Stolle HealthStyle

Pushing the Running Envelope

Thankfully, this has not been one of the hot, muggy, humid summers we've had 
in past years.  So I've been able to keep to my running schedule 
pretty easily, 3-4 times a week, around 8 in the morning. I've been 
increasing my distance about a half mile (ten blocks in my 
neighborhood) each week, and my times are noticeably shorter than they 
were at the beginning of the summer.

On my running days, my morning begins with a set of sun salutations 
and a lot of calf, quad and hamstring stretches.  I used to hate the 
stretching -- I found it painful and boring -- but now I've come to 
enjoy the increased flexibility in my legs and the release of tension 
all over my body.

I follow up my stretching with a great reward, a fresh fruit smoothie, 
a different mix every day.  While the fruit may change from one day to 
the next, the "star" of the smoothie remains the same: a scoop of 
RecovSport I blend into the mix. Both my speed and my endurance have 
improved with RecovSport.  Plus, I'm no longer exhausted at the end of 
my run.

But I think the most noticeable change for me is  the  reduction of 
the charlie horse in my quads and calves.  That's why I used to have 
to make my runs  every other day, instead of seven days a week.  I 
always needed that one day to recover.

But now, come to think of it, I think I'll now be able to increase my 
runs to 4-5 times a week. Maybe more...  After all, pushing the 
running "envelope" is the best way to improve.

--Madison

Smart Food

My belly hurts ☹. I ate to many sweets it seems. I had chocolate covered raspberries, a creamy peach smoothie, and red plum juice. I think I may have gone a little overboard with sweetness. This is honestly the worst feeling I’ve ever had. I’ve got a delicious wrap and white cheddar popcorn to eat but I can’t even look at the food with a disgusted grimace due to my belly’s ill nature. What to do, woe is me.

My wellness tip for today:

Mind the gap…. In your belly that is. There are few things worse than self-induced food poison. So don’t push it. Chocolates are a great pick me up snack but I’ve come to realize don’t belong anywhere near a meal. You would do well to sit and watch some Top Chef, take notes on which foods go with which, study up on your wine knowledge.

Most of all don’t overdo it. Hunger is purely psychological in most cases. Hunger only really sets in with a good 3-5 days of non-eating. Eat enough to enjoy food, not to stuff your face.

My mother always told me that my eyes are bigger than my stomach. I think she is proven right yet again.

Peace, Music, Wellness,

-Eliott

Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate!

I know summer is finally here when the spring showers give way to sun, sun, and some more sun. But I see too many people overcompensating for the extra sunlight by over watering their gardens.

My garden, which has yet to see the fruits – the tomatoes – of my labor, has been suffering from the exhaustive summer heat. Instead of turning on the sprinkler two or three times a day, I fill up my water can and get to work making sure they get just the right amount, even if that means I have to check on it multiple times throughout the day.

After a hot day out in the garden, I always make sure to hydrate myself too. I’m sure some of you have experienced this. After too much exercise or sun exposure, your body is dehydrated but doesn’t want to drink water. During those times, I know it is crucial for me to replenish my thirst but my body physically rejects it when I drink water. So I usually make a sweet fruit shake (of course with my daily dose of Micosamine) or anything that is palatable to me.

My husband tells me that he thinks I haven’t aged since the first time we met. While I do think that my husband is too sweet to a fault, I know that my skin has never felt any better. This is because I always make sure I stay hydrated.

So while we get tempted to bare all for the warmer weather, we should be responsible and make sure we drink plenty of fluids. Especially during the summer, our bodies lose a lot of our nutrients and I make sure I stay healthy and strong by creating delicious summer drinks and mixing it with my favorite supplement.

Keep healthy!

--Stella

Meaty Wednesday

So I tried out the vegetarian thing, you know the phase where you wake up disgusted with yourself. The only culprit you can blame is the meat, that dirty scapegoat. Sure, you hear about your friends who only eat soy and greens and never cramp up. Their stamina is better and they feel more agile and flexible. Then the next time you eat meat you mentally fixate on how its slowing down your body processes. Then you start to question your whole routine. When did meat suddenly become unacceptable? Why do we eat three meals a day? Our ancestors probably only ate when they were hungry, but they ate meat. Then more than anything you feel like a self consumed Americana, unable to stop your unhealthy obsession.

So yea, I tried to be a vegetarian. Lasted only a week; I crashed during breakfast no less. Eggs without bacon is like… Christmas without Santa, the Chicken without the Egg, Forrest without Jenny. Then I thought back to Benjamin Franklin, he was a vegetarian for a short while but relished in the fact that he could choose to eat meat when he wanted. And he did, when he was tempted by a most delectable fish. Well, I was tempted by the crispest smokiest bacon ever created. And it was damn well good. I realized you eat what you eat, everyone’s body is different. Me? I happen to enjoy a good steak and I’m not going to suffer for that.
In the spirit of consistency regarding my interpellation of you all…

What do you guys think of your body’s feeling in terms of eating meat vs. vegetarianism?

Peace, Music, Love,

--Eliott

Walk It Out

During the summer, I usually get a bit lazy and don’t go to the gym as often as I should. While I’m at school, I can stay fit and healthy by going to the gym with my friends and playing lacrosse, but it is harder to psyche myself up to do that at home.
Honestly if I didn’t have to do it for lacrosse, I wouldn’t run. I really don’t like running, especially if I’m not doing it for a game.
The other day I read that walking is actually better for your heart than running because it helps trim our body fat more efficiently. So now I’ve started walking. It is a lot more fun than running because I can really enjoy the beautiful weather, listen to my Ipod and even take my dog with me.
I think walking is a really great way to help maintain a healthy and active lifestyle and get in tune with our bodies. And to make sure I don’t wake up sore the next morning, I squat and do lounges to help stretch out my muscles. I also walk at least 4 hours before I sleep so that it doesn’t affect my sleeping cycle. After I walk, I even treat myself to a low-fat vanilla pudding with of course my favorite, RECOVSPORT. I hope to keep walking all summer long!

xo, Katelyn

Sunny Delight

When the weather gets warm, I love enjoying my meals outside in the sun. Of course, I make sure I wear my favorite sunhat and sunscreen, but the sun does wonders for my complexion. It really brings out the blue in my eyes.   

The other day, I set up a picnic blanket in the middle of my garden and enjoyed fresh sweet peas right off the vine.

I think it is really important to take some time to unwind and relax. My favorite way is to do it in nature. It is absolutely wonderful to be able to hear nothing but the birds chirping and the wind passing through the fields.

Although sunlight can be very damaging, a healthy amount of sun exposure actually benefits our mood. Usually after I garden early in the morning, I take a long break and eat a delicious lunch of cucumber dill sandwiches (fresh from my garden) out in the sun.

After lunch, I head back into the house for a refreshing drink. Since my knees still hurt, I take my Micosamine supplement and wash it down with an icy-cold strawberry and mango smoothie to get energized. Now, Stella’s ready for the rest of the day!

So I encourage all of you to try it. Take some time out in the sun to enjoy yourself and the nature around you. It’s good for your spirits and good for your health!

--Stella

Downward Dog Days of Summer

After surviving a day at work, I really needed a way to catch my breath and relax. I tried the go home, turn on the TV, get in front of TV, microwave some nachos and watch and eat until I fall asleep routine, but honestly that’s not cutting it for me anymore. It makes me even more miserable the next day.

Then one day my mom called me, all bright and cheery from her daily morning yoga routine. Her positive attitude really made me even more depressed. She kept telling me about how I need to try yoga and that yoga has changed her life. I stopped listening and put the phone down while I munched on some potato chips. Then I realized what have I got to lose? So I got my lazy butt to one of the most highly rated yoga workshops in the city after work one day.

The class started off with some beautiful leggy girls in leotards and spandex doing breathing exercises. I couldn’t concentrate. I felt so out of place. Then our instructor, a mid-thirties health food junkie, who actually resembled Madonna, wanted to do some advanced yoga and Pilates. We started off in a lotus position and worked our way to a downward dog. Oh my goodness. I guess from sitting in an office all day, my muscles were not ready for that kind of workout. I came home aching, shaking and positively hurting from my first day of yoga. My instructor told me I should not have over exerted myself and gone to an advanced class. Oops!

I came home and made a fruit smoothie and took some of my RECOVSPORT powder and mixed it in. But one thing is for sure, yoga really did help me relax and clear my mind from work. Maybe I’ll try it again next week, but I’m bringing my supply of RECOVSPORT with me.

Recipes for a Fun Fit Summer

So it’s been almost two weeks since my last post and I’m finally getting back to a healthier diet! I made my dad throw out his chocolates (or at least get them out of my sight) and made my family replace the soda for diet versions or juice. The biggest challenge I had was transitioning from being busy all day to having nothing to do. It really made me crave snacks and I would finish a bag of chips while watching TV, without even realizing what I was doing. Anyways, I have been experimenting with different foods and drinks I can include in my diet and these are the ones that work best for me. They taste great and are really refreshing for the summer, but most importantly, they keep my cravings under control. Now, I always make sure I eat breakfast so that I can keep my metabolism running throughout the day. I hope you enjoy my recipe!

Katelyn’s Favorite Summer Treat

½ cup Passion-Fruit juice

1 cup pineapple sherbet

2 cups mango, sliced

2 cups ice

¼ cup raspberries

2 scoop Stolle Recovsport Powder

Combine all ingredients into a blender. Blend until ice and mango have been crushed. Pour mixture into cups and garnish with a few raspberries. Share and enjoy with friends!

I've got the Itis

So my tendonitis has started to act up again. I guess I have to start taking better care of my fitness. I started doing wrist exercises and videotaping myself playing. I’ve checked a couple “good” technique websites to try and discover the flaw in my positioning but I couldn’t find one that looks right. Let’s face it, music is all about breaking down structure anyway right! But seriously, I need to fix something with my mechanics. Can any of you guitar players out there offer me up some advice?

Stella told me to take a break from guitar and start running more and get my whole body in better shape. I don’t really enjoy running (it’s basically the punishment in all team sports) but I’ve been playing some pick up games of basketball. I find it that basketball is one of the best workouts around because, like swimming, you use all of your muscles.

Speaking of basketball, GO LAKERS!! Kobe Bryant has to stop breaking my heart and win out the rest of this series.

Peace, wellness, and music,
-Eliott

An Appreciation of Lettuce

A few months ago, I ate a truly amazing salad consisting of simply lettuce and olive oil, at Alice Waters' Chez Panisse restaurant in Berkeley, California. The butter lettuce that the cafe used was so smooth and tasty!

Inspired by that salad, I decided to grow my own lettuce. Well, this weekend I reaped the benefits of my decision. The lettuce was so crisp, so full of flavor - I couldn't believe it was actually from my own garden! Excuse me if I'm over-romanticizing a leaf of lettuce, but a whole new world opened up for me after I ate it. It was as if I tasted real lettuce for the first time in my life.

It's amazing how the littlest things in life, like tasting a really great vegetable, can increase your happiness. Feeling up to the challenge after the success of my lettuce, I spent the entire weekend working in my garden, battling the soil, heat, and mosquitoes. But it was all worth it.  Looking out my kitchen window, I no longer see empty dirt. Now, the sprouts of parsley, arugula, spinach, eggplant, and zucchini bring my backyard back to life.

I also got a thrilling upper body workout on Sunday, when I decided mid-morning to make a shade garden. This required me to dig up and overturn all the soil - with an axe! I'm feeling sore today, but seeing the newest addition to my backyard is so rewarding.

So folks, lettuce and homegrown vegetables are the way to go. Trust me, after one bite of a tomato or leaf of lettuce from your own garden, you'll never go back to store bought produce!

--Stella