Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

I saw this photo of Shia Lebeouf in People magazine today and it made me realize something.

No matter how fit or thin someone is, working out isn’t that fun.

The look on Shia’s face shows just how difficult a hard run can be. Even though he is ripped and buff (or “Le Buff,” as they say), the photographer caught him in the middle of a HARD run. Anyone who looks at him KNOWS that this very difficult run is WORTH it. He looks awesome, even though he is struggling.

Sure, there are some easy runs. There are times when the same workout at the same pace on the same trail feels fun, easy and enjoyable. There are other times when it’s just an uncomfortable chore. So, why do we do it?

I exercise for a lot of reasons:

• To lose weight: Honestly, this is the most important reason I exercise. I just don’t want to be fat anymore.
• To be healthy: Exercise, even when it’s hot and uncomfortable, strengthens my muscles, heart and bones.
• To be strong: When I’m at Yellowstone Park and find myself on a trail that’s three miles longer than we thought it was going to be, I can finish that hike strong because I get my butt on my treadmill every day.
• To make myself less crazy: Working out keeps me sane. When I’m fighting the crazy, working out is MUCH more difficult, but I would lose myself in the quagmire of depression without it.

I’d love to just sit here and say that working out is all fun and roses. I’d love to say that the elusive Runner’s High is a daily component of my exercise routine, but it’s NOT. See that look on Shia’s face? That’s not the face of the rumored sheer bliss of endorphins. That’s pain and work and squinting against the summer sun in order to keep his endurance and six pack abs at their best. The next time you’re thinking of cutting your workout short or taking it slow when your plan calls for a difficult workout, think of Shia Lebeouf duking it out against the heat and smog of a Los Angeles summer. If he can do it, so can you!

This weekend, you can hike, camp and enjoy at over 100 National Parks for FREE! They offer fee free weekends a few times a year and there are a couple left. You can find out more here:

• U.S. National Park Service Fee-Free Weekends in Your National Parks

Mark your calendars for fee-free weekends this summer:

• July 18-19, 2009
• August 15-16, 2009

Mike and I enjoy several of the nearby National Parks. The photo shown is from a trip to Lake Mead in southern Nevada (near Las Vegas and the Hoover Dam), which is on the list of free parks this weekend. You can see all the photos of that camping trip here:

• Lake Mead – a set on Flickr

If you are feeling the financial squeeze this year, take advantage of the parks that your tax dollars go toward maintaining and workout this weekend free of charge.

Part of the reason Mike and I were willing to uproot our entire lives and leave our friends and neighbors in Sugarhouse was because of the lake in Daybreak. It is a man-made lake specifically designed to be the focus of the community. Not only is it surrounded by miles of trails for biking, running or walking, the residents of Daybreak can borrow boats free of charge to explore the lake.

Yesterday, Mike and I took a break from moving boxes to take a walk around Oquirrh Lake. As we were getting in our exercise, we saw a couple enthusiastically racing each other on the lake. Their paddles were quickly rotating and their laughs echoed off the bridge. Apparently, the bridge was the finish line and when the woman crossed it, victorious, they slowed their pace to a leisurely tour of the water.

I couldn’t help noticing how fun all of us were having. The couple on the lake, Mike and I walking around the trails, the families fishing and the even the security guard on his bicycle. We all were exercising, but we didn’t notice it because the vistas were so beautiful. I decided to remember this the next time I’m sweating it out on the treadmill. Working out in the gym is important if only because it makes enjoying times like this so much easier.

The couple continued their quiet rowing around the lake just as Mike and I walked on the trails around it. By the time we were finished with our workout, they were finished with theirs and we all watched the sunset turn golden behind the mountains.

The Onion’s parodies slice a little too close to reality for me. Sometimes it’s hard to tell if they are a joke or not. Take this fast food feed bag story, for example:

New Wearable Feedbags Let Americans Eat More, Move Less

The thought of eating food from a bag strapped to my face sounds entirely unappetizing to me, so I know that something like this will never take off. Just like the 1950’s ideal of getting all of our nutrition from food pellets (Space Food Sticks and Astronaut Food). If I can’t see the food, or if it looks gross, I can’t enjoy it. Sometimes I feel like I eat more with my eyes than my digestive system.

Will the fast food bag ever become an eating trend? I doubt it. It’s an inventive commentary about the “gluttony” of the American public, but it’s written by someone who has never been tempted by that deadly sin.

Via: Would You Eat Fast Food From a Feedbag?

Every Tuesday morning, I take a walk with NakedJen and her dogs. Now that I’ve moved across town, I still walk with her, but I have a commute as well. Is it worth the drive? YES!

I am so grateful that I have a workout partner (three, actually, if you count Buddha and Stella, her dogs). Without my weekly walking escape with Jen, I feel adrift and lonely. So much of exercise and healthy living is habit and social enjoyment. Creating these habits with friends who sincerely want me to live a healthy life is what has kept me on this path instead of giving up altogether.

Every day I carry boxes from where they are to where they should be. I pack a few. I unpack a few. I get one step closer to making this new house feel like home. Lucky thing I’m exercising so much because my eating is out of control right now. It’s like my ability to control the beast within me is inversely proportional to how much stress I’m experiencing. It feels like my only hope is to finish this move and get my house in order so I can go back to the business of getting my body in order.

I love this advertisement from Jantzen Girdles.

It reads:

Anybody can have a better figure!

Anybody can look better, feel better, wear clothes better, get around better, do bigger and better things!

It goes on to tell you that you can achieve all these things by buying a girdle that doesn’t pinch, bind or twist, but they missed the point. The truth of the matter is that any of us can do all of these things just by eating healthier and getting some exercise regularly.

You don’t have to wear tight undergarments to look better and feel better. You just have to tighten your eating regime and exercise habits.

And best of all, it’s free!

Jantzen advertisement via: Found in Mom’s Basement: Vintage ads for lingerie

I heard the rumor on a comment from Christine on my entry about Figure Magazine:

• Starling Fitness » Figure Magazine – The New Shape of Fashion

I realize this post is ancient but I am crying. I just got notice today that Figure is being replaced by Ladies Home Journal of all magazines! NOOOOOOoooooo. If I wanted a saccharin magazine I’d buy one. I am SOOOOO bummed!!!! I overlooked the annoying fluff and was so inspired by the women and clothing. I have been anxiously awaiting my next issue and then instead I get this.

Was it true? Was Figure Magazine dead and gone? I checked the Figure Magazine website and this letter to the readers was there:

Dear Figure magazine readers,

Thank you for your extraordinary passion and support throughtout our years of publishing Figure magazine. We are saddened to announce that as of our March/April 2009 issue, we will be ceasing publication of the magazine and shutting down the website.

This was a painful decision to make. We have shared your vision to create an empowering, inclusive place for women of all shapes to come and celebrate fashion and themselves. However, we are facing unprecedented economic times and unfortunately are unable to continue publishing.

If you are a magazine subscriber, we will be contacting you regarding your remaining issues.

You all have made Figure an exciting and dynamic community. It has truly been a joy to serve the needs of today’s fashion-conscious woman through the magazine and website, and we look forward to continuing to serve you in our stores and online at www.lanebryant.com, www.fashionbug.com, and www.catherines.com. We hope to see you there.

Sincerely,
The Publishers of Figure Magazine

Christine is right. Ladies Home Journal is no replacement for Figure Magazine and the best we can do in this situation is to find a replacement online. One good one is a blog I’ve found recently:

• Too Fat For Fashion

Posting there has slowed recently, but you can read their archives for some fun things and motivation to be fabulous no matter what size you are.

If you have a fashion fix, here is a GREAT list of online shops that cater to all sizes:

• MaryMc’s Fat Acceptance Stuff–Clothing and Accessories

It seems like the magazine industry is blaming their demise on the economy instead of themselves for not adapting to the web world. Don’t let the death of Figure magazine be a blow to accepting yourself the way you are. It’s the first step toward a healthier life.

• Just sent out a bunch of Starling Fitness DVD and journal orders. If you ordered while I was moving, your orders are coming soon! #

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Ray Zahab broke the speed record of the trek to the North Pole. He walked while dragging a sled in forty below weather. The most inspirational part of this story is that he started running when he was thirty-four years old after being a long-time smoker living a VERY sedentary lifestyle.

This video of his talk at TED is so inspirational that it’s worth the download time:

Not only did they trek for ten or fifteen hours at a time, they blogged the entire time. You can read them here:

• South Pole Quest 2008

He says:

“I remember thinking, ‘What do I take from this journey? That I’m this uber-endurance guy?’ As I stand here today talking to you guys, I’ve been running for the grand sum of five years and a year before that, I was a pack a day smoker living a very sedentary lifestyle. What I take from this journey is that in fact, within every fiber of my belief standing here, I know that we can make the impossible possible. I’m learning this at forty. Can you imagine being thirteen years old, hearing those words and believing it?”

No matter how old you are, BELIEVE it. If you have ever thought that being fit and healthy was impossible, it is POSSIBLE. You CAN do it. The only thing standing in your way is your head telling you that you can’t. If Ray Zahab can become an uber-endurance athlete at an age when most people think that their careers are over, then we can get to a healthy weight. We just have to keep on trudging through the snow, pulling our sleds of history behind us.