Walking The Walk For A Good Cause–In My Bra!
May 15, 2013 Paid/Sponsored Post
[The following post was commissioned by One2One Network and Walk The Walk, and contains referral links.]
There are a few things I never thought I’d do in my life. For example, I never thought I’d ever set out to walk a marathon on purpose. I figured if I ever walked a marathon it would be because I’d meant to run and failed.
I also never pictured myself walking through NYC in a bra. I mean, except when I’m having nightmares about being trapped in Lady Gaga’s body and I’ve forgotten to put on a shirt before leaving my house and a picture of me in a nice restaurant in a bra appears on the front page of the NY Post. (No, the bra in that dream wasn’t made out of meat – I’m a vegetarian.)
And yet, I just signed up to do those things: walk a marathon, through NYC, in a bra. Oh, and it’s an all-night walk, starting at 10pm.
Why would I do something so strange? One word, of course: charity.
What?
It’s called MoonWalk NYC, and it’s happening on July 20th at 10pm.
Presented by Empire BlueCross BlueShield, there are going to be about 8,000 walkers – in their bras (yes, even the men!) – walking past NYC landmarks. As part of your registration you’ll be sent a bra about a month before the walk, and then you get to go crazy decorating it!
I’m not crafty at all, but I’m getting a lot of decorating inspiration from this video about a previous MoonWalk that happened in the UK:
The MoonWalk NYC will start with an opening ceremony on Randall’s Island, and then we’re off!
Don’t think you can do a full marathon? There’s a half-marathon route as well. I’ve done three half-marathons with a combination of walking and jogging, and I promise you: if the marathon scares you too much, you can manage the half. Remember, this is supposed to be walked! You can do it! Here’s a great training guide for walking both the full and half marathons. We’re already a couple of weeks into the twelve-week training guides, but that’s not hard to make up. Let’s get moving!
The charity benefiting from this amazing night will be Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center’s Breast Examination Center in Harlem. This is an amazing resource – 80% of patients there are uninsured, but are guaranteed support and guidance. Since it opened in 1979 the center has screened more than 200,000 women for breast cancer – for free. The goal of the MoonWalk NYC is to raise two million dollars. Every participant is encouraged to raise at least $150 in donations.
If you are anywhere near NYC, I really hope you’ll join me! And I mean that literally: sign up for the full marathon and we can walk together! Just let me know you did in the comments so that we can contact each other offline, exchange cell numbers, etc. And we’ll get each other through the 26.2 miles, I promise!
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has Compensation Levels of 1 & 13. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: charity, exercise, MoonWalk NYC
Putting My Money Where My Ass Is
Mar 19, 2013 Weight Loss
I’ve been nibbling around the edges of being a runner for too long. For three years now I’ve signed up for the Disney Princess Half Marathon, and all three years I finished it using a combination of jogging and walking. And while I’m proud of that, I would like to run more of it. I am proud of what I’ve done, but it’s getting old.
The first two years I didn’t do much training. I would say I was going to, and then cold weather would hit and that plan would go out the window. This past year I did better: in the twenty weeks before the race, I averaged about 1.5 training sessions a week. And while that was nowhere near the 4 sessions my plan called for, it was still more than I had ever done. And while it was great to get through the race easier and not be in pain the next day, I was still really really slow.
Part of this is my weight. I simply have to take off some serious poundage before I can get much faster, and I’m working on that. But the other part is that I have to think about running as a year-round activity, not something I try to do each year just for the Princess Half.
I can put myself on any kind of schedule I want, I can say I’m going to do whatever. But the only thing that actually makes me do what I’ve said is to officially sign up for something. So, after pouring through the upcoming races in NYC for the rest of the year, I signed up for two: a 5K race in May, and a 10k in October. Signed up, paid for, committed to, as good as done.
The best part is, I train for the 5k when NYC isn’t beastly hot yet, and most of my 10k training will happen as we’re cooling down for fall. I’ll still have to train in the cold weather for the Princess Half in February, but I need to suck it up and just do it. I started yesterday by going for a run/walk in hail and freezing rain, and I didn’t die. In fact, I felt good. It felt good. To just get out there in conditions that weren’t ideal and say “screw it.”
So, the gauntlet has been thrown down – even if the only person I’m challenging is myself.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 0. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: exercise, Princess Half, running, Weight Loss
FastDiet Update: A More Reasonable Loss
Mar 18, 2013 Weight Loss
I’ve discovered a few things during these two weeks. One, keeping busy on fasting days is key. If I have nothing to do, I fill that time dreaming about food. I guess that’s true whether I’m fasting or not, but it matters even more now.
Two, proximity to food is also important. I work upstairs until I’m able to have my first meal. Being out of the house also works. You’d think that running errands – passing by restaurant after restaurant – would make it tough, but for me it doesn’t. It’s the fresh bread on my counter that tempts me, not the pizza on the corner. I don’t really know why.
Three, the longer I wait to eat on a fasting day, the happier I am. Before I’ve had anything to eat, hunger is just a dull thing in the back of my mind. But once I start eating, it moves right to the front – I start planning my snack and dinner, thinking about how long until I get to eat next. It’s almost 2pm right now and I haven’t eaten yet – it gets easier the later it gets. Once I have “breakfast” – probably right after I post this – I won’t have to wait long for a snack, and then I’ll probably have dinner early, around 6pm. In fact, I’m not quite there yet, but I can totally see why a lot of people on this plan just fast all day and then use all of their calories for a big dinner.
The best part is, I’m now closer to only thinking about this two days a week. For the first week, whenever I was eating, my brain was saying things like “Enjoy this, your next fast day is in two days!” “Enjoy this, your next fast day is tomorrow!” I was obsessing over the fast days even on the other days. I’m pretty much over that now, which makes all of this so much easier. And not having to measure or weigh anything the other five days – after years and years of counting calories – is complete bliss.
Now, to add exercise back. After the Princess Half was over I was eager to get into some non-running exercise, but once I started this fasting thing I decided to wait. I tend to dive into things and overdo them, so I gave myself a couple weeks off from exercise so that I wouldn’t overwhelm myself. But now that I seem to be into this fasting groove, I’m ready to get moving again.
And while I said I was going to leave jogging for a while until I lost a little weight, I just might go for a jog today while my daughter is at dance class. That would be better than sitting in a waiting room full of screaming toddlers, each one eating something. Although, this being Brooklyn, a lot of them have kale chips or Veggie Booty, which does not tempt me in the least. :-)
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 0. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: exercise, FastDiet, fasting, Weight Loss
Fit For Forty: RunPhones
Jan 9, 2013 Product Review
There are only six-and-a-half weeks until the Disney Princess Half Marathon. And while I’ve definitely been slacking off exercise-wise for the past month or so, I’m still very far ahead of where I was at this point before the last two races. Today I did three miles and while it was very hard, it was doable.
I took my new RunPhones for a spin. They’re a cross between a headband, earmuffs, and headphones. Training for the Princess Half kinda sucks if you live in the northeast, because you’re doing most of your training during winter. The RunPhones definitely helped.
Of course even in the cold I get sweaty while jogging, but these are easy to clean. You open up the little Velcro pouch holding the headphones and take them out, and throw the headband in the washing machine.
My only complaint about them is that they occasionally slipped back from my ears about a half inch. They were easy enough to adjust, but I feel like if they made the back of the headband a little thinner they would stay in place better. But still, this is a minor complaint – they worked very well, kept my ears warm, and sounded great.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 0. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Disney Princess Half Marathon, exercise, review, RunPhones
When It Comes To Weight, Find What’s right For You
Oct 4, 2012 Weight Loss
Weight has been in the news a lot lately. Ralph Lauren got some publicity by hiring a size twelve model, although I hesitate to give him too big of a clap because…um…she’s gorgeous and thin and anybody who wouldn’t hire her is insane. The fact that she’s routinely referred to as “plus size” is just laughable, but I guess compared to the bony size zeros who are usually hired, she is. Well, good for her.
Lady Gaga recently professed her love of pasta and admitted to a history of eating disorders. Posing in her underwear, she asked her fans to be brave with her. Personally I don’t see the extra twenty-five pounds she said she gained – she looks fabulous and fit in the pictures – but her message is clear: love and accept yourself, and find your own balance.
An admittedly overweight news anchor recently took to her morning show to share an email from a man who told her that she wasn’t a good role model for girls because of her weight. I loved what she and her husband had to say about the weight issue, and good for her for standing up for herself against a man she’s calling a bully. (I disagree that he bullied her, but that’s a minor quibble.)
And, while not nearly as high profile as those other women, I started a weekly video diary a few weeks ago about my quest to get thinner and fitter as I head into my forties.
The theme here is that we’re all trying to find something that works for us. Forget about the dangers of being overweight for just a moment, since there’s growing evidence that how fit you are is more important than how much you weigh. Let’s just talk about what it means to be bigger, and to be called obese.
I’ve always been confused by one person telling another person that she should lose weight. Everyone is different, and has her own normal, right? And yet there are so many arbitrary measurements that push us into categories – that try to define us instead of taking our individual circumstances into account.
I am still, at 173 pounds and 5’4”, just a big spaghetti dinner away from being categorized as obese. This is a ridiculous way to classify people. I am walking and jogging several times a week with my kids, and about to start a twenty-week training program to get ready for my third half marathon. And while I don’t break any speed records, I’m getting faster each year. My goal in February is to finish in under 3 hours. I can ride my bike over the Manhattan Bridge no problem. I go up my own three flights of stairs multiple times each day. My blood pressure and cholesterol have always been excellent. And yet, the numbers on a chart classify me as being, somehow, a problem. In danger because of my weight.
I know someone with a BMI very close to mine who is training for a marathon, routinely completing long runs at a pace of 10 minutes per mile or faster. And yet she’s at the high end of the “overweight” classification. Like I said, ridiculous. So for the rest of this post, let’s forget about the words “obese” and “overweight.” They don’t mean anything when compared to how a person feels and what a person can do.
My weight has never, ever stopped me from doing something I wanted to do. I went scuba diving at 183 pounds. I remember the exact weight because I had to say it in front of a big group of people at the dive center. While I probably should have been annoyed at being asked that in public (so that the dive instructor could adjust my vest), I was already in a skin-tight wet-suit – I had nothing left to hide.
I’ve never been in danger of not fitting into an airplane seat or a movie theater chair. I’ve never not gone to a beach because I didn’t want to get in a bathing suit (I’m not saying I enjoy being in a bathing suit, just that I never didn’t go because of that). But I’m also not happy with the way I look, and when I exercise I know how much easier jogging would be with less weight to haul around. So I decided a year ago to take some weight off.
And I try hard not to judge other people for how much they weigh. I don’t know what’s going on in their lives, with their health. It’s really none of my business. But then I read things like this, and feel absolutely awful for someone who doesn’t want to appear in public because of her weight. That is not a person who has found her balance.
Is it society’s fault, for shaming people it feels aren’t acceptable? Is it this woman’s fault, for not having the confidence to walk into a room? I have no idea, but I do know two things for sure. One, that when you stop doing things because of your weight, it’s time to make a change. You are letting someone else’s agenda control your actions. Whether that change means gaining enough confidence to walk into a room when you’re fat, or deciding not to be fat anymore? Again – none of my business. But If something isn’t working, you should change it.
And two, shaming people into losing weight doesn’t work. Maybe this is something that healthy, non-emotional eaters just don’t get, but for a lot of us, telling us we’re fat sends us to the fridge. Makes us feel ugly and unworthy. It takes a lot of work to lose weight, and why in the world would a person put all that effort into herself if she doesn’t like herself? If she doesn’t think she’s worth it?
Breastfeeding or not. Staying home with the kids or going back to work. Putting your child in day care or getting a nanny. Letting your kid get a cell phone or not. Losing weight. Or not.
Telling people to do what works for them, for their families, makes for boring blog posts, boring talk shows, boring magazines. But there’s rarely a one-size-fits-all solution for anything. Find your balance. Your normal. If your weight isn’t working for you, fix it. If it is working for you, hold your head up high and tell the rest of the world that you don’t give a flying… ;-)
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 0. Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Weight Loss 4.0
Sep 27, 2012 Weight Loss
I feel like I’m in the fourth (and final) stage of my weight loss. That might seem weird since I still have more than 30 pounds to go until I reach my goal, but I’m in a comfortable routine that is working – I don’t feel like I’m looking for “the best way” to lose weight any more.
1.0 was when I started this whole thing just under a year ago. Slim-Fast sent me some shakes and bars, and I took off the first ten pounds pretty easily. But it was really just a kick start. As delicious as the Slim-Fast stuff was, I knew I could never do it long term – I like “food” more than I like eating sweet, sugary things 4-5 times a day. I happened to interview Dr. Oz ten days in to my Slim-Fast plan, and he had some good advice for me. It would get me going, but I would need to have something else waiting in the wings for when I got tired of it. I started looking for a new plan.
2.0 was when DietBet.com offered up a big prize to me and some other bloggers for losing 4% of our body weights in 4 weeks. I did (all seven of us did, actually) and won over $700 – half of it going to a great charity, The Fistula Foundation. My method for those four weeks was simple: 1,400 calories four times a week, 700 calories/60 grams of carbs twice a week, and one day a week where I could eat anything, no calorie counting. It was based on some interesting studies, and worked really well for me. Since I largely live on carbs, two days a week of deprivation was just about the most I could do, but it was all I needed to do.
3.0 was the time between the first Diet Bet, and now. I tried a few other things. I tried dessert for breakfast, which was also based on an interesting study. I think it’s something that I’ll probably go back to if and when I ever try to just eat like a normal person, without counting calories. The science behind having something sweet with breakfast is strong. But combined with calorie counting, I found it unnecessary, and just used too many calories early in the day – the opposite of what my body wants to do.
I also tried massive amounts of exercise alongside massive amounts of eating. I actually took off five pounds this summer, while enjoying way too many meals out with my husband (the kids were at summer camp). I usually gain in the summer even without the restaurants, so I’d call that a success. But most days I simply don’t have time to exercise for two or more hours, so that’s done until the kids go away again.
Mostly, I just tried to maintain my weight loss, with little bursts of losing. But then, as I got closer to forty (it’s now four weeks away!) I got very motivated. Which brings us to…
4.0. It’s really just my 2.0 method, with a few small changes. I’m doing two days a week of low-carb/low-cal, with 800 calories this time, but only 40 grams of carbs. Four days a week of 1,200 calories, no carb counting (fewer calories than last time, because I just want to get this shit over with already!). And one day a week of whatever, although this time I’m attempting to keep it at 2,000 calories, if I’m home or easily able to count them. Not always possible, like last Saturday night in Boston when I pretty much ate myself sick at Maggiano’s. Oops. (But oh so tasty!)
I’ve also been doing a more moderate amount of exercise. Usually a six mile walk-jog once a week, a bike ride or jog here and there, some 5K training with the kids. Nothing massive or all that consistent. But I have been making a big effort to bike where I would usually take the subway. It really only works if I can show up a little sweaty. Lunch with a friend in lower Manhattan? Fine. Laser hair removal appointment near Central Park where my nether-regions will be worked on? Nope.
If I feel like I need to “eat” those exercise calories on a given day, I do. But if I’m having one of those days where I’m out of calories and just need to eat more, I put my sneakers on, log some more exercise calories, and then eat some potato chips. But when I can, I just let those exercise calories sit in the “bank.” Hopefully it’s making me lose a little faster.
It’s nice to be in a routine that I feel good about. I don’t exactly look forward to these super-low-cal days, but I don’t dread them. I’ve done them enough times that I know I won’t be screaming with hunger pains. I just eat nine or ten very small meals and look forward to the next day.
A few people have asked me why I’m torturing myself like this. If they knew me, they’d know that if it were torture, I wouldn’t do it. I like to be comfortable. But I also like not stressing out when it’s time to pack for a trip or go clothes shopping. That’s my motivation, and it’s working.
So here you go: me pointing at my shrinking belly, no constricting undergarments, four weeks to go until my birthday, 30 some odd pounds to go until my goal. Feeling great.
Originally posted on Selfish Mom. All opinions expressed on this website come straight from Amy unless otherwise noted. This post has a Compensation Level of 1 (Slim-Fast). Please visit Amy’s Full Disclosure page for more information.
Tags: Dessert for Breakfast, Dr. Oz, exercise, Food, Slim-Fast, Weight Loss
Randomosity: Deep Fried Tech edition
Jun 18, 2012 Randomosity
This is just weird. It’s so bizarre I can’t decide if I like it or not. Basically, it’s art in the form of battering and deep-frying gadgets. I’m leaning toward liking it, because I get a sick satisfaction from seeing so many Apple products destroyed by hot oil. See more of them at Cool Hunting.
This study fascinated me: when signs were posted near sugary soft drink displays translating the number of calories into how many minutes it would take to jog them off, teenagers were half as likely to buy them.
So apparently Special-K is going to start using plus-sized models in some of its ads, but frankly, this woman doesn’t look plus-sized to me. In fact, she looks about 20 pounds lighter than my goal weight. Still, I guess it’s a step in the right direction.
My friend Amy wrote a great post about her thighs, and the lasting effect it can have when you’re labeled as “big.” Plus, it includes an awesome picture of her as a cheerleader.
Disney’s Tangled Royal Family 5K
Mar 5, 2012 What's Going On
Heading over with our group to the Tangled Royal Family 5K on Saturday morning I wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do. It was the first day all week that I was feeling myself, my really bad cold having finally exited my body. And while most of the people in our group were taking it easy (Colleen was even doing the race with her six-year-old daughter) I kind-of wanted to do a test run for the half marathon, which would be the next day. I’d felt sick and exhausted the day before after stumbling along for just two miles, so I was curious how I would do if I tried to go at my half marathon pace of 4 miles an hour.
This was also the first time that I’d be using the vibrating run-walk-run pacer I’d purchased from Jeff Galloway at the Fit for a Princess Expo the day before. It ended up being the best $20 I’ve ever spent. I’d been doing Jeff’s run-walk-run method for a while, but it was annoying to have to constantly look at a watch or my phone. This timer can be programmed for a single pace or two alternating paces, and it can beep or vibrate to tell you when to switch from walking to running and back.
It was awesome! I could finally just enjoy moving and not concentrate on the timing. Switching paces became automatic each time the beeper-sized device vibrated on my waistband. If you do any kind of interval training, I highly recommend this timer.
The Family 5K was a blast. There were so many kids participating, and a lot of fun costumes. For the first time since getting to Disney World I wished my kids were there – they would have loved this!
This couple just cracked me up. I want to be them when I get older. Of course, I may have to trade my husband in for someone a tad more whimsical.
