Physical Funness for the Motion Starved

Fit more fun into your fitness while exploring the outdoors.

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Green goodness

Kelley's Rescued Favas

Fava beans are yummy. Ever have any? Problem is they’re a pain to prepare.

Traditionally, before you can eat a fava you have to shuck the green goodness from the pod, blanch them in boiling water and then shock ‘em in an ice bath.  After that you strip the tough outer skin off the bean, reducing it to the size of flat a kidney bean. I’ve always found this to be way too much work for a few beans.  You’d have to shuck for hours to get enough beans to feed more than a couple of people.

In Sunday’s Chronicle Food section there was an article about roasting fava beans. The article stated, that by roasting the beans you’re able to cut way down on the prep time. This sounded like a dream come true to me so off I ran to the farmers market where I filled my bag with favas.

Basically roasting a fava bean is just like roasting any other bean. You toss the clean beans (whole bean/pod) in olive oil, salt and pepper and roast them in the oven at 450 degrees until tender.  According to the article you can eat the entire fava like you would a green bean, or you can treat them like you would edamame and shuck the bean from the pod post roast.

My review — Well, I did exactly as the recipe directed. I roasted the beans for 25 minutes, which turned out to be a bit too long.  A little disappointed but still excited I bit into one of the favas as if it were a green bean. Uck! I found the fibrous shell to be stringy and mushy so I scraped the notion of eating the pod/bean combo and took matters into my own hands.  I stripped beans from their mushy pods, tossed them on a plate, drizzled them with a bit of olive oil and a sprinkle of pecorino cheese. Saved! They were pretty good. Not as good as the blanched ones that take forever to prepare, but good. Certainly worth a try.  I’ll prepare favas this way again for certain.  The roasting method would be especially good if you wanted to mush the beans up with some garlic and spread the mixture on crostini with a little dusting of cheese.  When in doubt, add bread and cheese, you can’t go wrong.

P.s. According to the National Nutrient Database, one cup of cooked fava beans contain about 187 calories, 13g protein and 9g of fiber and are an excellent source of iron, among other things.  Pretty good for a little bean.


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Your bike helmet is not a yarmulke!

Mr. Bunny, your helmet's too small!

Last night when I was driving through town, I spied a woman with two extremely young children caged on the back of her bicycle.  I say, “caged” because they were snuggly secured in two homemade box like contraptions that completely covered the tikes from the shoulders down. All you could see where little 3 or 4 year old heads and their erect little shoes sticking from the boxes. The boxes looked like those things magicians use to make it appear as though they cut people in half.  While I was remotely impressed with the architecture of the Kid Cages, I was quite shocked to see that both children were wearing their helmets on the backs of their heads as though they were yarmulke.

For some reason proper bike helmet fit escapes many people. I especially love the dummies that ride around with the chin strap unlatched. While I notice all kinds of foolish people, I found it incredibly odd that this women would go so far as to build special boxes for her offspring yet she failed to master the most obvious safety utensil. Proper helmet fit.

With that, allow me share a tidbit of advise on the proper way to don a bike helmet.

Buy a helmet that fits your head — The same goes for your child, buy one that fits now, don’t buy one for them to “grow into!”

All helmets sold in the US have been CPSC approved so theoretically they ‘re safe — The expensive ones are usually just lighter, more aerodynamic or have better ventilation. Buy what you can afford as long as it fits!

A helmet should — Sit snuggly and level on your head, 1 or 2 finger widths above the eyebrow. Never tilted back like a bonnet or yarmulke!

A helmet should not — Rock or move from side to side, at all.

The chin strap – Should be buckled and allow for only one or two fingers of space between your skin and the strap.

Color – Bright colors are better to see you with. You might think black looks cool but it’s hot and dark and it won’t make you ride any faster so best to pick another color.

Lastly – If you crack your bike helmet, even a little bit, it’s trashed. Whether it be from your kid tossing it across the room, or the action of you detaching from your bike, the rule is; if it’s cracked, it’s done. The helmet goes in the trash and you go shopping.  I know they’re expensive but so is brain surgery.

End of story.

Happy Easter! See you Monday, until then do what I say.


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Make our Mother proud!

Earth Day

We all know that every day is Earth Day, correct? However, this week brings the official “day,” which is tomorrow, Friday, April 22. With Earth Day comes, plenty of special events and ways to celebrate and encourage cleaner, greener and more sustainable lives.

If you don’t know what, or why Earth Day is, you’ll simply need to move planets. I hear Virgin Airways is working on offering flights to Mars, I goad you to check that out.

While the official day to celebrate Earth Day is Friday, special events will be going on all weekend long. I urge you to participate, or at the very least make an effort to show our Mother Earth a little extra love on her special day.

Here are my top three suggestions for how to spend your Earth Weekend.

Clean out your closets and recycle the clothes you never wear — Crossroads Trading Company the buy-sell-trade retailer is running a special Earth Day promotion: they’ll give you a 20th anniversary tote bag when you sell $100 or more in clothing between Friday and Sunday. They’ll also donate five cents to the Environmental Defense Fund every time a customer says “no” to using a plastic bag with his or her purchase.

Plant a garden  — You can plant lettuce in a pot and put it in the window if you don’t have a space outside. Herbs in the kitchen window make you look like you know your shit around the stove and don’t forget the nutritional gains from using herbs in your cooking.  How about a potted dwarf lemon tree on the front stoop?  Nothing says I’m well-heeled like citrus right at the front door.

Get outside — In every city there a hordes of planned activities to help you celebrate. My preference is the Earth Stroll along Crissy Field in San Francisco but there are many other options. In The Bay Area visit earthdaysf.com for a list of events. Where ever you live get out and get green!

Happy Earth Day. Make our Mother proud!


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Fish Face Pose?


A long time ago I read that if you chew gum your face won’t get saggy, so I started chewing gum. I’m not sure if it worked, but my face isn’t really saggy (or is it?).

Now there’s something called Facial Yoga, ever heard of it? The idea is the same as the gum chewing; apparently exercising the facial muscles will sculpt and lift your face keeping it looking younger. Maybe it’s not the answer to going under the knife (if you’re into that) but we know that working the other muscles in your bodies keeps us looking fit and younger so why not the face? Hence my gum chewing.

Aside from toning the facial muscles and reducing sagging, these exercises promise to smooth away lines, and deliver a more glowing, youthful complexion. Sound too good to be true? There’s only one way to find out.

From what I’ve read it’s best to do your face yoga routine in the evenings after you’ve washed and moisturized your face. There’s no specific routine, just do the exercises for 10 minutes each evening.

If you have even a remote interest in face yoga watch the video. It’s short and funny, you get to watch the lady do the exercises and make fish faces,  also the interviewer is kinda snarky.

Give it a try and report back. I’d like to know how you did.


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The yoke of the matter

Photo via, Lam-B on Flickr

What came first, the chicken or the egg?

I forgot that Easter was coming till I saw the food section of the SF Chronicle on Sunday. It didn’t mention Easter but it spoke of eggs, that’s what clued me in. For me Easter is about eating chocolate, decorating and then eating hardboiled eggs. Who has time for church with all the eating that needs to be done on Easter (blame it on my upbringing if that offends you)?

Anyway… I’ve always had a hard time with eggs. My grandmother once asked me if I liked eggs and I replied, “yea, when they’re in a cake.” More recently I’ve managed to grow a marginal fondness for eggs although I can never seem to figure out how to cook them correctly.  With that I decided to look into the matter.

Stuff I learned about eggs and chickens today.

Who knew? — Each breed of chicken has a specific earlobe color, which predicts the color of the eggshell.  Really? That’s just weird!

Dark is better — The color of the yoke is determined by what the chicken eats. Yoke color can range from light yellow to dark yellow/orange. The darker the yoke, the more nutrients in the chickens diet.

Green? — Ever notice a green or ashy ring around the yoke of a hardboiled egg? The ring forms when you overheat the egg.

Yuck, blood in the yoke — Many people believe that a blood speck in an egg means that it’s fertile. This however is not the case. A deficiency in the chickens diet can cause small blood spots in the yoke, which are unsightly but safe to eat. You can remove the speck using the tip of a knife.

Rotten egg  — Rotten eggs smell like sulfur. If it smells rotten it is rotten.  Also, rotten eggs will float when placed in pot of water, fresh eggs will sink and stay on the bottom.

How to boil an egg — This is where things get confusing, and frankly incredibly annoying. Apparently everybody has a different idea of how to boil an egg.  The Chronicle listed 4 different methods, all just slightly different.  Honestly!

The tips that seem to be somewhat consistent are, place the eggs (room temp eggs best) in a pot of enough cold water to cover them 1-2 inches. Bring to a vigorous bubble, but not rolling boil. Remove from heat, cover and let sit. The “sit” time is confusing, I’ve read, 8 – 15 minutes (maybe it depends on how “hard” you want your egg to be boiled?).  Then place eggs in an ice bath for easy pealing.

The count — One large chicken egg contains about 70 calories and 6 grams of protein. One large Reese’s peanut butter egg contains 180 calories, 4 grams of protein and is 53% fat. Yikes! Better stick with the chicken eggs.

I hope you learned something. I did but I’m still a little confused.


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No motion starvation allowed

What’s up for the weekend? I hope you will all be doing a little moving around. No motion starvation allowed.

On Saturday I’ll be participating in the first WTF Cycling team ride of the season. WTF is a bike team started by me and my best bike pals. The majority of us are retired bike racers that just can’t get the bike out of our blood so we formed a team. What does WTF mean? I think you can figure it out. If you’d like more info on WTF Cycling or would like to join us for a ride sometime, feel free to “like” us on Facebook so you can stay appraised of our goings on.

No matter what you get up to this weekend have a wonderful time of it. If you need a suggestion, how about a Scavenger Hunt?  I’m sending all my clients away for the weekend with this assignment and I expect full reports from them on Monday. Join in on the fun if you dare!

Here’s how it works — Go for a run, walk or combination of the two for one hour. As you travel along, hunt for the items listed below. Keep track of what you find and let me know how you did. I suggest you place this list in your phone so you have it handy. Check off the items on the list or better yet, snap a photo of your findings. I’d love to see what you come up with.

Be sure to warm up with some Jumping Jacks and a few stretches before you start to run, and stretch well post workout. Have fun and watch your step!

The List

Beware of Dog Sign

House with Green Door

A Bird House

Garden Gnome

Take Out Menu

A Swing

Graffiti

Someone 85 years or older

Water Bottle

Cardboard Box

Glass Bottle

Paper Bag

An Acorn

Feather

Nail

Fruit Pit

Pink Stone

Mushroom

Berry

Shell

Your Hunt Reports are due to me by Monday.  May the force be with you!

See you next week…


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It’s time to roll!

May is a damn good month! In California, it’s official bike to Work Month and my favorite; The Tour of California professional bike race visits our beautiful state during May (There’s also Mothers Day and my moms birthday, I’d be screwed if I forgot that.). What more could a month aspire to be? May is full of fitness, inspiration, green living and motherly love.  Happy, happy May to us all!

Lets talk about Bike to Work stuff; It’s pretty cool how these things happen, one day somebody, and it doesn’t matter who, decided that May would be Bike to Work Month.  It’s a fantastic idea. The hope is to get folks out of their cars and on the road to living healthier lives through bicycling. Pretty keen! Here in San Francisco there’s even a designated Bike to Work Day on May 12th. The paramount and bestest day of Bike to Work month. On Bike to Work Day there are “energizer stations” set up all over the city that hand out free goodies and lend support to bike commuters. It’s really nice and very festive! I’ve even been known to go way out of my way in route to work just to stock up on the goodies and chitchat with folks along the way. Why would you pass that up?

Yea, I know, riding your bike to work all clean and dressed to impress can be a bit daunting but why not use Bike to Work Day as an excuse to give it a try. God forbid you may actually have some fun.

Since I’m buggin’ you to ride your bikes to work it’s only fair that I offer a few words of wisdom.

First — Before you go jumping on your bike have a look at it to be sure it’s in proper working order. If you ride all the time than I trust that you keep your bike in good repair. If you don’t than I’ll get on you another time. For now, dust the poor thing off, pump up the tires to the pressure on the sidewall and if you dare clean and lube you chain. Better yet, call NOW and make an appointment at your favorite bike shop.  Don’t wait until the last-minute bike shops get busy this time of year and changing a flat in your work cloths seriously sucks. Give your bike some love, right now!

Second — What to wear? For this I have enlisted Mo, you know Mo if you’ve been following my posts. Not only has Mo been seen riding her bike up and down the cost of Chile recently but she’s an avid bicycle commuter. Here are Mo’s words of wisdom concerning proper peddling attire.

“No one wants to look like a slob when they get to the Financial District and they don’t have to.  Many work clothes and the bike go great together. For example, a tight skirt with some stretch doesn’t show anything private.

When I am going to and from work or to school I actually look nice, wear makeup, etc. on the bike, in part to make a point, and in part to not look like a dirt bag cyclist when I’m going to my classes or whatever.

My clothing choice recommendation – a medium black skirt with stretch, gives enough to let you swing your leg over, but doesn’t creep up or blow up with wind.  Also, high heels are more comfortable on the bike as most of your weight is on your butt and not on your feet!

You can spend money to buy specially made bike clothes but probably is not necessary.” You can roll with what you got.

All I’m asking is that you think about it. Start with cleaning up your bike, you never know when the urge to ride might hit.  Then, take a second to have a look at your cycle friendly wear, to work or otherwise.  Just in case…

See you on the road…

P.s. For more info on Bike to Work Day check out The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition.

P.s.s. Mo will be “The Captain” of the Energizer Station at The Ferry Building on Bike to Work morning. Stop by and say “Hi” if you’re in the hood!

P.s.s.s I read that 7 out of 10 San Franciscans have bikes. By my calculations everyone under the age of about 65 has a bike. Get on it!


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Cotton is rotten

Pretty girl, bad clothing choice.

I like to sweat, that’s a good thing, as my body seems to sweat a lot. Sweating is good as it cleanses the body of all those nasty toxins and cools us down.

Ever notice that when you sweat in a cotton t-shirt it seems to stay wet forever, and then once you stop sweating, you start freezing because you’re standing around in a soaking wet cloths.

Well, thank goodness some brainiac came up moisture-wicking fabric. Fortunately for us, most athletic clothing is being now made of the stuff and it really makes a difference. This special fabric magically sucks the moisture away from your skin, through the fabric, and holds it on the outside of the garment so it can evaporated, hence keeping you much dryer than cotton.

So, the next time you go shopping for workout togs make sure to stick with moisture-wicking fabrics. Moisture-wicking clothing can make a difference in your comfort and in your ability to focus on things like keeping your pace and enjoying the experience rather than feeling like a wet rag.

Don’t get me wrong, cotton is great for keeping you cool, and for looking cool while you sip margaritas on the beach but not while you exercise. Those coveted event t-shirts you get as proof that you’ve survived a challenge, are best worn post sweat to strut around in after you’ve changed out of our smelly workout cloths and are sitting down to your recovery meal.

P.s. Different apparel manufacturers have different names for their moisture-wicking fabric, including Dri-Fit from Nike, ClimaCool from Adidas, just be sure to read the tag.

 


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Is it Friday yet?

Well…it’s certainly been a full week here at Motion Starved HQ.  First there was my post about crooked butt cracks, which sure got its fair share of attention, from folks all over the world too. Then, after writing about asparagus I decided to burn myself up a batch only to find that it was full of sand (you gotta rinse it!). Crunch, crunch, into the trash it went. Then I visited Dr. Barbara so she could snap my ankle back into place, as always she did a great job, thank you DB! After that however, I managed to shake something loose in my head causing a spell of the dizzies. It was like I was Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. Dehydration, maybe, but not likely in this case. My educated guess based on unpleasant past experience says, some crystals shook loose in my inner ear. Silly things can really mess up a girl’s evening (and the next few). Are you wondering what I’m talking about?

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) — Basically, there are these little crystals that float around in the canals of your inner ear. Occasionally those little buggers get dislodged and strike against sensitive nerve endings within the inner ear, resulting in usually short, but severe, room-spinning vertigo (the “dizzies”) and in some cases nausea.

They say the thing to do is to figure out which side/ear is messed up and then avoid laying or tilting your head in that direction for a few weeks and the problem will go away on it’s own.  Silly as it sounds from my experience that’s all you can do. You’ll know which ear it is because when you tilt or turn your head in that direction you get very dizzy.

Anyway, don’t worry yourself, these things don’t usually happen unless you’ve had some sort of head trauma, hopefully none of you will need to deal with this. In my case I took a little fall on my bike a few years back traumatizing all sorts of body parts and sending me into a spin for months. I was walking around like a drunkard. Hella fun!

TGIF is all I have to say!  Go get you some love and some sun this weekend. Life is short, time to let the crazy out!

See you on Monday!

P.s. If you find yourself with a case of the “dizzies” you best visit the Dr. to decipher the cause, till you get there Dramamine or Bonine will help keep you upright.


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Pee-you!

We all know beans can do it. But what if you get gas sans those flatulence culprits?

It could be gas from your stomach that’s migrated down, or other foods you may not be aware of. Did you know some people even swallow air without knowing it?

If you have really stinky gas or know someone who does, how about some charcoal filters for your underpants? Seriously. They make them. I haven’t tried them, but here’s a funny video about the brand called, Subtle Butt.

Gas, flatulence, whatever you call it, you don’t want it! Here are 5 things to remember if you’re having trouble.

  • Eliminate carbonated drinks. These introduce gas into your stomach, which can end up in your intestines.
  • When stressed, try breathing in slowly through your nose and out through your mouth. Some people swallow air without realizing it, usually when they’re anxious. This can cause burping or flatulence.
  • Avoid antacids. Though they’re marketed as anti-gas, they actually create gas when they neutralize stomach acid.
  • Consider your food tolerance. For example, dairy products, onions and garlic cause some of us to blow.

I’ll leave it at that…

P.s. The average person passes gas about 12-25 times a day. That seems like a lot if you ask  me…