Lead a Fit and Healthy Life
Fitness/Exercise
Benefits of Being Friendly and Outgoing
23 weeks ago
I have been told that I’m so friendly that I could make friends with a rock. I also have been told that I’m a good party guest because even if I don’t know anyone, I will get along with people… I take great pride in both of those comments and for being friendly and outgoing.
For me, I know that when I am the new person or unsure of something, it always helps to see a smiling friendly face or someone willing to put themselves out there by offering their hand. Also, I have found that being friendly has many benefits that count..
- You receive good Kharma points- we all have heard you get back what you put into this world – Believe it.
- You meet the most interesting people. – I have had the pleasure of meeting amazing, diverse people just by being nice.
- You learn a ton – You know those people you meet? They have a breadth of experience and for the most part, will be happy to share their wisdom with you so you can learn.
- You have Fun! – Who doesn’t need more fun in their lives?
- You can have a meaningful impact in someone else’s life – No one knows what goes on behind closed doors. That person you just met could have had the worst possible day and really needed that smile or encouragement.
- You stand out in a good way – People remember you. It is what differentiates you from the crowd, in a good way! When someone needs information or some help, they will think of you. This is especially helpful at work. Keeps you in the know!
- You feel good. – Think about how great you feel after you have helped someone out or met a really cool person. It’s energizing!
- Health Benefits – People with a sunnier disposition tend to be healthier and live longer. This quality of knowing how to be positive is something found in every longevity society.
- You can get unexpected benefits! – I have been able to go on tours of gov’t buildings that most people don’t get to see. I have been to concerts, shows, sports games, been given thoughtful gifts, hugs, projects, free meals, swag… You name it. All because I was nice and friendly. No one will go out of their way for you, if you don’t put yourself out there.
I was acknowledged yesterday by the department for being the most outgoing person in my department. So, it’s official friends — I can really make friends with a rock. Meet Sam…
Guest Post: Finding Your Thing
04 weeks ago
Written by Jason Kitchens, an inspirational guy I know…
Sometimes you are going to have days where you just don’t want to. Perhaps the nite before you had to work late, stayed up that extra hour to catch a flick, or decided to have that one extra drink. Now it’s the next day and you couldn’t care less about getting out of bed, let alone consider going for a workout.
Top it off with knowing that the WOD involves something you don’t like & you don’t want people to see you struggle. Or maybe a friend or co-worker is pressuring you to do something much more fun instead of doing what you know you should.
Make no mistake about it, staying motivated, committed and continuing to follow through can be challenging- for even the best of athletes! You may wonder how people find this drive inside of them. There is no real secret to it. Everyone can do it.
The key is finding what that thing is that will get you motivated and ultimately get you moving. Start simple.
1. Keep good company. Surround yourself with positive and motivated people.
2. Stay positive. The going will get tough and you know what? You will get through it.
3. Get into the habit of finding what works to help push you through the tough times. You will find that the good company that you are keeping will help push you through!
4. Know yourself. Keep track of when you are feeling less than stellar. There may be a pattern that once you are aware of, you can work around and develop.
5. Help others. Sharing your ideas and be that person to motivate your friends. Seeing them do well can help motivate you to do the same. Sometimes it only takes that one person to get someone going.
6. Be confident! If you don’t believe you can succeed then you are not even going to try.
7. FOCUS. If you don’t know what you want, do you really want anything?
These are just some things that can help you get the self motivation for anything.
As many of you know (and have seen with my pictures!), I lacked any motivation whatsoever. I was a fat, video game smoking junkie, who didn’t want to do anything except stay in a dark room with some oatmeal cream pies alone playing games all day. Now, I have been blessed with the privilege of coaching some very awesome athletes and on my way to the Marines.
I would not be where I am today without the help of my friends and family (which for me are one in the same). I changed the company I was around which helped me overcome a difficult time. Even though I knew it was far away, I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. When I was down, I learned how to overcome it. I started to come out of my shell more (I was a very big introvert), and seeing people reach their goals showed me I could reach mine too. I knew what I wanted and never looked back.
Hey look, I still have those challenging days where motivation is lacking but you know what? I have the tools to help me get that motivation and I know I can get through anything and push to the next level. I reached my goals and beyond. Never did I think I would be coaching athletes on fitness, motivating others to succeed, or going to serve my country.
Anyone can find that motivation inside themselves to succeed in all aspects of life. If you know someone who is need of some motivation, be that one person for them.
Originally posted on CrossFit Impavidus blog.
Research Proves A Beneficial Relationship Between Exercise and Brainpower.
14 weeks ago
by Stephy
in Fitness/Exercise
How Exercise Could Lead to a Better Brain
The value of mental-training games may be speculative, as Dan Hurley writes in his article on the quest to make ourselves smarter, but there is another, easy-to-achieve, scientifically proven way to make yourself smarter. Go for a walk or a swim. For more than a decade, neuroscientists and physiologists have been gathering evidence of the beneficial relationship between exercise and brainpower. But the newest findings make it clear that this isn’t just a relationship; it is the relationship. Using sophisticated technologies to examine the workings of individual neurons — and the makeup of brain matter itself — scientists in just the past few months have discovered that exercise appears to build a brain that resists physical shrinkage and enhance cognitive flexibility. Exercise, the latest neuroscience suggests, does more to bolster thinking than thinking does.
The most persuasive evidence comes from several new studies of lab animals living in busy, exciting cages. It has long been known that so-called “enriched” environments — homes filled with toys and engaging, novel tasks — lead to improvements in the brainpower of lab animals. In most instances, such environmental enrichment also includes a running wheel, because mice and rats generally enjoy running. Until recently, there was little research done to tease out the particular effects of running versus those of playing with new toys or engaging the mind in other ways that don’t increase the heart rate.
So, last year a team of researchers led by Justin S. Rhodes, a psychology professor at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois, gathered four groups of mice and set them into four distinct living arrangements. One group lived in a world of sensual and gustatory plenty, dining on nuts, fruits and cheeses, their food occasionally dusted with cinnamon, all of it washed down with variously flavored waters. Their “beds” were colorful plastic igloos occupying one corner of the cage. Neon-hued balls, plastic tunnels, nibble-able blocks, mirrors and seesaws filled other parts of the cage. Group 2 had access to all of these pleasures, plus they had small disc-shaped running wheels in their cages. A third group’s cages held no embellishments, and they received standard, dull kibble. And the fourth group’s homes contained the running wheels but no other toys or treats.
Be Better Today Than Yesterday…
01 month ago
This weekend I am busy again attending a CrossFit Kids Trainer Course, so I can begin to help shape some kids in their healthy and fit life. What a great feeling that is — being able to help lay the foundation that will hopefully stick with them as they grow up and out.
I didn’t know I even liked kids until I had them and now — I love to be around them. The way they look at life and how open they are to try new stuff. They don’t have the adult hang ups and if you expose them early to strength & conditioning training – it will stick with them! And they are funny — some of the stuff that comes out of their mouths during class, I wonder how they make it through school! Gotta love it!
This morning – Coach Lori worked us hard, having us work on core work based on what she picked up during this past weekend’s CF Gymnastics Trainer Course. It really does help with so much more than just balance! Getting to really know your core is the key to getting stronger…
Warmup
800m jog
Mobility
Skill
Parralette L-Sit Holds (5m as long/many as you can do)
WOD
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2- and 1 rep rounds for time of:
Deadlift (50% 1RM Form/Technique is a priority always)
Dead Hang Pull Up
115# weight for me and I used a band for the pull ups. For some reason, I felt very weak today when I attempted Dead hangs
Time: 9:48
Add More Spice to Your Life!
11 month ago
Two times a year, I run a Whole Life Challenge for my CrossFit gym. It’s a way to really help people make amazing changes in their life, like I did almost four years ago. I love being able to directly have a hand in improving someone’s life. Someone who may have never even considered changing their diet and exercise routine in the way we are suggesting. Last challenge, we saw some serious life changes taking place before our eyes and it filled my inspiration and motivation tank for quite some time. This go around, we have more than 40 athletes participating! I am so excited by all the possibilities!!!!
One of the benefits of the challenge is they get a special blog just for the group of athletes, giving the advice, motivation, tips and stories of others before them. I wrote this particular entry for them, but wanted to share it because I know many people starting off eating Paleo don’t use spices to their fullest extent.
The Spice of Life
One thing you will find as you start to eat cleaner is that spices will be considered one of your best tools!
There is a ton of great info out there about spices and how to use them creatively. One great resource is Robb Wolf. He suggests getting to know 8 specific spices and herbs to enhance your ‘paleo’ table.
Also it’s important to know some basics about using and storing spices. Here are some general tips about spices from Penzys Spices:
How Much Should You Buy?
A guideline is to buy a 1 year’s supply of herbs or ground spices and a 1-2 year supply of whole spices. When in doubt about a spice, smell it. If it smells strong and spicy, use it. If not, toss it!
How Should Spices Be Stored?
To maintain their strong, fresh flavor, spices need to be stored properly. Glass or barrier plastic containers work great. Do not store spices near a heat source! So not on top of your stove, fridge, dishwasher, microwave, or near a sink. Also make sure spices are not kept near direct sunlight.
Some people suggest keeping spices in the fridge or freezer. Whole, crushed or ground chili peppers will stay fresh and colorful longer when stored in the fridge or freezer during the summer months. And other than Vanilla beans and extract, keeping spices in the cold won’t damage them.
Best of all, did you know that some spices and herbs have some serious health benefits?
Flavors of certain spices can cause the stomach to produce the gastric juices necessary to digest your food, and a teaspoon of chili power or paprika has enough Vitamin A (beta-carotene) to provide 16 % of your daily requirement.
You can read more about the health benefits of some spices & herbs at WebMD.
Go ahead and experiment with spices as you begin to explore cooking new and interesting dishes! Once you discover how much flavor they add to your food, you will be left wondering how you got along without them!
Get out there and Exercise!
21 month ago
Exercise Could Lower Fatigue And Depression In Breast Cancer Patients: Study
Exercise could be the secret weapon to help breast cancer patients combat common side effects of cancer and cancer treatments.
A new study that was presented at the annual meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine shows that physical activity could help women being treated for breast cancer to have less fatigue and depression.
The study included 240 women with non-metastatic breast cancer, who were enrolled in the study anywhere from four to 10 weeks after they’d undergone surgery for their cancer. Some women who were put in a 10-week program where they learned Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management, while the other women completed a one-day “self help” group. Researchers also kept track of how much exercise all the study participants were getting.
The researchers found that the women who exercised the most during the time between the surgery and starting their assigned therapy were also the ones whose fatigue got in the way of their daily lives the least. In addition, these women’s moods were not as depressed.
Skateboard Fitness
01 month ago
by Stephy
in Fitness/Exercise
This is kinda a fun exercise:
Still got a skateboard buried somewhere in a corner of the garage? Celebrity personal trainer Mike Donavanik —http://www.mikedfitness.com — suggests you drag it out and repurpose it for this simple and effective fitness move, the skateboard pike.
Why you should try it: These assisted pikes work your entire core and build upper body strength.
The Truth About Heart Disease
21 month ago
As a family recovering from Cancer – I am very interested in looking at what chronic inflammation can do to our bodies and how it sets up a perfect environment for cancer and other diseases to thrive. We are all so conditioned to believe what we are told in terms of proper nutrition and what we should and should not eat, that most of us never question the validity of it. Well – just as we re-look and revise how we approach business, education and everything else – nutrition and the science of how our bodies function needs to change as well. We know so much more today than ever about what’s going on inside our bodies, how come nutritional advice hasn’t changed that much? Come on — think about it.
World Renown Heart Surgeon Speaks Out On What Really Causes Heart Disease
It Is Not Working!
These recommendations are no longer scientifically or morally defensible. The discovery a few years ago that inflammation in the artery wall is the real cause of heart disease is slowly leading to a paradigm shift in how heart disease and other chronic ailments will be treated.
The long-established dietary recommendations have created epidemics of obesity and diabetes, the consequences of which dwarf any historical plague in terms of mortality, human suffering and dire economic consequences.
Despite the fact that 25% of the population takes expensive statin medications and despite the fact we have reduced the fat content of our diets, more Americans will die this year of heart disease than ever before.
Statistics from the American Heart Association show that 75 million Americans currently suffer from heart disease, 20 million have diabetes and 57 million have pre-diabetes. These disorders are affecting younger and younger people in greater numbers every year.
Simply stated, without inflammation being present in the body, there is no way that cholesterol would accumulate in the wall of the blood vessel and cause heart disease and strokes. Without inflammation, cholesterol would move freely throughout the body as nature intended. It is inflammation that causes cholesterol to become trapped.
Inflammation is not complicated — it is quite simply your body’s natural defence to a foreign invader such as a bacteria, toxin or virus. The cycle of inflammation is perfect in how it protects your body from these bacterial and viral invaders. However, if we chronically expose the body to injury by toxins or foods the human body was never designed to process, a condition occurs called chronic inflammation. Chronic inflammation is just as harmful as acute inflammation is beneficial.
Excuses for NOT making ideas happen
11 month ago
I ran across this blog post the other day that really resonated with me — and they used a Yiddish proverb, so how could I not love it!
99 Excuses For NOT Making Ideas Happen
There’s an old Yiddish proverb that goes, “If you don’t want to do something, one excuse is as good as another.” In other words, if you’re NOT doing something, what does it matter why?
… a list of the most common excuses for NOT making ideas happen. Not surprisingly, the response was overwhelming. We can all make a list of excuses as long as our arm for why we’re not taking action.
So what’s the point of us listing them out here? Reason No. 1: To face facts. If we recognize the patterns we fall into, we can change them. Reason No. 2: To invalidate them. As an antidote to inaction, we’ve provided a counter-argument for each excuse. Don’t commiserate, instigate!
Here’s a few that I hear often from people –
1. I DON’T HAVE ENOUGH TIME.
9. IT’S NOT THE RIGHT MOMENT TO DO IT.
13. I NEED TO DO MARKET RESEARCH. (or more research)
14. I HAVE YOUNG CHILDREN.
Excuses HOLD you back from what you want — that is, IF you really want it!
Get Your Kids Outside and Moving!
11 month ago
Too Few Kids Getting Outdoors With Mom or Dad
Nearly half of all U.S. preschool-age children don’t get outdoors at least once a day for parent-supervised playtime, researchers reported Monday, causing concern among experts who say early exercise habits could protect children from obesity later in life.
Many children might not be getting enough outdoor exercise because of barriers faced by single parents and families with two working parents, said Dr. Pooja Tandon, a pediatrician with the Center for Child Health, Behavior and Development at Seattle Children’s Research Institute, who led the research.
…The good news, Tandon said, is that “these young children are naturally programmed to be active if given the opportunities.”
Tandon’s study, which appeared online Monday, on the website of the Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine, was based on parental surveys from a national study of nearly 9,000 U.S. children, a sample size representing about 4 million children. The children, all born in 2001, were followed for several years and their parents, usually mothers, were interviewed several times, including the year before their children entered kindergarten.
Along with finding that 49 percent of children were not getting outdoors with a parent at least once every day, she and her colleagues from the research institute and the University of Washington found that those youngsters whose parents took them outdoors to play tended to be boys, children with lots of playmates and those whose parents were exercisers.
Children more often fell short of recommended exercise if their mothers were Asian, African-American or Hispanic, although the study didn’t delve into the reasons. “Being physically active is good for your brain, for your learning,” Tandon said in an interview.
Previous research, she said, has found that hyperactive kids with wandering attention do better after they have had nature breaks, which seem to make it easier to return to class, sit down and refocus.
