Exercise Strategies For Stationary People

Image by Pink Sherbet Photography on Flickr

In my busy 9-to-5 (or -6 or -7) lifestyle -- one that largely involves sitting on my butt while my one typing hand travels over the keyboard at hummingbird-level speed -- it's hard to fit in a regular gym schedule. I know people do it all the time -- getting up earlier, fitting it into lunch -- but it has so far been a challenge for me. Needless to say, I'm pretty concerned about getting enough physical activity into my day.

However there are many ways I can -- and do! -- get more exercise in an unconventional way:

1) The Lunchtime Walk: I've discussed this a bit in my article "7 Easy Steps For Better Health." Basically, this strategy involves actually stepping outside my temperature-controlled, hermetically-sealed work environment and into the Outside. Walks can vary from ten minutes to almost a full hour, and can be both freeform ("I haven't seen this part of the neighborhood yet") or goal-oriented ("shopping!"). It doesn't matter the reason -- it doesn't even matter if you have to "bribe" yourself some days with a "reward" to make the trek (like I do with an inexpensive gift to myself, when the weather is looking uninviting). It only matters that it gets done. 

Traffic Noise May Be Dangerous To Your Health

image by Oran Viriyincy on Flickr

These research findings were particularly interesting to me, in that I find traffic noise -- especially that of the subway trains I take twice daily for almost an hour a pop -- very draining and stressful!

A Danish study has concluded that being exposed to traffic noise may increase the risk of heart attack by 10 percent per 10-decibel noise increase. 57,053 Copenhagen and Aarhus residents between the ages of 50 to 64 were surveyed over a ten-year period, and researchers kept track of their exposure to car and truck traffic.

In particular, the study suggested traffic noise that happened at night, disturbing sleep, might be the most dangerous.

Nature's Path's "Sunrise Crunchy Vanilla" Review

We are always on the lookout for more gluten-free goodies, and when we saw Nature's Path's new "Sunrise Crunchy Vanilla" cereal on sale we decided to check it out. What we got was a yummy -- and organic! -- breakfast treat that by all rights shouldn't taste so darn good.

Let's talk taste first. I love love love vanilla-flavored cereal, and Lord knows there's plenty to be found in the mainstream section of the cereal aisle. But while I desired a cereal with a sugary-vanilla taste -- I didn't actually want all that sugar! Too many cereal offerings feel more like de facto deserts packed in rectangle boxes. I still wanted to eat healthy. And, of course, there's the matter of added "flavors."

How To Find Your True Purpose In Life

Image by Scarleth White on Flickr

There are many self-help books regarding the quest for one's true purpose in life. There are also career coaches and gurus who will help you determine this perhaps most important pieces of self-knowledge. After all, if we cannot divine what our Purpose truly is, how can we possibly structure the rest of our life?

But the easiest way I know how to find out our true purpose is to simply think back to what we liked to do as children. Young people have more of a direct connection to their Self than adults...they have yet to learn to second-guess themselves or try to be something they're not just to make others happy. By looking back on what mattered to us most back then -- activities, entertainment, wishes and dreams -- we can best pinpoint what we should be doing now in order to find supreme personal fulfillment.

Why Going "Cold Turkey" Doesn't Work

No matter what bad habit you're trying to break -- over-eating, over-spending, even smoking -- going "cold turkey" may be just setting yourself up for failure. How could such good intentions end up going so wrong?

"Cold turkey" -- stopping your bad habits "cold" -- is problematic because it subscribes to the Perfectionist Fallacy. Following the Perfectionist Fallacy sets you up for failure because perfectionism doesn't square away with reality. Nothing is 100% perfect. You can never be 100% perfect. While there is nothing wrong with creating lofty goals for yourself, absolute perfection cannot be achieved.

Calm.com Is An Instant Stress-Buster!

I've used several apps for my iPhone to induce "on the spot" relaxation...but sometimes you are on-the-job and don't have time to plug into your headset and zone out to the sounds of raindrops or binaural tones. Calm.com is a great solution for when you just need a few minutes to clear your mind and recharge!

Study Links Liking Organic Food With Being A Jerk

Diners in "Portlandia" demand to know where their chicken came from

Controversial new research suggests that being a regular organic food eater increases the chance that you are "selfish." In what I like to refer to as the "Portlandia" study, Loyola University researchers concluded that being very concerned about the quality of your food = being a overly-judgemental jerk:

"After viewing a few organic foods, comfort foods, or control foods, participants who were exposed to organic foods volunteered significantly less time to help a needy stranger, and they judged moral transgressions significantly harsher than those who viewed nonorganic foods."

The researchers explained this connection by suggesting that since the "organic foodies" already defined and justified themselves morally through their food choices, they didn't feel the need to go any further.

We Are More Stressed Now Than 30 Years Ago, Study Shows

Image by bottled_void on Flickr

Maybe it truly was "the good old days"...a ground-breaking study by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh reveals that Americans are more stressed-out now than they were 30 years ago.

According to the study, between 1983 and 2009 stress increased 18% for women and 24% for men. The biggest factors for stress were gender, education, and income; more likely to be stressed were females, the less educated, and the poor. Interestingly, the study also showed that the young were more likely to experience stress than the old: people in their 20s were more stressed than those in their 30s, and so on.

Review: Eat Well Enjoy Life's Wasabi Edamame Hummus

We're big fans of Eat Well Enjoy Life's "Tuscan White Bean Hummus": hearty, creamy, and with a great taste, it's an excellent alternative to the Sabra hummus varieties we usually eat. Seeking to mix things up, we recently purchased a different "Eat Well" flavor: "Wasabi Edamame Hummus." And, well...our reaction was mixed.

Sometimes, Staying Positive Takes Work

I sometimes think of keeping a positive outlook as if it was my job. I don't feel like going to my job every day; and yet I still go, because I have to. There are measurable benefits to going to work: a sense of purpose, money, health benefits. Same for having a positive attitude.

When I try to stay positive, I get certain benefits:
1) lack of misery
2) less stress
3) happier people around me
4) attraction of more positive experiences and opportunities

Inspirational Conan O'Brien Quote Poster

If you work really hard and are kind, amazing things will happen.
 -Conan O'Brien 

I really love the positive message in this screenprint, conveyed simply in just typography; you can buy a copy at Etsy.

Via Swissmiss

Ensure A Happy Return By Housecleaning BEFORE You Travel

image by lululemon athletica on Flickr

It is June, and travelling season is well upon me and my husband. One thing we try to do, no matter how much we hustle and bustle to get everything packed and out the door, is to clean the house before we leave. Maybe it's not a full-on housecleaning, but at least get certain things in order. Doing so makes the inevitable return home -- and return to work -- much more bearable.

Coming home to a messy house after a vacation is rather depressing. There's no bigger way to say "your vacation is over" than having to face a ton of mess you need to clean. Assuming you've gone away during a weekend or a predetermined period of time off from work, you may in theory not even have time to really tackle the mess until the next weekend.

My First "Raw" Food Experience: BluePrint Juice

I'll admit that I didn't even realize that BluePrint Juice's "Red" was even a raw, unpasteurized food product until I was 1/3 in the middle of drinking it (probably not the smartest way to go about things, actually). My husband had purchased it at a health food store and I grabbed it from the fridge. Drinking it at work, I noted the "100% Raw" imprint on the minimalist packaging and decided to look into it further.

First, about Red: it's a rather hearty blend of apples, carrots, beets, lemon, and ginger. I'm looking for juice drinks that are more veggie than fruit, and this fit the bill nicely. Beets are a great way to get the taste of sweetness in your veggie drink (I recently reviewed the excellent Columbia Gorge's "Carrot Beet Celery"), and the root has tons of antioxidants that fight stuff like cancer and heart disease.

Most Americans Buying Wrong Greek Yogurt (Please Support Fage!)

This news is unbelievable to me: according to Ad Age, Fage -- the best-tasting, most yummy and healthy Greek yogurt -- is losing the battle at the American cash register to also-rans such as Chobani. It is described in the article as "essentially getting muscled out of the market."

I echo the sentiments expressed in this Gawker article: ARE AMERICANS CRAZY???

Fage, even in its plain, zero-fat form, is streets ahead of a brand like Chobani. Simply put: Fage tastes much better. Much much much better. To hear that Fage's shares continue to drop (now down to less than 15%), whereas Chobani is now #1 in the Greek yogurt race, is quite depressing news.

Let's recap yummy Fage Greek yogurt options:

The Total 0% Fat Fage:

This is the powerhouse, with a whopping 18 grams of protein and only 7 grams of sugar. Great by itself or in a protein-packed smoothie.

Mr. Rogers Inspirational Remix "Garden Of Your Mind"

If you're feeling down at all, this video featuring vintage Mr. Rogers clips, "Garden of Your Mind," will pick you right up again!

Zombie Fatigue: Should We Avoid Reading The News When It's Too Dark?

Must...read...more...newssssssss.... (image by Digital Sextant on Flickr)

"Zombie Fatigue"
The last week or so has been a ratings bonanza for various news outlets, what with news of "cannibals," "zombies," "Canadian zombie cannibals," and so on. It seems like each day brings stories on some new over-the-top horrible affront to humanity; many of the readers of these gory tales comment that it seems as if the world is ending, that we are in the grip of some terrible fire-and-brimstone Apocalypse. It makes people feel incredibly fearful and without any control in their lives.

Rationally, I know that we are not in the midst of the End Times, or some sort of zombie outbreak. I think these sorts of horrible things have been happening -- even in "civilized" modern society -- just about forever. Rather, the News -- and by extension, us -- have been focusing on these types of stories more often, picking them out of the wilderness of police reports and local coverage. If the "Miami Cannibal" story did gangbusters hits on various websites, they are going to do their best to extend the news cycle with follow-ups and similar stories. I'm in the media myself, and I totally get this.