Rehabilitation - the foam roller

 As a massage therapist, I recommend to nearly every one of my athletes that they use a foam roller. They are great combined with stretching to help keep the muscles and connective tissue of the legs etc mobile and healthy. It wasn't until this week when Kris at Innovative whipped out a foam roller and had me roll out my IT bands (the sides of the legs) that I realized I have never actually implemented my own advice...ever! Turns out it really really hurts! I knew that I was tight through my legs (well, pretty much everywhere actually) but I had no idea the torture that I would be forced to endure from a seemingly innocent piece of foam.
I was at crazy-endurance-go-forever runners Meredith and Adams for dinner a few weeks ago and took the picture below because I was so amazed at Meredith pulling out a foam roller mid conversation to do a little hamstring and ITband maintenance. That's serious commitment to mobile legs if you ask me.
I have a feeling that me and the roller are going to get to know each other better - I tell others to do it because I believe in it....time to take my own medicine!

While I was trying to find a picture of a foam roller online, I came across this guy....not sure what he's trying to accomplish but I'm fairly certain I don't recommend it. I suppose he IS using a foam roller as a headrest.  What a stud.

Nutrition - sugar

Dearest Refined Sugar,
Although I regret having to write to you as opposed to speaking face-to-face, circumstances have really made this necessary since the moment I see you I doubt my decision.
I think that you're great, I really do, but the dynamic between us just isn't working. I've treasured our time together and I'll always have fond memories, but I can see our paths diverging and it's time for me to move on.

I know that it wasn't your intention, but your actions have been hurtful to my body and my preoccupation with you has really impacted my quality of life. It is an obvious problem and I no longer want to be in a relationship that involves these unhealthy things.

I would love to say that I am open to the possibility of friendship, but we both need time apart to heal before I can determine if this is possible. For now, I don't wish to spend any more time working on the relationship or discussing what went wrong; and I ask you to respect that I am certain in my decision that we should be apart.

I wish you the very best and have no doubt that you'll realize with time that this is for the best.

Leah

ps - please also note that should you continue to harass me, I won't hesitate in calling the police and taking out a restraining order.

Nutrition

Well I'm officially having issues....nerds, chocolate...and today I started the day by cracking an energy drink at 7:00am! Bev my super cute receptionist has discovered my fav one (Beaver Buzz - yep) and has become quite an enabler. It was tough to ban her from buying them for me with the sweet effects of guarana and sugar coursing through my body, but I did do it.

Nutrition - another confession

....and I'm eating nerds right now.

Nutrition - confession

Despite my recent rant about mediocrity and getting myself in gear - I ate Cadbury mini eggs for breakfast. Yep.

Rehabilitation - accidental chiropractic

As I mentioned, my left shoulder has been really acting up. Side planks, getting anything off higher shelves, and changing the angle on the shower head have been pretty much out of the question. I'm also pretty sure I look fairly stupid trying to get my jacket on these last few days.
Yesterday, however, I had a little ray of sun in this particular area of issue. I was treating a runner who was having some hip and glute (aka bum) issues and as I had my left elbow jammed into his "cheek" my shoulder did a pretty major adjustment. The client was pretty freaked out but I felt 60-70% better immediately yay! He suggested that I should be paying him instead since his butt treated my shoulder - hmmm.
I will check in with Chiro Aaron this week to get it 100% on track!

Water

Teegan tells me about her love of water...I am working on finding the same love!

Music

What's at the top of my workout playlist this week?

Bananza - Akon
Little Bird - Annie Lennox
If - Janet Jackson
Get Involved - Timbaland & Ginuwine

Ouch

The last few days my left shoulder has been feeling significantly less than awesome and has been keeping me up at night (FYI - it's currently 1:27am and although I have been attempting to get some shut-eye, my shoulder is having none of that). I have it all taped up with large amounts of sexy blue kinesiotape, but I think I am overdue for a date with Aaron the Chiropractor and Brendan the Physio. Time to show my AC joint who's boss.

Time to kick it up

Mediocrity: ordinariness as a consequence of being average and not outstanding
I don't take on this attitude in any other area of my life and it's time I stop accepting mediocrity in my journey toward a healthy body...it has been 2 months and although I've made some solid changes and have seen some results, I have been pretty resistant to a full lifestyle makeover and would give myself a solid C+ for effort. The trainers at Innovative have repeatedly mentioned that the goal is a lifestyle change - then maintenance and growth is easy because you're just living it as your everyday life. I have been traveling such an unhealthy path the last years that finding the motivation to make this transition into healthy thoughts, actions, & everyday living is a challenge. I'm ok with a challenge, it's just going to take continually making strides forward (and likely backwards). I do think that it has been enough time that I can start to expect more from myself and really step it up to see the results I'm looking for. I understand why many people taut moderation, but I think right now I need to buckle down and git'er done...it is going to be continual growth and I have absolutely no expectation of perfection, but it is time to adopt a stronger attitude of change.
"Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself" - Arthur Conan Doyle

Inspiration

"If you don't know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else."  
~Lawrence J. Peter

Mexico

I have been home for a few days and am finally getting back to reality, including my new life as a blogger. I had a great vacation with my mum and my sister - lots of sun, sleep, and much needed relaxation. Although I didn't make it through the week with 100% shiny health record, I did not too badly compared to previous overwhelmingly indulgent all-inclusive vacations. Here's the generalities of my week away, good and not-so-good...

Exercise:

• I made going to the gym to check it out and find out the hours right away. Yay me!
• I never actually made it there for a workout
• Our hotel room was quite a climb from the pool and restaurant and we did not attempt to get ourselves a closer room...just made the climb repeatedly despite the calf cramps :)
• I did have bouts of energy and took advantage of the long beach. I also put on my awesome purple kicks to run stairs yew!

Food:

• We ate at the buffet restaurant every meal which gave me the opportunity to make healthier choices and offered flexibility in meal sizes
• I ate a lot of salads, fruit, grilled fish, eggs...mmmmm
• As the week went by I got lazier with nutrition and by the end of the week I have to admit that pasta, toast, and icecream (with sprinkles of course) were entering my digestive system with some regularity

Drinks:

• I chose water 90% of the time over margaritas and other delicious sugary drinks....that's right. 
• I did indulge in a few evening cocktails with my sister
• One evening I MAY have indulged in a few too many shots of tequila....just saying. 

Don't judge....this blog is about honesty and growth :) I'm just resting anyways.

Attitude:

• I gave a lot of thought over the week to how things have been going since I started this health adventure and I came to the conclusion that I need to get my butt in gear. Not that I am disappointed in my progress, but I know what I am capable of and I am nowhere close to it at the moment. Innovative is working hard to push me and I think I'm pushing back at them pretty good....I won't get into it further with this entry but changes are on the horizon! yew!

Mexico Vacation day 5

Sleep is so dreamy...from bed to beach side and back to bed.
Full Mexican update soon.

Mexico Vacation day 1

Today was day one of my vacation in Mexico and wow are all inclusive resorts a challenge for those of us who are trying to head down a healthy path! I feel like I'm surrounded by booze, chips and salsa, icecream and a whole lot of laying around like a lump. Despite more than one pina colada, I had a pretty successful day in my opinion...fruit instead of treats, protein and veggies for meals, lots of sleep, and we have a room that is at the very end of a long and hilly climb between it, beach & lobby. Tomorrow I'm on the hunt for tasty healthier drinks, good food, and some beach walking! I am also going to hit up the gym but am battling a bit of a lung infection which I want to make sure is all good before I use them too much - I finally broke down and got some antibiotics which are already making me feel like I have a new and shiny pair of lungs :)

Food for Thought - Visualization Article

To Eat Less, Imagine Eating More (By Greg MIller - December 9, 2010)

Before dipping your hand into that bowl of M&Ms at the holiday party, think about what you're about to do. A lot. A new study finds that people who imagine themselves consuming many pieces of candy eat less of the real thing when given the chance. The finding, say experts, could lead to the development of better weight-loss strategies.

Picturing a delicious food—like a juicy steak or an ice cream sundae—generally whets the appetite. But what about visualizing yourself eating the entire sundae, spoonful by spoonful? There's reason to think that might have the opposite effect, says Carey Morewedge, an experimental psychologist at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Researchers have found that repeated exposure to a particular food—as in taking bite after bite of it—decreases the desire to consume more. This process, which psychologists call habituation, dampens appetite independently of physiological signals like rising blood sugar levels or an expanding stomach. But no one had looked to see whether merely imagining eating has the same effect.

To investigate, Morewedge and colleagues Young Eun Huh and Joachim Vosgerau fed M&Ms and cheese cubes to 51 undergraduate students. In one experiment, the participants first imagined performing 33 repetitive motions: Half of them imagined eating 30 M&Ms and inserting three quarters into the slot of a laundry machine. The other half envisioned eating three M&Ms and inserting 30 quarters. Then everyone was allowed to eat their fill from a bowl of M&Ms. Those who'd envisioned eating more candy ate about three M&Ms on average (or about 2.2 grams), whereas the others ate about five M&Ms (or about 4.2 grams), the researchers report in the 10 December issue of Science.

The researchers then extended their findings to another food group—cheese. As in the M&M experiment, people who imagined eating 30 cheese cubes consumed less of the real thing. But volunteers who imagined eating 30 M&Ms ate the same amount of cheese as those who imagined eating three M&Ms. Thus, the habituation effect is specific to the type of food imagined.

On questionnaires, subjects reported that mental imagery doesn't diminish how much they like a particular food. But a final experiment, in which they played a computer game to earn cheese cubes, suggested that mental imagery can reduce the effort people will expend to get food.

The findings should have practical applications, says Frances McSweeney, a psychologist at Washington State University, Pullman. One possible strategy for weight watchers might be to spend a few minutes before each meal imagining eating exactly the foods they're about to consume, she says. This type of mental exercise might also help counter sudden cravings between meal times, adds Suzanne Higgs, a psychologist at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom. Ironically, Morewedge says, many diets urge people to suppress thoughts of the foods they crave. That usually doesn't work. He and his colleagues are planning follow-up studies to investigate the potential of imagined consumption for helping people control their appetite.