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Apr 28 2014

You don’t start with the marathon

by Marilyn McKenna

This is #2 of the “top 10 lessons that becoming an athlete have taught me about weight loss” that appeared in the “Building Sweat Equity” blog. In my mind, “you don’t start with the marathon” means that you don’t start at the end-point of a goal. You must start at the beginning and progress incrementally. […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness, Weight Loss

Apr 24 2014

Building Sweat Equity

by Marilyn McKenna

The blog I wrote last week, “Does Everybody Have An Inner-Athlete?” really got me started thinking. What is it about becoming an athlete that has not just changed my body, but changed how I think about food, changed how I spend my time, and changed how I view my future? Exercise has so many lessons […]

Filed Under: Fitness

Apr 22 2014

Get Your Zen On

by Marilyn McKenna

Yoga is the full meal deal when it comes to exercise. It incorporates four key elements of fitness: strength, stamina, balance and flexibility. Five, I suppose, if you count mind-body connection. Which you should. So okay, five. First, let me say that there are approximately 147 different kinds of yoga. (I’m exaggerating. I do that.) […]

Filed Under: Fitness

Apr 18 2014

Does everybody have an “inner-athlete”?

by Marilyn McKenna

I don’t know. I do know that 120 lbs. ago I would’ve told you I didn’t have one. Turns out, I was wrong. I do have an inner-athlete and I have harnessed her strength and drive to finally put to rest the food demons that tormented me most of my life. Becoming an athlete means […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness, Strength Training

Apr 17 2014

Your Strength Training Workout

by Marilyn McKenna

I might as well fess up now; I didn’t actually put together this strength training workout for you. My trainer did it. She’s a genius. At exercise, and a bunch of other stuff too. Lucky for us, she said I could share it with you as a good example of an introductory strength training workout. […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Strength Training

Apr 15 2014

Strength Training Magic

by Marilyn McKenna

Now that last week’s blogs got you all jacked up to start a running or walking regimen, I’m going to tell you to STOP! No, I’m just kidding. Don’t stop. But do add in strength training. You won’t end up looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger, I promise. Even if you’re a guy it’s difficult without hours […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Strength Training

Apr 10 2014

Top 10 Running Gadgets & Gizmos

by Marilyn McKenna

In Tuesday’s blog, “Run That By Me Again” I said that for about $100 you can get outfitted for a great pair of running / walking shoes. Truthfully, a good-fitting pair of shoes is all you need to get started on a running or walking fitness program. But you know I’ve got more goodies in […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness

Apr 9 2014

Play Your Cardios Right

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness, Videos

Apr 8 2014

Run That By Me Again

by Marilyn McKenna

Walking and running have the lowest cost of entry of nearly any sport and are among the most convenient. Think about it, a good pair of shoes, a lively playlist and you can leave right from your own driveway. How much simpler can it be? Certainly there are other great ways to get a cardiovascular […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness

Apr 3 2014

What Floats Your Boat?

by Marilyn McKenna

A couple months ago I wrote a blog “Motivation Comes and Goes Like a Bad Mood” which made the point that we’re creating healthy habits rather than waiting around for some elusive wave of motivation to come and wash over us. And it’s true that creating a habit of exercise will increase the likelihood you’ll […]

Filed Under: Fitness

Jan 31 2014

Interview With My Mom – Part 3

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Healthy Families, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 29 2014

Interview With My Mom – Part 2

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Healthy Families, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 28 2014

Ditch the Time Wasters

by Marilyn McKenna

Along with 1) choosing an eating plan for life, 2) setting realistic achievable goals, and 3) working at both of those things consistently, the final pillar of the “Ready, Set … Goals” series is prioritizing. You must actively prioritize healthy habits in your life or they will not happen. We all get 24 hours in […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Weight Loss

Jan 27 2014

Interview with my mom

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Healthy Families, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 21 2014

Consistency is Key

by Marilyn McKenna

What are the things you do every day, without really even thinking about them? You brush your teeth, hopefully floss, go to work, check your child’s homework, watch “The Bachelor.” Just kidding on that one! The things that you do every day, those habits that you have adopted and no longer even think about, are […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Weight Loss

Jan 16 2014

See the Weight Loss Photo that Facebook Banned

by Marilyn McKenna

Go Marilyn McKenna!  If you haven’t heard of Marilyn, maybe you’ve seen her photo…but not on Facebook.  According to several news sources, Facebook banned this photo (see inset) that Marilyn posted last week.  It seems that the social media site viewed the picture as an advertisement and it violated the site’s policy by promoting idealized physical […]

Filed Under: Fitness, In The News, Style + Substance, Weight Loss

Jan 10 2014

Interview with Jill: Part 5

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 9 2014

Interview with Jill: Part 4

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 8 2014

Interview with Jill: Part 3

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 7 2014

Interview with Jill: Part 2

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 6 2014

Motivation comes and goes like a bad mood

by Marilyn McKenna

You’ve heard it before; you’ve probably said it before… “I’m just not motivated to work out!” Feel free to substitute “eat right” or just about anything else that you feel you should be doing that you’re not doing. You feel like, if only you could harness that elusive motivation you’d make it to the gym […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Weight Loss

Jan 6 2014

Interview with Jill: Part 1

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Interviews, Videos, Weight Loss

Jan 2 2014

Goals are the Difference Between Success and Failure

by Marilyn McKenna

Goal-setting is imperative to implementing a new direction in your life, but when it comes to weight loss and fitness, well, this is the fun stuff! You get to think big! Obviously since my theme for January is “Ready, Set … Goals!” I believe that goals are critical to weight loss. Like I said in […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Weight Loss

Dec 12 2013

Give ’em Gifts That Matter

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Healthy Families, Videos, Weight Loss

Dec 6 2013

Everyday Activity: A Graduate Level Course

by Marilyn McKenna

Incorporating activity into your everyday life can become addictive; at the very least I hope that it’ll become a habit for you. It certainly has for me! Once daily exercise and constant movement have become second nature to you, you may find yourself wanting to up the ante a little bit. There are ways to […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Close to Home, Fitness, Healthy Families, Weight Loss

Dec 5 2013

If I can move, I will move

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness, Videos, Weight Loss

Dec 4 2013

Top 10 Ways to Fit Activity into Daily Life

by Marilyn McKenna

Choosing the more active path rather than the sedentary one is a guiding principle for living a long and healthy life. Forgive my bluntness, but there’s a reason you don’t see a lot of really old people who are fat. They’re all dead. Building activity into your everyday life is a mindset. It makes you […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness, Healthy Families, Weight Loss

Dec 2 2013

Choose to move

by Marilyn McKenna

Most every day I hear people say that family is the most important thing in their lives. Yet consistently they act as if that double bacon cheeseburger were the most important thing in their lives. Because in a very real way, when you choose the double bacon cheeseburger (or the cookie dough ice cream or […]

Filed Under: Close to Home, Fitness, Weight Loss

Nov 14 2013

Man up!

by Marilyn McKenna

Cross-training is how you avoid injury and tax muscles in different ways, increasing overall fitness. Moving outside of your comfort zone means you try new forms of exercise, to keep things interesting and challenging. That’s all good. But what if you’re too self-conscious to try something new? Maybe you’re too busy to think about a […]

Filed Under: Fitness

Nov 13 2013

Comfort Zones are Overrated

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Videos, Weight Loss

Nov 13 2013

Comfort zones are overrated

by Marilyn McKenna

When you embark on a new eating plan you try lots of new-to-you foods. Grains like quinoa (pronounced keen-wah), amaranth and spelt. Greens like arugula, watercress and chard. Similarly, when you’re trying new forms of exercise be open to a broad range of possibilities. Not everything you try is gonna stick, right?  You may find […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Weight Loss

Nov 10 2013

Cross-training doesn’t just sound cool — it is cool

by Marilyn McKenna

When I was fat – sorry if that word offends you; I don’t use euphemisms for it when I’m talking about myself – all sorts of exercise intimidated me. I was embarrassed to try something new and look foolish. I was nervous because it was unfamiliar, but even more so because of my physical size. […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness, Strength Training Tagged With: Cross Training, Exercise, Fitness

Oct 8 2013

The Physicality Principle

by Marilyn McKenna

Filed Under: Fitness, Videos, Weight Loss

Apr 21 2013

The newly irrepressible Marilyn McKenna

by Marilyn McKenna

“You can’t print half of what I say,” Marilyn McKenna declared, before I’d even had a sip of my latte. I couldn’t tell if she’s talking about this conversation, or her recent flurry of tweets, which have kicked up plenty of chatter after the cursory Quiet Period following her husband Rob McKenna’s defeat in the […]

Filed Under: Fitness, In The News, Style + Substance, Weight Loss

Dec 20 2012

Bring Those Baked Goods Into My Gym at Your Peril

by Marilyn McKenna

I’m a bit of a gym rat, I’ll admit it. I like the ritual of packing a gym bag, grabbing a water bottle, my iPod and heading to the gym. I look forward to breaking a good sweat (all sweat is good, btw) and the camaraderie of like-minded gym rats. I also love to see […]

Filed Under: Fitness, Healthy Families, Weight Loss Tagged With: Bake Sale

Nov 8 2012

Four-Mile Run in the Produce Section

by Marilyn McKenna

I may have mentioned that I like running … once or twice (ahem). At my age – perhaps a tad over 30 – it can be a cruel companion. Running is hard on my body. Sometimes my body protests … loudly! For example, while I was training for the Seattle Marathon in the fall of […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness, Weight Loss Tagged With: Fitness, Running

Jan 10 2012

Who’s That Lunatic on the Treadmill?

by Marilyn McKenna

Have you ever seen that crazy person on the treadmill who is either jamming to their tunes or swinging their arms around or maybe walking backwards or sideways? And you’re thinking to yourself, “What the heck are they doing? They look positively insane!” Yeah … that’s me. In my own defense, can I just say […]

Filed Under: Cardio, Fitness Tagged With: Fitness, Running, Treadmill

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