Really?

73. Many people who are interested in meeting other people read books, attend seminars or listen to cassettes to keep up with the latest techniques for improving social skills. How many of the following words and phrases related to meeting new people are you familiar with?

     Telephoning             Face-to-face contact
     Networking              Blind Date
     Go-between              Dating Service
     Social Influence        Interpersonal insighter
     Referral                Social Poise

I know, am familiar with, or have heard or read something about all these words and phrases.
I only recognize some of them.
I don’t recognize any of them.

Day 10: Upgrade Your Breakfast

What’s your favorite breakfast food?  Cinnamon rolls?  Donuts?  Bagels?  Blueberry muffins? 

Today’s challenge is to trade in your usual breakfast for a healthier option (if you’re a breakfast skipper that means you’ll need to eat).  If you already had breakfast today that’s OK, do it tomorrow. 

Why is eating breakfast such a big deal?  People who eat breakfast tend to make healthier meal choices throughout the day.  Eating a satisfying, well-balanced first meal can also help you avoid that late morning junk food craving.  Need some ideas on what to eat?  Here are some ideas:

• Egg beaters
• Turkey Bacon
• Oatmeal
• Grapefruit
• Berries
• Hard-boiled Eggs
• Cottage Cheese

Discussion:  (use the comments section below)

• What’s your favorite healthy breakfast item?
• What changes can you make to ensure you have time for a healthy breakfast every day?

Photo here

Day 9: Add a Serving of Vegetables to Your Day

We are supposed to eat between 5 and 9 servings of fruits and veggies every day.  Every time I hear that I think it sounds completely impossible.  Today’s task is not moving mountains, but it will get us one step closer to the goal.  Today we will add one serving of vegetables each day.

Here are some ideas to help you achieve this goal:

• Have an afternoon snack of vegetables (carrot sticks, celery with peanut butter, etc)
• Add a green salad to every dinner
• Add chopped peppers or tomatoes to your scrambled eggs, omelet or frittata in the morning
• Keep a stash of frozen veggies in your freezer.  They’re quick and easy to cook with dinner

Be careful, though.  It can be tempting to slather those veggies in butter, cheese, or high-calorie sauces.  Personally I recommend a couple sprays of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter spray.  Honestly.  It tastes good.

Discussion: (Use the comments section below)

• Do you eat enough fruits and vegetables every day?
• What roadblocks keep you from eating the recommended daily allowance for fruits and vegetables?
• What strategy are you going to try to improve your veggie intake?

 

Photo here

Day 8: Keep a Food Diary… and Keep it Real

Welcome to Day 8.  Congratulations: we’ve been at this for a whole week!

 

Since you’re reading this post, I’m guessing you’re eating reasonably healthy meals right now.  You might even be counting your calories.  But guess what: there are probably hidden calories lurking in the shadows, hiding from your calorie counting.

 

Where are these sneaky calories?  Here are a couple of possibilities:

• The chunk of pineapple you taste-tested when cutting up the fruit
• The handful of chips you grabbed on your way from the kitchen to the couch
• The extra forkful of pasta you tasted before dishing up, or the one you ate after dinner was over
• The “fun size” candy bar you grabbed out of your coworker’s candy jar

Today’s challenge is to be honest with yourself and count all those little “extra” calories.  They add up!

 

Discussion: (use the comments section below)

• Where do your extra calories come from?
• What munchies do you have a hard time passing up?

Day 7: Get More Sleep

Did you enjoy your day off yesterday?  Good!  It’s time to get back to creating a healthier life!

Most of us don’t get enough sleep.  Sleep is a critical component to a healthy life.  Too busy to get a good night’s sleep?  Think you don’t need as much sleep as other people?  According to WebMD there are many reasons to get some extra Zzzzs, including:

• Enhanced memory abilities
• Clearer thinking
• Better weight control
• Increased immunity to disease
• Better sex life

These are some pretty great perks!

Here’s today’s specific challenge: get an extra hour of sleep at least one day this week.  Go to bed early, turn off the TV and get some extra shut-eye.  See how you feel the next day.  Do you notice any positive effects?

Discussion: (use the comments section below)

• How much sleep do you get on an average night?
• Do you feel you’re getting enough sleep?
• What are your biggest roadblocks to getting adequate rest?

Photo courtesy of babycenter.com

Day 6: Give Yourself a Break

Some people give themselves a cheat day, others a cheat meal… even contestants on the Biggest Loser get a cheat day every week (according to popular gossip).  Just remember:  get back on the healthy train the next day.

 Today is Superbowl Sunday.  Go eat some Seven Layer Dip, have a Bloody, and don’t feel bad about it.  Because guess what:  Tomorrow it’s back to work.

 Have a great day everyone!

Day 5: Drink More Water

IMPORTANT:  Before you read this post, get up, pour yourself a glass of water, drink it, and then come back to your computer.  No, I’m not kidding.  Go, pour, drink.  I’ll be here when you get back.

Photo courtesy of buywaterfiltersandionizers.com

Did you finish your water?  Good.  You just did something really good for yourself.

 Do you drink enough water every day?  Very few of us do.  Most sources say we’re supposed to drink at least 8 glasses of water each day.  It can be tiring listening to people preach the importance of staying hydrated, but there are several benefits to drinking plenty of H₂O.  Maybe one of these will resonate with you:

• Water flushes toxins from your body
• Water makes your skin look healthy and glowing
• Proper hydration keeps you cooler in the warm summer months
• Drinking adequate water can assist with weight-loss
• Sometimes the body confuses thirst with hunger.  Drinking water before succumbing to a food craving can help you figure out if you’re really craving that bag of Skittles

 

Still not convinced?  Try making water more appealing by trying one of these tricks:

• Squeeze a lemon, lime or orange wedge into your water
• Add a couple of tablespoons of your favorite fruit juice to your water
• Try Propel or Crystal Light (both come in handy, single-serving packages that you can add to your water).  Personally I like Propel because it’s clear.  Crystal Light powder usually leaves me with stained fingertips, a stained countertop, and a Kool-Aid mustache.  But I’m a big kid like that…
• Invest in a nice water bottle that you really like.  Sounds kind of weird, but the time in my life that I was consistently drinking my 8 glasses of water a day I was drinking it out of my awesome pink Nalgene bottle
• Does drinking water make you chilly in the winter?  Try unsweetened green tea during the day or unsweetened chamomile tea in the evening
• Turn water drinking into a challenge.  Fill up a 2 liter bottle with water in the morning and keep it in the fridge.  Challenge yourself to drink the whole thing before you go to bed

 

Discussion: (use the comments area below)

• Do you drink enough water?
• What strategies do you use to make sure you hit your daily quota of H2O?

Day 4: Have a Workout Plan B

It’s winter, it’s freezing cold, it’s snowing, you just got home from work and the last thing you want to do is go to the gym.  I know, I feel that way too.  But guess what:  Just because you don’t want to go to the gym, it doesn’t mean you have to forego your workout.  Having a Workout Plan B means you’ll still be able to get some exercise even when going to the gym is not in your plans for the day.  Even a few minutes of at-home exercise can greatly improve your health.

Here are some ideas to get you going:

• Try doing some simple exercise moves during the commercial breaks of your favorite TV show.  Pushups, situps, and jumping jacks are great ways to start.
• Use your Wii for something good.  Wii Fit is a fun way to try some new workout moves (and if you’re part of my family it can be a hilarious competition where everyone ends up shrieking and howling with laughter)
• Find an exercise video you like.  I know what you’re thinking: This doesn’t have to be old-school.  Gone are the days of Jane Fonda in a neon-colored leotard working out to bad 80s music.  Chances are you can find a pretty cool workout using the On Demand function from your cable provider.  Jillian Michaels (Biggest Loser) has some great videos, and if you’re so inclined, you can even do workouts led by Playboy Playmates Holly Madison, Kendra Wilkinson and Bridgette Marquardt.  Who doesn’t want to work out with a hot blonde?!
• Run or walk some stairs.  I bet you have some in your house, apartment building or office.

Need some additional ideas?  Here are some resources:

http://www.homebasedworkouts.com/

http://www.women-workout-routines.com/flat-stomach-exercises.html

http://exercise.about.com/library/bltravelworkout.htm

 Discussion:

• What are some home exercises you’ve done? 

Gotta go!  I have a workout date with Kendra!  😉

5 Winter Terms Every Minnesotan Should Know

Snow Booger  – Those chunks of dirty snow that hang from your car right behind your tires.  Left untouched, these snow boogers can get so big that they nearly touch the pavement.  There are very few things in life as satisfying as kicking one of these and having it perfectly release, leaving no dirty snow residue behind. However,  it’s critical to consider the ambient air temperature as well as your footwear before kicking off a snow booger.  Failure to do so can result in one or more broken toes.

Spit  – Windshield wiper fluid.  Serious Minnesotans have the stuff that stays liquid even in -20 degree weather.  The purple stuff is the best.

Arctic Polar Vortex – The mass of cold air that usually hangs out in far northern Canada.  When it dips down into our neck of the woods temperatures plummet well below 0, allowing kids to try fun tricks like the banana hammer and the boiling water toss.

The Boiling Water Toss, courtesy of coolantarctica.com

Zero Degrees Farenheit – A true Minnesotan can tell when temperatures are 0 or below using one of two methods:

• The nose hair test: Nosehair freezes at about 0.  This can be a frightening experience for first-time visitors
• The snow crunch test: The snow under foot gets a crunchy feel and sound at 0 degrees

Wiper Flick – When wipers get ice chunks stuck to them we lift the wiper and release it thereby letting it slap against the windshield, hopefully removing at least some of those pesky ice chunks.  We know we’re not supposed to do this, but simply cannot help ourselves.  A variation of this move is the Driving Wiper Flick, in which we reach our hand out the car window and perform the Wiper Flick while the car is in motion.

Dear Cooking Blog Writer – I Don’t Care What You Had for Dinner. Can You Please Write About the INTERESTING Part of Your Life?

Courtesy of celebritybabies.people.com

I have a confession to make.  My favorite blog is a food blog.  And the truth is I could care less what the author cooks every day.  In fact, she actually bugs me a little bit.  So why on earth do I look forward to each post?

I knew the author in high school.  Now she lives in LA with a certain late-night TV personality and is raising her meal ticket I mean their child.  I’m absolutely fascinated by the situation.  It’s very well-played, in my opinion.

An additional layer of the story is that the author’s dad is actually a soap opera star.  So it seems like “have a celeb’s baby and live a comfortable life without having to actually do anything” runs in the family.  It’s really a fascinating scenario.

Every once in a while there’s a mention of “my boyfriend” in the writing.  That is what I’m interested in hearing about: What is it like being a normal girl from the Midwest, living in LA with a famous TV personality?  It’s almost like a real-life version of The Princess Diaries.  Except it seems to be a much more calculated scenario.

Am I a little bit jealous?  Maybe.  Either way, I wish the blog author all the best: she certainly seems to have it all figured out.  And I will continue to pretend I’m interested in her cooking adventures.