Healthy Life Lessons

TGI Friday! Thankfully now that its spring, there is more daylight. But even so, if you are like Adam and I, and you are a super early bird, it still may be dark when you open your eyes, especially if its to fit in an early morning workout. It stays light later now that its spring, but if you work into the early evening, you may also find yourself leaving at the end of the day after the sun has gone down. Or, if the weather is terrible like it is today (raining, cold and dark), then you may see no daylight at all! Not only can the dark be depressing, it is also an additional safety risk, especially if you live in a place like Toronto, where the roads are like the wild west. Pedestrian and cyclist deaths are at an all time high. It is absolutely critical that if you are going outside for a run, walk or bike ride, whether its for fitness or your daily commute, you make sure you are damn well visible to drivers. Go  Run Lites are gloves and mittens made for active folks, tha...

Happy hump day! Ready for the weekend yet? Life here has been up and down lately. Sound familiar? When is it not really? On the upside, I am in the midst of making some rather significant structural changes to my counselling practice that I am excited about, including renting an office space in my favorite neighbourhood in Toronto (the Annex), which also happens to be extremely convenient and close to home. One of the many benefits is that it will be much easier for me to bike to and from work when the weather cooperates. I completed the 2nd part of my EMDR training and just have a few more group consultations before I get my certificate. Yeah, I am already seeing great results of incorporating this therapy into my practice. I also made a somewhat radical change to my hair style: I got a fringe! The kids are iffy about it, but most people have been very complimentary. Hey, its cheaper than botox and it hides my forehead wrinkles!! On the downside, my headaches have been f...

Hello, happy Monday morning! Its another wet, grey day here. Blech! So its a good time to discuss one of my favorite things: books! I have been so busy trying to keep up with the book reviews that I am committed to doing for publishers, that I haven't shared what I've been reading for my own pleasure in a long while. But believe me, no matter what, I am pretty much always reading something! So many books, so little time... I have enjoyed the last two so much, I thought I would share. The first is Fifteen Dogs , by Canadian writer, Andre Alexis. When my mom first gave it to me and said it was written from dogs' perspective, I balked. I couldn't imagine finding it interesting. I am a cat person after all! But after overcoming my prejudice, I decided to give it a try. Its about 15 dogs that are given human-like brains (and therefore cognitive abilities, intellect and emotions). I loved it! I actually think that dog lovers may not like it because its a pr...

Happy Friday and Happy Spring! It actually felt like spring on Tuesday, but now we have reverted back to winter. No surprise, as Toronto doesn't really get 'real' spring until May most of the time. So, does spring make you think of spring cleaning your lifestyle? Starting a new diet, fitness program or giving up an unhealthy habit? Read this before you start the latest trend (and, of course, skip the cleanses and detoxes!!). There are a billion theories out there about how best to be your physical best: Eat keto, eat Paleo, eat vegan, eat alkaline, don't eat after 6pm, juice, don't drink juice, do cardio, don't do cardio, lift heavy weights, only do body weight exercises, drink red wine, don't drink at all, no wheat, no gluten, whole grains, do intense exercise, just aim for 10,000 steps, etc., etc., etc. A lot of people get so confused they don't even know where to start when it comes to improving their health! The most important things you c...

As you know, I am a traditionalist when it comes to reading. I want paper! I don't own a Kindle, and don't want one. I like hard copy magazines and newspapers please! Unfortunately, I am apparently in the minority as everything nowadays is going digital. Not only is this due to demand, but also cost. Its cheaper to publish stuff online so paper stuff is getting more and more expensive. Because of the high cost, Adam has been bugging me for years to allow him to cancel our newspaper deliveries for Globe and Mail and Toronto Star, and start getting the digital versions instead. Noooo! I've kicked up a big fuss because I just can't imagine enjoying scrolling through the paper on a device while having breakfast. It didn't help that Adam told me to check out Star Touch, the Toronto Star's new online subscription service, which is horrid. I hate it. Its not even the same content as the print version. Forget it, no way. Fortunately, the online version of th...

Good morning! Welcome to a new week, and the first day of spring. What are you having for breakfast? Please say it isn't sugary cereal! Nothing wrong with some good whole grains for breakfast, just ditch the sugar. You can customize one yourself at Mixit.ca , which now has more options... I have always adored dried fruit. I used to seriously eat pounds of dried pineapple. Our local market would let us buy it in 20 lb bags from them at wholesale price, it was awesome! My first pregnancy turned me off it and since going sugar-free I haven't looked back. I still occasionally indulge in unsweetened varieties like apricots, raisins, dates, figs and prunes, but lets face it, dried fruit should be eaten in moderation not just because they are super high in natural sugar and calories, but they can do major damage to your teeth and, um, your digestive tract, in large quantities. An increasingly popular alternative to dried fruit is freeze dried fruit. It is much lower in calori...

No I wasn't locked up in the looney bin...yet! I dug out my Asylum series, which is the sequel to the Insanity exercise program by Shaun T. When I first tried it I found it frustrating, not just because its tough, but we didn't really have enough room in our gym area, the way it was set up before our home renos. Also, the agility ladder, which is used a lot would slip and slide around on the carpeting, and I was always having to stop and adjust it. But a few weeks ago I pulled out the ladder to use with my personal training client, and suddenly realized I hadn't tried it again since we fixed up the basement. I decided to do the Game Day workout, which is the longest one (60 minutes) and see if it was doable in our new space. I am happy to say, yes it is! The ladder doesn't move around on the rubber flooring, and there is now plenty of space. As for the workout itself? Very challenging! It uses different exercises to mimic drills or moves from various sports...

If its cold and grey (and white...its snowing here!) and you feel the need for some colour in your life. There is no better way to do it than with beets. I have always enjoyed beets, but lately I have become addicted. Its all thanks to my lovely, generous neighbour, who always shares the goodies from her organics boxes with me. The last couple shares have involved 2 lb bags of locally grown beets. Just look at these gorgeous babies before they've been roasted! My favorite way to prepare them is simply peeling them, cutting, tossing with apple cider vinegar, and roasting. They are like candy! This salad I made recently with the beets, veggies, goat cheese and a raspberry vinaigrette (made with konjac powder ) was absolutely divine! Not only are they sweet and delicious, but beets are packed with health benefits. They are a great source of fibre, folate, manganese, potassium, iron and vitamin C. They have been shown to improve blood flow, lower blood pressure, and ...

Okay, yes, it isn't really spring yet, but I am optimistic it will happen soon. Like by May at least! Here are some of the things I am enjoying right now... Lemon Water I have replaced some of the cold drinks I consume during the day (i.e. coffee frappes, soda stream carbonated water with stevia/flavours, etc.) with lemon water. I absolutely adore it! The key is to squeeze juice out of the lemon first before dropping it in. Also, the longer it sits, the better it tastes. At the of the day, I eat the lemon slice. Maybe I'm weird, but I love that. Sweet Potatoes I have always loved sweet potatoes, but during my pregnancies, my tastes really shifted and those changes lasted a while. I suddenly craved white potatoes and red meat over sweet potatoes and fish. But I have reverted back and now I am all about the sweet potatoes. Combined with all the squash and carrots I eat, its amazing I am not bright orange like Donald Trump (who Little A says looks like a big Cheet...

Good morning and welcome to Friday. You made it through another week! So after my post about my new Hoka shoes, Adam called me out. He asked why I would wear runners for all my workouts when I only run once a week (I've been doing it since the fall to keep some endurance work in my routine), and spend the rest of the time weight training and HIIT, with a lot of lateral movements. Its a good question. Especially since I should really know better. Before I had the girls, when I taught fitness classes on a regular basis, I had several pairs of shoes, which I rotated, depending on the type of activity. I was very careful to wear running shoes only for running, and fitness shoes for my aerobics classes. I guess after I had the kids and stopped teaching and started working out at home instead, it felt too indulgent to have several different pairs of shoes. It didn't matter so much when I was mostly using our treadmill and stairmaster, but now that I do mostly HIIT workouts with...

Before becoming an infertility counsellor, I knew almost nothing about endometriosis. I am now, unfortunately, all to aware of this horrible disease because so many of my clients suffer from it. And suffer they do. Endo is typically characterized by unbearable pelvic pain from anywhere from several days to several weeks per month, and extremely heavy menstrual bleeding. Women with endo are often incapacitated for at least several days per month, often experiencing dizziness, depression and vomiting as accompanying side effects. When not caught early on, endo can do severe damage to a woman's reproductive organs and cause permanent infertility. What upsets me so much about endo is that most of my clients with it spend years going from one doctor to another looking for help and are usually brushed off and told to suck it up, that their symptoms are just typical menstrual cycle symptoms. They are not! This is just pure sexism and misogyny. The tragedy is that most of my cli...

Welcome to a new day and a new week. No better time to start taking better care of your body...you only get one! If you want to start by finding a healthier alternative to your 3pm candy bar, look no further. We recently received 2 new flavours of FITJOY Protein bars to try: Chocolate Raspberry and Cookies and Cream. As usual, my family got their paws on them and I only got to see them briefly, before they were all devoured. I actually was given an Iced Cinnamon while at GNC a few months ago, that I was looking forward to trying, but Adam ended up taking it with him on a work trip. Sigh! At least they all had the decency to give me their feedback, which was very very positive. Big A ate the Raspberry Chocolate one. She made a face as she took the first few bites, explaining that it felt very sticky on her teeth, but eventually, she decided she loved it. Little A really liked it too, describing it as very chocolately, and very filling. Little A loved the Cookies and Crea...

I have several curses. One is that I am always destined to have really bad luck with Toronto's public transportation system. There is always some problem, delay or crisis when I am trying to get somewhere. Its almost impossible for me to go anywhere in this frickin city without arriving furious, frustrated and seething. One of my other curses is that products I like, whether they be food, cosmetics or whatever, stop being made. Its happened to me so many times I've lost count. Adam points out that this is just because I am weird and clearly my preferences are not shared by the majority of other people. Fair enough. But this latest incidence of losing loved products (yes products, meaning multiple!), is apparently not because of low demand, but because of a 'production problem', or so the company says. I'm talking about Gardein , which makes some of my most favorite vegan meat products. As you know, I am an omnivore, but I do try to to eat veggie somewhat,...

Happy hump day! Stuck for a meal idea today? This one works for breakfast, lunch or dinner! One of my favorite quick, healthy and satisfying meals is a scramble. Basically I throw in a shit-load of veggies, often some meat/veggie meat and/or cheese, spices and seasonings and egg whites and scramble it all up. If you are vegan, you could still make it by replacing the eggs with either mashed tofu, or chickpea flour. What's great is how versatile it is. You can so many different things to it, you never have to make it the same way twice! I use egg whites because I already tend to eat at least 6 whole eggs a week, but feel free to use whole eggs, if you prefer. The basic recipe is saute your ingredients (veggies, whatever else) in a large non-stick skillet.  Add 1 cup egg whites and cover skillet until egg whites are almost completely cooked. Add in cheese, if using, and cover until melted. Serve! Here are flavour ideas: Mexican Diced zucchini and/or peppers Chick...