Source: http://www.thefitbits.com/2015/08/tesstris-weeks-3-4-triathlon-training.html

So I’m actually getting better at swimming.

I’m really enjoying saying that, even though I’m still pretty nervous about putting it to the test next month at the Diamond Tri. But, the more I practice, with every breakthrough I make, the more confident I feel that I won’t crash and burn on the swim.

I’ve still got a fair way to go to get to 400m without stopping, and have just under five weeks to do it in – but I do love a deadline, so I know I’ll get there, one way or another.

It’s funny how last year I made next to no progress in comparison to the gains I’ve made this past couple of months simply by shutting up and getting on with the things I’d convinced myself I wasn’t capable of. Alright, maybe I haven’t shut up at all, in fact I’ve had a right old moan throughout, but had a go anyway and then realised that actually, I can do it:

Swim two lengths without stopping.Progress to four lengths with minimal breaks. Do a whole Swim Fit 16, 20 and 32 length workout in front crawl.Go out of my depth in the sea.Swim a length or two WITHOUT my nose clip. Have a break from panicked flapping in the sea to try a tiny bit of actual swimming, again, WITHOUT the nose clip (tasted like shit twice as bad as water entered both nostrils and my mouth)Practice bi-lateral breathing (it’s …

Source: http://www.sonima.com/videos/best-time-to-meditate/

Watch video on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B67RF0edbqw

What is the best time to meditate, and what do you do if you just can’t fit it in? Deepak Chopra, M.D., and Sonia Jones, founder of Sonima, talk about the ideal times for contemplation and why certain points in the day may be better than others. If you cannot consistently set aside a few minutes to sit, there are also ways to bring self-reflection to a hectic day. Watch the video above to learn this essential advice.

The post The Best Time of Day to Meditate appeared first on Sonima.

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Source: http://www.fannetasticfood.com/2015/12/23/gearing-up-for-the-holidays/

Morning guys! We’re gearing up for the holiday fun over here – see the end of this post for some holiday recipe ideas!

It’s a Flour Free Breakfast Pancake (<- recipe) sort of morning, don’t you think?

Always hits the spot, especially after a sweaty workout! I hit up Urban Athletic Club via ClassPass this morning for one last pre-holiday serious sweat session.

Dear Sweaty Bands: thank you for being the only headband that actually stays put

I’m planning to run over the break, but wasn’t sure I’d be doing any boot camps – felt good to get it in. It was a tough one today – Kathleen and I were seriously struggling by those push ups at the end…

Source: http://tonygentilcore.com/2015/12/best-articles-of-2015-my-picks/

Yesterday I highlighted the most popular articles of 2015 as dictated by page views and overall traffic. Today I want to highlight MY favorite articles from this past year.

Because it’s all about me, me, me, ME.

I have no idea why the ones listed didn’t resonate the first time through.

It’s probably all my fault anyways. I never pay close attention to SEO or “click bait” blog titles. I mean, if I really wanted to make sure people clicked on every post I’d title them “Why Bicep Curls Increase Your Testosterone Levels 818%.” for the guys or “Henry Cavill Talks About His Feelings” for the ladies.

Nevertheless, the articles below are some of my favorites from this past year. Don’t judge them by their lame titles….;o)

1. 13 Words That May Help Change Your Life

“Scare the shit out of yourself. It’s the only way to do it.”

2. Assessing Our Assessments: Shoulder Flexion

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Source: http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/12/23/460819387/are-you-a-sucker-if-you-like-mast-brothers-chocolate?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=thesalt

Mast Brothers chocolate sits for sale in a store on Dec. 21, 2015 in New York City. A blogger recently accused the chocolate company has of using industrial chocolate in their bars when it first started, contradicting their bean-to-bar narrative.

Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Back in 2006, before Brooklyn had its own artisanal mayonnaise store and craft beef jerky company, there was Mast Brothers chocolate.

With their impressive beards and lumberjack aesthetic, the Mast Brothers were the epitome of Brooklyn hipsters, part ZZ Top and part Brawny paper towel guy. Their chocolate was quintessentially New Brooklyn, made with a small batch process called bean-to-bar, in which the chocolate maker oversees every aspect …

Source: http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/12/23/460559052/millet-how-a-trendy-ancient-grain-turned-nomads-into-farmers?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=thesalt

Millet isn’t just one grain but, rather, a ragbag group of small-seeded grasses. Hardy, gluten-free and nutritious, millet has become an “it” grain in recent years.

billy1125/Flickr

Like amaranth and quinoa before it, millet – a hardy, gluten-free ancient seed – has become an “it” grain in recent years. Once dismissed as birdseed, millet can now be found sprinkled on top of mashed potatoes at top-rated restaurants, cooked into baby foods, and generally extolled for its nutritious virtues. Some have even dubbed millet “the new quinoa.”

This newly trendy grain was once far more prominent in human diets: It played a pivotal role in the rise of multi-crop agriculture and settled farming societies.

That’s according to research from Martin Jones, a professor of archaeology at Cambridge University in England, and co-leader of a team whose work on the origin and spread of millet this month won a 2015 Research Award from the Shanghai Archaeological Forum.

The research sheds light on the earliest days of agriculture in China. But more importantly, according to Jones, the prize may help millet to regain its rightful place in modern agriculture.

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Source: http://greatist.com/health/best-foods-hangover?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-

It’s one of those mornings: Last night was a crazy one and getting out of bed feels tougher than climbing out of a subterranean pit. Old-school wisdom preaches reaching for cold pizza or a greasy bacon sandwich, but wait—some foods are scientifically proven to help cure a hangover! Read on to learn which foods can alleviate post-party symptoms and which should be avoided like that plastic cup full of last night’s beer.

The Wrath of Grapes

First thing’s first, let’s talk science. Typical hangover symptoms—nausea, sensitivity to light, headache, achy muscles, diarrhea, and decreased motor skills—are all caused by changes in body chemistry, including hormones, chemical reactions within the body, and the toxic chemicals in alcohol.1

The science of hangovers (and how to prevent them) is largely unstudied, which is why people have been inventing their own “cures” for centuries. Though no one meal or drink can cure a hangover, certain foods are better for refueling than others. After waking up with a pounding head, aim to restock the body with necessary fluids and nutrients like fructose, vitamins, animo acids, and minerals that can help break down toxins or lessen the body’s negative reaction to the chemicals in booze.

Drinks That Help

<img src="http://greatist.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_main/public/water.jpg?itok=NLSGf8OK" alt="Glass of Wat…

Source: http://www.theminimalists.com/xmas/

By Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus · Follow: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

Merry Christmas, and happy holidays! Whichever holiday you celebrate (or even if you don’t celebrate at all), we have three gifts for you:

3 Gifts from The Minimalists

Free Book. Last week we published the second edition of Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life. And now, as our gift to you, you can read it for free: download the free PDF here. If you’d prefer the paperback, audiobook, or a different ebook version, you can still purchase those here.

New Podcast. Surprise! The Minimalists Podcast will officially launch in January 2016, but you can download our special first episode today on iTunes, or you can stream it on Soundcloud. And be sure subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, or wherever you get your podcasts, if you’d like to hear future episodes. (Looking for a great podcast app? We love the simplicity of Overcast.)

Online Meetups. We’re also answering questions live on our weekly video broadcast: join us on Periscope every Tuesday at 7 PM EST until the end of January 2016, or post your questions on social media using our hashtag #AskTheMinimalists. If you missed yesterday’s video, you can watch it up to 24 hours after the broadcast. (You can also meet like-…

Source: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2015/12/23/how-star-wars-helped-me-become-a-better-person/

“A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away….”

Every time those words pop up on a screen, my spine tingles. Excitement swells in me as the text fades to a starlit sky.

That fraction of a second before the horns blare the Star Wars theme… my heart skips a beat.

And then it happens.

Trumpets blare and I’m instantly transported to another galaxy.

Any time I watched Star Wars as a kid, it was like hitting the pause button. The homework I had due or the big Little League game I lost disappeared. The complexities of junior high (and figuring out how to navigate awkward hormones) took a back seat. The acne and braces stopped feeling so overwhelming.

This past weekend, I was one of the millions who saw the new Star Wars film, The Force Awakens, and life paused again. I was giddy through the entire movie. Several scenes filled my arms with goosebumps and I’m not afraid to admit I even teared up once or twice. Sitting there watching at 31 years old, I felt five again sitting on my living room floor. For a brief moment, nothing else mattered. I was on an adventure in galaxy far, far away.

Here’s the thing, though: my relationship with Star Wars is more than just a boyish crush. This saga has helped shape and mold the person I am today. It’s made me a better person.

Today I want to share this magic with you.

You Always Have a Choice.

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Source: http://www.thefitbits.com/2015/08/pot-kettle-black-go-home-daily-mail.html

I’ve just spent far too long giving my attention to the journalistic abomination that is the Daily Mail. The latest scaremongering to grace your screens, titled in true Daily Mail make-a-scandal-out-of-everything style:

I’ve got a few things to say about this article, and not all of them negative.

Firstly, how brave the featured fitness blogger Celia has been in ‘coming out’ about her struggles with body image, weight and unhealthy eating habits. It takes a lot of courage to put a true and honest self out there when we are bombarded every day with so many streamlined ‘bikini bodies’ and abtastic ‘fitspo’.

Life: the carefully edited highlights 
I think it’s really important to highlight the fact that how ever much we deny it, we do put edited versions of ourselves online. I mean honestly, can you tell me that you posted the very first selfie or food shot you took onto your Instagram, or did you choose the ‘best’ from a selection?

I wrote my dissertation in 2007, just before Facebook overtook MySpace, about online identity and how our photos portray our preferred version of self on MySpace, exploring the famous ‘MySpace pose’ which was adopted by so many. There was no word for it then but what I was exploring was basically the science …