Live Like a Caveperson?

Okay, be honest. who's feeling a little intimidated by next week's "Hunt, Gather, Grow" challenge? If you're not "in the know," we 6FITters are going to be going back to our roots next week. If we can't hunt, gather or grow it, we can't eat it. We get one immunity item for the week so it's not like we have to give up our morning coffee or anything. Now before you get all worried, think about this challenge a little. I'll bet if you made two lists, the list of things you CAN eat would be far longer than the list of things you CAN'T eat.

What's out?

(Does this really look appetizing to you?)

• cheese, yogurt, ice cream
• bread, crackers, tortillas, etc.
• refined sugars and artificial sweeteners
• alcohol
• anything refined or processed
• most breakfast cereals
• coffee

What's in?

(How gorgeous is this?)

• Any type of fruit or vegetable you can imagine (this is a HUGE category!)
• Rice (preferably brown), quinoa and any other grain you can gather (another HUGE category)
• Pure maple syrup, honey, raw sugar and other natural, unprocessed sweeteners
• Water (LOTS of water!), 100% fruit or vegetable juices, tea
• Milk is allowed
• Olive oil, coconut oil and even butter
• Spices
• Natural peanut butter
• Oatmeal (not the instant kind, silly)
• Eggs
• Beef, chicken, pork, fish, shellfish (not breaded or fried)
• Nuts
• Beans
• Seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, etc)
• Natural salad dressings

~and those are just the things that come to mind immediately.

So now that you've calmed down a bit, what are you going to eat? You are not doomed to a week of salad, though that wouldn't be entirely awful in my opinion. It's only a week after all-just seven days out of your whole lifetime. Our ancestors lived like this every single day. Don't try to tell me that your great, great, great grandparents were more creative than you are. You can do this! By the end of the week, you may even find you like it. Your body certainly will.

Let's start with breakfast. You can't have toast or most cereals so you have to think out of the box here. I'm going with coffee as my immunity item but if you're a tea drinker, you're already ahead of the game. Swap the sugar for some honey or maple syrup and you're good to go. 

Now how about making a big batch of oatmeal at the beginning of the week. Each day you just toss in some goodies (fruit-sweetened cranberries, banana slices, raisins, berries, diced apples, nuts, seeds) and you're good to go. 

Or how about a couple of eggs. Scrambled, hard-boiled, omelette-style with lots of veggies?

And don't forget that you're not restricted to what most people consider breakfast foods. I've found that starting my day with a bowl of chopped veggies, olive oil and a little salt (I usually add a chopped string cheese but this week I'll probably go with sunflower seeds) gives me a nice steady flow of energy until lunchtime. Or leftover dinner is my second favorite. Soup or sauteed vegetables over rice or quinoa? It might take a few days to break the carb-craving morning habit. I still crave something bread-like with my morning coffee once in a while but for the most part, it's a fleeting feeling.

Lunch can be even easier. The obvious option is salad with all-natural dressing. You might want to add some grilled chicken or fish or some nuts or seeds to boost the protein and keep you satisfied through the afternoon. Or what about an apple or banana with natural peanut butter. Or sauteed veggies over a whole grain? You're getting the idea now, right.

So now it's dinner time and you're really freaking out? Still? Grilled, roasted or baked veggies, baked potato, brown rice, grilled or baked meat or fish, homemade soup, salad, homemade quiches or frittatas? There are so many "clean-eating" options out there. If you need ideas, there are some great blogs, pinterest sites and recipe sites out there.

Check out Engine2Diet or The Gracious Pantry. Also, WholeFoods is running a 28day "health starts here" challenge (http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/healthstartshere/28daychallenge.php) where you can find tons of recipes and some great suggestions for making it happen when you're crunched for time. (Like "batch cooking day so you have ready-made meal parts that you can throw together in different combinations all week) Those are just a few that come to mind.

Look at your team's chart for the week. See what other people are eating and you'll not only get ideas but also support and motivation.

Make sure you ask for help if you're feeling stuck. Sometimes it's hard to see beyond what you're used to. By the end of the week, I'll bet you find one or two things you don't want to live without and many more that you had no problem giving up. And you'll definitely see changes in your energy level and mental clarity.

Most importantly, don't forget that you have the option of eating "forbidden" foods if you're willing to lose a few points. Even just knowing that you have that option is sometimes enough to get you through a rough patch. You're not trapped or deprived, so don't let yourself feel restricted. You might find that you care more about your point-count than your desire for an ice cream sundae. Oh wait, that's me =)

So, now that you have a place to start, who has some other ideas for embracing our inner cave-people? 

Have a great week!

~M-C

And Away We Go!

Happy Tuesday! Although our early spring weather is on temporary hiatus here in Boston, I still feel energized by the sun, the blossoming trees, the birdsong and the prospect of warm days just around the corner. I can't wait to pack away the winter things and head outside. I've started preparing the garden plot that will soon be filled with beautiful vegetable seedlings and the kids are so excited about growing food! Even our bunny has more spring in his step this week-maybe someone told him about the vegetable garden?

Last night we kicked off the spring session of 6FIT at DanceFIT Studio and it's going to be an amazing 6 weeks. The energy in the studio felt so positive I couldn't help but to smile and I felt like all of my negative energy was sweating right out of me. Once again I've got a very motivated team. Our lives are all very different but I'm really looking forward to seeing how this healthy lifestyle fits in to so many different scenarios and hearing how different people make it work.

This first week is the "Water Cleanse" challenge. Don't worry! This is not a week with no food! 6FIT is about learning to live in a more healthy way and starving your body for a week would definitely not qualify. What we eat is up to us. We are allowed one small cup of coffee before noon each day but, other than that, we can only drink plain water.
I think (correct me if I'm wrong, Gina and Maeve) the purpose of this challenge is first, to make sure we are all well-hydrated and second, to wake our bodies up to the changes to come in the next 6 weeks. We always hear some version of the "drink 8 glasses of water a day" rule but I personally have always been terrible about drinking water. It's not that I used to drink soda or juice instead. I just never seemed to drink much of anything.
For those of you that always drink lots of water, this week might not be a big change for you. For everyone else, you are going to be amazed at how different you feel at the end of the week. If you feel sluggish or have a bit of a nagging headache, you are not alone. For many of us, that one cup of coffee in each morning represents a fraction of the caffeine we are used to consuming and we'll have a bit of withdrawal to deal with. Also, flooding your body with lots of water is a great way to flush toxins from your system but in the process there will be lots of toxins floating around on their way out. Rest assured you will feel much better in a couple of days and please don't give up. The best thing to do is be kind to yourself,  drink even more water and keep your body moving. You'll get over the hump and feel much better by the time we head into week 2.

Foods of the week this week are swiss chard and bananas. Who has a great recipe to share? I usually just saute chard in olive oil and eat it over brown rice or quinoa with a bit of salt but I'm sure there are much more interesting ways to eat it. As for bananas, aside from being great just as they are, if you slice them and let them cook in with your morning oatmeal they add a nice texture and enough sweetness that you might not need to add anything else.

Wow-that was a long post considering I had no idea what I was going to write about today. Stay tuned for some different posts in the days to come. Eating well on a budget maybe? Or great books to check out if you're trying to live a healthier lifestyle? Suggestions welcome!

And did I mention, I like who I'm becoming!

Here's to 6FIT =)
~Mari-Chris

Life's Like a Jumprope

Truer words may never have been spoken.

Here's how my week has gone:

Monday: Really great day! Got on the scale this morning and I'm down 2 POUNDS since last Monday! And my jeans are loose-SCORE! I guess my body just needed some time to catch up with all of the work I've been doing. I ended my day with a DanceFIT double-header and then dinner at the Melting Pot with my Stephanie and her friend Kristin from school. Laughed until I cried, felt like a twenty-year-old, didn't over-eat, didn't have a glass of wine: I feel totally in control!

Tuesday: Another great day. Still riding the high of yesterday's scale victory. I've been doing a lot of thinking and here's what I've come up with. For 6 weeks I really pushed myself. The last week of 6FIT I worked out twice a day and ate so well I can hardly believe it. Last week I kind of fell off the wagon and floundered with no chart or daily challenges. I wasn't awful, just not as good as I was during 6FIT. Then this weekend I went away for a little girl-time with Miss Julia and my friend Lisa. I was basically a sloth all weekend. All I wanted to do was read and knit, so that's mostly what I did. And you know what? I think that's exactly what I needed. I'm finding that taking care of myself is more complicated than I thought. Well, maybe not more complicated, but definitely more "nuanced" shall we say. So sometimes I really need to push myself and sometimes I need to just relax and allow the peace and quiet to set in. I know there's a balance there, I just need to find it.

Wednesday: Okay, the sh*t is hitting the fan. Help! Our brand new bunny is really sick. Our dryer just broke and I have 3 loads of wet laundry hanging all over my house. My kids are INSANE!!!!! Thank goodness for Zumba tonight. No pressure, Maeve, but you're in charge of killing my funk!
Yeah!!! Guess who won the plank contest tonight? I think I was almost at 4 minutes when the last person dropped. WAHOO! Quite an accomplishment since I couldn't even stay up for 30 seconds 2 months ago!!

Thursday: I've been possessed by the devil! Well, not me exactly, but my kids certainly have. This ranks up there with my worst days ever. I stayed up way too late watching a movie last night-it had to be returned to the library, okay? And I ate a very large cheese omelet and a whole bag of microwave popcorn while I was watching it. Definitely didn't meet the no-eating-after-8PM goal. Even finding a new bathing suit that I actually could stand to look at myself in didn't save the day. I just made an entire pan of caramel blond brownies and I can't even wait for it to finish cooking, so the kids and I are eating it right out of the pan with spoons and washing it down with lots of milk. Dinner is served. Did I mention I'm up for the mother-of-the-year award? At least it's skim milk =/

Friday: Oh, there was a full moon last night. That explains so much. And I just looked at the calendar and noticed where I am in my cycle. Huh. Raw veggies for breakfast was all I could stomach after last night's little "indiscretion." After I posted about my dinner last night, my 6FIT friends stepped right up to the plate. What would I do without you guys? Danielle reminded me of the 80/20 rule. I've definitely been eating well and exercising more than 80% of the time, so I'll call yesterday my 20% day. Elena reminded me that I haven't reached a new low. I just had a temporary deviation. And Miss Leta, you are right on. So glad today is a new day! And so very VERY grateful to my 6FIT peeps and DanceFIT studio for keeping the lows short-lived and the highs higher than ever!

Up downUp downUp downUp down yeahCause it will get hardRemember life's like a jump rope
Thank you Blue October. It is indeed. 
17 days until the next session. But who's counting? 
Okay, I am.
Peace,M-C 
PS The bunny just had an ear infection and some trauma from the craziness of this household. He's doing much better, just in case you were wondering. =)
PPS You know that balance I was talking about on Tuesday? Well, somewhere around halfway through Pilates class it magically finds me. If you haven't tried it, you should. And if you haven't found that balance, you haven't had a class with Gina Fay yet!

The Results Are In!

The good new is I did manage to lose 1.8 pounds. But the GREAT news is that I lost a total of 8 inches over the last 6 weeks! 
Holy cow that's a lot!


More than the inches and pounds, though, I feel like I've taken the next step toward a truly healthy self and it feels great!


So, I've got three and a half weeks until round two of 6FIT and I've already found it a bit difficult to function without the scaffolding in place. How sad that no one cares what I eat or how much water I drink or how much exercise I've gotten everyday. On Monday I felt like a lost soul without my weekly chart and my daily or weekly challenges to lean on.Funny that the things that I found tough to stick to during the challenge are the very things I'm missing now.


Perhaps the most personally fulfilling and exciting thing I've gotten from the last 6 weeks is direction. I finally feel that overwhelming pull toward something meaningful to do with my life. This girl is finally going back to school in the fall. What a nice birthday present that will be! 
I'm researching programs focusing on nutrition and exercise science, leaning toward holistic and food-based approaches to wellness, rather than the traditional western medicine approach. 
I've always been interested in this, but I've read so much lately and I just can't get enough. Also, there's so much conflicting information out there and I'd like to help people wade through it all without being overwhelmed and giving up. 
So I guess I finally know what I want to be when I grow up. =)


I hope you'll stay with me on this journey-blogging and doing other things that make me think about food/exercise/etc. really keep my health and my family's health at the front of my mind. My whole family benefits when I take those few minutes to re-center myself and I hope I can help keep you on track too.


What I'd really love is some company in the next 6FIT cycle!


 It doesn't matter where you live or what your goals are. 
Virtual classes or in the studio, you definitely won't regret it. 


Wouldn't it be nice to start off your summer feeling strong, healthy and proud of yourself? 


The next cycle starts March 26th. 


Can you take 6 weeks to focus on yourself, learn about nutrition and exercise, be supported in making positive choices and balancing self-discipline with fun and enjoying life to its fullest? I'm not talking about deprivation here. That never works for me. If I feel deprived, it's all over. I'm talking about being on a diverse team of great people all working together to help you achieve your own personal best.


Perhaps the better question is, can you afford not to?


Until next time,
M-C