{"id":23685,"date":"2015-03-13T14:44:32","date_gmt":"2015-03-13T18:44:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/?p=23685"},"modified":"2015-03-13T14:44:32","modified_gmt":"2015-03-13T18:44:32","slug":"spring-thaw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/2015\/03\/13\/spring-thaw\/","title":{"rendered":"Spring Thaw"},"content":{"rendered":"Spring is coming very quickly this year!\r\n\r\nSpring is like a sunrise in the East and it feels like a new beginning. Spring is also a time for revitalizing, rejuvenating and getting back to basics. It is a time for first steps. First Nations House Elder-in-Residence Andrew Wesley is giving a teaching about Omushkego Cree Naming Ceremonies for babies on March 26th<\/sup>, one of the first great steps in a child\u2019s life!\r\n\r\nFor me, springtime is the signal to take off the heavy winter jacket and defrost<\/em> myself. I start with physical defrosting. Winter requires rest and more eating, so gobbling up more goodies over the holiday is totally natural but it can leave you feeling a little rusty once the weather starts to warm up. This beautiful weather means it\u2019s time to get the running shoes out and get active!\r\n\r\n
\"A<\/a>
Do you feel rusty, or are you ready to rev your engine??? (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nI love exercise. Ever since I started getting fit in 2011 (I dropped 100 lbs. by the time I reached my peak condition) exercise has been a key part of my life.\r\n\r\n
\"A<\/a>
I took this picture while on a morning jog up the big hill in Cochrane, AB, 2012. (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nIt can be incredibly hard to get in shape. Trust me, I know. <\/em>However, motivating yourself to exercise is related to so much more than physical fitness.\r\n\r\n
\"A<\/a>
Do these machines make you want to run away? (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nExercise releases tension in your body, and also creates positive emotions in your brain. I\u2019m always<\/em> happier when I\u2019m exercising regularly. In addition to boosting your energy levels so you can function better in everyday life, exercise also boosts your mind. <\/em>Your senses are heightened and your thoughts are clearer and deeper.\r\n\r\n
\"A<\/a>
Exercise is like a bear spirit: it heals and has immense mental powers (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nSpirituality is also connected to fitness. The simplest example is music. I always need good tunes when I\u2019m at the gym and my relationship with music is very spiritual. Exercise also makes me think much deeper about my own musicianship. See the reciprocity? Your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual areas all help each other out. It\u2019s amazing how big the impact of fitness really is!\r\n\r\nI\u2019ve started hitting the gym again this week and the boost couldn\u2019t come at a better time; I\u2019m about to get hit with the end-of-semester test\/assignment avalanche so I\u2019ll need the energy to push on through!\r\n\r\n
\"A<\/a>
Some debris from the last essay...don't even get me started on how many sticky notes went along with these! (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nI start with a warm-up run. They can be exhausting if you\u2019re still building your cardio capacity and they can be mind-numbingly boring<\/em> if you\u2019re on a treadmill. I always compensate by listening to my favorite Van Halen albums at full volume. You can watch movies or TV too if you have a tablet.\r\n\r\n
\"The<\/a>
Get running'! (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nFollow that with weight training. I focus on one area like upper-body or legs, per workout. It\u2019s important to give each area a rest for the best results! Don\u2019t forget though, you can work your abs every<\/em> day.\r\n\r\n
\"An<\/a>
What strange contraptions are these?? (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nI choose weights that are heavy enough to make me sore, but light enough that I can comfortably manage them. I always do full extensions when lifting any weight and I go slowly.<\/em> By doing those things, I get the best exercise from each repetition. The only way I know how to make progress with weights is to go until I can\u2019t possibly do another lift. That way, my body knows its limit and responds by building bigger muscle to prepare better for next time. The body adapts and is very smart!\r\n\r\n
\"A<\/a>
Tower of power (Photo by Zachary Biech)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\nFollow your gym trips up with lots of high-protein foods, like cottage cheese or chicken, and you\u2019re good to go! Don\u2019t work out too hard and take rests when you need them. Don\u2019t give up either; your fitness is worth every moment!\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.athletics.utoronto.ca\/recreation.htm<\/a>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/harthouse.ca\/fitness\/<\/a>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/physical.utoronto.ca\/facilitiesandmemberships\/Athletic_Centre.aspx<\/a>\r\n\r\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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\nSpring is coming very quickly this year! Spring is like a sunrise in the East and it feels like a new beginning. Spring is also a time for revitalizing, rejuvenating and getting back to basics. It is a time for…\n<\/div>
Continue reading “Spring Thaw”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>
Continue reading “Spring Thaw”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"author":238,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1758,7204,62,65,1,58,66,82,68],"tags":[768,78,259,1733,25500,9307,138,48],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23685"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/238"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23685"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23685\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23694,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23685\/revisions\/23694"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}