Fitness

Week SEVEN of our Living Fit Winter Challenge

We are mid-week SEVEN of our winter challenge! Only about ten+ days to go!

Don’t forget to log your calendar points. Here are some weekly reminders…

Double Calendar Points = No sweets and/or no alcohol. In week three, you had to choose between the two, but this week you can earn double in BOTH! Remember, you do get a cheat day (so don’t count points on day seven), but you can earn 120 points in this category alone!

Bonus Challenges [Double week! 100 points MAX]
- Attend a FIT event [25 points]
  - Thurs FIT Book Club
  - The Local Spot Yoga event on Saturday with lululemon polaris @ Zest
  - Bend Active events Saturday with Rachel Kerr [Power Vinyasa] or Rachel Wilson [barre-OM]
- Log more miles or mat minutes than last week [25 points]
- EAT CLEAN challenge – see “RULES” below
  - Follow Rules six days [100 points] or
  - Follow Rules five days [75 points] or
  - Follow Rules four days [50 points]

In addition to our double calendar points for no sweets, we wanted to take on the challenge of making better ‘diet’ choices. We created a MODIFIED CLEAN challenge because most of us work 40-50+ hours a week, have children, are BUSY… food prep and eating 100% clean is sometimes not an option! We are just looking to make good choices, we are not detoxing or cleansing or trying out for bikini contests. 🙂 It should be a bit challenging, but doable!

“Modified” Living Fit Eat Clean Challenge RULES

#lfceatclean2015

No sugary/fake overly-processed/packaged foods (sugar-laden granola bars & oats, fruit snacks, desserts, GMOs, etc ~ put down that chocolate!)

CAN have ‘clean’ packaged foods, just try to limit. Think no GMOs, low sugar (10g or less), low sodium, etc ~ protein shakes, almond milk, Fage greek yogurt, even milk is on this list (although if you’re looking for quick results, eliminating dairy will help!)
- Check out this website: 100 cleanest packaged foods

Try to fill up on veggies! Eat 2-3+ servings veggies per day. More if you can. Like until you think you can’t eat one more veggie. The benefits of vegetables are countless ~ antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, water content, fiber, cancer prevention… read more HERE.

Eat lean protein; healthy meats, tofu, beans ~ and clean supplements; protein shakes, almond milk, PB2, coconut milk… read more HERE.

Eat 2 (no more than 3) servings fruit per day. If you prefer to have 3 bananas and 2 apples for breakfast [Lan], thats ok, as long as you burn it off. Training for a marathon? Then eat away. 🙂

Try to avoid foods with added sugar and high sugar ratios. If it has more than 10g per serving, try something else! Even some packaged fruits (raisins, craisins, etc) have a lot of sugar.

Like to cook? Check out HeAndSheEatClean.com ~ a great website for clean recipes. Whitney Carlson had an amazing transformation from changing her diet over time!

So that’s it!

Good luck with week 7 and your clean eating!

Over here, we’re already on day 3!!

Check those labels for GMOs and sugar!!

Tour of Columbus [V Power Yoga]

We enjoy traveling around Columbus and trying new studios, new styles of yoga and of course, meeting other fitness lovers. We struck gold on this studio tour!

Four of us attended a class at V Power Yoga last Saturday morning and unanimously, we can’t wait to go back. We first heard about it through Rachel Kerr from The Beauty Barre and then found it on our recently acquired ClassPass Columbus.

After class, #livingthesweatylife

Here is a recap from two of us…

[rehash from L nguyen]

This morning it was rainy. I don’t mean just a sprinkle, it was a pouring monsoon out! That didn’t stop us yogis from going to an 8am heated yoga class. This month, we are trying out ClassPass and decided to give V Power a whirl. I had never been to this studio before, and have only heard amazing things. Naturally, on a Saturday morning, any normal person would sleep in. I was so excited to try this place out that I was up close to 6am!

The class, itself, was a power flow. Great for any morning energy! Erin (our instructor) started the class out with slow stretches to get our muscles juicy and warmed before jumping into our vinyasa flow series. The class was heated and it felt SO great coming in from the rainy cold! I especially loved the energizing music – it makes you just want to dance! The hour went by so fast- it was 9am before we knew it. As with any heated yoga class, I took advantage of being warmed up and practiced my scorpion before leaving. Erin provided very helpful tips post-class [ie, to not be scared to keep bringing my feet to head in forearm scorpion]. I wished we lived closer, but will definitely be coming back!

[rehash from T gellenbeck]

This was my first yoga studio in the downtown/warehouse area. I was not up at 6AM like Lan, but I was excited! 🙂 We got there about 15 minutes early and were the first to arrive. The instructor, who we later found out was one of the new co-owners, greeted us with smiles, got us checked in and moved us into the studio.

Things I loved…

The heat. It was a heated class (which I love, especially in winter), but not TOO heated. We all broke a sweat and were nice and warm, but weren’t dying.
Room to move. The class was full on the website (a few of our yogis didn’t get in!), but there weren’t a TON of people packed into the class. It was nice to have arm room. This likely means to sign up early!
The instructor [and co-owner], Erin, was amazing!! She was nice, easy to hear and very good at giving instruction. She moved around the room and helped people with modifications, congratulated yogis on their poses, etc. She gave us some ideas for hip stretches (as runners, they tend to always be tight), chatted with us after class and encouraged us to come back. We will!!
It was the perfect combination of my favorite studio, Harbor Yoga, and other studios that give you a bit more time to practice certain poses [like PAI]. The first half was very fast flow, upbeat music, quick sequences, a great cardio/power workout. The second half was a bit slower and gave us time for play, something I love as a new-er, wanna-be yogi. Their site describes their practice as ‘vigorous and athletic.’ My type of workout!
This awesome shirt….

The only downfall for me personally is the location/drive time. Since we live in Dublin, it took about 20-25 minutes to get there, so round trip, it was about a two hour expedition ~ great if you have a lot of time, but a big chunk if you’ve got a long daily to-do list.

Here is some more info from their website:

V Power Yoga is nestled in the warehouse district of downtown Columbus. Reservations are not required, however new students are encouraged to arrive 15 minutes before class. Loaner mats are available for $3. Loaner towels are available for $2.

Free parking is available on the east side of Neilston St. Metered parking is available on 5th St. [Meters are coin only!]

252 North Fifth Street
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Tel: (614) 22 VYOGA

Overall we LOVED it and will definitely be going back. You should really check it out!

Class Pass Columbus

Like trying new things?

Like making friends in lots of places?

Like cross-training in a variety of ways?

Well, hello ClassPass, welcome to Cbus!

We are excited to try out this new-to-Columbus fitness concept. ClassPass is a monthly membership where you can visit multiple fitness studios around your city.

Here are the basics:

What is ClassPass?

ClassPass is a monthly membership to the best boutique fitness classes in your city. There are thousands of classes available to ClassPass members, including cycling, pilates, yoga, strength training, dance, martial arts, and more.

For $79 per month (price varies by city), ClassPass members get unlimited classes to studios in the ClassPass network. While members can take as many classes per month as they’d like, they can visit the same studio up to 3 times per monthly membership cycle.

Although subject to change, some awesome ones in Columbus we are excited to visit include V Power Yoga, The Butcher Shop, Pure Barre, Thank Yoga & PAI Yoga.

How long is a ClassPass membership cycle?

Each ClassPass cycle is one month in length, and will automatically renew on the same day each month. For example, if you buy your ClassPass on April 5, your membership will renew on May 5. Once your new month starts, you’ll be able to re-visit your favorite classes (and also explore new venues!) ClassPass does NOT require an annual/long-term commitment.

How many classes do I get with a ClassPass membership?

You’ll be able to take as many classes as you’d like each month! You can visit any studio in the ClassPass network up to 3 times per membership cycle.

Watch for our posts on social media as we explore Columbus over the next 30 days with our new #ClassPassColumbus! And while you’re at it, #PassTheHappy!

Holiday/Christmas wish lists

Okay so maybe we waited too long to post this because HOPEFULLY your holiday shopping is coming to an end (its 2PM on Christmas Eve!) Regardless, here are the top FIT items we had on our wish lists so we wanted to share them with our readers…

Legwarmers & tall socks ~ since we basically live in our yoga pants, these not only are comfy, but make a stylish statement too! Freepeople has some great options… or even your local Kohl’s or Target.
Athletic vest ~ puffer please! lululemon and Northface have great athletic models, but more affordable options can be found in lots of places, including Old Navy.
lululemon athletica vinyasa scarf ~ so many uses!
Boat neck sweatshirts ~ great for throwing over your sweaty athletic clothes to keep you warm after a session, or just lounging around in. As Bend says, fitness meets fashion!
The mat. If you do hot yoga, there really is no better mat out there!
lululemon hot cheeks shorts ~ Lan likes to layer and cover her booty on cold winter runs… but still, of course, look cute!
Leggings. Who couldn’t use another pair of leggings? Maybe you want to make a BOLD statement and get Robert Sturman/Bend Active’s Italy or Prayer Flag leggings. Or maybe you’re more subtle… some of our favorite basic black leggings include lululemon’s run crop or wunder unders and Bend Active’s leela leggings.
Stocking stuffers like Honey Stingers, gloves, running headbands, headphones, juice bar giftcards, running socks (Balega is one of the best!) ~ anything that will fit! And maybe a Starbucks or Winans giftcard… we deserve a little chocolate or coffee after a long run!
Fitness passes ~ think yoga class passes, yoga retreat, race entries, etc.
Running inspiration; subscription to Runner’s World magazine or maybe an iTunes giftcard to update our running playlist.

You can also check out lululemon’s gift guides for more ideas!

Thanks for checking in! Hope you have a wonderful Christmas Eve (or whatever you celebrate!)

Merry FIT-mas!!!!

Healthy snack or sweet/sugary treat?

[tgellenbeck]

First, let me say I am NOT a dietician, nutritionist or any other type of fitness expert. I’m a runner who loves chocolate. So please, take what I’m saying with a grain of salt. Or sugar. I have, however, tried a TON of clean eating challenges, TLS & Advocare supplements, been on a ‘crash wedding diet’ and lots of other weight loss & fitness journeys over the last twenty-some years.

We all question ‘how much sugar is ok?’ especially if starting a New Year’s resolution or a Living Fit challenge. If your body doesn’t burn off the sugar, its stored as fat (or something complex like that!) On our current challenge, you can earn 5 points daily for ‘refraining from sweets, sugary treats, desserts & alcohol’ ~ so this poses the question of ‘what is considered a treat?’ What if you’re injured and your husband/doctor prescribes self-medication of a tall glass of wine? What if you bought a ‘healthy’ energy bar, only to find out it has 20 grams of sugar?

We polled some of our Living Fit members & did a bit of research on the ol’ sugar topic. Here are some tips & guidelines we came up with…

Experts recommend a daily sugar intake [maximum] of around 20-25g for women and 36-37.5g for men.
Natural sugars are best ~ try to avoid all added sugar, refined carbs, processed foods and ‘artificial’ sweetners. Whenever possible, stick to single ingredient, whole foods.
Sugar can produce similar brain activity to some drugs… what?! And you CAN get addicted to it!
“Acceptable sweets” that we came up with collectively include; apple w/ nut butter, fresh fruit, yogurt, avocado w/ sprinkled nuts & drizzle of honey, hot tea [try putting blueberries in your green tea], dried fruit & nuts, granola or snack bar (Quest and Lara have low sugar), Carob Spirulina energy squares, KIND bars. Certain fruits have a lot more sugar, so keep this in mind if trying to be extremely strict with your sugar intake. Those Craisins are still better than a cookie, but have 24g of sugar!!
Find small ways to cut sugar in everyday choices. Ask for just TWO instead of four pumps of syrup in that grande latte. Try your coffee black. Eat a fresh apple instead of a bag of cookies (okay, that’s a tough one). Do what you can to make better choices.

With all of this info, we also believe in the theory of ‘everything in moderation.’ Our winter challenge does allow one day of sweets with no penalty. So don’t forget to let yourself enjoy life every now and then, you only get one of them!

Note: If you have information or tips on diet, nutrition, runner-friendly healthy recipes, etc ~ send them our way! We are pretty good about getting fitness & exercise related posts up, but need to work on our ‘diet’ posts ~ a lot of us RUN because we like to eat, drink & be merry! LivingFitColumbus@gmail.com

Sources and articles for more info:

Fitness challenge & Bend Active Grand Opening!

We are excited to announce a mini run/yoga event at Bend Active‘s new store this Sunday to kickoff our Living Fit Winter Challenge & Bend Active’s Grand Opening!

When: Sunday, Dec 7th 11AM-12:30PM

Where: Bend Active, The Shoppes on Lane Ave, 1595 Lane Ave, Upper Arlington, 43221

Details:

Enter the Living Fit Winter Challenge
- You do NOT have to be present at this event to join our challenge ~ however, you earn week 1 bonus points for attending and will be given a brief overview of challenge details
- You DO have to attend at least one group activity during the 8 week challenge to be eligible for prizes
- You can check out the leaderboard from last year’s challenge HERE
20-30 min run starting and ending at Bend Active’s new Lane Ave location
20-30 min vinyasa yoga session [post-run] lead by Sherry Hoff of Fair Trade Yoga Studio
Enter a raffle for items from Bend Active and Fair Trade Yoga Studio

Come for the run, the yoga, the goodies, the photos or all of the above!

Hope to see you there!

Traveling, Holidays & Staying Fit [guest post]

Traveling, Holidays & Staying Fit [guest post by L Nguyen]

So for the second week in a row, Mahvish and I decided on a whim to go to Chicago a few weekends back, and I just went again for Thanksgiving. Having been traveling these past few weekends, we have taken some time to reflect on ourselves.

Have we taken the time to take care of our bodies?

Did we get our workouts in?

Are we being mindful and eating clean?

Many of us, when we travel, tend to fall off track of our healthy habits. Yes, it can sometimes be tricky and difficult when it’s quick to grab something from a fast food joint or junk food from a gas station. From experience, it is definitely a challenge to stay in routine while traveling, even for a short weekend. Needless to say, we made sure we tried our best to stay on top of our A-Game. It was an added bonus to have someone around to keep the other in check! Being busy (from work, etc) and tired (not enough sleep!) pose problems of their own. So here are some tips for “on the go” to keep track of your fit routine and healthy habits:

Eat as clean as possible, as much as possible. When eating out, it’s ok to splurge, but try not to over indulge to a point where you can’t breathe! One night, we did tapas so we could try a little bit of everything. 🙂
Carry protein packed snacks & nibble on healthy snacks when you can. We love nuts, Larabars, dried fruit, banana chips, trail mix, sugar snap peas, mini sweet peppers with hummus & fresh fruit.
Drink plenty of water! (Disclaimer: except for when driving long distances, try not to inhale a liter of Perrier sparkling water within a half hour. You WILL have to make pit stops every 45minutes to every hour! But hey, breaks are good too!)
Get enough sleep and don’t rely only running on caffeine.
Find a local yoga studio to take a class or two. While in Chicago, we took a class with Carmen at The Lab and a couple sculpt classes at CorePower!
Get out and squeeze a run in, even for a few miles. Its a great way to check out a new place while getting a workout in! Look into a local running group and perhaps do a run with them.
Take some Airborne tablets. And/or enjoy hot tea or hot water with lemons as a simple detox. Traveling and not sleeping enough can wear down your body, I got sick after returning from one of my many trips.

Remember, we aren’t, by any means, experts. These tips are just a few ideas that kept us from getting sidetracked from our goal(s) of taking care of ourselves.

How do you stay on track of your fit routine when traveling? Feel free to share with us any ideas!

Stay tuned later this week for details on our winter fitness challenge!

A fun FIT weekend!

Weekends fly by around here. The hustle and bustle of the 40-50 hour work weeks may slow down, but we have families, Thanksgiving prep, house cleaning… and of course have to make time for some fit activities!

For the winter months we’ve decided to alternate our Saturdays with runs and yoga [see our schedule HERE]. Yesterday was a RUN day and although the original plan was for 9AM, the cold and ice around Columbus caused us to postpone. We decided to meet at 2:00 in the afternoon yesterday and got in a much needed run, most of us doing 4 miles and Lan logging a whopping 12.5!

Today we headed to lululemon polaris to take advantage of their complimentary class, hosted by our all time favorite yoga studio, Harbor Yoga. The class was taught by Meg, an instructor I’d never met before. We chatted with her a minute after class, thanked her and naturally talked to her about running. She was quite humble, just stating that she couldn’t run anymore. After checking out her bio, we now know why!

Lan rocking her half moon… notice the cute vests in the background

Closeup of the vests. Christmas list perhaps?

We then headed to Bend Active’s new store on Lane Avenue. We’ve mentioned Bend in a previous post and are excited to work with them on some fun FIT projects in the future. More on their new store & events coming soon!

The Italy Pant, by the one and only Robert Sturman & Bend Active

Love when a weekend involves some fit time with Living Fit Columbus friends. Check back soon for updates on Bend, Living Fit events and our upcoming post on our Christmas wish list!

Photo credits & info… the pics in the post were all taken with Teresa’s four year old iPhone 4. December purchases will include the new iPhone 6 ~ Can’t wait to get ahold of this awesome, updated camera phone!! DEAR SANTA text credit to http://the121life.files.wordpress.com

Staying motivated to MOVE in these cold winter months…

We woke up to several inches of snow today!

As it gets colder, a lot of us cut back on our running miles and perhaps even exercise in general. There is so much shopping, baking, traveling, holiday movie watching to do that we often get busy and don’t make time.

Here are some ways to keep yourself moving during this busy, COLD time of year…

Sign up for a winter race… A few some of us are participating in…
- Third Annual Turkey Trot 5K in Waterford Village, Thanksgiving Day @ 9AM
- Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis, Sat Dec 6 @ 19AM
- Lan is running the Disney marathon in January

Sign up for a distance race in the spring or summer to motivate yourself to keep running through winter. Try to get outside or on the treadmill at LEAST once per week… you don’t want to lose that mileage endurance! Some we are looking at…
- Jen & Christine signed up for the Mini Marathon in Indy
- Others are looking at the Derby Festival and of course, Cap City

If finances allow, join a gym or other type of fitness place for the cold winter months! Some of our favorites include…
- Dublin recreation center
- Lifetime Fitness
- Orange Theory Fitness
- Harbor yoga & other studios around Columbus

Tight on cash?
- Take advantage of lululemon Polaris & Easton, as well as other apparel stores that offer complimentary yoga and fitness classes!
- Find a running group to join. You can see our Living Fit winter schedule HERE.
- Bundle up and get outside to PLAY! Remember when you were a kid and loved to play outside? The doggies certainly love it! You can run, walk, jump, roll, sled (hill climbing!) ~ just get moving! You’ll burn calories and warm up. If going running, dress for success.

That’s all for now! Off to bundle up and go get active in this snow!!!

Running in the cold [and dark!]

Happy Friday friends & fellow runners/yogis!

We Columbus-folk are sitting prettier than Cleveland right now… the radio said they got a FOOT of snow yesterday? Christine & I hit up PAI yoga last night while Amanda and others were at Harbor yoga… hot yoga in the cold winter is the best!

And then, there’s Lan. She texted me at 7AM to say “I ran this morning and survived! Brrrrrr, its cold though!” Which reminded me, I still hadn’t posted her most recent guest post about running in these temperatures…

So have a happy Friday and enjoy a little morning read with your coffee. And don’t forget to bundle up!

Running in the cold (and dark) [by L Nguyen]

It is now officially that time of the year again when it gets dark early, on top of cold weather. The first thing most people would prefer to do is get cozy on the couch, next to a fireplace, with a cup of hot cocoa (or whatever your choice beverage may be!). Me, on the other hand, I have made a decision to train for another marathon. Crazy? Yes. I know. There is that thrill in running. The excitement for new running shoes, discovery of a different running path, an updated music playlist. It goes on and on. The one thing no one ever raved about, however, was running in the winter….in Ohio.

We are currently a few weeks out since The Nationwide Children’s Hospital Columbus Marathon. Several of us are getting back to the groove of running or taking a break to do other fit activities [Living Fit Columbus is now alternating Saturday runs with some HOT yoga!]. With the cold and snow around the corner, I have been working on finding a sweet spot in terms of layering, depending on the current outside temperatures. Also important is mapping out running paths where there will be a coffee shop or something of that sort nearby for pit-stops from the wind, cold, etc.

One of our Living Fit running gurus, Deedra, has suggested layers and layers for top and bottom. So here are some tips I’ve come up with based on recent experiences:

Running in the dark: Assume cars cannot see you. Safety first. Wear reflective gear.
Mid 50’s: Capris bottoms. Tank top. Very thin top. Normal running socks.
Mid 40’s: Full length running tights. Tank top. Very thin top. Light zip jacket (if you get cold easily). My Northface fleece is optional, it may get warm for this, but better to layer and take off! Smart wool socks. Headband or something to cover ears.
Mid 30’s: Same as mid-40’s but with a hooded sweatshirt in lieu of a light zip. Double legging bottoms if your bum gets cold easily. Ear warmers/headband. Gloves/mittens.
Mid 20’s: Double (maybe triple!) those bottoms or your bum will be COLD! I do two pairs of running tights, shorts over tights, smart wool socks, sports bra, tank, thin top, thicker top, hoodie and of course an outer layer such as my Northface fleece. Ear warmers/headband. Gloves/mittens.

The day of the marathon, I went out and purchased lululemon’s vinyasa scarf (I had been thinking about that one for weeks and it has been worth the investment!). It comes in handy during the 20’s & 30’s temperature range. I can pull it up and down as needed and the fabric breathes easily.

Some of my favorite cold weather pieces: