Friday Brain Junk

I was going to call this my “Friday Brain Fart,” but I know some folks don’t think farts are funny.

That’s not me, BTW. Farts are hysterical.

I just needed to get some junk out of my brain, however, hence the following.

 

1. I am obsessed with this song.

 

I may or may not have listened to it 3 times in a row during my cardio session on Wednesday. Plus twice yesterday. And twice today.

And it’s going on the playlist for my cardio circuit class tomorrow morning.

 

2. Wearing clothes that used to not fit feels awesome.

These Lululemon crops were too tight on me 4 weeks ago.

They’re still a little questionable on me now.

But I rocked them anyway.

 

3. I can’t wait to eat these foods.

First, I found these today:

 

Pre-cut frozen hash browns tend to have a lot of crap in them. Even some of the organic ones I looked at today had canola oil in them. And the conventional ones have preservatives.

Not these.

One ingredient: potatoes.

I’ve also been eating a bowl of this every day for lunch, topped with some shredded coconut and sliced almonds:

 

It’s really good, and my body seems to like it (meaning it doesn’t make me bloated).

Just be careful; it will overflow in the microwave after about 2.5 minutes. And it needs 4 minutes to cook.

 

4. I need to pick up some new toys for my fitness room.

This was the state of said “fitness room” last Friday.

 

This is how it looks now.

 

BIG IMPROVEMENT.

I need to decide what I want to have for my mini home gym.

I already have the StairMaster, some dumb bells, a pull up bar, and jump ropes.

I think I might want any or all of the following:

• a 40-50# kettlebell
• a suspension trainer
• a stability ball
• a badass foam roller

Anything else that is small and could be useful for multiple things?

 

5. Natural Calm is kind of awesome

I started supplementing magnesium a few weeks ago but stopped when I ran into some stomach/GI problems. I put the magnesium supplementation on hold until I felt like my GI issues were stable.

I restarted magnesium at night yesterday, and I am doing so with this:

 

This is the unflavored version, but it’s basically a more soluble form of magnesium that is ingested with warm water just before bed.

Why might one supplement magnesium?

First, many Americans are close to or are outright deficient in this mineral, not getting enough of it from their food sources. I, however, likely get enough of it from foods like raw almonds, brown rice, and spinach.

Second, magnesium is important in several bodily functions:

• helps maintain blood pressure, helps regulate blood sugar, and helps maintain metabolism and protein synthesis
• helps maintain normal muscle and nerve functions
• helps maintain healthy bones

The second bullet point is the one of interest to me. With the level of damage I do to my muscles, it is likely that I might have higher than average magnesium needs.

Magnesium has also been linked to decreases in muscle tension, hence why it is used as a migraine preventative and a muscle relaxer.

Finally, magnesium absorption might be comprised in anyone with lower GI problems (it’s absorbed in the small intestine), and while I don’t have Crohn’s or ulcerative colitis, magnesium levels can be lower in persons with a wide variety of intestinal problems, including gluten sensivities.

I’ve also read that magnesium might intensify one’s dreams, and boy was that true last night.

I dreamed about 17 different things, but the dream I most recall was one where I was a teacher (HMMMM) and had found a dog outside the school. I brought him in with me and took him out for walks between classes.

His name was Morgan.

He was awesome.

 

 

6. Things I Think You Should Read

This piece on diet basics. For one, I like that there’s actually a female writer on T-Nation. For two, she gets this pretty spot on.

This article on myths about genetically engineered foods. I found it enlightening, though it does not mean I’ll buy GMO stuff.

 

 

That’s it.

And now my brain is officially empty.

Good thing it’s Friday.