Fit with Forester: Cyberspace v. Reality

The average person spends two hours a day on social networking sites but only spends approximately thirty minutes a day with their children and approximately ten minutes with their spouse or significant other. I know we live in the age of technology, but doesn't this seem to be a bit much? Since when is a cyber connection more important than human interaction? I am not telling you to write off technology and become Amish but I believe that technology was created to make our lives easier so we could spend more time with people, not to take over our lives. I am just as guilty as anyone else. I spend too much time online and my smartphone is always by my side, but I sometimes forget that these are just tools available to me, they are not my life. My advice is to use technology for what it was made for. Let those networking sites and gadgets help you keep your life on track but don't let them consume you.

Recipe of the Week: Cheesy Bean Dip

Great for having friends over to watch a movie or the game.

Ingredients:

1 pkg. (1 lb.) Velveeta Cheese

2 cans refried beans

1 jar salsa

Directions:

Put all the ingredients into the crock pot on high until they blend together smoothly then turn heat to low. Serve warm with tortilla chips.

Exercise of the Week: Tuck Jump

Make sure you have some cleared space for this. If you have camping or fitness mat it may help reduce landing shock. Standing in good posture with feet together, bend your knees and jump straight up as high as you bringing your knees into your chest. Land with bended knees, focus your body and repeat. Do 15 to 20 jumps. For more resistance or if this hurts your knees, try doing tuck jumps in the pool. It will make the movement more difficult but will not injure joints with harsh landings.

Activity of the Week: Make a Super Tracker Profile

Choose My Plate is a website run by the USDA. It is essentially the new version of the food pyramid. One of the tools on this website is called Super Tracker. It allows you to set up a profile in which you give your weight, height, gender and lifestyle and then create goals for yourself.

Once your profile is complete they tell you what your daily caloric intake should be and give you a tool to show how much activity will allow you to maintain your health and how much will allow you to loose weight. Then it's up to you to record the food and exercise you have everyday. With each entry your chart is updated and you get to see exactly what you are doing right and what can be improved upon. It is a great site to help keep your healthy life on track.