Archive | January, 2010
One word: Greenways
On this morning’s ride at Umstead with Alan and Tim, the conversation ranged, as it will on a good ride, from “Avatar,” to dinosaur dung http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coprolite to, of course, biking. Alan and Tim are strong riders, and you might expect their end of the discussion to focus on training, technique, gear. And there was some [...]
Continue reading...Happy nuts, frozen nuts and other things I learned from “O”
17. January 2010
The joke at our house (at least I think it’s funny) is that when the latest “O” arrives, I exclaim with mock surprise, “Oh, look! Oprah’s on the cover.”
This morning, the February 2010 issue showed up on the kitchen table. I was waiting for the coffee to finish, I didn’t feel like going out in [...]
30/30 deadline workouts
16. January 2010
Thursday looked like it was going to be yet another day that I would shortchange myself on working out. I’d been in the latter stages of a book deadline crisis for the past three weeks, my every moment occupied with writing or fretting over why I wasn’t writing. My ability to get out for a [...]
Continue reading...Recommended reading: “Spark”
15. January 2010
Another reason to exercise: It’s good for your brain. That’s hardly a revelation. Anyone who exercises knows, for instance, that even a short 30-minute workout can boost your mood for the rest of the day. But just how extensive the relationship is between exercise and your brain may come as a surprise. That relationship is [...]
Continue reading...Getting the most from your RMR allotment
14. January 2010
Yesterday, we chatted with dietician Kara Mitchell about the importance of knowing your Resting Metabolic Rate, the number of calories your body needs to carry on such basic functions as breathing, pumping blood, growing new cells. Go below that number and your body will think it’s in trouble, switch into survival mode and burn fewer [...]
Continue reading...Not losing weight? Maybe you’re not eating enough
13. January 2010
So it’s, what, day 13 of the New Year — And I haven’t lost a pound despite the fact I’ve been starving myself!!!
That, says Kara Mitchell, a dietician and director of the Fitness Program at the Duke Health and Fitness Center in Durham, may well be your problem. “The biggest mis-conception for weight loss is [...]
Next weekend, long hike
10. January 2010
If you’re a hiker who’s been sidelined by the cold and snow, you must be looking at the warmer forecast for this week, licking your chops and thinking, “I’ve got a lot to make up for.” Well, next weekend there are opportunities aplenty for making up. So you like to hike 20 or so miles [...]
Continue reading...Weekend plans? (Other than freezing?)
8. January 2010
Not sure about you, but sometimes when the temperature isn’t supposed to get much above freezing I need a little extra incentive to get out and get going. Like Saturday’s “Kickoff to a Healthy New Year” event planned for the American Tobacco Trail in southern Wake County. They’ve got all sorts of events planned to [...]
Continue reading...Coexisting with cold air
6. January 2010
The temperature in Raleigh just hit 40! Woo-hoo! Alas, this heat wave isn’t expected to last. Light snow is predicted for Thursday, it’s barely supposed to get above freezing over the weekend. Thus, we bring you more tips — in the form of recommended reading — on exercising in the cold.
Things to pay attention to. [...]
Umstead in a day: Calling all Iron Hikers
5. January 2010
A key ingredient for any self-improvement program is setting a goal, something to strive for. Otherwise, it’s all too easy to throw up your hands one day and say, “All right, good enough. I’m done.”
If your goal is to lose weight, you have a target — 20 pounds by spring, for instance. If you’re trying [...]
19. January 2010
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