Saving Herbs for Cooking

Is this a great idea for saving fresh herbs, or what?  The pictures show putting the herbs into ice cube trays and then filling the tray with organic olive oil, then putting the tray into the freezer. You could also probably just put them into the refrigerator and let the oil solidify if you are going to be using the cubes within a few days. 

I bet you could also fill the trays with coconut oil or butter (if you are not counting the calories) and have a great starter for cooking or sauteing.

This idea from www.organic-gardening.com

Four Days in Gym May Be Better than Six! Just Sayin'

Feeling guilty about not hitting the gym every day? Maybe you shouldn’t, new research suggests.  The New York Times reports on a new study.

Working out four days a week may be at least as beneficial — or even better — than six, according to a new study by sports scientists at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. What’s more, working out as little as a couple times a week can provide substantial health benefits.

The UAB study, published in the journal Exercise & Science in Sports & Medicine, tracked 72 sedentary women — aged 60 to 74 years — who were divided into three groups and asked to follow different exercise regimens for a 16-week period.

The first group exercised twice a week, lifting weights one day and doing aerobic exercises (bike riding or jogging) on another. The second group engaged in four workouts a week, lifting weights twice and riding a bike or jogging on two other days. The third group exercised six days a week, lifting weights three days and doing aerobic workouts on three others.

For each group, researchers gradually increased the intensity of the workout routines to moderate levels to build endurance and muscle strength. By the end of the study, the workouts were 40 minutes long on each exercise day.

The results showed that all of the women lost weight and improved their strength and endurance. In addition, the researchers noted there was virtually no difference in fitness or strength levels among the groups, regardless of whether they exercised two, four, or six times a week.

But the results also indicated that, after four months, the women exercising four times per week were expending far more energy on workout days — by more than 200 additional calories — than they were at the start of the study. They were also burning more calories per workout than either of the other two groups.

The twice-a-week group was expending slightly more energy on each workout day — about an additional 68 calories — than at the start of the study. But, unexpectedly, the six-times-a-week exercisers were actually burning less daily energy — about 150 fewer calories — than at the start of the study. They also complained that the workouts took too much time out of their weeks, and made them less likely to be active when they weren’t formally exercising.

But even the six-day exercisers were not overly fatigued. The researchers also found that their blood levels of stress-related cytokines, believed to measure nervous system changes that may signal stress in the body, were not any higher than women in the other two groups.

The findings contrast with some past studies that have suggested working out only a couple times a week isn’t enough to be beneficial, boost fitness, or lose weight. They also differ from previous research that has indicated vigorous daily exercise may be too physically taxing and can cause problems with the central nervous system and increase stress in the body.

In fact, the UAB team’s findings suggest even two workouts a week can produce substantial benefits and that people who have time and like to exercise almost every day don’t suffer ill effects.

“All groups increased fat-free mass, strength, and aerobic fitness, and decreased fat mass,” the researchers concluded. “No changes were observed in cytokines or perceptions of fatigue/depression.”

Growing Willpower to Achieve Any Goal

Growing the “Will” in WillpowerFrom Success Center Usa

One of the toughest parts of running a business is actually “getting it done.”  There are always time constraints and, sometimes, budget constraints.  In fact, there are mostly constraints of will.  We all know we “should” do some marketing.  In fact we know we should put together a real marketing plan – then follow it – but that seldom happens.  We know we should do endless quantities of things we do not do.  You’re guilty.  I’m guilty.  Everyone is guilty.  Nobody –nobody – does everything they know they should do.  Some of us, however, do better than others.

According to a graphic a friend posted on Facebook this morning, “It’s not that some people have willpower and some don’t.  It’s that some people are ready to change and others are not.”  It’s not an uncommon perception.  The outcome is that we go about flogging ourselves endlessly for our weaknesses.

There are, however, interesting mental aspects to “ready” that are not necessarily simply indications of degree of desire.  Each of us has, as it turns out, a finite quantity of willpower – and it’s tied to exhaustion.  It’s nearly impossible to exercise willpower later in the evening – and that’s why so many people – including me – ruin our diets by snacking late at night.  You’ve been exercising willpower and restraint all day.  You’ve used up your available willpower.  Like a muscle, you can increase the quality and strength of willpower with practice.

Ultimately, however, “ready” means “desperate” or “determined” to the extent you put aside other things in your life, freeing up time and mental energy to devote to change.  Dieting, for example, is extremely draining in every conceivable way.  It takes mental energy and no small amount of time.  “Ready” means you put something else out of your life to make room for that thing you are elevating to top priority.

Picture a bucket of balls.  Each ball represents a goal or an action you’ve decided you “should” take.  You can’t really increase the size of the bucket.  You can add balls, remove balls, and move them within the pail, but you can’t change the pail.  Being ‘ready” means you’ve made a decision to put your hand into the pail, pull a specific goal ball from the bottom, and bringing it to the very top of the bucket.  Then you have to fight to keep it there because, throughout every day, you pull up more balls.  What happens when you reach your hand into a pail to bring up more balls from the bottom?  The ones on top tend to shift toward the bottom, right?  That’s the way our goals fight for attention in our lives.

It helps me to picture the things I want the most in terms of being my favorite colors – each of the two books I’m currently working on  has its own color.  The book geared to micro and small businesses is a white ball with dollar sign painted on it in green.  The second book is solid black with one white dot.  Mentally, I’ll add more white dots as I complete portions of it.  Losing belly fat has a color – it’s a passion red ball with a black lace imprint.  Each of two business I want to set up in California, with my sister, has a color.  One is the dark blackish brown of freshly tilled fertile soil.  The other is the color of the ocean at sunset.  Restructuring my life to afford me quality time with my husband is his favorite grass green color.  These are the balls I must keep on top.  Of course I must also go through my routine daily work. I hold them tightly against the rim with my left hand to keep them from falling down and getting mixed in, as I pull the everyday balls from the bucket with my right hand.

If you want to succeed at your goals, it will be helpful for you to create a visual aid similar to my bucket, to help you – although I don’t mind sharing. Get a bucket and start collecting balls that you can relate to.  Whether your bucket is virtual or real, notice when you start losing sight of those key colored balls on top.  Identify the commonalities and causes.  Then you can guard against those points of weakness that typically trip you up.

Failing to plan is planning to fail.  Create plans to help you capitalize on your strengths and mitigate the effects of your weaknesses.     You might need to lay out materials ahead of time.  Perhaps certain tasks are best done at a certain time of day.  Once you come up with a plan for keeping those key colored balls on top – and sometimes just picturing them sinking beneath the surface is enough, you’ll find that you can meet your goals.  You will be “ready” for success.

Why I Love Kale + Recipe for Kale Chips

I have never been much of a veggie eater ... brought up on canned corn, peas and green beans with a few potatoes tossed in for good measure.  Since Tom and I have been growing our own vegetables, I have really found many new favorites.  (Nothing tastes better than home grown!!)  Recently I discovered kale ... and below is a chart that shows all the wonderful benefits of that great leafy green treasure!!! (Also a recipe for kale chips!!)

Crispy Kale "Chips"

Recipe courtesy Melissa d'Arabian4 servings.Ingredients

1 head kale, washed and thoroughly dried
2 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt, for sprinkling

Directions

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F.

Remove the ribs from the kale and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Lay on a baking sheet and toss with the olive oil and salt. Bake until crisp, turning the leaves halfway through, about 20 minutes. Serve as finger food.