Twins Train for the Twentyone

Monday, March 02, 2015

Friday, February 27, 2015

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Looking at ads for running gear or perusing fitness magazines can sometimes have a demotivating effect. Everyone is so young and model-perfect. You may flip through the pages and think, "this isn't for people like me."

But, recent research indicates that it is never too late to start running and getting healthy, even if you've been largely sedentary in the past. Researchers at the French Institute of Health compared two groups: one containing people who ran on a daily basis and one who was just getting started. Participants were between the ages of 55 and 70. During the study, both groups started running on a regular basis. While the regular exercisers had lower resting heart rates and better oxygen flow, both groups showed better heart health after taking on regular exercise.

The moral is, it's never too late. Whether you are a former runner who got overwhelmed by job and family obligations, or if you've never gone for a jog in your life, you can start any time you want. No matter where you are starting from, every step you take is one toward better health.

Don't let what you didn't do yesterday keep you from doing what you aspire to do today. Get started, get running and enjoy the strongest and healthiest version of who you can be.

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Workout Wednesday

Wednesday, February 18th - Twin 1 did JM Video 4

Thursday, February 19th - Twin 1 did JM Cardio 1

Friday, February 20th - REST DAY!

Saturday, February 21st - New round of JM videos for Twin 1, JM Video 5, 30min walk on treadmill and 60 in walk at Point Pleasant with the dogs.

Sunday, February 22nd - Twin 1 did JM Video 6

Monday, February 23rd - Twin 1 did JM Cardio 2 and a 60 min walk at Ashburn with the dogs. Twin 2 did 5k on treadmill.

Tuesday, February 24th - Twin 2 did 66 min on bike, Twin 1 did JM video 5

Twin 2 shoveled a lot. It seems like every day or if not, every 2nd day. AND another snowfall warning today so that means more shoveling!

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Tip Tuesday

Run at lunch. Daniel Sheil, a marathon coach in Portland, Oregon, recommends lunchtime runs for two reasons:

(1) you get your workout in before the day gets away from you

(2) you get a midday break from work stress.

Monday, February 23, 2015

Motivational Monday

Saturday, February 21, 2015

Sample of Menu

Further to our post on what we are eating the below is an example of a weekly meal plan for us:

Day 1 -

Breakfast - Whole wheat bagel, banana, peanut butter

Snack - 6 Egg whites, 1 oz cheese, 2 slices of turkey bacon

Lunch - Veggie Burger, 1 cup lettuce, 1/2 cup tomatoes

Snack - half a protein bar, 8 oz low fat plain yogurt

Supper - 1 cup veggies, 3 oz pork chop, 4 oz non fat frozen yogurt

Day 2 -

Breakfast - 1 cup of oatmeal, 1 cup of blueberries

Snack - 6 Egg whites, 4 slices of turkey bacon

Lunch - 2 cups of lettuce, 1 oz cheese, 3 oz tuna

Snack - half protein bar, 8 oz low fat plain yogurt

Supper - 1 cup veggies, 3 oz steak, frozen fruit bar

Day 3 -

Breakfast - 6 egg whites, 4 slices of turkey bacon, 1 oz cheese

Snack - 8 oz low fat plain yogurt, banana

Lunch - 1 Whole wheat pita wrap, 3 oz tuna

Snack - half protein bar

Supper - 2 cups of veggies, 3 oz chicken, 4 oz non fat frozen yogurt

Day 4 -

Breakfast - 1 cup of oatmeal, 1 cup of blackberries

Snack - 6 egg whites, 4 slices of turkey bacon

Lunch - 2 cups of lettuce, 3 oz tuna, 1 oz cheese

Snack - half protein bar, 8 oz low fat plain yogurt

Supper - 1 cup veggies, 3 oz pork chops, frozen fruit bar

Day 5 -

Breakfast - 6 egg whites, 4 slices of turkey bacon, 1 oz cheese

Snack - 8 oz yogurt, banana

Lunch - 1 whole wheat wrap, 1 cup tomatoes

Snack - half protein bar

Supper - 1 cup of asparagus, veggie burger, 4 oz of frozen yogurt

Day 6 -

Breakfast - Whole wheat bagel, banana, peanut butter

Snack - 6 egg whites, 1 oz cheese, 2 slices of turkey bacon,

Lunch - Veggie burger, 1 cup lettuce, 1 cup tomato
Snack - half protein bar, yogurt

Supper - 1 cup veggies, 3 oz steak, frozen fruit bar

Day 7 -

Breakfast - whole wheat bagel, peanut butter, banana

Snack - 6 egg whites, 2 slices of turkey bacon, 1 oz cheese

Lunch - 2 cups of lettuce, 3 oz tuna, 1 oz cheese

Snack - half protein bar

Supper - 1 cup of veggies, 3 oz chicken, 4 oz frozen yogurt

Friday, February 20, 2015

Friday Funny

Thursday, February 19, 2015

What We're Eating

Around the end of January when we started exercising again we decided to follow the P90X meal plan and edit it to fit the exercises we are doing burning calories wise.

We figured out how many calories we require and we fell into the Level 1 Meal plan. P90X has 3 Levels depending on your weight and how many calories you need etc. There is a whole math equation to it. There are also 3 phases and the first one we are in is the Fat Shredder phase.

In Level 1 there are 2 types of plans you can do. You can follow the full meal plan to a tee as they give you what to eat and all the recipes etc. We’ve tried this with the JM meal plan and it takes up SO MUCH TIME making everything. If we didn’t have jobs then we could do it but working all day and then cooking all night was not working for us. We even tried preparing in advance on the weekends but we spent at least one whole day just cooking and didn’t get to fully enjoy the weekend.

So instead of that option we went with our own where they give you a list of foods to choose from each category and the amounts per day. For the Phase 1 (Fat shredder) we can have the following servings per day: Protein = 5, Fat = 1, Carbs = 1, Dairy = 2, Fruit = 1, Vegetables = 2, Condiments = 1, Snacks = 1. Below are some examples we get to choose from.

Protein - a serving includes – 3 oz skinless turkey or chicken breast, 6 egg whites, 3 oz fish, 3 oz fat free ham slices, 3 oz pork tenderloin, 3 oz red meat, 1 soy burger, 1 veggie burger, 2 slices of turkey bacon, 1 veggie dog, and a few tofu things we don’t eat.

Fats - a serving includes – 3 oz avocado, 1 tbsp canola oil, 1 tbsp, flaxseed oil, 1 tbsp olive oil, 4 oz olives

Carbohydrates – a serving includes – 1 medium whole wheat bagel, 1 bran muffin, 2 slices whole wheat bread, 1 cup whole grain cereal, 12 crackers, 2 english muffin halves, whole wheat, 1 cup oatmeal, 3 pancakes, 1 cup pasta or noodls, 1 large whole wheat pita, 1 medium potato or sweet potato, 1 cup brown or wild rice, 1 large whole wheat tortilla, 3 whole wheat waffles, and some other items we don’t eat

Dairy – a serving includes – 1 oz low fat cheese, 1 cup cottage cheese, 1 oz feta cheese, 1 oz parmesan cheese, 8 oz skim milk, 8 oz plain nonfat yogurt

Fruit – a serving includes – 1 medium apple, 1 medium banana, 1 medium grapefruit, 1 cup kiwi, 1 cup grapes, 1 large orange, 1 medium peach or pear, 1 cup raspberries/blueberries/blackberries, 2 cups sliced strawberries, 1 cup watermelon

Vegetables – a serving includes – 1 cup each of asparagus/broccoli/Brussel sprouts/carrots/cauliflower/celery/cucumber/peas/peppers/tomatoes/vegetable soup, 2 cups of lettuce/kale/spinach

Condiments – a serving includes – 2 tbsp bbq and other low fat sauces and marinades, fat free dressings, mustard, honey, pure fruit jams

Snacks – a serving includes – 1 oz low fat cheese, 8 oz cottage cheese, 12 mini rice cakes, 1 tbsp of peanut butter with celery sticks, frozen fruit bar, 4 oz fat free frozen yogurt

And we are also allowed half of a protein bar. We are using the Cliff builder bars which are about equal to the P90X protein bars. You can get them in the organic section of some Superstores, at MEC and also on amazon.ca

Each week we take turns doing up a meal plan for the coming week. In another post we will give you an example of a meal plan. So far this plan is working if we keep up the exercising and stick to the servings etc.