In today’s fast-paced, instant-gratification world, people are juggling more, sleeping less and taking less time to just be. In fact, 42 percent of adults report that their stress level has increased over the past five years. More research is coming out tying our stress levels to physical ailments. Insufficient sleep has reached levels of a public-health epidemic. It’s no wonder that more and more people are trying to find ways to ease their daily stress.

Although mindfulness and meditation have been around for millennia, only recently has mindfulness entered the mainstream vernacular. Multiple studies have been published linking mindfulness practices to stress reduction, even decreasing our levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Meditation and mindfulness are now part of the toolkit of many licensed psychologists. It’s been linked to easing medical concerns from irritable bowl syndrome to heart disease.

So what exactly is mindfulness? What is meditation? What about it makes it seem like this magical panacea?

Depending on whom you ask and what type of meditation they practice, you’ll probably get a different answer to these questions. A common type of meditation called “mindfulness awareness” involves sitting comfortably in silence and bringing your attention to your breathing as a way to connect with the present moment. When the mind wanders, you practice gently bringing it back. I like to think of mindfulness as a combination of awareness and intention. So in this mindfulness-awareness practice, you are being mindful of your breath and of the present moment.

I’ve found that my meditation practice has affected my life in fundamental ways:

1. By creating a regular time and space to practice, I am giving myself a set time to sit down, slow down and do nothing. I am giving myself permission to be bored! During super-busy periods I even schedule it as an event in my calendar.

2. I practice not judging. All thoughts are treated equal in meditation. No matter what the content, when a thought arises during a meditation session, I just acknowledge it and gently come back to my breath. Even if the thought is about unicorns and rainbows, I come back.

3. I get to know my mind. I’ve been on longer retreats where after a while the same thoughts come up again and again. It’s like I have one playlist on repeat. And that’s when I start to realize that I’ve got some patterns that I tend to go back to.

4. I get to know my body. When you’re just sitting for a period of time with no distractions, you start to notice how you’re feeling in your body. After all, that’s another thing (along with our breath) that’s always with us, even if we try to ignore it!

How would you like to start your day with an awesome antioxidant packed smoothie that has a ton of medicinal properties as well? This turmeric smoothie recipe is perfect for that.

The Benefits of Turmeric

Turmeric is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial plant of the ginger family. The average person may best recognize turmeric as a spice commonly used in Indian cuisine. The active compound curcumin is known to have a wide range of medicinal benefits including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitumour, antibacterial, and antiviral activities. In India, turmeric has been used for thousands of years as a remedy for stomach and liver ailments. Turmeric can also be used topically to heal sores due to its antimicrobial properties.

Turmeric is also the liver’s favorite spice and helps boost liver detox. It does this by assisting enzymes that actively flush out dietary carcinogens.[1] Be sure to check how powerful turmeric can be in treating depression as well.

Turmeric Smoothie Recipe Ingredients:

For these ingredients, try and use organic as much as possible. Also try not to substitute actual milk for hemp or coconut milk. If you need, you can try almond milk as well.

• 1 cup hemp or coconut milk
• 1/2 cup frozen pineapple or mango chunks
• 1 fresh banana
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric (can be increased to 1 tsp)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon chia seeds
• 1 teaspoon maca (optional)

Add all ingredients into a blender and process until smooth. Try to drink this smoothie in the morning before you have anything to eat. It’s a solid way to start your day and pack your body full of antioxidants.

Thanks to PreventDisease.com as we grabbed the recipe from them.

Some of you know this, I wear my gym clothes ANYWHERE!

There are many reasons why I do this, it’s my business suit, it’s comfortable, I look good in it (JK, maybe), you get the point.

With that said, I also spend thousands of dollars on gear from head to toe. I’m sure a lot of you do as well and maybe don’t even notice it. Again, mine represents me and my career plus I train daily, but yours is just as important. The old cotton pants and t-shirts used to absorb all our sweat, got super heavy and did not control body temperature. I remember taking off my pads and having to do running drills feeling like I had a baby (a big baby at that) hanging on to me, sweat would drip down collecting in my football pants and pads! Wow, can you imagine?

Today we enjoy fabrics that wick sweat away from the body yet it also controls body temperature keeping you cool while training and does not make you feel like you are freezing when walking away from a session. Some even have antimicrobial (yes that’s a word) qualities that keep them from developing odor. Whhaaatttt???!!!

With all these upgrades to your gear also come the price hikes. In the picture I’ve attached to this you have $100 pants, $70 top. If getting into the $20 socks (yes one pair) and $30 underwear(over $200), shoes is another write up of its own. You can’t laugh or judge me because you are probably spending the same or more. Some of you are bargain shoppers and know how to find a great sale, but this article is not about that darn it!

I go through these clothes like hot cakes, I feel. I’ve asked many of the retailers and people in the know how to best preserve these fabrics. I have found my way … Mackenzie Lobby wrote a blog on myfitpal that describes it nicely so I would like to share some easy tips.

1. Don’t use fabric softener.
Fabric softener can often be blamed for keeping workout clothes from getting totally clean when they are in the wash cycle. Since it tends to coat these types of fibers, fabric softener prevents them from being able to absorb the water when being washed.

2. Don’t use too much detergent.
In the same way that fabric softener can keep water in the wash cycle from penetrating fabrics, so can detergent. Use slightly less than you would for your regular clothes, and this should limit the viscosity enough to do the job.

3. Do use sport-specific detergent.
There are a number of special detergents on the market formulated for washing workout clothes. If you find your duds are particularly stinky, this is a good thing to try.

4. Don’t let your gear sit around.
Mold and mildew can begin to grow on workout gear that is left in a gym bag or laundry basket. Be sure to get those items in the washing machine sooner rather than later to prevent the buildup of nasty stenches.

5. Do soak stinky items.
By soaking the worst-smelling garments in one part white vinegar to four parts water, you can often kill anything that’s particularly pesky when it comes to odors. Throw them in a bucket or sink for a half hour prior to washing.

6. Do use cold water.
Since technical fibers are generally on the delicate side, in most cases it’s best to use cold water to wash them. This will help maintain any special performance properties for many workouts to come.

7. Don’t cook your clothes.
Setting the dryer to tumble-dry low is usually your best bet with workout gear. Even better: Consider line-drying outside. These approaches prevent you from drying out spandex, Lycra and other similar fibers.

8. Don’t submerge your kicks.
Unless you’re ready to turn your workout footwear into lawn-mowing shoes, don’t put them in the washing machine. You can degrade the midsole cushioning and render them less protective when it comes to pavement pounding and other active endeavors.

9. Do read the label.
Performance fabrics often require special care beyond these do’s and don’ts. Always check the label to ensure you’re maintaining the integrity of the performance fibers and any special attributes, like UPF, anti-odor or compression.

This pic says it all. Actually I will add to it. Lifting weights makes men & women huge? …

That’s right. By most accounts when some of you talk to a trainer they’ll tell you you’re not eating enough. They’ll say, do the workout I tell you. Eat 5 to 8 meals a day, reduce the portions. This will speed your metabolism and voila! WRONNNNGGGG!!!!

Like I’ve mentioned before, all these models including the one on here, train super hard but they all have their macros (nutritional breakdowns) down to a science. Most clients that are not in fitness tell me they don’t want to get big. They want to shed fat and tone up. Regardless of your goals, you will still train very hard! Unless you want to continuously train and see only minor results.