Tag Archives: Fitness

Life Advice from a Surf Legend Laird Hamilton

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supingWhile I read the June issue of Marie Claire, wishing I was stand-up paddleboarding (SUPing) instead of riding a stationary bike, I came across a feature with Laird Hamilton, the famous big wave surfer. In the article, he gives tips on how to get in on the SUPing craze, and things to remember if you fall off the board. As I perused his quotes, I found myself thinking, a lot of this advice applies not just to surfing, but to life. And who better to take advice from than a man who has figured out how to make a living doing what he loves, is married to Gabrielle Reece (such a cool lady!), and still finds time for speaking with women’s magazine, amiright?

So here are some life (or SUPing) lessons from the surf legend himself:

“As soon as you think you’re a little bit hot shit, the ocean is going to put you at the bottom and let you think about where the air is.”

“You have to be able to laugh at yourself and let other people laugh at you, and pretty soon you’ll be laughing at them.”

“Being willing to fail is an important personality trait. If you always stay in your safe zone, you never progress. If you don’t get resistance, you aren’t going in the right direction.”

Any life lessons you’ve learned from learning to surf, or another new activity?

5 Ways Water is Good for Your Health

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I’ll preface this by saying, I drink a lot of water. Ever since I was a little girl, and my mom let me take a pretty water mug with me every where, I have never really been without a water bottle in my purse. While my co-workers may think I’m diabetic because of the number of trips I take to the water cooler daily, I just enjoy being hydrated. Now The Scoop is backing me up with 5 reasons drinking water is awesome (and good for your health).

  1. Though it’s gross to talk about, new research shows that staying hydrated may keep things regular in your digestive tract even more effectively than that bowl of fiber one with a cup of coffee in the morning.
  2. Drinking lots of water is associated with losing weight
  3. Lots of H2O can lower your risk for kidney disease.
  4. Hydrated runners are faster, safer runners who can maintain their body temperature more regularly and keep their heart rates healthier.
  5. It can prevent headaches, fatigue, difficulty concentrating and bad moods (hellooo, remember how you feel when you’re hung over?) by staving off the bad symptoms of dehydration.

Additionally, water keeps your body temperature at a steady place, cushions joints, protects your spinal cord, and clears the body of waste through sweating and peeing. Now drink up!

4 Easy Ways to Revamp Your Diet

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foodIf you’re looking for an fast, simple way to make your diet a little healthier, Self’s Andrea Bartz recommends 4. When you’re shopping for pre-made or packaged foods, make sure that they don’t contain the following:

  • Sodium or Potassium Benzoate: These preservatives often turn up in baked goods, and they may break down into a carcinogen.
  • Potassium Bromate: This compound can be added to flour to make it rise higher, and is often used up in the baking process, however, its been banned in Europe and Canada for potentially carcinogenic properties.
  • Phosphate: It turns up in soda, packaged baked goods, frozen food, and condiments. When you consume it in high amounts, it can knock pH off balance and leech calcium from your bones.
  • Partially Hydrogenated Oil: These are also known as trans fats, a compound not found in nature. When they are added to some spreads, cheeses or junk foods, they can increase the risk for cardiovascular disease by blocking circulation.

See how easy that was?

Is your Primary Care in Shape?

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fitness

If the answer is no, (or I don’t know), then you might be less likely to receive get-active advice at your next visit. Research presented at a recent American Heart Association conference (and reported by The Scoop) found that physicians who work out are more likely to recommend it to their patients. And, when your doctor is getting on your case to exercise more, you might be a little less likely to come up with excuses not to hit the gym. Being active is a lifestyle choice that can help prevent or lessen the effect of a whole host of diseases, and having a health care practitioner who fits exercise into their busy schedule can make them more likely to recommend it as a treatment or addition to patients’ routines. Next time you’re picking out a new a primary care doctor, keep your fitness goals in mind, and look for one who enjoys being active too.

Birchbox for Exercise Gear

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By now, most people have heard of Birchbox, the beauty website that lets you subscribe for a monthly rate, and then receive a mixed package of hand selected samples to try. Some may have heard of Jewelmint, an accessories company founded by Kate Bosworth on a similar concept. Pay a flat rate each month, and select any piece in the collection. Now there is a website in the same lines, but for exercise fashionistas. With Ellie, you first take a style quiz to evaluate your tastes in workout gear, and how you like to exercise.

Then you have the option to become a member or shop on your own from the pieces they select for you. With a $50/month membership fee, you can pick any two clothing items each month to arrive at your door, shipping included. Members also gain preferred access to that month’s picks, and the inventory is constantly changing, so it will always infuse a fresh look into your gym-going attire.

Working it Out

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“I feel a lot worse about my life, and the world after working out,” said….nobody ever. No matter what kind of bad mood I’m in- grumpy, tired, sad, angry- if I can manage to haul myself onto an elliptical/stationary bike/treadmill usually after about 20 minutes or so, I start to feel better. My mind starts to wander from whatever was bothering me. I find myself thinking about totally unrelated things, or sometimes out of no where stumbling on a resolution. At the very least, the endorphins kick in and I feel a little better than when I started.

One day I got to thinking after a run, where out of no where the fix to something I had been thinking over popped magically into my head as I jogged. They don’t call it working out for nothing I thought, working out your problems, working your body to get out of your head. I mean, where did the word really come from anyhow?

It’s a fairly new word in the English language, around for only about a hundred years. People speculate that it came after hard labor or things like construction work that use similar motions and body challenging movement. Others speculate that it comes from using the word “out” as totally expended, used until it’s finished. The word implies working your muscles until they’re spent, used up, out of energy. The resolutions to annoying situations that seem to pop out of no where, well they’re just a bonus of giving your mind a chance to do its own thing while you focus on not falling off the treadmill while you change the song on your iPhone, or running that extra half mile along the river without stopping to walk.