Snowboarding - Read All About It

While surfing the Internet to find my social bookmarking soul mate I discovered one thing – The Internet is full of lots of junk which I don’t care to waste my time reading.  I figured that I would be able to find someone who shared my wide range of interests.  However, I continued to be disappointed reading one pointless article after another.  After browsing Reddit for awhile, I came across snowboardingdays.com (a blog all about snowboarding).  Finally, a site worth staying on for more than 30 seconds!  This site had tags for any topic relating to snowboarding. I could stay on this blog for hours because it truly captures every aspect of what a snowboarder wants to read and look at.

Scrolling through the site, I was amazed at the photos taken all around the world.  The site was up-to-date on current events happening in the sport, including discussion topics about the latest Winter X-Games.  It had tags linked to snowboarding apparel, team riders, and new terrain parks being built.  Although the site linked to about 30-40 topics within snowboarding, the material could have been organized better.  I didn’t mind because each post was interesting to view.  If you are looking for a specific piece, you may have to do some searching.

I am not exactly sure if you could call Iksandi Lojaya, the writer of the blog, my soul mate, but at least he made a common interest between us appealing to read.  If my social bookmarking soul mate had to be picked from one of my interest (snowboarding), it would definitely be this guy.

http://www.snowboardingdays.com/

The Gluten Free Craze

People seem to always be jumping onboard the newest health craze.  In a society so concerned with appearance, people constantly look for the latest trend to get them into shape.  Many of these fads go away and people discover they are not true.  However, some health trends get backed by research and are part of our lives today. 

A popular health trend in our culture today seems to be all about going “gluten free.”  Gluten is a term used for a family of proteins containing wheat, barley, and rye.  The gluten itself can be found in the seeds of these nutritional sources.  In the past, people who were restricted to eating gluten free foods were people with Celiac disease.  This disease affects about 1% of the population.  Now, new claims are being made which state it is possible to be “gluten sensitive.”  Based on little evidence, approximately 6% of the population is gluten sensitive.  When patients are diagnosed as being gluten sensitive, they are instructed to follow a gluten free diet and see if they feel better.  In the past year, I have had a couple of close friends who tell me they have been diagnosed as gluten sensitive.  At first, I was convinced it was an actual disease, but over time, I became more skeptical.  I couldn’t understand how most of their diet consisted to gluten free food, but they would order an occasional burrito or burger when we would go out to eat.  The facts didn’t add up to me.

A couple months ago, the Diane Rehm Show brought in a group of six experts, including doctors and registered nutritionist to talk about the new gluten free craze.  To confirm my previous skepticism, every expert claimed “gluten sensitivity” to be a fad except one.  For the one who thought it was an actual disease, he gave a vague argument and agreed that there is no way to test if it exists.  According to these experts, most people are undergoing a placebo effect and have the ability to pretty much self-diagnose themselves.  In most cases, it’s a fact of a person just eating healthier and improving their diet.

Think about it – If your daily diet consists of bad carbs such as pizza, pasta, bagels and burritos, and you cut those out of your diet, you will probably feel better because you are replacing them with other food groups which have nutritional value.   Is it possible that being “gluten sensitive” could one day be an actual diagnosis? Possibly.  But as of right now, there isn’t any scientific data or evidence for it to hold true.  This is a fad that will pass with time.

The Cold/Flu Dilemma

Unfortunately, over the past week, I caught the bug that has been getting everyone sick around USC.  No one likes being sick and I wanted to get better as soon as possible.  Only a day or two into my sickness, a friend called me up and convinced me to go to the gym with him.  Although my body felt much weaker than normal, I was determined to get a high intensity workout in for the day.  While at the gym, I didn’t feel too bad, especially with my friend there to push me every step of the way.  Boy, did I pay the price later on.  Later that night, my cold became much worse and my fever spiked.  Laying on my couch in misery, I was mad at myself for pushing myself too hard and worsening the sickness I already had.  Instead of continuing to beat myself up about the matter, I decided to research what physical activity can be done while sick, if any.

Excising when sick turns out to not be that bad for you after all.  In fact, it can actually help you recover faster.  You just have to be smart about it.  I found a good rule to go by is whether your symptoms are above or below your neck.  What do I mean by this?  When symptoms are above your neck such as sneezing, scratchy throat, or runny nose, you are generally cleared to do moderate-intensity workouts.  This does not mean trying to break your personal record on the treadmill.

When shouldn’t you workout? – When symptoms are below your neck, meaning chest congestion, muscle aches, or chills.  Hydration is so important when getting over a sickness.  By excising with your body at high temperatures, you risk reaching a point of dehydration.  Also, if your body feels any of these “below the neck” symptoms, your immune system is incredibly weak.  By doing high-intensity aerobic training or heavy lifting, you are breaking it down even further.

Most importantly, listen to your body.  Don’t be an idiot! If you can fry an egg on your forehead because your fever is so high, you probably shouldn’t go to the gym.  Taking two days off from your workout routine, could save you from taking two weeks off down the line.  And don’t worry, the gym will still be there when you get better.

Exercising and Time Management

The biggest excuse I hear from friends and peers for why they don’t exercise is - “I don’t have time.”  No matter how difficult your major is, or how much time your internship takes up each week, everyone can make time to get in at least a few days of exercise each week.  Throughout my four years in college, I have found that by taking the time to exercise regularly gives me a clearer state of mind and more energy throughout the day.  To accomplish this, time management is crucial.  When everyone first gets to college, they are given the freedom to manage their free time however they like.  Once in college, you no longer have parents telling you how to manage your time.  You are in control!  Here are some easy tips that I have used to managed my time and stay motivated:

1.       Scheduling class times - Arranging your classes with the right kinds of gaps in the day leaves time open to get to the gym or go on a run.  Personally, I like to have open schedules in the morning to get the workout out of the way early.

2.        Set goals – By setting goals for yourself, you will know what it is going to take to reach them.  One example would be making a pact to exercise at least 4 days a week for just one hour.

3.       Workout with friends - Exercising with friends can increase motivation.  If you can, try to go to the gym with friends who are knowledgeable about certain exercises and share similar goals.  

4.       Sign up for an exercise class that is a real class – USC and many other colleges offer fitness classes that go towards school credit.  This way, you are forced to exercise and can get extra elective units out of the way.

Snacks on Snacks

As college students, we are constantly trying to keep up with school work, clubs, and social life.  Because of this, it is a constant battle to stay energized throughout the day.  To many of us, the answer to staying awake is to drink lots and lots of caffeine which isn’t always the healthiest option for your body.  Believe it or not, but the food and snacks you eat throughout the day can have an impact on your energy levels.  By breaking old habits of snacking on chips or processed foods to satisfy your hunger, you will be able to concentrate better in class and have a clearer mindset.

Snacking throughout the day also helps with your metabolism, if it is the right kinds of snacks.  Studies have shown that by eating a nutritious snack between 2:00pm and 4:00pm, you can avoid the dreaded “4 o’clock” feeling.   A misconception by many people is that snacking is bad and you are taking in more calories.  Starving yourself is terrible for weight loss! You are confusing your metabolism when you don’t eat and it slows down when you end up eating a bigger meal.  TRUE – you are taking in more calories, but often times, this leads to overeating during meals later on.   Instead, it is best to snack throughout the day and eat smaller meals, giving you even amounts of energy throughout the day.

Coming from someone who does make an effort to snack regularly, trust me, it works.  In the last couple years, I have made these changes to my diet and have noticed an improvement in my productivity levels.  Snacking on a regular basis has also helped me cut back significantly on my coffee intake.