Staying Connected

Today is a big day!

This is my first time attending and I am looking forward to meeting 200+ social media savvy women for two days of learning, sharing and networking.

Four Ways to Stay Fit this Fall

Say that 10 times fast ;)

Fall is one of my favourite times of the year.  Yes, the days are a little bit shorter, but the weather is (usually) lovely and the foliage is amazing.

Here are are four ways for you to enjoy the season and get healthy at the same time (bonus!)

Source

Have Fun, Find Joy

Yesterday, I went on an adventure.

My friend, Tina got us a few tickets to sit in the audience of Cityline.  Here we are with the lovely host, Tracy (such a great name ;).

Chocolate Peppermint Latte (Not Pumpkin Spice)

Fall is finally upon us and I have to say, I love it.  It is the time of year for warm days and cool nights.  Perfect.

It is also the time of year when many blogs start to fill up with recipes that include all things pumpkin.  Pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cookies and pumpkin lattes.

My 3 Favourite Blogs for Moms (By Moms)

It has been a few weeks since I have featured some of my favourite bloggers on a Friday and I think it is time that I show some love :)

Since I train quite a few clients who are busy moms (or moms-to-be), I have been finding myself venturing into new blog territory and reading stories about women who manage to stay fit while juggling work and a family.

I have just recently starting reading all three of these blogs and I have to tell you, whether you are a mom or not, these ladies are determined, fun and inspirational.

Why I (Temporarily) Broke Up With Running

I actually hit the streets yesterday and went for a run.

I absolutely love the fall weather for exercising outside.

If you have been following my little blog (or Dailymile, Twitter or FB), you may have noticed that my walks/runs were becoming fewer and far between.

I have just found in the last few months that I haven't had the passion for running (as I mentioned in my post about Changing Your Exercise Routine).  I have just been interested in doing other things like swimming and Turbo Fire.  Over the course of a year, I went from walking everyday to maybe once a week.

Guest Post:Certification in the Fitness Industry, Part 4, NASM

It has been many months since the last installment in this series and I am thrilled that my friend Suzanne @ Workout Nirvana (a newly certified personal trainner - way to go, Suzanne!) has stopped by to talk about her experience with The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM). Take it away, Suzanne...

I’ve always admired and respected personal trainers. I never imagined I’d be one until about a year ago, when the thought first crossed my mind. 

My blog and online fitness community has buoyed me from being passionate about weight lifting and health to actually becoming certified as a personal trainer. A change in careers was the last thing I thought I would be doing at this point in my life. But with an endless reservoir of knowledge, support, and motivation at my fingertips, I finally made started the wheels turning.

My first step would be to find a certifying organization - ACSM, NASM, ACE, and ISSA are a few reputable ones I looked into. I relied on word of mouth, mostly – which were well-respected certifications? What were the curriculums and exams like? What did employers think about them? Since I didn’t have a degree in exercise science, I knew I wanted a certification that would be challenging and reputable yet not too frustrating.

Passport to Prana: MiraVena Yoga

Hot yoga.

My body was screaming for the heat, the stretching and the sweat. A perfect opportunity to use my Passport to Prana again :)

You may remember my adventure in the spring when I sampled Mystic Pointe Yoga.  Well on Sunday, I ventured to MiraVena Yoga in Mississauga and took the Hatha Flow Class.

Recipe Makeover: Sour Cream Coffee Cake

I heart coffee cake.

Jenna @ Eat, Live Run posted the most scrumptious looking recipe and I knew I had to try to make a lightened up version.

My 3 Favourite Fitness Trackers

 It is a sunny, but chilly Friday here in Toronto.  I really love fall weather, lets hope it sticks around for a while ;)

My favourites today include some of the online tools you can use to stay motivated, track your workout progress and inspire you with exercise and nutrition ideas.

Even though I have adapted a different approach to goal setting and exercise, I still find it very helpful to track my workouts.  I also like to share my exercise successes with others and so should you!  Be proud of what you accomplish and don't be afraid to let everyone know about it.

Here are three of my favourites (and they are all free.)

Crazy Fitness Gimmicks: What Were They Thinking?

It has been a while since I have scoured the Internet in search of the latest and greatest exercise gimmicks and my search did not disappoint.

Not surprisingly, I found many crazy contraptions and fantastical promises.  So today, I share with you three more fitness gimmicks in a post I have appropriately titled "What Were They Thinking".

Exercise Review: Stott Pilates with Props, Vol. 1

It has been quite some time since I have done a DVD review and as much as I love Turbo Fire (and am lukewarm about P90X :), I thought that you would love to hear about something new!

Move of the Month: Runner's Lunge

I chose the runner's lunge this month because it is a fantastic exercise that targets your entire lower body and with some added weights, your shoulders and arms.  Here are some points to keep in mind:

• If you are new to exercise, don't step as far back or lunge as deeply, eliminate the weights and/or bring the toe to the floor instead of raising the knee
• Keep your shoulders relaxed and over your hips with abdominals tights
• Increase the intensity by dropping your knee down to the floor and/or using heavier weights

CanFitPro Workshop Highlights: Little Lotus Yoga

Hope you had a great weekend.  It was sunny here in Toronto and fingers crossed that is going to stick around for a while :)

It's time to feature yet another fantastic workshop that I attended at the CanFitPro Fitness Conference in August and let me tell you, I was really excited about this one!

My 3 Favourite Mind-Body Books

Thanks so much for your feedback about my last post about commenting and blogs, keep it coming (no pressure:)

I know that I worked-in last week, but I today I wanted to feature a few of my favourite mind-body reads.  These books have been on my shelf for many years and I find myself constantly using them as a resource, not only for my own practice, but to help me with my classes and clients.

How Important Are Comments On Your Blog?

 This post was inspired by some fellow bloggers who recently posted on the topic of commenting and readership in general. 

Lindsay @ Cotter Crunch talked about how bloggers feel the need to constantly post, read and comment and how you can feel guilty if you can't keep up.

Sam @ Health, Happiness and Skinny Jeans noted how easy it is is to get wrapped up in the numbers (how many people comment, read your blog and so on.)

Tina @ Fath, Fitnesss and Fun mentioned that building real relationships is the goal of her blog, not to continually increase her reader numbers and comments.

Recipe Makeover: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Brownies

I really had a craving from some brownies over the weekend.  I have madeover brownies before, but I was looking for something different.

I stumbled across a new recipe and truth be told, they are pretty madeover on their own.  Low in fat and under 100 calories per serving so I was ready to make them just the way they were and share them with you.

CanFitPro Workshop Highlights: Post-Partum Planning

Happy First Day of School!

I can't believe it has been two years since I decided to go back.  I am pretty sure time speeds up when you get older ;)

You may remember that I worked-in last week, giving my body a rest from intense exercise and sticking to activities like yoga, walking and pilates.  I am still finding myself a bit tired this week and I think I am going to ease back into my regular routine.  Not sure if my body is quite ready for Turbo Fire just yet ;)

Today, I am going to share with you the information from another great workshop I attended at the CanFitPro Fitness Conference.

Back-to-School: Continue to Keeps Kids Active

It's Labour Day!

While the kids are desperately trying to hold on the the last moments of summer, the parents are scrambling to make sure that everything is ready for the first day of school.

In honour of the kids (and continuing from last week's post about a few of my favourite resources for kids), I would like to present a quick round-up of posts from around the web to help you and your kids continue to stay active and healthy as the lazy, hazy days of summer give away to the hectic, busy days of autumn.

My 3 Favourite Healthy Resources for Kids

Thank you so much for your fantastic feedback on the new inspiration board (and my Blissdom Canada entry :)  I am so excited about moving forward.

Speaking of moving forward, it is the last long weekend of the summer and it is time to get ready to go back-to-school!  I am sure you are going to hear a grumble or two from the kids, while some parents are doing the dance of joy (remember this ad from Staples?)

Today, I thought it would be fitting for my 3 favourites to be all about the kids.  I really like these sites because they have an endless amount of fun activities, incorporate fitness and nutritional tips and are super easy to navigate.

  

I Want to Go to Blissdom Canada

I am pretty sure I have never blogged twice in one day.

I know what you are thinking, "this must be important!"

Well, it is.

Resolutions Reworked

The beginning of the month can only mean one thing:  Time to get your planning on!

(Remember it is still summer until the end of the month so take advantage of the warm weather...with an outdoor workout, perhaps? :)

I mentioned in my post about finding your inner happiness that I would be tackling my new inspiration board on Saturday, but I had some time yesterday morning and thought it would work perfectly for today's post.

With my new approach to goal setting, having a visual of what I aspire too works much better for me than a list of to-do's.  However, I continue to plan weekly (usually daily) to do what needs to get done.

Without further ado, here is the new board back to back with the one I made in January.