The Dailey Method

As anyone who is a "Dancing with the Stars" fan has noticed, dance provides a full-body workout, kicking your metabolism into over-drive and toning up even those tough to tone places. Summer is just around the corner, in fact, (fingers crossed) with the arrival of the sunshine and 80 degree weather today, it might already be here. In order to enjoy all of those summer cook-outs, graduation parties, and weddings without any worry about our waistlines, we would like to introduce another option for your daily workout: The Dailey Method.

Although currently, studios are limited to Arizona, California, Illinois, and Nevada, this combination of yoga, pilates, and ballet movements, is now available as a DVD, "No Excuses". The DVD features an intro from founder Jill Dailey and two classes touted to target the entire body and provide "amazing results."

I tried my first Dailey Method class while visiting a friend in Berkeley, California last fall and I was both obsessed and depressed...because I instantly fell in love with this workout and there aren't any studios on the East Coast, let alone near where I live in Connecticut!!!! You best believe that I have already ordered my DVD and am anxiously awaiting its arrival!!! Has anyone already tried one of these classes? Let us know what you think in the comments section!!!

She runs, she bakes, she's...Denise!! A Q&A with one of our Healthy Chasers!

First, I wanted to send out an apology for our slacking on the Healthy Chaser Challenge Blog and Twitter. It seems that with Spring comes an overload of work/activities that just keeps us constantly busy! Elizabeth and I definitely want to stress that we are in no way having Healthy Chasers take a backseat. For, what also comes with Spring is the BEAUTIFUL weather that seems more motivation to get healthy! Well...at least for me...I love Spring. As soon as those birds start chirping, I have this itch to just be outside ALL DAY.

But enough about my love for Spring...

We've mentioned in previous posts that we've wanted to do a guest blog or highlight another Healthy Chaser. Well, the wait is finally over! We have had the pleasure of doing a Q&A with Healthy Chaser, Denise!!! Many of you know her already, and if you don't, you're about to learn A LOT about her! I, myself, learned quite a bit not only about her but on her advice on exercising and staying healthy! One of the main things I love about this initiative is how much sharing and encouragement is going on all around. Denise's Q&A is an excellent example of that. so, without further ado, here she is...Denise!!

So, for those of you who don't know her, Denise is a member of the US Air Force, owns Troy Bakery, LLC in Troy, Illinois, and (naturally) a huge fan of Straight No Chaser. Even though she works around sweets all day, Denise finds the time and motivation to keep to a healthly lifestyle and we wanted to share that with you!

Q: How long have you been working at your bakery?

D: I opened the bakery doors on the 2nd of January 2010. I spent 10 years active duty Air Force working as a Communications Officer. I took some time off to work with another government entity, then came back to the Reserves where I worked Full-time for a couple years. I decided to go part time and try something new…and when I asked my kids what they wanted me to do, they told me to open a bakery.

*photo courtesy of Troy Bakery, LLC

Q: As someone who is constantly busy at their business, and surrounded by delicious desserts, how do you keep to a healthy diet? What type of diet/healthy eating habits do you keep? Also, how do you find the time to eat appropriately?

D: When I first opened the bakery, I actually lost weight! My days start at 4 am and if I’m lucky I leave the bakery at 5 pm. That’s 13 hours up and on my feet working. When you have an active day, it makes a huge difference. Being around all the items I bake is hard too.

First I remember that if I eat it, I can’t sell it, so the business side of me keeps me in check.

Also, since I do make the items, I know what’s in them….good and bad. I think a lot of the time our diets are impacted by not knowing what we are eating. I can tell you the approximate carbohydrate count and calorie count of everything in my store. I had to learn this because my son, Ryan, has Type 1 diabetes. He can eat whatever he wants, he just has to take insulin based on the amount of carbohydrates in what he eats. The calorie counting is something I started doing on a whim. I keep track of everything I eat and drink……so when I want to eat a chocolate chip cookie…..I have to document the 78 calories in my tracker. Once you have to write down a couple hundred calories of something not so healthy….you tend to stop eating it. To stay on track, I keep fruits, veggies and healthy snacks in the bakery. I sip on water, and eat every couple hours so I don’t have the urge to binge.

*Photo courtesy of Troy Bakery, LLC

Q: You've ran in numerous marathons. How long have you been doing these? How did you get into running marathons?

D: I first got into running after my daughter was born. I had A LOT of baby weight to lose and I had to do a 3 mile run for an Air Force school I was attending. I couldn’t even run a mile, but in my mind I didn’t have a choice. So we bought a treadmill (because I didn’t want to have anyone witness me lumbering along) and I set my mind to it. I started just doing a mile. I told myself I was going to jog the whole thing, and not give a hoot what the time was. After a couple weeks, it was pretty easy, so I increased to a mile and half. I let my body dictate when it was time to speed up and increase distance. After a couple months, three miles wasn’t a big deal! Then I started doing 5k’s in my area (Destin/Pensacola) and met a GREAT group of people that I would run with.

As far as the half marathons go, I played volleyball in college, and one of my teammates thought it would be a neat way to do a reunion. We met up in Virginia Beach and ran. It was a ton of fun. That’s when I decided to try running one in every state so I could travel around, see friends and see new places. To date, I’ve run 14 half marathons, and 3 marathons. I had no intention of ever running a full marathon, but another one of my college teammates, who also has a son with Type 1 diabetes, talked me into running the US Marine Corps Marathon and raising money for Team Diabetes. It was going to be another Freimuth Family first, but then my husband signed up to run the Air Force Marathon a month before. Not to be out done – I signed up to run it with him. We finished together! We also ran my third marathon together (Marine Corps again); it was our 12th wedding anniversary.

Q: What type of training do you do pre-marathon and in between marathons?

D: Let me start with, I wish I trained better. I don’t have a lot of time to do the long distance runs, which is why my times have gotten worse lately. However, I follow the Hal Higdon training plans. http://www.halhigdon.com/halfmarathon/novice.htm

Q: If you're not doing any marathon-type training, what type of exercising do you like to do?

D: After my second tour in Iraq, I got a wild hair and decided I was going to do a triathlon. I went to the local YMCA, joined the tri club and …… got my butt kicked. Before that, my idea of swimming solely included a body weight bearing floatation device and a cocktail in my hand. Now I was learning to swim laps….with no floaties on my arms. I got really lucky with the tri club though. I met other moms, like me, that just wanted to do something new and get/stay in shape.

I promptly set my goals for my triathlons:

1. Don’t drown
2. Don’t fall off your bike
3. Don’t be last

The third one being the hardest! I had to explain to my husband, yes, they do write your age on your calf in permanent marker, and yes, the man that finished in front of my was twice my age, and NO, that doesn’t motivate me.

I really like triathlon training though. It’s cross training, it’s not easy, but it’s not the same thing day after day.

I still play some volleyball. Last year I went to Aspen during Labor Day and played in a grass volleyball tournament. Of course I can’t do that this year….um SNC anyone???? HOLLA!

I also hired a personal trainer so I could incorporate weights into my plan. He knows my goals, and has a tailored workout plan for what I want to accomplish.

Q: What's your favorite part of exercising or perhaps your favorite exercise?

D: I love the feeling when I’m done, because it’s a sense of accomplishment. This is probably the hardest thing for most people to revel in. We (me included) tend to compare ourselves to others and somehow play down what we’ve done. I’ve learned to be happy with myself on what I’ve done, and stop seeking other’s approval, and stop worrying how I stack up to others.

Q: Do you have any suggestions for trying to maintain a healthy diet while running a business?

D: 1. Calorie Counting! Know what you’re eating and know how much your body needs. Check out this link on good info: http://www.acaloriecounter.com/calorie-counting.php

2. EAT! Yes, you need to eat to be healthy. I always have healthy snacks around so I don’t eat junk, and I don’t binge.

3. I take a supplement called Juice Plus. Long story short, it’s all the fruits and veggies your body needs each day. It has really made a difference on how I feel and helped me maintain a healthy eating plan. If anyone is interested in learning more – let me know and check out this link. https://www.juiceplus.com/nsa/content/Welcome.soa

Q: What type of suggestions/advice would you give to someone running a marathon/race for the first time?

D: 1. It all starts with one step. Then another. Then another. Don’t overwhelm yourself with the last step, start with the first step.

2. Don’t compare yourself to others. Everyone has a different story and a different challenge. Take the time to be proud of what you are doing and what you’ve done. You earned it!

3. Make time. The one thing I figured out when I opened the bakery….everybody is busy. I don’t have any excuse…so I just have to do it. SO, I get up at 4 am to work out every morning.

4. Find a running group. Don’t be intimidated or worried you won’t stack up….you’d be surprised. I’ve made some great friends because I just showed up. I also learned a lot from those people. It’s honestly no different than joining twitter or facebook because you’re an SNC fan and reaching out to the other Chasers! These people will cheer you on and support you along the way!

I’ve got to see and do some amazing things because of running. I recently went to Hawaii…went surfing while I was there…and ran my 14th half marathon along Waikiki Beach! I ran the Army 10-miler in Baghdad, Iraq in 2003! I ran through the battle fields of Antietam. And I even met Rich Hoyt, who is my personal motivator. If you don’t check out any of the other links…..check this one. Any time I want to stop…I think of him. http://youtu.be/flRvsO8m_KI

We want to personally thank Denise for such an amazing insight to her personal motivation and advice and I know I personally hope to someday reach the level of healthy success that she has reached!

Go Healthy Chasers!

Jillian