Toni Church

Essentials for Developing a Vision Board

2013-05-21T15:12:28Z

Motivation is essential to keeping up a fitness routine. I use a vision board to keep my eye on what I want to accomplish. In this video, I review the basic materials you need for a vision board and where to find inspiration for the content you pin to it.

My vision board focuses on three primary goals:

Completing fitness milestones - For me, this includes running the Brooklyn Half Marathon and power walking the New York City MoonWalk.
Exercising daily - Even if it is five minutes a day, I feel it is important to do something active every day. I put pictures on my vision board of people who clearly take a little time each day to workout.
Staying happy - I find quotes in magazines and books that push me to focus on happiness and prioritize my time effectively in support of my happiness and my family's happiness.

I hope you have planned out some fitness milestones for the next few months. That could include a marathon or it could be walking around the block. Either way, I recommend using a vision board to get you from where you are today to where you want to be.

What are you going to put on your vision board?

Fueling a Workout with Music

2013-05-06T16:52:25Z

Much of the time I prefer to run, walk or workout free of tunes just to clear my mind. However, when workouts last longer than 45 minutes to an hour, I need tunes to power me through them. As I continue to train for my half-marathon and subsequent walking marathon, my training sessions are frequently over an hour long and the right music can make it much more fun and motivating.

I have heard from friends that the right music has increased their speeds and I definitely find this to be true for me as well. A heart pumping, fast beat, motivating song has the ability to fuel your workout or race, and boost your speed. I have experienced this first hand in many of my races. Even if you are just starting to workout for the first time in your life, the right playlist can get you through those times that you want to quit and go back to your old ways.

I'm going to tell you how I create my playlists. Afterwards, let's share lists of songs for different fitness goals. The facts are that I have so much music in my iTunes account that making playlists is necessary so that I do not have to keep passing over the music that I love for relaxing, but hate for working out.

3 criteria for a great workout playlist

I recommend coming up with three to four criteria for every playlist you create. Here are the three criteria I have for my running playlists:

Motivational - Songs that I have an emotional bond with push me to stay disciplined during my workouts. Think about songs that have lyrics or melodies that remind you of times when you felt confident.
Fast beat - I try to match the beat of the song to the pace I want to keep up during my workout. Since I personally focus on speed, my songs usually have a fast beat. For you, this is a great opportunity to get fit and learn more about music, specifically rhythm.
Adrenaline pump - I test songs to see which ones get my heart pumping. Those songs get put in my playlists.

I tend to stay away from songs that get me into moods that are not conducive for working out. For example, I love a lot of ballads, but those songs are better for times when I want to relax and slow down.

My favorite heart pumping, motivating song that frequents my playlists multiple times throughout is “You’re The Best” from the Karate Kid. I know it is cliche, but when I feel like I can’t go on anymor,e this song makes me think of my inner strength and it fuels me to finish my workout, run, or race.

This is my playlist that I created for my 10K this weekend.

New races, new playlists

I usually create a new playlist for each workout routine or race. The criteria is always the same, but the songs frequently change as I make the playlist length match closely to the length of time I want to spend going through my workout. These playlists have the ability to pick me up when I feel like I can’t go on, which is usually at about mile eight or nine during a run.

This weekend, I anticipate that I may need a boost at about mile five for my 10K race. Even if I don’t start the race with music, I have playlists ready to go when I most need them. Just make sure you charge whatever device you are planning to use prior to your workout or race!

What songs do you most frequently play when you need a boost during a workout?

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Photo Credit: Woman listening to music while on an elliptical from Thinkstock.

Cross Training Tips for the Everyday Runner

2013-04-15T21:50:21Z

In preparation for a half marathon, I've been going through cross training exercises approximately three times a week. In this video, I asked a FitOrbit personal trainer, Amanda Ebner, for advice on what cross training exercises are best for people who want to get in shape, but not necessarily become regular marathoners.

I'm going to make sure and use Amanda's advice as I get ready for both the Brooklyn Half Marathon and the New York City MoonWalk. Based on working with her over the last few weeks, I have developed themes for my three days of cross training a week:

Core building (Day 1) - I focus on developing muscles in my legs and abs.
Conditioning (Day 2) - Then, I put my energy into exercises that build endurance.
Power (Day 3) - Finally, I spend time on my upper body strength so I can power through those times that I am dragging a little.

Amanda gives examples of exercises for each theme in the video. If you have a question for Amanda on cross-training (even "what is cross training"), leave it in the comments section. She has kindly given all of us some of her time over the next month.

If you're interested in training along with me for a half marathon, check out my post on The Happy Marathon.

What a Happy Marathon Plan Looks Like

2013-04-05T18:04:50Z

Running a marathon is not for everyone. Training is both time consuming and stressful, both physically and mentally. Even for “us” runners who ache to run a marathon, sometimes the physical “stress” of training ends in injury rather than the reward of finishing a marathon. This is how my journey to NYC marathon ended last year, leaving me wondering whether or not I could actually run a marathon at all.

In the end, I decided to defer my marathon until 2014 to give myself time to build my mileage and endurance, without injuring myself again. So I have developed a new plan for marathons this year that I believe I can accomplish and will add to my happiness (see the happy power walkers in the picture above), not just my physical health.

I'm going to take you through my "happy marathon plan" and then I am going to invite you to join me at a special marathon on July 20.

A half marathon is a happy length

I feel that the half marathon is the perfect distance for me to build back my mileage and endurance because it is attainable with only three days of running a week. The Brooklyn Half will be my first race since my stress fracture and my training will focus on just running and mileage, rather than speed or time. My goal is to use a half marathon to support my peace of mind.

My happy training plan is three days of running that focuses on a particular mileage without the stress of maintaining a certain pace. I posted the details of my plan in a Google document so you view it, print and use it if you want.

While my first marathon of the year will be the Brooklyn Half, I am excited to participate in another marathon in July called the MoonWalk and I'd love for you to join me. The MoonWalk is a power walk through New York City that helps raise money and awareness for breast cancer research. As my fellow Real Health contributors, Rosemary and Phyllis, noted recently, community involvement is a great way to reduce stress and feel better.

Get happy at the MoonWalk

Walk the Walk, the organization behind MoonWalk, started 17 years ago when the founder, Nina Barough, convinced 13 women to join her in power walking the New York City Marathon. Get this though. They were all sporting decorated bras in an effort to raise money for breast cancer. The MoonWalk was born when the London Marathon organizers were unable to accomodate a second team entered by Walk the Walk. Nina arranged for the girls to walk a marathon the night before and to pass the “baton” off the the team officially walking the London Marathon; thus the MoonWalk was born. Now the MoonWalk is coming back to New York City and I am going to power walk it.

I am so excited to be participating in this event. This is a way for me and you to get involved in a marathon without having to run a full marathon. In addition to walking this marathon, I plan to raise money for breast cancer and motivate others to get involved in the MoonWalk by participating or volunteering. I will be walking as part of the Empire BlueCross BlueShield Team and would love for you to join me and my team in participating in this event. I detailed the registration insructions at the bottom of this post. However, let's talk a little about power walking first.

Facts about power walking

Weight loss - If you walk a minimum of four times a week. at a pace that elevates your hear rate for 45 minutes, you could lose 18 pounds in one year without changing your diet.
Comparisons to running - Power walking at 4.5 mph burns the same amount of energy as running does.
Difference from running - Power walking is lower impact than running and places less stress on your bones and joints, which makes it less likely to cause an injury.
Support for aging - Walking can help develop strong bones.

I don’t know about you, but power walking a marathon sounds like a great alternative for anyone that doesn’t want to actually run a marathon. I am excited to start training for my first “walking” marathon.

As part of my welcome package for the MoonWalk I received a Fitbit, which is a wireless activity tracker that tracks my steps, distance and calories burned. I am currently obsessed with my Fitbit and my goal is to hit 10,000 steps a day and I challenge you to do the same.

Join In

Now that I have outlined my half marathon plan and my power walking plan, which together make up my happy training plan, it is time for me to challenge you to get involved. Here are a couple of ways to join with me in raising awareness about breast cancer, getting in shape and accomplishing a marathon "lite":

If you are in the New York area or can come to the city that never sleeps on July 20, register for the MoonWalk and walk with my Empire BlueCross BlueShield team. Click on the registration page, go to "join a team," and find "Empire BlueCross BlueShield."
If you can't make it to New York, follow along with the training plan I provided above and lean on me for accountability. Post in the comments section how you are doing with the training plan. I'll give more tips on how to keep going during times when working out is the last thing on your mind.

What are you committing to this year that gives back to the community and supports your health?

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Photo Credit: Scotland MoonWalk from Flickr user Txceylon

The Ingredients for a Nutritional "Happy Meal"

2013-03-26T18:19:29Z

Many of my friends lament that eating healthy increases their stress levels. I certainly have felt that way in the past, but as spring is around the corner, I am committed to having a sunny disposition and helping myself and others be happy with all aspects of healthy living. With that in mind, I set out in March to find my happy meal - a single meal that had the best combination of nutrional value and support for what I love. After reading about my adventure in making eating healthy a fun adventure, I challenge you to find your happy meal and describe it in the comments section for others to read about.

What makes eating healthy a stressful task?

Finding my “happy” meal was harder than I expected for a couple of reasons. First, I just love so many different foods, picking just one meal that makes me happy was difficult. Second, it made me think through what makes eating healthy stressful at times.

After thinking through this conundrum, I came to the conclusion that the following are the main culprits for making food such a source of anxiety:

We become obessessed with counting calories
We outright label food as good or bad
We take on complicated recipes instead of easy recipes

I realized that I have a love hate relationship with food. I love to eat, but I hate worrying about calories. On a whole, I eat a healthy diet, but I whole heartedly believe that we can eat anything we want with some guardrails. Those guardrails include:

Eating everything in moderation
Making an effort to have a generally well balanced diet

What makes a happy meal?

My “happy meal” (hint: I am not talking about McDonald's here) is corned beef and cabbage. What makes this meal special is the connection I feel to my family and heritage. This meal reminds me of my grandfather who was half Irish and who sadly passed away on St. Patrick’s Day four years ago. When I sit down to this meal I remember him, our connection and all the great times we had together.

I make this meal every year on or around St. Patrick’s Day and after I eat it I am left wondering why I don’t make this meal more often. Though, I think that the rarity of this meal is one of the reasons that it is so special to me. When we cook the same meals over and over again they start to become boring and repetitive and the lose their appeal. This is a meal that is not only easy to make, but it is absolutely delicious!

What made this meal my “happy” meal:

The emotional connection
The ease of preparation and cooking
The taste
The rarity of the meal

While I understand you will want to find your own happy meal, I have detailed the recipe for my corned beef and cabbage here.

The happy corned beef and cabbage recipe

1.5 pounds of corned beef
1 head of cabbage
2.5 pounds of red potatoes
Seasoning packet or pickling spices

This will feed approximately a family of four. The preparation goes as follows:

Cut potatoes into small cubes and place into bottom of the crockpot.
Trim corned beef of extra fat and place on top of potatoes.
Sprinkle seasoning packet on top of corned beef.
Remove core from cabbage, slice in half and then slice each half into quarters and add to crock pot.
Add water until crockpot is 3/4 full. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.
Serve with spicy mustard and enjoy!

This also makes for great leftovers!! I always buy a large corned beef so that I have leftovers for sandwiches the next day. Rye bread plus corned beef plus mustard equals delicious.

I challenge you to find a happy meal before Friday April 12? Why April 12? That's when we are going to start turning our attention to spring fitness habits here at Real Health.

What's your happy meal?

For the past month, I have been tweaking my health habits to make them more supportive of my happiness. If you're interested in happy healthy habits, check out:

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Editor's Note: Toni Church posts to Real Health every Friday as she trains for her first marathon later this year. She is available to talk in the comments section about the challenges and opportunities related to staying fit as a busy mother and career woman.

Does Your Workout Make You Happy?

2013-03-18T18:09:49Z

I want health to be a means to happiness. With that in mind, last week I sat down and came up with a happy goal for my running training. Now that I have my goal set, I am ready to start acting on my intentions and I have started going on "happy runs."

In this video, I discuss what I have decided to take with me on these runs and what I have decided to leave behind. What you'll see is that I have made my runs as bare bones as possible. I am putting aside anything that might distract me, stress me out or make my run more or less than a run.

After checking out how I have put together happy runs, let me know how you are doing with putting together happy goals and activities. Let's help each other out and turn healthy lifestyles into happy lifestyles.

What is the difference, for you, between a workout routine that leaves you happy and one that leaves you stressed?

If you learned something from this post, you might also enjoy Harold Shaw's discussion on how words and thoughts impact how you feel about exercises.

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Running for Happiness

2013-03-08T20:48:36Z

It is International Women's Day and we are commemorating it at Real Health with a discussion on happiness. Why happiness? Because it seems to be the one common goal among all the contributors and readers. Some of us, but not all, are trying to train for marathons. Some of us, but not all, are trying to help family members who are dealing with extraordinary events. Some of us are just trying to like ourselves a little more. However, all of us want to be happy and we recognize health can help get us where we want to be.

So let me tell you a little bit about what happiness means to me as a woman, a mother and as an individual. Then, let's talk about how health and happiness are connected for you.

Elements of happiness

For me, 2012 was supposed to be the year of the marathon. However, due to injury, illness and Hurricane Sandy, it sadly did not happen. I re-committed to running in 2013, but had another setback. I did feel some disappointment. However, I found a new path to happiness through a focus on preventive health. I feel better everyday that I know I took steps to prevent illness or injury. The next step for me is to set a "happy goal," an accomplishment that illustrates how proud I can be of the preventive steps I took. So I am declaring now that I am going to run a half-marathon in May of this year.

I know you may think that a half-marathon is not easing back into exercise, but for me it is achievable and has all the elements of something that will make me feel happy. Those elements of happiness, for me, include:

A sense of accomplishment - This may not be the full New York City Marathon that I was aiming for, but it will speak for the hours and hours I have put into running and a healthy lifestyle.
A good example - I get that little tingly feeling inside that I associate with happiness when I see my daughters taking steps to protect their health. The training for this half marathon should show my daughters how to have an active and healty lifestyle.
The ability to get out of bed - For me to be happy, I have to experience life. I can't fully experience life when I am sick in bed with pneumonia. A half marathon run will encourage me to drink the fluids and cook with the nutrients that will help ward off the flu and other colds.

I have been exercising consistently four to five times a week since mid-January and have been running abut twice a week. I am ready to run more and a half marathon is the perfect distance. Just talking about this goal is making me feel happier!

Four steps to a realistic happiness goal

Based on the elements of happiness I listed out above, I would define happiness as a time when we feel content with our well-being and our state of satisfaction. Put another way, I am happy when I feel able to achieve something and I have a smile on my face. Running makes me happy. Training for a half-marathon makes me happy. Creating a goal for running the half marathon, not so much. Last year I created unrealistic goals that led me to a year of injury and frustration. As I contemplate this goal, I want it to be a realistic, happy goal. I want my training towards this goal to be a pleasurable, satisfying experience and I want my goal to provide a feeling of contentment.

My steps for creating this “happy” goal are as follows:

Reduce the pressure - I want to set a goal that is achievable based on my current conditioning.
Eliminate the comparisons - I want my competition to be myself and not somene else.
Answer what will make me smile within a task - I know running makes me smile. So I want my goal to lengthen the time I run. No, I don't want to have a slow pace time. However, I want my goal to increase the time I spend on running in my life overall.
Answer what would be a tangible achievement - I want to be able to have a cut and dry goal. No question if I achieved it at the end.

Drum roll please. My specific, realistic "happy goal" for the Brooklyn Half Marathon, which is on May 18th, is to finish. I want to enjoy the process of training for a half without pressure, without competition, with only the enjoyment of running. Having a goal that doesn’t require me to compete with myself lets me enjoy the process without burning myself. Running makes me happy and this is why just finishing is my happy goal!

Now I want you to create a goal for yourself that not only motivates you, but makes you happy and be sure to share it below in the comments.

What's your happy goal?

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Taking on Work Stress

2013-03-06T21:53:49Z

Over the last few months, I have dealt with pneumonia, a leg injury and general fatigue. On the heels of all of that, I have decided to get into a groove about protecting my health before I get sick or injured. I call that preventive health. Today I am going to address the dreaded "s" word - stress. In particular, I am going to tell you about how work stress impacted my health and how I have addressed it.

So how do you deal with stress? Me, not very well until recently. Developing pneumonia gave me the incentive to change how I deal with stress. Hopefully, you can learn from my experience and deal with your stress before succumbing to illness like I did.

Identifying sources of stress

After Hurricane Sandy my stress levels increased dramatically as I tried to play catch up at work, school and in my home life. Basically, I had lost a week of my life and the rest of November and December I was playing catch up on everything.

Stress can be both internal and external. Here are the sources of stress that I had faced during this time:

Dealing with learning a new computer system at work
Dealing with the expectations of my performance at work while dealing with not feeling good
Catching up on my schoolwork
Dealing with difficult homecare cases

From all this stress, by mid-January my body had finally had enough and I was knocked out for over a week with pneumonia. After this, I knew something had to change, so in addition to focusing on sleep, my diet and exercise, I knew I needed to focus on reducing my stress levels.

Addressing one stress at a time

Looking back at the my sources of stress, I knew that I could reduce my stress the most by focusing on my work environment. I encourage everyone to make a list of their top stressors and choose one environment (home, work, relationships, etc.) to address during a given month.

So for me, it was time to take on work stress. Yes, work is stressful for all of us. At some point I think no matter how much we love our jobs, we will have a stressful day. How we deal with that stress is what matters and what can make or break us.

I also know that most people will say that it’s impossible to eliminate all of the stresses at work. I agree that we generally can not eliminate all of our stresses. However, I have to tell you that I have managed to eliminate most of my stresses at work by focusing on moving on from stressful events.

Normally, if I had not had a leg injury, running would be my go to stress reliever. After a run the stresses of the day just disappear. Since running was not an option and knowing that sometimes it wouldn’t be, I knew I needed to explore other options to relieve stress.

Four tips to reducing work stress

How did I reduce stress at work? I experimented with a number of ways of reducing stress, but only four seemed to make a significant impact:

Identifying perceived versus actual stress - Much of my stress related to work stems from the pressure I put on myself. I am, admittedly, a perfectionist. However, perfection is not always possible. I need to remind myself of that. I hope you cut yourself some slack too. Write down the facts of what you need to deliver at work.
Prioritizing tasks - I know. We are all underwater with emails, phone calls, meetings and requests. If we don't prioritize these tasks, we'll drive ourselves crazy. I recommend putting tasks into a calendar as well as your meetings and appointments. This way you will have the peace of mind that you have a good understanding of how much time you have to dedicate to new tasks and when you need to say "boss, I am out of time."
Refusing to stress over things I can not control - This tip may sound like a cliche. However, reminding myself of this idea everyday really does improve my outlook. I feel I can get back to a positive place, faster, when I take this idea to heart.
Moving on from the stressful event - My biggest and most successful change in reducing my stress levels at work is that I refuse to allow the stress to get the better of me. I know that I do the best job I can do every single day. I have taken a proactive step by not allowing the stress to even enter my mind. For example, we have just learned a new computer system and there are kinks in the system that can be frustrating. I knew when we went live with this system it would not be perfect, but I also know that in six months this system will make my job easier. Basically to combat the stress associated with the kinks, I went into the launch with the mindset that there will be problems, but eventually this will make my life easier.

These tips have helped me to lighten my stress levels and increased my happiness. I know that this has also helped my health because feeling stressed out all the time was wearing not only on me, but on my family too.

Thankfully I am also back to running, which helps eliminate any leftover stress.

What helps you cool down your stress levels?

This was the fourth post in a series on preventive health. If you are interested in how to prevent illness and injury through other areas of health, check out posts one through three:

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Editor's Note: Toni Church contributes to Real Health every week as she trains for her first marathon later this year. She is available to talk in the comments section about the challenges and opportunities related to staying fit as a busy mother and career woman.

Photo: Woman dealing with work stress from Thinkstock.

The No Excuses Plan for Eating Fruits and Vegetables

2013-03-05T04:29:21Z

I would rather eat healthy - now - rather than get sick later. With that in mind, I am increasing the number of servings of fruits and vegetables in my diet. In this video, I discuss how I develop a lifestyle with no excuses for consuming a good amount of these colorful foods.

My top "cheat sheet" tips include:

Buy pre-cut - This takes out the excuse of "I don't have time to cook with fruits and vegetables."
Try something new at least once a month - This takes out the excuse of "fruits and vegetables taste boring."
Use a juicer - This takes out the excuse of "I can't take my fruits and vegetables with me as a snack."

I am committed to supporting my immune system using these practices. So the sweets and potato chips are out and fruits and vegetables are in. No excuses.

What excuse - for putting aside fruits and vegetables - are you about to get rid of?

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Editor's Note: Toni Church posts to Real Health every Friday as she trains for her first marathon later this year. She is available to talk in the comments section about the challenges and opportunities related to staying fit as a busy mother and career woman.

4 Tips for Guarding Your Sleep

2013-02-19T19:24:44Z

As a busy, working mom, I am tempted to sacrfice sleep to increase the number of tasks I can complete in a day. Last year, I succumbed to that tempation as I was working toward running the 2012 New York City Marathon. I was only sleeping between five and six hours a night in order to fit in my training. I ended up with a leg injury and pneumonia and no marathon run under my belt. I won't put all of the blame on my sleeping patterns, but I am fairly certain my lack of Zzzs played a role in me planning for the 2013 NYC Marathon, instead of the 2012 version.

The case for improving sleep

After recovering from injury and illness, I realized I needed to change my focus on health to prevent further illness. I decided to start with the amount of sleep I was getting each night. Sleep is when your body recovers and rejuvenates itself. Without an adequate amount of sleep you can feel tired, cranky, unfocused and leave yourself susceptible to illness. According to the National Sleep Foundation, adults should be getting 7-9 hours of sleep per night.

Up until I fell ill with pneumonia I had not been getting anywhere near 7-9 hours of sleep at night, but I knew that needed to change. Since I got over my illness, with the exception of a night or two, I have made it a point to get at least seven hours of sleep a night. You know what, I feel great! I am more focused, less irritable and have not been sick in over a month, which may be a record for me!!!!

How to make sleep untouchable

I have four "set in stone" (well, hard plastic) guards against sacrificing sleep. These guards are only taken down if I need to do something urgently to support my family's health or my own:

Roll call at 9 PM - Previously, I had not been getting into bed until 10:30 or 11:00. With that the case, I was not asleep until well after midnight. Now I am in bed by 9 and hopefully asleep by 10:30. This one single change has ensured I get at least seven hours of sleep a night, even when I get up a 5 AM to go to the gym.
No caffeine after 3 PM - I used to love to drink a cup of coffee or tea as late as 7 or 8 pm. This left me wide awake into the early AM hours. Now, I have cut out the extra caffeine so that my body can wind down and fall asleep earlier.
Limiting wine to 1 glass - I love to enjoy a glass or two of red wine at night after work, but found when I had more than one, I was up tossing and turning for most of the night. One glass allows me to relax, fall asleep and sleep through the night, but any more than that leaves waking up multiple times throughout the night.
Lights out at 10 PM - Yes, I have a television in my bedroom and I do use it. However, I have a new rule that the television, and all other electronics, is off at 10 PM. The bright lights from televisions, tablets and mobile phones can stimulate your brain to a point that it hurts getting to sleep.

These tips have worked wonders for my sleeping habits. I have been getting eight hours of sleep on most nights and it feels great to be adequately rested. I know my lack of sleep in the past contributed to my illnesses and I do not plan to have that happen again.

At the end of the day, literally, the game changer has been the idea that I have guards in place. My family and friends know my rules and they respect them. In turn, I respect myself by recognizing how much sleep I need.

Stop by next week as I continue to focus on preventive health by adding more fruits/veggies into my diet.

How do you protect your sleeping hours?

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Photo Credit: A mother sleeping from Thinkstock.

Why I'm Doubling Down on Preventive Health

2013-03-05T19:45:44Z

As we started to get hit with snow storm Nemo in the Northeast, I put together a short video on why preventive health, the act of taking steps to prevent illness and disease from striking in the first place, is important to me. I'm going to start to take new steps to prevent the weather, and other external events, from hindering my health. After watching this video, I hope you will think about what preventive health means to you.

Over the next couple of weeks, I'll let you know how I am incorporating more preventive health measures into my daily life. I believe their are a couple of key areas to focus on in preventing illness and injury:

Optimizing sleep - Have you developed a lifestyle that requires you to sleep no more than four or five hours on a regular basis? If so, you may want to tweak your lifestyle. I recognize that sleep is important to me being a good parent, a good wife and a healthy person. More on sleep management later, but for now I want you to know I think of it as a pillar of preventing myself from getting sick.
Reducing stress - Have you recently said to a friend, "you are going to make yourself sick"? I know I have had people say that to me in the past. No more. I am going to proactively take steps to reduce my stress levels. For one, I am going to start introducing mindfulness into my health habits.
Recognizing nutrition is about nutrients - When we talk about nutrition, we focus a lot of time on number of calories. But I think we need to talk more about the nutrients we need to help our immune systems and give us energy to build. I will go in depth into my nutrition in two weeks.

I think it also goes without saying (too much) that it is important to stay on top of your annual checks up with doctors, flu shots and exams that your health insurance plans will pay for.

Now that you know what choices I have made to develop preventive health habits, I'd like to hear about your thoughts on preventive health.

What are your pillars for preventive health?

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The 30 Minute Bleacher Workout: Bringing Together Married Couples

2013-01-27T19:38:49Z

For the last month, I have been trying to find new ways to fit in fitness to my daily schedule. In this video, I showcase a workout I do with my husband that only takes 30 minutes. I highly recommend this bleacher workout for those who want to combine fitness with bonding time. It is great for married couples, parents with kids, friends or basically any pair of people that want to catch up while working out.

If you want to develop your own "bonding time workout," here are tips for crafting a routine that works for you:

Inventory your area and interests - When I first started thinking about this workout, I wrote down all of the places in my general vicinity that I could run to with my husband in a reasonable timeframe. The track made sense for us because we both do other fitness workouts there during the week. However, if you and your significant other are both avid readers and you have a library in the area, you may want to have a run and read workout.
Specific a time-box that matches up with your goals - For those who are trying to add significant muscle or lose significant weight, this time-box might be longer. Since my husband and I do other workouts independently, 30 minutes makes sense. If you just want to start to develop a fitness habit, 15 minutes might be enough.
Utilize bodyweight exercises - A lot of my friends completelyt compartmentalize running and weight training. I do not think that is necessary. As you can see in the video, I focus my fitness program on bodyweight exercises such as pushups, dips and situps.

It has not been easy to work in working out, but I am much more productive after this month of experimenting with routines that can be done anywhere, not just at a gym or a track. If you missed my overview of working out at work, you don't know what a "runch" is yet. However, I highly recommend finding ways to work in small bursts of cardio at work.

What's your favorite "out of the box" workout?

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How to Workout Wherever You Are At

2013-01-21T18:08:15Z

I don’t know about you, but that 25th hour has yet to appear on my schedule. Getting in an hour of fitness, or even 15 minutes, can be difficult, especially if you are focusing on getting it in all at once. I know from experience that it is even harder to do this on the days you put in a full day of work.

What I have recently come to realize is that we can plan an effective workout schedule that allows us to workout wherever we are - at work, at home, or even running errands. Small changes in how you move throughout the day can make a big difference in how you feel in general. I am lucky enough to have a job that requires me to “move” at least half the day, but most people are confined to a desk in one spot.

For the rest of January, I will try new routines that allow me to workout without having to go out of my way to a gym or setting aside specific exercise time. The following routines have been some of the most effective for me so far.

Taking the stairs instead of the elevator - Not only is my office located in a basement, but the only bathrooms are located on the 1st and 2nd floors, which means you have no choice but to go up! I rarely take the elevators and I try to do a 10 minute, up and down, stair climb once a day.
Wearing a pedometor - You may be shocked by the lack of number of steps the average American takes in a day. While doctors have recommended, to me, that I average 10,000 steps per day, the New York Times has reported that the average American only takes about 5,000 steps per day. A pedometer on the wrist is to exercise what a string around a finger is to a task. The pedometer is a great reminder to take a few more steps each day.
Plannig for a “runch” or working out at lunch - I must admit that I don’t do this as often as I used to, but running at lunch (hence the term runch), or exercising at lunch, is a great way to fit a workout in during the workday. If you have a gym close enough to your office, great. If not, then head outdoors for a run or walk. You can even bring weights and workout with them. When I used to work at a doctor’s office, my friend and I used to work out with weights in the basement! It is doable.

Those are just a few ways that I add working out into the workday and now you can try them too. Stop by next week as I take a regular track workout with my husband and spruce it up into a great “out of the box” workout.

What time could you use to simultaneously workout and complete another obligation?

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Photo Credit: A woman doing on yoga on her desk from Thinkstock.

Specific Health Goals for an "On the Go" Mother

2013-01-07T16:54:58Z

For many of us mothers who are generally "on the go" between taking care of children, pursuing a career and working out, 2013 is going to be all about "balance." I covered the idea of balance in my last post of 2012 on setting health goals. With the larger theme set, it is now time to get more specific with my goals, and hopefully yours too.

Before I detail my goals, it maybe helpful to better understand what "health" encompasses. Most people think health and wellness relates only to their physical well being, but it is much broader than that, encompassing all aspects of your life. The World Health Organization (WHO) defined health in its broader sense in 1946 as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease.” Based on that definition, my fellow Real Health contributors and I try to cover eating healthy, emotional health, fitness, healthy aging, healthy families and healhty habits.

With this definition of health in mind, here are my short and long term health goals for 2013.

2013 fitness goals

Short term goals:

I will try a “real” yoga class in January (not DVD).
I will run a mud run or obstacle course run by July.
I will perfect my push-up by June by accomplishing 10 push-ups with the same technique and motion.
I will add cross training to my routine 2x a week by March.

Long term goals:

I will consistently stretch 3x a week.
I will complete my first marathon in October or November.
I will consistently weight train 2x a week, varying my workouts to stay motivated.
I will experiment with a new type of exercise at least once a month through the entire year.

2013 eating healthy goals

Short term goal - I will eat more whole foods by including five to seven fruits and veggies a day and by decreasing the amount of processed items. I will complete this goal by March.

Long term goal - I will consistently meal plan weekly through out the year.

2013 emotional and family health goals

Short term goals:

I will express my gratitude by writing one thing I am thankful for daily. I will accomplish this goal in January and plan to continue it through out the year.
I will schedule four “girl’s night out” dates with my friends for the year by the end of January.

Long term goals:

I will read one book a month that is not fitness related.
I will incorporate my family and friends into my fitness routine through out the year.

2013 healthy habits goals

My "healthy habits" goals for this year are primarily related to my career.

Short term goal - I will decide which personal trainer certification I want to acquire and sign up by March.

Long term goal - I will take courses to improve my writing, video editing and photo taking by the end of the year.

Finding more time for health goals

As I tackle my goals throughout the year, my main focus will be staying balanced. I am hoping to write a post next January about how I completed all my 2013 goals, but only as long as I can maintain balance throughout my life.

In order to accomplish these goals, I am going to focus on one "behavior" every month or so. Essentially, I will be experimenting with different ways of achieving balance and progressing toward my goals. In doing so, I hope to illuminate what can work and generally does not work for mothers like myself.

For the next four to six weeks I will be focusing on incorporating fitness into my existing routine. So this means I will try not to go out of my way to a gym or a track. As I work out at work and in parking lots, you should be able to think of some creative ways to get your exercise in every day, even as you continue to find yourself "on the go."

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Editor's Note: Toni Church posts to Real Health every Friday as she trains for her first marathon. She is available to talk in the comments section about the challenges and opportunities related to staying fit as a busy mother and career woman.

Photo Credit: Domino pieces that spell out balance from Thinkstock.

As a Mother of Two, My Word for 2013 is "Balance"

2012-12-28T20:52:55Z

Whether you are single, married, with kids or without, working or not, finding balance is one of the most difficult things to achieve. I am not really sure it can ever be completely achieved, but I intend to find out in 2013.

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Editor's Note: During the final week of 2012, each of the contributors to Real Health will reveal the one word that represents their health goals for 2013. New mother, Kath Younger, chose the word "present" and outlined how she believes being present will improve her emotional health. Baby boomer and runner, Harold Shaw, chose the word "consistent" and detailed three ways he will make good health a part of his everyday health in 2013. Active seniors Phyllis Goldberg and Rosemary Lichtman chose the word "connection." Mother, nurse and runner, Toni Church, has chosen the word "balance." Below she details what that word means to her. On behalf of all of the Real Health contributors and editors, happy holidays to all who have followed the Real Health stories in 2012. We look forward to helping you get healthy and stay healthy in 2013. Hopefully this "Words for 2013" series will help you develop focused health goals. Now back to Toni's story..

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My quest to find balance between family, friends, work, school, blogging and exercise will be my overall goal for 2013.

My biggest problem with balance is that when I find an activity I love, like running, that tends to be where my focus lies, resulting in other things getting neglected. In 2012, this neglect resulted in injuries, because even though I intended to strength train and stretch, when push came to shove, running took precedence, leaving me with little time for anything else.

Looking for balance between fitness, parenting and friendships

I tend to be an "all-or-nothing" person in all aspects of my life including with family and friends. Spending time with my immediate family is easy, because we live together, but with everyone else it is hard. I plan to call people once a week or have a girl’s night out once a month, but when time is lacking I just stay home which leaves me appearing disinterested in keeping up with these relationships; this couldn't be farther from the truth.

The truth is that one of the only things in life we can't get more of is time. If I had 40 hours in the day, then maybe I could fit it all in, but unfortunately that is just not possible. This upcoming year I plan to organize my life in such a way that I will be able to realistically achieve most of my goals and spend time with those I love.

How we can find balance in health together

Join me in 2013 on Real Health as I focus on finding balance. I get bored with routines very easily, so I plan to be innovative in creating my exercise routine and in how I balance all aspects of my life. I will be featuring many of "innovations" on Real Health and I hope you will follow along and try some of them as well. Here are three ways we can start to find balance together:

Note in the sock drawer trick - Take out a notebook and write down two to three areas of your life that did not receive enough attention in 2012. Fold that piece a paper up and put it somewhere safe. Now, put a reminder in your calendar to check that area one month from now. This may seem silly, but this little trick has helped a lot of people stay accountable to themselves.
Feel the goodness from saying thank you - Last month, Rosemary and Phyllis (my active senior friends who contribute to Real Health) described how they express gratitude to others and themselves. Try writing a gratitude letter and take a moment to really feel the emotions that come from expressing gratitude. I find that expressing gratitude pushes me to spend more time on the "things that count."
Experiment together - As I mentioned, I am going to try different routines throughout the year. Let's try them together and discuss the pros and cons. Also, in the comments section, feel free to leave notes on what routines help you find balance. As a group, we'll try to improve upon those routines.

It is almost New Year's Eve! I am excited for 2013. Next week, I will "announce" my 2013 goals. Feel free to steal them.

Mission Possible: Refining Health Goals

2012-12-17T21:55:07Z

What a difference a year makes, right? This time last year, I was setting goals for the New York City Marathon, my running blog and my physical fitness. However, over the course of 2012, I dealt with a leg injury, Hurricane Sandy and the day to day limitations of time. While you may have not come up against these same obstacles, I suspect you came up against a few obstacles yourself. So let's talk about making our 2013 health goals truly possible to attain.

Framing measurements as strides

Last year I had some pretty ambitious goals. Here is a screen shot of my post on Running, Loving, Living that outlined my 2012 health goals:

I am almost embarrassed to say that I did not meet any of these goals, except for inspiring and motivating others to live healthier. My running goals were cut short due to injury. My weight loss goal was never attained and I never quite revealed my six-pack. I was also not as consistent as I wanted to be with blogging.

While I did not achieve many of my goals, I made strides on all of them. I focus on strides, not failures. That may sound like a just a matter of using different words, but it is a very powerful way of striking a balance in perspective that is needed when you set challenging goals. Goals should be motivating, not de-motivating.

Making strides into achievements

What I learned from these goals is that I need to focus more on making them attainable. I aimed high, but fell short. Am I disappointed? Yes. However, I am chalking these goals up as a learning experience. So in advance of setting my 2013 goals, I am going to document what is within reach, based on my last few years of experience.

Let me give you an example of documenting what is within reach. One of my goals for 2012 was to run a marathon within four hours. I realize now, based on the pace I run each day, this was not an attainable goal. So I am going to take my previous experience into account more this year, in my goal setting, than I did last year.

I am ready to wipe the slate clean and start anew with fresh, attainable goals for the New Year that will keep me feeling motivated!

What did you learn in review of your 2012 goals or resolutions?

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Editor's Note: Toni Church is a mother of two, a registered nurse and posts every Friday on Real Health about fitting in fitness to busy schedules. She was training for the New York City Marathon before confronting a leg injury. She looks forward to setting her 2013 goals with you over this month.

Photo Credit: Cover photo is a man writing on a whiteboard from Thinkstock. The goal setting journal photo is from Toni Church's Running, Loving, Living blog.

Do Failures Actually Help in Planning New Year's Health Goals?

2012-12-10T02:43:28Z

2013 is fast approaching, which means a new year with new goals. Many of my 2012 goals, mostly running based, were left unattained due to multiple injuries. As saddened as I am that I could not complete most of my 2012 goals, I am excited to create my 2013 goals with you!

I am slowly healing from my stress fracture, but expect to be at full capacity by January 2013. January 2013 is a special month for me because on the 12th I will celebrate my 35th birthday. I had so many huge running goals for last year (running a marathon, running a 1/2 marathon in 1:45, running a 5K in under 24 minutes) that I thought it would be my best year ever, but due to many injuries it actually turned out to be my worst “running” year to date.

2012 may have not been my best year, but what I learned from 2012 will help me to make my 2013 even better. I do believe my failings of the last year will help spring me into the next year. I suggest you read over my 2012 review and think about how you can incorporate any unattained 2012 goals into your 2013 plan.

Spreading the wealth when it comes to health

The first thing I learned from 2012 is not to categorize all my goals into running goals. I need to spread the wealth and focus on my whole body instead of just one area. This will not only make my goals more achievable, but it will also help me to prevent further injuries.

I plan to focus my goals on nutrition, strength, flexibility, running and cross-training. Last year I feel I may have over reached, trying to obtain goals that weren’t within reasonable reach. So this year I plan to filter all of my goals through the S.M.A.R.T methodology (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-sensitive).

These are some of the the goals I have in mind for 2013:

Running Goals:

I will run my first marathon. I am not going to set a time goal. I am just going to finish.
I also plan to run two half-marathons in under two hours.

Strength Goals:

I plan to strength train 2x a week.
I also will focus on core strength training (abs, hips, and upper legs).

Flexibility Goal:

I will attend yoga classes 3x a week. Alternatively to a class, I will allow myself to follow a DVD workout at home.

Cross-Training Goals:

I will hold myself to do pool work, spinning, or rollerblading once a week.
I will record at least 10,000 steps per day.

Nutrition:

I will slowly reduce the proportion of my diet made up of unprocessed foods.
I will eat 5-7 servings of fruits/veggies per day.

Setting our goals together

These are just my initial thoughts for my 2013 goals. I plan to make them more quantifiable and more focused. But before I finalize my goals, I want to get your input. Through your feedback on my goals, I hope you will be able to critically think about your own goals.

Lots of collaboration happening at Real Health in December. You and I are hopefully going to set goals together. You and RJ are going to go through a fitness routine together. You and Kath are going to learn how to incorporate mindfulness into your health routines.

I would love for you to share what your tentative goals for 2013 are in the comments, along with your thoughts on my 2013 goals.

Creating goals is a process and for my next four posts I plan to break down this process into four simple steps. I would love for you to join me over the next four weeks and then we can celebrate New Year's at Real Health.

I will take your input into consideration when finalizing my goals and will announce them on January 1st, 2013. I would love for all of you to finalize your goals and come back on January 1st to share them, so that we can all help and support each other in making 2013 our best year yet.

What tentative goals do you feedback on from Real Health contributors and fellow community members?

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Photo Credit: Toni Church trains for the New York City Marathon.

The 4 AM Runner

2012-12-03T20:28:25Z

4 AM is not the only time for a busy person to run, but it is a time I run at quite often. I publicly admit I get up this early, to the chagrin of my husband, in advance of many of us sitting down to detail our 2013 New Year's Resolutions. For your consideration, I have detailed in this video how I fit in running in between family obligations, my career in nursing and an active social media life.

This year fitness was not easy for me. I trained for the New York City Marathon and got injured. Championing my family's health took on new meaning with Hurricane Sandy. Long daily to-do lists did not help either. However, running and fitness were part of my weekly or daily routine from the beginning of the year right up to the end. I am very proud of that and I know you can make fitness a habit, no matter your circumstances.

For finding more time for fitness and become a "4 AM runner" at any time of day, I recommend:

Putting exercise on the to-do list - Running, weigh lifting and other forms of exercise should formally be an obligation. Otherise, you will always find other things that are seemingly more important.
Confirming regular days and times with the family - Running is not something I just fit into my schedule. Running is part of my schedule and my family knows which days and times are reserved for running. Just as employees get "buy-in" on proposals from their managers, I get "buy-in" on my health routines from my family.
Equiping your home - One excuse I do not allow myself to have is that "the gym or track is closed." I have back up options for exercising when running outside is not an option.

I hope you enjoy the video montage and that it gives you ideas to fit in fitness to your daily life. For the next month, I am going to be focusing on a method for developing effective New Year's Resolutions. In advance of our work together on resolutions, I recommend checking out how a fellow runner and contributor to Real Health, Harold Shaw, reviewed his 2012 in health and wellness.

What one item helps you the most in fitting in fitness?

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Getting Through Hurricane Sandy

2012-11-09T18:58:28Z

Hurricane Sandy was a reminder for me to never take the health of my family for granted. Once I got word that the storm would hit Long Island, New York especially hard, I took specific precautions to ensure we had enough food, water and gas to get us through the days or even weeks we might not have power.

As of the recording of this video, I still did not have power. But since my family is safe and sound, I did feel comfortable taping thoughts on how to prepare for these types of events. Here is how I would think about a checklist for these situations:

Stocking up on nutrients - Bottled water and canned foods are at the top of most government advisories for extreme storms. I now make it a point to pick up some bottled water and some canned foods on a weekly basis so that I am never in a position where I am scrambling for these items.
Getting around - As is evident in the aftermath of Sandy, gas can be out reach for an extended period of time due to storm damage. I made sure we had a full tank of gas for our car before any of the winds or rain even began. Also, my husband and I bought candles and discussed how we would get around the house in the dark.
Shucking off the stubborness - I followed the instructions of my local government advisories and talked to my husband about taking some extra precautions. As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, more than anything, Sandy was a reminder for us that it is better to be safe than sorry.

When I started this partnership with Real Health, I thought most of my posts and discussions would be about fitness routines and running in the New York City Marathon. However, it turns out that health got very real. I got injured and had to drop out of the Marathon. And then, Sandy hit and the entire Marathon was called off. I guess our health goals do not always get achieved in the way we plan to achieve them. But, at the end of the day, I am healthy and so is my family. So everything I am working for is still in tact. Powers out, but I am smiling. I hope you are.

Who was most helpful to you and your family during Sandy? If you are not in the Northeast, did you take anything away from the experience we had up here?

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Editor's Note: Toni Church is a registered nurse, mother of two and a runner. She posts every Friday at Real Health on the topics of running and parenting. While she had to bow out of the New York City Marathon, she is currently setting some new health goals for 2013.

Welcome Back Your Workout Routines This Fall

2012-11-05T16:16:03Z

Fall is a great time to get back to some of those workout routines you dropped over the summer. We have daylight savings time and we are starting to think about New Year's resolutions. In this video, I go over the ways I stay discipline with working out even when life tempts me to just throw my hands up in the air and give in to other competing demands on my time.

If you have followed me at all on Real Health, you know life threw me some curveballs recently that made me think about throwing my hands up in the air. I injured myself about a month ago and had to deal with the emotions of dropping out of a marathon I trained for over many months. And, of course, we all witnessed the devastation that Hurricane Sandy brought to the Northeast and eventually caused the New York City Marathon organizers to cancel the event.

My deepest condolences go out to those readers who were affected by Sandy. I mention the storm, in this post, because I believe we should treat ourselves, in the aftermath of a setback, in the same way we have helped each other in this time of crisis.

Prioritize - Focus on the most important health habits for you and your family. After Sandy, we constantly saw people on the news saying that they were just relieved that their family members were not hurt.
Be Confident - Know that you will rebound from whatever setback you have had. Feed yourself positive thoughts as you get back into your routines. During this crisis I have heard so many people talk about "resiliency." You too can be resilient after setbacks.
Take Small Steps - Build your habits up over time instead of trying to do everything at once.

What habits do you want to re-introduce to your workouts?

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Editor's Note: Toni Church is a mother, registered nurse and runner. She posts every Friday at Real Health on fitness. She was training for the New York City Marathon and is now setting new fitness goals for 2013.