Happy Friday Everyone! This week seems to have flown by. I hope it’s treated you well.
Today, I’d like to send you away for the weekend with a few small chunks, things that have flown my way this week.
A client of mine didn’t understand why she’s felt incredibly hungry this week — Folks, when you work out your body gets hungry! Food is fuel. Your body needs fuel to operate, just like your car. The more you work it, the more it needs. Just watch what you eat. No cheese puffs. If you want it to work, and keep working, you need to feed it.
Nap time — I hate naps. Naps are for kids and usually make me cranky. This week however, I took a nap on three different occasions. I’m still cranky but at least I can stand up and focus my eyes. If your body wants to sleep, let it. When you’re tired is when you are most likely to injure yourself during exercise, or in my case walking down the street. Listen to your body. Do what it says.
If you’re gonna ride a bike, learn to fix a flat and take flat repair gear with you on every ride — If I see one more person standing by the side of the road with their bike turned upside down waiting for someone to come pick them up, I am going to scream. Be smart, be self-sufficient.
Yep, it’s been raining — They’re calling this month Junuary. It’s funny but then it’s not. Remember: Those cold and rainy training days are the days that later pay off and help you reach your goals. Endure!
See you next week. I’m making Cowgirl Cookies this weekend. Will let you know how they turn out.
I trust you’ve spent your three-day weekend wisely. Meaning, I hope you’ve taken this time to get some fresh air, exercise, spend time with loved ones and enjoyed some of your favorite indulgences. No matter what they are. That, in my mind is why the Universe (or God if you wish) made three-day weekends, to completely enjoy yourself and re-charge for the next round of full work weeks.
With that, I am taking today off. Be sure I have followed my own advise indulging in bouts of insane stents of outdoor exercise, mowed down on foods that would normally be avoided, spent time with the animals I adore and with friends new and old.
In an effort to be true to this specific holiday I remind us all to take a moment to consider those we have lost and to be thankful for those special folks we have chosen to share our lives with.
Enjoy the day and thanks for checking in. Know that I truly appreciate your taking the time to read my words…
Here’s the thing – I guy a used to work with for years passed away this week. He was 41. He liked to mountain bike and run and hang out with his friends. Just like the rest of us. He was sweet and friendly and completely “normal” except for the fact that every place he went he had a big yellow lab at his side. His name was Jasen and the lab’s name is Slider.
One day I noticed that Sliders paws were all bandaged up. “What happened to Slider?” I asked Jasen, “Ohhh we went mountain biking and I crashed, tumbled into a ravine (as he exposed his hamburger elbows). Slider had to run over some brush to get to me and he cut up his paws.” OMG I thought, visualizing Slider rushing to Jasen’s aid. In the end both Jasen and Slider healed from those wounds and went back the next weekend for more. They were an inseparable pair that brought smiles to the faces of everyone.
Last Saturday Jasen sat down to watch TV. Nobody knows exactly what happened; hopefully he just went to sleep. I assume Slider was sitting right there next to him.
The point I am trying to make is this… We’ve heard it before and we will continue to hear it but, I will say it again, so bare with me… Life is short. Do what you can to enjoy your time here. We are literally here one minute and gone the next. Be good to everyone in your world, every single day. Show them you care even if it’s in subtle ways. Enjoy every second as thought it may be your last no matter who you are.
It’s Memorial Day Weekend. The perfect time to take this message to heart. With that, I wish you all a 3-Day Weekend full of fun and fitness and lots of laughs. My friend Dawn has sent along this yummy Mango Margarita Recipe to share with you all. Give it a try…it’s healthy, and a fantastic way to celebrate life.
Blend frozen mango chunks, tequila, orange liqueur, and fresh line juice in blender – no simple syrup or sour mix needed. It is so smooth & creamy, delish!
Thank you for being here. Please go kiss someone you care about.
See you Tuesday…
Note to Jasen: Jasen, you were an absolute sweet heart, and you were adored by so many! I hope you knew that, but I fear you did not. I hope I’ll be seeing you again someday but I assume you’ve gone north and I’m certain to be headed south when my ride is up. Tailwinds to you forever my friend…
Note to Slider: I love you Slidie! Be strong, sweet, sweet dog…
Do you realize that if The World doesn’t come to an end on Saturday as some believe it will, then there will be only 33 days left until the first day of summer? I’m just sayin’, if you want to shape up before you’re forced to wear a swimsuit and show some skin you might want to get started. You wouldn’t wait until race day to start training would you? You wouldn’t get very far if you did.
I think I’ve made it pretty clear that I’m here to help you make positive chances to your lives, be it through your food choices, exercise routine or mental state (more positively referred to as “emotional well-being”). I don’t know how many of you are choosing to take my advice, but I would guess that not enough of you are. This assumption is based on the fact that I continue to hear things like “Ugh, I really need to get back into exercising.” And, “I feel like shit, I need to do something…”
Let me tell you that I understand, it’s hard. In fact it is very hard to take that first step but once you start rolling it does become easier. I promise.
With that I leave you for the weekend with a gentile suggestion that you seriously think about what you’re willing to commit to, to make changes in your life. Think about it and come up with a firm plan. If you need inspiration or suggestions let me know and I’ll send you some. After all that’s why I’m here…
Enjoy your weekend; we’ll talk on Monday.
P.s. Remember GP-2011? I apologize for not giving you an update on her progress earlier but GP has been very busy with all her mom, daughter, wife and work duties so I’ve not seen her. However, I’m happy to report that GP-2011 has reached her goal of loosing some weight, toning up and feeling comfortable in a two-piece swimsuit for her trip to Hawaii next week. GP says…“I feel good, my abs are really strong, they just have a little tuft of fat covering them. I actually look pretty good in my new two-piece.” Unfortunately GP has not sent me a photo of her in her new suit so I can’t share it with you. Obviously she knows I’ll post it so you can’t blame her, no matter how good she looks.
Today I would like you all to go outside and go for a walk. Sounds simple but think about it. Many of us do very little recreational walking in our day-to-day lives. The idea is to change that. Decide that you’re going to go for a walk. Walk around your block, around your campus, around your neighborhood. If you live on a farm take a walk around the pasture. Explore the world you live in, get lost and find your way back if you dare. While you’re out there, breath in the fresh air. Look around, and notice all of the things you have to be grateful for. If you’d like, take your favorite music or simply listen to the world around you. Appreciate what you have and be grateful.
I hope you’ll take my suggestion. It’s free and it’s wondrous.
My friend Marc likes to say, “There is no pain.” As far as I’m concerned that’s bull. There is pain, serious debilitating pain. However, I think what Marc is saying…
Today my neighbor referred to me as “Big Butt.” Obviously she doesn’t like me much. I was shocked at first, in disbelief that a woman in her 50’s would behave so childishly and mean. Rather than launch a counter attack, I decided to turn away from the nasty woman and take my big butt away from her, and her insane nastiness.
For about 5 seconds I felt bad, she was right, I do have a big butt; I’ve had it all my life. No matter what I do, it stays big. Then I remembered all the cool things my big butt has done in it’s life, and all those who have appreciated it. And then I realized that I like my big butt! It’s big and round and it does all sorts of really amazing things really well. Including attract plenty of big butt loving boys, so take that, Nasty Neighbor lady!
Oddly enough, as I was thinking about this, the song “Work That” by Mary J. Blige started streaming through my ear buds. I’ve heard this song maybe 50 times but it wasn’t until today that I actually heard what was being said. The song is about working with what you’ve got and appreciating yourself no matter what people say. It’s spot on, and worth a listen. Below are the lyrics but it’s more fun to watch the video and read along. Listen to it, no matter who you are, and do it especially if you are a daughter, or have a daughter.
Have a great weekend. My lovely big butt and I will be back on Monday.
Kisses…
The lyrics to, Work That – by Mary J. Blige
Work your thing out, Work your thing out, Work your thing out, Work your thing out
Theres so many-a girls
I hear you been running
From the beautiful queen
That you could be becoming
You can look at my palm
And see the storm coming
Read the book of my life
And see I’ve overcome it
Just because the length of your hair ain’t long
And they often criticize you for your skin tone
Wanna hold your head high
Cause you’re a pretty woman
Get your runway stride home
And keep going
Girl live ya life
I just wanna be myself
Don’t sweat girl be yourself
Follow me, Follow me, Follow me
Girl be yourself
That’s why I be myself
And I’m gonna love it
Let em get mad
They gonna hate anyway
Don’t you get that?
Doesn’t matter if you’re going on with their plan
They’ll never be happy
Cause they’re not happy with themselves
Na na work what you got
I’m talking bout things that I know
Na na work what you got
It’s okay show yourself some love
Na na work what you got
Don’t worry bout who’s saying what
It’s gonna be fine
Work what you got
Feelin great because the light’s on me
Celebrating the things that everyone told me
Would never happen but God has put his hands on me
And aint a man alive could ever take it from me
Working with what I got I gotta keep on
Taking care of myself I wanna live long
Aint never ashamed what life did to me
Wasn’t afraid to change cause it was good for me
I wanna…
I just wanna be myself
Don’t sweat girl be yourself
Follow me, Follow me, Follow me
Girl be yourself
That’s why I be myself
And I’m gonna love it
Let em get mad
They gonna hate anyway
Don’t you get that?
Doesn’t matter if you’re going on with their plan
They’ll never be happy
Cause they’re not happy with themselves
Na na work what you got
I’m talking bout things that I know
Na na work what you got
It’s okay show yourself some love
Na na work what you got
Don’t worry bout who’s saying what
It’s gonna be fine
Work what you got
Work that, Work that, Work that
Girl don’t hold back
You just be yourself [3x]
Na na work what you got
I’m talking bout things that I know
Na na work what you got
It’s okay show yourself some love
Na na work what you got
Don’t worry bout who’s saying what
It’s gonna be fine
Work what you got
Work that, Work that, Work that
Girl don’t hold back
You just be yourself
Work that thing out, Work that thing out, Work what you got
If you haven’t already guessed, I love animals. I do. It’s because they’re so simple and real. Not fake or mean, they’re intuitive and loving (even the ones that might eat you, are only doing what’s natural to them). They’re so completely sweet and real.
Yesterday, while trundling* through The Presidio, I spied a mamma duck and about 6, of her fresh, out of the shell, fuzzy-little baby-chicks. The sight was so heart warming that I nearly cried. What made me feel even sappier was a sight of a young fellow who had appointed himself crossing guard for the waddling family. As the ducks slowly negotiated the hot asphalt, the young man stood far enough away as not to startle the group, yet keep oncoming traffic to a calm, slow stream. As I passed I asked if he would like any assistance but he declined and promised he’d see that the ducks got safely across the busy intersection and on their way to wherever they were going. As I trundled off I wondered where they might be headed, maybe to visit the Yoda fountain I hoped. They’d be safe there.
Here’s my suggestion for today, Work Out Wednesday. Go find some wild life. It’s out there. Dogs don’t count but cats do as they roam free (for the most part). Take a walk, run or a ride, go some place where you might find some critters. All you have to do is find a park. A dog park will do but while you’re there look for some pretty birds or bugs, even gophers count. There are lots of ladybugs and bees flying around these days. They all count. Just pay attention for a change and enjoy what you see. Take a second to stop and watch. This might sound silly but trust me you’ll return home feeling better than you did when you left. And, you may see something really amazing! Like my duckies!
I’d love to hear your Work Out Wednesday Wild Life Report so please feel free to share!
May the force be with you…
P.s. Tomorrow is Bike to Work Day. Mo will be greeting and feeding visitors at the Ferry Building Energizer Station in the morning. Go see her, I’m going around 8.
Can you think of five things that make you happy? Five things that don’t cost anything more than a moment of your attention?
I am not asking what you think the secret to happiness is, or how to make someone happy. I just want you to think of five things that make you feel a second of happiness.
Here are five things that make me happy every single time I experience them.
It makes me happy when I wake up in the morning and see blue sky out my bedroom window.
It makes me happy to see really old people rolling along on bikes.
It makes me really happy to see chubby little fluffy dogs running along with their owners.
It makes me feel happy and peaceful when I find my rhythm, whether it’s on a run, on the dance floor or climbing a mountain on my trusty bike.
It makes me happy when a stranger smiles at me.
Now, make your list. Only think of what makes you happy and that’s it. Think about it all day and look for those things. I’ll bet you have a nice day.
This is Max. Max doesn’t know it yet but he’s destined for greatness. Given his genetic make-up Max will grow become a champion Time Trialist, Soccer Striker or Hip Hop Dancer. It’s a given.
While Max has yet to discover his destiny, he has begun to delve into the world of high style as it relates to eye protection. Let me share with you what Max already understands.
How many times have you been riding your bike or walking and experienced a head-on with a bee or some other airborne property? With all the critters and chunkage flying around in the air it’s bound to happen. Myself, I can proudly boast that I’ve survived dozens of flying critter crashes and it’s all thanks to the fact that I wear some sort of eye protection every time I set out.
If you partake in sports or basically walk around outside you should be wearing eye protection. It’s wise to protect your eyes not only from the sun but also from things that could potentially poke into them. Flying debris, elbows, tree branches, you get the idea. The best plan of action is to use lenses that have a built-in ultraviolet protection and are made of shatterproof polycarbonate. If you already wear glasses, you can have your prescription transferred to the safety eyewear for your athletic activities. Obviously the degree of eye protection you’ll require is directly related to the type of activities you are participating in. You won’t need ski goggles to wear on a run. Technically you could wear them but why look like a dork?
Maintaining an eye-saving safety-mission doesn’t mean your civvies need suffer. These days there are many fashionable yet functional eye protection manufacturers. Do some shopping and make sure you have a pair of shades for sunny days and pair of clear lenses for rainy or dark days.
For best results choose eyewear that underscores your personal style. Max possesses a confident, brainiack, fresh, athletic “I’ll crush you in a few years” sort of attitude. With that he’s chosen eye protection that is functional as well as dashing, making a statement that supports his beliefs and active lifestyle.
Max’s moto, save your eyes and look marvelous doing it.
Physical Funness for the Motion Starved 