is now published on SocialMoms Network.

Husband says, “A sedentary lifestlye perpetuautes itself” therefore, crossfit helps me better about myself. I feel like a younger version of myself.

Friend says, to get 1 pull-up.

Another one says, to just get to workout 3-5 times a week.

Another one says, to get a double under…

The list goes on and on…what’s mine? It changes every week!!!! This week it’s to get a muscle up, but in reality, after I get that muscle up, what will be next? I am NOT motivated to get 330 marathon I blew that chance with tendinitis in 2008, and I’ve never wanted to try that again. [To learn more about me and last marathon experience click here}. Since 2008, I’ve earned both a 200 hour yoga training certificate as well as a CrossFit Level 1 certificate. And, as of this writing, my only goals are to see small improvements in my lifts regularly. I don’t really have any long term “Pie in the Sky” goals, really. If I were to truly say something Out Loud, it would be to qualify for the women’s masters division in CrossFit in 2016, but, I’m not even sure that I want that. Right Now, tomorrow, I just want to be a happy mommy with energy to PLAY with My Kids outside everyday. Being the P.E. teacher that is my day job, I just want to sit at the end of the day. Which is kind of sad, I think. I want to have the energy to really play hard with my kids each and everyday. They will remember the play more than the “let me sit here, while you go play”.

As I close this post, I’d like to ask you, what truly motivates you? I can tell you that I get really excited with 5 pound PR’s. I get really excited when I hit a new plateau and when I have time, energy and motivation to ride for 2 hours and then plant new veggies with the boys as our afternoon activity.

Image borrowed from the Genteel

“Late last year, the BBC aired a segment about Toronto’s plentiful and competitive vintage fashion scene, which the BBC noted “is attracting shoppers from all across the world.” Among the profiled was a group of young Canadian designers collectively known as The Deadly Nightshades (The DNS) which runs The Style Spin, a unique bike tour that takes the public on a behind-the-scenes spin around Toronto’s fashion landscape…”

Go Read the Entire Article HERE.

You can read more about The Deadly Nightshades here!

Fun ones, that is!

Very excited to be sporting a new kit from Team Redlands this year. Also, adding that riding 2 + hours at least once a week is one of my 2012 goals, because it’s FUN, not really for exercise!

Read a great cycling story, here.

Read more about women cycling and their huge lack of salary and how some women are trying to change it here.

Get a bike and ride in style with mi alibi, clothing for women cyclists.

“Starting the New Year off on the R.I.G.H.T. Foot” is now live on SocialMoms Network.

I have always been a “gardener”.  In fact, in the old days of early married life, my husband called me a farmer!  I had turned every available space into working gardening space.  I remember tasting Cauliflower from the garden to my mouth and it being the best damned cauliflower I had ever tasted.

Yes, it’s January, and if you don’t live in Southern California or somewhere warmish..planting a garden is the furthest thing from your mind.  But, really, it’s time to make a plan, order some seeds and get them in seed pots.  Why am I pushing gardening on you now when you might have been looking for a food/fitness post? Because, this is my website and I can talk about what interests me…it’s always been about food since it’s earliest days.  We eat tons of fruits and vegetables to the tune of $70ish dollars a week!  Zucchini, Onions, Carrots, Squash and Spinach are all vegetables I eat every single week…and they also happen to be very easy vegetables to grow (at least here- although I’ve never been successful with carrots).  You can actually help the planet by growing your own food, seriously.

This post was inspired by this TED talk and I’m planning my next veggie garden NOW.  Who’s with me?

This Christmas, I only asked for one thing…that was the iPad2 and I am so thankful! Thank you, husband!! Anyway, I positively LOVE it and I’ve only had it like 3 days…so, this post will be a series of posts as I learn to use it more.

Number 1, iBooks. I can download as many sample books as I want. So, if you’re a nerd like me, then you know I’ve already downloaded 10 books–all related to my previous books for 2012 post and am working my way through the list. Very cool. The full price of the books seems to be a few dollars less than a paperback depending on what you want to read.  You can also download books via Amazon using a free Kindle app for iPads.

Number 2, You can manage your fitness progress by downloading a health and fitness app.  I like “TotalWOD CrossFit” and “One Rep Max Calculator”.

Number 3,  Emails are all in one place!  This is the best thing ever for me as with just one click I have all my email accounts open.

There are so many other cool aspects of this gadget I have yet to learn about!  Please share your favorite thing you use your iPad for??

is now live on Social Moms Network!

Thanks to an Amazon wish list, this item came free of shipping as a gift from my dad! Thanks, Dad.
Now, since this is a fitness gadget, it definitely has some relevance here as a product review. So, folks, just in case you were thinking of buying this pull-up bar that is under $100, here is my recommendation:

It’s a boy toy, first of all. There are over 70 reviews of this product on Amazon and not one of them is written by a woman that I could find. Most people are using it for P90X and few are using it for any crossfit style workout. Being that I am an avid crossfitter, the following is what you can do with the Stamina 1690.

You can do strict pull-ups.


You can work on the L-Hang.


You can do “knee ups” or dips using the bench dip bars- although it is really too wide for most women’s shoulders.


You can also work on Toes to Bars, Knees to Elbows and possibly chest to bar pull-ups- although, it is really not conducive to any kind of back swing and the foam on the top pullup bar prevents multiple hand positions. Also, for men above 185, I’d recommend some sand bags for the base of support!

All in all, it’s a good quality, easy to assemble pull-up bar that will get lots of use in my garage. Strict pull-ups are way harder than kipping ones anyway!