woke up today maddd stuffy and have to blow my nose like every 5 seconds. reallly inconvenient. watched ‘Lupin III: First Contact” last night, it was awesome. im a pretty big lupin fan and this might have been one of the best movies ive seen involving the series. story was really good. i realized one of the reasons i like lupin is that its a really consistent series with tons of action and never fails to disappoint. i also downloaded jDownloader last night after years of manually downloading rapidshare and megaupload links, it seems to work great!!! getting a new series right now to watch. stocking up on mad entertainment since i probably wont have good internet overseas. also got my hands on some more house dvds, gonna def train hard in house these next few weeks, i foresee it as a very useful dance.
today is the day i decided to go get my visa, woke up and ate some cereal. went back to bed since i was really tired then went for a run, went to kinkos to print shit out, got passport photos, took photocopy of my passport, and filled out the app. got everything together in a hurry then went over to the consulate, SOO nervous!!! i rehearsed what i was gonna say like 20000 times in my head haha. however, theres a problem with my birth situation since i was born there i need a certificate saying im not a taiwanese citizen so i dont have to go to the army. SOOO i gotta go back tomorrow!!! sucks…but made me feel a lot more reassured and calm about the situation. hope all goes well!
been riding a shit ton, started trying bw hitchhikers yesterday!!!! scary ass feeling but its so fucking awesome at the same time. dont think im ready yet, still more practice on halfhikers needed. im gonna get it so soon yesssssss
gonna do my p90x routine later and then head to bboy practice, ungh son!
… except aliens get to be skinny.
That’s not a metaphor. I’m being literal.
As in, I feel like E.T. No one understands what I’m trying to say.
This post has been building up inside me like a freaking volcano. I don’t know if it’s a rant or not. I hope that it will be legible and that someone will get something out of reading it because I am going to be completely honest and probably very politically incorrect.
I love you guys. You leave me comments telling me that skinny people have no soul and that they eat cotton balls and you make me smile. Also very politically incorrect but we laugh, right?
And I know I’ve been writing a lot of posts directed at thinner girl/women who think they know me (if becoming thin isn’t that hard then getting out of debt isn’t either, skinny. So get a freaking job, pay off those Pradas and stop criticizing my “unhealthy” and “sedentary”, read: actually low-carb and active, lifestyle).
Okay, I’m ‘fraid to say that this one is going to go along the same lines. Except it’s geared towards a different type of skinny girl. The defensive skinny girl. The being-fat-ain’t-so-bad-so-stop-trying-to-change-the-world skinny girl. You’d think that skinny girls would know the pitfalls of being fat. That’s why they’re so skinny, right? Not so much.
Fuck, this will be a story. I hope I’ll take the time to come back and read this one day. It’s not even about being understood. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to adequately express how I feel being who I am right now through words or images or anything. Unless you can relate to me, you’ll never know. If you are anyone, a woman, a man, brown, black, white, whatever- and you have always been within the predominant barriers of what is… (how the hell do I say this?) normal to look like, then you won’t get it ever. But hopefully, you have an open mind and you’ll try.
I remember a few years ago, I stumbled across a classmate crying in the bathroom because a teacher asked her if she was anorexic. “Tara” had always been skinny, extremely skinny, but still looked nothing like the emaciated models I’m talking about. She cried a little, her friend comforted her and in a few minutes she was back in class going about her usual business. A few days later, I asked her if she was alright. She looked a little confused about what I was referring to and when I mentioned the incident, she just smiled nicely and replied that it just “gets me sometimes”. She adjusted her size 00 skirt and walked away, chattering to her friend about her new car.
The smile was frozen on my face.
I felt bad for her. I honestly still do. The other girls in the toilet looked affronted but I could see that the tears were genuine. I did feel bad. I feel bad for girls who are targeted because they are too thin. I feel bad for anyone who feels sensitive about something they can’t change. My friend always had a complex about her red hair, another one had a scar on her arm… but weight is a little different. Being overweight all my life, I know this. So that day, I asked my sister a question (who has a BMI that classifies her as underweight. Seriously, this girl has legs that go on forever). I asked her if she was ever hated on or called anorexic because of how skinny she was. Her response?
“Yeah but they’re usually just jealous and at least I’m not fat”
Like previously with Tara, I was surprised about her attitude. Was my sister overly self-confident? Not really. And Tara usually spent most of her time flaunting her waif-like body. Both girls were beautiful and if they didn’t think so, they sure did a hell of a job faking it.
I’m writing this post because I feel as if I am largely misunderstood. Any place I see articles criticizing underweight models and society’s obsession with looking stick thin, I see women angrily stating that they have always been underweight and that no one has a right to call them disgusting or anorexic. They say that they are sick of hearing how unappealing it is to be them and how tragic it is that they are looked down on by today’s society. It’s happened on my own posts too. I am not upset at the women who are upset because they have been prodded about their weight. I am upset at those women who think that because they have been victimized, it has levelled the playing field and now all of us fatties and too-skinnies can hold hands and sing kumbaya.
First of all, I want you to know what, in my mind, is classified as disgusting…
Not Tara or my sister
Not anyone who eats but has always been naturally skinny
Someone who doesn’t eat and substitutes daily feedings with small amounts of nuts, Coca Cola, cocaine or anything unhealthy.
Someone whose body fat is practically non existant and has their ribs, shoulder blades, kneecaps and various bones jutting out of their skin. Please don’t tell me that you are “naturally” skinny and exhibit all of those symptoms. We all know, short of being extremely ill, that’s not true.
So there you have it. Thatis what is disgusting to me. In terms of someone being naturally skinny, I will never say something insensitive like “omg you’re so skinny, I hateeee youuu!”. I will never tell a skinny girl that she looks too thin or sickly. Because in my opinion, naturally thin girls have gorgeous bodies.
Now here is where my issue lies… I understand that some of these naturally skinny girls may have been insulted by people with comments like these. I appreciate that they are hurtful and I am sorry that they felt demeaned by someone like that.
What I don’t appreciate is how they feel that they can relate that on an equal level to how a fat girl feels about her weight.
Before I say this, I want you to know that there are worse things than being fat and that many women find it in themselves to accept it. But for most, that answer doesn’t work. I guess I’ll explain more about it later.
I’ll tell you now because if you are thin, you may never know.
You will never ever ever know what it feels like to be overweight unless you have experienced it. You will feel things that you have never felt before, you will fall to an ultimate low and pick out flaws in yourself (mentally and physically) that you did not give a rat’s ass about before.
Being fat is not about an insensitive comment, a cry and then recovery. It isn’t apaper cut. It doesn’t heal. Being fat is like a constant disease. This is why I was surprised at my sister’s reaction. It wasn’t the “at least, I’m not fat” comment. It was the fact that she was so dismissive. If only I could be dismissive.
I can’t.
Because when you’re fat, it’s your life. Since about the time I was 8 and actually realized the implications of being overweight, I have devoted at least 20% of my thought process to my weight. And it’s not like I’ve been completely idle during the past 15 years, I’ve had plenty to do. When I didn’t have anything to do, I thought about it. And even while I am accomplishing my everyday tasks, the fact that I’m fat is always at the back of my mind. It’s sad really, even if I do lose weight, I don’t ever think I’ll get rid of it. It’s ingrained in me. Is this me having a pity party? God, no. I’m just stating facts. This is how I feel. We all have to play with the cards that we are dealt. I just got the fatty card. Go fish? I think not.
I’m not exaggerating though. A friend of mine who recently gained weight told me she couldn’t remember what her stomach looked like when she was skinny. She said when she was thin, she never worried about her weight unless someone mocked her small boobs or something… and that was usually forgotten about within an hour or however long it took to call the speaker a ho. Now, she couldn’t stop obsessing about her stomach flab and the shape of her thighs.
I’m glad I’m not alone.
The fact that I am fat will always be at the back of my brain.
Don’t eat that. Suck in your cheeks. Don’t look at him. Fix your shirt so it doesn’t stick in the fat rolls when you sit. Don’t picture yourself there. Try on a larger size. Steer away from the narrow door. Raise your head so you don’t get a double chin. Don’t walk by that group of guys sitting there. Make sure you pull your pants up. Try not to look forward to that party. Dance so your ass doesn’t jiggle. Stand at an angle. Don’t order anything to eat that may be embarassing. Wear something baggy. Don’t draw attention to yourself. No skirts above cellulite level. Keep your arms away from your sides. Don’t take the elevator. Eat the apple. Carry the binder in front of your stomach.
Why?
Because you’re fat.
These are worse than the compulsions I had when I had OCD. But they are my life. And not just mine, I have it on good faith that any of my friends who is a little overweight goes through these motions too. I wouldn’t be surprised if most people do.
Anyway, to get away, I started using this form of escapism in middle school. I still rely on it heavily now because it just makes me feel better. In my daydream, I’m skinny, beautiful, intelligent, funny and with a beautiful man at an event that takes place a few months from now (in which period, I have lost a significant amount of weight). He loves me, we go through a series of scenarios where we prove our devotion to each other and make all my enemies jealous with our perfectness. It sounds a little more extreme than it is, for the most part it’s just harmless fantasies about my hot bod and really awesome guys who would probably annoy the shit out of me in real life. Tinyland is my escape from fat land re: real life. In tinyland, I don’t worry about my back fat because it doesn’t exist.
Being fat, I think, is how hopeless and helpless anorexics feel. Except they fear being fat. We’re actually there. And we can’t control it. The difference is that they’re killing themselves. We’re just killing our own self worth.
So what do I do now? Stop? Tell myself I should just stop thinking about my weight. I can’t… because I am not beautiful. I don’t care who you want to fucking blame. Blame me, blame the media, blame society, blame everyone. Some bigger girls are pretty. Most aren’t- not to me in any case. You can tell me I’m wrong and I won’t argue with you. It’s just my opinion. I also don’t think Reese Witherspoon, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Jennifer Aniston are all that pretty either. It’s my own perception of beauty, right? You may call it warped, I call it a product of Today and my own personal preferences. Either way, regardless of what people say… I’m not pretty so long as I’m fat. It doesn’t matter if my features are nice or my cheekbones are high, doesn’t make much of a different if there’s a layer of fat over them. Call it what you may. This is me being honest. I can fake it with make up. I can’t fake myself into believing that I am. I don’t need a pep talk or a confidence boost, I have plenty of confidence in myself… just not my appearance. And once in a while, I’ll get dressed up and feel beautiful but that’s fine as long as the truth is there. I don’t want to live a life of self-deception.
But see, this is what I’m afraid of.
I’m nowhere near two hundred pounds (although I got close once) and my doctor tells me that due to my family history of obesity, I’ll probably never be skinny (this is my newer doctor by the way, the old one tried to get my mother to turn me into a vegan). He says my diet is perfect if a little extreme. He tells me to stop thinking that skinny is beautiful. But how can I stop thinking like that when the world thinks the same? When a guy I liked forever picks a girl with legs that could fit between my forefinger and thumb? When my little sister is constantly whistled and stared at? When my grandmother berates me for “growing horizontally and not vertically” like all my cousins on my mother’s (read: skinny) side? When I watch 7 shows a week and not one of the women on there weighs more than a hundred and twenty pounds?
I feel like I don’t belong here. Like I should be living in a different world. I should always be an extra running in the background and cut from the final scene.
This is what I’m afraid of.
That there will be another little girl like me who eats normally, acts normally and lives normally until she realizes that she is ten pounds heavier that anyone else. Then she realizes that none of those people on tv are ten pounds heavier than anyone else. That there is no one else. Just a bunch of thin people. Suddenly, the cheekpulls will stop and she won’t be hugged by her aunts because she’s cuddly. She’ll notice their hurtful comments. And how her baby fat isn’t melting off like it is on her best friends. How different everything is for her than it is for her skinnier counterparts. How she’s excluded out of cliques when others her age figure this out. She’ll go on diets, awful diets. She’ll skip meals. She’ll cry. She’ll be afraid. She’ll throw up. She’ll exercise… more than anyone. She’ll still be overweight. She’ll skip out on parties. She’ll think everyone is judging her. She’ll buy clothes for when she loses weight. She’ll put her future on hold until she does it. This will happen.
You can break out of it. I’m not sitting in every weekend but mentally, I am. Six months into the future, I’m always thin. In April 2010, I’m skinny.
Again, facts. Not pity. If I drop down to 110 lbs. I don’t think these feelings of inadequacy will ever change. That’s why it’s so important for the world to change. Like, now. Before y’all can influence them with more false ideas about what beauty is.
Beauty should never be something you can’t attain.
And this is what I mean, skinny girls. You are pretty. Those people who tell you that you are anorexic are just wrong or jealous. Wrong and jealous. Because at the present time, the world says you are pretty. No one takes a look at you and tells you you’d be pretty if you gained a few pounds. Yes, those comments are hurtful but they aren’t true. My body image is true. So please don’t compare us. Don’t pretend that your weight plagues you like it does mine.
And if your feelings are hurt because someone calls a starving model “disgusting” then I’m sorry because unless you look like that, you are not being referred to. You are beautiful. And just because I don’t want anymore people to be royally screwed over like I was doesn’t mean I’m insulting you or your weight. You are what pretty is right now. You don’t need to feel guilty. You didn’t ask be pretty. But let me have my own refuge. I think it’s time for you to figure out that you don’t know anything about me. And that a sharp comment to you about your weight will irritate you for a minute while one directed at me will add itself to a pile of hurtful shit that has been gathering all my life.
See, when someone says you’re too skinny, you look at a billboard. You know it’s not true. You’re set.
Someone tells me I’m too fat, I look at a billboard. It’s true. It is depressing. Yeah, so some call the wambulance. Tell me I’m too sentimental. I don’t care. Just, please change it before little chubby girls end up like me.
I know you may have other problems even bigger than my superficial ones… but your weight is not a problem. It is for me and we need to get to place where it’s not a problem for anyway.
We all know inside us how superficial appearances are. In twenty years, it won’t matter but right now it’s destroying lives. Lives of young girls who should be doing their hair and getting ready to go our with friends to enjoy a night out worry-free. Why is weight so prominent in the world when it composes such a small part of our lives?
And like I said, there are worse things in life.
As you sit listening to the symphony, taking in the beautiful architecture and the rich, melodic sound surrounding you, there is something else that you are neglecting to notice. Your body. It is screaming at you, and you aren’t listening.
When it finally does get your attention, you’re alarmed. Your legs are aching and you feel really run down. By intermission, your back has joined in the cacophony of pain you’re experiencing. What is going on? Then you stop to think. I guess I have been a little stressed lately. And I haven’t been sleeping very well or exercising much. I’ve also been grabbing food on the go, usually in the form of a burger or a burrito.
This kind of behavior adds up. Not sleeping, living a stressful life, not eating a proper diet and-it goes without saying- not having enough time to exercise can all be harmful to your health. But you don’t need me to tell you that. Your body already has.
Each problem informs the other. You’re tired because you aren’t sleeping well, so you eat more to keep up your energy. Your body aches, so you don’t feel like exercising. But if you tackle one of the problems you’re experience, oftentimes that starts the healthy ball rolling and the other issues get solved too. Don’t want to take any heavy pharmaceuticals to ease joint or back pain? Eschew the muscle-relaxers and NSAIDs in favor of a natural treatment like acupuncture. In a recent study, 40 patients with primary osteoarthritis of the knee were given daily acupuncture treatments for 10 days. At the end of the treatment period the patients experienced reduced pain and stiffness and increased mobility, all without any use of drugs. Committing to reducing chronic pain can help you achieve better quality sleep and will help you feel more relaxed as you deal with everyday demands.
Another good way to take care of your body is to make sure you get all the proper nutrients. It’s hard when you’re busy to eat a balanced meal, right? Wrong. By the time you’ve waited in the long lunch line at the nearest fast food joint, you could’ve raided the salad bar at your local grocery store. And if you’re sleeping well, you can spare five extra minutes in the morning to make a quick turkey sandwich, grab an apple and cut up some fresh yellow and red bell peppers. This doesn’t mean you can’t ever have a burger or an ice cream soda. But save the treats for a Friday afternoon, when you’ve put in a hard week. The reward will seem even sweeter.
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Want to read more about achieving a better night’s sleep? Click here. Check out our great supplements that help you relax and sleep better, naturally, Relora® and Dual-Release Melatonin. And for more natural pain relief, try Nexrelief™ or Nexrutine® Extra.
Reference: http://www.vitasearch.com/get-clp-summary/38530 “Clinical and endocrinological changes after electro-acupuncture treatment in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee,” Ahsin S, Saleem S, et al, Pain, 2009; Sept 17; [Epub ahead of print]. (Address: Department of Physiology, Army Medical College Rawalpindi, Pakistan; Department of Natural Sciences, School of Health and Social Science, Middlesex University, UK).
Jeder der sich etwas intensiver mit dem Kraftsport beschäftigt hat, ist sicherlich schon einmal darüber gestolpert. Kreatin ist eine organische Säure, die unter anderem zur Versorgung der Muskeln mit Energie beiträgt. Kreatin wird hauptsächlich in der Leber synthetisiert, gelangt von dort ins Blut und von dort in die Zielorgane, z.B. Skelettmuskulatur, Herzmuskel, Gehirn, Nerven, Netzhaut des Auges usw.
Außerdem nehmen wir durch frisches Fleisch und frischen Fisch Kreatin in uns auf.
Nebenwirkungen
Die Nebenwirkungen möchte ich auch gleich ansprechen.
Hier sollte man zwischen gewünschten und unerwünschten Nebenwirkungen unterscheiden.
Negativ:
Bei der Einnahme von Kreatin, ist eine Gewichtzunahme von 1-2% (bzw. 1-3 Kilo) möglich. Diese Erfolgt, weil eine zusätzliche Wassereinlagerung in den Muskelzellen stattfindet.
Außerdem kann Kreatin zu geruchsintensiven Blähungen und Durchfall führen.
Manchmal reagieren die Anwender auch mit Muskelkrämpfen, welchen aber mit zu Einnahme von Magnesium entgegengewirkt werden kann.
Positiv
Nachdem die zusätzliche Wassereinlagerung abgeschlossen ist, findet eine effektive Zunahme von Muskelmasse statt, was zu einer Erhöhung der Muskelkraft führt.
Was man noch wissen sollte
- Die Einnahme von Kreatin sollte nicht von Jugendlichen erfolgen.
- Bei der Einnahme von Kreatin ist es wichtig, viel zu trinken; 1Liter auf 20Kilogramm Körpergewicht (1l/20kg)
- Kreatin wird, wenn es in Verbindung mit Traubensaft eingenommen wird, schnellst möglich ins Blut befördert.
- Bei der Einnahme von 3g Kreatin/Tag gibt es so gut wie keine Nebenwirkungen (außer evtl. die oben beschriebenen)
Eating pasta might seem impossible on a low carb diet. But there are ways to enjoy this carbohydrate-rich food that will keep blood sugar from spiking, keep full and give the taste satisfaction that only pasta can. I will show how and when to eat it and which type of pasta is best when choosing to indulge.
Step 1
It’s often thought that working out harder and overdoing it with cardio is the best way to lose or maintain weight. However, the fact is that 80% is diet. Meal plans are a great way to keep on track, especially low “starchy-carb” meal plans. This means easy on the breads, rice, potatoes and pasta. Carbohydrates retain water, digest faster than proteins and turn to sugar in the body. But everyone needs to satisfy cravings. Allow one cheat day per week. If choosing to make pasta, here are some tips on how and when to eat it.
Step 2
Pasta is a carbohydrate. Period. Doesn’t matter if it’s whole wheat, rice or bean/lentil pasta. While rice and bean pasta are recommended for those needing a gluten-free diet, be aware that they have 45 grams and 33 grams of carbs per cup, respectively. Whole wheat has 37 grams. Most low carb diets keep daily the count between 20-100 grams. Those numbers make it difficult to have pasta. It is still possible, though.
Step 3
Eat starchy carbohydrates earlier in the day. Carbs are an energy source, so eat them either for breakfast or lunch. This way, the body will use it throughout the day and by the time evening comes; it’s used up. Lunch is a great meal for pasta. It will help the feeling of fullness and satisfaction and by the time dinner rolls around, it’s digested. Eat a light dinner of protein and vegetables, keep salt to a minimum and the scale won’t move.
Step 4
Prepare a cup of pasta. It may not seem like much, but there are ways to make that cup seem like much more. Add sautéed vegetables. Make interesting choices. Kale, Portobello mushrooms and heirloom tomatoes can be sautéed with garlic, fresh basil and oregano and a touch of olive oil. This combo adds fiber, nutrients and a ton of flavor. Add equal amounts of vegetables and pasta together to get a satisfying meal.
Go one step further and add ½ cup of ground turkey or even some cooked shrimp. The protein will take longer to digest and you’ll have a great one-dish meal.
Make pasta as a side dish for dinner, not the main course. Stay away from any kind of cream sauce or oil-based sauce, as these will add lots of calories. Use olive oil sparingly when sauteing vegetables. Add a touch of vegetable or chicken broth while cooking to help finish them off. Any kind of tomato-based sauce is the best choice for flavoring your pasta. A side dish should be simple. Feel free to add fresh herbs and garlic to the tomato sauce to make it flavorful. Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top will also add flavor and protein.
As long as the pasta portion is under control and both vegetables and protein are added, the satisfaction of eating it without the guilt or weight gain will be there. But remember, keep it only once a week.
Originally, I had decided that P90X and school were not compatible. To tell the truth, I was making excuses.
Lets face the facts. Anything is possible if I put my mind to it.
I’ve succeeded in the past – so I should be able to succeed here…in the present, with this particular goal. Yes??
I swear, half of my problem is myself. Make that 90%. I could be my best friend if I learn how to treat myself properly.
Not only is this blog a journey towards better fitness…but also to growth.
Here goes a another try at P90X, and I have to thank bull for making be reconsider this (a friend I met online.. and commented on me “bailing from P90X”. I don’t bail. And here’s to it.
The soccer field has been the bane of my existance for over a month now. Once a point of refuge, now a location of tainted love. It is not the team — they are a joy. They run like emus, stalk the opposing offense like lionesses on the prowl, and even often have a nice passing game that advances us up the field. The problem is me.
Typically I spill my spirit in a team sport, using my emotions to fuel my sprints and my technique to rock some major ball kicking skills. Lately though, it feels as if any instinct I ever had about soccer has been shoved into a rusty tea kettle and left under a unused Grateful Dead bus. I have been playing as though I never attended a soccer practice once in my life.
For example, last Monday night at a reasonably timed 9:00 game (that’s 21:00 for those of you still thinking about Extreme Boot Camp), a ball was hurled by the opposing team’s goalie down the center of the field, right towards me. Take a wild stab at which of the three I did:
A. I headed the ball not in any particular direction, but enough to change the direction of the play.
B. I chested the ball and passed it to a fellow team member.
C. I ducked away from the ball as it barely grazed my shoulder, and then instantly wanted to lie face down in the turf and have my cleats be removed from my feet because I am no longer worthy of bothering to wear them.
It’s not just trapping the ball with various body parts that is evading me. When I’m challenging someone for the ball, I don’t ever feel like I’m going to win it — so guess what? I don’t. I am not running hard enough to keep up with my co-ed marks, even though reason concludes I should be able to. My few shots on goal are wild and never even aimed at the goal — the seem to be flinging themselves to the right. Any skill I had at the game has been cracked like sea glass and left under my feet so I step on it and bleed.
This all has been bothering me for some time, and after last week’s pathetic display of soccerism, I realized it was time to take charge. Soccer is supposed to revitalize me, not leave me feeling like last year’s stale ice cream cones. So I have developed a plan:
1. Pump Me Up
I will pump myself up in two ways before the game: by thinking of things that make me angry (like litter or people who hurt other people) and by listening to get some music, which in my case tends to be Blink 182’s All the Small Things, the title song from the new remake of Fame, and My Chemical Romance’s I’m Not Okay. (Suggestions are welcome, by the way.)
2. Faster Faster
I will run faster than I want to or think I can, and simply utilize the subs more. I will even run fast during one of my weekly runs, just to practice.
3. Positive K
I will make a more valiant effort to win the ball by keeping my head in the game, and by believing in my ability to do so.
4. Practice
I will drag Ken (or let him drag me) out of the apartment and out to a field to practice kicking the ball at the goal. Over and over again.
Yup, it’s time to revamp my style, to stop hindering my team, and to play like I’m a Buffalo girl and not a wimp. I want to love soccer again, not dread it.
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Feeling tired? Try a new kind of fatigue to boost your energy with Fitness Boot Camp. Check out my StudentStuff post here.
A little teaser to wet your taste buds…
With Jazzercise fading into the past (though I do anticipate its revival – if roller derby can make a come back, leotards can too) and the Support Our Troops ribbons continuing to make sales, aerobics instructors everywhere have combined strength and endurance training with the popularity of patriotism. The result? Fitness Boot Camp.
Once again Talking Hammers will dissolve the weeks West Ham related activities in our regular feature – ‘ The Friday Night Round Up’. It’s been another disappointing week to be a Hammer’s fan, but chin up, it’s been a lot worse than this.
We start our seven day round up with the highly entertaining game against Liverpool last Saturday. Throughout the aftermath of the match many a West Ham fan were predicting a season of doom and gloom. We wonder if these negative fans were the same fans who campaigned against the Alan Curbishley regime. During which, although sometimes boring, we did seem to win this type of game. We asked for attacking, attractive football and that is what Zola is giving us.
The least said about the Bolton game the better. We started really well and looked like we had the beating of them, but it wasn’t to be. Teams simply can’t give Bolton that many set pieces and expect to keep a clean sheet. Our fitness does seem to be an issue as we look very tired in the last quarter of games, this needs to be improved.
With no game this weekend we could find ourselves in the bottom three come sunday night. How much can we really expect from monday nights trip to the City of Manchester ?. It would need a special performance to take home three points. Do we have it in our locker ?
I used to adhere to the common phrase, “Everything in moderation.” I don’t anymore, because I’ve found through personal experience it isn’t true and doesn’t work! One of the most significant “aha moments” I’ve had in the last couple of years is that sugar is enemy #1! The day I came to the realization that my health is far more important than indulging in sugary desserts, I began to make real and lasting progress.
One of the more frustrating things in life, for me, is that not everyone gains weight really fast from eating copious, or in my case – small, amounts of sugar. I don’t really know why for sure, but I suspect it is due to genetic make-up. Some people are just built to burn through whatever calories come their way. Problem is, in the case of sugar, it really doesn’t matter whether you pack on the pounds from eating it. If too much is consumed, it will eventually evidence itself in other forms, including: dental carries, loss of bone density (which is really much the same thing), diabetes, heart disease and cancer (blanket statement alert!). I know not everyone (maybe not even most health officials) attributes the last three things on that list to sugar consumption, but in my view they ought to at least consider it as a possibility.
At this point I could go off on a tangent about all the evils of sugar, but I’ll reserve that for a slightly more scholarly future post on sugar and other sweeteners. For now I’ll focus on what I KNOW to be true: when I don’t eat sweeteners of any kind (save for small amounts of uncoooked honey and pure maple syrup) my appetite and my weight are stable. When I had lots of extra weight to lose, cutting sugar caused my weight to start dropping quickly. The more I cut the faster it dropped.
I’m kind of an obsessive “weigh-er.” I weigh myself just about every morning and every night. It’s kind of just a habit now, but I initially started doing it a while ago because I wanted to better understand how my weight responded to various things I ate. The one predominant thing I’ve noticed is that when I eat sugar, other sweeteners, things made with white flour or white rice, I gain several pounds the next day. Granted, I gain weight more quickly than the average person to be sure, but if this sounds anything like your struggles, I’d highly recommend you cut as much sugar as possible out of your diet as fast as possible. You will not regret doing so!
If your consumption of sugar and other sweeteners is quite high, then this is going to be difficult…but look on the bright side, if you can knock sweeteners out of your diet, you’ll be one BIG step towards success! Also, you are not alone if your consumption of sugar is high. Here is a chart that shows the average consumption of both sugar and high fructose corn syrup over the last 30 years. The chart is actually provided by a major maker of HFCS, and they think the stuff is awesome. I couldn’t disagree more, so I’m not going to provide the link. Their website doesn’t need any undue traffic. HFCS is of the devil (IMO)…but, alas I digress. Here’s the graph:
One thing to be aware of when reading this graph is the numbers here take into account the amount of sugar and HFCS sold, but not necessarily the amount actually consumed. It is difficult to estimate how much soda, for example, gets thrown away after getting a refill and not finishing it at McDonald’s. Basically, food that is thrown away is the wild card. Still, most people tend to finish desserts…at least I do anyway! Bottom line: we are consuming a lot more sweeteners than we used to and that isn’t good for our health. Another statistic that I’ve read in numerous places is that the average American consumes about 1/2 a cup of sugar a day! The American Heart Association is now recommending 6 teaspoons for women and 9 for men as a maximum (ONE 12 oz. can of soda has about 8 tsp!)! I recommend you stop eating it altogether. It simply isn’t worth the health problems it causes. Still, I’ll take a drastic reduction if you are willing to at least try that.
Reducing sweetener intake is pretty difficult. There are many obstacles to overcome: 1) It’s prevalence in most processed foods 2) Addiction to the “ups” 3) Constant presence in social situations like work, parties, etc. 4) It tastes good 5) Saying “goodbye” to some of our favorite foods 6) Getting through the first couple of weeks without it is quite difficult…just to name a few.
The benefits of reducing sweetener intake, per my personal experience, are also numerous: 1) Saying “goodbye” to the seesawing number on the scale 2) Seeing the number on the scale plummet faster than you thought possible 3) Gaining a stable appetite that makes it easy to turn down dessert 4) Retraining the taste buds to prefer the natural sugars in things like honey and fruit 5) Saying “hello” again to produce. 6) No longer having to deal with the “ups” or the “downs” 7) Feeling better in every way about yourself…and the list could go on and on. Try it, you’ll see.
Here are the steps I recommend you take. You might need to try one per week and focus on making it a habit if you are in need of doing all of this:
1) Stop drinking soda. Just stop. Even the “diet” stuff is bad for you. Studies show that people who drink diet sodas are at least as heavy as those who drink regular. That’s likely because drinking diet leads most people to think they can now indulge in other sweet things since they “saved the calories.” The reality is diet sodas are crammed with chemicals, not to mention drugs (caffine) that are designed to make you want to drink one after another. Tell yourself it is okay if you never drink one again. You don’t need to be loyal to your favorite brand. They don’t care about your health. They care about making money…even if it kills you…and it will. Drink water instead. You will be so shocked at how much better you will feel if you make this one simple decision! I own stock in Pepsi and I still want you to stop drinking it!
2) Stop drinking fruity drinks from the juice aisle. If it didn’t start out in the fridge at the store, just don’t drink it. I don’t care if it is V8…just don’t. Look at the ingredients on anything in that aisle. Not good. Even if it did start out in the fridge, make sure there is no sweeteners in the ingredients. Best not to buy store bought juice. Make your own if you instist on drinking it. Better yet, stick to water and eat the actual fruit!
3) Go through your cupboards, fridge and pantry. Read ALL the labels, even the ones you presume to be healthy. See how many of the foods have the following caloric sweeteners as ingredients: white sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, corn sweetener, fruit juice concentrate, sucrose, dextrose, fructose, glucose, invert sugar, lactose, maltose, malt syrup, molasses, raw sugar,and syrup. Also look for all the artificial sweeteners: saccharin (Sweet & Low), aspartame (Nutrasweet or Equal), acesulfame-K, sucralose (Splenda) and neotame. Surprised how many things contain multiple sugar sources? You’d do yourself a huge favor if you throw all these foods away. Don’t worry about the waste. Worry about your waist and more importantly your health. At least begin the slow process of replacing the products you use one at a time with products that don’t have so much sugar. If any of these ingredients show up in the first 2 ingredients on the list, then you really should consider throwing it away. At the very least, avoid buying it again!
Sugar really is that bad and it really is difficult to eliminate it from your diet. The good news is that once you do, you’ll feel a TON better than you ever thought possible. Trust me, I’ve been on both sides.
Please feel free to open a discussion with comments on this subject. If you comment on facebook, I’d appreciate it if you also click through to the actual blog and leave the comment there too!
I am still a bit sore from yesterday, but I since I did not have a pressing commitment, I went to Crossfit for the second day in a row. Now, here is a fact. If you go to Crossfit every day or at least 3 or 4 times a week, you will attain your goal. What ever your goal is. It is absolutely clear that doing CF two days in a row, you will get stronger, and leaner.
Today was squats and a lunge / knees to elbows exercise. First let’s talk about the squats. There actually isn’t much to discuss here except that I followed the rules and gradually increased the weights. I stopped at 155#’s and I was working it on the last round. Next was AMRAP in 10 minutes the lunges / knees to elbows. Now when I did knees to elbows before I simply lifted my lefts up. So this time, I was going to do more. They were going to go much higher this time. I wanted to get a full 3 or more rounds in but there were reasons that I could not (I was helping someone else). So I did 2 1/2 rounds. I think. Still quite please because what I did with my knees was definitely more than I did before. Push just a little more, right?
It was a good work out and a good day. And I may regret this later, but I am looking forward to stepping on the scale tomorrow. (Did I say that?… really?… holy cr@p…I need a therapist).
Oh almost forgot, phenom dinner too. I talk about that later.
If you are one of those people walking around out of shape you need to know just how much work you are doing just being you. Did you know that a pound of fat is equal to 4 sticks of butter? So if your carrying an extra 10 lbs of fat you are carrying 40 sticks and if your carrying 25 pounds of fat you are carrying 100 sticks of butter on your body.
So imagine you have a weight vest on, or better yet a weight suit made of jello, that attaches at the face and goes down to the ankles. Your carrying this body suit around 24/7 , no matter what you do, even when your sleeping. No wonder you tired, carrying all that unstable weight. Your joints and ligaments have constant pressure and no help from your muscles which are getting weaker if anything from non challenging usage.
Fatigue (especially after exertion), shortness of breath, decreased energy, palpitations, irregular heart beat, edema (especially swelling of the feet and legs), sleep apnea (Pickwickian syndrome) and respiratory obstruction (for obesity to cause sleep apnea and respiratory obstruction it must be severe), these are some of the things you have to deal with when you are out of shape.
Hypertension, coronary heart disease, predisposition to diabetes, hyperlipidemia (increased cholesterol level), metabolic abnormalities, increased risk for gallbladder disease, gout, some types of cancer, and development of osteoarthritis of the weight-bearing joints are some of the health challenges you could face being out of shape.
So tell me this, how is it easier to walk around out of shape 24/7, when it only takes anywhere from 6 to 8 hours a week to get into great shape and maintain it.
Yes it is going to take some work to get there, but no more fat suit. Visualize yourself in top shape, how much different would your life be. At first this was a very long post. I wanted to give you more data, to convince you that this was an important subject and that you need to act on it now. Then it hit me, if you can’t or won’t understand, in the few short sentences above, then your not ready to here the truth or do something about.
But remember this, you are still putting out more work carrying the Fat than it takes to get rid of it. So if your ready to get started losing your fat suit, go to my website at http://www.buyingworld.net/The%20Fitness%20Game.html and sign up for the Customized Online Training , I guarantee you results. Or go find a good Fitness program, and get started today.
But if you choose to not do anything about it then stop complaining, your where your choosing to be!!! Remember what I wrote before, you are either winning The Fitness Game or you are losing it there is no in between.
Remember the roller coaster with the sign that said, “You must be this tall to ride?” Similar rules apply to jeans. If the tag on your waistband is in the double-digits, hand over your ticket, proceed to the exit, and haul your fat ass to the gym.
Of course, don’t be looking for sympathy there either. My friend Erin, a personal trainer with the relentless enthusiasm of a camp counselor on crack, recently talked me into a trial membership at her gym, the kind of place where people go more to stay in shape, rather than to get in shape. I lasted all of 25 minutes. Thankful not to have stroked out on the elliptical machine, I staggered back to the ladies locker room to hose myself off and escape the punishing stares of the glistening beauties in their tastefully coordinated workout attire. The complimentary towels were anything but. Picture a terry-cloth post-it. I wondered if this was the gym’s version of a not-so-subtle motivational message: “If you can’t get our towels around your gigantic arse, drop the shampoo, and get yourself back upstairs to the cardio room for a minimum of 40 more minutes. You fat bastard. Cheers, The Management. P.S. Yes, our scales are accurate.”
Needless to say, I haven’t been skinny enough to rock a pair of jeans in months. OK, years. It’s no coincidence that the last time I wore jeans was sometime in 2005, a year after I’d decided to go back, I mean, go to college. I’d heard about the Freshman Fifteen, but no one had said shit about the Sophomore Sixteen, not to mention the darker perils of junior and senior year.
And then there’s my husband. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a lovely, brilliant, amazing human being, and, as it happens, one hell of a chef. If I were a better person, I’d tell him to dump my ass and get on with his life. Thankfully, I’m not. That said, the man has been trying to kill me with food since the day we met. He lives to feed me, and seemingly finds my ever-expanding girth no impediment to his amorous advances. That’s the good news. It’s also the bad news.
“Baby, no – I can’t have an entire platter of pesto gnocchi with freshly grated parmesan and a hunk of garlic bread for dinner. I’m, like, you know – trying to lose weight.”
“But you’re beautiful. And it’s so good – it’ll make you happy. And i want to make you happy. That makes me happy.”
And who am I to deny him his codependent culinary urges? Especially when they go down so nicely with a bottle and a half of cheap French red? For a while, though, I did try to counsel him on portion size, using a salad plate as an example of how much food I should have. Bless his heart, he did his best, but his servings stayed the same size – they just got taller. It was like a bizarre form of water displacement.
There are times when I think, screw it. Why fight the inevitable? Let’s just become that couple, you know the one: the pencil-necked, skinny guy with the sunken chest and drawn eyes because he’s had the life sucked out of him by his whale-like, bossy wife, the one hovercrafting along beside him in her voluminous muumuu, fat, glowing and serene.
“A little starvation can really do more for the average sick man than can the best medicines and the best doctors. I do not mean a restricted diet; I mean total abstinence from food for one or two days. I speak from experience; starvation has been my cold and fever doctor for 15 years, and has accomplished a cure in all instances.”~ Mark Twain
Yet another study showing that periodic fasting has health benefits. This one studied a group of Mormons. Mormons have lower risk of Coronary Artery Disease than the people surrounding them who are not Mormons. The Mormon faith prohibits known factors of heart disease, such as smoking, and also restricts other behaviors that have possible effects on health, such as alcohol consumption and drinking coffee and tea. This study adjusts for those tertiary factors and focuses on the effects of fasting, which is also part of the Mormon faith.
When it was all said and done, the scientists found that fasting reduced the chances of a person having Coronary Artery Disease.
Don’t listen to those who tell you that fat people just aren’t eating enough meals and that skipping chow will only make you fat. Eating too much makes people fat, plain and simple.
Sandwich (my friend that I call Sandwich not an actual lunch item) and I were discussing the complexities of boat pose so I thought that would make an ideal pose for the day.
It’s not so much complex as just really challenging. This move requires a core of steel and also a good bit of thigh strength (say “thigh strength” five times fast).
YogaJournal says it “helps develop determination, stamina, and boldness of spirit.” It also helps develop abs.
To consider yoga “intense” is an understatement. Instead of asking your physical body to do all of the work like in most aerobics classes, yoga asks that you work with your body and your mind too. It sounds rigorous because we can go about our daily lives without really listening to ourselves and paying attention to our needs. The idea is to listen to your body to achieve inner peace within yourself.
Yoga is one of my favorite workouts. I’m down with its relaxing, soothing approach, but as I’m also a runner, I also like how it stretches my upper and lower extremities nicely so I can prevent cramps, ACL tears, and other common running injuries. Yoga doesn’t only relax your nervous system, but it can also stretch and strengthen different body parts that you work over time. Each pose pays special attention to stretch and strength a different body region. The key is to finding out what type of yoga works for you.
“Wow, I could use that. But, it still wouldn’t be any good for me. I might fall over in Tree Pose and the entire class might laugh at me. ”
You shouldn’t worry about what people think because everyone there is in the same boat and trying to focus on their own needs. If you’re still nervous, you might want to try some yoga asanas (or poses) at home to get the hang of times before you sign up for your first class.
When you sign up for your first class, I would advise going to an actual yoga studio for the full benefit. Just google Yoga Studios near “insert your zip code here” and you’re set.
The most fascinating thing about yoga is that it never gets boring either. because it constantly challenges you. You’re constantly using visualization as you focus on meeting your needs and goals. The physical postures that you hold (or poses) are the exact same through each of the several different styles of yoga. However, each yoga style has a particular emphasis. I hope the more popular ones below will help tailor the ideal yoga style for you.
Yoga Styles
Hatha - Hatha is the most basic and great for beginners. It focuses on the “eight limbs” (Yama = Regarding morals towards others. Niyama = Regarding morals towards oneself, Asana = Yoga poses, Pranayama = breathing exercises, Pratyahara = Withdrawal of the senses, meaning that the exterior world is not a distraction from the interior world, Dharana = Concentration, Dhyana = meditation, Samadhi = Bliss. Once dharana is achieved, this is is what is expected through meditation as the self aligns with the universe. This is also known as enlightenment.) Each limb relates to an aspect of achieving a healthy and fulfilling life.
Hatha is slow and relaxing, and is great for beginners and those interested in meditation. If you are (or were most recently) pregnant, prenatal hatha classes would be your best as it can relieve lower back tension and can reduce swelling.
Vinyasa - Vinyasa is based on a series of poses and breathing-synchronized exercises called Sun Salutations. The technique is sometimes called Vinyasa Flow too, because of the smooth flow that the poses run together and almost become a dance. A Vinyasa yoga teacher will typically instruct their students to do a series of Sun Salutations to warm up the body for some intense stretching afterwards. I heard this is a great class for those of you who like unpredictability in your yoga practice.
Ashtanga - This movement is also called flow. It is an intense movement from one pose to the next. If a class is described as Power Yoga, it will be based on the flowing style of Ashtanga, but not necessarily strictly to Astanga. Great for immediate or advanced yogis.
Iyengar - This form of yoga practice was based on the ancient teachings of yogi B.K.S. Iyengar and focuses on body alignment. As you may have learned from general aerobics classes, even, correcting your body form is important for achieving optimal results and Iyengar helps teach your body how it should be positioned when practicing poses. Props like blocks may be used too. Great for advanced yogis or anyone interested in anatomy or kinesiology.
Kundalini -This form of yoga practice focuses on breath and movement, challenging the body to untap energy (prana) at the base of the spine that can be drawn up through the body awakening of the seven chakras. This is more of a spiritual type of yoga, as it focuses on meditation, breathing, and chanting exclusive mantras. Are you up for the physical and mental challenge?
Bikram - This form of yoga practice was pioneered by Bikram Choudhury and his method is also known as hot yoga, which is a series of twenty-six yoga poses, including two pranyama exercises, each of which is performed twice in a single ninety minute class. Bikram is practiced in a room where the temperature can reach as high as 95-100 tempratures. Routine practice can rid your body of toxins and help make your body more flexible. This is more suited for immediate to advanced yogis. Wear loose clothing, take your own mat or towel, and drink plenty of water. It’s advised that you don’t practice bikram if you’re pregnant, since it can raise core body temperature.
Yoga Benefits
Aside from deep relaxation and concentration, yoga can also benefit you far beyond the nervous system. Here are some other reasons to pick up on a good habit!
Aside from deep relaxation and concentration, yoga can benefit you far beyond the nervous system. Yes, true, there are some poses where various conditions are contraindicated and we will go over this later. But, most yoga poses put gentle pressure on our internal organs and help them to function properly. Example, gentle pressure on the digestive system can promote peristalsis and can deep relaxation may just be what you need to lower your blood pressure and protect your heart.
You can replace a negative habit with a positive habit. A negative habit is something that you do constantly, even though you know it’s harming you, but you still do it, anyway. Take staying up late for no reason or smoking. Yoga and meditation can actually help you regain mental balance and focus on your goals. Yes, you won’t go insane and you can regain control of your life.
You can lose weight. Oh, wow. REALLY!? Keep reading. Although yoga itself doesn’t necessarily you lose weight, regular practice of it can help you cultivate a healthy lifestyle to lead you well on your way. Weight loss is more of a lifestyle change monitered by routine diet, exercise, and positive affirmation. As yoga helps you regain focus, this will help you make you mentally stronger from the poses and meditation which will help you get better control of your new lifestyle.
You can be wiser. When you first sit down, I can guarantee that your first session won’t be easy. It wasn’t for me. When you really sit down and allow yourself to listen to yourself, you will realize that you will have all of these thoughts racing to your head. Maybe they are the same as your best friend, or maybe it’s something completely different. This is natural. Good thoughts or bad thoughts, the important thing to realize is that we all make mistakes that we can regret. There is nothing that we can do about the past. Instead, we can mentally focus throughout the poses and meditation and sort out our thoughts and build up our capacity to see what deserves permanent value and what is transitory. When we regain this state, you may realize that it’s possible to live a life of “no regrets.”
Meditation will present you with the ability to listen to that little voice that you’ve been silencing for so long. This little voice can be a bridge of wisdom for you which can help focus your mind on making decisions that won’t only positively benefit yourself, but others as well.
Reese Witherspoon, en route to Yoga.
Photo Credit: Google.
What should I wear?
When you’re a guy, the benefits might just be enough to sway your decision. When you’re a girl, you’re now deciding what should you wear and what to bring. Try wearing loose clothing that’s moisture wicking, which can evaporate sweat from the skin much faster. And nobody knows yoga better than LuluLemon! All of their yoga tanks, tops, capris, and pants are made from moisture-wicking fibers (like luon and luxtreme).
One downside that I don’t like about LuluLemon is the price. Although the quality is superior, some people may still not prefer to shell out $68-$98 for a pair of yoga pants. My best pick for an alternative is the Aerie Fit line at Aerie. They are made of good material, and some of the styles are very similiar to a pair of yoga pants from LuluLemon. Plus, as Aerie is from American Eagle, you know you can always can count on a great sale or discount when you need it.
Coming soon: Yoga Pose of the Week
Each week, I will share with you one of my favorite yoga poses and will talk about how you can do it and the benefits of doing it over time. Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, what did you think of this post? Do you practice yoga at home or do you go to a class? Share your yoga experiences in the comments with us!
Today there are many schools and institutions that train one in the ancient science of Yoga. Yoga being the easiest and the best methods of fitness, each one believes in a different approach and methodology… but what is Yoga? And how is Trikaya Yoga different from the others? In a technical sense, Yoga refers to that body of values, attitudes, percepts and techniques that have been developed over 5 millennia and may even be regarded as the foundation of ancient Indian civilization.
With Trikaya Yoga, we are trying to bring in more wellness and fitness into people of all ages. Bringing in a sense of freedom from fat, freedom from diseases, freedom from stress!
Trikaya Yoga follows Hatha Yoga, which is also known as the science of purification. It is believed that a healthy and detoxified body gives you a healthy and strong mind. With Hatha Yoga, Trikaya Yoga aims to create an absolute balance of interacting activities and processes of the body and mind. Trikaya Yoga classes, move through asana, pranayama and relaxation/meditation in order to give its students a strong immune system, stress management, a youthful appearance, disease prevention and a cool and calm mind.
Just as a machine produces wastes, likewise our body continuously produces wastes. These wastes are of 3 types: mucus, gas and acidity. If we cleanse the body internally from time to time, the excesses of these three metabolic products are removed, and their formation is regulated and balanced. Then perfect health can be maintained. It has been discovered that asana and pranayama, are more powerful and effective ways of controlling the whole body.
Through our Hatha Yoga, students can even regulate hormonal changes in the body, prevent, control and thwart many lifestyle diseases of today. The age of computers and other mechanics have changed and disrupted the natural ergonomic functioning of the body, thus giving rise to numerous aches and pains like lower back pain, slip disk, spondilitis, knee pain and others. Trikaya Yoga teaches it students various Asanas/ postures that bring balance, stability and right posturing to the body, thus preventing muscle and joint pains. Hatha Yoga believes that right posturing of body, helps prana or the life force to flow in perfect harmony, thus creating a sense of balance in body, mind and spirit.
Trikaya Yoga is happening at our very own centre at Benson Town! For more details Call- 9845396360!
For several years now I’ve had serious misgivings about the mattress industry, and the type of bedding we use in the US.
I’ve never had a problem sleeping on the floor, or on a comfy couch, or outdoors. In fact, I’ve usually found that I sleep much better on the floor than I do in most beds. My favorite mattress ever was a cheapo discount mattress that was hard as a rock.
A few years ago, before I left Virginia, I bought myself a new mattress. I figured I should have a nice bed to sleep in, so I paid out for a nice mattress, and a good platform frame. After three months, the mattress had a huge sag in the middle.
I took it back, and they gave me a new one. That was nice of them!
Six months later, that one was developing a sag as well.
Now, I don’t think I gain mass while I sleep, but I might. My next mattress was out here in SF. My girlfriend and I bought a California King. It was GREAT!
Till my side turned into a saggy marshmallow.
When my girl and I split up, I realized what I’d done wrong. I’d believed the hype!!!
I moved out of our old place, and left that old bed there. I slept on the floor for a few weeks, but the floor by itself is rather unforgiving. So off I went to the local futon shop.
They hooked me up! For less than $200 they gave me a simple pine futon frame, and a nice, thick, firm futon mattress. It feels like sleeping on a soft floor. Very nice!
The other things I left behind were my pillows. I’ve had a Chinese pillow full of flax husks for five or six years now. Why not just use that as my pillow?!
It worked great. Till last night, that is.
Last night, I slept without a pillow.
And I realized something.
Ever see a baby sleep, or see a picture of a sleeping baby?
It looks like this:
Awww! Wook at da widdle bay-beeeee!
or like this:
Sweepy
Notice anything?
THEY DON’T HAVE PILLOWS!
I felt very strange when I woke up and realized I hadn’t used a pillow all night. But then I wondered, why had I used a pillow for so long?
And why do people spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on mattresses when my futon seemed to be doing the trick for less than $200?
Check out this blog post from Jenni Oates. Jenni is a local (Franklin, TN) health and wellness blogger. I’ve found a lot of her posts to be very informative. Keep up the great work, Jenni!
This post happens to be about ADHD medication. Scary, scary stuff when you really do your research. ADD and ADHD are especially close to my heart because of the work we’re doing with The Egoscue Foundation and the Patch Project Initiative. For those of you who don’t know what The Patch is, it’s an indoor obstacle course, and our goal through the PPI is to donate a Patch to every school in the nation. Yes….DONATE. That means FREE. No strings attached. The Foundation’s mission is to prevent childhood obesity, diabetes, ADD & ADHD, the list goes on and on. We can do all of those things, and more, by getting our kids active. We’re living in a time when many school districts are eliminating Physical Education and recess all together. We now need the PPI more than ever, especially when you consider the ‘digital’ age in which most of today’s kids are being brought up. There is an overwhelming lack of motion, and society needs to be jump started!
If you know of a school or non-profit who is in need of a Patch, I strongly encourage you to get them on the donation list. We are infecting society with ACTIVITY, and doing it from the ground up…don’t miss out!
“Design environments that support your best intentions. Nature abhors a vacuum and will-power is not very powerful. So surround yourself with the places, things, systems, technologies, and conveniences that will make it easier to make it successful. The more you focus on what you want, rather than on what you don’t want, the more possibilities you will see.” – Bob Tschannen-Moran (www.LifeTrekCoaching.com, Provision #598: New Year’s Resolutions).
C.H.A.R.G.E. #013
In last week’s C.H.A.R.G.E., we discussed three important issues regarding our wellness; stress, nutrition/weight management, and exercise. By changing our surroundings in a positive way, we can greatly increase our chances of success in these areas. In this C.H.A.R.G.E., we will take a look at three more common areas where we tend to get stuck.
1. SLEEP – With the normal hustle and bustle of life (work and family), off-the-chart stress levels, large quantities of caffeine consumption, and the tendency to over-extend ourselves in all areas of life, it’s no wonder that our sleep patterns are adversely effected. Consider these statistics:
- Over 70 million Americans are diagnosed with disorders of sleep and wakefulness.
- Over 18 million Americans experience sleep apnea.
- Sleep problems add approximately $15.9 billion to national health care costs.
How many hours of sleep a day do you need to function at your best? What is it going to take to ensure that you will get that amount regularly? What other areas in your life need modification to help you get the sleep you need?
2. WORK/LIFE BALANCE - I don’t think there is any question that we by choice or necessity work too much. The demands in the workplace only seem to grow as businesses seek to increase productivity. Our health and the following statistics are true indicators of that fact:
- In 2000, the World Health Organization reported that by 2020, clinical depression would outrank cancer and be second only to heart disease as the greatest cause of death and disability worldwide.
- A Families and Work Institute 2001 study revealed that 1 in 3 American employees felt over-worked as a chronic condition.
- In an Overwork in America study, employees had higher stress levels, more symptoms of clinical depression, reported poorer health, and were more likely to neglect self-care.
How can you address the issue of being over-worked? What practices can you put into place at your work to become more efficient? What limits could you implement into your day that would allow you to have more free-time?
3. HEALTH - Just look at the numbers…they are staggering! Our health is deteriorating due to any number of reasons. Consider the previous five issues we have talked about and they all affect our health: STRESS, NUTRITION/WEIGHT MANAGEMENT, EXERCISE, SLEEP, and WORK/LIFE BALANCE. Changing the environment of any of these can have a substantial effect on our wellness, for better or worse. Take a look at these statistics:
- According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the average person visited the doctor’s office three times in 2000. There were 823.5 million visits to the doctor’s office in 2000 (non-emergency or urgent care) – up 2.7% from 1980, due to greater awareness in preventive care. These increases are due to the baby-boomer population (i.e. the “hyper-informed”).
- Those on the other-side of the “hyper-informed” are suffering from the diseases related to obesity. High blood pressure, sleep apnea, joint pain, and diabetes have all increased. Type II diabetes moved from the 10th most common diagnosis in 1980 to the 3rd most in 2000 (Center for Health Statistics).
What value do you place on your health? What will it take for you to raise your level of awareness in regards to your health? What changes in your life need to be made to create a more health conscious environment?
In order to reach our “Maximum Wellness”, we need to pay more attention to our sleep habits, our work -life, and our current health. Take some time to answer the questions listed above, to see where you can make improvements. You have the choice to successfully design your life. How will you choose?
Tout d’abord merci à tous ceux et celles qui sont venus prendre part à ces deux jours et merci à Gaëlle pour ses cours… Quel talent !!!
Nous avons bien entendu terminé cet évènement par un délicieux repas à “La Terrasse du Vieux Port/Le Nautica” où nous avons été servis comme des princes et, où nos papilles se sont délectées !!!
Maintenant que le bal est ouvert, nous vous souhaitons une bonne reprise et vous remercions encore de la confiance que vous nous accordez….
N’oubliez pas : un corps sain alimente un esprit sain !!!
This week consisted of “Boot Camp” on M/W/F and Personal Training on T/R. Already, the number of reps I can do in BC and the length of time I can hold difficult positions are increasing. I still have difficulty with the running, but generally start out running and then change to walking when I get too winded.
I’ve also been watching what I eat and making healthy choices. I thought it would be okay, after a tossed salad and a plate of scrambled eggs, if I had a few margaritas on Friday night; however, Saturday I felt exhausted most of the day. As a consequence, I ended up taking it very easy all day, got plenty of sleep when I felt like I needed it, and ate very lightly. Didn’t feel hungry anyway, so that was no big deal.
Today I’ve got plans to go out with friends for all three meals. Definitely a first for me! Breakfast with Ange (scrambled eggs, grapefruit juice), lunch with Suzie (Macaroni Grill) and tentatively, dinner with Beth (Chili’s). I’ll be checking out the menus to make smart choices!
Also, since I didn’t walk yesterday, I’m going to make an effort to do so today. At this particular moment in time, I have no energy at all, but once I have a walk, breakfast, and a chat with Ange, I’m hoping to feel much better.
Looking forward to see what this week will bring in terms of increased progress toward my long-term goals.
I’ve been watching and purchasing fitness videos and DVD’s since the days of Jane Fonda so, I believe I’m pretty qualified to judge a good one vs. one that’s just not so great. So, when I was asked to write a review for the NEW! TRX Multi-Sport Strength DVD, I was honored and happily obliged.
The TRX Multi-Sport Strength DVD focuses on strength, stability, and power. It’s a great full-body workout in just 30 minutes. Jessi Stensland, a Professional Triathlete, runs through 8 of her favorite exercises. I just finished watching it again and I’m very impressed with the combinations of exercises shown. The exercises are broken down so that the first 15 minutes are spent on upper body and the last 15 minutes focus on lower body and core.
She cues each of the exercises with a concise yet thorough explanation. What I really appreciate, is that she tells you what the length of the TRX should be and the correct positioning so there is no question. It is also shown at the bottom of the screen at the beginning of each exercise. She refers to the importance of bio-mechanics (spinal alignment) and proper posture throughout the workout. She also talks about unilateral training and how it can be used to correct imbalances in the body and help prevent injuries.
This is a great DVD for beginners and instructors/trainers because she clearly explains the modifications and goes through each exercise in a slow and controlled manner. Jessi has a great attitude and an amazing figure, she’s upbeat and you can tell she’s having a great time which in turn makes this a great DVD to watch.
As a side note: I am a HUGE FAN of the TRX. I bought it as a tool for personal use and, since I’m a Personal Trainer became TRX certified so I could use it with my clients. What I love most about the TRX is that it’s great for ALL LEVELS of fitness because each exercise can be modified by just changing the position of the feet or the body. I bought several TRX’s and now teach TRX Group Fitness classes at a very reasonable cost. So, if you’re in the South Bay (Redondo, Hermosa, or Manhattan Beach, Torrance, or El Segundo area) feel free to contact me.
The Bad News …Your glutathione levels are FALLING, by about 10% to 15% per decade!
Reduced glutathione levels result in accelerated aging, low energy, higher inflammation, and a greater vulnerability to cell damage and disease
The Good News … MaxGXL® can dramatically raise your glutathione levels, with increases up to 292%.
Too good to be true… See the double blind clinical trial for yourself. CLICK HERE FOR CLINICAL STUDY
What is Glutathione Anyway?
Simply put, glutathione (GSH) is the body’s master antioxidant.
It is a small protein produced naturally in our cells when certain required elements are present. It functions both as an antioxidant and an antitoxin and is a major defense system against illness and aging. Our glutathione level actually indicates our state of health and can predict longevity. There are more than 60,000 published papers on the beneficial effects of glutathione. In the near future the importance of glutathione will be widely recognized because it has the ability to boost the immune system and fight off the damage of free radicals on the cells. Various daily activities can reduce your glutathione such as stress, excercise, infection, injury and environmental toxins. Your glutathione, or in other words, your body’s natural defense against aging and cellular damage decreases by about 10% to 15% every decade!*
Modern research has shown that individuals who have low levels of glutathione are susceptible to chronic illness. Decreased levels of glutathione can be brought about by continual stress upon the immune system. As we now know, a lowered immune system can bring about illness and disease. This is a ferocious cycle. While you need glutathione for a productive immune system, a weakened immune system hampers the production of glutathione.*
Increasing age and other factors reduce the body’s production and utilization of glutathione
Beginning around the age of 20 your body’s natural production of this powerful little protein declines about 10 to 15 percent every decade. It is well understood in the medical and scientific community that intracellular glutathione levels cannot effectively be raised by oral glutathione supplementation because it is believed to be destroyed in the digestive system; which is why MaxGXL® is such a groundbreaking discovery.*
To reiterate:*
Glutathione slows down the aging process
Glutathione detoxifies and improves liver function
Glutathione strengthens the immune system
Glutathione works to help improve mental functions
Increases energy
Improves concentration
Permits increased exercise
Glutathione improves heart and lung function…just to name a few
Having fat-loss as one of your goals means you should be performing intense interval work. I’ve posted studies in the past showing this as an extremely efficient way of losing fat, but in case you missed it here are a few of them…
International Journal of Obesity in 2008 did a study on the effects of high intensity intermittent exercise training on fat loss and found that the group performing 20 minutes of interval training lost more body fat than the group performing 40 minutes of steady state training.
In 1994 Metabolism did a study in which they compared two different modes of training on body fat and muscle metabolism. They found that the high intensity intermittent training group had greater subcutaneous fat loss than the endurance training group. In fact they concluded that “vigorous exercise favors negative energy and lipid balance to a greater extent than exercise of low to moderate intensity“.
The Journal of Physiology in September of 2006 reported similar initial adaptations in human skeletal and exercise performance when comparing short-term sprint intervals versus traditional endurance training.
Is it difficult? Yes, which is why more people choose to run like gerbils on treadmills for 45 minutes instead of exercising with intensity.
Fat loss is about calorie expenditure. You need to burn more calories than you take in. The excuse about how you “barely eat anything but still can’t seem to lose weight” doesn’t make any sense. Your body can’t produce something out of nothing so either you are lying about how much you eat or you are simply unaware of the total amount of calories you are ingesting.
The bottom line is that in order to create a calorie deficit you need to eat less and move more. Despite what you may think, there is actually a more efficient way of doing this without having to resort to your daily morning ritual of spending time on every piece of cardio equipment the gym has to offer.
While you may burn a few calories hopping from the treadmill to the Precor machine, your goal should be to burn the most amount of calories possible in the time you spend exercising. This is why interval training at a higher intensity can help you out.
For those of you defending steady-state cardio by claiming “I’m in my fat-burning zone“, think about this: while your body may use a greater percentage of fat as energy during low-intensity aerobic training, the total number of calories burned when compared to exercising at a higher intensity is less. All of you with fat-loss goals should not solely be concerned with the amount of fat being utilized during your workout but with the total number of calories you’re expending.
It’s that time of year again… Monday night NFL, Saturday afternoons of cross-state rivals… yep, it’s football season.
This year, I’m seeing more and more kids participating in football in all age groups. We encourage kids to participate in all kinds of athletics and get some exercise after school. Just remember that football is a contact sport and kids who participate will need special attention to ensure that the contact type injuries they receive during football don’t lead to lasting problems as they age.
It’s a common thing for me to hear guys in their middle ages come in and tell me how their original spinal complaints began back while they were playing high school football and just never got checked out.
Often times, we can not only help the player to heal, but we can usually get their body to heal appropriately and faster than allopathic medicine – getting you back into the game quicker and healthier.
Remember, when two bodies slam into eachother, something has to give… we’ll be here to make sure that the impact doesn’t leave a lasting impression!
Neulich kam im Fernsehen eine Sendung über Couchpotatoes. Die Liebste und ich haben uns köstlich amüsiert. Da gibt es doch tatsächlich Menschen, die ihre ganze Freizeit auf der Couch vor dem Fernseher verbringen, Kartoffelchips mampfen und keine Ahnung mehr von dem Leben draußen haben.
«Hast Du gesehen, dass diese Dame da schon viereckige Augen hat?« fragte die Liebste etwas undeutlich, weil sie gerade ein Stück Pizza kaute. Sie rekelte sich auf dem Sessel und öffnete obersten Knopf ihrer Jeans. Dann schob sie sich das nächste Stück Pizza in den Mund.
Ich hatte die viereckigen Augen nicht gesehen. Dazu hätte ich meinen Kopf Richtung Fernseher drehen müssen. Und das ging schlecht. Ich lag lang gestreckt mit dem Rücken auf der Couch, auf meinem Bauch stand der Pizzateller und auf meinen Beinen hatte es sich unsere Hündin bequem gemacht. Ihre Schnauze war gerade mal einen knappen Zentimeter vom Teller entfernt und sie beobachtete mich mit Argusaugen.
»Guck mal, da ist sie wieder!« lachte die Liebste. »Die sieht doch aus wie eine blaue Leberwurst.«
Ich drehte meinen Kopf Richtung Fernseher. Stimmte, die Dame mit den viereckigen Augen sah in ihrem blauen Jogginganzug wirklich aus wie eine blaue Leberwurst. Vielleicht hatte ich meinen Kopf ein bisschen zu heftig gedreht. Der Pizzateller rutschte langsam von meinem Bauch. Bei meinem ungeschickten Versuch ihn festzuhalten, drehte ich mich ein etwas zu schnell rum. Die Hündin sprang in die Höhe und stand auf mir, während wir gemeinsam langsam dem Pizzateller hinterher von der Couch auf den Boden rutschten.
Eingeklemmt zwischen Couch, Tisch und Sessel, das rechte Knie in der Pizza, die Nase in mehreren Salatblättern und unsere Hündin auf meinem Hintern trampelnd, verlangte ich Hilfe von meiner Liebsten. Die jedoch lag brüllend vor Lachen in ihrem Sessel, unfähig sich zu bewegen. Als sie sich endlich etwas beruhigt hatte und sich bückte, um mir hilfreich ihre Hand zu reichen, machte es Krach und ihre Jeans klaffte am dem Hinterteil einige Zentimeter auseinander.
Zwei Minuten später saßen wir frustriert nebeneinander auf der Couch, während die Hündin im Sessel die Pizzareste verspeiste.
»Kann das sein, dass wir eine gewisse Ähnlichkeit mit dieser blauen Leberwurst haben?« machte die Liebste vorsichtig den Anfang.
Nun, ganz ehrlich gesagt, wir hatten nicht nur eine gewisse Ähnlichkeit. Wir waren in den letzten Monaten zu blauen Leberwürsten mutiert. Und das musste sofort geändert werden, auf der Stelle. Da waren wir uns beide einig. Als erste Maßnahme schalteten wir den Fernseher aus. Fünf Minuten später war er allerdings wieder an. Den Tatort mit Lena Odenthal alias Ulrike Folkerts mussten wir einfach sehen, auch wenn es bereits die mindestens dritte Wiederholung war.
Am nächsten Tag fuhr die Liebste in die Stadt und kam mit einem Buch wieder. »Fit und fittiger« oder so ähnlich hieß es. Auf dem Umschlag grinste ein dynamisch aussehender grauhaariger Herr im Jogginganzug allen Leberwurstschlaffis wie uns entgegen. Angeblich stand dieses Buch schon seit Wochen auf der Bestellerliste, woraus wir haarscharf schlossen, dass außer uns noch mehr Menschen fit und fittiger werden wollten. Warum sie trotzdem noch nicht zu Tausenden auf den Straßen rumrannten, wurde uns beim Lesen der ersten Seiten klar. Fit und fittiger zu werden ist eine schwere Angelegenheit, die nicht einfach in wenigen Tagen erledigt werden kann.
Zunächst einmal fehlten uns die geeigneten Schuhe für das richtige Fitnesstraining. So fuhren wir zwei Tage später wieder in die Stadt und gingen zum ersten Mal in unserem Leben in ein richtiges Sportgeschäft. Etwas fehl am Platz kam ich mir dort mit meinen Maßen (ca. 1,50 x 1,50 m im Quadrat) schon vor. Die Liebste entsprach mit ihrer – inzwischen wieder geflickten – Jeans Größe 27 schon eher den normalen Kundinnen dieses Ladens. Deshalb wunderte es mich gar nicht, dass die Verkäuferin zunächst auch nur die Liebste nach ihren Wünschen fragte. Wahrscheinlich habe ich es sowieso nur unserem gemeinsamen Auftreten zu verdanken, dass ich in diesem Laden überhaupt bedient wurde und mir ein Paar Joggingschuhe für knapp 200 DM kaufen durfte.
Derart ausgerüstet wollten wir natürlich sofort mit unserem Joggingtraining beginnen. Doch wo? Einig waren wir uns, dass wir nicht durch den Ort laufen und uns zum Gespött der Dorfjugend machen wollten. Einig waren wir uns auch darüber, dass die Strecke einigermaßen eben sein musste.
Leider wohnen wir aber am Rande eines Mittelgebirges und ebene Waldwege sind bei uns äußerst selten. Deshalb studierten wir erst mal eine Wanderkarte und fuhren die nächsten drei Abende sämtliche Waldwege in einem Umkreis von 15 Kilometern ab. Schließlich stießen wir auf einen ehemaligen Trimm-dich-Pfad, ein Überbleibsel aus den siebziger Jahren. Damals hieß Jogging noch Dauerlauf und ein Paar normale Turnschuhe genügten.
Nun gut, wir hatten jetzt die richtigen Schuhe und Stirnbänder. Denn auf diversen Fotografien im Bestseller war zu sehen, dass zum Laufen unabdingbar auch ein Stirnband gehörte. Wir hatten einen Weg gefunden und eine Stoppuhr bei einer Freundin ausgeliehen. So fuhren wir zu unserem Trimm-dich-Pfad und begannen zu laufen. Ganz nach Vorschrift. Eine Minute Laufen, zwei Minuten Gehen. Unsere Hündin, die das Buch ja nicht gelesen hatte, war damit gar nicht einverstanden. Sie blieb stehen, wenn wir laufen wollten, und zerrte wild an der Leine, wenn wir gingen. Der Liebsten fiel die Stoppuhr auf den Boden und brachte uns so ganz aus dem Rhythmus. Nach 10 Minuten gaben wir auf und schlenderten gemütlich zum Auto zurück.
Am folgenden Abend versuchten wir es ohne Hund und liefen und gingen eine halbe Stunde genau nach Vorschrift. Danach hatte ich an beiden Fersen und allen Zehen Riesenblasen, vielleicht hätte ich die teuren Turnschuhe doch vorher einlaufen sollen. Die Liebste stolperte auf dem letzten Meter über einen Ast und verstauchte sich den Fuß.
Die nächsten Abende lagen wir wieder vor dem Fernseher, pflegten unsere Wunden und beschlossen, uns einer anderen Sportart zuzuwenden.
Well, well, well. Back to reality. My vacation is over, I feel like a zombie since I’m trying to readjust to U.S. time, and I’m back to work. It seems that the wonderful days of being care-free have ended abruptly and a splash of cold water has been thrown on my face. Such is life I suppose. We can’t hid out forever.
With that, of course, comes my resolution to begin my new program. After spending a great deal of time shopping for groceries on Sunday and again on Monday to the tune of $175 for one week, we’re off and running! I’m not used to all of this. I haven’t been in a grocery store to buy more than a couple of items, which usually included ice cream and cookies, for quite awhile now.
I can see why I’ve hated doing it — lots of people running into each other, grabbing for the same stuff, people bumping into each other with their shopping carts and not sharing the aisles, or hogging the aisle so nobody can pass by them while they’re looking over whatever products they’re considering buying.
Anyway, Dr. Rustveld provided me with a pre-set menu based on 2,000 calories he developed on his own. I decided for the first few weeks that it might be best for me to follow this until I get the hang of measuring portions and amounts, getting used to cooking again and waking up early to prepare breakfast, and getting some type of routine in place.
It was nice though to wake up and make my 1/3 cup whole grain oatmeal, have one small orange and drink eight ounces of milk, not to mention, my fat grams from “butter” that’s made from plant sterols to help lower my cholesterol levels.
Then for a snack, I had a small yogurt with one ounce of walnuts and a banana. For lunch, I was allowed to splurge! I had a six-inch chicken Subway on wheat break with all of the vegetables and mustard, no cheese, chips or drinks. For an afternoon snack, there’s a small apple and four graham cracker squares.
The intent for dinner was to have three ounces of sirloin steak and some other things, which I can’t recall at this very moment, however, that plan seems to be going out the window because I have an important meeting that takes place at 6 p.m. and won’t be finished until 8 p.m. More than likely, my fiancee and I will end up eating out again somewhere Now the true test of eating healthy and portion control will come into play.
So, how do I feel? Hungry. Even though the intent is to keep me satiated throughout the day with smaller amounts of food that offer greater energy levels and keep my blood sugar levels constant, I have this empty feeling. I can only hope that my stomach will shrink over the next several weeks so this won’t continue. In the meantime, it’s going to be an interesting time in making the adjustment, especially if this is just the first day.
Plus, believe it or not, I’ve got lots and lots of gas going on today. This is probably TMI for many of you, but let’s me brutally honest. This blog is about the good, bad and ugly. I’m sure this will continue for awhile until my system adjusts just like it did when I was on Nutrisystem.
I think the most positive thing has been the support my fiancee has been willing to offer so far. She made sure I had everything I needed to get started on the right foot and be successful. We’ll see how things go over the mid- and long-term.
Not bad for day one. Now for day 2 … . Keep your fingers crossed!
YOGHURT is a wonderful health food. Many people are not aware that there is very little difference between the nutritional value of yoghurt and the milk it is made of.
The special benefits of yoghurt lie not in its nutrition but in the friendly bacteria which turn plain milk into yoghurt. The biggest benefit of consuming yoghurt is for people who cannot digest milk because the lactose in it gives them cramps or digestive discomfort. The yoghurt bacteria themselves provide an enzyme which helps in the digestion of lactose. So if milk leaves you with a tummy ache, reach for the yoghurt. All gain, with no pain.
Yoghurt is good for everyone. Researchers have known for years that it can prevent or atleast reduce the severity of various infections that cause diarrhoea. Once inside our system, they disrupt colonies of bad bacteria, preventing them from multiplying. Yoghurt also raises the acid levels in the intestines and creates an atmosphere that discourages bad bacteria.
Studies also show that yoghurt can reduce the digestive problems caused by antibiotics. Once antibiotics are on a microbe-killing spree, they also destroy some helpful microflora that normally protect us against infection. Yoghurt helps to re-establish this microflora.
Latest research suggests that yoghurt can strenghten our over-all resistence also. It stimulates the immune system to produce more protective enzymes and more natural killer-cells in the blood. It also helps indirectly where the lactic acid bacteria present in yoghurt prevent potential cancer-causing compounds in the body from turning into active cancer-causing compounds.
However, these benefits of yoghurt are found ONLY in fresh yoghurt (prepared everday). Commercial frozen yoghurts are highly processed and may not have the same properties.
Pam and I made a morning of it today on the tandem! And what a great morning it was.
Our goal was to start with breakfast, then do lunch before coming home today, so we left the house at 7:00 this morning and headed downtown. Our breakfast destination was Gailey’s Breakfast Cafe in downtown Springfield. It’s a place where there is still the old drug store cafe ambiance because that’s what it was for decades. It’s been a mainstay of Walnut Street as long as I can remember and still enjoys a faithful breakfast crowd nearly every day.
Gailey’s shares lobby space with the lofts that have been renovated in the old Seville Hotel, and is a pretty laid back kind of place where it just doesn’t pay to be in a hurry. I usually opt for either pancakes or waffles with sausage and eggs, while Pam goes for a little more healthy fare. We had to sit at the counter this morning, which gave us a bird’s-eye view of the art of making breakfast!
After stuffing ourselves (at least I did), we hopped back on the bike and headed north on Grant Street. The great part about riding through town this morning was how empty the streets were. We practically had them to ourselves! The only downside was that a lot of the city streets are getting pretty torn up these days and don’t make for a very comfortable bike ride.
There was just a hint of fog in the air as we left the house this morning, but as we hit the north edge of Springfield, it really started getting bad.
We stopped briefly for Pam to turn on our rear blinkie, and I heard here go “Oh no!”. Not a good sign. When I looked, the mount on the blinkie was breaking off and the light was only holding on by the thinnest thread of metal. We had no choice but to go ahead and pull it off and ride the rest of the morning without a rear light.
Unfortunately, we stowed it in our handlebar bag, where the two sharp edges of the broken bracket poked their way through an energy gel pack that was in there and by the time we got home, we had a huge mess on our hands (and everything else that was in the bag)!
We made it safely to Fair Grove in spite of riding in the fog the entire way out there. We made our usual pit stop at the convenience store there and sat outside drinking some Propel. As is quite often the case out there, a couple of people stopped to chat! They’re very used to cyclists in town because the Trans Am route passes through. The old farmer we talked to this morning says he sees loaded tourists passing his place nearly every single day!
We always get a kick out of the bathroom in the store. As much as I hate to say it, it’s very typical of the hillbilly ingenuity at work here in the Ozarks!
Not too long after we left town, we stopped to take a picture of a wildflower we hadn’t seen before. It was a bushy type plant with lots of delicate pink and white flowers. Anybody recognize this?
I had stepped one foot into the ditch to take the picture of the plant growing up in the barbed-wire fence, and as I was stepping back, a rabbit absolutely exploded from under my feet. I guess it tried to hide, but couldn’t stand it any longer. We both jumped about a mile, and in it’s haste, the rabbit ran smack-dab into the rear wheel of the bike. It hit with a “twang”, bounced back about a foot, recovered and was off in a flash. It was hilarious!
By 10:30, the fog was finally lifting and it started to feel pretty warm as we climbed the hills between Fair Grove and Strafford. Just north of Fair Grove, we saw the second wild turkeys of the day, this one a hen and her brood of 5 youngsters just on the other side of a fence. We got a good look at them as they slowly headed deeper into the woods.
By the time we hit Strafford it was a little after 11:00, so we decided to do an early lunch, knowing that we would end with over 50 miles on the bike today. Subway is our standard meal on the bike, so that’s what we opted for. There is one in nearly every town we ride to, but unfortunately the one in Strafford is in a truck stop. That means you’ve got to put up with lots of traffic and lots of “interesting” characters wandering around all the time. We’ve never had any problems there, but it’s just not one of our favorites.
From Strafford, it’s 12-13 miles home depending on how you go. As we approached, I detoured us down the loop around Pearson Creek just because it has one final blazing downhill that’s fun to do. We hit the house with 55.4 miles on the bike and called it good. After a shower, we enjoyed the backyard hammock for a few minutes before heading off to finish the day doing responsible stuff!
