Starling Fitness: Daily writings on Fitness, Diet, and Health

As you know, I’m a big proponent of riding your bike to work and for doing your errands. It looks like my hometown is trying to make using a bike easier by instituting a bike share program.

• GREENbike – SLC Bike Sharing Program

A Bike Share program is a network of many Bike Share stations, where members can take ANY bike, from ANY station, as many times as they like for a small membership fee. A 24-hour Access Pass, 7-day or Annual Membership lets you take UNLIMITED 30 min. trips at no extra charge!

Every time you dock a bike, you get a fresh 30 min. If you keep one bike out longer than 30 min you get charged a usage fee. AND WE DON’T WANT THAT!

Instead of renting one specific bike (bike rental), your GREENbike Membership gives you access to ALL THE BIKES at every downtown Bike Share station.

If you’re not riding your GREENbike, don’t chain it up somewhere or keep it in your office. Return your GREENbike to ANY Bike Share station so someone else can take a ride.

It’s actually a pretty good idea. Here is a short video showing how you would access the bike.

Considering how badly many of the bike riders in Utah navigate the roads, they have created some videos showing how to make a left turn or a Copenhagen Left.

I think a bike sharing program is a good idea, but I’m sad to see how few stations there are. They are all focused downtown. The Salt Lake Valley is a big place. What we REALLY need are separate, dedicated pathways to ride our bikes where we don’t have to worry about getting squished by cars.

Via: SLC Introduces GREENbikes

I love this image from Beyond Running:

It shows all the medals hung with pride on a display that reads:

Always Earned Never Given

It’s the truth about medals just as much as about fitness. No one can give you a healthy and strong body. You MUST earn it. It’s just like that old Smith and Barney commercial:

If you replace fitness for money in that commercial, it’s more true than ever:

Good fitness doesn’t walk up, bite you on the bottom and say, “I’m here!” Getting fit takes good, old-fashioned hard work and research. The kind they do at Starling Fitness. Starling Fitness is one of a handful of top fitness blogs singled out for their work and research. Starling Fitness they get fit the old-fashioned way, they EARN it!

The same is true for winning races or even finishing them. Here’s another image from Beyond Running that rang true for me.

It reads:

Most people think your life changes forever the second you cross the finish line. Runners know that your life changes forever the second you decide to go to the starting line.

Via: I CAN DO IT

Camilla Luddington was the model for the new Lara Croft game and she plays Dr. Jo Wilson on Grey’s Anatomy. She admitted to keeping thin by running with the ZOMBIES, RUN! app.

She said,

They’ll make it seem like zombies are chasing after you at the same time, so it’ll be like, ‘Zombies at 500 meters.’ And they’ll be like ‘Augh!” So it makes you run really fast! It works for me! It makes me feel chased!

I love the look on her face at that point.

I’ve never run at night with the app, so I apparently haven’t experienced the full terror that I could.

Actually, the other night, I rounded a corner and there was a guy with a dog and he was bending down and it was the middle of the night and I was listening to Zombies, Run! and I screamed in his face because he scared me so much rounding that corner!

I’ve talked about how much I love this game here:

• Starling Fitness – Zombies, Run! Makes Exercise Fun
• Starling Fitness – Zombies, Run! 2 Is Coming This Spring
• Starling Fitness – I Am Runner Five

Listen to the Zombies, Run! people talk about designing the game:

If you haven’t tried this game and you have an Android or iPhone, then it’s definitely worth the eight bucks to download this app. Using the Five Buck Workout Rule, you only need to exercise with it twice to make it pay for itself.

Via: Zombies, Run! | Zombies, Run! fever is spreading

That ARThletic Girl posted this about running.

It reads:

What defines you as a runner isn’t how many miles you’ve run or how fast you run. What defines you as a runner is the decision to lace up your shoes, get out the door and run.

It’s right. Even if you’re shambling no faster than most people can walk when they’re in a hurry, you are doing something good for yourself and your body. The next time you don’t feel like you are a good enough runner, remember this. It’s not the speed or the miles. It’s the lacing of the shoes and stepping out the door that makes you a runner. Now get out there and do it!

This image from healthy moi is spot on. It’s called, “Things To Do Before Your Run.”

It reads:

Thing to do before running

Wear comfy underwear

Drink water

Use chapstick

Go to the bathroom

Make playlist

Stretch

Pick the right socks

All of these are so important for comfort during a run! Great infographic, Healthy Moi!

Via: this summer

I love this image I found on Fitspo Addict.

It reads:

Burn Fat Not Oil

I am a TRUE believer of riding your bike to work and I’ve written about it MANY times:

• Starling Fitness » You ARE Traffic
• Starling Fitness » Is Riding Your Bike To Work Bad For The Environment?
• Starling Fitness » Riding My Bike To Work
• Starling Fitness » Save Gas By Walking or Riding Your Bike
• Starling Fitness » How To Ride Your Bike To Work
• Starling Fitness » PostSecret: Bike To Work
• Starling Fitness » Copenhageners Ride Bikes To Work

The healthiest and strongest body I ever achieved was when I was riding my bike to work every day. Now that I work at home, it’s harder for me to get as intense workouts. The motivation of getting to work on time always made me push hard and keep going, even on huge hills. With a little planning, you can save money on gas and make your butt look better than anything you’ve experienced before.

This image from I <3 To Run’s Timeline Photos on Facebook is so true!

It reads:

Ran sounds better than run.

The next time you are thinking of skipping out on your workout, remember how good it feels when it’s done. You don’t have to worry about it for the rest of the day. You can brag about how you “ran” this morning. You’ll get those delicious endorphins that make you feel happier all day.

Don’t skip your workout. Get it done now!

I love this drawing from That ARThletic Girl.

It reads:

You don’t have to be great to start, but you do have to start to be great.

Zig Ziglar

I love how the girl in the drawing isn’t the ideal body type. She is just a normal girl, working out every day. LOVE IT!

This Summer posted an image of this tank top the other day and I just love it.

It reads:

Sore Today STRONG Tomorrow

I couldn’t find that exact tank top for sale, but I found this nice one on strongconfidentYOU on Etsy.

Buying the shirt, however, doesn’t create the results. If you want to be strong tomorrow, you pretty much have to exercise TODAY. So, make sure you get your workout in today, no matter what excuses pop into your mind.

I found this video clip on YouTube the other day and it made me laugh. It’s from Jimmy Fallon and it’s called, “The Evolution of Mom Dancing.”

The funny thing is that Michelle Obama makes EVERYTHING look cool, even “The Sprinkler!”

I just realized that every time I play Dance Central on the Xbox, I probably look like this but even WORSE!

Don’t care…

I’m gonna get fit anyway!

Via: Geek Culture – Michelle Obama rocks!