When you are training hard and focusing on your goals, it is often possible to overlook a key link in the athletic performance chain.
That link is recovery.
Recovery means returning to a normal place of health, mind and strength. It might be what you need to integrate more of to maximize your achievement on and off the course.
My top recommendations for recovery for endurance athletes and other athletes include these three things: Continue reading
Something that might not be foremost in your mind when it comes to optimal mental health, physical health and performance is sleep. According to the CDC, adults need 7 or more hours of sleep per night for their best health and wellbeing.
Practices and habits that can aid in healthy sleep include regular exercise, avoiding sugar and alcohol before bedtime, avoiding caffeine at least six hours before bedtime, avoiding saturated and trans fat before bedtime (animal products or fried foods), making your sleep surroundings your sanctuary, and creating a routine. Establishing a nighttime meditation practice and not using electronic devices one to two hours before bedtime may also help. Continue reading
Summer is the best time to go outside for a workout. The days are longer and the sky is brighter. As an outdoor endurance athlete, I love getting my workout in outside. Here are three fun ways to cross train outside that let you take advantage of the added benefits of working out outdoors. Continue reading
It is summertime and thankfully we are starting to see the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel, and can safely celebrate the season of picnic parties with friends and family. Before you head out and stock up on throwaway picnic staples, like plastic cups, plates, utensils, napkins, take a minute to tune up your eco-friendly lifestyle and learn how to ditch needless plastics.
As we eat, drink and be merry, there’s no need to fall back into wasteful habits and trash our planet with needless single-use plastics, according to Sandra Ann Harris, the author of Say Goodbye To Plastic: A Survival Guide to Plastic-Free Living. Here are a few tips from her book to help you reboot your picnicking habits. Continue reading
As remote work is here to stay, many of us are spending more hours at our desks than we were in the office post-pandemic. At the office, we were used to taking breaks to get coffee, grab lunch or just chat with coworkers in between meetings. As many of us enter a remote-first work environment, we’re spending long hours working and sitting at our desks—which has become a concern. In fact, experts expect to see an increase in sedentary behavior because of it. A sedentary lifestyle is when most of your day is spent sitting or lying down while doing daily activities. Unfortunately, this kind of lifestyle can increase your risk of developing chronic conditions such a heart disease—which happens to be the leading cause of death in both men and women.
To avoid this sedentary way of living and to keep ourselves healthy, we’ll go over 8 simple heart-healthy exercises you can do at your desk that strengthens your heart and body.
Remember those mornings, not too long ago, that you strapped on your bicycle helmet and pedaled a few miles to your workplace? Or the lunch hours you spent on a jog with other sporty colleagues before returning to your desk? What about the long, head-clearing walks home from the office in the evenings?
Working from home can offer many benefits—cozy surroundings, daytime pajama bottoms, and great coffee, to name a few. But transitioning from an office building to a corner of your bedroom or a backyard studio affects some workers adversely.
Per Gallup research, some remote employees have reported increased depression and loneliness, and some state that it’s difficult to stay physically active without the habits they’ve cultivated over years of in-person work. (Think lunchtime tennis with colleagues or a daily group power walk between meetings.)
It’s no secret that exercise increases endorphins, those feel-good chemicals that flood our brains and contribute to a sense of wellbeing. Without it, we can feel anxious and sluggish. Fortunately, ways to ensure daily movement when you work from home abound. And you can tailor routines to your particular needs to keep your body and mind at peak fitness. Continue reading
2020 was a challenge beyond any in recent memory, and 2021 will demand much from each of us. The key to transitioning and responding in healthy, effective ways is through our resilience. Resilience relates to a multi-faceted ability to meet life’s challenges and opportunities with strength, creativity, and flexibility—an ability which can be nurtured and which grows with our attention.
Here are some tips for restoring your resilience in 2021: Continue reading
As we (thankfully) step into 2021, we are hearing from more and more new viewers of The Whole Food Plant Based Cooking Show that they are taking their first tentative steps towards making the life-changing decision to switch to a plant-based diet. This uptick in interest is yet another indicator to us that Veganuary (January) 2021 will kick off what will prove to be a profound year of global transformation as the world moves towards recovering from the devastation of COVID 19 and the chaos of the last few years.
When we hear of people making the switch to a whole food plant-based diet, we are always interested to hear their reasons why. What we hear back tends to run along some common threads so we thought it might be useful to outline the five main reasons people make the shift to a plant-based diet. Whatever your initial reason for making the switch may be, learning about all of the other good reasons to live a plant-based lifestyle can serve as motivation to make your switch permanent. You will find a great selection of recipes in our our new book Plant Based Cooking Made Easy. Continue reading
The end of the year is upon us which means getting through the holidays. How we manage our physical and emotional stress will dictate a happy holiday for sure. Here’s a tip: Try Gymnastic Rings! Not only are they a great way to add something new to your workout routine, they have a lot of benefits too. Check out my top 5 reasons everyone needs a set of rings below. Need a set of your own? I also talk about my top two choices at the end. Continue reading
Burning fitness question of the moment: If you have to wear a mask to work out, what’s the right way to do it? And how to do it with an activity like rowing that’s often high-intensity? Is it even a good idea?
Many of us don’t have a choice in the matter. Our gyms have decided that the only way we’re getting back in is if we wear a mask, even while working out. Other gyms and states have decided that wearing a mask while doing the actual workout is optional, although you have to wear one any time you’re not working out.
If you’re a fitness professional, though, it may come down to a choice between putting that mask on and working. The good news is, you don’t have to choose. It IS possible to wear a mask while working out or teaching. We dive in. Continue reading
