One of the great things about yoga is that you can do it anytime, anywhere, provided you have your yoga mat. Technically, you can do it without a yoga mat, but when you’re contorting yourself on your knees, trust me, you’ll want the support of a mat. Fortunately, mats are very portable and last for years. They can be a bit pricey, but unless you’re saving up for a computer, matching initial necklaces, or are being hounded by your student loan creditors, you can probably afford one. A yoga mat is a sound investment, with immeasurable benefits for your mind and body.

Even if you’re on a road trip, far from a gym or a treadmill, roll out your yoga mat on the shoulder of the freeway and get in some backbends, releasing all those pent-up toxins from your spine—and, some say, cleansing your chakras. In the middle of the night, if you’re having trouble sleeping, bust out a half-tortoise pose and balance out your sleep-wake cycles. This pose is also good in the middle of the workday, when the stress is getting to you. A fresh surge of oxygenated blood to the brain gives you a nice perspective on the rest of the day.

Yoga is an ancient form of physical meditation with thousands of forms. There are some core postures, like [Read more…]

There’s a reason why losing weight is the most common New Year’s resolution; it’s because the holiday
season is fraught with opportunities to overeat. And we’ve become so accustomed to this cultural
feasting that it can be extremely hard to break the habit. Couple that with the fact that emotions run
high at this time of year (and many families feel that food equals love) and you can not only be fighting
your own desire to eat everything, but also the guilt that comes with turning down food that your family
members have worked hard to prepare. It’s a double whammy of weight-gain temptation. But there
are ways you can manage your caloric intake and make it through the holidays without gaining a pound.
Here are just a few tips and tricks that might help.

1. Practice portion control. Whatever you’re thinking of putting on your plate, consider cutting it
in half. If you’re like most people, you’ll load up your plate with food and then make yourself
sick trying to eat it all. Consider that during a regular meal you might have on main dish, a side,
and a veggie. During the holidays, you could be facing a table full of entrees and sides, plus
vegetables loaded with calorie-laden sauces. By cutting each serving size in half (half a piece of
meat, half a scoop of potatoes or stuffing, etc.) and eating slowly to savor your food, you’ll find
you get full before your plate is empty and you’ll stop yourself from seriously overeating.

2. Walk it off. There’s no reason you can’t sample all the foods you love this holiday season, and
you’ll have a much easier time maintaining your weight if [Read more…]

I have lost 1 pound this week. I am finding the super slow weight loss at the moment super frustrating- AHHHH!!!
I know, all good things in time- but I’m not getting any younger, LOL. Le sigh. Patience, right?

So, I have been frustrated. Can you tell? Haha. It’s a little hard not to eat all the stuff you LOVE while you watch (and sometimes cook for) everyone else eating it. But I guess no one gets overweight because they hate food, right? So I have lost 27 pounds, and I am happy about that. I have roughly 25 more pounds to go- and I know I will get there. This plan is easy to follow, and the support staff at Nutrisystem is fabulous- even if I am being pissy and frustrated, haha.

I need to do a little more in the way of exercise this week, last week I slacked a bit. But this is going to be an active week for me, so I hope I will make up for it. I also appreciate that this diet has been a “calm in my [Read more…]