We can learn so much by nourishing our mind-body connections. When we exercise, we're not simply reaping physical benefits, but we're also elevating ourselves mentally and learning life lessons in the process. Here are a few lessons that I have learned over the past few years that particularly stand out:
3. Practicing yoga has taught me that people really aren’t paying attention to you as much as you think they are. Even instructors with hundreds of hours of yoga under their belts occasionally fall out of poses. They have days when their bodies aren’t as flexible as they usually are, and they have days when they find it difficult to focus. My fellow yoga practitioners and I fall out of poses all the time. Through yoga, we have learned humility. We have learned how to not judge others when they fall, and we have learned how to not judge ourselves. We have also learned how to get back up again after we fall. These lessons in non-judgement and resilience extend to life outside of yoga as well; we judge less harshly the mistakes our peers make, recognizing that at any given moment, they are at a different place in life than we are. My favorite yoga instructor likes to remind us to “come from a place of power, not pride.” He emphasizes that we should not stretch into the full expressions of poses until we have their foundations fully developed. Even if everyone else is in full expression, we must have the power to release judgement and objectively assess where we are in our practice. Have the power to be confident in and satisfied with yourself, and do not stress over how people perceive you. 4. Find friends that challenge you, share your passions, and excite you. Before joining the Duke triathlon club in November, I didn’t have a group of athletic friends to hold me accountable, inspire me, and bond with me. When I began to train with them every day, laughter re-entered my life, and I felt like I had people who cared about me. My recovery from my eating disorder is 99% attributable to finding the tri club. We travelled together to Bariloche, Argentina, over spring break, where we competed in a half Ironman. I was astounded to learn how spontaneous the team was; I have met very few people in my life who would want to swim in a lake so cold that it takes your breath away for the fun of it, but lo and behold, that’s what six of us did the week after the race. As is natural for triathletes, we shared a common inflated ambition and drooled over cool races together. While we need to surround ourselves with a variety of personalities to ensure balance, it is integral to find a group with whom we can relate on a deep, spiritual level. This group doesn’t have to be athletic in nature, but it should be one that meets regularly and reliably, and it should be one that pushes you to your limits.
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When I trained for my first marathon three years ago, I listened to audiobooks to make the long training runs more enjoyable and (slightly) less painful. I appreciated not being stuck with my own voice inside my head alone, and listening to Tina Fey’s Bossypants had me laughing despite my exhaustion and extended solitude. Last summer, I discovered the joy of listening to podcasts while I run. For those of you who do not know what a podcast is, imagine a talk show without the visual component. Some of my favorites include, “Stuff You Should Know,” and NPR’s “Fresh Air,” two general and informative podcasts. Podcasts are great to listen to while exercising, driving, or falling asleep, and there is a podcast for pretty much any interest you may have, from dissections of terrible movies (“How Did This Get Made?”) to the future of flying (“Layovers”). What’s more- most podcasts are free!
A friend recently recommended the Rich Roll Podcast, and I loved it so much that I decided to share it with all of you. Having been a vegetarian all my life, and being a vegan for the past 1 ½ months, I have been on the receiving end of the question, “But where do you get your protein from?” more often than I care to remember. Indeed, the reason I put off becoming vegan for so long was that I was tricked by this myth that vegans are almost inevitably protein and nutrient deficient. I feared becoming vegan would interfere with my athletic abilities. I was wrong. My friends, if you ever wonder if veganism will hinder your physical capabilities, look no further than Rich Roll. A vegan elite athlete, Rich Roll has finished among the best in the world at multiple endurance races, most notably the Ultraman (a 320-mile, 3 day event) and the Epic5 Challenge (five Ironmans in under seven days). But Rich Roll is more than just a vegan athlete; in his podcast, he interviews everyone from Olympic swimmer Conor Dwyer to renowned minimalist Joshua Fields Millburn to explore the topics of dedication, simplification, mindfulness, fitness, nutrition, activism, and more. There is so much information packed into each of his podcasts (about two hours long apiece), and there is no better way to explain his message, brand, and impact than for you to listen to an episode or two yourself. So, check out his podcast. You can listen to it here online or on your mobile device. Today, I ran my first Spartan Race. A 4.9 mile course with 23 obstacles, it was a fabulous way to test my physical limits and spend a good 2 hours running around outside. My favorite obstacles were “Slip and Slide” and “Barbed Wire Crawl,” which were really just two excuses to get muddier than I have ever been in my life. I would be tempted to pay the entire registration fee again just to roll around some more in that mud! If you have never completed a Spartan Race before, I highly recommend doing so. Climbing walls, hoisting sandbags, and carrying around buckets of rocks is more empowering and fun than you would think. The great thing about Spartan Races is anybody and everybody can finish them. My father went from couch to Spartan in about two months, and training for this race marked a major lifestyle change for him that has made him into a happier, healthier person.
One of my favorite parts about races is the free swag. Today, I tried two different oatmeal fruit squeezes and one protein cookie from Munk Pack, and I am excited to share with you a review of their oatmeal fruit squeezes! If this sounds like something you would like to try, you can buy your own here or at stores like Publix. Product: Raspberry Coconut Oatmeal Fruit Squeeze Nutrition: I was astounded by how healthy this fruit squeeze is. Its ingredients list is extremely short: gluten free oats, water, raspberry, banana, apple, apple juice concentrate, unsweetened coconut shreds, ground flax, natural raspberry flavor, citric acid, and ascorbic acid (Vitamin C). With 20 grams of carbohydrates, it is an excellent source of fuel for both pre-workout and mid-workout. It even has 10% of your daily Vitamin C needs and 3 grams of fiber (12% of your daily need). No sulfur was added to the coconut, and there are exactly 0 grams of added sugar. The only criticism I have is that it is only 110 calories, so while I would not recommend relying on it for a filling breakfast, it is great for workout fuel. Sustainability: Unfortunately, the packets are non-recyclable, and that is the one major drawback I see in this product. For only 110 calories, I hate to use all that plastic. Otherwise, Munk Pack is great; they use all non-GMO, vegan ingredients, and the packages are BPA-free. Taste: If you don’t like oatmeal, you won’t like this. If you like oatmeal, and you’re a fan of eating it cold or at room temperature, you’ll almost definitely like this. I loved this flavor, but it was a little bit too sweet for me, which means it will be perfect for most everyone else. Product: Peach Chia Vanilla Oatmeal Fruit Squeeze Nutrition: Just like the Raspberry Coconut, the Peach Chia Vanilla is insanely healthy. It boasts 700 mg of Omega-3 (healthy fatty acids needed for a variety of functions), no added sugar, 18 grams of carbohydrates, and 3 grams of dietary fiber. It weighs in with slightly less calories: 90 per pouch. Its ingredients are: gluten free oats, water, peach, pear, apple, apple juice concentrate, ground flax, chia, natural peach flavor, vanilla extract, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), and citric acid. Sustainability: Same as above. Taste: A milder taste that reminds me of Quaker Oats’s Peaches n’ Cream instant oatmeal. This was my favorite flavor of the two, and it had the perfect level of creaminess and sweetness. Ultimately, I would suggest using these oatmeal squeezes as workout and race fuel. They are very easy to digest and a great source of carbohydrates for long-distance races. I plan on getting a few for the next time I go backpacking! **For those of you who follow my posts every day, I went missing this past weekend because I was backpacking in Doughton Park, near Stone Mountain.
Friday night, my brother, his friend, my boyfriend, and I all slung on our hiking backpacks and trekked into Doughton to spend the weekend in the wild. We set up our tents, cooked dinner over a gas stove, chatted by the fire, and climbed into our sleeping bags for a refreshing slumber. Saturday morning dawned bright and cool. I meditated by the creek flowing by our campsites and ate a warm, hearty breakfast of oatmeal. After cleaning our dishes in the creek, we slung our packs back on and began a long hike of 12.5 miles. The weather was perfect: cool and breezy enough to keep us comfortable when we hiked uphill (rather, upmountain), and sunny and clear enough to render beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. We completed our hike in the late afternoon, proud, satisfied, and hungry. Content and pleasantly exhausted, we slept even better than the night before. Sunday morning brought rain. Nearly as soon as we awoke, a drizzle began to splatter the canopy of leaves above our heads. That drizzle quickly soaked the ground, and we donned rain jackets and extra socks and gloves. We stretched rain covers over our packs and began what would become about a four mile hike along the creek...a hike that involved nearly a dozen crossings over slippery stones and cold water. I am amazed I managed not to fall at all. This second hike was a test of our fortitude. That morning, we had three options. We could... A) Forget the creek trail and simply hike the 1.5 miles back to the car B) Complete the trail, and complain the entire time C) Complete the trail, and thoroughly enjoy it We chose Option C. Yes, it was raining, and yes, it was cold, but the rain was also an opportunity to see a different kind of beauty in nature. The rain drops created gorgeous ripple effects in the creek, and they gave the leaves a certain green glimmer that can only be admired when it rains. Sunday's hike was an obvious opportunity for us to see the glass as 1/2 full, and the truth is, opportunities like this abound in everyday life. We must only look for them. So, next time it rains in your life (literally or figuratively), you do not have to necessarily look for the sunshine...you can look for the beauty in the rain. Since I was five years old, I have participated in organized sports nearly year-round. Whether it was basketball, soccer, cross-county, track, or swimming, I was on a team. By the time I was twelve, I was waking up at 4:30 AM for swim practice before school. My life pretty much revolved around three things: school, swimming, and Harry Potter.
When I finished freshman year, I was struck by a strong desire to engage in community service. Swimming up to two hours a day, five to six days a week, had previously prevented me from giving back to my community. Thus, acknowledging my priorities, I stepped down from a very intense swim group to a more well-rounded and less demanding group. No longer did I have practice attendance requirements. No longer did I have to attend swim meet after swim meet. I loved my newfound free time, and I filled it with community service, school clubs, and activities like yoga. In February, I ended my career as a high school athlete and was similarly greeted with a surprising amount of free time. Now I am figuring out how to stay active while not on a team. Luckily, I am not a natural couch potato, and I love to be active. Since swimming ended, I have rock climbed, kayaked, and hiked, and I will go backpacking next weekend and complete a Spartan Race in April. As I move forward into this new chapter in life, I am so excited to learn fun ways to maintain physical fitness. In honor of the coming spring, I challenge you to complete four of the following actions by June. They are fun ways to get some exercise and drink in the fresh air! 1. Play tennis. Even if you are terrible, it is fun. 2. Kayak. Best enjoyed with two people. 3. Bike. Outside, not in a cycle class. Beautiful scenes I have encountered on bike rides include calves chasing a butterfly and a mama bird feeding her baby bird. No joke. 4. Hike. Take a natural trail, not a paved one, and enjoy the feeling of dirt beneath your feet. 5. Rock climb. There are plenty of tours you can take in the mountains, and the thrill of climbing up a rock face is unparalleled. Most of us have busy lives and sometimes we just don’t have time to go to the gym. A few years ago, my family discovered an outline for a core workout that we have used over and over again: for cross country practices, ab classes, and simply at home. It is short and effective and the variety within makes it fun (yes, a core workout can be fun: listen to music while you do it, and it will be over within five songs!). Plus, it requires nothing except your own body! We call it “10 to 100 abs.”
Since variety is the spice of life and is essential to eluding muscle memory and building stronger muscles (by challenging your brain to move your body in new ways), we often switch up the exercises to include what we feel our muscles need most. The only exercise that stays consistent is the planks at the beginning; planks are lauded as the #1 core exercise for toning your entire body. Below is a sample workout; as long as you keep the numbers the same, you can interchange the exercises for variety and personalization. “Single count” means to count each movement as one, while “double count” means to count only on one side (so, in the case of flutter kicks, count one each time you kick your right leg). 10 tabata planks (20 seconds on, 10 seconds off, repeated ten times) 20 sit-ups 30 penguins (can be standing with weights or on ground) 40 V-ups 50 Russian twists (with or without weight) 60 hip bridges 70 side crunches (35 on each side) 80 leg lifts 90 scissor kicks (lateral movement), single count 100 flutter kicks (vertical movement), double count A strong core can magnify your ability to do everyday tasks, diminish back pain, improve your posture, and cultivate your balance and stability. There was a period of time when my family would all gather in my parents’ room every night and do these core exercises together. That time has since passed, but maybe it is time to bring it back! |
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