Have you ever thought about how many decisions you make every single day?

No wonder we hit our limit sometime during the day and stop making the best choices for ourselves.

Last night on Valerie Waters call for the Red Carpet Ready club, Val shared a nugget which I’m still rolling over in my head (and of course took action on!).

Check out the video and if you enjoy it, leave a comment below!

I hope you enjoyed the video.  Leave a comment below!

Pssst….check out my free course while it’s still available. I’m working on the full interactive digital program, so check out it out while you can.

I finally watched Food Inc last week. Thank you Netflix instant play feature on my PS3!

I thought for sure this was going to be one of those movies — that shifts everything, that changes everything I eat, that’s going to finally show me exactly what to do to keep my daughter healthy.

But it wasn’t.  Well, not exactly anyways.

The movie is absolutely full of shocking video and disturbing information about the food industry.  It’s presented very well – with personal stories to facts about various livestock farming, corn crops, and the ways in which large corporations cut corners.  There was even a very sad story of a woman who lost her 2 1/2 year old to E  Coli.  Of course, this shocked and saddened me…and I couldn’t stop thinking about what the things I feed Mila and hoping that I was making the right choices.

But I kept asking the same question throughout the whole movie–sorry Denis, I kept blurting it out rather vehemently.   Are they going to give me a clear plan to keep my family healthy?  Or are they just going to lead me to some state of hysteria and give me nothing to take action on?  I even yelled, “They better give me a clear action plan!”

Sadly, the take action part was at the end of the movie in the form of scrolling titles…and, I guess part of me was disappointed.  While I read the nice subtle titles and did get the basics on what to do, I felt like they didn’t match the smack in the face from the rest of the movie.  In fact, I think with so many people unaware of how to keep their families healthy, an in your face approach to “this is what you should do” was necessary.

I was sadly disappointed with this documentary. (Could you tell?) There was so much potential to create change.  Everyone knows and expects documentaries to have a strong point of view.  But along with the point of view, give us a strategy and a guide to surpass and overcome the evils of the food/beef/corn/farming industry.  Man up and tell us what you really think.

Maybe I was expecting too much or asking for someone to hold me by the hand, but I do think the filmmakers had a choice to be super clear — and potentially get a lot of people walking down a healthier path.

Unfortunately, for me, I felt the movie was targeted at people who kind of already know what to do, as opposed to people who truly need the education.

I’m going to err on the side of caution and watch it again.  Maybe I was having an off day!

I’d love to know what you thought of the movie.  Leave a comment below and convince me why I should LOVE the movie!  Maybe you can snap me out of my disdain and disappointment!

*Update! Upon doing a quick search for Food Inc. information, I did discover their website and blog.  My wish is still that this movie had lessons that were a little more accessible to the group of people who would most benefit from it.  Hopefully, getting their message out even more is only a matter of time.

I Love Videogames.

Wait, what?

Here it is.  Your surprising fun fact about Anne Samoilov. (Some of you already know this…but bear with me!)

It’s True.

And when I get into them, it’s hard to tear me away.

No, I’m not talking about WiiFit or DDR or any of the more “active” games, I’m talkin’ sit on your butt for 4 hours online role playing games like World of Warcraft, Everquest, and Warhammer Online.

In these games, you choose an avatar and BECOME the character as you level up, gain experience, and take on tougher and tougher foes.  (Wow, did I just type that? On my health & fitness blog? Seriously Anne?)

I’ve spent many a Saturday or Sunday (or both, quite sadly) sitting in front of the computer playing these games.  Thankfully, my husband was there with me, so I didn’t completely lose touch with the outside world.

You might think that my weight skyrocketed at the height of my game playing, but not so.  In fact, I found that I was able to structure healthy snacks, my water intake and healthy meals around my game-playing.

How To Be A Healthy Gamer

Here are the 7 simple rules I followed to stay in shape, even though I do admit to spending too many hours playing my Troll Rogue with in-game friends.  Follow them and maybe you’ll even lose a little weight while you play!

1. Get up after every quest completed and stretched – wowww geeek!
2. Make sure to complete workouts BEFORE playing
3. Prepare Healthy Snacks and Make sure the house has ZERO sweets to fuel the game munchies – Think Nuts, Dried Fruit, Water.
4. Limit playing to weekends only – yes, I had to cut myself off a bit
5. Take a complete break from the game every few months – right now I’m on a 5 month hiatus, but I’ll be back in when that next expansion of the game is released.
6. Get to know people in the game – it actually keeps you somewhat connected to reality.  If you don’t “talk” to people and simply run around “killing” stuff, you can definitely get a little lost.
7. If your REAL LIFE friends/spouse stops playing, you stop playing too.

So, that’s it.  I followed these rules for myself and managed to get in shape, lose a little weight, still see the sunshine and get out of the house.

Of course, I haven’t been quite as much of a player since Mila was born, but I still managed to get in some game time.  Babies change everything.  I’ve been kind of engrossed in my Mila since she graced this planet.

Now I’m happy to report that I’ve been on a several month hiatus (maybe 6 months!) from all games.  Just like any activity or hobby…sometimes you just gotta give it a rest already.

Get A Grip

Do you play online video games?  If so, are you still taking care of yourself?  Do you eat healthy meals and make movement a priority every single day?

If not, why not use some of my rules and see where it leads you!

• Replace that Litre of Orange Crush with Bottle Water.
• Replace those Doritos with a mixture of Almonds, Raisins and any other dried fruit you like
• Stop eating during Raids.  Try to eat your meals before you sit down to play.
• Play only on specific days – no matter what – and go out side…even if it’s a walk to the nearest GameStop.

Ok – now that I have this confession off my chest, on to my own workout of the day!

Lately, I’ve been thinking about ways people can change their health.  I am always looking for interesting baby steps that people took to where they are now.

There are many simple things we can all do that make huge differences in the way we feel, the amount of energy we have, and the clarity of our thoughts.

I know people get sick of hearing the whole “eat less, move more” thing–and they should be sick of that.  It’s never as simple as just reducing what you eat.  If you still go to McDonald’s 3x a day, but decide you’ll have a soda instead of a shake, you are still going to McDonald’s everyday.  Also, while moving more does help your body not stiffen up before it’s time and keep your energy up a little,  it’s going to take your decision to move a specific amount per day to have an impact on your overall health.

Now, I’m not saying don’t move unless you’re doing an exercise program or dvd every day, maybe your body isn’t ready for that.  What I am saying is that it takes a specific decision to move a specific amount to really have a specific impact.  You need to be saying to yourself, I will workout 3x a week for 30 minutes.  I will walk to work every day. I will walk during lunch for 30 minutes every day.  The same thing goes with food.  If you are specific about eating better – I will eat lean protein at every meal. I will stop going to fast food restaurants. I will not have dessert after a dinner out.  I will take vitamins every morning. Those decisions will add up.

One great way to reach goals is to set yourself on a Thirty Day Challenge.  You can do this for any area of your life — and you’ll see what I mean.

1. You decide to take on a list of “tasks” for 30 days.  Write a list of diet/exercise goals – be specific, people. Each Day is an Item on Your List.  Your goal is about building habits so you leave nothing to chance or willpower.  If you don’t know where to start, check out a fun, free 30 day challenge by the gals at ToneItUp.com and Gabrielle Reece’s site The Honeyline.
2. Keep a journal – food, activity, etc.  Review the Journal on Sundays to reset your intentions.
3. Share with A Trusted Friend – I’m saying this because sometimes your husband is not the person to “chat” about your weight loss goals.  Talk to a mom, your sister, a friend you trust.
4. Plan for your Success – Plan some sort of event, shopping spree, whatever you can keep in the back of your head as what you get as a reward for your newly formed healthy habits.
5. Try Something New – In addition to the goals you have set, think of some new activities that might shake things up and prevent you from hitting a plateau.  Yoga, pilates, kickboxing, karate, krav maga. These are all very different activities with benefits to doing all of them.

If you still don’t know which way to turn or where to start, email me.  I have done my own 30 Day Pilates Challenge and show my clients how to do them too!  Also, if you live in Marina Del Rey, Culver City, Santa Monica, or Venice, CA…then you are close enough to attend one of my Group Reformer Pilates Classes.

I encourage to start your own thirty day challenge.  You will not be sorry you did – you can form it anyway you want it and at the end of the month, you will have learned a lot about yourself…In addition to kick starting your new healthier lifestyle.

After you do one challenge, you will definitely be tempted and hooked to start another one.  Next time, maybe focus on another area of your life that needs improvement.  If you have recently started your own business or looking to do so, check out:  Thirty Day Challenge, which is a free training program that helps you get your business online…and so much more.