New Music

Anyone heard of Imagination Dragon? They have that really catchy tune that all of a sudden got super popular, "It's Time"is the title. So I decided to download it and to check out the rest of their album "Night Visions". I also cleared out some stuff that I don't like anymore in my iTunes, so I figured I'd go hunting for some new music. Listening to the iTunes previews of the first few tracks of Night Visions, I got hooked. So I promptly torrented it.

I really like the iTunes service that suggests other albums (what other people who liked that album bought) and then found a guy called Mat Kearney, and his album "Young Love". Again, I got enchanted by the first few previews. Both these albums are the alternative/rock/folk type vibe that I've become a big fan of (The Script, The Lumineers, Mumford and Sons..) so I'm excited to give all the songs a few thorough listenings.

Then I decided to check out what free single iTunes had. It is "Bleeding Out" by The Lone Bellow (brand new group). Another folk/alternative genre. A lot of the reviews call them Mumford and Sons with a girl or without as much facial hair. LOL. Anyways, I really liked the song and decided to download that album as well (The Lone Bellow). Not too sure if I'll like every song on there, because like with M&S, I'm not a big fan of the slower songs. So we'll see.

These three albums take place of Lady Gaga and Tyler Ward (Youtube artitst), both of whom I'm not a big fan of anymore. I'll probably have to clear some more space to get all these songs on my iPhone though, I have too much music, and most I probably haven't listened to in a long time.

Healthy Living Survey

As I get further into my physed degree, I'm obviously learning more about healthy living, so it's become a big interest of mine to eat well, and be healthy. I'm not extreme when it comes to it, like clean eating or any of those things, but to me, as long as I'm not eating things chock full of fat and calories and add in some exercise, I'm goo to go. So here's an interesting survey that Sam posted and I thought would be fun to do. Plus I have time to kill before my next class.

1. What did you eat for breakfast?
We were out of milk this morning so today was natural/plain yogurt from biobest along with some granola. But usually the standard is any high fiber, low sugar kashi cereal with 1% milk. I usually tend to get grumpy if I can't have my morning cereal.

2. How much water do you drink a day?

I'm actually not too sure, but I would say maybe about 2-4 cups a day. It depends if I go to the gym or not. I know this is kind of low, but I've never been a water drinker, so this amount is pretty darn good! But if I was to factor in water from tea, it would be a lot more. I'm on a big tea kick and usually have about 2-3 cups of tea a day.

3. What is your current favourite workout?

Lower body and core. I've always had injury issues with my lower body so training them is super critical for me. I enjoy it because it's not a particularly difficult workout.. I work hard and sweat but it's not like after a 30 minutes run. Funny enough I do like working my core. It's really difficult, but I have two exercise that I LOVE. One is a machine called the torso rotation. You hold on to a stationary part of the machine, kneel on a padded part and rotate your lower body. It's a great workout and a good feeling. I also use a medicine ball after cool down and stretching, again doing a rotation routine. 

4. How many calories do you eat a day?

I'd say about 2000-2150. If I've been really active in the week, of course it's going to be the higher number. I have an app that calculates how much I should be consuming for my body type and fitness level, and it should really be more than this, but being lower means I can lose some weight easier, and I've found I just really don't need that amount (or maybe I haven't been as active as I've entered into the app...).

5. What are your favourite healthy snacks?
Hmmm.. well I guess it would be an apple with peanut butter. I usually tend to have this after soccer games so I can get some protein into me for better recovery, but I know peanut butter probably isn't the best way to go about it. For snacks in general, I just look for low fat and low calorie. 

6. What do you usually eat for lunch?
I'm a creature of habit, so when I take a lunch to school it is literally the same thing every day. Except maybe a different kind of granola bar. I take a ham sandwich on sprouted grain bread (I've finally kicked my obsession with white bread!!), with cheddar, ham and lettuce. Also a banana, granola bar (kashi or kellogs 90 cal bars), and these new cracker chips from peppridge farm. As far as crackers go, I think they're probably one of the best ones, again low calorie.

7. What is your favourite body part to strength train?

My legs are easier but my core is more rewarding..

8. What is your least favourite body part to strength train?
Arms. I hate feeling so sore in my arms afterwards. It's one of the worst feelings.

9. What are your "bad" food cravings?
Peanut butter and honey on toast. Not too sure how healthy/unhealthy honey is, but I know there's a decent amount of bad in that combo..

10. Do you take vitamins or supplements?
I try. My mom is a supplier for Herbalife so she's given my multivitamins, cell activators and glucosamine supplements but lately I've had a hard time taking them. I also take iron.

11. How often do you eat out?
Not too often at all. Usually it's just for a special occasion, or if I go home and my parents are treating. Or if I have a gift card. Does Tim Hortons count (I think it's borderline)? I sometimes have lunch there (with my gift card!).

12. Do you eat fast food?
I really try not too, but last semester this failed pretty bad. It's hard when I have 2 roommates that like to go there quite often, so when I'm with them it's all too easy to go along and not be the odd man out. If I'm in a pinch for time or I'm starving I'll tend to more easily give in as well. But once again, does Tim Hortons count? 

13. Who is your biggest supporter?
I suppose my other friends who are health conscious. It drives me to be more aware when I see posts of their achievements. Last year it was my roommate, she's in nutrition so of course she knows all about what you should and should not be eating. She is for the most part vegetarian so her eating styles definitely influenced mine for the better last year. 

14. Do you have a gym membership?
Yes, everyone at the U of A gets access to the campus gym; it's included in fees. 

15. How many hours of sleep do you get a night?
It really depends. It can vary from 6-10. As long as I can fall asleep fairly quickly I can get at least 7.5 but that sometimes is asking a lot. Because of work and sometimes soccer, I get to bed late, and I have early classes Tuesdays and Thursdays so it's tough. I'm trying to keep it around AT LEAST 8.5 because it seems 8 isn't enough, even that 8.5 isn't enough but it's sometimes as much as I can get. I'm definitely struggling with sleep, so far this semester though, so I want to find that happy medium.

16. Do you have a "cheat" day?
No. If I want something, I'll eat it. I don't normally want anything too bad anyways, so if there is a day I want something particularly bad like a chocolate bar, I'm gonna go for it.

17. Do you drink alcohol?
Not very often, usually if it's a special occasion like a birthday. 

18. Do you have a workout buddy?
No. At most I've had someone to go with me, but not really in a buddy type capacity. They were there strictly to make sure I got to the gym, because I'd feel bad telling them I wasn't going. But in the gym I have my routine and I want to do it on my own.

19. What is the best thing that has changed about your life since committing to a healthy lifestyle?
I don't think I've noticed a big difference, but maybe lately, after having being off exercise during exams and holidays, it affects my energy levels.. So far after getting back to it, I'm not sure I've seen a big change, but I bet you I would if my schedule weren't so hectic.

20. What was the last healthy thing you did?

Made my lunch today instead of taking the easy way out (since it was an early morning) and going to Timmies.

TV Review

I remember quite awhile ago now, doing a review on a little known, Canadian produced movie starring Joshua Jackson, and enjoying analyzing it. Not so much as what an actual critic would, or what an english major could, but just really how I felt about it. Ok, so maybe it would be more of an opinion column type deal. Anyways, since then I have not really come upon anything "lesser known" that was worth sharing to get some people in on it. But I have now!

Not that I really know if this show is lesser known, but the fact that it is carried by showcase and that wikipedia tells me the average audience view is around 2 million, I'm guessing it's not really heard of. Especially when me, the big TV fanatic that I am, hadn't heard about it until a week ago.

The show in question is Homeland. Starring Clare Danes. Yeah, you remember her, from Romeo + Juliet, the version with Leonardo Dicaprio. Well she has well since transformed and I absolutely loved her in this series. By far she is the best part of it. The next would be the plot, the reason for the show.

I'm definitely a fan of crime/thriller type shows, 24 being my fave, but now I see Homeland as possibly taking that #1 spot! Being based on a novel about Prisoners of War, it sees a soldier come home after 8 years of being presumed dead, at the hands of people close to Al Quaeda. Rumor has it that he has turned, and is plotting against the United States of America.

Maybe the plot in general doesn't pique your interest, it kind of sounds like same old, same old. But what really hooked me was the characters and their relationships. At the beginning they focused a bit too much on the soldier's family, but by maybe the 5th or 6th episode in, either they started to focus more on everyone else, or they just became so engrained, so important to the story that I didn't mind.

I already mentioned Clare Danes. She's already won quite a few awards for Homeland, and only 2 seasons in (the show itself has also already won numerous awards). She has a particularly interesting character. Sometimes I'm not a fan, but there are just so many other parts that make me go "Wow. This is crazy." or "That was awesome, way to go Carrie! [Her character's name]". Her character also spans so many different emotions, and she is SO convincing; it's really incredible. What really got me for good was the last episode or two of season one, and it's a critical part of the show so I won't spoil it, but it's a certain characteristic that she just absolutely nails.

I'm definitely a huge fan and I'm sad that I got through both seasons in under a week... With just 12 episodes per season, it's not that difficult, but now I have to wait for September 2013 for the next round.

So if ever you find yourself bored, with time to kill, and at least a little interest in the drama/thriller/politics/crime genre, give it a try!

Also a disclaimer: I didn't realize at first that it was on Showcase, and if you didn't know, shows are on Showcase for a reason.. aka basically some rated R sort of stuff, which kind of adds to the excitement though if you know what I mean ;p

The Future

Being in my fourth year of University, and my third year of my degree, I know it's important to start thinking about what I want to do after and what kind of career I want. Today in my introduction to sport injuries, the prof mentioned just this; that we're at the point where we need to start figuring out our plans.

For the first time ever in 4 years, I finally had a prof present us with a list of possible careers. And it got me thinking. Lots of them were interesting, sports nutrition, but I'm not sure if I'd want to do it. Then, of course, there's the biggest thing you think when you hear physed or kinesiology, pysiotherapy. But I know I don't want to do that. It's too medical and something about it scares me. I also always thought you needed an extremely high average to get in. Then he mentioned athletic therapy which caught my attention.

So I came home and started looking them up; I've never really spent too much time looking into these things so it's about time. I discovered that there is a Canadian accredited program for athletic training in Alberta! AND I could have a great chance at getting in! There are certain course requirements which are easy enough to get; I'll get them all in my degree, and then there's just an EMR/first responder course which I would have to pursue outside of school. Then, as long as I have a 3.0, it would basically be a done deal! It's a certificate program, so nothing like a graduate program where you a certain GPA, volunteer experience and an interview. So this is definitely looking like something I could strive for once my degree in completed.

On the note of physiotherapy, at the U of A (where I currently go), the GPA actually isn't too high, it's an overall 3.0 but recommended 3.5+ in last 2 years for better chance. As well as proper volunteer hours and an interview. So that could still be a possibility on the horizon, but where I'm at right now, it does not interest me at all. But of course I'm always keeping my doors open and doing the best I can at any rate.

Another that kind of caught my interest was sport physiology. I'm taking the intro course right now, and even though we haven't covered too much, it sounds really interesting. But in the little but of research on it I tried, it sounds very difficult to do, and would require a masters degree which now I'm not too sure I want to do.

After last semester's partial failure in my goals for marks, I was starting to think I just didn't have the grades to do anything after my undergrad. But now looking at these few programs I realize that I totally can, I've held a 3.4 in my first year, and a 3.3 since. So it's totally doable, maybe especially if I have a goal in mind.

So I'm glad the prof brought those things up today, and now I know a bit more, and can have a little bit of a plan. Ideally I would go talk to my councilor and get some more info on other perspective careers, but for now I'll be putting that off; though I know I shouldn't, at least not for too long!