About Me

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New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
This blog is dedicated to the low-carb menu challenge presented by Jimmy Moore. I'm living the Louisiana low carb lifestyle, where low-carb is the new way to go ! I live southwest of New Orleans, Louisiana....have three awesome kids. We are deep down in the heart of sweet Cajun Country, where we kick back and relax, go hunting, fishing, or make groceries! My doctor told me that my blood pressure numbers were getting too high, so I had to loose weight. She challenged me with ten pounds in three months. That was October 7, 2008. I lost 26 pounds !!! In February of 2011, I found that I had gained a few pounds more than I would have liked, weighing in at 170 pounds. I had to get back into the swing of living the low carb life again !! I am loving the 'low-carb' style and wish to contiue it . I exercise three times a week at the gym, and off the 'off' days, I learn to RELAX !! November 2011, finds me in different circumstances -- a new lifestyle, great community of friends and a challenge to keep that 45 pounds that I lost OFF. Feel free to read my blog, browse around, or just sit a spell!!

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Les Mills- The Power of Group Exercise !!!

Here's how to get the confidence and support you need when the going gets tough ! It's said to be the motivator to get the results YOU want.  Check this out !



Les Mills- The Power of Group Exercise !!!   (Click to watch the VIDEO !)  from The Balancing Act.




Les Mills Bodypump is a 55-minute barbell workout. They will work you from your toes all the way down to your head. Full body workout in group fitness setting. We start together , we finish together

As one unit as one team. BodyPump will help get you the results you need.  Everyone regardless of what fitness level you are at will reach a plateau eventually.  This will help spike the plateau  because it is something very different, it will shock the body -- shock the plateau. It will not give you the bulk, it will give you lean defined muscle, and that's what we are all going after.  I've been Bodypuming for a year and a half with great success :))




So what are you waiting for ?

Have a great day !


Wednesday, July 11, 2012

The 4-letter word people need to do the Most !!!




Throughout my Low-carb journey, people will tell me what activities they have done, how often and on which days.  More often than not, the days are consecutive.  This astounds me !  As much thought that is given to planning your exercise -- how much thought is given for your REST ?? Yes ! REST, that dirty four letter word that people leave on the shelf and forget to dust off.  Do you know that for people who are active, it is much harder to rest than to exercise ?







If you've hit a wall in your training, maybe it’s because you aren't giving the gains enough time to take hold. Hard workouts tear down the body, but rest allows the body to repair and come back stronger than before.

What's also important is how your measure fatigue. Is it at the first sign of sweat ? If that is the case then I suppose I'm fatigued the first five minutes I do an RPM (spin) class !! We sweat till it's in our
ears, down our elbows and on the floor.  (OK, essentially we make our own splash zone.)

There are many forms of recovery. The one you are probably most familiar with is active recovery. Active recovery refers to engaging in low-intensity exercise during or after workouts. There are two forms of active recovery. One is during the cool-down phase immediately after a hard effort or workout. Active recovery immediately after the event encourages recovery and reduces muscle lactate levels faster than complete rest.

The second form of active recovery includes the day(s) following a competition or other intense workout. For example, I will Bodyflow on Sunday and Monday. On Tuesday,  RPM (Spin), and Bodypump (weightlifting). Wednesday is my REST day.  Thursday is Bodypump.  Friday or Saturday will be my REST day. 

Other forms of recovery include stress reduction, sleep, nutrition and hydration, supplements, cold and heat, home remedies, massage, self-massage, restorative yoga, and meditation and breathing.

In my Got Independence ? Blog, I encouraged yall to write down when you exercised. Now, I encourage you to write down when you REST.  Doing nothing, Nada.   Don't even think about the dirty laundry, putting out the trash or watching TV.  Find a comfy spot, close your eyes and connect with your inner self.  GOT REST ?












Tuesday, July 10, 2012

OMG ! It's the OMG Diet !! Loose 20 pounds in six weeks !

Six Weeks to OMG : Get skinnier than all your friends !   ( CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO)




I have a HUGE problem with a diet, or a BOOK that begins with OMG.  For one, I do NOT wish to be SKINNIER than all my friends.  I wish to be HEALTHIER and continue to remain this way. I've worked diligently and many hours to keep the weight off.  Any diet that claims that you can loose 20 pounds in six weeks is NUTS.

I've been there and done that, and paid the price for it ! In October 2008, my initial TRY at dieting,  I weighed 170+ pounds and was diagnosed with pre-hypertension. My doctor explained that if I did not lose 10% of my body weight, I would have to rely on medication to treat the high blood pressure for the rest of my life. I went online like everyone else searching for that 'miracle' to help me lose weight. I landed on the doorstep of Jimmy Moore . Jimmy went on his own low-carb journey to lose weight, and blogs about his journey.


I followed his low carb regimen. Exercised and ate low carb. However, something happened to me that should not have. I was low carbing WAY to low, and the weight was coming off TOO FAST. I lost 26 pounds in six weeks. Along with the weight loss came hair loss and a vitamin deficiency. At that point, I thought low carbing was supposed to be a good thing. LESSON LEARNED.

Crash dieting, or lowering the carbs to that of a dead person could make you that way ! Skipping breakfast, no snacks and have two cups of hot coffee, soaking in cold baths, -- as the Six Weeks to OMG book recommends is ridiculous.  Your body is created in such a way that it needs FUEL, it needs to be FED NOT overfed. Your body also need exercise. 

SO, OMG ! I think I you should NOT read the book. What you see is what you get. What do yall think ? Leave me a comment Please !

Have a great day = )

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Weekend Waistline




How's your weekend going ? Are you beginning to notice your waistline, or is it noticing YOU ?


I started off the day with a Les Mills Body Pump (weightlifting class) at Anytime Fitness.  One hour of exercise early in the morning gets the body moving !  Those ab moves were crazy. They had us like we were climbing mountains !


I actually took a nice long afternoon walk. Have not done that in quite a while. The temperature in the New Orleans area have been in the mid 80's today, a relief from the heat.  One of the biggest motivators for the weekend is walking.  Going outside changes the senses and the scenery.  It's almost like walking the mall.  With my headset on  and cell phone in pocket, I walk at a steady pace - noticing the summer foliage and sensational colors.  No dogs to follow me around usually means people are not home, and busy with family obligations. 

Not too many people walk nowadays.  I suppose it is because of the heat, but I am not really sure.  Even on a beautiful day, you begin to notice the same people walking at the same time. It's like going to garage sales. After you've been to a few, you begin to notice the same people attending -- as if they followed you around !


One thing I like about group fitness is the core of the participants.  They are a dedicated group of people, all ages, all ranges of fitness levels, all shapes and sizes.  Each one there for different reason. They fact that they PARTICIPATE is the goal, - learning the choreography, timing and technique to different songs. 


As a matter of fact, I lost my weight and kept it off by participating in ONLY group fitness. I find it motivates me to be around people , each doing what I am doing.  It challenges each and every part of your body in about an hour. I challenge you, to try group fitness. I participate in Les Mills Body Pump, Bodyflow (Yoga, Pilates and Tai-chi) and RPM (Spinning).  They have many more classes available. Please check them out ! Les Mills Group Fitness classes.

Don't let that weekend waistline get to you. Log off, Shut Down and GO SWEAT !!

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Pleading the 5th. A calorie is a calorie is a calorie — or is it?

Did you have a nice July 4th ?  Did you remember to exercise ? Or did you cookout, clean, or catch up on things ?  I have to plead the 5th ! 

Wednesdays are usually my day to rest.  Should a holiday make a difference ?  I say not.  Back to the grind today. 



I read an interesting article in the L.A. Times on how a calorie is a calorie is a calorie — or is it?
Maybe not, a small study has found. Once the pounds are shed, the proportions of carbohydrates, proteins and fats you chow down on may determine whether you keep the weight off — or slowly but surely pack on pounds again  A small study indicates that the proportion of carbohydrates, protein and fat that one eats may determine whether weight loss is temporary or enduring.

In an intensive, seven-month experiment during which 21 overweight men and women had their diets strictly controlled down to each last morsel, researchers showed that a traditional low-fat diet seemed to make the metabolism more sluggish than a high-protein one during the most difficult part of weight loss: keeping fat off once it's shed.

The preliminary work, which was published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Assn., provides support for a growing group of scientists who argue that what people eat may be just as key as how much they eat.In a nutshell, "from a metabolic perspective, all calories are not alike," said study senior author Dr. David Ludwig, director of the New Balance Foundation Obesity Prevention Center at Children's Hospital Boston. "The quality of the calories going in affects the quantity of the calories going out."

Maintaining weight loss is a challenge that stymies the vast majority of dieters. Only 1 in 6 overweight and obese adults say they have ever held onto a loss of 10% body weight or greater for even a year, the team noted in its report.Scientists knew that weight loss was accompanied by a slowdown in the body's metabolism. To test whether different foods might influence that, Ludwig and his colleagues recruited overweight and obese adults ages 18 to 40. From 2006 to 2010, they marched the volunteers through several controlled feeding studies.

The 13 men and eight women followed a 12-week weight-loss regimen that helped them shed 10% to 15% of their body weight followed by a four-week weight-stabilization phase. After that, each subject was fed three different diets for four weeks at a time: a traditional low-fat diet (60% carbohydrates, 20% fat and 20% protein), a low  glycemic index diet (with 40% carbs, 40% fat and 20% protein) and a very low-carbohydrate diet a la Atkins (with 10% carbohydrates, 60% fat and 30% protein).

At the beginning of the study and at the end of each four-week stint, the subjects were hospitalized for three days to undergo a battery of tests. Scientists measured their resting energy expenditure using indirect calorimetry, which assesses gases in the breath to calculate calories burned.

They also looked at all the energy burned by the subject in a day using stable isotope analysis, which examines how rapidly isotopes leave the body over days and weeks. The researchers also screened participants' blood and urine to record insulin sensitivity and levels of cholesterol, key hormones and other substances that are linked to a risk for heart disease or metabolic problems.

For all three diets, the rate of calories burned at rest was lower than before weight loss. But over the course of a day, the subjects burned more than 300 additional calories on average when on the very low-carbohydrate diet compared with the low-fat diet. "That's roughly equal to an hour of moderate physical activity — without lifting a finger," Ludwig said.

Subjects burned 200 additional calories on the low glycemic index diet than on the low-fat diet. A low glycemic index diet is rich in whole grains, fruits and vegetables and is designed to prevent sharp spikes in blood sugar.

Weight-loss experts not involved in the research praised it, while acknowledging its limitations.
"It's a small study, so I'd want to see it repeated. But I have no reason to doubt the result," said Susan Roberts, a professor of nutrition and psychiatry at Tufts University in Boston.
However, University of Minnesota nutrition professor Joanne Slavin said that though the calorie-burning differences could work to people's advantage, she worried that dieters would flock to low-carb diets that might be unhealthful.

"The Atkins-type diet [in this study] only had 11 grams of fiber in it," she noted. The recommended daily allowance for fiber in adults is at least twice that. Ludwig also didn't recommend a very low-carb diet even though it offered the best metabolic edge. Some measurements suggested it could be risky for the heart, he said.

Blood samples drawn from participants in the low-carb diet phase contained elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol as well as C-reactive protein, which signals chronic inflammation in the body and has been linked to cardiovascular disease. The low-glycemic diet — which he has recommended for a long time — did not seem to have these problems, he said, making it the best bet.
But Roberts discounted the significance of the blood tests. "I don't make anything huge of it," she said. "You need many more subjects to make that significant." eryn.brown@latimes.com

I would have been the perfect test subject ! They forgot to ask me. Oh well. I know because I live the high protein, low carb diet.   I have kept off the weight for the last 1 1/2 years.  Something must be right ?   Diet and exercise is the key... but then  a calorie is a calorie is a calorie — or is it ??

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Got Independence ?

Happy July 4th !



Are you staying inside to avoid the heat today ? I certainly am.  Are you moving, sitting, wondering or exercising ?  What are you waiting for? What do you need Independence from ? Need motivation to get moving ?  Turn off your computer, put on your headset, get up and GO.

Do we realize what weighs us down ?  I used to be in this quandary. How many situation/things in our life control US ? If you really think about it : are we centering our lives around things that could REALLY wait an hour while we exercised ?

I would like you to try something NEW ! Instead of writing down what you EAT every day, write down each Activity  you engage in, and how many minutes/hours you are doing it.  It could be as simple as household activities, or watching the kids.  Do this for a few days.  Next take a look how you are spending your time. 

When I first started Low Carbing, I decided to exercise the last ten minutes of every hour. It could be as simple as a brisk walk, or a simple household activity.  This time added up.  My goal was to exercise an hour each every day !  

Leslie Sansone Walking Dvd's

Leslie Sansone  was one of the first exercise tapes I found that was very simple and easy to do.  You are able to walk a mile in 15 minutes from the convenience of your home !

Find what sets you free and give you the time to MOVE. 

I hope everyone has a safe and Happy Fourth of July. Remember to stay Hydrated !!




Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Waist Circumference Linked to T2 Diabetes Risk, Independently of Body Mass Index


Waist Circumference Linked to T2 Diabetes Risk, Independently of Body Mass Index



It is no surprise to me to read on Diabetescare.net that Waist Circumference is linked to Diabetes.  I've learned through the years that most of our diseases/cancers are stored in our stomachs. When I first started seriously dieting, my waist size was 32 inches. Yes, you read that right.  I always thought since I had a few curves, it looked good -- yet I was not 'there' in WANTING to do something about it.  I was diagnosed with high blood pressure and the onset of diabetes. It was only then that I decided to do something about it.   That was February 2011, at 170 pounds.  My life was slowly spiraling out of control. 




With a Low Carb, High Protein Diet, AND Exercising, I was able to lose the weight. S-L-O-W-L-Y the weight came off.  I did not get this way overnight, but most importantly learned in October 2008, when I  tried my best at losing the weight the first time what would happen ..Phase I, Losing weight the wrong way !!  Losing the weight too fast resulted in hair loss, vitamin deficiency and muscle loss.

Whether your Body Mass Index is 22 or 30, Diabetes will set in if you are not eating correctly and OFTEN.  It is very important to fuel your body during the day, especially in preparation for a day of exercising. I Eat TO Exercise :)  



Today, I weigh in at 125 pounds.  I work very hard to keep myself in shape, and monitor my meals with a Low Carb, high protein diet.  I exercise many times a week by doing Bodyflow, Bodypump and RPM (Spin) . 


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