Meaningful Content... Or The Lack Thereof.

"Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back." ~ Harvey MacKay


Lately I haven't posted much information on my progress. There's been very few "Daily Recaps" & I haven't yet finished last weeks "Week In Review"........ but that doesn't mean I've been slacking. I've spent quite a lot of time reading/researching on various topics to aid me in my journey. The post on Yogurt, Bread/Fiber & Blueberries have been part of the information I came across during that reading/research.

I realize that the majority of the content I've added is quoted & therefore not very personal.... but I wanted to be able to share what I learned and add a bit of content to my blog in the process.

Beyond my reading/research I've been busy with a few To-Do List items and I also have a newly acquired PS3 game which is proving to be quite a distraction.

So.... although I haven't reported much in the way of personal stuff, I have however been doing well with my eating & exercising. My weight for some reason has been fluctuating more than normal.... but it's slowly heading back down & I'm pretty sure I should be able to post a loss this week.

Hopefully over the next week I'll be able to catch up on some stuff and get back into a normal routine.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend.

Be A Blue Blood...

Here’s some sweet news: Blueberries may help lower blood-sugar levels and insulin resistance, researchers in Canada found. In a small study, overweight men at risk for heart disease and diabetes and diabetes drank 1 cup of wild blueberry juice every day for 3 weeks. Their blood sugar dropped by roughly 10 percent, and their insulin resistance also fell compared with that of control-group participants who drank a placebo. Study coauthor Marva Sweeney, PhD., says the benefits may come from the effect of the pancreas of the fruit’s high levels of anthocyanins. (The pancreas regulates blood sugar by producing insulin.) Frozen wild blueberries offer the same benefits as juice. Farmed blueberries also contain anthocyanins, but in lower amounts.

~ Men's Health (Nov. 2009)

We're lucky enough to access to tons of wild blueberries in the summer. We usually pick enough to last the rest of the year.

Nutritious Bread, Fiber & Protein

"Middle age is when you chose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy" ~ Unknown

Every time I go shopping I scour the nutritional information to make sure I'm picking the best option when it comes to my health. Based on my knowledge I try to pick breads with a high fiber content, that are made with whole grains, which also pack a decent amount of protein.

So what kind of bread is the most nutritious? Here's what Men's Health Magazine had to say:

First off, ignore the advertising copy on the front. Flip around to the ingredient list. Is the first ingredient a whole grain? Does each slice have 2 or more grams of fiber? Do "inulin" or "polydextrose" show up? The correct answers are yes, yes, and no. "With whole grain, nothing is stripped away," says Jim White, R.D., of the American Dietetic Association. That means you're noshing on natural fiber, not inulin or polydextrose, two additives used to artificially boost fiber. The breads below meet the criteria, and could also help you build muscle, lose weight, and beat heart disease. ~ Men'sHealth (Nov.2009)

If you're like me, you're probably asking "WTF is polydextrose?" After starting this post I happened to come across a second helpful article that helps answer this question:

In 2007, the FDA declared that polydextrose can be called fiber. Polywhat? Polydextrose is made from glucose, sorbitol (a sugar alcohol), and citric acid. It's what puts the fiber in Fruity Pebbles (not actual pebbles). Polydextrose received FDA approval because it mimics some attributes of dietary fiber: It isn't absorbed in the small intestine, and it increases stool weight. Polydextrose mainly bulks up foods so they're not as high in calories. However, there's no research to prove that polydextrose is as beneficial as the fiber found in whole foods. ~ Men'sHealth Magazine

The amount of fiber needed in your diet is a hotly debated subject, and while some studies recommend a daily intake as high as 38 grams, the Men's Health article states:

It's fine to shoot for that amount, but you're certainly not failing if you don't meet it.

Another important tidbit that read particularly applied to me:

"The more carbohydrates you eat, the more fiber becomes important to help minimize the wide fluctuations in blood-sugar levels," says Jeff Volek, Ph.D., R.D., a nutrition researcher at the University of Connecticut.

So what bread do I eat... my personal fav is Dempster's Heathy Way:

Nutritional Facts: Calories 110, Fat 2g (.4 saturated, 0 trans), Cholesterol 0, Sodium 115 mg, Potassium 120 mg, Carbs 18g, Fiber 5g (2 soluble & 3 insoluble), Sugar 2g, Protein 6g.

Ingredients: Water, whole grain whole wheat flour including the germ, oat bran, whole grain blend [whole grain flax seeds, whole grain sunflower seeds, whole grain oats, whole grain sesame seeds, whole grain millet, whole grain triticale, whole grain barley], wheat gluten, sugar/glucose-fructose, malted wheat, inulin (chicory root), yeast, oat fibre, sugar beet fibre, plums, fancy molasses, oats, soy nuts, oatmeal, vegetable oil (canola or soybean), salt, vinegar, calcium propionate, acetylated tartaric acid esters of mono and diglycerides, sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate, sorbic acid, trisodium citrate 2-hydrate, potassium chloride, magnesium carbonate.

Although inulin wasn't recommended because it's usually used as an additive to "artificially boost fiber" it does have it's use:

Inulin is known as a prebiotic, which means it promotes the growth of healthy bacteria in your gut. That's good, of course. "But," says Slavin, "inulin doesn't have the same cholesterol-lowering effect as the fiber found in oat bran." ~ Men'sHealth Magazine

So... although the Dempster's bread has inulin in it, it's being used for the benefits as a prebiotic, since the bread has plenty of other whole grain, fiber rich ingredients & oat bran. I have to admit that the last 8 ingredients scare the crap out of me... but compared to other breads this one still tops my list as the healthiest. Sooner or later I'll figure out what those ingredients are... but for now ignorance is bliss.

When it comes to fiber I think the best advice I've read is this:

A simple strategy: Eat sensibly. Favor whole, unprocessed foods. Make sure the carbs you eat are fiber-rich—this means produce, legumes, and whole grains—to help slow the absorption of sugar into your bloodstream.
~ Men'sHealth Magazine

Here's the link to one of the full articles: "The Truth About Fiber".

Creamy Goodness... Yogurt

"Yogurt is an ideal combination of protein and carbohydrates for exercise recovery and muscle growth." ~ Doug Kalman, R.D., director of nutrition at Miami Research Associates

Yogurt is good for you... if it's the right kind (Some contain up to 36 grams of sugar per serving.) Yogurt is a source of potassium and probiotics, says Cynthia Sass, R.D. Here's how to reap the most health benefits from your cup.

Boost Your Calcium Intake - Shoot for a yogurt that contains at least 20% of your daily calcium needs.

Add Healthy Sugars - If you want sweetness, add your own fruit, like berries or raisins. Throw in some unsalted walnuts or almonds too, for added nutrition.

Look For Protein - More is better: Greek yogurt can provide as much as 18 grams of protein in a 6 oz servicing (three times the amount in some regular yogurts). Regular nonfat yogurts can contain nearly 10 grams.

Keep The Calorie Count Around 100 - Yogurt with fruit already added can have up to 170 calories in 6 ounces. But plain yogurt, which has a good dose of protein and a relatively small amount of (natural) sugar, should be about 100 calories.

~ Men's Health (Nov. 2009)

I plan to pick up some Greek Yogurt tonight... I'll let ya know what I think of it.

Update: We couldn't find any... I'll have to try a different store.

Thursday Funnies: Volume 10

"The aim of a joke is not to degrade the human being, but to remind him that he is already degraded." ~ George Orwell

~ Cartoon by Nick D. Kim (used by permission)

...If only it was this easy!

The Life of Bryan - Episode 03

"Better a thousand times careful than once dead" ~ Proverb

New to "The Life of Bryan" cartoon... check out the 'Readers Guide'.

Day 1743: Beat My Record -- Daily Steps

"Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment." ~ Jim Rohn

I knew that we'd be doing a lot of walking on our vacation, but I didn't have any idea how many steps I'd be able to rack up in a single day. Well on Friday, Feb.19th Sherri & visited the National Gallery (art), and the Rideau Centre (shopping) & had yet another trek after the bus ride home. Add up all those steps and I managed to beat my step record:

	New Record	Previous Record
# of Steps Taken in a Day:	11629	10655 – Jan.26th

Not only did I beat my record, but I came close to matching it again a few days later.... which lead to the highest weekly step total I've had so far.

Back From Ottawa

"No man needs a vacation so much as the person who has just had one."
~ Elbert Hubbard

Well we're back from our vacation... and I use that term loosely. Sherri & Susan both came down with food poisoning on the second night of our stay. That wiped out all of the third day, and left them still feeling like crap for the remainder of our stay.

Sherri was feeling a bit better on Sunday night so we went downtown to see the ice sculptures, but unfortunately they closed the main park down literally 2 mins before we arrived to dismantle the exhibits since Winterlude had officially ended that day.

The vacation wasn't a complete loss as we did manage to get out both before & after the food poisoning to enjoy the city, get some fresh air & enjoy some local cuisine (which wasn't the culprit for Sherri & Susan).

Our flight was delayed a bit yesterday, so we didn't arrive home until after 1am... so we're both pretty tired today. I'm working on my "Week In Review" post, and trying to catch up on a pile of meal logging and other half completed posts.... look for an update soon!

Men's Health Minute #3

"Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods; and good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts." ~ James Beard

You can also carefully cut 1 heavier slice in half.... I've done it a few times when I've had a hankering for a sandwich, but didn't want all the carbs.

Check back next week for another "Men's Health Minute" video.

Thursday Funnies: Volume 9

"The aim of a joke is not to degrade the human being, but to remind him that he is already degraded." ~ George Orwell

~ Cartoon by Nick D. Kim (used by permission)

...I just happen to be one of those people.

Vacation Time!

"Too bad Lassie didn't know how to ice skate, because then if she was in Holland on vacation in winter and someone said 'Lassie, go skate for help,' she could do it."
~ Jack Handey (Deep Thoughts)


I was looking for a vacation quote & I happened upon this one. Anyone that remembers the old Saturday Night Live short called "Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey" should get a kick out of it... made me chuckle.

Anyhoo... Sherri and I are off for a mini vacation to our Nations Capital of Ottawa. It's Winterlude which is a lot of fun. Here's a post from my last Ottawa vacation.... which should give you an idea of what's in store for us (can't wait for the Beaver Tail). We're leaving today and I won't be back until Tuesday evening... so I won't have any weekly review/results until Wednesday.

Although I'm away from my normal routine I'm not worried because I know for a fact that we'll be eating healthier at Susan's place than we do at home; she's very healthy... YAY Susan. Also we'll be doing a ton of walking & skating on the canal, so I'm covered in the way of exercise as well..... oh yeah... I'm sure Susan's 3yr old Andrew will keep us on our toes.

I hope everyone has a great week... I know I will.

The Life of Bryan - Episode 02

"The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not 'Eureka!' but 'That's funny..." ~ Isaac Asimov

New to "The Life of Bryan" cartoon... check out the 'Readers Guide'.

Men's Health Minute #2

"Did you know there's an all-natural, muscle-building snack that's free? It's called Onthophagus gazella Fabricius, and a big handful contains 17 grams (g) of protein, just 4 g fat, and almost no carbohydrates. The downside: You know it better by its common name--the dung beetle." ~ Menshealth.com

Check back next week for another "Men's Health Minute" video.

Congratulations!

"The rung of a ladder was never meant to rest upon, but only to hold a man's foot long enough to enable him to put the other somewhat higher." ~ Thomas Henry Huxley


A fellow blogger and true inspiration Fat Lazy Guy has hit his goal weight today. To put his achievement into perspective, he's lost 25.4 lbs. more than I've weighted at my heaviest. If you find that as hard to comprehend as I do... here's he's numbers:

Current weight: 99.5 kgs (219.4 lbs)
Previous weight: 101.7 kgs (224.2 lbs)
Highest weight: 229 kgs (504.8 lbs)
Weight loss this week: 2.2 kgs (4.8 lbs)
Total weight lost: 129.5 kgs (285.4 lbs)

Congratulations on your success, and for sharing your journey with us.

Week #237: In Review

"However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results."
~ Winston Churchil

~ Nick D. Kim (strange-matter.net) used by permission

In many ways this was my best week yet! I was much more consistent on a daily basis in regards to exercise, which helped me increase my daily activity & step average. Losing 2.9 lbs is absolutely awesome. I was a bit disappointed that my body fat % stayed the same, but I wasn't really surprised since it dropped a lot last week. I'm hoping that the same thing doesn't happen with my weight next week, due to my success this week..... oh well, only time will tell.

I don't think I mentioned it... but I went skating again on Tuesday and I went the whole 1 hour without stopping; which is great. I was also proud of myself for attending Aikido, but I have to admit that I'm not sure if I'm going to go again as my knee is still sore. The next class isn't for a few days so I'll see how things go and update everyone soon.

Here's last week results:

	Last Week	This Week	Result
Weight:	240.5 lbs.	237.6 lbs.	- 2.9 lbs.
Body Fat:	37.5 %	37.5 %	- 0.0 %
Lean Body Mass:	150.310 lbs.	148.50 lbs.	-1.81 lbs.
# of Steps:	41,468	41,635	+ 167 Steps

Here is a copy of BodyMedia Summary Report.
Week #237 - Summary Report (Feb.8th - Feb.14th, 2010)

I've also updated my 2010 Progress Charts.

I'm looking forward to further success in Week# 238, and I would like to wish the same success for everyone else!

How America Grew.

"Our growing softness, our increasing lack of physical fitness, is a menace to our security." ~ John F. Kennedy

Sherri brought to my attention a great article posted on Sparkpeople titled "How America Grew - A Timeline of National Growth" written by Mike Kramer.

It takes a chronological look at some key events that have occurred over the last 50 years in America.

It's no wonder obesity has become such an epidemic in the U.S and around the world.

2010 Vancouver Olympics

"Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months and years they spend in preparing for it. The victorious performance itself is merely the demonstration of their championship character." ~ T. Alan Armstrong
I'm so excited that the winter Olympics are finally here..... and a big part of that "here" being Canada. I just wanted to take a brief moment to welcome all of the athletes to our wonderful nation and to wish them all of the best in their respective events.

GO CANADA GO!

Can you really blame me for showing some national pride?

Day 1730: Part 2

"Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion... I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterward." ~ Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Last night was one of the most challenging moments of my life in a long, long time. It was also one of the more embarrassing moments... and from a person who excels at embarrassing moments that really saying something.

It was only 15 mins into the class and I was already starting to drip with perspiration... and we hadn't even finished warming up & stretching. As we were doing the various stretching, (such as neck rotations) my bones were making popping noises, almost as they were saying "WTF, I haven't moved like that in eons".

After 30 mins I was sweating profusely and struggling to keep the sweat out of my eyes. Akido is definitely not an easy thing to pick up quickly. The movements are very complicated and need to be honed over a very long time. I couldn't believe just how uncoordinated I have become over the years. Beyond the lack of coordination, I've also become far more right hand (and foot) dominated which meant that I struggled that much more with any movement involving my left side. It's been over 15 years since I've participated in any kind of sport which requires coordination of both sides of your body equally.

Somewhere shortly near or after the 1 hour mark I wasn't sure if I was going to make it through the full 2 hours. I was out of breath, my t-shirt was nearly saturated with sweat, my muscles were burning and even more embarrassing than all of that some of the extreme twisting, bending and muscle excretion was causing me to fart... although thankfully I wasn't the only one it happened to.... not that that fact makes it any less embarrassing.

Around the 1 1/2 hour mark I was proud for not stopping early, and I was even more determined to complete the entire class... although my body wasn't very impressed with that decision (especially today).

Ultimately I completed the entire class. I have to admit that I couldn't really describe it as fun, because of my embarrassment, lack of physical fitness, and my complete lack of coordination... but it was very much worth it. It was an incredible workout and I have no doubt whatsoever that Aikido will help me increase my strength, flexibility, coordination, and overall level of physical fitness. The only problem that I foresee is that Aikido really is hard on my knee. It involves a lot of time doing ground work, rolls and falls; all of which put quite a bit of strain on my knee.

I plan to attend the next class on Sunday, so I'll see how I fare after that class before I start to make any plans for the future. Regardless of what happens, I'm proud of myself for attending the class and experiencing something new and challenging.

Day 1730

"Everyone has a spirit that can be refined, a body that can be trained in some manner, a suitable path to follow. You are here to realize your inner divinity and manifest your innate enlightenment." ~ Morihei Ueshiba Founder of Aikido

I'm soooooo excited. Not only is today the opening ceremonies for the Olympics, it also marks the day of my first ever Aikido class (later today). Before I was a teenager I took Judo for about a year or so, and I absolutely loved it. Ever since I can remember I've thought about joining some for of martial arts, but for one reason or another (primarily my knee in later years) I never fulfilled that dream.

I chose Aikido because it's primary focus is on self-defense, fundamentals & techniques.

Aikido was developed in the early 20th century by Morihei Ueshiba (1883-1969), often referred to as O-Sensei (Great Teacher). He was a gifted martial artist who had trained extensively in ju-jitsu, kenjutsu (sword arts) and sojutsu (spear arts) and then combined and modified techniques from each to reflect his personal convictions concerning self-defence, peace and harmony. Consequently, the purpose of Aikido is not the destruction of an enemy but, rather, the control of difficult human aggression. Peaceful resolution of conflict is the ultimate goal of Aikido. These aims are reflected in the name which is made up of three characters: Ai (to meet or harmonize), Ki (energy, spirit or mind) and Do (the way). Combined these become the Way of Harmonious Spirit.

I'm so proud of myself for finally fulfilling this dream.

The Life of Bryan - Episode 01

"I'm a great admirer of cartoons, because I can't do cartoons." ~ Bruce McCall

A few years ago I spontaneously started a cartoon based on my life. The cartoon really didn't have a purpose, other than as an outlet for some pent up creative energy. I made up a total of about 5 cartoons... although I can only seem to find/remember 3 of them. After many hours of searching for cartoons to use on my blog and coming up empty handed, I figured why waste all that time when I could of just made one myself.

I kept the original format, title and content of my previous cartoon, but I changed the colour scheme to mesh a tad better with my blog.

Hopefully this will serve as a creative outlet for me, and provide a few laughs for you in the process.

New to "The Life of Bryan" cartoon... check out the 'Readers Guide'.

Goals & Guidelines for 2010

"When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don't adjust the goals, adjust the action steps." ~ ConfuciusA few days ago I created a new post titled "Goals for 2010" which outlined several fitness goals and how I planned to achieve them. I've since saved that post as a draft so I could take a different approach. This post will present my overall goals & guidelines for 2010, which focuses on 3 categories: Fitness, nutrition & mental health (BALANCE). I'll list my overall goals, followed by specific goals & the guidelines that I plan to follow to achieve my specific & overall goals.

At some point in the near future, I'll create a new post dedicated to each of the 3 categories outlining how I plan to accomplish the goals specific to that category using the S.M.A.R.T mnemonic.

Overall Fitness Goal: I would like to become far more physically active this year. I want to improve my cardiovascular capacity and my overall strength. As I lose weight I'm hoping my knee will be able to withstand more strenuous activities.

Fitness Activity Goals:
1. Complete the "One Hundred Push Ups Training Program"
2. Complete the "CN Tower Climb for WWF"
3. Complete the "CIBC Run for the Cure"
4. To start bike riding.
5. To start hiking (local trails).
6. To start Kayaking.
7. To join the local Curling Club.
8. To start Cross Country skiing.
9. To start Snow Shoeing.
10. To start Skating
11. Join Akido Club.
12. To start Geocaching.

Fitness Guidelines:
1. To upload my BodyMedia collected data daily.
2. To burn +3200 calories each day.
3. To burn +500 more calories than I consume.
4. To get +60 mins exercise each day (50 mins moderate & 10 mins Vigorous).
5. To walk +5000 Steps each day.
6. To purposely park father away from my destination.
7. To walk/bike more often as an alternative to driving.
8. To allocate 1 day a week to rest.


Overall Nutrition Goals: I recognize that this is one area that needs to be completely overhauled in my life. The funny thing is that I actually well read & educated on the topic. My goal is to successfully use this knowledge and put it into action.

Nutrition Guidelines:
1. To log my meals & snacks daily. (Using BodyMedia "Activity Manager")
2. To drink 8+ 8 oz glasses of water each day.
3. To eat 5-6 times daily.
4. To eat slowly, chew more and enjoy my food.
5. To consume 5-10 servings of fruit & vegetable each day.
6. To reduce/eliminate Saturated Fat and Trans Fats.
7. To reduce sodium intake to below 2300 mg/day.
8. To prepare & eat more meals @ home, while reducing dining out.
9. To eliminate visits to Fast Food Restaurants when dining out. (Banned List)


Overall Mental Health Goals: In the past I've allowed stress to build up without a means of coping with it beyond the comfort of food... I've always been an emotional eater. My new goal is a two pronged approach. Firstly I need to reduce the overall stress in my life. Secondly I need to create new coping mechanisms to deal more effectively with stress. Achieving/following my above fitness goals/guidelines would be a great start.

Mental Health Goals:
1. To become a volunteer @ The General Hospital, Health & Sciences Centre.

Mental Health Guidelines:
1. To get between 7-8 hrs sleep daily.
2. To allocate +15 mins daily to reading.
3. To listen to music often.
4. To watch a movie once a week.
5. To research & start practicing meditation/relaxation techniques.
6. To take 2-3 mins every hour or so to take few deep breaths/stretch.
7. To organize and complete a weekly To-Do list.
8. To maintain my blog & relationships online.
9. To keep contact with my friends & family.
10. To have 1 cheat meal & desert each week.

P.S: Sherri wanted to know where the "Sherri" category was and I had to explain to her that she was an integral part of the other 3 categories.... to which her response was "but where is the buy Sherri presents goal?". It's going to be a long year....lol.

I plan to update/modify this list throughout the year!

Week #236: In Review

"However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results."
~ Winston Churchil

~ Nick D. Kim (strange-matter.net) used by permission

This week turned out great. I did really well in all regards. There's always room for improvement, and one thing I could still use some work on would be consistency, in regards to exercise. I'm making a lot of headway in all aspects of my life & I'm very proud of my progress.

Here's last week results:

	Last Week	This Week	Result
Weight:	241.9 lbs.	240.5 lbs.	- 1.4 lbs.
Body Fat:	38.9 %	37.5 %	- 1.4 %
Lean Body Mass:	147.80 lbs.	150.31 lbs.	+2.51 lbs.
# of Steps:	41,318	41,468	+ 150 Steps

Here is a copy of BodyMedia Summary Report.
Week #236 - Summary Report (Feb.1st - Feb.7st, 2010)
I'm looking forward to further success in Week# 237, and I would like to wish the same success for everyone else!

Day 1724: Beat My Record -- Daily Calorie Burn

"Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment." ~ Jim Rohn

Last Saturday I managed to beat my previous calorie burn record by helping a friend reorganize his garage & a good elliptical workout... well yesterday I beat that record doing the very same things. Sherri and I watched the 2nd half of the Superbowl yesterday, and during the 4th quarter I checked my step total for the day and realized that I was going to fall short for my weekly total, so I hopped onto the elliptical for 30mins... rechecked my total... hopped on for another 15mins... rechecked my total... hopped on for a final 5mins and called it quits.

Sherri thought I was nuts for being obsessed about my total. She reminded me that although I might not of walked as much this week, I burnt up more calories on a daily from activities like shoveling, building the bookcase...etc. She was right of course... but I still wanted to beat my previous weeks step total... which in the end helped me beat my previous calorie burn total in a single day.

	New Record	Previous Record
# Calories Burned in a Day:	4269	4177 – Jan.30th

I wonder how long it'll be before I'm able to break 5000?

Men's Health Minute #1

"It would be nice if the Food and Drug Administration stopped issuing warnings about toxic substances and just gave me the names of the one or two things still safe to eat"
~ Robert Fuoss

As you know one of my favourite magazines is Men's Health, and their website is full of useful information... albeit, a little bit hard to find exactly what you're looking for due to their poor search engine.

Article - "Should You Splurge on Organic Fruit?

Every now & then I'll feature one of their "Men's Health Minute" video's... Enjoy.

Thursday Funnies: Volume 8

"The aim of a joke is not to degrade the human being, but to remind him that he is already degraded." ~ George Orwell

~ Source Unknown

I love this picture.... and no I'm not a soccer fan; which is why I love this picture so much. I've tried to find a few sources of cartoons to use on my site, but unfortunately the everything I find is copyrighted and requires outrageous sums of money to use the image. The going rate to use a single image on a non-profit blog for a 1 year period is $15.00 - 30.00 which is ridiculous.

Setting Goals

"Man is a goal seeking animal. His life only has meaning if he is reaching out and striving for his goals." ~ Aristotle

Note: This post was originally posted Jan.26th on another blog I contribute to titled "Men Getting Fit". My next post will be dealing with this topic.

I don't know about the rest of you, but setting goals has always been a challenge for me.... well, maybe not setting them, but actually achieving them. Sometimes my goals are too lofty, sometimes they're set too far in the future, other times there demise occurs by element beyond my control.

I've been tossing around this subject in my head for more than a few weeks now, and I've been doing a bit of research to help make 2010 more successful.

Apparently, a great way to make goals successful and more powerful is to use the S.M.A.R.T or S.M.A.R.T.E.R mnemonic; which stands for:

S - Specific (Significant, Stretching, Simple)
M - Measurable (Meaningful, Motivational, Manageable)
A - Attainable (Appropriate, Achievable, Agreed Upon, Action Oriented)
R - Relevant (Realistic, Reasonable, Rewarding, Results Oriented)
T - Time-bound (Timely, Trackable, Tangible)
E - Evaluate (Excitable, Ethical)
R - Reevaluate (Rewarded, Revisited, Recorded)

Source ~ Wikipedia

Goals such as: losing weight, improving my eating habits, being able to finish a 10k run, are not S.M.A.R.T goals, and are therefore far less likely to succeed.

So based on that criteria I'm going to focus on creating some short, medium & long term goals for 2010....... what are your goals going to be? Are they S.M.A.R.T goals?

Day 1718

"Those who think they have not the time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness." ~ Edward Stanley

Yesterday Sherri and I went skating at the local arena... which is a huge milestone for both of us since it's been over 15 yrs since we've both done so. Sherri's been wanting to go skating for a really long time, but a few things were holding us (me) back. I was really worried about injuring my knee, but more importantly, I didn't even own a pair of skates.

I'm not sure if I've blogged about this yet, but just before I returned home from Ontario I finally purchased a custom made knee brace. I'll have to blog about my knee brace in more detail in the future, but for now lets just say that it goes a long way in helping to alleviate my fear in participating in physical activity.

The only thing I needed now was a pair of skates.... which I received as a Christmas present from Sherri (thanks baby).

So, knee brace on, and skates in hand, Sherri and I headed off to the local arena for the "Adult Skate" from 10-11am. I was really surprised by how easy it was after all this time. Don't get me wrong... I was anything but graceful, but it wasn't nearly as embarrassing as I had pictured .

We didn't break any speed records, but more importantly we didn't break anything. We didn't stay for the full hour, but we both worked up a bit of a sweat... and more importantly had a lot of fun.

We're already planning to return next week.