While I doubt that anyone reading this is currently in a phase where you’ve given up hope of achieving your health and fitness goals, or, let’s face it, you probably wouldn’t be logging onto Gyminee right now, I bet that most everyone has felt that way at some point in time. You wonder whether or not it’s worth it; wonder if you should just quit; think it’s just never going to happen for you.

Now, I could be wrong, but I would bet that the most widely used reason for giving up goes something like <*ahem*>, “I just don’t have time to workout or eat healthy; my lifestyle is too busy and hectic to allow for that” or the less common, but more direct, “It’s just too hard”.

Well, don’t let Melanie Roach hear you say that because there’s a good chance she could lift you over her head until you change your tune. She does hold the unofficial world record for Clean & Jerking more than twice her body weight, after all.

Melanie Roach, a 33-year-old, 5′1″, 117-pound mother of three is a weightlifting competitor for the good ol’ U S of A in the 2008 Beijing Olympics (whose opening ceremonies are tomorrow night), and if you haven’t heard her story before, she’ll make you think twice about giving up. Because until you’ve suffered from a hyperextended elbow, a herniated disk (which affected her for seven years, caused her more pain than any of her three, natural child births, left her unable to stand up straight, forced her to remain in bed for days at a time, and threatened to put her in a wheelchair if she injured it any further), depression, and dealt with the unique challenges that come with having an autistic 5-year-old son, all while running a business, I don’t think your excuses (or mine) hold a candle to the numerous ones she could have fallen back on. In fact, most of the reasons I’ve used for not aggressively pursing my next life, health, or nutrition goal sound rather stupid stacked up against Melanie’s story.

Now, I could choose to let that bring me down. I could tell myself, “Wow, if she can do all of that, how pathetic am I that I can’t…<insert goal here>”. But instead I challenge myself (and you) to let this story be a motivating factor in my (and your) life. I don’t have Olympic aspirations; I don’t have the same degree of obstacles standing in my way. So, if Melanie can earn herself a spot on the US Olympic team, against all of the odds that life stacked against her, then why can’t you or I achieve our goals as well? It should be easy in comparison, right?
…
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OK, maybe it’s not easy, but it is, without a single, microscopic doubt, doable!

Want to know more about Melanie Roach?
Below is a link to an article written by Greg Bishop of the New York Times, which details the daily challenges Melanie and her husband face as the parents of an autistic child, Melanie’s conquest over her injuries, and the amazing comeback that led to her qualifying for the 2008 Olympic Games.

Finding Inner Strength by Greg Bishop
Note: Mr. Bishop’s article was published on May 6th, 2008. Melanie qualified for the Beijing Olympics at the trials held on May 17th, 2008.

Melanie has also been featured by ABC World News Tonight, National Public Radio, Sports Illustrated, USA Today, NBC, CNN, among others.

As an added bonus, you can follow Melanie’s 2008 Beijing Olympics experience on her blog, “Worth the Weight“, or on her fan site, MelanieRoach.com.

Good luck in your competition, Melanie…but you’re already a winner.

Ali Hale from The Office Diet wrote a great post at the Ririan Project blog giving some helpful tips for those of us who spend most of our time cooped up in an office. Here are my 3 favorite tips (although be sure to check out all 7):

1. Take your own lunch. This is something that I have always been an advocate of. Depending on where you live, it can be almost impossible to find a healthy restaurant. Making a simple sandwich or salad for lunch will almost certainly be more healthy than anything you can find at a restaurant. Plus, you’ll save a decent amount of money in the long run.

2. Get outside during your lunch break. A smart employer will allow their employees the freedom to go for a walk or a jog on their lunch break (and maybe even on a separate break). For one, healthy employees save the company money by reduced healthcare costs and less sick days spent. Second, taking short breaks and getting outside will result in happier and more productive employees. Hopefully you can convince your employer that by working less hours you can actually get more done!

3. Avoid the “free food” trap. This is by far my biggest weakness. No matter how many times I tell myself I won’t partake of the free doughnuts, the next thing I know I have eaten 3 of them. Becoming a healthy office worker definitely requires self control. Another great way to think about this is that saving a few bucks right now isn’t worth the tens of thousands it could cost you on healthcare costs down the road.

The folks over at the SmarterFitter Blog have put together a very nice grocery shopping template. I really like this list for two reasons:

1. It saves time preparing your grocery list because it contains most of the things people concerned with a healthy diet would want to eat. Plus, the PDF allows you to add your own items.
2. It saves time while shopping by organizing foods well.

Here is a direct link to the grocery list PDF template and the article explaining the template.

Michael Pollan’s new book, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto, provides great insight into the types of food that Westerners eat today and what happened to bring our nutrition to such a processed state. Pollan argues that consuming processed foods (refined grains, high-fructose corn syrup) are much more dangerous than consuming, for example, foods that are high in cholesterol.

Here is a Q&A with the author that is a great read. The topics covered range from antioxidants to cloning livestock. He explains that the Western diet is causing diseases (diabetes, heart disease) because of the lack of natural foods.

Here are some of my favorite statements from the article.

“I mean, my basic philosophy of eating is, you know, if your great-grandmother wasn’t familiar with it, you probably want to stay away from it.”

“And, in fact, one of my tips is, don’t eat any food that’s incapable of rotting. If the food can’t rot eventually, there’s something wrong.”

When discussing how to shop at the grocery store Pollack said,

“All the processed foods, the really bad stuff that is going to get you in trouble with all the refined grain and the additives and the high-fructose corn syrup, those are all in the middle. And so, if you stay out of the middle and get most of your food on the edges, you’re going to do a lot better.”

Pollack contrasts the Western diet with other more traditional diets saying,

“Well, the interesting thing is that most traditional cuisines are very healthy, … the human body has done very well on the Mediterranean diet, on the Japanese diet, on the peasant South American diet. It’s really interesting how many different foods we can do well on. The one diet we seem poorly adapted to happens to be the one we’re eating, the Western diet.“

It’s not easy to be a part of Western society and not eat fast food and the plethora of other foods that are, more or less, terrible for you. However, it’s also important to keep in mind that our manufactured diet is a new phenomenon that can be detrimental to our health (we are starting to see the side effects more and more). With a little planning and some will-power we can all eat more naturally and lead a healthier life. Hmmm, I’m in the mood for some sushi…

“A lot of people are overworked and not sleeping enough. Exercise is a way for people to feel more energetic. There’s a scientific basis for it and there are advantages to it compared to things like caffeine and energy drinks.”

Many of us have experienced this boost in energy after going for a jog or a brisk walk. But, what studies have also shown is that regular exercise will provide a lasting boost in energy level, not just that temporary high you get after your cardio session.