2011 IDEA Program Director of the Year Award

Push Your Rock!

For those of you who don't know my Dad, Eugene, he's a pretty incredible guy.


For those of you who do know 'HU-GENE', consider yourself lucky!


One of the many ways in which he supports my brother and I is by sending us inspirational quotes or stories.


Here is one he sent today that I thought worked not only for health and fitness, but life in general.


Hope you feel what I felt when I finished reading it...and that you PUSH YOUR ROCK!


There once was a man who had a huge desire to please G-d, so he prayed day and night until one day a Voice spoke to him, “I want you to go and push a rock.”

The man woke up the next morning elated, and ran outside to find a huge boulder.  He began pushing it, but nothing happened, so he kept at it all day.  


The next day he did the same, yet it still didn’t budge an inch.  He went on like that for three months, until one day he got so frustrated that he stopped pushing.

That night he had a dream, and the Voice asked him, “Why did you stop pushing?”  


“Nothing happened,” he answered. 


“Nothing happened? Look at you! Look how determined and focused you’ve become. Look how powerful your muscles are now. You’re no longer the person you were when you started. 

Besides, I didn’t tell you to move the rock; I told you to push it. I’ll move the rock when it’s time.”

Keep pushing your rock.  It'll move at the right moment, in the perfect time, when you least expect it.  And amazing things are happening, even if you're not noticing them yet.

4 Exercises For The Battling Ropes

5 Reasons Yoga On The Beach Is...Overrated

I was on a cruise with my family to the West Caribbean in June and one of the activities passengers could do when we arrived at Labadee, Haiti was yoga on the beach.

Everyone has seen those DVD covers with Rodney Yee effortlessly doing yoga on white sand overlooking turquoise water - looks and sounds great, right?

Well the reality is, its not.

Here are the 5 reasons yoga on the beach is overrated:

1. Scratchy Sand 

Expect to be covered, it's everywhere. Who would guess that on a beach?

Rodney never falls victim of even one grain. 

2. Blotchy Tan

Rodney doesn't have to, but this white guy worries about his tan blending. 

Don't think the teacher plans around your sun exposure.

3. Blinding Sun

Have fun doing a sun salutation when your retinas are burnt to a crisp.

4. Ground Moves

Balance exercises are like a sobriety test with moving sand beneath you

5. Stinging Eyes

Yes I'm crying, but not tears of j.o.y. - s.p.f.

Restaurant Review - Ping Pong Dim Sum

900 7th Street Northwest

Washington D.C., DC 20001-3886

(202) 506-3740

It’s 11:35am, and it’s almost that time of day.

You are getting hungry, but whatcha gonna have for lunch?

 Like most of us, you’re going to suffer through brown bag boredom or picking your poison between a starchy sandwich or so-called ‘salad’.

What’s a hip and healthy urbanite to do?!

DC’s lunch options are about as cool as walking around with an open Metro map.

Luckily for you,  I got your fix to bring sexy back to your noon time noshing.

Ping Pong Dim Sum’s $20.00 Healthy Fixe!

Never been to Ping Pong?

Shame, Shame, Shame…I know your name .

As you probably could’ve guessed it’s just up street from the Verizon Center in Chinatown.

Kiss your corporate life goodbye as your cubicle turns into a sleek and stylish midday getaway.  From their world beat music to the casually-cool clientele to the mega menu = this place ain’t no game..

For those of us who don’t know (me just a couple weeks ago) Dum Sim is basically like Chinese tapas. Small individual portions of food, usually served in a small steamer basket or on a small plate.

Check it out, here is the Healthy Fixe, four-course set menu served on weekdays before 5pm:

Salad – Asian leaf & crispy wonton

Soup – Choice of spicy seafood wonton or vegetable wonton

Steamed Dumplings – one of each: har gau, cbive, scallop & shitake,  spinach & mushroom, spicy vegetable,

Steamed Vegetable – Choose between broccoli or bok choy

My Ping Pong Dim Sum experience was pretty spectacular to say the least. The dumplings were like petite presents containing traditional recipes, but featuring modern flavors and ingredients. The broccoli was by far,  the best I’ve had in a very long time and you’ll be delighted by how the salad and soup creates a beautifully balanced meal.

Many of the health benefits of eating at Ping Pong are obvious because of steaming, small portions, all the veggies and lean proteins, but there’s one more that might be hiding between your fingers…the chopstick.! You got it,  this pair makes us eat slower and shovel smaller amounts of food in our mouths which causes us to get fuller with less food!

Don’t wait to ditch your desk dining and walk on down to Ping Pong Dim Sum for their Healthy Fixe, Hearty Fixe, or Power Lunch . Promise it will give you lunch break bliss.

 

Restaurant Review - Litestars

www.litestars.com

While walking home through the construction on 18^th Street, I stumbled over what appeared to be a lamp that had been buried for years! After looking over both shoulders to see if anyone witnessed my clumsiness, I discretely bent down, scooped up the lamp and continued on my way. When I finally got home, I cleaned the lamp and decided to try my chances by giving it a good rub.

All of a sudden smoke started pouring out of the front and to my astonishment a figure appeared! After first I was  disappointed because the figure was a lot less like Barbara Eden and more like the Great Bambino. That was until I heard his thundering voice say, ‘I am the most powerful genie in the world. Because I am so powerful, I can grant you not one, but three wishes.’

I couldn’t believe my luck, as I stood there in my kitchen with a Babe Ruth look-a-like genie about to grant me three wishes. 

Feeling pressured and awkward about him just staring at me, I quickly blurted out three things:

1.   A restaurant that I can get a quick healthy meal for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

2.   Where the ingredients used are always local, natural, fresh, and nutritious

3.   The meals leave me feeling satisfied, light, and energized

‘That’s not asking for too much, but we don’t have any places like that in DC.’, I told the genie. Right then, he closed his eyes, bowed his head and said, ‘now you do, as I will grant these wishes to you.’

When the smoke finally cleared again, I realized I was standing in line at the new fast-casual restaurant, Litestars, which offers Washingtonians fresher, healthier, and tastier food choices.

The Litestars Nutritional Chef Annie Leconte is both the creative mind and passionate heart behind the menu. She introduces DC to ‘functional foods’ that not only look and taste good, but also are very usable for our bodies, energy, health, and metabolism.

When you hop into line there are three main stations to create your meal from at Litestars:

1. Tartlets – a thin whole-wheat pastry-like crust filled with

your choice of ‘cuisine’. Try the Bison made of natural fresh

ground bison from Maryland with tomatoes and onions, or sample the ‘spring garden’ of zucchini and sun dried tomato for the Zucchini flavor, or the Ratatouille Tartlet a roasted medley of eggplant, red pepper, zucchini, and tomatoes.

2. Gourmet Salads - made fresh with locally grown produce

and vegetables. Flavors include the light and summery Mango Chicken, and the hearty Bulgur Wheat Bean, Mexican-inspired Quinoa Dates and colorful Confetti of Tofu.

3.   Soupdrinks – all these gluten-free, hot and cold purees are a deliciously easy way to get a lot of nutrients on the go. Flavors include Funshine’s fuse of butternut squash and sweet apples, Afterglow’s very refreshing blend of tomatoes, onions, and garlic or Cold’ Sunrise’s sweet and sour cantaloupe and relish mix.

After eating at Litestars, I discovered that two additional wishes came true that I did not even ask from the genie. The first was that you could sample every single tartlet, salad, and soupdrink before making the final decision on what you’d like order! Second is that all and I mean all calories, ingredients, and nutritional facts are posted everywhere so there is no secret surprise to what you are eating and how healthy is it for you.

Fortunately, Litestars has been a wish granted to all us Washingtonians that are in search of something special for their food and nutrition through their not-to-miss healthier quick bistro.

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