Fit Friday Fashion

I love to look good.

In whatever we do, we do it better when we feel FIT. There are many ways YOU can make YOURSELF feel FIT. 
Heres one - putting yourself together and dressing well for the occasion, any occasion. Theres no better feeling than checking yourself out and saying "Damn, I look good today" or knowing you're going to get tons of compliments on a favorite piece of yours. This is an EASY and instant step towards that FIT feeling: strong and confident. 

THEREFORE: I declare Fridays  as- Fit Friday Fashion!

I be highlighting a smorgasbord of different looks and pieces that caught my FIT eye. When I say FIT - I don't mean just workout clothes and sneakers, thats boring. Anything goes: from a cool cell phone case, to killer heels or a bold graphic tee. For men and women alike. If you rock or see someone rocking a FIT look, get it here. 

This Week: U.S.A! U.S.A! U.S.A! Sochi 2014 Inspired Kicks

I am kicking off with these babies! I did not buy these in spirit of the Olympics, just in spirit of America (I have a whole lot of that). However, they certainly came in handy for a festive 'Merica piece which was appropriate on the day of the opening ceremony. I am ALL ABOUT, patriotic pieces so any occasion to bust them out excites me. I always feel awesome rocking the flag.

Speaking of FIT, how about these athletes! GO U.S.A!! 

See any other Olympic inspired fashion looks today? Or am I the only nut?

A Bit on Crossfit...

This has been getting A LOT of bad press recently, and I get it.

In the weeks following Kevin Ogar's horribly tragic incident (a Boston Crossfit Coach who is now paralyzed after he dropped a 240lb bar on his spine attempting a snatch lift at a Crossfit competition in CA), the intensity of the workouts and the Crossfit brand is under fire. To some extent, understandably so. I mean this is beyond unfortunate and my prayers go out to Kevin.

The bad press has inevitably been focused on safety concerns and criticisms about the intensity of Crossfit workouts. An example is this segment I saw this morning: FOX 5 Investigates: Crossfit Concerns. 

I found it informative on both sides of the Crossfit argument but my biggest take away was how terrifying that Rabdo clown is! AH! That's an attempt of Crossfit opposers to take a hit at the huge brand, and using the injury incidents to do so. I think thats crappy - imagine if Sky Diving and Bungee Jumping industries did something like that...

Personally, I have never done Crossfit. I know people who have done/do it and seemingly have no qualms. The "No Pain, No Gain" approach and the fact that these workouts are beyond physically demanding is well known. The dangers associated with that are becoming so as well and yes, it's important we take note. 

Just as with anything we decide to throw our bodies into, we should be highly educated on the risks involved. We need to listen to our bodies: when they tell us things we need and things we shouldn't do. I don't think Crossfit dismisses that notion, so I cant really knock it. 

Not saying any incidents involving Crossfit injury's should be disregarded. And I'm sure they will not be. However, as free willed people we can make intelligent judgements on what is good for us, Crossfit may or may not be. 

Moral of the story here: Don't hate the player, or the game. Push your limits but don't disrespect them in anything that you do, ever.

What are your thoughts on the argument for or against Crossfit? 

The Weekly Flu Shot That "Actually Doesn't Suck"

I've never had a flu shot.

And I'm usually pretty healthy (knock on wood). So, when I do get sick I turn into a big baby, a huge baby actually, I'm even worse than some men when sick...yes that bad. It literally pisses me off, I think of how fun and busy my life is and how I don't have time for this crap. 

Taking Dayquil, Nyquil and Benadryl can do the trick but I feel like they just mask your symptoms and make you groggy. I want something that will actually make me feel better naturally and fairly quickly. I'm impatient.

A friend of mine reposted this from @factsofhealth on Instagram. It was time for a house call from Dr.Earth and my boyfriend whipped this up pretty easy.

The only tricky part is that you have to gradually add the ingredients and blend them because they didn't all fit in our (pretty standard sized) blender. Also, add some water! This recipe made about 3 large smoothies. I drank one and then we kept the leftovers in the fridge and it stayed good for the next 2 days, it didn't separate or get gross like some smoothies do. You can add ice and re-blend if needed.

Don't be deceived by the Green color. Nick (boyfriend) brought it over to me with the look of "I don't think you're going to like this" on his face, and I was a bit skeptical myself. I was SO pleasantly surprised though, it was delicious! Nick's reaction was similar: "Wow, it actually doesn't suck!"

Better yet, it definitely contributed to me feeling better by the end of the weekend. I decided I want to try to make a batch or so once a week, for a quick breakfast or healthy snack - it's that good!

This is the only flu shot I see in my future. Thanks to Dr. Earth and Dr. Nick!!

It Doesn't Matter Where You Start, Cause You're Never Finished

It doesn't matter where you start, it matters that you do start.

And once you start, you're never finished and that rocks. It isn't a fad diet, or a phase - it's a lifelong adventure and a gift to the most important person in your life: yourself. People, (mostly women) talk about being fit as an "uphill battle" or a "struggle". It's really not. Or it shouldn't be, if it is we must be doing something wrong. Is it easy? Hell no. But I think we psych ourselves out and think it's way harder than it is. We do much harder things in our lives, everyone has their own story and it's usually pretty mind blowing. In the end, we all want to look and feel good. So what takes us so long to get our butts in gear?

I began thinking of how and when I started focusing on living "Too Fit". And what triggered it and the fact is, I really can't put my finger on it but it sure is fun to look back, so lets go. Oh Boy...

Circa 2006: I love(d) McDonalds McNuggets. I ate them a a lot, with milkshakes and apple pies. I also was just starting to try out alcohol and only liked to drink things that tasted like Sprite. I used to argue with my mom over stopping for milkshakes & tell her "I'm Hott". 

Circa 2009: Remember how I said I never thought I looked less than awesome? Yeah, that includes here: in my 1st audition for the Celtics Dancers in Boston. I didn't make the team, but I made it to the website...hows that for background candy. --> 

2011: Fast forward graduation day. I LOVE the picture of me going up to the stage to get my diploma, me and my double chin are waving at my parents. 

So until this point, I was pretty convinced I looked good (lol). HOWEVER, I think back to these times when I thought I looked good and I can honestly say I knew I did not feel as good as I should..Heres where we make the shift...

2012: Celtics audition round 2. Hell Yeah. I didn't do it for website photo redemption (well ok, a little bit) and I didn't make the team, close though! At first, I got real skinny, but then couldn't train. This was an "A-Ha" moment for me. I thought I looked good (of course) but knew I wasn't feeling good and started wanting that. 

Here We Are: On a Saturday morning in my new favorite yoga shorts from ZweetSport (you'll hear more on this, I'm obsessed). It's now 2014 and I'm stuck on the feeling good and more importantly, feeling strong. I've had some weaker feeling times in my life since my first "Too Fit' kick for the second C's audition that set me back a bit. In some ways though, I think they pushed me forward. Those weaker moments make you want to get stronger immediately, and I was certainly not patient. Not being patient doesn't make it happen any faster.

Somewhere along this trip I just laid out, something clicked and I made a decision. Where or what exactly triggers it, I don't know and I don't think it really matters. What got me going may or may not work for you, so why push it, especially when it can't be clearly defined. What I will push is making the decision to be "Too Fit". Feeling BOTH confident and strong is something that we need to make happen for ourselves, period. You can figure out where and what started it later. Theres plenty of time and more reasons will surface along the way. 

Now doesn't that make you just a little curious?