Weight Watchers Chat #381: “Why Weight Training Is So Good For You!”

News and Reviews

Today is the start of the “Setting Yourself to Stay on Track!” challenge hosted by Julie over on the If You Have an Egg Facebook Group. It’s not a competition, just a great way to challenge yourself and get some extra encouragement!
Two recalls I think are worth mentioning this week:
- First one is at the Boar’s Head facility that produces their liverwurst product. Internal investigations identified contamination at only this facility which has no been closed. The initial Listeria outbreak happened in July and affected 18 states. If you happen to have any Boar’s Head Liverwurst in your fridge or freezer please see the recall and dispose of it immediately! For more information visit this Forbes article https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/09/13/everything-to-know-about-the-listeria-outbreaks-as-boars-head-plant-closes-indefinitely/
- The second recall involves sadly…eggs! If you have purchased eggs from Milo’s Poultry Farms, LLC in Bonduel, Wisconsin including eggs from the Tony’s Fresh Market and Milo’s Poultry Farms brands please see this recall. The eggs in question are all expiration dates and have been linked to a salmonella investigation. According to the FDA, there have since been “65 people infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella” across nine states, including California, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Illnesses from this particular recall started between May 23, 2024, and August 10, 2024. No deaths have been reported, but 24 of these cases required hospitalization. You can read more in this Simple Living article
There will be NO CHAT on Sunday, Sept 22 because it’s Beau’s THIRD BIRTHDAY!! Can you believe it? We will be celebrating this little wild girl and I can’t wait to share pictures later. See you the following week, Sunday, Sept 29th!

(just a reminder, as an Amazon Affiliate I will receive compensation for any purchases you make with my links. I am also an affiliate for other companies who may be linked in this post for which I may be compensated with free or discounted product and in some cases monetarily. We appreciate your continued support!)

Last week was Chat #380 “How To Take Charge Of Unhelpful Thoughts!”

We chatted about setbacks and their potential to be a setup for what’s coming next next. But what if your little voice gets in the way again?

Here’s the thing, Thoughts are Not Facts. Let’s dig in!

Face your accuser

What is that voice accusing you of? Falling off the wagon? Failing yourself or your family? Abandoning your why? Face that accuser and ask it what the heck it’s accusing you of!

Talk to the hand

Literally put your hand up. Put some distance between yourself and the accusation. I know it’s you talking to you, but it works

Thoughts Are Not Facts

No matter what that little voice says, just because it’s a thought doesn’t mean it’s a fact. Here are a few examples:

Thought – “I’m a terrible person because I ate some ice cream I hadn’t planned for”. Fact – you are not a terrible person, you just ate something you hadn’t planned for. But another fact is you had made a plan!
Thought – “Nothing ever goes my way”. Fact – lots of things go your way. You made Vitamin D with your daughter today. The sun was shining. The weather was cooler and there was a crispness in the air. Lots of things went your way today.
Thought – “I’ll never reach my goal”. Fact – maybe you’ve got the wrong goal. Maybe you should just reframe it. Maybe you could go back and watch one of our chats about setting reachable goals and go get it. You CAN reach your goal, fact!

Your homework was #ThoughtsAreNotFacts. You had an unwelcome thought from that little voice this week. Maybe it was today. I did, so I know you did. Tell us that thought and then tell us a real FACT about what’s really going on:

Let’s see how you did:

When Melisa misses an exercise class her little voice says “oh well, you’re lazy anyway”. FACT – she’s the healthiest she’s ever been and I’ve seen her at Zumba, she is anything but lazy!
Mary Ann hears that little voice saying “it’s going to take a lifetime to make lifetime”. FACT – she is making this the “time of her life” and working her plan!
Ann’s pesky voice is telling her that the setbacks the last few weeks are a sign that she will fail at this too. She’s having trouble coming up with some facts…I know Ann and the fact is she’s strong! She is successful! She is a great supporter to her friends! Come on Melisa’s team, give her some more facts!

Bravo, you did it!

This Week’s Topic: “Why Weight Training Is So Good For You!”

I don’t know if you noticed but under the Discover Content tab where we usually find the weekly topic it now says “Technique Library”. I’m not sure what that means going forward but we talked about weight training last Tuesday with Gwen so that’s what we are talking about!

I’m not excluding the boys by a long shot, but let’s dig into some unique strength training benefits for women!

What is it?

When I hear strength training I immediately think body builders and bulky muscles. Strength training is simply a category of exercises designed to build strength and also endurance by forcing muscles to work against an opposing force or resistance. This opposing force could be your body weight. Or the resistance could be bands or weight machines. Squats and countertop pushups count!

Uniquely You

According to UH Hospitals, being a woman creates these unique opportunities through strength training.

“Building and maintaining muscle is important for post and peri-menopausal women to combat the loss of muscle mass that often occurs with aging.” says Corinne Bazella, MD, OB/GYN with a special interest in menopause. “And given that muscle tissue is highly metabolically active, strength training may help prevent common metabolic diseases like diabetes and help prevent the weight gain commonly experienced in menopause.”

In addition to enhancing general quality of life, strength training in midlife women may offer the following benefits:

Reduced risk of age-related cognitive decline, including Alzheimer’s disease
Improved joint and muscle pain management and physical functioning
Slows bone loss and prevents osteoporosis
Lowers risk of certain cancers
Increased range of motion and mobility
Improved balance and reduced risk of injury due to falls

Start at The Beginning

To build muscle strength, choose a weight that allows you to perform 8-15 reps for 1-3 sets while maintaining proper form. As you become stronger, you can gradually increase the weight and the number of reps and sets.
According to the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), the goal for most women should be two 15-30 minute strength training sessions per week coupled with either 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise (running, swimming laps, aerobic dancing) or 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise per week (brisk walking, biking, swimming, yardwork).

This Week’s Homework: #StartWithASquat

Your homework for this week is #StartWithASquat. If a squat’s not your thing, start with a countertop pushup. Or maybe some soup can arm curls Tell us what you will start with for your uniquely you strength training. Now DO YOUR HOMEWORK because I promise there is someone who needs the idea you have already rattling around in your head. Whatever it is let us know, I promise your decision to participate this week will help you AND someone else! Then type it, snap it, share it however you like, and then tag me for your next cool badge!

Don’t forget to do your homework #StartWithASquat and tag me when you share on social media!

Tag @ifyouhaveanegg on Instagram
Tag @ifyouhaveanegg on our Facebook Page
Tag @Kelly Green Milligan in our Facebook Group
Tag @ifyouhaveanegg on WW Connect

The Amazon Wish List is UP and I so appreciate your support. This will provide a way for us to continue testing products for you, trying out new gadgets and recipes, and refilling the IYHAE pantry since it doesn’t look like the budget cuts are budging. If you don’t already know, it costs more than $100 per week to provide this free content to you and that doesn’t include my time. Your support really does help keep us going!

Amazon Wish List can be found here: If You Have an Egg Support Wish List

The apple corer I used tonight is an Oxo Brand Apple Corer found here on Amazon!

Extra Credit: It’s Apple Season – Let’s Test Our Faves!

Before Pumpkin Spice season, there is a season that gets overlooked… Apple Season!! It deserves to be celebrated, so let’s try a few of my favorites from my local Pratt’s market.

For those of you who are not from Knoxville, Pratt’s market is a little local store that sells fresh fruits and vegetables. They are currently celebrating 100 years, so Alyssa and I decided to check out their apple selection and we were NOT disappointed. We ended up with 4 of my favorite types of apples to make baked apples… can’t be much easier than that!

Farm Fresh Honeycrisp Apples

Honeycrisp apples are our signature item & were the inspiration for starting our company in 1999.
Apple Crisp? Honeycrisp apples are one of the best crisp apples for apple crisp, staying firm even when baked.
Honeycrisp have become one of the most popular apples in the world!
A cross of the Macoun apple & Honeygold apple from the University of Minnesota.
Most kids’ favorite apples are Farm Fresh Honeycrisp Apples.
With a great balance in taste and a crisp texture, beautiful Honeycrisp apples make the perfect gift!
An apple that can be stored for 3-4 months in the refrigerator.
More than just an apple variety, this apple is an eating experience.

Granny Smith Apples

The Granny Smith, also known as a green apple or sour apple, is an apple cultivar that originated in Australia in 1868.
It is named after Maria Ann Smith, who propagated the cultivar from a chance seedling.
The tree is thought to be a hybrid of Malus sylvestris, the European wild apple, with the domesticated apple Malus domestica as the polleniser.
The fruit is hard, firm and with a light green skin and crisp, juicy flesh. The flavor is tart and acidic.
It remains firm when baked, making it a popular cooking apple used in pies, where it can be sweetened.
The apple goes from being completely green to turning yellow when overripe.
The US Apple Association reported in 2019 that the Granny Smith was the third most popular apple in the United States of America.

Cosmic Crisp Apples

The Cosmic Crisp® apple is the remarkable result of 20 years of study and research by Washington State University’s world-class tree fruit breeding program.
Classically bred and grown in Washington State, the Cosmic Crisp® apple is a cross of the Enterprise and Honeycrisp varieties.
The large, juicy and red apple has a perfectly balanced flavor and firm texture, making it ideal for snacking, cooking, baking, and entertaining.

Cripps Pink Apples

Cripps Pink is a cultivar of apple. It is one of several cultivars sold under the trade mark name Pink Lady.
It was originally bred by John Cripps at the Western Australia Department of Agriculture (Stoneville Research Station), by crossing the Australian apple Lady Williams with a Golden Delicious; the result is a combination of the firm, long-storing property of Lady Williams with the sweetness and lack of storage scald of Golden Delicious.
Registration of the Pink Lady trade mark in Australia has been a challenging process. This is primarily due to the apple being widely known by the industry and public by the trade mark name, Pink Lady, rather than the cultivar name, Cripps Pink

Baked apples have been one of the most made recipes on my blog, and I think one of the oldest as well. It’s super quick and easy, and you can’t go wrong with a baked apple. Now let’s see how each of these apples did in the air fryer!

Honeycrisp Apple – It’s still a very firm apple, and it is the classic, delicious apple flavor!

Granny Smith Apple – The granny smith turned yellow! It’s still tart and a little more firm than the Honeycrisp but still yummy!

Cosmic Crisp Apple – It’s not quite as firm, and it could probably use a few more minutes in the air fryer. That one is not my favorite.

Cripps Pink Apple – Such a pretty, pale pink! The flavor is good, but it still doesn’t beat the granny smith or the honeycrisp!

Which apples will you use to celebrate apple season? Let us know in the comments below!