health
okay, you stuffed yourself at thanksgiving - twice. you have several holiday parties coming up. followed up by food and drink on new year’s eve.
all this decadence is apt to find oneself wondering how to keep the weight off. for many, the choice will be running. however, to make your new fitness regimen as pleasant as possible - which will allow you to keep doing it long term - it’s important to pick out the right shoes. the wrong shoes may make your feet hurt, your knees bother you, and your back and joints unhappy. so head out to your local running shoe store and get properly fit, then hit the trails and skip the guilt over those holiday indulgences.
Tags: running shoes
one of the perils to the white collar life can be the lack of physical activity. you start your career young and svelte, but somewhere along the way (at a rate of a pound or two a year), you suddenly find yourself fat and out of shape. foo.
one way to get back to fighting weight is by running. it’s cheap to get started, since the equipment is a pair of shoes. and perhaps some sweats, if you don’t own any already. it’s convenient, since you can just head out your front door. it doesn’t take a lot of time, either; you can run and shower up in the time it would take to drive to your health club and back.
i came across a nice program to get started running. this looks like a great program, because it starts you out very slowly - running for 5 minutes - so you won’t get super sore and swear off of the program.
who knows, maybe you’ll discover the runner’s high and work your way up to a marathon some day.
many of us are close enough to work to be able to bike, but are held back because we don’t have access to shower facilities. here is a video with some tips on how to bike to work and still show up presentable.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOfXI9prhM8
why settle for what they’re selling, when you can have exactly what you want? element bars lets you pick out exactly how you want your energy/protein bar to be made.
it’s kind of fun. you start by choosing your base (just click and drag it) - chewey, oatey, crispy, datey. from there, you can add fruit (yuk!), nuts, sweets and boosts. soon, you have an energy bar just like you want it. another cool feature is that the nutritional information shows up as you choose each item.
the down side is that the bars are a little pricey. another knock is that the build-a-bar didn’t work in firefox, so i had to use internet explorer. boo. still, having a custom made bar is pretty cool.
Tags: element bars, energy bar, protein bar
i’m guessing there aren’t many folks out there who can not sympathize with stress eating. snacking when i’m not hungry (and the accompanied weight gain) is a sure sign that things could be going better. perhaps i’m at w*rk and am not looking forward to a task - hey, if i get a candy bar from the vending machine, i can avoid the pain for ten more minutes. and maybe in the meantime, there will be a fire in the building and i’ll be saved from doing it at all. yeah!
so anyway, i came across this article in a while back on how to avoid stress eating, and thought i’d share it.
so crack open one last bag of chips and enjoy.
sport drinks are a staple in the lives of athletes. here is a way to enjoy a sport drink for less money and with less environmental impact: make your own. it’s easy and it’s fun.
to get you started, here is a recipe to try.
2 cups water
2/3 cup orange juice
1 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
pour into your favorite refillable bottle and stir it up. then enjoy.
from here, you can go wild. try making some substitutions, like cranberry or grapefruit juice for the orange juice. be creative, and remember to write down the recipe when you concoct one that you really like. and then share it on your blog.
Tags: diy, energy drink, sport drink
if you’re interested in learning how to do something with computers, gadgets, iphones, food, the internet, etc., check out wired’s how-so section. there’s something for just about everyone here, but it’s more geared toward the techie crowd. and my favorite part? you can subscribe to the rss feed. good stuff.
Tags: how to, wired magazine
one rarely has thoughts about misfortune, and the fact that it may happen to me. but sadly, it’s a real possibility. here are some tips to help you be ready when a natural disaster comes to your home town, be it a tornado or a flood or a republican national convention.
- make a plan and make sure the whole family knows how to execute the plan.
- decide on a meeting place if you should have to leave your home.
- keep emergency information on hand.
- pack a bin with enough food to last you for three days, and with some other basic survival items.
three gallons of water per family member
flashlight and extra batteries
radio
canned goods and can opener
snacks like pretzels and energy bars
clothing
personal hygiene items
pet supplies
matches in a waterproof container
medicine
blanket
whistle
rain gear
canvas gloves
first aid kit
basic tools (hammer, wrench, pliers and screwdriver)
emergency contact information
money
map of your city
i hope you’ll never need it.
did you know that you can reduce cooking time and save energy (40%) by soaking hard grains overnight?
or that chocolate easily absorbs odors, so you should never store it alongside strong-smelling foods?
the recipe section of whole foods market’s web site not only has gobs of recipes, but offers kitchen tips that help you whip up a meal with aplomb.
caveat (for the rss-ers): the recipe rss feed is quite aggressive, so be prepared for a handful of entries each day.
if you are a cyclist and you ride in an urban setting, here is a great little product for you: stylish helmets. yakkay (based out of copenhagen) makes helmets with interchangeable covers, so you can change your look to suit your mood.
the caveat is that they don’t seem to have any u.s. distributors. [is that someone knocking?] sounds like a solid business opportunity to me.
ride safe, look good.