By Stacey Colino for Live Right Live Well

Not long ago, playing video games provided good exercise for kids’ thumbs — and not much else. Now, a new generation of more active video games, like Wii Sports, is changing all that. The big question on everyone’s mind: Can these new active video games help you, your spouse and your kids get (or stay) fit?

The answer is maybe. A study at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., found that kids burn more than twice as many calories playing activity-promoting video games — such as Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) and EyeToy — than just sitting and watching TV. With DDR, you control the game by stepping on an electronic dance pad, while EyeToy uses a special camera to capture an image of the player in motion and literally inserts her into the onscreen Playstation action.

In a recent study at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 24 volunteers (ages 12 to 25) played DDR at various intensities, then researchers examined their heart rate, VO2 max (a measure of maximum aerobic capacity) and caloric expenditure. It turns out that playing DDR in “difficult mode” produced results comparable to taking a high-impact aerobics class: Heart rates jumped to 76 percent of maximum and participants burned calories at a rate of 480 per hour, reports study leader John Porcari, Ph.D., professor of exercise and sport science at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Playing DDR in “standard mode” was the calorie-burning equivalent of riding a bike 12 miles per hour.

Does this mean active video games are as good as regular exercise? “I see it as a supplement, not a substitute,” says Cedric Bryant, Ph.D., chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise. “These more active video games don’t get you moving to a degree that can serve as a substitute for the real thing.” However, others see it differently: “It isn’t a replacement for exercise — it is exercise,” Porcari says. “When you’re working that hard [as hard as people did playing DDR in difficult mode], your heart and lungs don’t know what you’re doing. They just know they’re working harder.”

Ultimately, experts agree that the best approach may be to aim for a combination of regular exercise and video exercise. To that end, your family could jog, bike, swim or play (real) tennis four days a week and play active video games twice a week. Or “you could do 30 minutes of formal exercise and 15 minutes of these [video games] most days of the week,” Bryant suggests. However you divvy it up, the key to getting the most from these active video games, says Bryant, is “to move as much as possible and move as much of your body as possible.”

Stacey Colino has written for The Washington Post health section and many national magazines, including Newsweek, Real Simple, Woman’s Day, Self, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Parenting, Sports Illustrated and Ladies’ Home Journal.

By Daryn Eller for Live Right Live Well

Stiff joints, achy muscles, numb limbs — all familiar side effects of too much time spent parked in a chair. But did you know that sitting too much may actually shorten your life as well? That’s the conclusion of a surprising new study conducted by the American Cancer Society.

After tracking 123,000 people, researchers found that women who reported sitting more than six hours per day were 37 percent more likely to die prematurely than those who sat fewer than three hours a day — even if they got regular exercise. Men were 18 percent more likely to die early.

When participants reported sitting for long hours without engaging in a regular exercise routine, the results were even worse: Women and men who sat for six hours a day and didn’t work out were, respectively, 94 and 48 percent more likely to die early compared with those who sat fewer hours and were very physically active.

“Being active is beneficial — this we know from many years of research, not just from this study,” says lead researcher Alpa V. Patel, who is an epidemiologist with the American Cancer Society. “But our study also showed that being active combined with sitting less was better.” This may be because sitting has been shown to negatively affect cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, leptin (the hormone that helps govern appetite) and other factors associated with obesity and cardiac disease.

So what do you do if you have a desk job or are otherwise stuck sitting in a chair for six or more hours per day? “For optimal health and longevity, adults should engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity per week,” says Patel. That averages out to a minimum of 20 minutes a day. “Additionally, this study suggests that reducing time spent sitting will add additional benefit. Our study showed that less than three hours a day [of sitting] had the lowest risk.”

A few suggestions to get your daily dose of movement:

• Set an alarm on your computer that will remind you to stand up or walk around for a few minutes once every hour.
• Take a 20-minute midday stroll if you simply can’t get up every hour. It gets your blood flowing and counts toward your daily out-of-chair quota.
• Work standing up. Lore has it that Thomas Jefferson and Ernest Hemingway, among others, used a raised desk so they could stand while working.
• Skip interoffice phone and email. When you want to discuss something with a colleague at work, get up and walk to their desk instead.
• Use your feet instead of sitting in a car if you have to run an outside errand that’s within walking distance.
• Choose leisure activities that don’t involve sitting: Go to a bowling alley instead of a movie theater, a dance class rather than a concert, or a museum as opposed to a spectator sports arena.

Daryn Eller has written for O, Prevention, Health and Natural Health magazines. She lives in Venice, Calif.

This week MomActive welcomes guest blogger, Becca. A diagnosis of spinal stenosis and degenerative disc disease has posed a number of challenges but has not stopped this active mom of two from being an excellent example of healthy living for her family, and an inspiration for us all! Becca hopes that by sharing her story she can help others who might be suffering from similar symptoms.

Earlier this year, I was diagnosed with a degenerative spinal defect. I was having some strange lower back pain and went to get it checked out. The pain was almost like that of an epidural, if you can relate to that. It wasn’t a muscle pain, but almost in my bones.

The defect? Ok, I lied. There are two. Spinal stenosis and degenerative disc disease. Lucky me. It was the same thing that my Grandmother was diagnosed with. She died a few years ago after being bedridden for the last 3 years of her life, in constant pain because the bones in her spine were brittle and lacked cushioning between the discs.
Also, my father was diagnosed with the same defect a few years ago and suffers from the same excruciating pain that my grandmother did.
It’s genetic, I guess. The bad part? Grandma and Dad were diagnosed in their mid-50′s. I am 32.
I was referred to an amazing bone and joint doctor, one of the best in the state, who explained to me that my age and the fact that I am active should keep me from ending up in a wheelchair… as long as I keep moving.

Last year, I was kickboxing, turbo jamming, and running in 5k’s left and right. I even joined a women’s soccer team… well, until I fractured both of my feet in a game. But that’s a story for later. Last year I felt better than I ever had, and I was showing my boys how to be healthy by example.

This year? Spinal defect. New game, new rules.

At 32, I had no idea how to react when my body told me no. I pushed. It pushed back.

One day during the summer, I ran 3 miles. That night I paid dearly. Last year, 3 miles was ok. This year, it laid me out on the couch. I didn’t understand how, in the span of 6 months, I was no longer able to run 3 miles or finish a Turbo Jam video without taking advantage of the “modified” workouts. I was embarrassed and thought my family would think I was milking this thing for all it was worth.

Not exercising? Not an option. I exercise for stress relief, fresh air, and a healthy body. I now have an amazing physical therapist who helps me maximize my workouts and feel the best that I can.
These are my new rules:

1. Listen to your doctor. Take notes, listen to what he or she says, and ask a lot of questions. A few days after the appointment when everything settles in, don’t be afraid to call and ask more questions.

2. Find a physical therapist. I underestimated what physical therapists do. They help you strengthen the muscles around your weak areas to reduce injury, while slowly building up muscles in the injured area. My PTs provided me with exercises that, on the service, seem elementary… until I do them. I woke up last weekend in a lot of pain and exercised for 10 minutes using the “bad day exercise” sheet I was given. Not only did I feel better afterwards, but the next day the muscles I worked were fatigued. Seriously – if you could have seen how easy these exercises were, you would have laughed. But they targeted exactly the right muscle groups.

3. Exercise isn’t everything. Health, wellness, nutrition, and exercise all work together on a daily basis. If you wake up and change into your workout gear only to discover that you can’t bend down to tie your shoes, maybe today is the day to do some strengthening exercises or yoga. I make up for those days in other areas. I make an effort to eat less calories to balance out the lack of cardio. Exercise isn’t the goal; feeling good and being healthy are the goals.

4. {Responsibly} Test the waters. I can run 2 miles without having to ice my back. I know this because I ran 3 and it was too much for my spine. So I ran 2 1/2 a few times, and it was still too much. 2 miles? I feel accomplished, and my spine doesn’t yell at me. I could have easily decided that running wasn’t for me after the 3 miler, but… (see #5)

5. Don’t stop moving. The day you decide to give up and stay on the couch is the day you have lost. If your legs hurt, lift some light arm weights. If your arms hurt, do a few leg lifts. Do something. Try something different (the game has changed, you know). Do what you can.

*Becca is a mother of three boys (ages 6, 10, and 35), and a part time speech therapist. She enjoys two mile runs, modified Turbo Jam workouts, reading books, and eating M&Ms. You can find her personal blog at  OurCrazyBoys.com.

This weeks featured Active Mom, Chelsea shares tips for getting moving and staying motivated!

It is hard to get moving. This is especially true for busy moms. But guess what? It is even harder to keep moving.

About a year and a half ago, I needed something. I am a busy, working, tired wife and mom to two young children. My sister and some of her friends were talking about the running that they do, and invited me to join them. I was not a runner and had never been a runner. But I went and, over time, have fallen in love with running.

That being said, running is hard for me. I am not all that good at it, I don’t have time to do it as often as I’d like, and I tend to be very hard on myself when I don’t run as far or as fast as I’d like to. There have been times when I thought that maybe it was just too hard. Maybe I should just stop trying to be a runner. But, you know what? The feeling I get from it FAR outweighs the struggle. While running last week, I reflected on things that I have learned that keep me running and active. Today, I’d like to share those things with you.
1. Find your support group. This doesn’t have to mean a group of people that you actually, physically run with. It’s easier to run with a partner, but it can be tough (think: impossible) to schedule time when two or more people are available and ready to go on a regular basis. What it does mean is a group of people who know your plans and your goals. If you want to do a 5k in 3 months, tell your friends and ask them to check in with you each week about your progress. It’s easier to tie your shoes and get moving if you know you have someone else to answer to.
2. Buy some equipment. I’m not saying to spend a fortune, but buy a cute running outfit or perhaps an interval watch. Something that makes you look at feel like a runner. Call it motivation or call it guilt, that item could help nudge you out the door.
3. Start with what makes you feel successful. If you have never run before, please don’t hit the streets thinking you’ll run a quick 5 miles before heading out to work. Nothing will break your desire to be active like feeling unsuccessful. Start with promising to run one minute for every 3 that you walk, and work up from there. Set a realistic goal, based on either distance or time, and meet that goal no matter how many walking breaks you have to take.
4. Plan for realistic progress. Running, or any physical activity, is hard. It takes time to improve and, even then, it’s not always upward progress. Personally, I have been running for a year and a half. I have run two half marathons, many 10k’s and countless 5k’s. My time varies greatly, even from week to week. Some days I can’t run a full mile without walking. Improvement comes in the form of how you feel after running. It has to be ok for you to be slower today than you were last week.
5. Plan good routes. It is nice to have a couple of different running routes to choose from. I have one near my home, one between work and my kids’ daycare, and one that works well for nighttime (because it’s well lit and populated). When AT ALL possible, plan routes that don’t include many small loops. If you want to run 3 miles, try to find something that is 1.5 out and then back. It is so easy to turn your goal of 10 laps into 7… or 5… or “oh I’ve lost count so that must be good enough.” Having a physical location you have to get to and then back, or one large loop that you run once, makes it tougher to talk yourself out of it half way through.
6. Be ok with breaks. Plan your running intervals – for example 5 minutes running and 1 minute walking, and stick to them as much as you can. That being said, if you need more time, or an extra 30 seconds in the middle of a running interval… do it. It is better to take extra breaks and finish your goal distance (or time), than to give up, go home, and feel frustrated. Running should make you feel good about yourself, not stressed or unsuccessful.
7. Get others involved. As much as you can, get friends, colleagues, family involved in what you do. I have been called the “running instigator” of my school district due to getting people involved in running. It’s very hard to quit when people you have gotten involved are watching.
8. Give up perfect. See how this list is going to end on #8? That is not perfect. Neither are you, and definitely neither am I. If you goal is to win marathons, none of my advice applies. The rest of us? We need to keep our eyes on our prizes. For me, that includes physical fitness, emotional stability, and social aspects. What are your goals?
Running, or whatever physical activity you choose, needs to benefit your body, mind, and spirit. Keep these goals in mind, and stop being so hard on yourself. Just get out there and get (and keep) moving!

Chelsea blogs at VicariousChelsea.com . She commonly writes about running, but also about her family, her full time job in education and whatever else pops into her head. You can read more about her love/hate relationship with running HERE and a little bit about her latest half marathon HERE .

By Karen Asp for Live Right Live Well

With swimsuit season fast approaching, you’re looking for a quick way to shape up. The trouble is, motivation isn’t your strong suit. The solution? Sign up for a boot camp class. Although boot camps have been around for several years, they’re now hotter than ever. In fact, the American Council on Exercise lists boot camp classes among the top fitness trends in 2009. So what’s behind their popularity?

Mega Calorie-burn
For starters, there’s the calorie burn. Boot camp classes incorporate body-weight exercises and cardiovascular intervals, which can be intense, thus boosting the burn. Body-weight exercises might include push-ups, squats and sit-ups, while cardio intervals could entail jumping jacks, squat thrusts, step climbing and running, says Stacy Berman, a New York City-based trainer and founder of Stacy’s Boot camp, an outdoor boot camp program. Put them all together, and you end up burning mega calories — 400 calories in a 40-minute boot camp workout, according to a study from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Do an hour long boot camp workout, and you could toast a whopping 600 calories.

In his two years participating in Fort Wayne Adventure Boot Camp in Indiana, landscaper Bill Hoot dropped 70 pounds. “I was 250 pounds and knew I had to lose weight,” says Hoot, “so when I saw a flier for a boot camp class, I thought it sounded like fun.” An added bonus: Hoot lowered his blood pressure and cholesterol levels so much that he’s no longer taking cholesterol-lowering medications.

Mega Muscle
In addition to improving cardiovascular fitness, boot camps also increase muscular strength, which is crucial if you’re tight on time. “Many people have trouble fitting in strength training and aerobic workouts,” Berman says. “Yet with boot camp, you do both in one workout,” which is a great two-for-one deal.

Mega Fun
Finally, boot camp workouts are just plain fun. “Boot camp workouts offer variety, which makes exercising more enjoyable and could help you stay committed to exercise,” says John Porcari, Ph.D., professor of exercise science and sports science at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, and lead author of the study mentioned above.

Finding the Best Boot Camp
Although boot camps attract men and women of all ages and fitness levels, they’re not for everybody. If you’re at high risk for cardiovascular disease, it’s important to get approval from your physician before partaking in a high-intensity workout, advises Porcari. If you have orthopedic problems like knee or back issues, you should also be careful, as many boot camp moves involve impact, which could exacerbate your problems. And if you’re new to exercise, you may want to hold off on boot camp until you’ve gained some aerobic fitness and strength.

Otherwise, do your homework and talk with the instructor, as no two boot camps are the same. Tips for finding the best boot camp for you:

1. Ask for referrals or sit in on a workout to see if you like the class and instructor, recommends Berman. Some instructors are drill sergeants who employ the no-pain-no-gain philosophy, which is never good.

2. Find out if the boot camp provides a good balance of cardiovascular fitness and strength training, which is ideal for getting in good overall shape.

3. Ask about class size. Berman likes classes of no more than 12 to 15 people, as that allows her to pay attention to everybody and recommend modifications where necessary.

4. Consider the length and focus of the program. Boot camps run anywhere from three to eight weeks, and may even be targeted to specific populations like new moms, couples or brides-to-be, so look for one that fits your schedule and goals.

Then prepare to burn calories and build muscle. And don’t be surprised if you notice mental benefits as well. “In three weeks, you might go from doing one push-up to 10 push-ups, which can boost your confidence,” Berman says. “You’ll then wonder what else you can do in life that you didn’t think you could!”

Karen Asp

Karen Asp is a fitness/health writer who writes for numerous publications, including Fitness, Natural Health, Men’s Fitness, Prevention, Self, Shape and Women’s Health. Asp is also a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor.

Summer is officially upon us!  My kids are out of school and we are having a ton of fun.  I’ve been getting my runs in and am feeling very strong.  More and more women are joining our group and we’ve established an official forum on DailyMile.com – be sure to join us as we get the conversations in there flowing! We will officially be calling this endeavor My Life Run and you will start to see us using the hashtag #MyLifeRun, we’d love to have you join in so that we can cheer you on as well!

My kids love to play with my iphone camera and video and they are forever snapping pictures of me.  Whenever I sync with iphoto I’m always finding strange shots of the grocery store floor or videos of some goofy skit they make up on the fly.  Today, however there were several shots of me in my running gear.  I have to say that when I saw the pictures, my first thought was, “Wow I don’t look all that bad right now!”.  I’ve been losing weight slowly but the numbers on the scale don’t really reflect how much healthier I have been getting.  I feel like I look healthy in this photo… and I feel strong.  I feel whole.  I feel like me.

Getting back into the swing of things after my trip to Atlanta for The Race Relax Weekend with @theblogrollers meant missing my update last week so I’ve attached it to this weeks.  You can see that I’m starting to increase my mileage and I’ll be running 3-5 mile straining runs from now on while increasing the distance of my one long run each week.  I’m looking at races and will likely try to run at least one half marathon before the Disney Wine and Dine in October.

How was your week?  If you would like to become a contributing writer to MomActive for the “My Life Run” series just email me at fiona.bryan@momactive.com!

Here is what my training has looked like over the past two weeks….

As I sit in my airplane at 100,000+ feet, I’m filled with a myriad of emotions. I am a bit sad that the weekend is over and my time with the fantastic social media ladies of the #ATL has ended until we next meet, likely at Blogher or Blogalicious.   I am excited to see my babies, whom I have missed.  I’m looking forward to getting home and finishing up some straggling work before I take the summer off from consulting, and I am at peace with the world after one of THE most relaxing weekends I have had in a very long time.

When I won The Blogrollers contest for a weekend “Race & Relax Weekend” trip to Atlanta, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect.  I was looking forward to a little time away from the daily grind and was  just plain thrilled to have a reason to train a 5k.  I’m typically focusing on longer endurance runs and never pay much attention to how fast I run.  Let’s just get this straight, I run far and loooong, major emphasis on the “long”. Simply put, I’m a slow runner.  I pretty much run straight 10 min miles no matter the distance so it has been fun to put more emphasis on speed work and I feel strong for it, so I’ll likely keep working at getting to be a “less slow” runner.

The Race

We were a crew of about 20, all with different goals and intentions for the race.  Some of us were out for the run, some for the walk, and others were there for the fun.  As we gathered at the start line, there was no mistaking who the social media mavens were …

Hey ladies!!! That was the start!

I was setting up my music and Nike+ so I could track my time, and suddenly a wave of runners started moving … YIKES we missed the gun.  I bolted forward and just started running.  I was a mess, and in the words of my lady friend @broksocialite, “we don’t DO mess”.  Well, I was a mess of fumbling iphone and wires and I should have been focused and preparing at the start line.  Oooops!  It took me a good 14 mile or so to get myself situated and into a running groove.

Can I just say that Atlanta is humid?  HU- MID! Not just the little glisten/glow kind of humid.  It was SWEAT your balls of humid.  I assumed the heat would be a challenge to me but I also wrongly assumed that because I train at altitude, I’d be able to breath much easier and move along at a faster pace.  Wrong, and a lesson learned – the humidity made the air thick and I huffed and puffed my way along the course struggling on the intake. I knew going in that the hills would likely slow me down a bit .. and they did.  I opted not to stop and wait in line at the one and only water stop. (Just a little FYI on race water tables “best practices”, stand IN FRONT of the table and pass the water to runners as they run by!) This was a decision I definitely regretted later when I would have given almost anything for a drop of water. I’m quite certain I must have sweat several gallons of water in that short distance, as I was blinded by the sweat dripping from my forehead.  My eyes stung and in my mind’s ear,  I was panting like a hyena giving birth. Or at least what I imagine a hyena giving birth would sound like.  I just kept thinking, “You can do anything for 3 miles” and “Suck air IN, Suck air IN”. It’s funny, I felt so strong despite wanting to die.  I was going to push along no matter what!

Never Make Assumptions

My cocky assumption that I’d have an easy time breathing during this race was silly, had I given it much thought or even looked into it at all, I would have realized that the thick humid air would pose a challenge and likely cancel out any benefit I had gained from training at altitude. I’ll chalk this one up to a lack of experience but I can tell you that I won’t ever go into another race being sure of what conditions to expect.

Strange Happenings

Our bodies change as they age and if you’ve ever birthed a child you will likely see significant proof of those children, that increases with each pregnancy and birth.  I’ve had three children. My body is evidence but I practice yoga in order to combat some of the core strength weakness that I might otherwise struggle with. No matter what I do, the trauma that certain parts of my body have weathered in pushing three gorgeous little blessings can not be undone.  I do believe that practicing yoga is just about the only thing holding my hips together right now!

The Finish

The finish line was right around a corner at the bottom of a hill.  Had I known that the finish line were there I might have picked up my pace earlier, but PHEW it was nice to see that “Finish” sign!  I thought I’d pass out as I walked it off catching my breath.  (Another race note: Making runners walk 3 blocks to get water when they’ve sweat so much you can smell them a mile away??  NOT advised – Place it off to the side if you have to but WATER should be in close proximity lest would like to  have a BaneringBlonde yack in the middle of your pretty street!

@stacieinatlanta, me, @brokesocialite

For more about the race, and to read about the “RELAX” portion of the weekend join my on BanteringBlonde…

Relief...

When The Blogrollers held their #RaceRelax Weekend contest a few weeks ago, I knew I absolutely had to win. I worked that contest hard and when I won, it felt like it was “meant to be”.  Training to race a 5k is a whole different game than the half marathon or longer distance races I had been looking to run.  I plan to use the Atlanta race as a training run in my long term schedule but I’ll be running along side some very tall rock star runners and I’d like to turn in a respectable time… lest they start calling me Bumbling Blonde….

This is what my week looked like:

Monday

- 6am 60 min. Hot Power Fusion Yoga (Core Power)

- 30 minutes easy run

Tuesday

- 6am 60 min. C2 Yoga (Core Power)

Wednesday

- 60 min. Yoga II-III Vinyasa Flow (CCAC)

-  55 minute interval training on tread mill at CCAC – I climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro twice!

(since it was rainy and my club has a spa I popped in for a 50 minute sports massage ahhh)

Thursday

- 60 min.  C2 yoga (Core Power)  **bonus, Kat had a play date so I took advantage!

Friday – Rest

Saturday

- 45 minute run with Jogtunes Podcast 180 bpm peak (my nike+ wasn’t picking up so I’m not sure of the distance)

Sunday – Rest

Observations: I’m a fair weather runner and I don’t love the treadmill so every winter I fret about “losing” my groove with running.  It makes sense that I always fall right back into it because I stay very active during the winter with yoga, snowboarding, strength training etc.  The wear and tear on your body when running is pretty significant and I’ve always tried to force myself to stick to a 3-4 day a week max of actual running. As my body has changed from practicing yoga i am now convinced that I might actually be able to train a marathon with 3-4 days of running a week…. I think

I took the week to get myself back in the running frame of mind.  I am a fair weather runner so winter tends to keep me in the yoga studio with a jaunt on the tread mill here and there.  My training schedule includes 3 runs a week right now.  Since I typically practice yoga 3-5 times a week normally I’ll used those classes to cross-train and strength build.  In my opinion anyone who participates in yoga is getting quite a bit of strength training just by lifting their own body weight.

Here is what my week looked like.

Monday 5/3 -  40 minute run easy

Tuesday 5/4 – 60 min Core Power Fusion Yoga/cross train

Wednesday 5/5 – (Rest)

Thursday 5/6 – 30 minute run easy

Friday 5/7 – 60 minute Core Power C2 Yoga/cross train

Saturday 5/8 - 5k paced run – I used my Nike+ iphone app to check my pace.  I wanted a point of reference since I’ll be flying to Atlanta for #racerelax weekend THAT I WON in just four weeks.  I’d like to turn in a semi decent time and while my long term training really requires work on increasing my distance, I’ll be giving special attention to my speed/interval training runs over the next few weeks.

The 5k race that I’ll be running is on June 5th and I thought it would be fun this week to highlight some other 5k’s around the country.  Watch for this post next Friday and please comment or email fiona.bryan at momactive.com if you would like me to highlight or find a race in your area on June 5th.

Last week Michele and I announced that we’d be training to run the Inaugural Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend Oct 1-3.  No matter what your fitness level you can train for this race or any of the races we’ll run along the way.  We have LOTS of time and you’ll be amazed at how your body and mind transforms over the next 21 and a half weeks.  Did you know that most training schedules for a half marathon are only 12 weeks in length?  Yes, 12 weeks… just about three months.  We almost have enough time to train for a half marathon TWICE! When you look at it that way it doesn’t seem like such a big deal does it?

We decided to break the next 23 weeks into 3 phases, building a base in the first 8 weeks, using the 5k race as a training run prior to running a 10k.  When we get to the 3rd phase we hope to have inspired enough people along the way to be able to split into training groups so that we can customize schedules based on individual goals and experience.

Right now this is what it looks like….

Phase I:  8 weeks Build a Base (5k race at end of week

Phase II:   2 weeks – Great place to jump in! (10k race at end of week 10)

Phase III:  12 weeks half marathon training

Each week we will post an example training schedule with options for different levels.  If you would like help customizing a plan that works for you please contact me at fiona.bryan @ momactive . com and I’m happy to help you out!  Michele and I will be documenting our training and posting our personal training schedules and logs weekly.  We’ll also be posting about the nutritional advice we receive.  If you’d like to join the official MomActive Team and cross post updates from your personal blog on MomActive, let us know!

To Get Started Read:  Preparing for Phase I of The MomActive Challenge

We are so glad you are here!  Reading this post is the first step in what promises to be a fun journey.  Phase I: Week 1 kicks off on Monday May 3rd!

Walk/Run – As we mentioned last week our main goal right now is to just get out there and walk or jog for at least 30 minutes at least 3 times this week.  Start to get a feel for what the most convenient days for running are.  Also pay attention to the day or days that would work best for longer runs.  Keep in mind that we’ll be increasing the distance/time of our one day a week longer distance runs all way through to October. The days that you do not run experiment with other recreational fun activities like biking, hiking, Wii Fit, etc.

Ideally, you should be able to run for at least 30 minutes without stopping by the end of this week.  More advanced runners, take it easy and just do your thang.

Shoes/Feet

Whether you plan to run or walk with us you’ll need a good pair of shoes.  If you have a running (or walking) specialty store close by this is your best bet in finding the right shoe.  Most stores have a treadmill that you can test shoes out on and many now have video and computer analysis that will analyze your stride.  To read more about choosing a shoe and the terms pronate and supenate you can read this Runner’s World article, The Best Shoe For You.

A quick word about your feet.  Running or walking distances does not pretty feet make!  Prepare to build tough calluses and be sure to monitor and stave off any cracking or peeling.  You’ll want to keep your toe nails short, although I will say that I have lost many toenails despite keeping them short. We’ll likely talk more about different remedies and foot related products as we build our time/distance, but it is worth a quick mention before we get started.

Clothing (and a word about sports bras)

You don’t need fancy clothes or any special gear to get started running.  An old t-shirt and comfortable shorts or sweats will do.  Ok, the sports bra conversation is an important one.  WEAR A PROPER SPORTS BRA – no matter what your size you need to have good support in order to be comfortable and if you can imagine the what having kids did to them … just imagine the damage from bouncing and jiggling out of control for long periods of time.  If you are blessed, as I am, with ample bosom I want you to know that I am livin’ it right there with you and we will be devoting an entire article and MomTV program to The Sports Bra very soon.  Not all sports bras are created equally and the right bra can will be crucial when we start racking up the miles.

Nutrition

This is also a topic that we’ll be covering in detail over the entire 21-ish weeks.  Here are few tips to get you started:

• Write down what you eat – I know it seems like a pain but we’ll use this information when we start analyzing our diets to be sure that we are fueling our bodies to do what we are asking them to do!
• Drink lots of water – uber important girls, just find a water bottle you can fall in love with and keep it with you all day long.  Another topic that will be published as a full article very soon.
• Take a multi-vitamin – I’m the worst at this – I make my kids take vitamins but I never take them myself.  The fact is most of us do not get the proper amount of vitamins and mineral solely from our food intake.  We’ll work on this but let’s just consider the multi-vitamin our insurance policy to fill in the gabs.

That’s it!  No fancy diets here – we’ll talk common sense and best practices for now and as we learn more we’ll begin to incorporate and eliminate foods as needed/desired.

Any questions? Ask away  ~ you can email or leave a comment!

The MomActive mission is to motivate and inspire women to take an active role in modeling positive behaviors for their children.  There is no way around it, an integral part of your wellness is movement. You must move to be healthy.  Your children must move to be healthy.  Movement is natural and how you move and the way you move is up to you.

HOW WILL YOU MOVE?

Start where you are.  If you haven’t exercised since high school, you probably shouldn’t head out and sign up to run an 8 mile race this weekend.  If you plan to follow along with our Get Moving series, you may be surprised to see that Beginner Track for Week 1 simply asks you to get up and walk.  That’s it. Walk three times this week and then try to take a longer walk at the weekend.  Where and how far?  That is up to you, but shoot for 20 minutes and see how you feel.  Experiment with how fast you walk.  Pay attention to your posture and pull your shoulders back, soak up the sun or whatever kind of day it is.  If you are already an active runner I challenge you to experience your body as you run.  Take note of your posture and stride.  How is your body moving?  Think about this because I’ll be sharing some amazingly powerful tips that will help you run faster and farther with less exertion.  This will come in handy if you are going to run the Inaugural Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon with Team MomActive in October (or any of the many other fall half marathons around the country).

WIPE THE SLATE CLEAN

Michele and I are social media geeks, freaks, enthusiasts, however you want to label it, we believe in the power of communication.  We know that there are others like us that feed off of the energy and inspiration of others.  Today, I propose that you allow yourselves to step back and clear the slate. Forget failed diets, past attempts at fitness programs and all the other mind trash.  Regardless of your health or fitness level you can always benefit from taking a look inward.  Our lives and our bodies are not static, open your mind to the possibility that there is better and that it is attainable.

SET A GOAL

Goal setting is an incredibly powerful and motivating tool.  We speak about goals but how many of us have outlined our goals and plotted exactly what needed to happen in order to reach those goals?  The floating goal may make you feel good but without a plan it is just an empty intention.  I happen to enjoy running and I enjoy racing because I set a goal for each race and then create a plan with how I will achieve that goal.  If you have never run before and set a goal of running in a 5k race or local walk, you’ll need a plan.  The plan will take shape around what your goal in running/walking the race is.  If you are a new runner you might simply want to finish, and your training plan will take that into consideration.  If you are an avid runner you’ll likely have a different goal, perhaps to improve your time.  I often run a 5k race as part of training for a longer race.  No matter your goal you will need a plan.  Lucky for you MomActive can help you with that! You can follow along behind the scenes or you can make the leap and join our growing group of women.  We will help you identify races in your local area and set realistic goals.  MomActive Run/Walk clubs are already starting to form in Denver, CO and the DC Metro area where organizers will plan occasional meet-ups for longer runs. This is really exciting for me because I’m always looking for a buddy on those longer training runs!  Let us know if you’d like to start a club in your area and we’ll help you pull it all together.  Be sure to sign up for our Newsletter to receive more information.

Think you might want to get moving?  It can be hard to make that first step but we’ll be here, and we’ll be ready when you are!

Today, I am excited to announce the formation of a new editorial partnership with Michele McGraw, who will bring her real life experience with healthy lifestyle change to MomActive.  In addition to the introduction of a 3 part running series that will begin this week and culminate with the Oct 2nd Inaugural Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon (watch for more details tomorrow morning), we will join forces to offer support for our mutual goal of living a MomActive lifestyle. Whether you join us in running a half marathon, run a 5k or begin a new healthy lifestyle, we will offer full support along the way.

Michele McGraw ~ Partner/Editor

Michele has spent her life yo-yo dieting until 5 years ago when she lost 75 lbs and began a new healthy lifestyle for both her and her family. She has also spent the last 13+ years helping women find support online for their hobbies and lifestyles. MomActive is the perfect blend of new healthy lifestyle and her passion for offering online support. Michele is CEO of Mom Geek Media and creator of ScrapsofMyGeekLife.com, offering daily commentary, advice, reviews and shared experiences of how her real life and the digital domain connect. She is the host of the Digital Soul Hour, a technology webcast on MomTV on Wednesdays at 10pm ET. Michele is a work at home Mom of 4 kids ages 13, 11, 7 and 5. Her hobbies include digital scrapbooking, reading social media books, collecting gadgets, researching anything and dreaming about laying on the beach. She loves running, yoga and EA SPORTS Active

It’s hard finding comfortable active wear when you’re pregnant. Sure, you could resort to wearing oversized shirts that don’t fit anywhere but over the growing bump or you could wear your regular clothes until they stretch no further and your belly pokes out from underneath your shirt every time you move. I’ll admit I’ve fallen victim to both fashion crimes in the past, but never again! Why? Because now I know that there is a company out there that makes active wear for pregnant women!

I was recently sent the Eamon Hoodie from Jakfish to review. I wasn’t sure what to expect at first and was pleasantly surprised when the package arrived. The Eamon Hoodie is made of a lightweight Polartec Power Stretch. It has a body hugging 4-way stretch that wicks away moisture, is highly breathable and is wind and abrasion resistant.

The hoodie is extremely comfortable. I have worn it both with and without other tops, and have been comfortable each and every time. I am currently 32 weeks pregnant and have a 17 month old as well, so it’s not often that I am sitting still. Despite the cold weather we have been having here in the Midwest, it’s also not often that I wear a long sleeved top. I’m always hot and it’s not uncommon to see me running around at home in a tank top. I feared that the Eamon hoodie would be too warm for me, but it wasn’t. In fact, I almost forgot that I was wearing something with long sleeves.

Some things that I love about the hoodie…
The side zips. They are so practical! I don’t need to open them all the way yet, but I have half zipped them to give me some more room to move. I love that the zippers stay in place. If I want it to be half zipped, it stays that way!
The hood. Let’s face it, it has been cold here in the Midwest and you need to have something on your head to stay warm. I’m not a big fan of wearing hats though, so the fitted hood works great for me!
It’s lightweight. You can wear it alone, with something underneath or something over it. I didn’t get sweaty or too hot, no matter how I wore it or what I did while wearing it.
It fit. Compared to some of the other options that are out, there it was nice to be able to wear a hoodie that didn’t expose parts of my belly when I lifted my arms and wasn’t so big that I felt like I was swimming in it. This top stretches and moves with me and I wasn’t constantly pulling and tugging on it like I do with some other tops that I have.

Overall, I am extremely happy with the hoodie. It’s great to wear no matter what you’re doing, whether that’s running around trying to catch up with a toddler, going for a walk outdoors or just taking it easy at home. Thank you to both MomActive and Jakfish the opportunity to do this review.

All Jakfish clothing is made in Vermont and is specifically designed to fit women throughout all the stages of pregnancy, while retaining all of the characteristics active people expect from performance clothing.  The clothing is made from Polartec® fabrics and in 2008, two Jakfish products won the Polartec APEX Award which is judged on innovation, design, style, workmanship, fit and functionality.

Enter to win a Jakfish Eamon Hoodie! Simply visit the Jakfish website and then come back here and let us know which item caught your eye!

Extra Entries: (leave a separate comment for each entry)

1. Subscribe to MomActive HERE

2. Fan MomActive on Facebook HERE

3. Tweet the following Tweet:

Pregnant? Enter to win the Eamon Hoodie from Jakfish @momactive http://bit.ly/clDTvv

or

I just entered to win a $106 Jakfish Eamon Hoodie from @momactive http://bit.ly/clDTvv

~Entries must be received by 12am EST March 12, 2010 ~

MomActive would like to thank Michaela of Mama Michie’s Musings for guest reviewing.  Michaela was compensated for this review via free product, the opinions stated above are hers based on her experience.  We wish her the best of health with her pregnancy!

Join me as I muse about my life as a wife, student and a SAHMama of a rambunctious toddler with another on the way. At Mama Michie’s Musings, you will find anything from teething to bugs, sleepless nights to stretch marks, reviews and giveaways and sometimes even more serious topics. It all depends on what’s on my mind and how much sleep I got the night before!

Michele Obama’s initiative to combat the childhood obesity epidemic launches today. The effort, pegged “Let’s Move“, will focus on “four key pillars”: Educating parents about nutrition and exercise, improving the quality of food in schools, making healthy foods more affordable and accessible for families and an increased focus on physical education.  Whether you agree on the extent to which she has used her own children in as an example or not, you have to admit that this is a good thing.  Our kids are growing up eating junk food, watching TV that encourages them to eat junk food , and they are also getting outside to play far less often than they did while you and I were growing up.  Drive down any street, anywhere in the country, and the number and variety of fast food joints, where half of the food options contain more fat and calories than most of us need in an entire day, is overwhelming.  I’m not a “Big Government” fan but I do think that convenience has become the norm and it will be interesting to see what impact this initiative will have.

I couldn’t help but laugh when reading the following excerpt from ABCnews.com:

To help parents, the first lady said she’s working with the Food and Drug Administration and major food manufacturers and retailers to make it easier for parents to identify healthier foods by placing nutrition labeling on the front of the package.

Did we not have that earlier last year with the Smart Choices Campaign, in which Froot Loops donned the fabulously attractive and trendy green Smart Choices check mark?  I wrote several fiery posts here and on momactive.com blasting the program and the greedy scoundrels behind it.  If you missed it you can read about it right HERE and HERE. The quacks behind this ridiculous marketing effort have since stopped labeling foods with the Smart Choices check mark because the guidelines were so laughable that the FDA announced that it was looking into the “scientific criteria” used to designate foods that manufacturers who participated (read PAID) to take part in the labeling program.  The uproar surrounding the whole thing created a massive PR disaster for all involved and served as a lesson putting the big corporations on notice that consumers aren’t as stupid as they’d like to think we are.  I would love to hear what Michele Obama thought about Smart Choices.

What Michele Obama is trying to do isn’t exactly new.  I grew up with the Kennedy era President’s Council on Physical Fitness (which was actually just a renaming of the President’s Council on Youth Fitness started by Eisenhowerin 1956).  Remember the test?  The one where you have to try to touch your toes and where they measure your arm fat with the calipers?  I remember very clearly that I outran every boy in my class but I didn’t like the arm fat thing…  In any case, “Let’s Move” is similar to past government efforts, but perhaps the effort to increase nutritional education and improve the availability and cost of healthier foods will achieve a reduction in our country’s obesity rates.  Those of you that watch the show on MomTv will remember our discussion last week about a study that showed people responded more positively, and as a result purchased a greater amount of healthier foods more often, when given access to a reduction in the cost of healthy food choices in addition to nutrition education, versus those who only received the nutritional information.

Will “Lets Move” make a difference?  Let’s us know what you think!

Our guest author today is official EA Sport Active Six Week Challenger, Michele McGraw.  Many of our readers have expressed interest in taking on the EA Sports Active More Workouts Six Week Challenge so we decided to start an official MomActive challenge beginning this MONDAY January 11th.  If you are interested in participating with us email info@momactive.com.  You can find Michele at ScrapsofMyGeekLife.com and @ScrappinMichele on Twitter. Michele will be our coach and share some of the awesome tips she learned while in HOLLYWOOD with EA Sports Active this weekend!

In the last few years, I have struggled with trying to live a healthy lifestyle for me and for my family. I can convince myself of the benefits of working out and eating healthy, but it’s much more difficult to convince my family (especially my kids) that eating healthy foods and working out is a lot more fun that eating candy and playing video games.

When I saw that EA SPORTS was coming out with an interactive fitness product for the Wii, I jumped on it. I hoped I could convince my family to use the Wii. I purchased EA SPORTS Active Personal Trainer the day it came out and put it in the Wii when the kids got home from school. I didn’t ask them to play, I just worked out and slowly one by one (I have four), they came in to see why Mom was jumping around so much. They all wanted to play along and fought over who gets to play next. That was my strategy for getting my family hooked and it worked.

I completed the 30 day workout and lost 6 pounds and 6 inches, but more importantly, I continued to workout because it was fun. And I noticed a few other benefits:

• More energy throughout my day.
• I wanted to eat healthier because I felt better.
• I looked forward to my workouts instead of dreading them.
• My kids began to ask me lots of questions about healthy foods. Which foods are healthy? Which foods are not good for you?

The best benefit for me was running a 5k with my family this past October. We participated in the EA SPORTS Active 5K challenge after training and using the program set up by EA SPORTS Active. My 10 and 13 year old kids ran the entire 5k with me during a very cold, windy and (pouring) rainy morning.

When the 5k was over, my 13 year old said to me, “When do we start training for next year?”

I knew then that I had succeeded in showing my kids that living a healthy lifestyle can be fun. I felt such pride in my family for such a great accomplishment. I wanted to share that with others which is why I wanted to be an EA SPORTS Active 6 Week Challenger.

One of my biggest hurdles every year is Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve. Every year I easily gain up to 10 pounds. The food is abundant and delicious and my time is scarce and chaotic.

This past holiday season, I am proud to say that because of the 6 week challenge in the EA Sports Active More Workouts, I lost 6 lbs and 5.5 inches. I still was able to enjoy my holiday meals, some cookies, holiday parties, a trip away with my husband and because I continued to workout with the EA Sports Active, I managed to lose weight. I did not feel deprived at all instead I feel really proud.