Getting Back on Track

Do you ever feel those last two days/weeks/months have been everything BUT healthy? no exercise, a lot of “specials”… And at this point, getting back on track seems almost impossible – especially that first step, right?

Well, I’ve got news (or just a reminder) for you: not only is it “possible”, but it’s actually very doable!

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Step #1: Acknowledge that it starts Here and Now. Not tomorrow after that business trip of yours.

Step #2: Identify that barrier between you and your exercise: is it physical, psychological or a hibrid of both?

• Ex: It’s been three days  I have not exercised at all and have not been eating well to say the least – I STILL feel full and bloated, etc. Even my daily gigantic water intake was out the window!
  Needless to explain how I feel… but it’d be pretty close to an old, dried-up, very slow… something!
  Just the thought of going on a 5 miles run seems to be straight out of a Fairy Tale/Fantasy book… Heck, I’m not even sure I could do a mile right now!
  As sad and pathetic as this is, I KNOW I don’t have a choice: the more I wait, the harder it’s gonna be, and quite frankly, I can’t bare the thought of anything harder than that, so onto phase #3!

Step #3: Fix it, step by step!

Here’s what I’m gonna do:

1. Pick up my dear bottle of water and never let it leave my side… ever again! (OK – maybe just for the next couple of days)
2. Go for a walk with my new BFF Aquafina. That will make me realize my legs are still capable of moving (thank god!) and well it’s a great way to fill that lunch hour!
3. Finally, I feel almost ready to tackle the monster: I lace-up my running shoes, do 10-20 push-ups to get the blood flowing (really it just makes me feel really BAD-ASS!!) and head-out the door… Without giving a chance to my mind to convince me otherwise! I’m not going all out, just a nice and short run is enough to get my motivation back on track so tomorrow I’ll have a great souvenir of it and will want to do it all-over again!

OK: I talk the talk, now onto walking the walk! – Literally 😉

What are your “Back on Track” stories and tricks?

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Finally De Retour!

I’m very excited to be back! This summer announces to be great and filled with many many fun things. Among others, I’m going to an Elementary-school reunion – that’s right! – but more on that later… Also doing a bike tour of the state of New-York (6 days & 70 miles each day) for which I’m a bit apprehensive but very excited and of course my marathon training. But most important of all, I will be posting again 🙂

Mainly it’s the same concept as it was:

• Monday: Healthy Recipe
• Tuesday: Sports and exercise related articles
• Wednesday: Nutrition topics
• Thursday: Something new
• Friday: Challenges and articles involving the blogging community 🙂

I hope you will forgive me for abandoning you all so abruptly, and let me know if there are things you would like to see on Three Green Leaves!

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QUESTION

Hello Everyone!

Disclaimer: I’m not coming back yet, but I NEED YOUR HELP!!!

I’m writing an extensive research paper on childhood obesity and I want to know what YOU think!!

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1) Do you believe in a National Obesity “Epidemic”? and why?

2) If the answer is yes, what do YOU think should be done to reverse it?

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Ask as many people as you can/want and let me know 🙂

Thank you so much, I really hope to hear your thoughts!

– Kloé

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Take the Time Challenge

So maybe I haven’t talked much about it, but stretching as you all know is SO important. It may prevent injuries, warm your body up and cool it down after a good exercise session. More than that, it is so relaxing when we actually take the time to do it well, and it gives a very positive ending to whatever activity you were doing.
So let’s take a little break from the crunches and all, and focus on warm-ups and cool-downs.

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Goal: a total of 60 minutes of stretching for the coming week

That means only 10 minutes a day for 6 days, but do it well!

Enjoy that little break from boot camp!

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Core + Plyos Challenge Results

Let me just start by saying: This Challenge was a serious one.

Scoreboard

Now, the champion of the week, is Amy to whom no one came even close… yep that’s right, not even me (shame!). So here it is: I have not completed my own challenge! I know, I probably should get kicked out from this blogging world for that… but I’ll stand my ground! I could give you a million excuses as of why I didn’t complete it, and that’s exactly what I’ll do! 1) splinter. 2) unexpected bf showing up 3) crazy week 4) lack of planning skills 😉

So on that note, I still want to congratulate everyone who took part in it, cause it wasn’t easy! Britdanielle finished the crunches and was almost there with the Plyos… The as far as me and Marie goes, we gave it a good try, but seriously lacked planning (would you say so?).

So this coming week, we’ll have a more relaxing and less boot-camp challenge… you’ll see 🙂

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Last Chance Thursday

Quick reminder that today is your LAST CHANCE to complete your challenge, so good luck to all, me included!

– Check your score here!

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Lactose Intolerance & Maldigestion

Unless you are one of those who cannot tolerate lactose, you probably never gave much thought about your dearies. I mean, why would you right? Well did you know that lactose intolerance can developed at any age? Yep, that’s right. Because you don’t have a problem with your milk now, doesn’t mean it’ll stay this way. I don’t mean to scare you off, I just think that the more you know the better!

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There are some important distinction to make between Lactose Intolerance and Lactose Maldigestion. The latter is a normal pattern of physiology that often begins that often begins to develop at about 3 to 5 years old. This primary form is estimated to affect 75% of the world population and consists of abdominal pain, gas and diarrhea after consuming LARGE amounts of lactose although not everybody will experience symptoms. When significant symptoms are developed after any lactose intake, it is called Lactose Intolerance. All this is caused by a decreased lactase production which is needed in order to properly digest lactose.

Here’s what you can do that will help:

1. Most people can tolerate 1/2 to 1 cup of milk with meals.
2. Combine your lactose-product with other foods to slow the digestive process and give more time for Lactasa action.
3. Combine with higher content fat food, slowing even more the digestion.
4. Hard cheese is usually easier to digest, due to the loss of most lactose in its production.
5. Yogurt is also easier to digest because of the bacteria cultures.
6. Try low-lactose milk
7. Lactase pills are available if needed (consult your dietitian first)

I also wanted to talk about the many alternatives to Cow milk, because they are super tasty and are the perfect substitute.

Soy Milk:

• one of the more cost-effective milk alternatives;
• high in protein
• strong, distinctive taste

Almond Milk:

• high in protein
• high in “good fats” and Vitamin E
• blends well in coffee, baking, etc.
• Here’s a home-made recipe by a fellow blogger!

Rice Milk:

• very sweet (esp. vanilla)
• low in protein
• very watery texture

Hemp Milk:

• decent amount of protein
• watery texture

Oat Milk:

• similar to Hemp Milk (protein and texture)
• mild nutty taste

So I hope this was helpful, and have fun experimenting with all those different milk varieties!

Do you have a favorite cow milk alternative?

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Bye Bye Dirty Dog

This weekend, other than being the Superbowl party, I was supposed to have a race. The Dirty Dog 10k Trail Run. I was very excited for it, because it’s not one of those race where I’d try to set a PR, but really it was all about enjoying the frozen forest, the trails and the landscape. Breath in the cold air in the nature where city noises can’t reach… Well I just found out (totally my fault) that it is 1 hour and a half away from here. And I don’t have a car. So bye bye trail race in the mud/snow/forest, I’ll have to find a closer one. Which is most likely to be just a regular on the road race… I’ll still go on a long run this saturday in the frozen winter landscapes… sigh…

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No Pasta Spaghetti

Super quick and easy, this tasty recipe is perfect for a healthy but hearty dinner. The main ingredient? Spaghetti Squash! I used to have it as a kid, and I just loved it!

So here it is, the one meal I’ll ever steal from my mom. (sorry mom ;-))
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.Ingredients:

– 1 spaghetti squash
– Your favorite tomato sauce (with meat or not)
– 1 cup grated cheese (I use Parmesan and Romano)
– olive oil
– salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Slice your squash in half lengthwise; If you want to make individual portions, slice each half again lengthwise, yielding 4 single little “boats”.
2. Add the sauce in each pieces (half or quarters), and sprinkle with cheese, salt and pepper. Return to the oven for 45 min. or until the cheese is golden brown.
3. Enjoy!

No Pasta Spaghetti

What was your favorite meal as a kid, and do you still make it?

– Kloé

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The Challenge Quick Overview

Woah, so last night I did my first Plyo workout for the Challenge, and let me tell you they are CHALLENGING! so if you haven’t had a chance to look over the New Challenge, here’s an overview:

THE CORE + PLYO CHALLENGE
See details Here

The Rules:

• 1000 crunches & 200 Plyometric B****
• You have until next Thursday (February 4th 11:59PM) to turn in your numbers.
• Update me as often as you can by leaving a comment on the wall
• Bring in as many people as you can, to help me and the world to be a FITTER and HEALTHIER place!
• There’s a reason why I called it the Plyometric B****. If you REALLY can’t do it, just omit the push-up and stay in plank position.
• JUST DO IT!

How Do You Get In? Just leave a message saying “I’m in” and I’ll put your name up on the board!

– Kloé

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