| brainstorm mondays - healthy bones |
[Jan. 30th, 2006|10:59 am] |
Brainstorm Mondays XVII:
Getting More Calcium in your Diet
The goal for this brainstorm is to think of specific, easy, and realistic ways to add more calcium to your diet. Everyone who participates will get a point. By "specific", I mean an example like "drink more milk?" is not as good as "add shredded lowfat mozarella to your salads". Here are some good sources of calcium, to get you started - others can be found in the links I'm placing below the cut:
- dairy products, especially skim milk, cheese, cottage cheese, and yogurt
- soymilk products fortified with calcium
- firm tofu in calcium (check the nutrition label when you buy your tofu)
- sesame seeds
- dark greens, like spinach, collard greens, and kale (if you're wondering about oxalic acid, see the info on this page)
- a number of herbs, like fresh basil and rosemary
Also, since I'm starting up points again, please check in about last week's exercise, for both you and your partner. (See more information about points here.)
( the importance of calcium ) |
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| brainstorm mondays - Body, mind, and soul. |
[Dec. 12th, 2005|12:34 am] |
Brainstorm Mondays XVII:
Body, mind, and soul.
This brainstorm monday will be a little different.
I want us to take some time to start doing things for others and the communities around us, as well as looking after ourselves emotionally. Im going to begin alternating brainstorm mondays between physical fitness, mind fitness, overall health education, and a category for "other" which is basically us doing what we can to benefit those around us. Sort of a "good deed for the week".
For this week, I want us to do something a little special for the holidays (although I know a lot of us are of many different religions.. as I myself am agnostic/borderline muslim), take it how you want. :) I want to make this week DONATION WEEK! Go through your closet and sort things you no longer need. I myself just bought a new winter jacket, so I am donating my old one. Be pratical, and honestly guage whether you NEED something more than someone else might this time of year. Or so what if you do need something? Sit and contemplate how much better you have it than a lot of people do lately (think natural disasters). And im not trying to preach to about things i know many of us are already aware of, but please.. please take some time to do something a little extra this week. :) Food donations, clothing, essentials, shampoos, soap, towels, diapers, hygenics(deoderant,toothpaste/brushes, qtips etc) can all be donated to homeless shelters, women/children shelters, and hospitals.
I will elaborate more on this and organize it a bit tomorrow night, as I JUST got home from work at 1230am and have to wake in 4 hours for work in morning.. so i'll finish this tomorrow, LOL! And make it an easier-to-read chart of things that are donation worthy.
Points will be distributed like so:
___1/2 (half) a point for everyone who suggests a NEW (unlisted) item to donate(1/2 a point only given once, no matter how many items you suggest)
___1 point to everyone who donates something(without a picture)
___2-5 points will be given to those who make a donation to their community and post here in fitspiration a picture of the things youre giving away. :)
Once more, i'll elaborate on this tomorrow... so if you have any questions please feel free to ask .. i'll get back to you as soon as I get home! <3
BanishingBA <3
( SOME IDEAS FOR DONATIONS ) |
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| brainstorm mondays - Don't lose track |
[Dec. 5th, 2005|11:23 pm] |
Brainstorm Mondays XVI:
Working out while on the go
Not identical to last weeks "staying fit while on vacation" or other mishaps, this one is more consistant with our every day lives.
What are some ways we can stay improve ourselves while at school, at work, in a meeting. Small workouts or mental cleansers we can practice, and that we will notice a difference from? |
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| brainstorm mondays - preventing mishaps |
[Nov. 28th, 2005|03:39 pm] |
Brainstorm Mondays XV:
Staying healthy when you can't stick to your usual routine
This week's brainstorm mondays will focus on ideas around how to stay healthy and fit when you find it hard to stay in your usual routine. Maybe youre on vacation for the holidays, and airplane food isn't exactly your idea of a well balanced meal. How would you recover from this?
Post some mishaps youve gone through, and others will reply back with ideas on how to regain control so you don't completely flop on your routine. :) |
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| brainstorm mondays - aches and pains |
[Nov. 21st, 2005|11:54 am] |
Brainstorm Mondays XIV:
Sore Muscles and what to do about them
Continuing the "you've got questions, we've got answers" theme from last week, for this brainstorm you can either post a problem you have with soreness, or home remedies or other solutions you've tried. So you can post about that kink in your neck and does anyone have any ideas, or you can post about the brand of epsom salts you couldn't live without. Try to make the subject line of your post pretty informative, though, because I think this can grow a little disorganized. :)
Also, check in about last week's exercise! Hope everyone worked up a sweat. |
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| Brainstorm Mondays XIII |
[Nov. 14th, 2005|10:16 am] |
Brainstorm Mondays XIII
Working through worries about working out
The structure of this brainstorm is a little different. We're all going to post worries/anxieties/fears/concerns we have about working out, then we're going to reply to each others concerns. So the structure of the comments should look like this:
worrysolution
solution
solution worrysolution
solution
solution... Etc. I'll start us off with some... ask me if this isn't clear.
Also: check in here about last week's exercise! |
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| brainstorm mondays XII: sweatin' and snoozin' |
[Nov. 7th, 2005|10:08 am] |
Brainstorm Mondays XII
Making Cardio Less Boring
Clearly, the best way to avoid getting bored during cardio is to avoid doing boring cardio - like by running or biking outdoors, or doing dance/aerobics instead of just the machines. But it's not always possible to exercise outside, and group classes aren't for everyone. Also, even "fun" cardio can get boring after a while. Nearly everyone gets bored on the cardio machines, regardless of the televisions playing infomercials that the health clubs install so thoughtfully for us. But even something like swimming or running can get boring on the 70th lap or 7th mile. So what do you do to stay focused and interested while you're exercising? We need suggestions for everything from the machines at the gym to going jogging to exercise classes. Also, if you've found a kind of cardio that you really like, tell us about it. (Time to wax eloquent, all you fans of belly-dancing!)
Also, check in here about last week's exercise goals. (You should be able to give me the status for both you and your partner.) |
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| brainstorm mondays XI: better living through fast food |
[Oct. 31st, 2005|09:58 am] |
Time again for
Brainstorm Mondays XI
Eating Right when Eating Out
Everyone who posts gets a point; the objective here is to think up ways to eat healthily when eating out. Consider fast food, delis, restaurants, nice restaurants, etc. What are some things to avoid, what should you seek? Unload your wisdom on the rest of us.
Also: be sure to vote about last week's fitspiration pictures! I'd like to see that at least 20 people have voted before we declare a winner. Exactly 20 people have voted, yay! Voting will end FRIDAY, so be sure to vote before then!
Finally, check in here about last week's exercise goals. |
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| brainstorm "mondays": special anniversary edition |
[Oct. 25th, 2005|11:55 am] |
It's time again for
Brainstorm Mondays X:
Get Fitspired!
Since this is the TENTH brainstorm, I wanted to do something special, and do a visual brainstorm. The objective this week is to post fitspiration pics. And, as icing on the cake, next week I'll pick some number of finalists, and the community can vote on the best ones. The winners will get extra points - two points for first prize, and one point each for the runners-up.
A word about fitspiration pics: these are NOT thinspiration pics. A fitspirational picture should make you want to get up and exercise, not diet. SO I DO NOT WANT TO SEE A LOT OF SKINNY MODELS. I'm serious. I'd prefer to not necessarily see models at all, but rather athletes and dancers, or at least models doing exercises or looking strong/sprightly/athletic. Here are some examples of good fitspiration pics:
( good pics )
And this is the kind of thing I don't want to see:
( not so good )
As far as your personal fitspiration goes, you can continue to use whatever you want. Also, you can feel free to post random fitspirational pictures of whatever sort, but FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS CONTEST, I want to see pictures that make you want to get up and SWEAT or DANCE or RUN or JUMP or CLIMB.
Also, check in here about last week's exercise goals. I'll be adding up points from last week over the course of the day. And, WOWIE, there are a ton of new members here! It will take me a while to get everyone added to the points page, but I'll try to get it done today. Also, new members: check out the points page and what it says about partnering up. Picking out an online exercise partner can really really help to keep you on track with your goals.
Edit: Points - anyone who posts one or more pics here will get one point for participating, plus the opportunity to win more next week. |
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| brainstorm mondays, vol IX: our favorite word is no |
[Oct. 17th, 2005|09:40 am] |
Brainstorm Mondays IX: Diet 'Donts'
Habits, Choices, or Hidden Pitfalls that can keep you from having a healthy diet
Welcome to the first "negative" brainstorm; the objective here is to list diet pitfalls you've encountered, or to warn people about bad habits/etc that have kept you or others you know from eating well.
Also, there's a lot of bad information out there, so if you see something you know to be false, provide a link or other evidence for the alternate point of view. With any luck, this brainstorm will help ferret out some misinformation and misunderstandings we hold as a group. So, I also encourage you to provide links on your first post. Points: everyone who participates gets a point, but anyone who substantially backs up their info with links gets two points. "Substantially" is subjective, of course, but it will definitely mean providing at least two links to two different sites.
ALSO: CHECK IN ABOUT LAST WEEK'S EXERCISE. |
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| brainstorm mondays: triage monday |
[Oct. 10th, 2005|09:43 am] |
My friends, I am getting the feeling that people are having trouble keeping up with their weekly exercise goals. Fewer and fewer people are reporting back each week... I think we need a little motivation. So:
Brainstorm Mondays VIII
Personally Motivating Reasons to Exercise
We all know that exercise is good for the human animal in the abstract. We all know that it will improve your circulation, give you rosy cheeks and a bouncy step, and is supposed to have various beneficial effects on your innards - lowering cholesterol, tuning up the old ticker, etc. But the truth is, this knowledge is not necessarily enough to motivate you to get up and strap on your jogging shoes in the wee hours of dawn. So this week, the task is introspective: what really motivates you to exercise? Your answer could be anything from "being able to execute a triple-lutz" to "having the perfect bubble butt". I'm serious. Say anything, just be honest and dig deep to find something that's really driving you forward.
Points: Everyone who posts gets a point. It is okay to repeat what others have said for this one; just be sure that what you're saying is personally true for you. Also, please check in about how you did last week for your exercise. |
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| brainstorm modays: raise the roof |
[Oct. 3rd, 2005|10:31 am] |
It's time again for
Brainstorm Mondays
Upper-body Strength Training
List your favorite exercises for the upper body, which includes arms, shoulders, abs, and back. Talk about where you feel the exercise, and why you like it. It's even better if you can include illustrations or links to illustrations.
Points: 1 point for everyone who lists two distinct exercises, 2 points for anyone who lists 5 distinct exercises, including illustrations for each. |
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| brainstorm mondays vol VI: shake your money maker |
[Sep. 25th, 2005|04:11 pm] |
Wait no longer, for at last you have Brainstorm Mondays one day early!
Brainstorm Mondays VI
Good workout music
Everyone who posts at least 10 specific songs that are good to work out to will get a point. (i.e., don't just say, "Ragtime!" or "Britney Spears!" - be specific.) Also, make sure you're not repeating songs people have listed before. FEEL FREE TO LIST MORE THAN 10. But make them good. You get extra secret special brownie points if you (a) post from a lot of different genres of music or (b) include (legal) links to (legal) samples of the (legal) music on the (legal) Internet (legal). Whether super-secret brownie points will grow up to count as real points remains to be seen and depends mostly on how much you impress me. So impress me, damn it!
Also no laughing at my other people's music taste. |
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| Brainstorm Mondays: Hungry, Now!! |
[Sep. 19th, 2005|10:26 am] |
Yes, it's time again for
Brainstorm Mondays
Easy, Quick, Healthy Meals
This Brainstorm was inspired by ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) pixielilie2's introduction. She has the same problem that most of us have: we all want to eat healthier food, but we don't have a lot of time for cooking. So your task is to think up healthy, nutritious meals that don't take a lot of time to prepare.
The rules for this Brainstorm are slightly different than usual. First of all, anyone who posts at least 5 complete meals that are DIFFERENT from ones posted before will get a point. (I'll let you know if you need to come up with more to earn the point, don't worry.)
Second of all, I want to make a couple of requirements for what counts as a healthy meal:- It should be meal-sized, so at least somewhere in the ballpark of 400 calories.
- It should contain some produce, i.e. fruits or vegetables.
- It should contain at least 1 protein source: meat, beans, tofu, dairy, nuts, whatever.
- It should contain at least some carbs and some fat. It doesn't have to be a lot, but don't just recommend wrapping a lettuce leaf around some fat-free processed turkey meat. A couple pieces of tofu or chicken have plenty of fat for our purposes. A small pile of beans has plenty of carbs. Some whole-wheat bread is a good source of both fat and carbs.
- And of course, it should taste good and be easy to make.
Your meals will be especially awesome if you include notes on how to prepare them or organize the ingredients for quick assembly. Also, since we're all girls here, it would be better if your meal included a calcium source, too. You can always add a glass of milk (cow, rice, or soy) to any meal, but it's good to have a lot of different sources of calcium over the day.
Also: Feel free to read other people's entries and make suggestions or elaborations, like "Oh yeah, I've made mini-pizzas with pitas, but they taste great with whole-wheat English muffins too." Etc. Showing variations can make a recipe more appealing to more people. |
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| brainstorm mondays vol IV: reward yourself |
[Sep. 12th, 2005|10:27 am] |
It's that time again, time to open up your minds, tip them upside down, and give a good shake:
Brainstorm Mondays
How to Reward Yourself for a Job Well Done
You've sweated it out every day at the gym for a month. You woke up this morning and went for a run even though you just wanted to roll over and go back to sleep. No sugary soda has touched your lips for the past week. You've done a good job today, for the past week, for the past month - what are some ways you can reward yourself? Include ideas appropriate for a day's accomplishment (a nice, hot bath as a reward for a tough session at the gym) or a long-term accomplishment (a vacation to Iceland as a reward for running a marathon).
The rules: post early, post often. At the end of the week, I'll award the poster(s) with the most/best ideas with a point or two. |
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| brainstorm mondays, vol 3: bulk up |
[Sep. 5th, 2005|06:16 pm] |
Yes, it's time again for:
Brainstorm Mondays
Today's topic: How to Add Protein to your Diet
A general rule of thumb is that you should eat 1-2 grams of protein for every kilogram of body weight. A kilogram is 2.2 pounds, so divide your weight in pounds by 2.2 to get your weight in kilos. So, if you weighed 132 pounds, that's 132/2.2 = 60, so you should get 60-120 grams of protein a day. Getting less protein will make it harder for you to build muscle mass or can even cause you to lose muscle mass. It can increase the time it takes you to heal from sore muscles and other injuries, and can make you feel tired, irritable, and listless. So it's especially important, when you're limiting calories, to be sure that you're getting enough protein. (Note: Carbs are your friends, too! But it's easier to accidentally come up short on protein than to accidentally come up short on carbs.)
The rules: post early, post often. Come up with as many ideas as you can; this is a brainstorm, after all. When the posting has died down, I'll award points based on participation. |
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| Brainstorm Mondays, Vol II: Eat Yer Veggies |
[Aug. 29th, 2005|10:16 am] |
It's time again for BRAINSTORM MONDAYS. As you may have noticed, there was no winner last week, since only mods posted. But this week is about FOOD, so I'm hoping y'all will come up with a smorgasboard of ideas. The topic this week is:
Easy and Tasty Ways to Add Vegetables to your Diet
I'm starting some threads; you can reply to those or make new ones. Ready, set... go! |
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| Brainstorm Mondays, Vol 1: The Poor Man's Cardio |
[Aug. 22nd, 2005|09:23 am] |
We're starting a new contest, BRAINSTORM MONDAYS. I pose a topic, and then you have until Wednesday to think of as many ideas as possible. If you please me, I may deign to bestow a point upon you. (See our community info for more about points...) But more than that, the records of these brainstorms will be great resources for us as the community grows. So today's topic is:
Ways to Get Cardio Exercise Without a Gym
... or with minimal equipment
... I'll post some ideas to get y'all started, and then you can get crackin'. Feel free to expand on someone else's idea, and feel free to elaborate many related ideas around a single topic. |
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