Fit Links Friday: All about Fiber.

Happy Friday everyone!!!
So silly me who has been thoroughly enjoying vacation, gets to head back to work today! I know, who works just Fridays?
Guess that’d be this girl.
Really though, I only had four vacation days accrued, and it worked out really, me having to take them, before next Friday, which is MY LAST DAY OF WORK!
Hard to believe that I’m actually going back to school, but I’m ready.

I can’t remember if I heard this somewhere or dreamt about it last night, but I remember something about chasing the dream, even if it scares you (not like physically-fear-I’m-in-trouble-type-of-thing but I’m-not-sure-this-is-the-right-move-at-the-right-time-thing.) because God will be there. We just have to move forward.
So that’s what I’m doing as of next week. Moving forward to the next part of life.
Now on to some weekend reading for you!

1. You all know I’m on a LUNA kick lately, and for good reason. Well, it turns out that fiber actually seems to be all the rage right now, anyway. Did you know that more that 42% of Americans are on track for obesity? And that fiber could be the key to fighting that? Not only does fiber promote good digestive health (hello healthy g.i.) but it can also improve cardiovascular health, and help lower cholesterol. Women are supposed to get between 20-30 grams of fiber A DAY, which can be hard if you aren’t going to eat beans with every meal, but now there are more options out there. One, being the new Luna bars hitting shelves this month, and something I like to do is throw a couple of tablespoons of flax seed into whatever I’m cooking. (Like the pancakes the other night, honey. I’m sneaky and I know it.) And see, insoluble fiber helps you feel full longer, keeping you from eating all day and all those extra calories. Makes sure to check out this article because it really does some good explaining. Fiber could save our epidemic people, we just have to learn to love it.


2. And on that note, here is another article about Fiber.  I’m pretty sure this link is somewhere else on my blog, but here’s some fiber rich foods for you. And they aren’t all sticks and twigs.

3. May is National Bicycle Month, but I bet you didn’t know that next week is bike to work week.  This past Wednesday was the inaugural bike to school day, and the high school where I was observing had been promoting it for awhile. That morning 94 kids rode their bikes to school.It was so awesome to seem them all ride in and with a police escort. The high school is a little out of the way of the town and so the kids, with the event, are fighting the city to get bike lanes paved. After Wednesday’s turnout, the Mayer said he’d get trail plans started. How cool is that? I definitely think my city needs a bike initiative. Our streets are somewhat crowded, and sometimes I don’t think drivers understand bikes have right of the rode, too. The weather looks good for next week, so I’ll definitely be riding my bike Friday, on Bike to Work Day, but I’m headed out on it this morning.   If it’s a beautiful day, get out there. You won’t regret it. It’s #betterthanwalking!

4. Having you been fighting yourself on starting to run? If so, here’s 30 reasons why you should. Personally, I like this one: 26. Run stress away. Ready to pull your hair out? Instead of tuning in to a reality TV marathon, try running a real one. Not only does running boost the brain’s serotonin levels, regular exercise might actually remodel the brain, making it calmer and more stress resistant.  But if I had to give you one reason to get out there and run, it’d be this plain and simple: it’s summer and we’re meant to be outside!

5. And speaking of running, I found this handy-dandy Inspector Gadget yesterday and I’m in love. The McMillan Running Calculator.  If you plug in your best time at a race, your goal time, and a few other factors, this calculator breaks down all of your runs and tells you what pace to be training at. For instance, if my best half time is 1:56 and I’m shooting for a 1:40 then my tempo runs should be 8:33 to 8:55/min and my recovery runs should be 10:54 to 11:24/min. Seriously? If it tells me it’s ok to run slower, I think I’m in love with this. It’s a really interesting concept, and Mile Posts , who is a certified coach, breaks it down a little bit more.

Alright folks! Enjoy Friday, and get out there to ride your bike!!!

ps…last day to enter my giveaway!!! And Megan at Run Like A Girl is giving away a pair of Aspaeris shorts. Check her out!

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Seek Peace. Choose Joy.