Eat to Lead is Ready! Get in on the celebration for the next 3 days.
The very first print copy of Eat to Lead is in my hands! That means it's almost ready to be in yours! I’ve reviewed it, and made a few teeny changes to keep it cutting-edge up-to-date. And now, I'm ready to push the GO button on...
Publishing a Book in Real Life: Book Update June 2020
Since I prelaunched Eat to Lead I've been sharing my writing and publishing experiences on video. There were so many things I found out along the way. Some things I found out about in advance, but just didn't think they were...
Why You Must Come First In Difficult Times
If you’ve been in the position of taking care of others in any way, whether you're a leader, a parent, a health professional, all of the above or something different, you’ve probably discovered that you can’t take good care of others when you haven't taken care of...
Working from Home During Crisis Can Deplete Mental Energy: These Tips Will Help
Working from home during COVID-19 can challenge our brain even more than we're used to because of constant distractions and multiple schedules. Are you feeling it? Here are three ways to optimize your brain energy and get more done. Have...
Working from Home During the Coronavirus? Some Lessons Learned
Here are the top three lessons I've learned after working from home full-time since 2011 that will make your "working from home" experience much more productive, comfortable, healthy and balanced. What has your experience been so far? Have...
Eating Holiday Treats Without Crashing and Burning
The holiday season comes with so many sensual pleasures, like the sights of colorful holiday lights, the sounds of happy holiday music, the touch of soft fleece and faux fur in the colder weather, and the smells of holiday food. Oh, the smells—the ones that make you...
Fast, Healthy, Delicious Thanksgiving Dishes
For most of my career I worked the day before Thanksgiving into the evening. For many years I worked right through Thanksgiving day. If your life is like that right now, you'll finish work tonight and run to the grocery store. Or you'll head there tomorrow afternoon....
What I’ve Been Up To and a Book Update!
Transcription: You may remember, about a year ago I had a book pre-launch.Well, that went very well. I haven't really been speaking much about it because I've been typing my little fingers away behind the scenes! That, my friends, is the...
Do You Have Trouble Finding Exercise Clothes?
Do you have trouble finding exercise clothes? I do. Lately, the clothes I try on are too big or too small, but only in certain areas. Most of the time I can’t find the right color. And, have you had the same problem I’ve had with moisture wicking clothes?
Stroke and Heart Attack In the News—Why We All Should Pay Attention
Popular media today portrays exercise and healthy eating in such a way that it looks almost like a luxury. It's fun and fabulous. Yes, that tact is commonly taken in order to attract people to the ideas. But it may be time to step back and realize, it's not just for...
How to Talk to People
It's been well researched that social relationships are necessary for human health and even our survival. We're a species that evolved through tribalism. Being social is in our DNA. I created several Meetup groups for this reason—to support people in leadership and...
Where We Landed
In my last post I shared how we left our Bay Area Home of seven years and drove through central California to our new home in the south. Dreams do come true, and this was one of mine. I didn't share where we ended up moving ultimately, because I had so many beautiful...
Dreams into Reality
It's been a year of change and vibrant energy already for me. At the end of this month we packed up and left our home of 7 years. We enjoyed it, and we met some lovely, warm and amazing people. And yet, the dreams keep calling you until you finally follow them. The...
Different Ways to Exercise
This week we visited three cities in southern California. It was very interesting to me—and quite motivating—when I discovered how many miles we had been walking on that trip. We wanted to see everything about these cities on foot, because you can see much more that...
Gratitude Meditation and the Healthy Leader
Our leadership abilities depend on how well we take care of ourselves. Mindset is one of the most important areas for leaders to focus on. It's right up there with eating, sleeping, and moving. Research finds that a regular...
Finding the Right Publisher
I finished the book prelaunch two months ago. Afterward, I expected to be onto the next phase—publishing the book with a publisher—in about two weeks. As it turns out, that wasn't the case! Instead, for the last two months my more than full-time job has been publisher...
My Top Ten List of Things to Do (and Ways to Keep Moving) in the City of Boston
I took a trip to Boston a couple weeks ago. I was practicing what I preach—balance. After the book launch, my body and brain needed a change of scenery. Since my husband had a business trip there, I tagged along. I worked, but also took time to enjoy the city. Scroll...
Exciting Anti-Aging Discoveries in Exercise
THIS is the video I've been promising for weeks! My video production schedule was put on pause for the book launch. I'm ramping it back up again and I'm very excited about this next video. Paul Holbrook presented how he helps his clients...
We Did It!
We Did it! Above is a screenshot of the Publishizer website at the end of the launch! Thank you so much for your support with this book and for going along with me on this journey. EVERY BOOK made a difference. Now, I'm speaking with publishers. Please keep your...
A Little Something You May Not Know About Me
My intention for college was to get into medical school. The college I chose didn't have an official "pre-med" program. So, I put together all the courses that were required plus a few others that interested me, and proposed my own pre-med program to the board:...
Apple Bake without the Cake (no added sugar, gluten-free, all natural dessert)
This is a simple, healthy dessert. Great for the winter and even a good holiday dish! You know the way I like to do things: fast, delicious and healthy—well, this is no exception! You can't hack your body, but surely you can hack some...
Just How Dangerous Is Sitting?
I was at the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) Annual Conference in Denver earlier this month, where sports medicine docs, athletic trainers, physical therapists and exercise physiologists from around the world were presenting their most current, cutting edge...
New Research on High Intensity Interval Training: Striking a Better Balance
Today I want to share an important piece of research regarding high intensity interval training. I've said in the past that higher intensities will always burn more calories. But, in my opinion, the Tabata-style workout has been overrated and over-promoted to the...
Best Diets?
For its 7th year in a row, US News & World report evaluated thirty-eight of the most-popular diets and revealed what they consider the best of the bunch.1 The periodical aligned with a team of experts including nutritionists, specialists in diabetes, heart health,...
New Year: New Way of Making Changes
If you're planning to make changes to your nutrition and exercise habits this year, I have something for you to think about: Changing habits can be difficult. Exercising and changing your diet because you're trying to fix something about yourself that you don't like...
Simple Holiday Stress Relief
Ah, Holidays in Northern America! Such a wonderful combination of loving and giving, tradition, and... stress. I love the celebrations and the decorations. And yet, I can’t tell you how many times...
Meditate a Little: Keep calm and Carry on With the Holidays!
Wow, it is a busy time of year, isn’t it? This is my busiest month by far. On top of being a business owner working 9-9 through the week and working most Saturdays, this month adds shopping for gifts, creating cards, and dropping by holiday parties. (How did it get to...
Super Simple Holiday Side Dish: Cauliflower Mash
This is the simplest cauliflower mash I’ve come up with. There are only two ingredients! It’s perfect for the holidays, or any any cold day when you’re craving comfort food. By the way, over the holidays while you’re traveling, don’t...
Read moreYour Emergency Happiness List
For Times of Sadness: Your Emergency Happiness List
There are small things you can do that will help lift your spirits so you can keep moving forward – even when you’re sad. This is a list of ten different actions I use to bring myself out of a funk – and why I use them. Most require minimal energy. See if some of it works for you too.
How 10,000 People Lost Weight and Continue to Keep it Off
You can keep lost weight off. Most media coverage about weight loss these days is about how hard it is to lose weight. There are many confusing reports about what one needs to do to lose weight. And, even if you've been successful at...
Do Calories Count?
(Watch the video or read below.) Some say counting calories doesn’t matter, but it can make the difference between success or failure in weight loss and weight maintenance. If you’re eating clean foods and exercising and...
New York Times and the Biggest Loser: Is Weight Loss Really a Losing Battle?
Last week a New York Times article ¹ exposed a new study in the Journal Obesity (2) that observed 14 contestants of the Biggest Loser reality show. They lost "hundreds of pounds", then struggled to keep their weight loss, and even gained weight in the next 6 years...
Is Your Body Too Tired To Exercise? Or Is It Just Your Brain?
(Picture above is from my bike ride this weekend.) It was an amazing spring day. It was around 75 degrees when we started in Portola. About halfway to the turnaround point on Canada Road the air turned chilly but the sun stayed warm and bright. We passed this...
How to Make Health and Fitness Goals That Work
Did you make some health and fitness goals for yourself last month? And have you stuck with them? You know a lot of people have trouble sticking to resolutions and staying on track with their goals, So if you do too, you're...
Why New Years’ Resolutions For Diet and Exercise Fail
The word going around these days is that New Year's resolutions are bogus. Because most of them are forgotten by February. And, why make a promise that you know you won't keep? But I completely disagree. January is a perfect and natural time to take inventory on...
Fast Track Back to Your Healthy Diet and Exercise In the New Year
If you've been following my blog posts and getting my emails, no doubt you have been hearing some of my favorite tips on how to maintain your healthy eating and exercise during the holidays. And now that the holidays have...
Client Conversations – Keeping Your Weight Loss and Fitness This Holiday
Sticking to healthy habits can be more challenging during the winter holidays. It's especially hard when we return to family and friends who expect us to be the same person we were in years past. There can be a lot of pressure (from others or from our self) to...
Make Your own Cranberry Sauce with Less Sugar
Cranberry sauce is one of my favorite things on the holiday table. I really like the sweet and sour flavor with poultry. And the red makes the whole dish look festive! Total confession - the cranberry sauce in the can used to be my absolute favorite. It's like eating...
The 30 Day Abs Challenge – Is it Worth Your Time?
Thirty-day exercise challenges are everywhere. You'll find them in fitness and fashion magazines, on fitness websites, in posters in your gym and even at the office. They're created with the best of intentions - to motivate you and help...
Running Through an Italian City on the Mediterranean
I’ve written plenty of blog posts about how to keep an exercise routine and good diet while on a trip or vacation. What I haven't yet addressed is why I exercise on vacation. I never thought to answer that question...
Meditation with Khen Rinpoche: Breathe In, Breathe Out
A growing body of research supports that meditation, for even 5-10 minutes per day, can significantly improve brain function. (1) I was very grateful to have been able to meet and learn from Khen Rinpoche Lobzang Tsetan last weekend. He's a Tibetian Buddhist Monk, a...
The Clean Eating Challenge with MyFitnessPal Webinar 2: Eating Clean While Eating Out
Last week, MyFitnessPal and the Institute for Responsible Nutrition co-hosted a 10-day Clean Eating Challenge. This is the second of two, live public webinars hosted by the Institute for responsible nutrition to make...
The Clean Eating Challenge with MyFitnessPal Webinar 1: Cooking for Family with Ease
Last week, MyFitnessPal and the Institute for Responsible Nutrition co-hosted a 10-day Clean Eating Challenge. Clean food = unprocessed, natural, otherwise known as real food. To make clean eating a little easier for...
Eating Healthy While on Vacation- Five Uncommon Tips
Healthy food selection takes every vacation to another level of rejuvenation and replenishment. The best part is when you eat good, healthy food, you feel better than ever. If you don't believe me, give these tips a try on your next trip and see for yourself. Clients...
Don’t let Them Convince You that Diet is More Important than Exercise
Another article was published in the New York Times this week heralding diet to be more important than exercise. The title was: To Lose Weight, Eating Less Is Far More Important Than Exercising More. An article claiming that diet is more important than...
How to Keep Up Your Exercise While On Vacation
It's summer, everyone's favorite time to vacation. The summer is when I most frequently talk with clients about how to keep their weight loss and fitness gains while traveling. No matter what my clients' situations, they are all concerned about these two...
Super Simple Comfort Food: Chicken Soup
Once you've tried this recipe, you won’t believe how easy chicken soup is to make. Both of my Slovak grandmothers made a variation of this soup recipe. When I was old about 14, they taught me how to make it myself. It was so easy and inexpensive, it became one of my...
Which is Worse: Fat or Carbohydrate?
A few weeks ago news was leaked that the Dietary Guidelines committee suggested we drop dietary limits on cholesterol. That announcement re-fueled the fire under a completely different debate over fat and carbohydrate that started last year. The debate over...
What the Change in Cholesterol Guidelines Would Mean for You
There are reports that the nation's top nutrition advisory panel, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, will call to eliminate the longstanding limits on dietary cholesterol (1,2). The Committee's decision will be used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and...
Setting Goals and Setting Yourself Up for Success
Happy New Year!! What are you doing to help yourself reach your goals this year? Books are written and courses are taught around what successful businesses and successful people do to bring goals (and dreams) into reality. As I write this post I keep thinking ...
Simple, Healthy, Delicious – Sweet Potatoes
I remember the sweet potatoes of my youth. Usually made around the holidays, they were baked and smothered with brown sugar and butter. So sweet! In fact, they may as well have been dessert! Now, that was a vegetable I was willing to eat more than my share of! Times...
Fast and Delicious Holiday Turkey Recipe
Not to brag, but I make an amazing turkey. It's always moist and delicious. I usually use a Martha Stewart recipe where the turkey is covered in cheesecloth and got lots of basting towards the end. It's always a hit with my guests. This year I was...
Craving: What is Your Body Really Trying to Tell You?
Welcome to our Healthy Holiday Trilogy: Episode 2 - Cravings This is a video from our live webinar held over the holidays. The sweet craving is in our genes. Sugar provides immediate energy, and when we need energy, of...
Stress Relief Over the Holidays
Welcome to our Healthy Holiday Trilogy: Episode 3 – Tamping Down the Stress The above video is taken from a live webinar. (Edit as of 12.2016: Hi guys, I can't believe I didn't catch this but I made a mistake in the first...
Sweet Temptations and Holiday Sugar Overload
Welcome to our Healthy Holiday Trilogy: Episode 1 - Sweet Temptations This video is taken from a live webinar. In this episode we’ll give you tips on how to have fun maintain your weight with ease and avoid sugar overload If you're...
Five Rules For Looking and Feeling Great through the Holiday
The holiday season is here. While you're putting in the extra time and energy to make the season bright for family and friends, you mustn't forget about yourself. Here are five simple rules to remember to maintain your energy, your weight and your...
Fit while on Vacation in Italy
I'm posting some pics of my latest trip to Italy in a fitness themed way. I hope you enjoy! The above picture is the French Riviera while flying out of Nice. It's not difficult to keep up the workout while on vacation. In fact, it's easier to exercise on vacation than...
Bad Carbs, Or Bad Way of Eating Carbs?
Low carb diets are all the rage again, and authors are selling books by the millions claiming that people will "be healthier" if they eat more meat, load up on fats (to include saturated fats), and cut out certain fruits and vegetables. I've been hearing...
How to Meditate for Relaxation and Rejuvenation
Long periods of stress without a break can bring you down mentally, emotionally and physically. Last week I posted a video of Diana and I discussing how difficult it can be to turn down the output (and input) for a few weeks and create space to rejuvenate. But in the...
The Challenges of Leading a Balanced Life: Rest and Recovery
In order to be optimal in any area of life, we need to have a balance of work and recovery. If we don't give our bodies rest after intense exercise, the body will not repair and we won't reap the benefits from our difficult workouts. The...
You Can Have Your Cake and Eat it Too – Skip the Sugar Detox Diets
The sugar discussion has gotten too extreme. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rNYUUCOAwg&index=9&list=PL9C_W_Ni5C376hc_PYfCYkLoBQ7ctA_a0 It's so extreme that people in the media are talking about cutting back on fruit because it contains sugar. With the last few...
What’s Your Sugar Limit?
Sugar has addictive properties. There is evidence that high sugar intake increases inflammation. The percentage of adults that have type-2 diabetes and the percentage of...
Your Relationship to Sweets Started in Childhood
Ever stop to think about how your relationship to sweets was formed when you were a child? Did you get sweets as a reward when you were growing up? Do you reward yourself, or...
Look Younger Through Exercise
When I speak in public about the benefits of exercise I often highlight research studies that correlate exercise to aging. For years now we've seen 60 year olds who exercise regularly with the internal physiology (muscle, blood chemistry, blood sugar metabolism...
What’s Your Passion? Here’s a Little Story About Mine
Here's the link we refer to in the video. Being able to nurture your passions adds a fullness and satisfaction to life that's on a different level from work or any other activity. In turn, it can boost brain chemicals that reduce your...
What’s the Scoop on Saturated Fat?
Yesterday good friend of mine asked me whether what we know about saturated fat has been turned on it’s head in the last few days.
Three Things to Remember when Reading about Health Related Research in the Popular Media
Friends, relatives and clients frequently send me articles from the mainstream media asking me to weigh in on reports of fitness or diet studies. It seems like a national article comes out each week telling us a particular food is good and the next week...
When it comes to diet and exercise – where do we get our advice?
When something’s wrong with the car, most people will look for a qualified mechanic – someone who has an education and preferably several years of experience working with cars. When people need a legal document, they’ll pay a good lawyer - preferably someone...
Turn Your Dreams into Reality: As the Last Sun Sets on This Year… What Will You Say You’ve Done?
Do something small today. Send a message out into the world, send a message to your SELF, that you’re serious about making this change.
A Healthier Hot Chocolate
This is a healthier hot chocolate made with less sugar and low-fat milk. On a cold and snowy night in DC, my friend, Doreen, made this lovely drink for me while I was staying at her home. It's a hot treat that feels like a splurge, but you can drink it...
What Causes a Heart Attack – Things You May Not Know
Out of the blue I began having pains in my chest. When I ran, when I walked, sometimes even when I sat quietly. Of course, it worried me. Women's heart attack symptoms are different from men's and since we've only begun to study them we don't have all the information...
What to Do when you’re Craving Sweets or Craving Salt and Junk Food
Find out one of the biggest reasons we crave food that’s not good for us and one of the first things you should do when it happens.
Calories in Sugar and Other Things You Should Know About Natural Sweeteners
When it comes to those sugary sweet temptations, are they healthier if they’re made with honey, or agave, or brown sugar?
Paddle Board Yoga and Paddle Board Pilates: All the Fun You can Have with a Strong Core!
Paddle Board Yoga is a variation of stand up paddle surfing, combined with yoga. Stand up paddle surfing is said to have originated in Hawaii in the 1940s when surfers used a long paddle to get out to the waves instead of lying on the board and swimming out. ...
My Take on Life On the Ligurian Coast: Another Reason Why the Mediterranean Diet Works so Well
Research strongly supports that the Mediterranean diet improves cardiovascular health and brain health, reduces the risk of many diseases and can lead to a longer life. My beau and I recently spent 9 days in Italy, on the coast of Liguria, where the tranquil...
Do We Need Extreme Competition?
It was 7:30 am on Memorial Day. There I was, standing on pier 39 in San Francisco watching for the ferry to arrive at Alcatraz and drop the love of my life into water so cold and dangerous that not even prisoners risked the swim to escape. I had been up since 4:45 am...
Why it Makes Financial Sense to Get Enough Sleep
This is part 3 in the three-part series: Combating the Rising Cost of Healthcare. In the last post I shed light on how exercise provides long-term financial payback. I also explained the economics of a healthy diet. Getting sleep is the third way to protect our...
Why it Makes Financial Sense to Exercise and Eat Healthy foods
This is the second in a three-part series about how you can protect your financial future from the rising costs of healthcare while at the same time improving and protecting your health for little to no financial investment. In my last post I described how some...
Combatting the Rising cost of Healthcare and Keeping more of Your Money for Yourself
Health insurance premiums are rising, and health care costs are rising as well. Small businesses are struggling to pay health insurance for their employees and the rising costs becomes detrimental to their growth. Those who are self-insured are also watching...
How to Succeed in a Workout Program: Tip #3
If you're looking to lose weight, run a marathon, or accomplish anything else that you're proud of it's important to remember to take small steps. So many people forget this when they're planning for a big success and it leads to a big...
How to Succeed in Your Workout Program: Tip #2
Unrealistic expectations are one of the biggest reasons people fail after starting a healthy diet and exercise plan. We need to be persistent, not impatient. Just make the right decisions when it comes to eating and exercise and then get...
How to Succeed in a Workout Program: Tip #1
They say if you want something done, ask a busy person. But is that still true when it comes to getting your workouts done? It depends on what kind of a busy person you are. If you're a busy person that prioritizes, creates a plan to...
Shoveling Snow? Make it a Workout and Save your Back
Another big snowstorm just hit the Northeastern United States. Having grown up in that area I'm hearing all about the shoveling friends and family are doing this weekend. I've been watching the comments on Facebook and enjoying the beautiful snow pictures. ...
Gone Are the Days
Gone are the days when exercise must equal grueling, teeth-gritting, vomit-producing pain. Fitness is like everything else in life: We don't go from zero to 100 all at once. We take it little by little, and each step can be comfortable and satisfying. If you're...
Scarier than a Scary Movie
I spent Halloween in DC last week. I was on a business trip to see clients and affiliate trainers in the area. I got to visit with some friends, and my beau ran his fith Marine Corps Marathon. (He did great, by the way!) We had just gone through hurricane...
Start with Today
Your life is the result of all the choices you make. Choices you make each moment create the result of your day. Choices you make each day create the results of your week. Choices each week create the results of your month - and your months create your year. Your...
Olympic Style Motivation
I noticed a drastic difference between the commercials that were played during the 2012 Olympics and the ones that usually air. These commercials were motivating and inspiring, much different from the norm of fat food and thin people, sprinkled with a drug...
Do we Really Need to Ask: Dieting vs Exercise for Weight Loss?
A Different Perspective on "Hunter Gatherer Energetics and Human Obesity" Last week in the media there was a flurry of reports about a study which, they claimed, to be proof that exercise isn't necessary for weight loss. The study, Hunter Gatherer...
A Quick Run Around Vienna, Austria
This is the Natural History Museum in Vienna. It's an old palace, the inside of which, is gorgeous. The Venus of Willendorf is there - a 25,000 year old statue representing what was in that time considered to be the ideal female form at that...
Easy, Healthy, Delicious – Green Beans with Dijon Vinaigrette
Tasty, healthy, easy. This recipe was modified from the original that can be found as "Fresh Green Beans with Garlic Vinaigrette" in Raw For The Holidays Blog, November 2010. Green Beans with Dijon Vinaigrette Serves: 4 Prep Time: 15 min ...
How to Eat Healthy when Eating Out – My Five Top Tips
Last week I found myself on a lovely adventure in Boston Massachusetts. Many know Boston as a mecca for seafood on the East Coast - so I couldn’t wait to indulge myself in lobster, clams, steamers, oysters and other creatures of the sea. In fact, here's what I...
Alcohol – Go For It
It’s fine to have a glass of wine, beer or other spirits now and then, but drinking too much can do you damage. Two big reasons to drink sparingly: 1.) It’s extra calories. There’s 100 Calories in 4 ounces of wine or one serving of hard liquor. (That's not including...
Travel-Smart Nutrition
This June I traveled from Amsterdam, to The Hague, to Brussels, to Bruges and then back to Brussels. The ancient buildings in these old European cities were unforgettable. My favorite site was the ruins of the 12th century royal palace (Palais Royal), which was...
Diet and Exercise on a European Vacation
I’ve been on vacation for the last week and have been making my way through several European cities. Today, I’m in Brussels, sitting at a very cute sidewalk cafe. It's raining just a little, but I’m under the awning. Otherwise it's been beautiful weather since I got...