Make Me Mini March

A healthy diet and exercise program are complementary to one another and are essential for improving or maintaining good health. While some may choose to reduce food intake dramatically, the food you eat is important because it provides you with your daily essential nutrients and vitamins to keep your body functioning properly. Additionally, daily exercise is important because it helps to manage your weight in addition to aiding in reducing your risk for certain health conditions.

A new month is a great time to recommit to your health, and that's exactly what I intend to do. Here are my goals for the coming month, will you join me in any/all?

Diet

• Plan all meals/snacks for the week on Sunday and do grocery shopping for all ingredients (this generally will prevent my impulses to eat food that is not aligned with my goals)
• Utilize resources like Cooking Light and My Recipes to choose meals that are lower in calories
• Try to avoid excessive starch, sugar, and dairy while focusing on meals that highlight lean protein and fresh produce
• Aim for 1000-1200 calories/day 
• Drink the ounce equivalent of half my body weight
• No booze

Exercise

• Start each morning with a RevAbs Workout (or short run) before school
• RevAb workout WITH Brett Hoebel on March 10th!!
• Yoga- Power Flow practice at YogaSource 3 days/week (currently offering a newcomer special of $40/30 days if you're interesred)
• Circuit Training- Club Circuit with Casey Miranda at Club One Silicon Valley (at least 3 Wednesdays)
• Kickboxing- Groupon month-pass to try out variety of classes at Condition and Competition Kickboxing

Borders vs. Amazon (my analysis)

A friend and I had a friendly disagreement this evening while discussing the closing of a bunch of local Borders stores. I thought that the closing of these stores came as no surprise as I buy most of my books online. My friend, on the other hand, an avid online shopper claims to have never purchased a book online. This shocked, appalled and made me want to prove a point.

Using the most scientific method I knew, I sent a barrage of texts to the 30 people last contacted in my phone containing the simple message "Survey question: do you buy books online?" Here's what I found out:

Three of my friends were not amused by my shenanigans enough to respond, rude. (One of them gets a free pass, she was asleep since with time change it was 12:30 and she's preggers)

Of those who did respond, two of my studious friends only bought school books online but do pleasure purchases in stores. Another two did not shop online, but cited a family member who does on occasion.  

Six reported that they did not purchase books online. One admitting "Nope, but I don't buy books" (remind me to cross Jason off my shopping list for Christmas).   

Fourteen of my contacts do their book shopping online. Tix was one of my most enthusiastic respondents, "Frick yes! That's the place I usually buy them!" McGuire cited time and convenience as his motivator, "Yes. No time for real bookstores. Or reading for that matter" (I don't blame you Chris, I couldn't find time to read Clean either.) Most agreed that the cost was an important deciding factor. Cassie lovingly bragged, "Yes. I have an amazon prime account so I get free shipping."  Marci (whom for this response I love dearly) focused on a slightly more personal reason, "Mike buys all his BBQ books online so he doesn't look like a fat ass."

Of course, I was surveying my friends so the remaining three surveyed couldn't help but answer with jokes like "I don't know how to read" or "Does porn constitute books? Either way, nope ;)"  or "What are books? Are those like magazines?"

So, although not a very diverse sampling, I found this survey rather enlightening.
The Winner: amazon.com

Stay tuned to your cell phones for my next "survey question".. And if you weren't a lucky recipient of my text this time, comment and let me know "Do you buy books online?"

Comfort Food

According to Webster's Dictionary, the term "comfort food" was first used in 1977 to refer to foods that are consumed to achieve an improved emotional status. Comfort foods may have a nostalgic element either to an individual or a specific culture. Some of the top ranking comfort foods are: Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches, Macaroni and Cheese, Chili, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Meatloaf, Apple Pie, Tuna Casserole and Spaghetti.
 .
My comfort food? Chocolate Chip Pancakes. This may seem strange, and there are definitely foods that I love more, but this food will ALWAYS remind me of my childhood and my amazing parents. When I was younger I was a VERY picky eater. My diet mainly consisted of grilled cheese and chicken fingers so when the idea of pancakes were introduced, I vehemently refused unless they were laced with chocolate chips. (Because mom and dad loved me so, they complied) To this day, this simple breakfast food can put a smile on my face.

So, what's your comfort food?

Happiest Town in America

The People

The Places

The Things

The Highlights

the lululemon manifesto

• Drink FRESH water and as much water as you can. Water flushes unwanted toxins from your body and keeps your brain sharp.
• A daily hit of athletic-induced endorphins gives you the power to make better decisions, helps you be at peace with yourself, and offsets stress.
• Do one thing a day that scares you.
• Listen, listen, listen, and then ask strategic questions.
• Write down your short and long-term GOALS four times a year. Two personal, two business and two health goals for the next 1, 5 and 10 years. Goal setting triggers your subconscious computer.
• Life is full of setbacks. Success is determined by how you handle setbacks.
• Your outlook on life is a direct reflection of how much you like yourself.
• That which matters the most should never give way to that which matters the least.
• Stress is related to 99% of all illness.
• Jealousy works the opposite way you want it to.
• The world is changing at such a rapid rate that waiting to implement changes will leave you 2 steps behind. DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW!
• Friends are more important than money.
• Breathe deeply and appreciate the moment. Living in the moment could be the meaning of life.
• Take various vitamins. You never know what small mineral can eliminate the bottleneck to everlasting health.
• Don't trust that an old age pension will be sufficient.
• Visualize your eventual demise. It can have an amazing effect on how you live for the moment.
• The conscious brain can only hold one thought at a time. Choose a positive thought.
• Live near the ocean and inhale the pure salt air that flows over the water, Vancouver will do nicely.
• Observe a plant before and after watering and relate these benefits to your body and brain.
• Practice yoga so you can remain active in physical sports as you age.
• Dance, sing, floss and travel.
• Children are the orgasm of life. Just like you did not know what an orgasm was before you had one, nature does not let you know how great children are until you have them.
• Successful people replace the words 'wish', 'should' and 'try', with 'I will'.
• Creativity is maximized when you're living in the moment.
• Nature wants us to be mediocre because we have a greater chance to survive and reproduce. Mediocre is as close to the bottom as it is to the top, and will give you a lousy life.
• lululemon athletica creates components for people to live longer, healthier and more fun lives. If we can produce products to keep people active and stress-free, we believe the world will become a much better place.
• Do not use cleaning chemicals on your kitchen counters. Someone will inevitably make a sandwich on your counter.
• SWEAT once a day to regenerate your skin.
• Communication is COMPLICATED. We are all raised in a different family with slightly different definitions of every word. An agreement is an agreement only if each party knows the conditions for satisfaction and a time is set for satisfaction to occur.
• What we do to the earth we do to ourselves.
• The pursuit of happiness is the source of all unhappiness 

App of the Day: HeyTell

Oh my gosh, most gigantic thanks to Chad Ghiron for bringing into my life the exact thing that I've always wished for. (I should leave a dramatic pause here, but I will not) It's basically a universal Walkie Talkie, a phone call that lacks any of the awkward silence, text messaging without the need for typing... It's called HeyTell and it's FREE. Go download it now, seriously!

The possibilities are endless.. There is also the option of a $1.99 Voice Changer option which allows you to turn your voice into a robot, looking forward to combining this App and a few cocktails :)

Four Arms, Four Legs, and Two Heads, oh my!

In Plato's Symposium, Aristophanes presented a story about soulmates. It states that humans originally consisted of four arms, four legs, and a single head made of two faces. Zeus feared their power and split them all in half, condemning them to spend their lives searching for the other half to complete them.

Although it's an old story it has the potential of being a dangerous way to look at life and love, whether you are single or in a relationship. Those who are single are doomed to feel as though they need to walk around looking for their other half, feeling as though they are not complete without their counterpart. This creates an air of desperation and puts too much pressure on every encounter. It is equally as detrimental to those who are in a relationship because they may feel that their significant other completes them and in turn they rely on them for their happiness. Either way, the individual is putting their happiness in the wrong hands.These people, to whatever degree, are looking outward for the source of their happiness when truly the key lies within yourself.

Loving yourself is a prerequisite for creating a successful and authentic bond with another.The relationship you have with yourself is the most central relationship in your life. It is at the center of all  elements that make up your life - family, friends, love relationships, work. At its core, loving yourself simply means believing in your own essential worthiness. It means looking inward toward your own wants and needs, then honoring them in the exact same way you want your partner to.

Not everyone grows up to have a natural sense of self-esteem or worth. In fact, most of us need to work at it to some degree throughout our lives. Each person feels inadequate in one or more areas, whether physical, intellectual, financial, or in interpersonal dynamics, emotional maturity, or spiritual growth. However, respecting, nurturing, honoring, and cherishing yourself is something that anyone can learn. Only when you have successfully mastered taking care of your own needs can you know how to extend that same attention to others. When you believe how valuable you are, you can then give authentic affection to a partner.

So love yourself, and the rest will fall into place. You can only cultivate as much love as you create a capacity for within yourself.

Express Yourself 2.0

As I arrived in San Francisco Friday night for an amazing date in the Castro with my friend Brandon, I was greeted with Lady Gaga's newest track blasting from his iHome. We must've listened to this song over a dozen times throughout the course of the night. 

If you noticed a similarity between Lady Gaga's brand new song, "Born This Way," and Madonna's classic track, "Express Yourself," you're not the only one. While most people are dissecting Lady Gaga's Version 2.0, I think she's done well and was secretly hoping for Madge to show up on the Grammy's tonight and do a mash-up/battle royale.

Benefits of Yoga (Everyday Life)

Benefits of Yoga in Everyday Life

• Yoga can help cure insomnia, as regular yoga practice leads to better and deeper sleep.
• Yoga can help fight fatigue and maintain your energy throughout the day.
• Yoga is an effective treatment for a variety of autoimmune diseases because it can reduce the symptoms these diseases often cause, such as stiffness, malaise, fatigue, and weakness.

Rev It High, Rev It Low...

One month from today I will be meeting and working out alongside one of my fitness idols, Brett Hoebel. Brett Hoebel, who is the newest coach on NBC's The Biggest Loser, is also the Beachbody trainer behind the fitness program RevAbs.

His body-mind approach comes from his assorted experience in Eastern and Western disciplines, including his martial arts training in Afro-Brazilian capoeira and Muay Thai kickboxing, as well as his educational background in functional strength training, nutrition, yoga and holistic health. His credibility is bolstered by his studies as a pre-med student, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree with a dual major in psychology and biology, and later furthered his education taking graduate courses in biomedical science.

If you are able to break away from work for the afternoon, Brett's workout at the CAHPERD Conference in Monterey is open to the public. March 10th @ Custom House Plaza, Fishermans Wharf. (For more information about the event)

If you are interested in more information about RevAbs (and you should be cause it's great), feel free to ask me or visit my Team Beachbody Site.

Has Brett Favre taught us nothing?

New York Congressman Resigns Over Craigslist Dating Ad/Sexy Photo

While answering a Washington-area "Women for Men" ad last month, Chris Lee described himself as 39, divorced, a lobbysit, and a "fit, fun classy guy." To prove it, he e-mailed the shirtless photo to the unnamed government worker from Maryland. Once she figured out the man was actually a 46-year-old congressman, she went to Gawker.com with copies of their bantering e-mails and photo. Within hours, he had quit his $174,000-a-year job and issued an apologetic statement.

I do not condone his behavior by any means (as he is a married man), but the biggest flaw I see in his story would have to be his blatant disregard for the unspoken rules of sexting. I've done some research on the topic and have the following helpful hints to share:

1. If you don't know their last name then they don't need to know how you look naked.
2. Including your face in racy photos makes it nearly impossible to deny that they are you.
3. That said, you’ll need an insurance policy: always be sure to receive a scandalous photo first, before you send one out. I’m not talking blackmail here, but you’ll definitely want an insurance policy if/when your mobile relationship goes to sh-t.
4. Be prepared to disengage your mobile’s T9/auto-word function. It is not only a training wheel intended for junior high students and the spelling impaired (such as my intoxicated self), but the function also lacks the ability to accurately express modern day slang. Nothing kills the digital mood more than sending a sext asking, “I wanna fucus your pushy“. 

Well done, Doritos!

Although I've seen better in the past, my favorite three SuperBowl commercials elicited a literal LOL.

With an honorable mention going to Groupon (although their Tibet commercial is getting a ton of flack from the Chinese government, I thought they were brilliant):

What were your favorites?

Gilda Radner was one smart cookie

There is no real security except for whatever you build inside yourself.

I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next.
Delicious ambiguity.

What makes the Bowl so Super?

Today is the day when millions of people will sit on couches, recliners, or inflatable chairs to watch several hours of television programming (the highlight of  course being the commercials) while they mindlessly consume thousands of calories. Super Bowl Sunday is regarded as the second-biggest day for eating, behind only Thanksgiving, and it comes at an awkward time for many who vowed to lose weight in the new year.

Here are some tips for damage control on the big day: 

• Don't show up hungry. Eat a healthy meal or snack before arriving - a piece of fruit or salad.
• Plan to bring something to the party as a healthy option - fruits and veggies, a lean chili or visit websites like www.cookinglight.com to find low-calorie versions of your favorite treats
• Keep foods out of the living room or viewing area; that way you have to get up and go into another area to get it.
• Do your eating at halftime. The problem is that people can munch their way through the entire, long game. Specify your eating time and focus on the game. 
• The best way that I find to avoid these temptations is to see the ugly truth behind them: the calorie count.

Buffalo Wings: 88 calories each
One Slice of Pepperoni Pizza: 350 calories
12 oz. Can of Beer: 150 calories
Spinach Artichoke Dip w/ Chips: 580 calories
1/4 cup Seven Layer Dip: 152 calories
Jalapeno Poppers: 93 calories each
Pigs in a Blanket: 66 calories each



Calorie Counts according to the iPhone LIVESTRONG App

Benefits of Yoga (Mental Health)

 

Benefits of Yoga on Mental Health

• Yoga benefits anyone's mental health by helping him or her relax, and it is an effective form of psychological therapy. Yoga reduces anxiety and stress, resulting in better health, better mood, and better concentration throughout the day. Yoga has been used to help treat a wide variety of emotional and mental disorders, including acute anxiety, depression, and mood swings.
• Even children can benefit from yoga. Those with attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity can learn to relax and get control by using yoga breathing and yoga asanas.
• Because yoga is a form of meditation, it results in a sense of inner peace and purpose, which has far-reaching health benefits.

Benefits of Yoga (A Blog Mini Series)

You're never too young, old, inflexible, or novice to reap the health benefits of yoga. Yoga, the Sanskrit word for "union", is a practice that uses posture and breathing techniques to induce relaxation and improve strength, and its health benefits may surpass those of any other activity. Whether you practice yoga to relax, stretch, breathe, meditate, or simply because it's in fashion, you may not realize the numerous health benefits of yoga. And while there are many different kinds of yoga, ranging from the more gentle hatha yoga to the more strenuous, like Bikram yoga (which is performed in a 105°F room) or power yoga, every form of yoga improves your health from head to toe.

 Benefits of Yoga to Your Bones, Muscles, and Joints

• Yoga keeps your body strong; it involves all the muscles in your body to hold and balance yoga asanas (poses). The various yoga postures strengthen your feet, legs, hands, abs, lower back, legs, and shoulders.
• Yoga's stretching and breathing exercises improve your flexibility, helping joints, tendons, and muscles stay limber.
• Yoga improves your endurance, especially the more athletic forms of yoga such as ashtanga, power, vinyasa, and Bikram yoga. These rigorous yoga practices follow a specific sequence of poses (asanas) that become more challenging as you progress.These forms require you to keep your body in constant motion between poses, resulting in a strenuous cardiovascular workout and improved core strength.

Regular yoga practice will create multiple and noticeable benefits to your health. Try some yoga postures today! And as your instructor will no doubt tell you at the end of your practice: Namaste.

Lovingly borrowed from http://www.yogawiz.com

Snowpocalypse 2011

I hope that everyone in the Midwest enjoyed their Snow Day. 

Why is it that we don't have a California equivalent? Perhaps we should have days off when temperatures climb over 100.. Only seems fair.. 

(except for the fact that we could not only go outdoors, but spend our day off at the beach)

Ramblings of a Twenty Something

After recently crossing over the quarter-century threshold I've come to the realization that I am ankle deep into the reality that is adulthood. In order to avoid the seriousness of life, I teach kindergarten. I love to travel and will jump on a flight or in a car if there's fun to be had. I live by the motto You Only Live Once. I will do anything to avoid paying full price for anything. I'm a reality television junkie. I have an addictive personality and an acute case of OCD (both self diagnosed with the assistance of WebMD) I'm on a several-year single streak and it appears as though this doesn't suit me well; friends, family and parents of my students have recently been suggesting that I apply for The Bachelor. [Little do they know I tried this route last year, however my audition for Chad Ochocinco's reality show was a flop] My dating life is a joke, at best. My latest obsession is any diet, cleanse, or exercise program that comes my way. I'm chronically logged onto the Internet, so I was thinking.....

......perhaps the hours I spend in front of the tv watching aforementioned smutty programming, searching for deals on the internet and researching diet/exercise trends could be used in a more productive fashion - a blog. Something that encompasses all of my passions, obsessions, adventures and whims. Hopefully it can provide entertainment for some, education for others and just plain escape from the monotony of your day (and mine). So read on if you so choose... I'll try to make it worth your while.