Keep Your Strength With You - Endorphin Warrior

I am so excited to share with you about Endorphin Warrior.  Endorphin Warrior offers jewelry and clothing that is designed for active individuals.  Among their product line is the Warrior Training Bracelet.  These bracelets are made to wear while working out...running, cycling, hiking...whatever your passion is, take your bracelet along with you.  This is a perfect fit for me.  I work out nearly everyday, and as a fitness instructor it's hard for me to accessorize because I am always moving or sweating.  The great people at Endorphin Warrior let me pick out a bracelet to try.  It was very difficult to choose which word I wanted.  From single words like "Relentless" and "Focus" to bracelets to celebrate your training with "13.1" "26.2" among other distances, it was hard to pick just one.  I decided to go with "Strength."  For a bracelet that I will be wearing everyday, while running and teaching and so much more, it will be nice to be reminded that I am strong.
The bracelet is made from natural leather and nickel-plated metal tag that is securely riveted to the leather band.  A snap closure keeps it all in place.
I have been wearing my bracelet for about a week now and I absolutely love it!  I love that I have my own statement piece to wear while working.  I love that I can keep it on while working out.  I LOVE that I can glance down at my wrist for a little pick me up.

After spending time on the website, looking at the different products, I have realized there is something for everyone.  Whether it's a leather bracelet with "Warrior" on it for a Yoga fan, a "Swim Bike Run" cord bracelet for someone training for their first Triathlon, or a "Courage" pendant for someone facing a difficult situation, I feel like Endorphin Warrior is the perfect spot to go to for an inspiring piece of jewelry or apparel to celebrate yourself or someone you love.

Because I love the bracelet so much I have decided to become an Endorphin Warrior affiliate.  This is my first time ever stepping into this world and I am very excited about it.

Endorphin Warrior is sponsoring a giveaway just for Forward From The Heart readers!  One lucky warrior (winner) will receive a Warrior Training bracelet to pick out ANY of the words/phrases you see on the site.  How cool is that?!  Once again, I am going to use Rafflecopter to take and track entries.  Please know that neither Rafflecopter nor I will share your information.  It's only for the sake of tracking entries.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Polar Bear OCD

I went to the zoo for a field trip the other day.  It was the first time I had been to the Kansas City Zoo since they got Nikita the Polar Bear.  He has been there since 2010 and is sort of a big deal in KC.  The first big animal the zoo has gotten in recent years, and his habitat is beautiful.  It is larger than most habitats for Polar Bears and, according to an article from the Kansas City Star, actually exceeds size requirements.  But when you think of the fact that polar bears naturally roam close to 1,000 miles in the wild, any enclosure, no matter how state-of-the-art and eco-friendly, seems small.
When you first walk up to the habitat you see a polar bear swim right up to glass, place his huge paws on the glass and then do a back flop into the water.  "This is great!" I thought.  So fun that the kids got to see him up close.  What luck that we walked up right when he swam by the glass.  I then expected him to swim further away, climb on the rocks to lounge, or go grab a snack.  Instead, the back flop is followed by a turn into the water, a quick hop onto the rocks, another back flop and then an underwater twist to the original spot along the glass.  He makes one big circle, never stopping, rarely pausing.  The same movements of his limbs each time.
Zoo visitors recognize this very quickly.  Listening to the others I heard everything from that he has OCD to it being his way of having fun.  Of course I can relate to OCD so I put that info in my back pocket, snapped  a few pictures, and then got pulled away by my group of energetic 4th graders.   Hours later, after we walked through the entire zoo, we passed Nikita on the way out.  I glanced over to the Polar Bear habitat.  There he was, still circling, still swimming.  Hours had passed yet he was still doing the same repetitive movement, a movement I have never seen while watching any nature specials.  It broke my heart.
So when I got home from the zoo I decided to look into this a bit more.  It turns out I am not the first one to notice this behavior, obviously.  What Nikita has is stereotypic behavior.  It's common in many animals in captivity, especially polar bears, elephants and big cats.  It is sort of like OCD in animals.  It can be caused by many different factors, with boredom, smaller spaces and lack of choices being among them.  With OCD it is often that the person with the disorder feels like they "have" to do the same thing or think the same thought over and over or else something bad will happen.  It is unknown, of course, if this is what is going through Nikita's mind.  But, watching him do the same exact movement over and over, I can't help but reflect on my own struggles with OCD.
"If I don't imagine myself dying a horrible, fiery car-crash death, then I will surely die that way on any road trip I take."
"If I don't step on the manhole cover with my right foot, something bad is going to happen."
Most everyone has a little of this thinking going on, but it's when it takes over your life that it becomes a problem.
Thankfully my OCD/If-Then thinking days are more or less over.  But if Nikita feels that same way I wish I could just put my hands on his shoulders and tell him it's okay to stop swimming.  If he doesn't do that backflip, everything will still be okay.  When I see anyone suffering I naturally want to help.  And while I can't go up to Nikita, hold his hands, and tell him that he will be okay if he stops his nervous swimming cycle, I can tell YOU that.  Do you have anything in your life that you just can't let go of?  If you are plagued by obsessive thinking, you can get better.  Nothing bad will happen based on an action or thought you do or do not take or think.  I promise.

Swim towards the glass

Push off

Back flop into water...repeat.

On the other side of this, I do know that polar bears in the wild are losing their homes at an alarming rate.  I get that a life lived in a lavish enclosure with every health and nutritional need met is much better than being pushed out of existence.  Or is it?  What kind of life are these animals that we are "saving" living?  Please feel free to share your thoughts and observations with me.  I am definitely pro saving endangered species, but bring up behavior disorders and it really gets me thinking.  Maybe I should see if Dr. S will go work with Nikita? :)

Halloween Hangover

Happy November 1st!

What a day Halloween is, huh?  It is SO much fun to watch my kids get dressed up, run around the neighborhood and grab candy.  If you are like me, though, your sweet tooth takes over and you end up grabbing a few too many pieces of candy.

I am going to spend November and December posting tips on how to stay  on track with healthy eating during the holiday season.  I am sure I will mention this nearly every post, but keep this in mind:

One meal, one day, will NOT make you gain weight.

A splurge every now and then is normal.  It's okay.  It's human.  It's when we let that one meal or one day turn into several days or just take over our eating habits all together.
So, you had 20 mini candy bars yesterday plus a cheeseburger from the drive-thru.  Not the best choices, but  lets talk about how, today, you can pull yourself together and get right back on track!

1. Start your day with water.  And continue the day getting plenty of plain, old-fashioned H2O.  Your body needs water to help flush the extra sugar, sodium and chemically goodness from your system.  Drink a full glass before doing anything else and then continue to stay hydrated all day.
2. Don't starve yourself.  It's tempting to think about cutting way back the day after a holiday.  Our bodies may not even feel that hungry after a day of over-indulging.  But depriving yourself now will only lead to more cravings and bingeing later in the day.  Eat small meals and snacks throughout the day.
3. What to eat?  Pick lots of fresh veggies and fruit, along with lean protein and even nuts.  Whole grain bread or crackers.  After all the sugar yesterday your body is bound to crave it today.  Have some berries or a banana to get a natural source of sugar rather than the candy bar counterpart.
4. What about the leftover candy?  The bowl of leftover candy is calling your name.  Your child's trick or treat sack is chasing you around the house.  I get it.  See candy.  Get candy.  Right?  So, banish it.  There are plenty of options for getting candy out of the house.  Have your kids place their trick or treat bags out of site--in the pantry or cupboard--which will be good for you and them.  The leftover bowl of goodies?  Make care packages for local shelters or our troops over seas.  Take it buy your local police or fire station.  Even drop it at your favorite restaurant.  Trust me...servers are always hungry!  I hate being wasteful, but if it comes down to it, just throw it out.
5. Burn those calories!  Take a walk, go to a Pilates class (hint, hint) or do your favorite form of exercise.  You have all of that extra carbalicious energy stored up, so use it!  You may just find that you have a little extra oomph to give to your workout today!