2) I will make my objective be a trail run of at least 25 minutes (equal to or longer than week 1).

While making fitness, nutrition, and wellness goals for yourself are important, it is equally as important to maintain commitment to your goals. One way to help ensure commitment to your goals is to write them down so that you can visit them often. Consider buying a small notebook or calendar that will encourage you to do this. You can even include fitness quotes and motivational tips within the notebook or on the calendar as I often do. This will help you be accountable and allow you to keep track of your progress. Using the above example, you might write down next to week 1 that the 25 minute trail run objective was met and write the distance you ran. Then, the following week when you reach the objective of running at least equal to that 25 minute run or longer you can write down the number of minutes as well as the distance to see how you improve over time.

In closing, remember that it is important to reward yourself with something small (fitness, nutrition, or wellness related would be most appropriate and beneficial) once you reach a goal that you have set for yourself. I like rewarding myself with a new sports bra, ice cream with fresh fruit on it, or even a few pieces of dark chocolate. Be sure to find something that will really motivate you and encourage you to reach your fitness, nutrition, and wellness goals. In other words, put something big on the line!

~jj

Find what works for YOU!

By Jenna Jamieson | September 4, 2013 | Comments 3 comments

One thing I find incredibly frustrating are the numerous health reports, publications, and research studies that are constantly being published and released to the public through various media outlets. They range from exercising to nutritional habits to heart attack rates. In these studies, we are being told that coffee is good for us one week and then the next week we have another study saying that drinking three cups a coffee a day over the age of 55 will lead to an earlier death. The same goes for dark chocolate, eggs, butter, etc. One week we hear they are good for us and the next week they are not. This is frustrating because it can become very confusing to the average person.

A few particular studies I have personal experiences with and take issue with are the debate on what time you should eat dinner, how many meals a day you should eat, and the size of the meal based on the time of day. Let’s first discuss the debate on the time that you should eat dinner. Many studies have published that eating dinner after 6pm is bad for you because your food is then stored in your stomach and turns to fat because it doesn’t have enough time to breakdown and digest before you go to bed. I take issue with this because it depends on your schedule and routine. This could be true if you go to bed directly or soon after eating your dinner because your food may sit and be stored rather than digested. On the other hand, if you eat dinner at 6:30, 7, 7:30, etc and then your typical bed time isn’t until 11 or later, your food should be able to be broken down and digested and therefore it should not be an issue.

Next debate, time and time again I read studies that suggest eating 6 small meals a day is better than eating 3 meals a day. I certainly am not going to try to persuade you one way or the other. I have tried both and found a variation of the two that works for me. I actually kind of merge the 3 meals a day and 6 meals a day rule together. I eat one relatively large meal (usually dinner) and I eat 4 smaller meals/snacks throughout the day for a total of 5 meals/snacks. I usually start around 8 with a small breakfast, then eat lunch around 12:30/1 with a small snack at 2:30 and dinner at 7ish followed by a small snack at 8:30. I’m not going to tell you to follow my routine, but rather to consider what your body needs and what might work best based on your lifestyle. After all, you should do what works for your body and your metabolism.

Last debate, most studies suggest that you should start off with bigger meals and get progressively smaller as you go throughout the day. I actually do the complete opposite because I am a rebel…just kidding, I am actually the good girl type ;-). I start my day with a small breakfast (usually something with protein to help keep me full), then I eat a little bigger lunch with a small snack at 2:30 and then a relatively large dinner and another small snack after dinner like pudding or a few bites of ice cream. Often times for me, I choose to split my dinner into two small dinners and eat one at 7 and the other part at 8:30, eliminating the 8:30 snack (depending on how I feel).

So what was the point of this post? The point of this post is to realize that you will hear and read a lot of health tips, publications, and research studies, but the best thing you can do is find what works for you. Don’t let the media, research studies, publications, etc make you feel like you need to change what you are doing in your workout, what time you eat dinner, or how often you should eat. You can use publications and studies as guidelines to add variety or small changes, but my best suggestion and advice is to find what works for you and “run” with it! If eating 6 small meals works for you, then great, do that. If eating at 7pm works for you, then do that! If eating one large meal and two small meals works for you, then do that! In other words, find a routine that keeps you motivated and remember that you are better off planning your calorie consumption than your eating times.

~jrpj

Exercise during commercials or timeouts!

By Jenna Jamieson | September 1, 2013 | Comments 1 comment

Exercise during commercials or timeouts when you’re watching your favorite sports team! I typically do something every 30 minutes. For example, run in place, stretch, do some jumping jacks, pushups, crunches, squats, lunges, walk around your house a few times, etc. If sitting in a chair, I might do 3 sets of 10 leg lifts. You could do something like that or something that’s easier or harder depending on what your fitness goals are. Also, you might consider other types of exercises that can be done with your legs or arms while laying on a bed or sitting on a couch.

~jj

Making the Case…why this blog matters for me, you, & everyone!

By Jenna Jamieson | September 1, 2013 | Comments 0 Comment

Brief background and reasoning for starting my blog:

As I was talking to my boyfriend today, I got on my soapbox about America and its current health epidemic. I would probably consider myself a health nut, exercise Nazi, and a very passionate person about fitness, nutrition, and wellness, but my passion truly lies within helping other people find the motivation from within to change their lifestyle in hopes of changing the ways of the American culture. As a health educator and a very passionate person about empowering people and communities to make better choices, I hope you give me the opportunity to encourage you to help me spread the word on “exercise2behealthy.” At the age of 25, the state of America’s health not only concerns me, but makes me want to do something about it–to reach out to communities and the world to start a movement that can change the thinking and mentality that has been engrained in Americans, generation after generation and by the media.

What is this image and thinking that has been engrained in us, you might ask? Well, for starters, that fast food, although easy, can be “made up” by eating healthy foods and exercising later. That being stick thin is a goal to strive for despite knowing that the ideal body shape and size is not what defines how healthy and fit a person is. That fad diets and workouts can be a solution to help solve America’s health problems despite being a temporary promise to a “new beginning.”

The phone above is something that launched the conversation my boyfriend and I had today, which got me on my soapbox for the next ten minutes. My boyfriend thoroughly enjoys technology and the entertainment factor that it provides, probably similar to the other 99.9% of Americans that are using it. My point in sending the picture was as a simple joke, implying that eventually phones will get larger and people in America as a result will get larger as well. This encourages Americans to keep doing what they are doing–which basically is, sitting on the couch, watching tv, eating chips/pizza/wings/etc, while looking at their smartphone or tablet. In other words, keeping up with that sedentary lifestyle. It may sound pessimistic, but it is also the reality of America.

With some resources and guidance, America can slowly begin the changes that are necessary to make us a nation that is “exercising2behealthy.” In order to start, people not only need to make a lifestyle change, but also dig even deeper, by making a true psychological change. Right now, Americans value their free/relaxation time aka being on their smartphones, playing games, sitting on the couch, going to movies, etc. (all things that encourage a very sedentary lifestyle) over their actual HEALTH. Yes, it is exhausting to get up early and work all day, I am not minimizing that, BUT I am not asking you to run a marathon or even exercise everyday. Rather, I am asking you to think about your HEALTH and your FAMILY.

So, I have provided details of what’s wrong, but how do we even begin to address this and maintain the solution? It’s with YOU, with EVERYONE, with a MOVEMENT, that helps empower those around us. I want to help empower people to recognize that “exercising4health” is not only possible, but is necessary. Not because you want to be a size 6 bikini instead of a 10 or because you want to fit in a smaller wedding dress next summer or fall, BUT because you want to decrease your chances for a heart attack, stroke, high cholesterol, etc.

So, the question is, how can YOU help? For starters, encourage people to follow this blog, post comments, ask questions, and begin the conversation with your own family. More than that, begin an “exercise2behealthy” change within your own life! Find a program that fits you, rather than a fad program that the media and America is currently hooked on. Find an eating routine that suits you, not a routine that suits you and your best friend or co-workers. We are all UNIQUE, so what works for one person, may not work well for another. Find a routine that can be easily sustained over time. I realize, many people feel they lose motivation to create exciting and delicious meals and workouts that are fun and energizing, BUT the key is to find something that is convenient, easy for YOU, and can be sustainable over a long period of time (becomes a routine). That’s what will help give you your own motivation. (i.e. home workouts, walking on two breaks during the day, bringing snacks to avoid vending machines, creating walking paths and exercise routines that can be easy in your office, be creative with meals and workouts, etc)

This movement needs to take place now…change begins with one person…will you help spread it and sustain it?!

And with that, it’s a wrap! I will be back each week with an energizing fitness, nutrition, or wellness video, tip, quote, or article that will begin a cycle of advice/ideas for “exercising2behealthy.” Lets start the conversation to make the healthy choice your first choice!

As an end note, the conversation with my boyfriend, ended with me stating that for the last several years I have wanted to start a blog that creates a movement to empower people by giving them the knowledge and the advice to change their life for the better and hence ‘www.jennarpjamieson.com’ has been born!

~jj

Welcome & Thanks for visiting!

By Jenna Jamieson | August 31, 2013 | Comments 0 Comment

Thanks for visiting my blog and website! On my blog, you will find many of my fitness, nutrition, and wellness tips. These tips are based on my own personal fitness, nutrition, and wellness experiences and goals. I hope my advice and tips provide motivation and energy to help you move forward with your own fitness, nutrition, and wellness goals! Please feel free to leave comments, questions, or any suggestions you might have. Also, please note that these are the views of me and only me. I am not a doctor so do what you feel most comfortable with based on your own views and lifestyle. Further, I am not affiliated with the brands, shows, people, or products that may be discussed on my website. Therefore these are my own individual views.

I am an avid fitness, nutrition, and wellness advocate, workout and exercise enthusiast, and love taking care of my mind and body. Additionally, I believe in helping one another, spreading kindness, and learning from each chapter in life. As you go through my site, you will find that there is advice on life, quotes to motivate you, and stories to inspire you to give back to the wonderful world we live in. I hope you take the advice, quotes, and stories to help further your own journey and purpose in life.

Be sure to visit often for my blog updates and share with family and friends, on websites and social media. Please be kind and link back to me using the share button that’s at the bottom of each post and on my social media sites!

Thanks for visiting! Enjoy!

~jj