Tag Archives: Wellness

How Much Is Stress Affecting You?

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I have an extremely stressful job. Every day at work for me revolves around the health and well being of the student athletes that I work with. During our busy times (which this year, was basically the entire year) this can mean 10-11 hour days during the week, and at least one weekend day spent at work. All of these long hours and high pressure situations lead to… you guessed it, stress overload.

funny-stress-poster

Late spring and summer though is our quiet time, and the past week has been gloriously calm and stress free. I was talking with one of my coworkers about it yesterday, remarking about the awesome amount of energy that I’ve had the past few days, and how strange it felt to still feel energized, even by the end of the day for the last several days. It’s especially strange, because the past several days have been spent catching up on greuling paperwork, which is incredibly frustrating for someone who is not used to sitting at a desk/computer all day every day. (Other ATs out there know exactly what I’m talking about… am I right?)

My point is this: Nothing drastic has changed over the past week or so. My diet is the same. My sleep patterns are the same. My workouts are the same. The only thing that has changed is my stress level. I’ve gone from high-stress all day every day, to seriously mindless paperwork. Stress free. And despite the fact that I’m wasting away at my computer for hours per day, my energy has skyrocketed. The only thing I can attribute this to is my lack of stress. And not only is my energy better, but I’ve been in a generally better mood, I haven’t had headaches, and my focus has improved.

Seriously, who knew stress was such a life-suck? I mean, I did, but I guess I haven’t thought about it lately. Check out this table I found from the Mayo Clinic. Looking down this list of stress effects, I could check off probably about 75% of them over the past several months. No bueno!

Common effects of stress …
… On your body … On your mood … On your behavior
  • Headache
  • Muscle tension or pain
  • Chest pain
  • Fatigue
  • Change in sex drive
  • Stomach upset
  • Sleep problems
  • Anxiety
  • Restlessness
  • Lack of motivation or focus
  • Irritability or anger
  • Sadness or depression
  • Overeating or undereating
  • Angry outbursts
  • Drug or alcohol abuse
  • Tobacco use
  • Social withdrawal

Source: American Psychological Association’s “Stress in America” report, 2010

I knew that I was overly stressed and I knew that I had gotten extremely, chronically tired this year, but I never stopped to think about why. I knew that I had become often cranky and irritable, and that my mental focus was starting to waver, but again, I never stopped to think that it was probably something I can control.  Of course I can’t control the fact that I have stress at work, as that is just the nature of the career path I’ve chosen. (And to be honest, what job doesn’t have stress?), but what I can control is the way that I deal with the stress in what little down time I do have.

stressed out cat

I can’t always depend on downtime like I have now to de-stress, because quite honestly there is only a very limited part of the year that I can relax like this. What I can do is try some techniques now so that I can keep doing them towards the end of this summer once things get a little crazy at work again.

One of my goals for this summer is to start meditating regularly, hoping that improving my meditation skills will help me during high-stress times. I’m not very well versed in this yet though, so stay tuned for another post about my adventures as a beginner-meditator!  I also recently read this great article from Dr. Mark Hyman about ways to decrease stress. He’s got some great thoughts and suggestions here, and if you are an easily stressed person I suggest you click on over and take a few minutes to read it!  Deep breathing and changing the way I think are two of his tips that I might have to work on as well, as I often let my thoughts and worries spiral out of control, only leading to more stress. Decreasing this horrible cycle is a goal of mine, and something I definitely need to work on if I want to keep from getting burnt-out, which is an all too common problem in the AT world.

Do you have a stressful job or work in a high-stress office? How do you cope with work stress? Do you find that stress affects you physically? Do you meditate, and how often?

Making Time for the Good Stuff

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Most of this past weekend was spent battling some sort of sore-throat-virus, as well as studying for my upcoming CSCS exam.

This was my entire Saturday. 

I know I underestimated the amount of studying I would be doing for this exam;  it’s starting to kick me in the butt, and I’m only a week in! My good friend Christina and I are taking it together, and got together last weekend to set up a study plan for the next 6 weeks before our December 1st D-Day exam date. Oh boy, was that a slap in the face, once we actually broke the book down into sections and made a timeline. At the time, covering the first 8 chapters in the first 2 weeks sounded like a great idea. Now, I’m one week and 4 chapters in, and I’m not sure I can keep up this pace for another 6 weeks!

I just have to keep reminding myself that I went through an entire Masters program just fine while working full time, so this should be no big deal, right? Except for the fact that I feel like I am doing more studying now than I ever did for my graduate work. Oops.

Any-hoo…

Even through all of this craziness with the upcoming exam and high amounts of work stress, it’s always important for me to make time for the things in life that really count: times spent with friends and loved ones.

A group of my girl friends gets together once every 1-2 months for a “girls night dinner”, a pot luck style event that always has a theme and always includes wine (obviously). The idea originally was to do it once a month, but really, when you’re trying to get about 8 women together who all have totally different careers, work schedules, and lifestyles, it can get a little bit difficult to coordinate something that works for the majority of us.  Even though we can only do these every 1-2 months, it’s so much fun to be able to get together, make (and eat) some great food, drink wine, and just catch up on each other’s busy busy lives.

And I am a strong believer that friendships need nurturing just like any other type of relationship does.  Making the time to get together in such a hectic world is so important, especially as you get older and it only gets harder to actually spend time with friends when you’ve all got so much going on in your own lives.

Besides, every girl needs a good girls night now and then, right?

This time, the theme was Halloween, for obvious reasons. Most of the time we end up with an even spread of apps and desserts, and although we’re a very health conscious group, at these dinners all of that tends to go right out the window.   So even though this blog usually deals with healthy eats, we’re just going to side-step that a little bit today. I know, I know, we could be healthy and have girl time, and sometimes we do, but just not this time. Oh well, a little indulgence is worth it sometimes!

Kel did a great job with the theme decorations! 

We had “Mummy Pizza Bagels”… that really did look like mummies before they were cooked. Afterward.. well… they tasted great! 

This was my contribution, Pumpkin Ricotta Stuffed Shells. I followed this recipe, and I must say, they came out great! I highly recommend this as an alternative for your usual stuffed-shell recipe! 

A “Snake” Calzone… It was shaped like a snake before it was cut, complete with 2 green-olive “eyes”! This was delicious as well. 

Lets not forget about dessert! These brownies stole the show — they were adorable for the theme and also ridiculously tasty. We also had some white chocolate-dipped “ghost” strawberries and chocolate dipped pretzel “mummies” that I didn’t get a good picture of, unfortunately. 

And last but certainly not least… was Kelly’s homemade “blood” sangria. It was so good, and munching on all that fruit at the bottom wasn’t too bad either :)  

At the end of the night, I left there stuffed, exhausted, and happy! Making the time to see your friends and loved ones is so important to your overall well-being, and adding something fun like a theme only adds to the awesomeness.  So despite my sore throat, sniffles, and endless hours of studying, this weekend was huge success thanks to these girls and their great company!

Do you find it hard to schedule time with friends? Do you have any weekly or monthly traditions with friends? When you get together for group dinners, do your healthy habits tend to get a little bit more relaxed?

Good Reads and Good News

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Good morning and Happy Friday everyone!

I want to start today off with a bit of good news, and then send you off to read some great articles/posts that I’ve read lately. Honestly, I meant to write this post last night, in which case it probably would have been funnier, wittier, and just better all around, but I was exhausted and Project Runway hogged all of my attention. (Anyone else a Sonjia fan?) Sorry!

Anyway, on to the good news. One of my goals is to eventually get into the freelance world of fitness/health magazines, and to someday, in the very far future, write a book. Well my little tidbit of good news is my very first stepping stone in that direction, my friends! A small, local paper has asked me to write a health column for them!

ME? You want ME?

Granted, it is a small paper, but it’s something, right? I’m not going to lie, when I was contacted by one of the editors there was a small part of me that thought it was some kind of joke. It took me a few minutes to realize that yes, dummy, someone out there might actually want you to write for them! I’m extremely nervous about it, because other than crappy school essays and minor research, I’ve never written for anyone else besides myself. On my blog, I can say anything I please. I can even swear! But writing for someone else, for another publication, is a whole other beast. I can’t just make up words and spill my stream-of-consciousness on the paper, I have to actually come up with something intelligent yet still entertaining for the readers.

Can I do it? Only time will tell! I submitted my first draft of a column already, so I’ll let you all know if the editors tear it apart like a pack of hungry wolves. ;)

And for that good news, I’m going to go ahead and give myself a High Five, in celebration of my friend Meg’s High Five Friday! (Because self high-fives are fun sometimes)


And now on to the link love! Below are some great posts that I’ve come across lately. Some of them are from earlier this summer, but I love them anyway. So if you haven’t checked these out yet, make sure you do now, I promise they’re all worth your while!

Are You Fitness by Alli McKee. This article from the new Girls Gone Strong webpage is just pure genius, and a must read for all you ladies out there!

Intermittent Fasting: How and Why A Food Lovin Girl Chooses Not To Eat by Neghar Fonooni. I’ve been tossing around the idea of seriously trying IF, just for the fun of it. This is a great, if lengthy, recap of why, how she does it, and even a food/training schedule. If you’re interested in IF, check this out!

Zombie Survival Workout from Roger Lawson. Just for shitz and giggles… and becuase we all know the zombie apocalypse is coming.

6 Keys To A Successful Fitness Blog from Tony Gentilcore. For any of you out there looking to start a fitness blog, or for those of us who have them and are looking to improve, great points here! And don’t forget to also check out part 2 of this post, found here.

What If I Don’t Want To Lift Heavy? from Nia Shanks. I know I talk a lot about lifting heavy on this blog, but it certainly isn’t the only way to stay fit for everyone. This post is a great piece with some perspective on the heavy lifting style of training and why it may or may not be best for everyone.

There you have it. Some great news, great reads, and just like that it’s almost the weekend! I’m off to spend my weekend in NYC, so maybe I’ll hit you all up with some great food pics when I return on Monday. (Because we all know that the only thing I do when I go to NYC is eat. And eat, and eat…. ) Until next time!

What are you up to this weekend? Have you written for any publications other than your blog? Were you nervous the first time you did so? What do you think of these articles, do any of them really speak to you? 

When The Going Gets Tough

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…The Tough Get Tougher. 

As I mentioned last Monday, I had a long, tough week this past week. I’m not saying this so anyone will feel bad for me, because I love my job and I know it just comes with the territory. But I just wanted to pop in quickly to let you guys know that although it was a week filled with uber long days and endless amounts of stress, I managed to still feel pretty good during most of it.

How did I do this?

  • I rode my bike to work every day except one (because it was raining and I was being a big whiny baby). Never mind that riding my bike actually cuts my commute time in half, the fact I get an automatic 10 miles of cycling in per day is a definite WIN.
  • Even though I had to be at work extra early all week and didn’t have time for the gym, I was determined to get a few good heart pumping workout sessions in. I did this by squeezing in hard work where I could, no matter how little time I had. Twice last week, I stopped at the stadium on my way to work and ran 10 stadium sprints. One other day I stopped at the outdoor fitness area along the Charles River mid-ride and did a body weight/plyo circuit. Each of these workouts took only 12-15 minutes, but they all thoroughly kicked my ass.

  • I practiced my pull ups whenever I got the chance. Even though I didn’t have time for the gym, I did have time to hop up on my pull up bar at home a few times per day. Reps are reps right? And doing 5 pull-ups is more physical activity than doing none!
  • I prepped some homemade snacks at the beginning of the week, so that I would have a little extra energy for the longer days at work. Keeping myself from getting famished in between meals was key to my sanity, and having home made snacks made me feel better about what I was fueling my body with.

  • I tried my hardest to keep up with a good sleep schedule. I didn’t get quite enough sleep every single night of the week, but I was able to get a consistent 7 hrs/night, except for one. Without enough sleep, my mood and brain power go downhill extremely fast, which is not good for me, my co-workers, and certainly not my patients!
  • I relaxed when I could and took some “Me” time every day. Yes, this meant stepping away from the blog for a few days, but I think you guys understand. I read a little each night, lounged around on the couch a little more than I should when I got home from work, and spent some much needed time with Will. Sometimes you just have to let yourself relax for a little while, you know?

So that’s how I survived my hell week at work. I’m not saying that these tips will work for everyone, but they helped me to feel healthy and energized through some very long and stressful days. I know that not everyone can ride a bike to work, and certainly not everyone has access to showers at work (Trust me, if I didn’t have access to a shower, those stadium runs pre-work would make for an ugly, smelly day in the office!). But even when you simply don’t have the time for your normal workout schedule, and the last thing you want to do after a 13 hour work day is cook dinner, there are always little ways that you can help yourself. Find the things that keep you energized and add a little positivity to your day, and battling the stress gets that much easier.

Do you have any tips or tricks to get through stressful times? How do you keep yourself energized and positive when life gets in the way? How do you fit in physical activity when you don’t have time for the gym?

Cruising Into Fall

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Happy Labor Day everyone!

After an amazing and relaxing weekend, I’m feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world again! I hope all of my US readers have been able to do something this holiday weekend that’s just for YOU. I don’t know where you are, but here we’ve had the most amazingly perfect weather, I’ve been with great friends, and I don’t think there could have been a better way to send the summer packing. (So sad to say, isn’t it?)

Bye Bye, Summer!

But while it’s heartbreaking to say goodbye to summer, there are also some wonderful things about fall that we can look forward to as well. So if you’re mourning the loss of your beach days and sun dresses, have no fear, because fall can be just as fabulous! What do I love about fall?

Who doesn’t love a little fashion update when the scarves get to come back? And there is almost nothing more comfortable than a nice, soft, cozy sweater. And I’m pretty sure you all get what I’m saying about sweating on the way to work… Showing up at the office and needing to shower is not good for anyone.

But you know what else I love about fall? The chance to keep up with your fitness goals   that you worked so hard for all summer. A lot of people think of the summer as the time that they have to be “skinny”, and they change their fitness/nutrition regimen at strategic points during the year to get there. But what about staying fit and healthy all year, and saving the spring and summer for enjoying life, not for “getting skinny”?

I’m proposing that we all keep our fitness and nutrition goals in mind more than ever once the weather turns a little bit colder. It can be harder to get physical activity in when the temperature dips and you don’t have the long, sunny days working in your favor any more. Keep your goals in mind, and keep working towards them every day, even when  you know you’d rather be curled up in your warm bed on some of these upcoming crisp mornings. Labor Day doesn’t have to mean the end of beach season, or the end of your “skinny” season. It can mean the start of your fittest and healthiest fall/winter ever!

I hope everyone enjoys their holiday, and for those of you who aren’t in the US or who don’t have a holiday today, enjoy your Monday just the same!

What are your favorite things about fall? Do you get sad when summer ends? Do you enjoy summer fashion or fall fashion better? How much do you love all of the pumpkin spice goodies in the fall?!?