BlogHer - Announcing the BlogHer 2008 Good Health-a-thon! - Comments

The problem with "More"

Multitalentedmommy — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:58:51 -0500

This is such a great community - thank you Kristen. (Most hilarious boob post brought me here!)

The problem with "More" is that it is never attainable! How will you ever accomplish "more"? I want to be a "better mom". How the @#*& will I ever know if I arrive? I don't know about you, but I love to arrive! More arriving the better, in fact. Actually, I could arrive all day long and be okay with that. lolol

I so LOVE the smart goals!! Especially Attainable!

~ Cathy

Personal: Mommy Motivation

Gluten Free: Strawberries Are Gluten Free

Better Now Than Never

Walktopia — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 18:48:20 -0600

My goal is to return to taking a 30 minute walk each and every day. So far (a week in), I'm doing fine. Thanks for the support with the Good Health-A-Thon! Elizabeth

No Way!!

redheadshesaid — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 19:42:40 -0600

Aside from the ones I try to do every year like eat better, drink less pop and more water...I'm saying "no" more often. So far it has been great (for me) and the reactions from my children are priceless.

redheadshesaid
http://redheadranting.blogspot.com/

I WAS SO GLAD TO SEE THIS!!!!!!!!

SACHSMOM04 — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 09:41:13 -0600

I made myself a promise that I would get really motivated this year, to lose the weight that I have gained. When I read this, I was happy to see others have the same problems!!!!!!!

My goals are to walk at least 8 miles a week!! I want to be able to wear a pair of shorts.(and not be totally afraid !!!!!!!!!) I know that I need to be healthy. I want to be a grandmother that can do things with her grand kids!

I am plaining on a vacation in Oct. and I would love to be able to wear a bathing suit and not be ashamed!!!!!!

I am going to try this although I am new at this blogging thing! I am wiling to try this .

Join me at Food, Fitness, Fashion

Karen Anderson — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 00:35:41 -0600

15 months ago I had the opportunity to work out three times a week with Susan Powter, who lives near me in Seattle. I did, and went from a size 14 to a size 8, though I lost very little weight. It seems I was mostly fat, and when I converted it to muscle, it took up a lot less space!

Susan's no longer teaching the classes here, so my challenge for 2008 is to put together a variety of workouts each week that will match the scope and intensity of Susan's program. Her yoga-based workouts can be modified for any fitness level, but, done aggressively, they are extraordinarily demanding. (They're online at her new website, BTW.)

Currently I'm learning belly dance, taking a Power Belly class (with weight belts), and dabbling in some cardio-fitness classes based on African dance (which is not intuitive for me). I'm trying to find a non-sanctimonious yoga program, and in the meantime doing some yoga at home. Unfortunately, I'm one of those people who has to get far away from home/office distractions to be able to do a good 90-minute workout.

I started the blog Food, Fitness, Fashion to be public about all this and keep myself going. Also because I suspect that many readers of my other blogs, who have serious weight and fitness issues, don't want to hear about food and fitness. (The fashion part? Hah! That's all about how I reward myself for working out!)

The Blogher Good Health-A-Thon will definitely help me stick to my workouts and continue my hunt for that very necessary yoga workout.

I recently wrote a chapter about getting fit after 50 (I'm 53) for a book of essays about women at mid-life. Much of what I wrote was about how angry I was to discover all the mis-information women are given about mid-life and mid-life fitness. I try not to blog about that because it makes me so berserk. I guess I'd just say: You can do it; and the results will be so much more amazing than you could ever imagine.

Glad to find some company...

The End of Motherhood — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 20:15:32 -0600

I revisit my New Year's Resolutions every Tuesday on my blog an am a big believer in the power of daily habits ("Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit." Aristotle). My daily habits for the year are yoga and writing and I set the bar for accompllshment of each really, really low. Like one long luxurious stretch counts for yoga. A sentence in my journal counts for writing. Building the habit is the key...I haven't missed a day all month and THAT is a serious accomplishment for someone as flighty as I am...

http://theendofmotherhood.typepad.com

doin' it all over again

Jewel — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 14:38:17 -0600

Hiya!

Thanks Kristi for this awesome idea. I hope you come visit us girls. There are two of us blogging this journey so 2 heads are better than one. Then again, 20 heads are better than 2 so feel free to pitch in.

My goals are outlined as eating 2 servings of vegetables or fruit per meal, going outside for 2 hrs a week (ok I know that's not lots but it's -35 here in Canada!), staying away from fast food and fried foods and continuing with kickboxing. So there, no specific goal weight but some significant changes. I would like to blog about it every day but will probably only blog every week.

Jewel
Feed Our Souls
(www.feedoursouls.blogspot.com)

Yee-haw to wellness

patti digh — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 10:23:22 -0600

Great gauntlet to throw down - thanks!

This year I didn't set a weight-loss goal, but created a "wellness vision" instead:

“I am energetic and flexible; I can feel the muscles in my body as they flex and move. There is no extra fat on my structure as I move through the world. I am lean and athletic, have redefined myself as an athlete, and have slowed the aging process by being fit. I move quicker and with greater ease and confidence; I am active every day and look for opportunities to play outside with Emma and Tess. I love hiking and biking and our weekends are mainly spent out of doors. I am strong and sure of my physicality.”
(http://37days.typepad.com/37days/2007/12/w-is-for.html)

Am I there? No. But I'm creating weekly goals, babysteps, to get there this year. One of the bigger components is transitioning from being vegetarian to being vegan, a journey chronicled on a new blog - My Year of Living Veganously http://37days.typepad.com/my_year_of_living_veganou/

Thanks to everyone for the inspiration!

patti digh
37days (www.37days.typepad.com)

I've been "trying to work

LizaWasHere — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 09:52:25 -0600

I've been "trying to work out more" since the first week in November, and doing a decent job of it, but this was just the inspiration I needed to get "smart" about it.

By May 1, when my 6 month gym membership needs to get renewed, I will have swum 30 miles.

I've done 11.1 since November 5, so this goal means that I really will have to make it to the gym 3x/week, and at least once/week, I'll have to go more than my standard .5 mile.

Personally, having a visual reminder of my progress helps, so I set up a ticker that I'm going to add to my blog:

Liza
Founder & Coordinator, LesbianFamily.org
Personal Blog, LizaWasHere

I'm In

Jenny Lauck — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 20:11:58 -0600

A week late, but better late than never, right?

I'm going to walk the kids to school three days a week.

Goal-Setting 101 at Three Kid Circus

The Circus is in town!

My health challenge: living in the moment

Rona Maynard — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 11:05:59 -0600

Kristy, I like your focus on breaking vague, daunting goals down into specifics. Just the kind of counsel I need as I embark on the most elusive health goal I've ever envisioned--living in the now, not in the past or the future.

To some people this comes naturally. I'm not one, sad to say. Most of the time, I do what I think I ought to do, not what I really want to do. In fact, I'm so good about the ought-to-dos that I really have to stop and think about what would captivate me right now. (Maybe I should get a dog! Word has it they're great zen masters.)

But back to living in the future: I'm just too good at it for my own good. For 10 years I held a demanding job as editor of a magazine; if I didn't strategize about the future (and think about Christmas in July), I couldn't possibly have succeeded. And I've known a good many other career-minded people (not all of them in the media) who have exactly the same problem.

So, how to get specific about living in the moment? Leonard Cohen went to a zen monastery, but I like my creature comforts. As for the dog, my husband says it's either the dog or him. But here's what I can do, starting now. I can resolve to do one thing, every day, just for pleasure. Not because it burns calories or crosses another item off my to-do list, just because it would be fun.

As I say, it doesn't come naturally to me. But neither did working out, and I've been a regular at the gym since 1986. When I started, I could barely run one lap around the track and I couldn't stand the feeling of my own jiggly flesh. My innards bounced up and down uncomfortably because of nonexistent muscle tone. Within weeks, that started to change. How motivating! After a few months, I could look in the mirror and like what I saw for the first time in my life. I see that quite a few of you are trying to work fitness into your life. Well, if I can do it, anyone can! So here's to you. And if you have any ideas to inspire my inner hedonist, please do pass them on.

My First Little Goal

SocalMom — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 10:44:39 -0600

I kinda started my own good health-a-thon early (back in July), when I embarked on a weight loss program (46 pounds gone, 14 to go).

But there's still a lot to work on (including the working out thing). The easiest specific little goal is to remember to take all the vitamins I'm supposed to consume to ensure that I'm not losing out on important nutrients while I'm trying to getto goal. So let's start with that. This week, I'm going to remember to take all the stupid little tablets twice a day like I'm supposed to.

Taking up Weight Training...

debra roby — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 18:45:49 -0600

Ya know gals, I do not like the cardio (though I do it 4xs a week).. but I LOVE me my weight training! I focus all my frustration on the weights and simply push it away!

I really wish we were all in the physical world so we could work out together. You'd make my time on the cross-trainer go faster.. and I'd get you enjoying the feeling of pushing weight. We could renew the estrogen/testosterone balance in the free weight room!

Debra
A Stitch In Time
Deb's Daily Distractions

Smartening Up...

rainbowwine — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 16:55:23 -0600

Thanks for the great post! I started out this year so strong...but insane! I wasn't drinking hardly at all (like a glass every other day), had stopped eating bread, and was eating such small portions that by yesterday I had turned completely bitter. After yelling at my best friend for no reason last night, I bought myself some Jack in the Box. :p

I really like this idea of setting short term goals...I get so wrapped up into the goal of "just be perfect forever" that I get overwhelmed and fail hard. My beginning of the year post related to a handful of vague goals I have, but I think it's time to try this again, with some specific ideas that can start leading me into the right direction.

The Power of Print!

hundadaweigouren — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 01:15:14 -0600

As an American living in China I have become obsessed with the large-ness of me. In my life I cannot remember a time when I was more self-conscious than I am now. Those awkward pre-teen tom-boy years when my sisters used to ridicule me for having a flat chest and scraped knees, the teen years when having been rejected for the cheerleading squad I sported a pixie haircut and joined the softball team, the college years where the freshman fifteen was 35 and by senior year I was back to the size of my eighth grade self... None of those years have had the impact on my self esteem that moving to Shanghai has had.
Three and a half years ago my husband called me at work and said "What would you think of moving to China?" Being the adventurer I was (meaning: I didn't have a passport and leaving the country was tied with visiting the world's largest bucket of vomit on my vacation to-do list) I immediately replied "sure lets move to China". He was serious and a month an a half later our family was on a plane over the Bering Straight headed for Shanghai.
When we arrived it was August and truly hotter than anything I have ever experienced. After shlepping two kids and ten bags through customs we passed through the "green channel" and came into the "entrance hall" where we were faced with at least 500 Chinese stares. Even though Shanghai is a very International city, the "Wei gou ren" are still quite a novelty and Chinese manners are not Western manners. So from my arrival to my first shopping experience where a kind Chinese student explained that "hun da da" means "very big", I have been faced daily with not so subtle reminders that I am a "very big foreigner".
So, that being said, my resolutions are as follows:
(I hope they are measurable, keepable, attainable,acceptable etc.)

1. I will spend 30 minutes a day doing an aerobic activity (biking, walking,ellipticalling?) starting January 8th.
2. I will attend Pilates (cant seem to get into yoga) class three times per week.
3. I will have tasty Chinese dumplings no more than once every two weeks and I will limit myself to ten dumplings.
4. I will stop telling myself how fat I am and I will think of something that I am good at everytime a "fat thought" enters my head.
5. By December of 2008 I will be known as "foreigner" instead of "fat foreigner".

Thank you for the motivation to get this in writing.
After one visit to Blogher I am now hooked and you are now added to my favorites bar.
Best to all in 2008

Announcing the BlogHer 2008 Good Health-a-thon!

KristySF — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 15:02:06 -0600

Week 1 Update (aka "BALLS OF DEATH") can be found here.

It's only January 2nd, and I'm already tired of ad campaigns flashing scales and measuring tapes at me, reminding me that NOW! is the time to join the gym/lose inches/spend a fortune on pre-packaged food diets. I can't hear the words "new year" without some company also trying to convince me that I need to "Lose Weight!" so I can finally "feel better about myself!" Forgive me if I'm skeptical.

The truth is, it's 2008 and it's time for a whole new approach. No more meaningless resolutions, no more unrealistic expectations. No more buying into the notion that "feeling better" is inextricably linked to my weight and nothing else. My life, and my health, is bigger than that.

It's not about losing weight to feel better; it's about feeling better, period.

Which is why I'm very, very happy to be introducing BlogHer's 2008 Good Health-a-thon. It's simple. It's fun. It's personal. And I'll hope you'll join me in making it a success.

(The best part? No scales required!)

Overview

There are lots of things that each of us could do to improve our health. But with so many options and opportunities, sometimes I simply feel overwhelmed.

Example A: Eating Healthy

"Okay, so...I'm supposed to be lowering my salt and eating only lean proteins, got it. And saturated fat is the enemy. And so is dairy. And so are carbs. And what was that about wheat? Oh, not wheat, just gluten? So no gluten, carbs, dairy, fat or salt. And organic? Organic is better for me? So I should order only free-range, organic, non-gluten, non-salt, non-dairy, fat-free items? But then...huh? How is it possible that fruit can be bad for me, I thought... What? Glycemic index? No, I don't know -- HEY, CAN I HAVE THIS GRAPE OR NOT?"

And then, frustrated and fed up, I order a cheeseburger.

My problem -- and perhaps yours, if the above example sounds familiar -- is that I try and do it all at once, taking an all-or-nothing approach. If I can't do everything right, I feel I may as well not bother at all. Which gets me nowhere.

Help me, Good Health-a-thon!

BlogHer's Good Health-a-thon is all about what we can do, little by little, day by day, week by week and month by month to live healthier. It's not a matter of saying "I'm going to go to the gym more this year" and then reviewing your progress in January of 2009, only to discover you haven't actually used your gym card since mid-February.

Instead, the point of the Good Health-a-thon is to have each of us set simple, attainable, health-related goals for ourselves throughout the year. Our goals can be anything we want, but with the idea of broadening our definition of "health" well beyond calorie counting.

How It Works

Each day, week, month (or whatever time frame works best for you), set a goal for yourself and blog it. You can let others know you're planning to participate by commenting below and linking to your posts. Then, you can help your fellow BlogHers by visiting their blogs to offer support and suggestions.

That's all there is to it!

Well, sort of. Because before we kick-off the 'thon, it would probably make sense to talk about the kind of goal-setting that really works, and then open the floor to suggestions from you about ways we can make healthy choices this year. (Or you can scroll down or click here to go right to some healthy ideas!)

Goal Setting & The Good Health-a-thon

There's a trick I learned a long time ago about setting "SMART" goals; that is, goals should be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. So what does that mean for the Good Health-a-thon?

1. Goals are (S)pecific
"I'm going to eat better this year," or "I'm going to work out more" are prime examples of vague, and therefore hard to attain, goals. I know that for me, I need to really drill down if I'm going to be successful and accountable.

General example: I want to be more physically fit this year.
Specific example: I want to be able to do 45 minutes at level 4 on the elliptical machine by May of 2008.

2. Goals are (M)easurable
Don't let this fool you -- it doesn't mean you have to assign weight or pounds to your goals. It simply means you need to be able to identify when you've reached your goals. Maybe your goal is to have better oral hygiene in the year 2008 (hey, why not?). Another good-but-vague goal. So consider breaking it into smaller increments that you can actually measure.

General example: I want to floss more regularly.
Measurable example: I am going to floss six times this week.

3. Goals are (A)ttainable
This is a big one. Sometimes we set goals that seem do-able, but only in the long-term. "I want to run a half-marathon in October of 2008" is specific and measurable, but not necessarily attainable without proper planning. How do you get from here to there? And what do you do in the meantime? Setting smaller, more manageable goals that are attainable in the near-term help keep you motivated and feeling on-track. Consider where you are now, and what is achievable in the next six months, three months, one month, and next week.

Long-term example: I want to lower my blood pressure into the "healthy" range for my age.
Attainable example: I will increase the fruits and vegetables I consume by adding a veggie to my lunch and dinner every meal in January. I will also cut back on caffeine by limiting my intake to one cup of coffee a day.

4. Goals are (R)ealistic
Along with "Attainable," goals need to be realistic. I could be ambitious, for example, and say "I am going to go to they gym five days a week in January!" And that goal would be specific and measurable, even attainable. But given my current habits, it's just not realistic. And then once I failed to follow-through, I'd feel defeated.

Setting "Realistic" goals means finding something beyond what you're doing now, but not so far outside the realm of likelihood that you're setting yourself up for failure. Not "easy," but not TOO hard, either. Remember, once you've reached your first goal, you'll be in a great position to set your next one!

Unrealistic example: I'm going to do 100 push-ups every morning!
Realistic example: I'm going to do five push-ups every morning this week. Next week, I am going to do six. The week after that, I am going to do seven.

5. Goals are (T)imely
This has two meanings. One, make sure you have a date by which you anticipate meeting your goal. It can be in two days or two months or two years, but setting a time goes hand-in-hand with ensuring your goal is measurable. You need to know both "how much" (e.g., "I will get a mammogram") and "by when" (e.g., "in the next three months"). Two, your goal should be time-sensitive, dependent on what you want to achieve. "I will get a mammogram" is far less goal-worthy if your timeframe is "sometime in the next three years."

Untimely example: I will get a mammogram in the next three years.
Timely example: I will get a mammogram by May, 2008.

Feeling Great in '08: Ideas for Good Health-a-thon Goals

While diet, nutrition and exercise are certainly important aspects to maintaining good health, there are plenty of things we can do every day to improve our overall health that don't involve stepping on a scale or measuring our BMIs. Below are just some ideas you can work into your Good-Health Goal-Setting extravaganza, but we'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas too!

Drink more water. Schedule a check-up. Visit the dentist. Get a mammogram. Get a pap. Eat more fruits and vegetables. Eat fewer processed foods. Floss. Wear sunscreen. Make a work-out schedule. Throw out your scale. Learn to meditate. Meet with a personal trainer. Leave more on your plate. Take a cooking class. Take yoga. Stretch. Do an ergonomic assessment of your workstation. Get your vision checked. Schedule a skin-cancer screening. Work your core. Drink green tea. Detox. Eat local produce. Practice safe sex. Eat dark chocolate. Get a massage. Learn a new dance. Smile more.

So, what are YOU doing this year to make '08 a feel-great year? Share your thoughts, and help us kick-off the BlogHer 2008 Good Health-a-thon!

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Week 1 Update (aka "BALLS OF DEATH") can be found here. Now with drawings such as these: