Making Resolutions?

If you've been in my class for awhile you know I'm a proponent of realistic goals. New Year's is typical a time when we can have bigger dreams than usual. It's all good unless we are actually setting ourselves up for failure. Read this past post about what kind of goals are the best.

I do get excited for January! The gym is full of energy and enthusiasm and I LOVE IT! If you are coming to Zumba for the first time it is the best decision you'll make for your health and wellbeing. We have such a great group of people, you're going to have the BEST TIME! It's about so much more than just physical fitness!

Shhhut Down the Fat Talk

We are hurting ourselves and others when we talk badly about our bodies. Our friends are listening. Our children are listening. You've heard me say all this before. Love this video that illustrates it.

Let's get Ready for the New Year...

…and all those new friends we're going to make.

I'm thinking ahead to January and the influx of new class members. I want to make it a positive experience for newcomers. Can you help me out by taking a quick survey about your first experience with Zumba? Even if you don't come to class anymore I'd appreciate your input. Thanks!

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/RCHFXRK

Pumpkin Chocolate Banana Cinnamon Protein Shake

Mmmm... Strange how cinnamon adds such a creamy, warm flavor to things. This was SOooo good. Enjoy!

1 banana
8-9 ice cubes
1/4 c oats
1/3 c pumpkin puree (I don't know, it was two big spoonfuls)
1 scoop chocolate protein powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon cocoa
8-10 drops stevia or one teeny scoop dry stevia

Blend in blender. Drink. Mmmm.

Drops of Awesome!

We sweat huge drops of AWESOME in our classes. Now read about all the other things you do that are awesome! This is an essay that could change your life. I believe you'll feel happier about who you are after reading it.

http://www.daringyoungmom.com/2012/12/19/drops-of-awesome/

This, Not That - ice cream shake

A 13 ounce McDonalds shake has 720 calories. Skip it, have this instead!

You won't believe what's in it!

1/2 cup of cottage cheese
1 scoop protein powder
1 T pudding mix (vanilla or cream cheese flavor)
6 drops stevia
1/4 tsp butter flavoring
8-10 ice cubes

It's a good 13-16 ounces, and only has 271 high-quality calories. Loaded with protein!

You could have half this recipe for only 135 calories, and feel quite satisfied with a scrumptious dessert. Try it with different pudding flavors and protein powders.

Calories saved: 449

This, not That

I hear people tell me they eat healthy yet wonder why they don't lose weight. I'm starting to think what some people call healthy is not really all that healthy. So I'm introducing a new series of posts to give you healthy food options. I'll try to give you some specific options to trade out for the food you love. Small changes will make a big difference!

This week: Memorial Day picnics are coming. I choose kosher hot dogs. But even the kosher ones are loaded with fat. They have 180 calories and 170 are fat! Sick! So get the 97% fat free ones. They have only 1/4 the calories--just 45 calories each! Pair it with a whole grain bun.

Okay, yeah, hot dogs are not the greatest things, but I know Memorial Day is coming so we're starting with reality!

Calories saved: 135

Thinking of a "cleanse?" Read this first.

Find this article/video here.  It'll lecture you in an amusing way. :)

Finding your inner child

Ha ha! This will put a smile on your face.


But I ask you this: why should it be any less fun when the person staring back in the mirror is all grown-up? You're still just as awesome as ever! Let loose and enjoy. Mirrors or not.

Surrounded by junk.

We need to reconsider how we use "treats" for our children, both as parents and community members. They are cheap and widely available. Most commodities with that description would be less valuable and less demanded than the sugar and junk food we surround ourselves with on a constant basis.

This is an excellent article that discusses the problems with offering "treats" to our children for anything and everything they do.

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/2013/02/20/why-is-everyone-always-giving-my-kids-junk-food

My dancing partner

Here he is. Please welcome Henry Harper Parcell. He came March 11 by "urgent" induction. No fun for mom, but his fluid levels were low. Made him a bit dehydrated but he still weighed 8 pounds 5 ounces!

I'm having a wonderful time with him. We'll get ourselves back in good form and ready for class in no time!

Recent Song list

Here are some songs we've been using recently in class. Don't listen so much you get sick of them!

Title	Artist	Rhythm
Agiya Sawaad (The Tribute)	DJ Sanj & Karan Mc	bhangra
Ai Se Eu Te Pego	Michel Teló	axé/cumbia
Äppelknyckarjazz (Swing)	Movits!	Swing
Balada (Tchê tcherere tchê tchê)	Gusttavo Lima	axé
Balans - Caribbean Hip-Hop	K-Liber4life	caribbean
Brokenhearted	Karmin	warmup
Busa	Lebo M	stretching
Cachondea	Fruko y Sus Tesos	salsa
Carlos Vives Ft J Alvarez - Volvi A Nacer (Official Remix)	Carlos Vives	cumbia
Cause I Said So	Ne-Yo	abs
Chori Chori - Bhangra	Zumba Fitness	Bhangra
Del Puente Pa' Alla (Salsa)	Zumba Fitness	salsa
Don't Stop The Party	Pitbull featuring TJR	warmup
Enamórate	Grupo Treo	merengue
Feel This Moment	Pitbull featuring Christina Aguilera	pop
Feeling Good	Michael Bublé
Follow The Leader (feat. Jennifer Lopez)	Wisin & Yandel	warmup
Good Time (Feat. Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen)	Owl City	warmup
Hasta Que Salga el Sol	Don Omar	samba/batucada
Hokey Pokey	The Puppies
Jump (Soca)	Zumba	soca
Just a Dream		abs
La Economía (Salsa)	La Excelencia	salsa
La Fiesta Ya Se Encendio - Merengue	Zumba Fitness	Merengue
La Pantera Mambo	Zumba Fitness	Salsa
La Velita	Arcangel	cumbia/reggaeton
Lagartija Azul	Fonseca	cumbia
Lipgloss	Lil' Mama	abs
Louca Louquinha	João Lucas & Marcelo Part MC k9
Ojos Asi	Shakira	belly dance
One More Night	Maroon 5
Pa' Bailar - Siempre Quiero Mas (featuring Julieta Venegas)	Bajofondo	tango
Pasarela	Daddy Yankee	merengue/pop
Pégate - Merengue	Grupo Treo	merengue
Peponi (ft. Alex Boye)	The Piano Guys (ft. Alex Boye)	stretching
Quebra As Cadeira - Axe	Zumba Fitness	toning, squats
Real Gone	Sheryl Crow	toning
Rumba En Moscú (Russian Folk)	Zumba Fitness	russian
Sol do Sul	Daniela Mercury	stretching
Take On Me	Zumba Fitness	samba

Carbonated water vs. plain water

A few months ago I suggested that if you drink lots of soda, you might consider switching to club soda instead. Club soda is just water with carbon dioxide pressurized into it. It really isn't that bad to have just plain, but I enjoy a few drops of lime juice in mine, or sometimes I add a tablespoon of the Naked® brand mango smoothie.

Club soda became more important to me when I became pregnant. It is so much harder to stay hydrated when you're pregnant because you need even MORE water than normal, but often having a stomach full of water can make you feel really gross. So I opted more and more for the club soda. I began telling some friends about the club soda option for morning sickness and they really liked it!

But I'd heard reports that there were some bad health effects of club soda. Still, knowing it was better than sugared-cola drinks, I felt it was at least a BETTER choice than the cola syrups or artificially sweetened colas. But I wanted to find out for sure.

Well, there's never really a definitive answer, but I found these articles from respected organizations very reassuring! I'm still pregnant and I'm still going to keep enjoying my club soda!

http://www.livestrong.com/article/514804-is-soda-water-bad-for-you/

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/carbonated-water/MY01892

However, note that there is a difference between Tonic water, club soda, and flavored sparkling water. The tonic water often has a higher sodium content and quinine. The sparkling waters sometimes have artificial sweeteners added. Just go for "club soda." Water and carbon dioxide. You can decide exactly what, if anything, you add to it.

Enjoy!

Go on. Say it. Out loud.

I'm going to ask you do something really hard. I know it will feel awkward.

First, you have to read this quick essay:
http://offbeatfamilies.com/2012/11/telling-daughters-im-beautiful

Ironically, my daughter showed me this. Actually posted on her Facebook wall. Her roommate commented with this great bit of wisdom: "There are too many women I really look up to, and then they talk about how ugly and old they are. I always think they're pretty and get frustrated because they can tell me I'm beautiful and I'm supposed to believe them, but they won't believe that they're beautiful."

This is the unintended backside of those negative comments you make about yourself. Do you want people to distrust you when you compliment them? Do you want them to be just as harsh with themselves as they see you being? Lighten up on yourself and you'll find it lightens others as well.

Go on. Say it. "I'm beautiful." Out loud. Let someone hear you. 

A word about "Toning" shoes

Toning shoes are designed to provide you with a less-stable base, so your muscles have to work more to keep you balanced--you know--VERTICAL. There isn't any research to show it actually works, but let's think about the word "less-stable." That means a foundation that is shaky and insecure. You are more like to fall or twist your ankle. And these kind of shoes are NOT intended to be worn during exercise.

I actually witnessed a woman wearing toning shoes walking out of the doctor's office who tripped and nearly knocked her head on a table corner. She even said, "it's these shoes." Not worth it!

If you are coming to Zumba, you are getting more than any shoes alone can offer you. Get yourself some good supportive athletic shoes. Toning shoes are not allowed in class!

Considering training for a 5K?10K?Marathon? Zumba can help!

Here's a great article from a doctoral student in Exercise Science about how Zumba helped her train for a half-marathon. You CAN do it!

http://zlife.zumba.com/live/how-zumba-fitness-helped-me-train-for-two-half-marathons/

Why feed your body better than your children?

My eight year old packed her own lunch today. Considering she refuses to eat a sandwich of any kind, it was pretty good: a yogurt, an orange, some Oatmeal Squares cereal. Last week when we took a trip to Salt Lake, she wanted to pack some snacks. I asked her what she wanted to take and she picked carrots and cucumbers. Her favorite afterschool snack is an apple.

I was proud of her for packing her own lunch. She told me that a few of her friends pack their own lunches everyday. Then she told me how they do it: all pre-packaged junk food. Seriously. One girl: Doritos, "granola" bar (candy bar), a cookie, CapriSun. Um... sugar, sugar, sugar, and sugar. Another: "fruit" snack, "granola" bar (same one), "juice" box, Cheetos. Sugar, sugar, sugar, and sugar. Nothing her body NEEDS whatsoever.

I see these kids growing up, hitting middle age and finding themselves in the same frustrating situation as so many adults. Overweight, trying so hard to change their eating habits, but almost helpless for the skills to do so. They have eaten junk their whole life. Where do they start? They try to live in the same house with this kind of junk readily available to their children and find the willpower to not eat it.

INSANE.

Adults make the decisions about what comes in the house. If you wouldn't eat it, why do you let your children start their life this way?

If you are trying to eat healthier but feel like it's hard to eat healthy while surrounded by the "normal" food your family eats--I DON'T BLAME YOU! It would definitely make it harder. Get it out! They don't need it either. You are trying to change your habits for a reason. Give them a headstart. Don't sentence them to the same thing you are going through now.

No diet you can survive for some temporary period of time is going to allow you to go back to those sort of habits. Set up a lifestyle for the long term. For you AND your children.

It doesn't have to be radical or extreme. Clear the junk from your cabinets. Find a few new recipes. Shop healthier. Make the good choices easily available. Pre-pack your own healthy snacks and have them ready instead of the baggies of junk.

Let's all be good "neighbors," okay?

A new year means more people are finding the confidence to try something new. Something like Zumba. Something that you already think is awesome. So let's give them that same chance to let it change their life. Look at the picture, I know you'll laugh, and then you WON'T be like that, okay? :)

But seriously, we do have a few rules:

1) No children in the studio. The Orem Fitness Center says no children under 12, but I am allowed personal discretion for children 9-12. If I feel they can keep up and not be in other people's way I'll be happy to let them stay. 

2) No barefeet or socks. Always wear proper athletic shoes.

3) Don't stress about doing it right. Just do it with a smile! Nobody is watching you. They are all watching ME.