Recently I had the chance to be interviewed by Adam & Devon Bate for a podcast on The Lifestyle Accountability Show. The premise behind their podcast series is to share the stories of people who lead healthy lifestyles to help motivate and inspire others. As a public relations pro and freelance writer, I am always the one doing the interviewing, so it definitely felt weird being the interviewee. But it was fun to share some of my story and put myself out there in a new way. You can check out the podcast here! Ever go on a job interview or date or something and think later about what you could have said better? Well I am the queen of doing this! I feel like during the podcast, a few of their questions put me on the spot, and later I looked back and thought of answers that ... [Read More]
healthy living
IIN Chat: What’s a Health Coach?
Happy Wednesday! I feel like this week is just flying by! I've been super busy, and my work week is short because I'm heading down to San Diego on Friday (more on the exciting reason behind my trip to come soon!). Last night my hubby and I had a rare weekday date night. I had gotten him tickets to see Kings of Leon as a Christmas gift, so we headed into San Jose to see them perform. The concert was a lot of fun! :) Moving along to the topic of today's post, after doing a recap of my first month as a student at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (a second one to come in the near future!), a couple of people asked me to go more in-depth as to what a health coach is. So let's get into it! At IIN, health coaches are believed to be the future of our healthcare system. At ... [Read More]
Getting an Education in CrossFit Culture
Recently I had a freelance writing assignment centered around CrossFit, so I ventured around to different gyms in my area to interview owners and members and get a better grasp of what it's all about. Though I've never tried it, I have a couple of friends who are avid CrossFitters and I've watched the CrossFit Games on TV before, so I had a general idea of what the fitness regimen entails. However, doing research for the article really gave me a much more detailed look at what it's all about and why people are crazy about the so called "sport of fitness." (source) I learned that conventional CrossFit wisdom says to forget about the aesthetics, to focus more on what you can do versus what you want your body to look like. Essentially, it values athleticism over superficial concepts ... [Read More]
Hiking Centers Me
Happy weekend!! I don't know about you guys, but this week seriously kicked my butt. I was super busy and there has been a lot going on (mostly good things), so I was very happy to wake up this morning and not jump out of bed to write a to-do list. Although I did finish school work first thing in the morning, the rest of my day so far has been nothing but relaxing. I went for a hike with my little family, and stopped by the farmers' market to pick up some local goodies - oh, and eat about 1/2 pound of fresh figs on the way home. So yummy! Helllloooo longest sweet potato I've ever seen - should be perfect for homemade fries! In light of feeling drained from the week, I just came up with a rule for myself: Nothing mentally taxing for the rest of the day. I'll think about ... [Read More]
My Top 5 Workout Motivation Techniques
Hi friends! I'm linking up to the Fit Tip Tuesday party over at Lisa at The Skinny on Health again this week. My topic today is one that I'm confident everyone can relate to: finding that oomph to exercise when you just don't feel like it. I thought I'd share my tips of how I push myself to go workout on the occasion that I'm not in the mood for it, so here we go! 1.) Read motivational quotes - A quick way that I pump myself up to go exercise is to check out some fitness and life quotes like these... 2.) Pump up the music - Sometimes all I need to find my fitness motivation is to change up my gym playlist or download a few new songs that get my body moving. A few of my current favorite tunes include: Colbie Caillat "Hold On" John Newman "Love Me Again" Ellie Goulding ... [Read More]
Gluten Free for February
Hello and Happy February! Speaking of a new month, my dog obsessed self can't decide which of my calendars is more awesome: the yoga for dogs one in my kitchen, or the underwater dogs calendar in my office.... With the start of February came a dietary change for me: Starting February 1st, I've gone gluten free for a month. So why am I, a lover of pasta and bread and all things whole wheat, making a commitment to not consume gluten for an entire month? Let me explain. WARNING: This post is a total over-share, but I'm going for it! About 5 years ago, I developed psoriasis, a chronic skin disease that causes skin cells to grow too quickly. It makes you really itchy and results in these icky red patches of skin. The causes of it are kind of fuzzy and general -- including high ... [Read More]