Glowing Gazelles

It’s March which means it’s time for the annual “Marching Into Fitness” theme that I’ve typically posted in past years on Coupon Geek. A common resolution for the year is to exercise more or eat healthier and most people’s resolutions tend to drop off by the end of January or mid-February. This is why I like to focus on fitness in March–to try to help my readers keep moving forward with their goals.

I really feel that taking on goals should be done in small steps so that we don’t burn out too quickly. As the saying goes, “Slow and steady wins the race.” I try to remind myself to apply this to most things in my life.

So for each week in March, I’m setting some small goals and I’ll be sharing them with you each week. Here’s what I am starting with for Week 1:

FITNESS GOAL:

Focus on carving out some set time throughout the week for exercise. My goal is to take on 30 minutes a day at least 3 times a week. For now, I’m going to focus on just getting into the habit of setting aside the 30 minutes for it. This week, my “exercise” will be solely compromised of cleaning with these things in mind:

~Scrubbing all the hard-surface floors (great workout for the arms!)
~Extensive Vacuuming – pulling out furniture/fridge/stove and getting every nook and cranny cleaned
~Dusting – While this one doesn’t burn as many calories as the other two, it needs to get done!

Three times this week, I’ll set the timer for 30 minutes and work on getting my house clean! Next week, I’ll move on to a new form of exercise but this week, I’m focusing on just getting in the habit of setting aside the time for myself.

You can read my post on “Carving Out Time for Exercise” in case you missed it.

HEALTH/FOOD GOAL:

I discussed the importance of water for our bodies and this week, I’m going to make sure I get in my 8 cups of water each day. I’ll be keeping track of the little tricks and tips I find to make sure I reach the goal.

So this is Week 1. And of course, as in the past, I’ll be offering a weekly giveaway. So make sure you keep your eyes open for it!

What are your goals for this week?

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Exercise. Did you just almost feel yourself groan at that word? Most of us do. I’m sure after awhile, we can all come up with a million other things that we’d rather do with our 24 hours in a day than make time for exercise. Here are a few of the reasons you may have thought of:

~I don’t have any time for it.
~I’m too tired at the end of the day.
~I can’t find any exercise that I like.
~I don’t like to exercise as it’s not fun.

Any of those sound familiar? I’m sure at some point, I’ve used every one of those excuses to convince myself why it’s OK to not find time to exercise. And yet, I know exercise is so important to our health. And what I’ve found from exercising is this–after I exercise, I feel great. I get more energy to do the things I need to do.  And I’m gradually finding more types of exercise that I like just by continually trying new things.

But how do we make the time for exercise? Well here’s the plan I am going to take and going to share with you. Like everything we need to learn and/or teach ourselves it’s called “baby steps.” The quickest way to burn out our ambition and desire to achieve a goal is to go full force without a plan. A person training for a marathon doesn’t just open the front door and run 26 miles. No, they start off with a short run and gradually add more distance each week and create a plan for building up to those 26 miles.

So if you are wanting to get in some exercise into your week, set a small goal and work on it for the week. Start off with even just 10 minutes. Set a timer and find something quick and easy to get in that time a few times a week. You could consider:

~Dancing to a song (carefully!) when you are waiting for dinner to finish cooking
~Play a game of tag with the kids
~Try some “lightning cleaning” where you clean as much as you can, as fast as you can for 10 minutes

Maybe the week or two after, set your timer for 15 minutes instead. And then 20. Gradually working up to 30 minutes, if that’s your goal. The first important step is to get into a routine of any amount of time each week. Maybe try a M/W/F 10 minute routine and try to make sure that you get in that time before you go to bed each night.

And did you know that cleaning can be exercise, too? Yup, here are some great ways to burn some calories:

~Vacuuming
~Scrubbing Floors
~Re-arranging Furniture
~Yarkwork/Gardening
~Washing the Car
~Sweeping
~Dusting

Imagine your house getting cleaner while you are working on building up a routine to fit in exercise–what a win-win situation!

I’ll be sharing some exercise tips and some recommendations for some of my favorite exercise dvds/equipment/routines, etc. throughout the month of March so keep looking for them.

In what ways have you found to squeeze exercise into your week?

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When it comes to fitness, the first thing we may think of is exercise or eating healthy. But before we jump ahead to both those important things, I think we need to stop and take a look at the importance of water for our bodies.

We’ve heard it over and over again – drink more water or water is important. It’s almost like when we hear things repeatedly that we can start to tune them out. But there’s a reason why water is stressed as important and that’s because it can have so many benefits to us and it can also create several issues if we are low on it.

First, let’s start with what water does for us. Our bodies range from 60-75% water, depending on age, health, etc. and our blood is also around 90% water. Water is in our bones, teeth, brain and muscles, too. Here are all the things that water is necessary for:

~Aides in digestion and flushes out toxins
~Helps regulate our temperature
~Protects vital organs
~Helps avoid dehydration, which can affect our motor function and cognitive skills
~Helps delivery oxygen to cells and aides in the absorption of nutrients

Amazing how much water does for us, isn’t it? Now if we are low on water, the body will still need it and might start pulling it from other areas, such as our blood. It is often said that those of us that suffer from a headache and feel fairly instant relief after taking a med for it may have just been low on water and feel relief from the water taken with those meds. (So before you swallow some Tylenol, you may want to try drinking a glass of water first to see if that helps!)

And as if those things weren’t enough reason to drink more water, here are a few more:

~Healthier skin and hair
~Possible weight loss, as it can be an appetite suppressant and it helps flush out extra toxins
~Helping in staying healthier and a sense of overall feeling good
~Aides in staying “regular”

But how can you tell if you are getting enough water? They often say 8 cups of 8 oz of fluids a day, but that can vary for each person depending on age, health and their activity level. Some may need more or less than that original formula. Here are a few signs to watch for that may be symptoms of dehydration:

~Dark urine
~Dry skin
~Thirsty and/or Dry Mouth
~Feeling hungry, often we may just need water!
~Fatigue

Throughout this week, I’ll be sharing some ways to try to get more water into your week. Until then, your task is to make a conscious effort of keeping track of how much water you truly intake each day. You may be surprised and find out that you may not be getting enough.

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