Assessment

Visual Elements

c) Discussion of visual organizational choices created without images.  How did you achieve a distinctive appearance and clear visual identity?    (5 points)

I think this evaluation best fits my blog.  I have multiple photos on my header but only 2 in my blog so far. To create my distinctive appearance I chose Hemingway Rewritten for my theme because visually it is simple, clean, and straight forward. I liked that it allowed for a main picture at the top of the blog without overshadowing the title and tagline. After the blog critique class I tried to edit the size of the title box but could not figure out how.  I do like when you scroll down on my page, the black title box fades away so that the whole image is shown. I chose 7 different pictures to randomly appear behind my title. They illustrate healthy food sources, exercise, and being active in general. Each time the reader changes pages the header picture changes. Readers will get a sense of my blog and my writings just from my title and imagery. My permanent pages are organized as “recipes” and “workouts”.  These are two topics that I will reference a lot in my posts so I wanted to keep them separate. This also allows readers to scroll through each topic individually instead of reading through the posts. My “About” menu has two pages. The first page is my about me section and my disclaimers. The second page is a contact form so that if a reader has a question on any of my posts they can get in contact with me.  In addition to the menu I have a search bar, tag cloud, and category widget to make navigated posts easier.

Extra 5 points can be added to “Organization and Structure” section on the grading rubric.

Holiday (De)Stress

The holidays can bring about a lot of stress (and also weight). Between the cleaning, shopping, parties, cooking/baking, and entertaining, stress can often make you dread the holidays. This post will provide tips, which I try to follow, that will help to minimize stress and let you enjoy the holiday season without hindering your lifestyle.

Don’t abandon healthy habits by letting the holidays become a food-free-for-all. Follow a strict diet between the weeks of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Let’s be honest, we will all indulge on the actual holidays and also when at parties, but acknowledging this and maintaining your diet in between these times will keep you from unwanted weight gain. Focus on lean protein, low fat dairy and high fruit and vegetable consumption. Save all your cheat days for social events and the holidays – you’re going to need them. Be conscious of what days you have events to attend and plan your meals around them so that you eat well the rest of the day. Make sure you eat a healthy snack before going to the party to help protect yourself from over indulging. Be sensible about sweets, cheese, and drinks as these items have high fat, sugar and calorie content.  Following these tips should allow your body to tolerate the indulgences and abstain from weight gain.

I posted one of my favorite vegetable combination of the moment on my recipes page.  It is butternut squash and kale, try to make it this holiday season to improve your vegetable consumption.

Maintain your gym schedule throughout this time. Sticking to your workout program will help maintain your weight, strength and sanity. Regular physical activity decreases anxiety, improves mood and sleep and most of all gives you time to clear your head. Going for a walk is another great way to get fresh air and exercise. This could be made into a family activity by bundling up and walking through the neighborhood to admire the Christmas lights. Another suggestion is finding an activity that gets you out of the house that isn’t centered around eating. I plan on visiting Cape Fear Botanical Gardens in my area. This is a 77 acre garden in Fayetteville, NC, that hangs holiday lights throughout their gardens and is open to walk through at night in December. Finding activities such as the gardens allow you to get out of the house, get some fresh air, and exercise all while enjoying the holiday season.

Hopefully following these tips will allow you to enjoy the holidays without becoming overwhelmed with stress or bogged down by weight gain. Maintaining healthy habits and sticking to your exercise routine will make the holiday season more enjoyable and in the New Year you won’t feel like you have ruined your lifestyle!

Seafood Fra Diavolo

“Fra diavolo” translates to “brother devil”. In other words – spicy! Just 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes generates a lot of spice into this sauce. Add some fresh seafood and your favorite pasta or rice to create a quick, simple, but very delicious meal. I love this recipe because I have most of the ingredients in my pantry and also because it is simple enough to make for a weekday meal but fancy enough to impress guests. This recipe is adapted from http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/shrimp-fra-diavolo-recipe.html. Giada’s recipe is followed closely except for the change of protein.

This dish provides a serving of healthy omega 3 and 6 fatty acids and protein through the seafood and a serving of whole grain carbohydrates (if using whole wheat pasta or brown rice).  Serve with a fresh garden salad to  fulfill a vegetable serving as well.

Seafood Fra Diavolo
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 lb shrimp, peeled and devined*
½ pound scallops*
1 bag of littleneck clams*
1 teaspoon salt, plus additional to taste
1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons plus 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced thin
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 cup dry white wine
3 cloves garlic, chopped
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
*These are the proteins that I used for this batch but it can be altered to your preference

Directions
Cook pasta or rice according to package. I used whole wheat spaghetti, which takes about 8 minutes.

Toss the shrimp in a medium bowl with 1 teaspoon of salt and red pepper flakes. Heat the 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and sauté for about 3 minutes until just cooked through. Transfer the shrimp to plate and set aside. If necessary, add the 1 to 2 additional tablespoons of olive oil to the same pan. Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the can of diced tomatoes with their juices to the pan, along with the wine, garlic, and oregano. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 10 minutes. I usually let the sauce simmer until it reaches the desired flavor I am seeking. At this point add the scallops and clams to the sauce. Allow the scallops to cook through and the clams to open up, about 8 minutes. Return the shrimp to the pan, toss to coat and bring back to temperature. Discard any clams that have not opened. Adjust the seasoning with salt, sprinkle with parsley and serve.

Habit

How do you stay motivated to go to the gym every week?  When people ask me this, one word comes to mind:  HABIT.  Once a workout habit is established, it seems easier to stay with it.

I learned this the hard way the other day, when I twisted a knee while running on a bumpy trail.  It took three weeks for the tenderness and swelling to go away, and there I was, trying to reform the habit of conscious exercise.  This past week I felt sluggish and unmotivated, until my fiancé shared a program he had started.  We went to the gym together and gave it a try, and now I’m back in the habit again.

The program promotes overall athleticism by combining strength and mobility movements into one workout. The creator is Rob Shaul, founder of mountain sport strength and conditioning facility, Mountain Athlete.  Shaul is a strength and conditioning coach, former coastguard and self-confessed gym fanatic.  His following includes everything from mountain climbers, skiers, ultra-marathoners, military members and everyday fitness enthusiasts.  The workout took about an hour to complete. Rob Shaul has invented or nicknamed movements that are often used in his facility so check out the “Mountain Athlete” page on YouTube for instruction on any of the following movements. This is what my workout looked like:

Warm-up

3 Rounds
10x push ups
5x Hinge Lift @ 45# (increasing by 10# each round)
10x air squat
5x pigeon stretch

Training

6 Rounds
5x Hinge Lift (increasing weight each round until 5x is hard but do-able)
2x Box Jumps @ 20”
5x Y+L @ 2.5#
6 Rounds
5x Standing Kettlebell Push Press
5x Renegade Row each arm @ 15#
Instep stretch
6 Rounds
3x Mr. Spectacular @ 15# DB or 8kg Kettlebells
2x Broad Jumps
Foam Roll Lower Back
4 Rounds
15/15/15 second low back complex
15/15 low back lunge
15/15 kneeling founder
15x Face Down Back Extension
2 Rounds
25 Second Jane Fonda

The workout was great; the lifting challenged me while the mobility kept my body limber. The program was just what was needed to give me motivation to get back in the gym and I’m eager to try to the next day. A challenging program like this that incorporates core/hip and strength/durability movements creates a great foundation for an athlete. Give it a try to let me know if it leaves you wanting more.