“Why am I doing this?”

This is the thought that ran through my head this morning as the sun came up.  No, I wasn’t wondering why I was just opening my eyes early on a Saturday, when I could easily sleep for a few more hours.  I was somewhere along mile 6 of a 12 mile run.  And, not only was I on mile 6 before dawn, but it was 29 degrees without the wind, which felt like it was blowing somewhere around Mach 3.

For those new to this blog, let me explain.  I’m currently training for a triathlon and a half marathon simultaneously.  The triathlon is in June, the half marathon is in just a couple of weeks.  This would be all well and good if I was one of those natural athletes who can simply watch a sport to become proficient at it.  You are going to have to believe me when I tell you that I am not one of those people. In fact, I am such a bad athlete that this entire training process has oscillated between challenging and downright comical.

There was my first day at the gym when I dug through 6 rows of parked spin bikes to pull out the one that was already set up for someone my height because I didn’t know how to adjust the seat.  I actually felt true elation the day that the treadmill in front of the gym’s only window was available, and instead of staring at a wall for 45 minutes I got a view of the closed barber shop across the street.  I’ve smacked myself in the head with my Peter K resistance bands, and several mornings have wondered why some women in the locker room take their shower and then wrap their towel – around their heads.

That “why am I doing this” thought pops into my head regularly.  It happens every morning when my alarm goes off at 4:00 AM.  I thought it last week when I trudged through a foot of snow so I could take the train to Manhattan, swim, and then catch another train back home to Westchester before my kids’ schools could call to say they were closed.  I think it every day when I have to pass the gelato place in the train station on my way home (and can anyone please tell me why with 114 tracks in Grand Central Terminal that mine has to be the one NEXT to the gelato stand?  Anyone?)

There are some pretty cool parts to all this training, too.  There was the day when I got to the office and realized that I had gotten up, made my daughter’s lunch, fed the cats, had breakfast, commuted to the city, ran 10 miles around Central Park and then showered and dressed for work all before 8 in the morning.  There was also my last health coaching session with Peter K when he told me that he was impressed with me and all my hard work.  That’s right: my health coach and mentor was impressed with the nerdy little data analyst who would fall off a spin bike if she stopped concentrating long enough.

This morning it took me just over 2 hours to run those 12 miles.  When I was done, my face was wind burned, my legs felt flimsy, and I was sweating and freezing at the same time. I walked through my front door, and my husband smiled and asked our 5 year old daughter, Olivia, to repeat to me what she had just said to him.  Olivia complied: “Mommy, I told Daddy that when I’m old enough to do races with you that I’ll run slower so that you can keep up with me.”  Ah, that’s why I’m doing this.

Great news!  A search of the latest research shows that running does not cause arthritis.  Here’s what you need to know:

• If you have arthritis you need to monitor your symptoms and stop if you’re in pain.
• Realize that there is a difference between pain and discomfort. Pain means stop, discomfort means ice, stretch and proceed slowly
• Start all exercise gradually. Example- alternate walking/running every minute for 5 minutes. Next week do 10 minutes and so on.

Email Peter K for a free running/walking guide now.

A client recently shared this great article with me about the essentials and benefits of a Greek lifestyle.  Warning, reading it may make you live really long……..

In 1970 Yiannis Karimalis got a death sentence. Doctors in Pennsylvania diagnosed the Greek immigrant with abdominal cancer and told him he’d be dead within a year. He was not yet 40 years old.

Devastated, Karimalis left his job as a bridge painter and returned to his native island of Ikaria. At least there he could be buried among his relatives, he thought—and for a lot less money than in the United States. Thirty-nine years later, Karimalis is still alive and telling his amazing story to anyone who will listen. And when he returned to the States on a recent visit, he discovered he had outlived all the doctors who had predicted his death.

On Ikaria, a mountainous, 99-square-mile island, residents tell this story to illustrate something they’ve known all their lives: on average, Ikarians outlive just about everyone else in the world.

For three weeks in April, I led a scientific expedition to Ikaria to investigate the reasons for the islanders’ remarkable longevity. It was part of my research into the earth’s few Blue Zones: places where an extraordinarily high proportion of natives live past 90. Our team of demographic and medical researchers—funded by AARP and National Geographic—found that an amazing one in three Ikarians reaches 90. (According to the U.S. Census Bureau, only one in nine baby boomers will.) What’s more, Ikarians suffer 20 percent fewer cases of cancer than do Americans and have about half our rate of heart disease and one-ninth our rate of diabetes. Most astonishing of all: among the islanders over 90 whom the team studied—about one-third of Ikaria’s population who are 90 and older—there was virtually no Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia. In the United States more than 40 percent of people over 90 suffer some form of this devastating ailment.

How do we explain these numbers? History tells part of the story.

In antiquity Ikaria was known as a health destination, largely for its radioactive hot springs, which were believed to relieve pain and to cure joint problems and skin ailments. But for much of the ensuing two millennia, civilization passed over this wind-beaten, harborless island. To elude marauding pirates, Ikarians moved their villages inland, high up on the rocky slopes. Their isolation led to a unique lifestyle.

Over centuries with no outside influences, island natives developed a distinctive outlook on life, including relentless optimism and a propensity for partying, both of which reduce stress. Ikarians go to bed well after midnight, sleep late, and take daily naps. Based on our interviews, we have reason to believe that most Ikarians over 90 are sexually active.

But what about the Ikarians’ culture best explains their long lives? To find out, we let visitors to AARP.org/bluezones direct our team’s quest. Our online collaborators voted on what we should research next. One day, for example, we interviewed hundred-year-old Ikarians to discover what they’d eaten for most of their lives. The next day we investigated the chemical composition of herbal teas.

In all, we found 13 likely contributors to Ikarian longevity. The formula below may be the closest you’ll get to the fountain of youth:

Graze on greens More than 150 varieties of wild greens grow on Ikaria. Some have more than ten times the level of antioxidants in red wine.

Sip herbal teas Steeping wild mint, chamomile, or other herbs in hot water is a lifelong, daily ritual. Many teas lower blood pressure, which decreases the risk of heart disease and dementia.

Throw out your watch Ikarians don’t worry about time. Work gets done when it gets done. This attitude lowers stress, which reduces the risk of everything from arthritis to wrinkles.

Nap daily Ikarian villages are ghost towns during the afternoon siesta, and science shows that a regular 30-minute nap decreases the risk of heart attack.

Walk where you’re going Mountainous terrain and a practice of walking for transport mean that every trip out of the house is a mini workout.

Phone a friend With the island’s rugged terrain, family and village support have been key to survival. Strong social connections are proven to lower depression, mortality, and even weight.

Drink goat’s milk Most Ikarians over 90 have drunk goat’s milk their whole lives. It is rich in a blood-pressure-lowering hormone called tryptophan as well as antibacterial compounds.

Maintain a Mediterranean diet Around the world, people who most faithfully stick to this region’s diet—a regimen high in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, olive oil, and fish—outlive people who don’t by about six years. The Ikarian version features more potatoes than grains (because they grew better in the mountains) and more meat than fish (because the sea was a day’s journey away).

Enjoy some Greek honey The local honey contains antibacterial, anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties. (Unfortunately, the health benefits of Ikarian honey do not extend to American honey, as far as we know.)

Open the olive oil Ikaria’s consumption of olive oil is among the world’s highest. Residents drizzle antioxidant-rich extra-virgin oil over food after cooking, which preserves healthful properties in the oil that heat destroys.

Grow your own garden (or find farmers’ markets) Fruits and vegetables eaten soon after picking are higher in compounds that decrease the risk of cancer and heart disease.

Get religion Ikarians observe Greek Orthodox rituals, and regular attendance at religious services (of any kind ) has been linked to longer life spans.

Bake bread The island’s sourdough bread is high in complex carbohydrates and may improve glucose metabolism and stave off diabetes.

Do Ikarians possess the true secret to longevity? Well, some combination of their habits is helping them live significantly longer than Americans, who live on average to age 78. We can’t guarantee that Ikarian wisdom will help you live to 100. But if Yiannis Karimalis’s example is any indicator, it may help you outlive your doctor.

Dan Buettner is the author of The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who’ve Lived the Longest (National Geographic, 2008).

Many people do this to stretch their hamstrings and back. Don’t, because:

• it over-stretches the low back (can lead to injury)
• It doesn’t isolate the hamstrings enough to make it effective
• the average person doesn’t need to stretch their back forward

Try this safe stretch for your back instead

Try this perfectly balanced all in one dish. Great for the whole family or guests.

Recipe below

Of course the ingredients should be organic, hormone/antibiotic free and fresh whenever possible.

• 3 large chicken breasts pounded flat
• 1 head of cauliflower cut into small pieces
• 2 cups frozen, pre-cooked brown rice
• 3 tbsp whole wheat flour
• 1 large can plum tomatoes
• 1 small red onion chopped
• 1 clove garlic chopped
• 1/2 lemon
• several tbsp olive oil
• oregano to taste
• parsley
• feta cheese
• kalamata olives
• salt to taste

Lightly coat the chicken breasts in flour and saute in a large saute pan with straight sides in olive oil, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove chicken and add red onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Add plum tomatoes and their sauce (squeeze them in your hand to crush), cauliflower and juice of half a lemon and cook for 10 min.  Slice cooled chicken and place back in pan with frozen rice and cook for 15 minutes uncovered.  Serve with crumbled feta, oregano, parsley, salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with olive oil.

Kali Orexi! (good appetite)

kah-LEE OR-ex-ee

EAT HEALTHY WITH THEM Simple as that.

Food that is . It’s common knowledge that the mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest in the world.  I recommend you experience the best in Greek dining right here in NYC. Kellari Taverna on 9 West 44th Street, New York NY 10036 between 5th & 6th Avenue) 212-221-0144. Try the fish!

I just made these Whole Wheat/Oat Blueberry Pancakes and they’re delicious! (warning- if you’re used to Aunt Jemima these take some getting used to There’s no sugar in the recipe so you can add syrup or powdered sugar as a topping without guilt.

Makes 7 large pancakes

• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1-1/2 cups whole oats
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup skim milk
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup fresh blueberries

1. Place the wet ingredients in a bowl and whisk together.
2. In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and whisk to combine.
3. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and stir until just combined. Now gently fold in the berries
4. Heat a large pan or griddle on medium heat and grease with olive oil.
5. Drop a ladle full of pancake mixture onto the griddle and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden.
6. Serve with powdered sugar or all natural maple syrup or more fresh berries.

* Prior to serving you can keep them warm in a 200 degree oven until all the pancakes are cooked. I have a pet peeve about serving cold food

A glass of orange juice has 110 calories and 22 grams of sugar, with no fiber.  That adds up to over 700 calorie and 37 teaspoons of pure sugar per week.

Try this to save almost 700 calories a week.

• fill a tall glass 3/4 full with water
• pour about an inch of orange juice in and enjoy
• better yet, eat an orange = only 45 calories & 9 grams of sugar

Do you know anyone who thinks these things while exercising?:

• I hate this
• How many calories do I need to burn for that donut?
• Oh shoot, forgot to pay the car lease, fold the laundry and defrost the chicken
• Is this really my life?

Isn’t it obvious why most of us hate to exercise? First of all, getting on a treadmill and going till your heart explodes is as unnatural as ordering a green tea at McDonalds. To make it worse most of us have negative thoughts the entire time we are exercising. This is called conditioning yourself to fail.

What to do?  The fact is, during exercise, your body is releasing endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers. I also think this is a time to tap into a deeper part of our subconscious mind, the part that makes you eat great and exercise smarter. exercising is the best time to think about:

• What and who you love
• What makes you happy and gives you joy
• What you must do now to allow yourself to experience more of those things

Right now, think about your best, most helpful thoughts and start thinking them all the time, especially while exercising! Stop thinking about the donut and start thinking about what you really want This will guarantee you succeed!