Does this sound like you?

• Are you a creative, independent thinking person? 
• Do you "exercise" to improve/maintain your good quality of life, vs just for weight loss or vanity's sake? 
• Do you appreciate learning and receiving guidance but also like to do your own thing?
• Are you adventurous and like to try new things?

Then you're a lot like me. And a lot like the folks I train!

The last day of a Walk/Jog/Run class at Bipartisan Cafe.
"Will run for pie!"

Agility and balance work at Mt Tabor Park.

Since I'm revamping my business a bit, I turned to Jena and Jen over at Maven Circle. They help small business owners get more out of life and more into their groove. They asked me, "Who's your ideal client?" And I thought it might be a good thing to share with you. You know, incase you've been hanging around just waiting to jump into the fray yourself sometime. ;-)

Hands down, I love my clients! They are motivating, fun to be around and have such diverse interests and backgrounds that when we all get together we invigorate our bodies and our brains. Off the top of my head, here are a few more traits I see in folks I train.

• I generally train women (but men are always welcome!)
• They love the outdoors! Cycling, hiking, walking, gardening, you name it, they do it.
• They're generally 40+ and are kicking butt well into their 60s and 70s. 
• They think for themselves, but like to learn as opposed to just be told what to do. 
• They know there is no magic bullet, or number on the scale to reach then stop.
• They are committed to their health for life. 
• And no matter what your fitness level is, they are supportive and friendly. 

Working the back lines at Mt Tabor.

Hamming it up at the Run for the Love 5K. 

Pretty sweet way to spend my day, eh? Thanks, everyone! 

Sound like a good fit for you and want to come give it a try? Just let me know. 

You can reach me at Kristin @ take it outside fitness {Dot} com.

peace and health,
Kristin

comment on the blog and win!

I did this awhile back and doing it again. I'm mean who doesn't winning free stuff, right? So here's the deal. Comment here on my blog and win free prizes. You could even start here and suggest things you'd like to win. Like t-shirts, free postural assessments or a chance to take all the classes you want for free. Give me some ideas!

speak up and win
I'll announce a contest + prize at the beginning of each month. Every time you comment you're entered into the drawing. I'll announce the winner on the blog and Facebook.

pick me! pick me!I'll announce winners here and FB, and if I know you personally I can email you. But best to check back on the day of the drawing to see if you've won.

get your goodiesMost of the prizes will be locally redeemable. Like free classes, gift certificates to local businesses, etc. But I'll throw in some of my crafty goodies and t-shirts. . .so those of you far and wide can win too.

be nice and shareNow I know you want to be the only one who knows about this, but I hope you'll share the love and clue your friends in. They don't have to be on FB either, because they can comment right here on the blog. Just make sure to use a handle. If you're anonymous, you're S.O.L. ;-)

OK! Let the games begin and thanks for playing.

There's more to flexibility than just stretching

C. shared this Oregonian article about hamstring flexibility and wanted to know my thoughts on how to stretch your hamstrings and whether I thought one of these approaches would help her. I've said it before and I'll say it again, studies on stretching will continue to give conflicting reports — whether it's beneficial, harmful or just useless. Personally, I like to stretch, so I'll keep doing it. But I also get flexibility benefits form foam rolling, ballet, yoga, hula hooping, pilates and swimming.

Here  a few of my thoughts:

• If you do flexibility training (stretching, yoga, pilates, etc.) on a regular basis, you should see improvements, just like with strength training. If you only lift weights once a week, you're not going to see much of an improvement vs. two to three times a week where you progress and get stronger.
• Physical therapists are part of the medical complex. When a doctor prescribes physical therapy, it is for a specific purpose. In the case of this article, it's hamstring flexibility, and the PT codes it for insurance as such. Unfortunately, they can't bill for or don't have the time to assess the whole person. So, while they may want to address additional problems that could be affecting the specific reason the patient is seeking treatment, they "can't."
• ...Which leads me to my next point. If you look at the photo of the guy in the article, he appears to be not only tight in the hammies, but in his neck (chin jutting forward) and shoulders (rounded forward). According to Thomas Myers, author of Anatomy Trains: Myofascial Meridians for Manual and Movement Therapists, the muscles of the body are connected along lines of fascia that wrap muscles and connect muscle groups to other groups. When there is tightness in one region of the body, it can effect another. So solving a problem like "tight hamstrings" may very well require attention paid to the neck, back and calves, or even the quads or hip flexors. Strengthening the opposing muscle groups could help too.

I'm amazed that the person writing the paper for advice has not seen any progress after 3 months. Makes me wonder...

• Is she only doing her stretching at the PT's office? Probably not enough to see results. 
• How's her form when she does stretch? Something as simple as keeping her back straighter when she engages in hamstring stretches would help. A rounded back will reduce the effectiveness of the stretch.
• Is she dehydrated? (My husband can attest to the fact that drinking more water improves your flexibility and releases muscle tension.) 
• Does she engage in any exercise? Lack of exercise can contribute to stiffness.
• Or maybe she has some sort of nutritional deficit. Lacking certain vitamins and minerals can cause muscle cramping and tightness. 
• Has she tried acupuncture or an osteopath? Both can be beneficial.

Here are a few of my favorite books to help increase range of motion.

Prescriptive Stretching, Kristian Berg

Facilitated Stretching, Robert E. McAtee

New York City Ballet Workout, Peter Martins

Foam Roller Workbook: Illustrated Step-by-step Guide to Stretching, Strengthening and Rehabilitative Techniques, Dr Karl Knopf

Well, there you have it. My two cents. I don't claim to be a doctor or a PT, but I do I focus my continuing education courses on injury prevention and post rehab. Since I was hit by a car while riding my bike, let's just say I've done a lot of independent study the body, trauma and recovery techniques. Being a personal trainer gives me the opportunity to learn more about my clients lives than what doctors and PTs have time for in the clinic. Clients see more results because I pay particular attention to how they hold their bodies,  they get personal attention in my small group trainings and because it's affordable, they can really ingrain the new movement patterns into their lives. I love what I do!

As, always, I welcome your input and questions. Thanks for being here!

happy+thankful

On a recent neighborhood walk someone said his favorite bummer sticker is the one that says "if indoor plumbing doesn't thrill you, nothing will." Which got us talking about just how many everyday little things we take for granted. We can focus on our To Do Lists, our Think We Have To Do Lists, not to mention how much technology--that thing that's supposed to make life more efficient--sucks our time and souls away.

 Maybe it's the long-long awaited awesome weather here in Portland, but folks seem happier and nicer. And when I feel happy, everyday things make me thankful-happy. A few Thanksgivings ago I pledged to post 3 things I was thankful for, for a year. I'm sure I could do that again, but just gonna post when the thought strikes me. . .and I hope you'll join me.

 Today I'm thankful for my Daddy. Well I'm thankful for him everyday. And yes, I still call him Daddy. From his positive outlook to his awesome--sometimes shaggy--stories about his life always make me smile and laugh out loud. That he put his family first back when most men didnt even change diapers, much less change careers, he did so he could be a true part of our lives. The fact that he's alive--against a lifetime of medical issues--is a testament to why we are all here for a reason. We may not know why but we are. I love you, Daddy. Thanks for everything!

Cheap Eats: tofu tacos and shrimp melts

On Facebook the other day I asked for some quick breakfast ideas. Lindsey over at Yarnia kindly shared ideas from her awesome blog focused on eating healthy on $6 a day.

Which got me thinking: I've been slacking to share some of my quick healthy meal ideas. They're pretty cheap too! And when I say quick, I mean less than 15 minutes. These two creations took even less.

Tofu Tacos

• 1 block of tofu drained and pressed (check out what I mean when I wrote about DIY baked tofu)
• tamari (or soy sauce, Bragg's or even a oil and vinegar salad dressing would work)
• salsa
• 2 tortillas (your choice, but I use smaller ones. You could do a burrito with bigger ones)
• chopped lettuce
• fresh (or canned) jalapeños
• avocado slices

1. Cube the tofu
2. Sautéed the tofu with the salsa and tamari. Add it to your preference. I'd day I used about 1/4 cup salsa + couple shakes of tamari
3. While the tofu heats up, lay the tortillas over the tofu in the pan to steam them a bit and soften up (this is what I do for corn tortillas)
4. chop the veggies
5. assemble and eat! (You should have plenty of tofu left over for more later or to share with friends.)

Cajun-ish Shrimp Melts

OK, this doesn't really sell 'em, but really, they're tasty!

OK, first let's talk shrimp. The majority of shrimp you see in the store these days is just nasty. It's farmed raised in far-off places like Thailand and Indonesia. They're swimming around in so much shrimp poop that they are treated with antibiotics. Icky! The methods are improving, but the US still imports shrimp treated with outlawed antibiotics. I got Oregon wild caught baby shrimp fore this recipe. 

• 1 cup cooked baby shrimp
• mayo
• Jalapeño mustard (or dijon, but the jalapeño mustard give this a cajun flavor)
• chopped celery
• sliced cheese of your choice (I used Tilamook Chedar, or course.)
• 4 slices of bread, your choice (I make my own bread. something like this but with whole wheat flour)

Rinse and drain the shrimp well. Mix the shrimp, mayo, mustard to taste plus the celery. Top the bread slices with some shrimp and a slice of cheese and place under broiler until melted. Serves two. Enjoy!

Waste Not Wednesday: deconstructing a garage into a new studio

Last week I mentioned we're building a fitness studio in our backyard. Initially we thought we could convert the garage into the studio, but with all the code requirements it would have been a royal pain in the arse. Plus we wanted it in a different spot and a bit bigger, so we've decided to deconstruct the garage and salvage the materials.

The siding is going to be reused as--you guessed it--siding! Reusing vs buying new is like comparing apples and oranges. If we use something new like Hardy Plank it would actually be more affordable than reusing the old siding. But if we compared buying new clear vertical grain wood siding to what we will pay to have the wood dipped and stripped, recycling of the old stuff is a great deal. We both love wood so we're going to dip, strip sand and stain the old siding into gorgeous "new" siding. It's a labor of love thing.

Here's a sample of what the siding looks like after the 

friendly folks at Timby's dipped and stripped it for us. 

The sheathing is going to be used as panelling for some of the walls inside the studio and we're going to rip down some boards into narrower ones for vertical fencing to match what we built last fall. (Yeah, we built this gorgeous fence then decided to build a studio in front of it. At least the neighbors behind us are happy!)

this sheathing will turn into...

…fencing, something like this.

Did I mention Corey can spend hours with his nose in The Real Wood Bible or cruising the isles at Wood Crafters?  The man knows wood! He's also informed me that 2x4s today are not really 2" x 4" any more. And most of them are crap, i.e. twisted with knot holes and rough edges,  at the big box stores. Not the case of the old studs and rafters in our garage. We'll be ripping them down into window, baseboard and door trim.

We're going to have a bunch of dirt from the excavation for the foundation wall and a butt load of broken concrete from the old garage floor. I'll be making raised beds from the concrete and pavers for foot paths. I'll use some of the dirt to fill the beds. 

Photo by Althea Godfrey 

We have two old clothes line bars that we are going to fashion into some sort of bike rack. I also saw a vertical gutter planter in someone's backyard a recent South Tabor Walking Group Walk that we might do too.

Here's a pic of what I'm talking about that
I found over at the Health + Happiness blog

I'm sure I'll drive Corey nuts with more "great ideas" along the way. Stay tuned!

Do you have any repurposed/recycled projects around your house? I'd love to hear about them!

When one studio closes another one opens!

If you haven't already heard, there are some major changes going on with TIOF. I moved out of the Division St location and over the summer I'll be hosting all the small group trainings outdoors. I'm meeting individual clients in their homes or outdoors as well. Then, come fall I'll open the new studio! Yep, we are building a studio right here in the South Tabor Neighborhood, in our backyard.

I can't believe we're doing this. I also can't believe we didn't do it sooner too. I've always hated paying rent. Why give some wiener landlord my hard earned dough when I could spend it on something that will give me a return in the end? We've toyed with so many ideas but finally decided this is a good way to go.

Architect and Designer, Jill Cropp has been rockin' the design. Corey is going to be the general contractor, builder and bottle washer. I'll try not to drive either one of them crazy with too many "Oh! Wait!-I-got-an-idea!" changes along the way, and will be the low-gal-on-the-totem-pole grunt worker as much as possible. (If you want a good workout, start building a house from the ground up!)

Yay! This is going to be an awesome summer!

Craft a New Body: DIY foam roller

You probably know by now how much I love my foam roller. Once people try one, they want one of their own. Prices vary greatly, based on material and length. If you buy one I suggest you avoid the softer white ones because they are so soft they compress into a brick and no longer roll. They're cheaper for a reason; they don't last.

Anyway, in my ever crafty, DIY mind, I wondered if I could make my own foam roller of sorts. I googled "make your own foam roller" and found people are making them out of PVC pipe. PVC?! According Healthy Building Network, "PVC is the worst plastic from an environmental health perspective, posing major hazards in its manufacture, product life and disposal."  

What's a more earth friendly, upcycled way to make your own foam rollers? Try cardboard tubing used for flooring materials. (think paper towel tube, but on a much heavier duty level) We recently remodeled our tiny main floor bathroom. I took one look at the left over tube from our marmoleum flooring and immediately wondered if it could hold my weight and be used like a foam roller of sorts. Obviously its not made out of foam, but it actually worked! 

I suggest cutting your tube about 4.5 feet or longer in length instead of the regular 3 foot ones. The ends do compress a bit if you lay on them length wise so if they're longer you can avoid sitting too close to the end of the roller and squishing it.

This option is very firm, even compared to the standard firm foam rollers on the market. Some folks who are making their own out of PVC are wrapping theirs with camp mat material and duct tape. You could do that, but check back here. I'm mulling over other ideas to soften the pressure. Stay tuned!