May the Fourth be with You

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Happy May the 4th internet lovers of all things Star Wars!! Have you brushed up on your Star Wars knowledge or re-watched the movies recently? I have been watching A LOT of those wonderful YouTube videos of kids watching the infamous, "I am your father" moment. Sometimes they are hilarious, sometimes they are borderline sad, and sometimes they are just so cute! For me, there was no "oh my gosh" moment, a kid from school spoiled it for me long before it was socially unacceptable to spoil a movie. I still have harsh feelings towards that kid, maybe a therapist will help me get through it someday. 

But, back to the 4th, this article is a must read for every Star Wars lover, nay, breathing person out there. It takes a cold, hard look at what that simple line was saying, must we be doomed to follow in our parents footsteps? Have their same success and their same failures? Or, can we really, truly become our own person? 

This is such a great question and one that, honestly, plagues a great many people in the world today. And, Steve over at Nerd Fitness tackles it beautifully! 

Happy Monday and May the Fourth be with You!! 

A Common Sense Way to Loose Weight

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Believe it or not, but I have been searching for a common sense way to loose some pounds and keep them off. You see, over the summer a packed on over ten pounds and it has taken me to March to get it all off. Where is came from, what I did to get it, and why it took soooo long to get off is an honest mystery to me. Before summer I was already five pounds heavier than my "comfort zone" weight, so adding another ten pounds to that was not something normal. It was also the heaviest I have ever been.

That being said, the idea of just loosing it all (plus a few of the 5 lb's extra, thank you ;)) to simply bulk back up while race training sounded AWFUL. But then, I was listening to the Mickey Miles podcast with listener questions with Fitz Koelher and she said something so simple it was like a punch in the face. Her insanely easy method for not bulking and helping people loose weight without yo-yo dieting is to take your ideal weight and tack a zero on the end. That number, my friends, is your total calorie count for the day.

Whaattt?!?! I know.

Fitz says that the average calorie expenditure for usual activities is 10 calories. With that in mind, it makes sense that we would only need our target body weight, times ten. With this simple number, Fitz has found people to be able to slowly and safely bring their body's down to only needing that much energy... I like to think of it as a goldfish- they will only grow as big as their space will allow them. Likewise, our bodies will only grow as far as we feed/energize them.

But then, I had a few questions...

1. What should these calories be?
2. What about workouts? I cannot guarantee anyone's safety when I am hangry and working out+ low cal could make for a very hangry Jenni. 
3. Is using your name in the third person acceptable? Is it a sign of oncoming hanger?
4. What if I have a fast or slow metabolism?

Thankfully, Fitz went over most of these questions, in detail, on her website. You can read the full explanation here. My shortened version is below :)

1. Any diet should be well rounded and consist of lean meats, fruits, veggies, and healthy carbs and fat. This is not exactly the super fun town of eating, but who said being healthy means we get to eat fried chicken for breakfast daily? You know who, no one. ever. And, of course, we are in control of our diets, so we can decide when to cheat and when not. Hello adulthood, I will have that small fry. JK! Kind of.
2. Workouts should not increase your calorie count unless you are running 10-20 miles or doing the equivalent with some other workout. We do not need those extra calories and, if anything, will find those lb's come off faster if we do not supplement the calories lost during a workout. Keep in mind that a) you should not have an unhealthy number that your body cannot live on anyway and b) most workouts will burn between 200-500 calories an hour. Not quite bracket breaking. Also, eating lean proteins and a mix of proteins and healthy carbs after a workout will help you be satiated for longer. So maybe we won't actually break walls in a hangry rage!
3. Every body is different. Fitz recommends playing with the system a bit. If you are finding that weight is just falling off at an unhealthy rate or your are lethargic during the day, you probably have a fast metabolic rate and need to add on a few calories. If nothing seems to be changing, you may have a slower metabolic rate and need to reduce those calories a bit  more. Simple enough, now for the doing!

Please let me know if you are trying this and if it seems to be working for you. I have been trying this method for about a week now and, so far, are liking the results a bunch!

Your Next Marathon- From Netflix

Has anyone else fallen in love with Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt? The hubs told me I needed to watch it and now, I have finished the first season in a week's time. I also cannot get that beginning song out of my head- "Unbreakable. Their alive, Kelly. It's a miracle!!"

The show was created as a Netflix original by everyone's favorite funny lady, Tina Fey. It stars Ellie Kemper (the red head from The Office), Jane Krakowski (30 Rock), and Tituss Burgess. oh ya, and Carol Kane. Whaatttt?! This show is one of the funniest and most uplifting shows out there right now. You will laugh, you may cry, but you will definitely finish it feeling better than when you started. I also simply love Krakowski's character- but who does not love the resident vapid girl, am I right? No really, am I the only one out there that loves those mean/brutally honest/self obsessed characters?? They are just so fun to watch!

Anyway, getting back on track, this show is wonderful. It has some pretty surprising guest appearances and a really great message. If you have not watched it yet, clear your schedule, I think you just made new plans for this weekend ;)

And remember, females are strong as Hell.

How to Keep and Orchid Alive- and Blooming!

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This may seem like an odd topic for a health and fitness blog, but house plants are proven to increase one's mood and outlook on life. That is, if we can actually keep them alive long enough and not have to slowly watch them shrivel and die. Enter the orchid. Probably, the most thrown away house plant once Easter and spring are over and all those beautiful blooms have fallen.

Thankfully, orchids are really not that hard to keep alive or to keep blooming. Follow a few super simple steps and, chances are, your orchid will be healthy and blooming for years to come! These little fixes have worked for me for years. And now, I have had random people/family/friends who come by ask me how to keep orchids alive. Well, after running through these simple steps so many times, it just made sense to write them down and share them with you. Let's go!

1. Location

Orchids can be fickle little things and having a good location can mean the difference between life and death. For real. To keep your orchid baby alive and blooming (blooming being the key word),  it is best to keep them in a shaded area where they will get mild afternoon sun. Most house orchids like being slightly away from a window with blinds. Direct sunlight is no good.

If your orchid gets brown blotches on it's leaves, that is an orchid sunburn and a sign that it is in too much sun for too long. Direct sunlight is no good. Too little light and your orchid will have dark green leaves- this will not have an easy time re-blooming. A happy orchid should have bright green leaves with no dark brown spots.

2. Feeding

Orchids are super easy to feed, all you have to do is remember! Strange, but orchids LOVE ice cubes. I give each of mine 2-3 ice cubes once a week to keep them happy. This also increases growth and regeneration to make sure they keep blooming year after blooming year (get it, get it??!). Puns aside, orchids should be watered once to twice a week. I give mine about half a cup of water once a week and some ice cubes a few days later as the second watering. If you are seeing lots of water in the catch dish for days at a time, you are probably watering a bit too much.

3. Pruning and Cleaning

This is the most important part of the whole deal. Potting and pruning will mean the difference of an orchid that lives but never blooms and an orchid that blooms annually. If you do this right, your orchid will probably stay in bloom for 5+ months every year!!!

Pruning

An orchid grows by first, having a shoot that produces blooms, then, growing more leaves. Once the last bloom falls, the shoot is no longer necessary and is taking needed nutrients away from the leaves. It is best to cut the shoot a few inches above the base and place some cinnamon on the cut end. The cinnamon cauterizes the wound, so to speak. Give it a few days to heal, then re-pot your orchid and prune some more- but this time, we will be pruning the roots.

Cleaning

The goal of this process is to clean up the roots, check for health signs, and give your orchid more nutrients and space. Like a car, the health of your orchid can only be checked by going underneath. The roots will show you if there is over watering (they will be gooey and white), under watering (they will look dry and shriveled), and if it needs a bigger space (everything just looks packed). 

Once your orchid shoot is cut and healing, you can delicately take it out of it's pot. Chances are, you will need a bigger pot, especially if this is your first time re-potting it. I take my orchid out of it's pot over the sink with the stopper in. It is best to have some water running and clean the roots off. Some wood pieces or moss may get stuck in the orchid roots, be sure to gently remove these.

After the orchid has been cleaned, get your gardening or kitchen scissors (something sharp) to cut away the dead parts of the roots. Dead roots will brown, white and soggy, or black. Be sure to only cut these away. Living, healthy roots will look green and feel sturdy. The living roots are needed to keep the plant healthy. Be gentle and make sure not to break any of the healthy orchid roots. This can be a bit more of a task than it sounds, especially if your roots are packed tight together!

After pruning, I let my orchid sit under running water for a few minutes. This helps get rid of any extra debris and lets them aerate a bit. Then, comes the re-potting!

4. Re-Potting

Depending on how much root you cut away, you may need a bigger pot. The best way to tell if you need a bigger pot is to place the orchid about half to 3/4 of the way down in it's old pot; if roots can be seen over the edge or your are having to push it in at all, you need a bigger pot. If the roots seem to have plenty of room (about an inch between the edge of the pot and the orchid roots) and are not coming up over the sides, you can continue using the pot you have.

Orchid mixes are the simplest thing to use for re-potting your orchid. DO NOT use the old potting mix or regular soil. Orchids needs lots of air, nutrients, and very little water retention. Using regular soil will drown your orchid and using the old potting mix will not give it the nutrients it needs.

Fill the bottom of your pot about 1/4 the way full of the orchid potting mix. Place your orchid in the pot and, slowly, continue filling with potting mix. Be sure that the mix gets between all of the roots. Fill so no roots are showing through the potting mix.

If you really want to go above and beyond, add some packing peanuts to the potting mix. Orchids love packing peanuts as much as they love ice. This will help your orchid stay health and blooming!

Finally, give your orchid some water and place it back in it's happy sun spot. You should have some new leaves start to grow in (1-2 of the old ones may die) and a new shoot begin to form in about 4 months.