Rant Wednesday: The D'Angelo Russell Situation

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the 3rd installment of Rant Wednesday. I drafted today's blog on a completely different topic but decided to change it when I heard about the D'Angelo Russell situation this morning.

While listening to my favorite sports show, Doug and Wolf, on AZ Sports 98.7 FM, the hot topic was about the situation with a video that surfaced of a conversation between LA Lakers' teammates D'Angelo Russell and Nick Young.

If you have not heard the story you can catch it on this ESPN article.

The quick summary is there appears to be a conversation between Young and Russell where Young is talking about other women he has been with, that are not his fiance, Iggy Azalea.

The story is that Russell was recording Young as a prank and told Young about it at the end of the conversation. This video got leaked to a media site similar to TMZ.

The story goes on to say Russell is being shunned by the Lakers' locker room and no one believes that he can be trusted.

My only semi-rant on this one is that I haven't heard enough information to convict Russell on this and everyone is coming down on him hard. He is being called a Snitch.

I started wondering if he could have possibly shared his prank with someone else and they got a hold of his phone and leaked it. And if it is possible that Russell is not telling anyone about this so he doesn't snitch on the real culprit.

Now, I have no idea if that is even possible or if Russell really did release the video on purpose. Either way, it seems there is much more to this story.

Thoughts?

Have you heard enough to convict?

Do you think Young should have been snitched on?

Was it the wrong forum to do it?

If it were someone close to you (i.e. sister, close friend) that was being cheated on does that change whether or not you snitch?

Monday Fitness: Time to Clean out the Fridge

Happy Monday Everyone! I hope everyone had an awesome holiday weekend.

Today's tip comes from Teresa Smith-Cisneros who reminds us: "Get rid of all your temptation in the house... Pre-plan meals, and prepare a few days worth of meals in advance. Helps me."

What does that temptation look like for you? 

For me it is anything salty, especially potato chips. For many others, sugar is their weakness. I can easily say no to donuts but when it comes to fried foods, I hardly put up a fight. Most of us have that comfort food that we reach for during certain times of the day.

Last week's tip from Coach Ben was about the 80/20 rule, reminding us that 80% of our fitness comes from what is on our plate. If you missed Coach Ben's comments you can find them here. 

That being said, Teresa's tip is right on time. It is detox time. If you are anything like me, you have excuses from time to time as to why we do not buy or maintain more healthy food choices in our homes.

1) Kids - We like to keep certain sweet treats around for our kids to enjoy. There is no harm in that, right? It depends. I have two teenagers at home. One is very disciplined and hardly ever touches sweet treats or other junk food. My other teenager sneaks sweet treats at night and has a root canal coming up because of it. 

Have tips for preparing healthy treats for kids? Comment or write me at michaidanawrites@gmail.com. In the month of April I plan to dedicate Monday Fitness blogs to helping our children become, and stay, healthy.

2) Money and Time - Bad foods are cheap and fast. I am guilty of this and have often grabbed fast food and other snacks when we are pressed for time. When there is work and school followed by other responsibilities such as children's sports or church activities, the time seems to get away quickly and meals are not planned. And you know what they say, when we fail to plan, we plan to fail.

Have tips on eating healthy on a budget? Comment or write me at michaidanawrites@gmail.com. I would love to feature you on a future edition of Monday Fitness.

Teresa Smith-Cisneros has it right with this week's tip to get rid of temptation, pre-plan meals, and cook in advance. It really takes away our excuses. Thank you, Teresa!

Stay tuned for next week's Monday Fitness blog, which will start the new month with raw and real advice on our children's health. Want to contribute? Comment or email me. 

Until then, let's make good choices.

Rant Wednesday: Speaking negatively about your Youth

Hi Everyone. Thank you for tuning in to the second installment of Rant Wednesday. If you missed the first installment, you can find it here.

Rant Wednesday is my opportunity to voice concerns I am having in an effort to get some feedback and open some discussion around the topic.

This week I want to talk about something that bothers me on a regular basis. It is when I hear others speak negatively about our youth. We often hear talk that our youth are entitled, spoiled, disrespectful, lazy, etc.

What bothers me about this is two things. The first is that this is simply not true. While there may be some youth who demonstrate negative behaviors, it is not right to make this representative of all youth no more than it would be alright to hold any other groups responsible for the behaviors of a few.

The second thing that bothers me about this is if our youth are entitled, disrespectful, and lazy, then doesn't that responsibility fall to those of us who are raising them? I am the mother of teenagers and I understand that raising children in this technology driven world is a challenge.

However, our responsibility remains the same. If too many of our youth are taking part in negative activities and not progressing then we have to look at ourselves first. I will be the very first to admit that I do not always know the right answer.

Parenting has never come with a manual and the answers are not one-size fits all. But, we are responsible for holding our youth accountable for any negative actions and for nurturing their positive actions.

We must also acknowledge that we have amazing young people out there that are doing great things to make a positive impact on the world. We have young people volunteering, helping their families and others, and identifying and developing their talents.

What do you do when you hear these conversations? What thoughts do you have about why we spend so much time speaking negatively about our youth and what we should be doing about it? Let's hear from some young people and some adults.

Monday Fitness Tip: 80/20

Happy Monday Everyone!

Today's fitness tip is brought to you by Mr. Ben Richardson. If you missed the first edition of Monday fitness blogs you can find it here. There is a wealth of knowledge out there. Everyone has something valuable to add to the conversation.

Here is what Coach Ben had to say on the topic of fitness and why we often get off track,  

"Consistency is the key.  You MUST do SOMETHING, and whatever that may be, (walking, running, lifting, hiking, biking),.... MUST BE CONSISTENT!!.  Then understand that no matter how much of a workout beast you may be, up to 80% of your health results will be connected to the discipline of your plate.  That is, what you do and do not put into your mouth.  80% Diet + 20% Physical Activity = FITNESS"

Coach Ben shared that the mistake he often sees is when we often go very hard in the gym to compensate for what is on our plate. I am very guilty of this and could not look Coach Ben in the eye during this conversation. Often, when an event is coming up, or a holiday, and I know I plan to indulge, I will go very light on meals ahead of time or put in many more workouts than normal. This is a mistake and has never worked for me and I often wondered why.

80/20 is the name of the game! Another area where I have made mistakes in the past is having a cheat day. I can see how cheat days and rewards can be motivating for some so I think they have their purpose. For me, however, I am not disciplined enough for a cheat day so I have to stick to the plan and not stray on any days. I have become honest enough with myself to admit this.

When it comes to consistency, my activity of choice is Zumba! It is fun and tough at the same time. Even when it hurts I am still motivated. In fact, my order of business right now is to put in 45 minutes of Zumba right after publishing this blog.

So, what is your consistent activity? Share with us and let's help keep each other encouraged, motivated, and on the road to improved health! Our stories may be different but our destination is the same. We can do more for others when we take care of ourselves.

Have a fitness tip to share in an upcoming Monday Fitness edition? Email me at michaidanawrites@gmail.com or reach me on Twitter @139focused.

Rant Wednesday: Vote or Shut Up

Welcome to the first edition of Rant Wednesday. The goal is to have a forum to voice concerns on things I see and hear. I know we won't always agree and I welcome healthy conversation.

On to today's topic: Vote or Shut Up!

It really gets under my skin when people make excuses for not voting, all the while being very vocal about their opinions on the candidates and government.

Here are the top 3 things I hear that drive me nuts:

1) "What is the point when all of them [the candidates] are bad" - No one is perfect. If you were running for office, you would be made to look pretty awful as well. Many people that say this are pretty negative about a lot of things. I would never tell someone who to vote for but not exercising the right and privilege to vote, in my opinion, is an insult to all who have fought for equal rights for all. At the very least, if this is your excuse, then at least have the decency to not sit around and complain about something you could have influenced. Every vote counts and every vote matters. Why not use all of those vocal skills to help promote positive messages, change, and support of those who are pushing agendas that are a benefit to the people.

2) "If I register to vote, I will get called for jury duty" - This is another one that bothers me. Why not serve on a jury duty? It is another right and privilege. I have been called for jury duty at least six times and I was excused five of those times. I served on a jury once and it was a one day trial. Saying you don't vote so you won't have to serve on a jury, which may not even happen, is just another excuse. If this is your opinion, then to each his own, but again, do us all a favor and don't sit around and complain about the candidates and don't complain about how jury selections are unfair. Not to mention that if there is a valid work reason or medical reason it is easy to report this so you are not required to serve.

3) "I don't need to vote. I will just pray about it." - Okay, I know this is a sensitive one but I need to be honest here. I am a proud Christian that believes in the power of prayer. Should we pray about these things? Absolutely. That being said, God gives us tools in order to accomplish things. Not voting and saying you will just pray is like the person that is able to work, but won't, and says they will just pray for God to pay their bills. It doesn't make sense. God has provided us with a voice and many people have sacrificed for us to use that voice.

By now, I am sure I have ruffled some feathers and my intent is not to insult anyone but I would like to just ask everyone who doesn't vote to really consider why they don't and consider voting. Again, I would not tell anyone who to vote for but do your civic duty and get out there and vote. Exercise the freedoms that our soldiers are still fighting for us to have.

Want to blast me for saying these things or want to share your own story? Comment below.
Have a rant that you would like featured on an upcoming Wednesday edition? Email me at michaidanawrites@gmail.com or Tweet me @139focused.

Raw and Real Advice on our Fitness Goals

I asked some of my family and friends who have achieved, and sustained, success in their fitness goals to share some raw and real advice with my readers.

We all know what we have to do to achieve our health and wellness goals but we often do not and we have every excuse for it.

Most of us do the right things for a brief period of time. Then, one backyard barbeque, office potluck, or vacation later we allow ourselves to become completely derailed, both mentally and physically.

If you are tired of the excuses that we give ourselves then take heed to this raw and real advice from people who know and people who care enough to share.

Sarah Schillaci says, "Community...you could Google how to eat right, you can find recipes online, you can YouTube fitness videos and have a PT in your living room!!! and yet... so many fail.... why? They need someone to relate to. They need encouragement, a feeling of self worth that comes from contributing to a group. I have seen many clients come and go and the ones that do well find a way to connect to others through their journey.... like writing a blog about it."

Myka Goudeau says, "What I've noticed is that its all in your head. It's not that hard for me to stay on my goal because I want it so bad. If you go into a fitness goal with the wrong mind set then you won't stick with it. 'Oh I don't want to do this but I have to, to get to what I want to look like' that doesn't work.' If you have your mind set on that change and you are determined to stick to it because you want to change your self for the better, you will be happy, do the workout and relish the burn that accompanies it and look forward to the next workout. If you don't have the right mind set then all the other stuff won't matter."

Daniel Schellenberg says, "When you find yourself looking for excuses not to go, that's when you [should] force yourself to go, [it] helps build habit. Don't use kids as an excuse. There are always ways to get a good work out in, with or without your kids around."

Oscar Crawford says, "Do what you do whether or not you feel like it. 'Not feeling like it' is a self-destructive habit that if fed kills initiative. Do it in season and out of season."  

Lisa Guice says, "provide right now actions people can implement. Most of the time people don't start because it seems too difficult. Make it easy to get started and stay the course."

Alejandro Larios says, "In regards to discipline and goals in general, I like to remind people that although the goal takes time, the time is going to pass regardless. It's up to you to be at your goal at the end or be stuck at square one."

Here is the point, Guys. Any excuse will do when it comes to this. We are either going to do it or we are not. It is time to be raw and real with ourselves. Take advice from others like us who have done it and are encouraging others to do the same.

Have a story to share, advice to give, or have a comment or additional question to ask one of the amazing people listed in this blog? Comment below. Do not be shy. We have to be raw and real in order to succeed together. The quality of our lives depends on it.

Spring Clean and Be a Blessing

It's that time of year where we all begin to go through closets and various other areas in our homes in an effort to purge unneeded items and make room for new things.

But, like most things, we all have good intentions and often get busy with other tasks. When that happens tasks like spring cleaning can quickly be forgotten.

With that in mind I want to encourage us to implement a spring cleaning schedule. Instead of attempting to find a weekend, or even a day, that can be dedicated to cleaning, choose one room at a time. Or, if it is a large room, choose one section at a time.

Go through the room for things that are no longer needed such as clothes, children's toys, books, etc. My aunt always says that if you have not touched it in 6 months then you probably don't need it. That is true with many of the things we hold on to.

Letting go of these things benefits us in so many ways. It gives us the opportunity to open space in our homes, find things that may have been lost, and gather things that can be donated, or even sold to make a little extra money. These are all healthy solutions that can result in reduced stress.

Furthermore, isn't it always nice to be a blessing to someone? I have received things from friends and family over the years when I needed them most. It is so wonderful for both the giver and receiver. Even selling them at a small cost can be awesome. It can be surprising how fast small amounts of money add up.

Spring cleaning is an opportunity for everyone to pay their blessings forward while doing a productive thing for our homes and our families. Let's start the season off right

Have any spring cleaning tips to share or prior years success stories? Please share with everyone.