Countdown to Fitness

This is my favorite guacamole recipe.  Not only use it with Mexican food, chips, and main dishes, but also use it instead of mayonnaise on sandwiches and salad dressing.  It’s delicious and healthy, too.

Tip: Use avocados slices or guacamole in place of mayonnaise to cut the calories and fat. (more…)

Research suggests the answer is, YES, when talking about processed foods!

Just by cutting out many of the products with refined corn, switching to a healthier brand, or making the product myself, my husband and I started to lose weight.  We weren’t watching calories or anything else at the time.

My husband, who has been running for 3 years, was stuck at a plateau on his weight for most of those 3 years, even though he was running 30 miles per week.  Without changing anything else except getting rid of the worst of the processed products (especially those with high-fructose corn syrup — HFCS), he lost more than 10 pounds. (more…)

If you want to become healthier or lose weight, or perhaps you are just interested in knowing more about what you are eating, I highly recommend The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan. This bestselling book has truly changed my family members’ lives for the better, giving us a rather shocking understanding, at times, of what we were actually eating.

“What should we have for dinner?” is the opening question, which is part of the omnivore’s dilemma.  Your answer may, indeed, change once you read this book.  Mine did.  I’ll never look at processed foods the same way again. (more…)

My friend and I are starting this site as a project to not only see where we are in one year, but also to help the community.

I used to be in great shape (a size 3/4), and I use to power walk 5 to 6 days per week, do karate 2 to 3 days per week, and weight train 3 days per week.  That all came crashing down when I broke all the cartilage in my chest at karate.  I had to stop all my activities as anything, such as swinging my arms, lifting a light box, and even vacuuming, was very painful.  I kept rebreaking my cartilage, so it took more than 2 years to heal up.  Then, I homeschooled for 10 years.

Now, I’m focused on getting back in shape and have already begun to do so.  I’ve done a lot of research into how to prevent injuries when walking and running, which I will post on this site.  Yes, a few weeks ago I started to run for the first time ever!  Hopefully, I’ll be running a 5K in May. Also, I’ve done a lot of research into increasing one’s metabolism, which I will also post.  I was unknowingly slowing mine.  Are you slowing yours?

Welcome to Countdown to Fitness as we get fit together!