The Icky Cold & Flu and Getting Back To Practice

When you're sick does your head get foggy and your body is just so exhausted you can barely get out of bed? Well this weekend I was sick. I know, worst timing EVER. I originally had a million things to do but the Universe saw my terrible dilemma and decided to make two of my professors rethink their due dates.
So here I am, four days after an icky sick weekend, finally back on my mat where I belong, two projects done, and an exam in a few hours. Because my cold was mainly a head cold, even walking downstairs to take the trash out was a chore. Can I just say it one more time? BOO.
Being back on the mat is a relief even though I have residual tickles in my nose-- or maybe that's just my normal Spring time allergies. There is no place like the mat because it's where I can take everything in and just say "Not now. I'm breathing."
I missed my morning yoga and am happy to be back at it! It's tough to get myself out of bed and back into my healthy habits, but as always, the rewards make it worth my while.
Now it's nearing the end of my Undergraduate Student life. I have two papers, two exams, and one project left until I can proudly walk on that stage and show my mama what I've accomplished: four years of finding myself.
It's safe to say right now: I did it.
I just hope my hard work in the classroom pays off, too.

Have a great Thursday everyone and good luck on your exams, papers, and projects.

Namaste.

Fitness Junkie-- And PROUD!

So I'm anxious to get this semester over with because my classes have been fairly stressful. Only three projects, three exams, and three papers to go and I'm complete with my senior year and ready for graduation!
Oddly enough my finals week only has two exams so much of the week will be free until the day of graduation when my family and soul-mate join me here in Tally. What should I do all week? Oh, I don't know... GYM TIME!!
I'm happy to see that the Leach's schedule includes a wide range of classes, including my favorite Power Yoga class that Sunday and I can finally attend the Tuesday one. Now the tough part is deciding which classes to go to... I've been super curious about the Barre Lean class, and Tabata Boxing and QiForce sound awesome too. So many choices!
I better get back to being a good student now.

Hope everyone has a great day!

Cardio/Warm Up

I absolutely cannot skip my warm up with cardio. Today I just stretched and went to the weights because I was cut short for time. It was leg day. I was ready to run.
Never again. No longer will I think it's even feasible to skip out on my cardio warm up. While I was lifting I felt so antsy and the antsy-ness is still with me right now.
We live such sedentary lives that, once you really get going for a while every day, you gotta keep going or the flow is messed up. Tomorrow I plan on a date with a Tredmill followed by arms.
I wish I could sit still. I'll correct the issue tomorrow after school.

I forgot to do the online sign up for Spinning class with one of my sisters. Boo.
Today included some downs... the hate in Boston... but the world keeps spinning. We should do what we can to help, then look to positive things to "Keep Calm and Carry On,"-- have a cup of tea. Toast to Mondays that are not quite Mondays.
Look to the future with hope.

I hope. I do.

Change Is Necessary In Order For Life To Be Possible

I haven't been as personal with my posts as I started out. And you've most likely noticed I haven't been as frequent either. Stress can control us if we allow it to and I've been fighting with the stress of so many changes that Im required to make decisions about. Change is good and necessary but it's scary when the next changes are what will determine the opportunities the future will hold.
The biggest stress I've been carrying is the decision of what to do now that I'm graduating from Undergrad. Many of you already know but I have applied to USF in the hopes of getting into their Library and Information Science Graduate program. I haven't heard back yet but my dilemma is more on where my passions lay. Yes Im positively delighted to engage with various forms of text. I love to catalogue and help preserve information while making it more available.
I'm no yoga expert but I love yoga, too. I've spoke of it before-- of the feeling one gets from the practice. I feel like I belong wherever I am in that moment when I'm doing yoga.
I've been told by some of you that I would be a good teacher. I have a lot to learn but, with so much encouragement, I've been considering it.
I want to advance my practice and I'd love to help others in discovering that special feeling yoga makes linger within you, but I have to consider the amount of debt I am in from Undergraduate alone. Being a university librarian or an archivist would be an interesting career. I think perhaps I need to continue on this path-- give Graduate school a real try. I just hope that the opportunity to advance my practice and become certified to teach yoga comes along.
Being both a librarian and a yoga instructor sounds do-able.
Now, I need to finish up this semester and wait to hear from USF. Then more decisions can be made.


Like water we must flow,
Earth we must adapt,
Fire we must be determined,
Air we must be free.

Paleo Banana Cookies

Lately I've been attached to these super easy paleo cookies. They taste great and I love treating myself with them. Smushed bananas, oats, and extras of your choice-- yum!
When you  bite in you feel the warm sticky banana, the easily popped raisins, and a surprisingly soft-cookie texture that really makes these into a wonderful snack or treat. Who says cookies can't be made mostly from fruit?
I have found, however, that the directions can be improved. If you like your cookies a little tougher, bake at 400 degrees to crisp up the edges and brown the bottoms more.
In addition, I've selected a symphony of delectable ingredients to add nutrition. Here is my adapted method of making these delightful cookies:

(makes 3 cookies)
Preheat oven to 400, grease cookie sheet
Mash 1 banana with a fork until made into complete mush (the riper it is, the sweeter your cookie will be),
Add in a heaping spoonful of peanut butter, squish around until mostly incorporated with the banana,
1 tsp of honey (if the banana is still a little green, I recommend the honey to make it sweeter)
Handful of raisins,
1/2 cup of quick oats, mix until everything is incorporated
Scoop with a large spoon and slop the 'batter' onto the cookie sheet, shape them with the spoon.
Drizzle generously with cinnamon.
Bake for 13-15 minutes.
Shovel the cookies with a spatula onto a plate and start eating while they're warm.
Enjoy!

If you really like these, I recommend one of my earlier blog posts on No-Bake Cookies and Snack Squares

Yoga Transcends

As my Sunday Power Yoga class approached its end, my instructor brought up how yoga isn't a goal-oriented practice, it's about proper form. At the time I was in my state of post-yoga peace so I definitely agreed.

A few days later, what she had said came up in my thoughts again and I quickly analyzed the different ways I have looked at yoga.

When we make yoga a goal-oriented practice, we lose something-- not in the attempts to reach that goal, but during the success of reaching it. The 'now what?' feeling-- the forever presence of desire and dissatisfaction. No matter what goal we make we can achieve it but if it is made a desire, then we will always be left wanting something more.

If we give in--surrender-- to the universe through our practice, we accept that which we cannot control and embrace what we can: discipline. We can discipline our minds and bodies and release the negative energies so many of us harbor deep within. When we release them, we open ourselves to the simplicity of happiness. 

We can obtain this happiness within little other than our bodies and minds through practice.

We may begin doing it for fitness, health, or to show that we can, but what comes with it you cannot ignore. Releasing the negative energies we harbor within ourselves, opens space within ourselves. With this space, we can invite peace and relaxation. 

Yoga can be used for fitness or health. I've probably mentioned before but I started yoga because of my asthma. I wanted freedom. The second time I got into it was for fitness. I wanted to feel strong. I believe I have succeeded, for the most part, with both but I had not idea that I could get something even better.

There is a feeling, an energy that radiates through you, when you practice and it lingers in your life for as long as you practice and apply mindfulness to your thoughts and actions. This energy is unlike anything else and, although I could try to explain and describe it, it would not be the same. It's something that must be experienced. You will know when you feel it.

Environments & Your Machine

Over Spring Break I was pulled back into an environment that reminded me where I stood health-wise before entering college. Everything is meat and starch, meat, meat, meat. In my family, if you don't eat meat, they get confused and have no idea what to make! I do eat fish occasionally but while home I ate fish nearly every day. I noticed a significant change in my energy levels and I even gained a few pounds in one-week's time. I did my best to keep my yoga practice in the mornings but I felt so lacking in energy and once I did wake up I wanted to be out and about. There really is a link between what you eat and how you feel. Your body is a machine and you only get out what you put in. So if you're feeding it processed goods and endless amounts of sugar (soda and sweets), you're not going to get much out. If you feed your machine vegetables, fruits, and proteins, then you're going to have the energy to get through the day and be active.
It's frustrating that not many people think of this-- they just eat and eat and eat instead of considering why they are eating. Treats and delicacies are fine on occasion. Life is too short not to have a slice of cake every now and then, but, if you want a quality life, you need to take care of your machine. Cars recommended to run on premium last longer when they are actually fed premium. Your body is no different.

Let's take a look at an average person. In America, the majority of the population is mostly sedentary; they work in an office, sitting at a computer desk 9 hours out of the day. Soda is common to every restaurant and locale while advertisements for fast food always show meat and starch (iceburg lettuce does not count as a nutritional vegetable, thus cannot be counted as a vegetable in a meal. A single slice of tomato does not count either). When a person comes home, they eat, watch TV, eat, go to bed.
Where does it all start? It starts with your pantry. If you have all the tools you need to a healthy diet (I do NOT mean a fad diet, I mean the actual definition) then you can properly fuel your engine.
The average American's pantry will consist of numerous processed goods: cereals high in sugar and low in actual nutrition, snack bars that give you some of your daily whole grain but are saturated with sweeteners, soda, white rice, instant meals like Pasta-roni and Zataran's, canned corn, etc. Canned corn is just fine but with so many processed goods people are starving themselves of proper nutrition. Plus, it's way cheaper to buy fresh corn- an extensive amount more for less!
[What's wrong with white rice, you ask? There is such little nutrition that it is practically an empty calorie. Try the switch to brown rice. If it doesn't come out right, let me know. I'm pretty good with adjusting the instructions on the back of the brown rice bags.]
If you have it, you'll likely eat it. The best way to create a healthy environment where you can eat healthier and reach your goals is by cleaning out your pantry and only keeping or buying necessities. You'd be surprised how little you actually need in your pantry when you switch cut out processed foods.
If you just can't give up your instant rice or don't want to stop eating cereal, make small changes. For example, serve yourself less of the instant rice and put another serving of vegetables on your plate. If cereal is your attachment, your bane of existence in the morning, read the labels. Go for a cereal with less sugars (and I DON'T mean for you to go for those with aspartame, splenda, or truvia in them!). There's nothing wrong with sugar but you don't want to give your body more than it needs. Another thing to look for with your cereals is whether they are actually whole grain or made with whole grains. I enjoy Kashi cereals every now and then. If you're worried about price, try actually portioning your cereal. Give yourself one serving and add fruit into it or on the side to fill you up.


Here is an example of some healthy, quick, and easy meals to get you through the day:

Breakfast:

     2 boiled eggs
     +
     1/2 cup quick oats
     2/3 to a cup of almond milk
     pinch of salt
     cinnamon
     honey
     1 banana and/or raisins
     (microwave for two minutes then stir. If it's too liquid-y for your taste, let it sit, it may thicken more)

Lunch Sandwich:

     whole wheat bread (I like Nature's Own from the isle, and fresh from Publix/Winn Dixie bakery)
     1-2 thin slices of cheese (something other than american)
     hummus or chicken/turkey leftovers (not too much)
     happy handful of spinach or other nutritional leafy green
     pinch of cayenne pepper (optional, of course. I just love the zing)
     pinch of garlic and/or onion powder (depends on the flavors of your hummus or meat)

Dinner:

     1 clove garlic
     rinse, dry, and chop leafy green (no need to chop spinach if you choose it though)
     olive oil
     pinch of salt
     pinch of cayenne (or black) pepper
     (saute' these together until the leafy green is wilted)
     +
     cubed extra firm tofu (or you can bake some Tilapia; spice it with your choice of seasonings [check the labels to make sure there is no added sugars to the spices] then wrap it in tin foil and bake at 425 for about 23 minutes).

     +

     6-7 carrots, peeled and chopped to small slices

     (steam the carrots and tofu together for about six minutes, add salt)

I honestly think processed foods are one of America's biggest health issues. I challenge you to give up a large majority of your processed foods and replace them with fresh, colorful veggies and fruits. Be adventurous! Discover new produce and learn how to cook them. I recently started eating more leafy greens (and I don't mean in salad!) like kale and mustard greens. Now kale is my new favorite. Give it a try and I know you'll see a difference in how you feel and how you perform throughout your day.

For more statistics/insight on processed food, Jamie Oliver has quite a bit to say on his TED talk.

Saute'd Kale and Garlic with Steamed Carrots