Calories From Alcohol

How many pounds you can put on from alcohol is a frequent topic of conversation among fitness enthusiasts.

While some folks who are serious about fitness do not consume alcohol, there are those who enjoy it.  They particularly enjoy it when they have finished an event. 

This article from Becky Hand at www.dailyspark.com details the calories attached to various drinks.  For example, a 12-ounce beer has as much as 140 calories.  One can gain up to 15 pounds consuming a daily beer at that rate!

Know what the costs are of what your consuming the next time you enjoy a drink!

More Motivation

Here's a bit of motivation so as not to fail.

Check out this post from the Run To The Finish blog, particularly if you have had trouble accomplishing something.

Did you know Thomas Edison had 9,000 experiments before he perfected the light bulb or that Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team due to "lack of skill"? 

Failure truly represents failure only when you don't learn from it.

Need Motivation?

Sometimes we just need a little nudge.

Here is a link to a series of motivational quotes and references designed to help keep you moving from Christine Luff at www.about.com.

If you are like me, motivational quotes are often helpful to me when I am training for a specific event or I am a bit down.

Winter Activity Tips

If you're living in the Midwest like I do, it's hard to say what the weather will be like.

Recently, we have had days that make you think we live further south.  However, the winter months have a habit of moving people indoors even if the weather is mild. 

For the sake of argument, let's assume you want to get outside for some fitness activities. Some advice from Ben Greenfield at www.active.com might come in handy. 

Start small and build yourself up.

Offseason Treadmill Workouts

It is still not spring yet.

So, that means you might still be doing workouts on the treadmill.  Treadmills . . . I don't many who enjoy using them.  However, if you live in a cold winter climate like I do, it is a necessary evil.

Here are some treadmill workouts from triathlon coach Justin Levine posted on www.active.com. They provide a variety of different approaches to making for a few effective runs on your treadmill.

Running Warmup

Stretching prior to a run is a good thing.

However, read this post from Matt Fitzgerald at www.competitor.com.  You will learn that stretching is great prior to the run, but it should be accompanied by "warmup" activities.

Fitzgerald lists some suggestions of activities to get yourself warmed up along with a video.  Make sure to take time to properly warm up before your runs.

Celebrating Running

It's pretty cool to have been able to run for many years.

For me, I just celebrated 15 years of consistent running - among other activities, of course.  Also taking some breaks for injuries, of course too.  This post from the Run DMZ blog on celebrating 20 years of road races made think back and reflect on my running over the past several years.

At times, it has not been easy.  My share of knee issues sometimes keeps me on the sidelines.  However, those injuries have taught me the benefit of just enjoying running as opposed to trying to be so competitive.  My hope is that I will enjoy the sport of running a lot longer taking this attitude.

In any event, take a moment to celebrate your running . . . or any other physical activity you choose to enjoy.