Blog Archives
Recharging My Batteries
Exactly what I’m doing right now.
Visiting my sister in Southern California, going for hikes, tasting wine, exploring the mountains and the beach, soaking up some sun, and enjoying family time.
Do I have to come back to Chicago?
In Some Not Funny At All Eating Disorder News…
Again, Glamour gave me today’s material.
Do you know what this is? It’s a Halloween costume. Called ‘Anna Rexia.‘ It features a visible skeleton, a measuring tape around the waist, and a tiny little heart serving as a name tag. And it was actually for sale online. This wasn’t a joke, and even if it were, it wouldn’t be funny. I wouldn’t necessarily say this glorifies eating disorders, but it makes light of it, as if it weren’t a real condition, which I find just as disturbing. How would people react if someone went as cancer? I’m honestly not sure why or how you would do that, but I’m just making a point here. I doubt anyone would think THAT was funny.
And there’s something about the fact that it’s a very revealing costume (duh, as a female between the ages of 18 and 35, you can’t dress up on Halloween unless it’s something plenty skanky. Whatever you decide to be, it must be a Skanky Nurse, Cop, Doctor, Vampire, [fill in the blank], right?) that makes it even worse. The very small amount of fabric used here in and of itself implies that one must be fairly thin to wear it. And that skeleton really drives the point home. [Edited to add: Apparently there is a plus-sized version, but I don't think the design is quite the same.]
We already see EDs and unhealthy thinness glamorized on TV constantly, from teen shows like Gossip Girl and Greek (in an early episode, one of the already very thin girls eats chips right before rush starts and when the sorority president reminds her of this, she says tells the other girls she’ll be right back and heads for the bathroom) to reality TV like the Bachelor Pad (one of the male contestants called a very much smaller-than-average-sized woman ‘thick’ when describing his first impression of her). I don’t really think we need a Halloween costume to do any additional damage.
Thoughts? Who’s with me? Who thinks the folks at Glamour (and myself and The Village Voice) are overreacting? Whatever your opinion — spill! I wanna hear it!
An Egg-cellent Weekend
Yeah, the title. I know. But it’s Monday morning. Cut me a little slack.
How was your weekend? If you celebrate it, how was your Easter? My parents were in town from Michigan, and we packed quite a bit in during their short stay. We walked a lot, shopped a little, took in a show at Second City (so hilarious!), went to Easter mass, and headed to Grand Luxe for Easter brunch. It was a busy weekend, but honestly? I didn’t have a hard time sticking to my exercise and food plan at all. I’ve been getting more serious about the figure competition this fall, and staying on track just took a few tweaks. I’ve been seeing everyone’s Facebook statuses and Twitter updates about how they overindulged this weekend and need to get back on the wagon today, and…I guess I just don’t really feel like that.
I’m certainly not trying to sound self-righteous here, because there are holidays where I just go ahead and go all out, but Easter isn’t necessarily one of them for me. I’ve certainly had some nasty run-ins with the goodies the big bunny has left me, but that’s not always the case. Besides jelly beans and Cadbury eggs, there aren’t any certain foods I associate with the holiday. And even those aren’t must-haves for me on Easter Sunday, like sweet potatoes are on Thanksgiving or peppermint bark is on Christmas (can you tell I’m a sweets girl?). So this past Sunday, how did I handle myself? I told my mom not to get me any candy for an Easter basket (she got me a Starbucks card and Body Shop goodies instead), I stocked up on healthy groceries, and my big indulgence was a veggie-filled egg white omelet at brunch (more of an indulgence because I didn’t have to make it myself!). Plus, Grand Luxe was super accommodating, and when I asked for a side of veggies instead of hash browns, they practically gave me a whole head of broccoli!
Anyway, I may not be an Easter food person, but maybe you are? Was Easter your day to indulge? What was your must-eat food? Or was it just another day of eating for you? If Easter isn’t your food holiday, which one is? Spill!
First Ever Fitness Challenge UPDATE
Hi all! I’ve gotten a number of emails asking when this challenge was starting, and unfortunately we’re going to push it back a week or two. Life has just been unexpectedly crazy the past few weeks, and I didn’t want the challenge to fall apart because I was all over the place. Plus, I need a certain number of participants and I’m still one or two shy because some folks were still deciding and hadn’t gotten back to me. SO, if you are still interested in the fitness challenge, then shoot me an email (hguith at gmail dot com) with your ‘YES, Heather, I need a kick in the pants because I still haven’t used my gym membership I bought on December 31st, and I think my gym is laughing its way to the bank at all of the resolution saps, and I don’t want to be one of them’ response. Or you know, just, ‘Yeah, I want a chance to win money for working out.’ If you didn’t get the details the first time around, shoot me an email too! I can send you the rules in a separate email and we can go from there. The main idea is that you need to move 30 minutes per day for 30 days. And just a reminder that the grand prize is worth at least $250! And I’ll have some other prizes as well, in different categories, so don’t fret if you don’t win the overall prize! I want everyone of every fitness level to be able to participate, so email me for details or to confirm your participation.
In other news, how are everyone’s goals (if you set any) coming along? So far so good on mine! I haven’t missed any workouts, I’m in the process of clearing the junk from my room, and I’ve been pretty social if I do say so myself! So tell me how you’re doing and how you plan to go get ‘em this month! Spill!
On the Brink
So it’s New Year’s Eve, huh? As much as I’ve hyped this night up in past years, I’m kind of over it this year. Not in a totally jaded way, but more in ‘what will be will be’ way. You know?
I’m so ready for 2011 in so many ways. I’m ready for a fresh start. I’m not necessarily sad that 2010 is over.
Why is 2011 so exciting? I’ve got a lot of big goals, and they feel so much different than last year’s. I still have fitness goals, but I’ve got a lot of other goals that are aimed at making me a better-rounded person. So what do I want to accomplish this year? Here’s an overview for the year:
1) Own all of my decisions, opinions, and goals. I’m pretty outspoken, but sometimes I still act like my views aren’t valid or that I need to explain myself. I justify a lot instead of just stating that I’m doing something and going for it. Less explaining (unless someone asks) and more doing. I’m going to live my own life.
2) To compete in a figure competition. Yup. I want to be one of those crazies who loves being perpetually sore, gets pumped about going to the gym, and eats the exact same thing every single day — all for the end goal of being jacked (while still looking like a lady) and owning a pair of clear lucite heels. I actually already started on this one, and I am surprisingly in love with lifting the majority of the week.
3) Make my relationships and social life a priority. This might be a challenge to combine this #2, but I’ll make it work. This year was interesting as far as relationships went — and I mean all kinds of relationships. Working a lot made it hard to stay close to folks sometimes, or to be a good daughter and visit home as much as I should have, so I want to remedy those. My romantic life had its ups and downs (and there was a lot of good that I’ll never forget, so this is certainly not a sad thing), and I learned a lot about myself and about what I want, so I’m going to be up front about that the next time I date someone. Number one on the agenda for how to build and maintain relationships is accepting more social invitations instead of being lame and saying I’m tired. Because you never know who you’ll meet! I’m really taking this one to heart because I forgot how much I missed my friends and making new ones. So instead of staying in and cleaning my closet like I said I was going to do, I’m going to put on a party dress and have fun with one of my oldest friends.
4) Getting to where I want to be in my career. Whether this is striking out on my own more or building my side projects up a bit, I want to start heading in the right direction. The figure competition has a little bit to do with this, since I honestly know that if I look the part a little more, then people will take me seriously as a trainer. I know that I know my shiz, but hey, sometimes people do judge a book by its cover. I also want to continue my education (just registered for more ISSA online courses!), and to connect to my clients even more regarding their goals, strengths, and weaknesses. I know a lot of my clients really well, but I want to push them even more to achieve whatever they’re aiming for.
5) Become a better blogger and writer. Over at Hollaback Health, we all shared our blog resolutions, so if you’re super curious about mine, check it out. I just want my blog to look cleaner and I want to get organized when it comes to blogging. Not only because writing is a huge passion of mine (and the only way I’m actually using my degree), but because I’ve recently linked my business to it.
6) Get organized. I’m working on putting this into different categories (get it? GET IT?), so check back soon.
I’m going to break these down into month-by-month goals, but these are the big overarching themes of the year. While I do have a fitness goal, I’m pretty happy that I’ve got goals in a lot of other areas of my life as well. I feel like my life is on the upswing, and I’m excited about all of it, not just one small part of it.
Since we’re on the brink of the new year, I want to know: what are your goals for the year? (Or just the month if you’re working on baby steps here) Do you have any goals similar to mine? What’s the biggest area of your life you’d like to focus on? How do you plan to do it? And last, but not least, what are you doing tonight? Party dress or PJs? Both? Spill!
Merry Christmas to Me
Hi all! First, thank you so much for the music suggestions! I got pumped up enough to not completely slack at home. Second, I hope you had a fab Christmas if you celebrate it, and I hope Santa brought you everything you asked for! I got some new fitness swag and a heart rate monitor! In the past I was a little opposed to these suckers because I thought you should listen to your body during workouts and not rely on a little device to tell you how hard you’re working. I still sort of think this, but I did want to see what it was all about! I also was interested in checking out how many calories I was burning in my average workout. So far, I like it, but I think I need to adjust the settings because it told me I burned a ridic amount of calories for what I had done, and it told me my heart rate was super high, which is weird because my RHM is normally super low (as in, a few years ago my docs told me if it dropped anymore to call them because I might be dead. Don’t worry, it’s a little higher now so I’m alive and kickin’!). Oh well, that’s what instruction manuals are for!
Anyway, I also got a little something after the holidays when I returned to Chicago! Yesterday, I got a package from the Connecticut, and I thought, ‘Oooh, who do I know in CT?’ But then my thoughts turned crazy for about 30 seconds as I wondered, ‘OMG, who did I give my ADDRESS to in CT?! Who knows where I live!?!’
But then I opened it and realized it was my Hollaback gift exchange present from the lovely Angela over at A Healthy Fit! And, oh man, she nailed it! This was an awesome gift that included everything that I love!
Dark chocolate with almonds and sea salt (already half gone…), packets of Justin’s nut butters…
..and the best part of all…
'Because that ass needs a miracle'
‘Dieting with Jesus’ magnets!!
I seriously cracked up when I opened these! My favorite had to be the ‘Your body is a temple. Fill it with salad’ magnet, but every single one made me laugh. Although I am Catholic, I have a sense of humor about my faith. I think all of my people do. We’re kind of the fun-loving rascals of the Christian faith. At least that’s how I like to look at it.
Thank you so much, Angela! This was an awesome gift!
If you celebrate, how was your holiday? Highlights? (Mine were seeing my dad dressed up as Santa — again — and getting to spend time with all of my cousins.) If not, how was your weekend? Spill it! And if you’ve got exciting New Year’s Eve plans, tell us what you’re doing!
Friday Fun: Holiday Link Love
Today is crazy with work, the gym, and winter festivities, but I’m feeling full of holiday cheer over here, so I wanted to share some love… link love! And sticking with today’s theme, all of these posts are fun and holiday related!
First up is my IRL as well as blog friend, Rachel Wilkerson with how her family does Christmas cards. We’ve known each other since we were both nerdy Holy Family kids and I saw her pushing some kid from our class around on the ice and quipping, ‘Never underestimate the power of a woman.’ In third grade. Anyway, I actually still have that first card she has posted on her blog, so I always look forward to her latest holiday greeting!
This second one isn’t necessarily related to the holidays, other than the fact that I HAVE to make these triple layer mint s’more brownies for Christmas Eve at my aunt’s house. Thanks, Jenna, for inspiring my Thanksgiving AND Christmas desserts!
I’m not much of a cook, but Meredith reminded me how much baking gets me in the holiday spirit! Even if I don’t go hog wild on the desserts, I still like making them and seeing my family members’ faces when I actually make something that’s a hit! And this post has me suddenly needing to go bake something –anything — gingerbread.
Nothing says the holidays like Christmas tunes, and Bridget’s post, ‘Walking in a Winter Wonderland‘ not only made me want to bust out my iTunes winter playlist (again), but it also got me really excited to get home to Michigan!
AJ’s account of her short trip home to see the fam reminded me of making gingerbread houses when I was little (OK, last year too. And fine, they were graham cracker houses.)
This one has nothing to do with the holidays, honestly, but I just think this girl is so darn funny, and Melissa’s Friday ‘It’s OK!’ feature always cracks me up. Favorite line from today? ‘ It’s OK: To disagree when someone says, “It hurts so good!” No it doesn’t.’ Because even though I’m a trainer, I sometimes swear a lot and think about how much I hate an exercise when my legs are shaking and burning. It really does just hurt. Not so good.
Who else is being festive in the blogosphere lately? Who’d I miss? (It was a short list, so I’m sure I missed someone!) Read these posts and then let me know!
First-Ever Fitness Challenge!
Hi guys! Quick post today to let you all know about a fitness challenge that I’m hosting this holiday season! Right after the holidays we want to get everyone jump started on their fitness goals (if you haven’t already been working on them!), so we’re hosting a 30 for 30 Challenge. The main idea is that we want everyone to move for 30 minutes every day for 30 days! And the grand prize will be at least $250! We’ll also have smaller prizes for other participants as well. If you’re serious about getting fit and want more info about the challenge, leave a comment or shoot me an email at hguith at gmail dot com so that I can email you all of the contest details!
Happy Holidays, everyone!
