When I saw influencers start to post videos with AI-designed meal plans, I immediately opened my Chat GPT app and joined the fun. I will say that ChatGPT did a pretty good job, if not lacking a little in variety. I also learned you have to be REALLY SPECIFIC about what you want, so you don’t get weird combos (you will see).
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Fasted cardio has gained significant attention for its potential benefits in accelerating weight loss, but there is so much more to it. It can help jumpstart your morning, get your blood and creative juices flowing, and uplift your mood.
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When I need something to eat during the day when I am working, I literally sometimes have NO TIME to either prep or time to get lunch out. Not to mention, the latter is expensive and can add up to 100s of dollars a month!
For this post, you will find the DAOFitLife “awards” for the best types of low-carb wraps.
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Sometimes the greatest success comes from a mistake. Or an accident.
In a drug originally developed to treat Type 2 diabetes, scientists discovered during the process that the active ingredient in these drugs could also be used prescriptively to aid weight loss. Boom, an industry estimated to be worth 200 Billion dollars by 2030 was accidentally born.
So what do you need to know about the trend sweeping social media and dominating the headlines? And why does it matter?
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If you have or are considering getting an Apple Watch, you may be aware of this fact: unlike a Fitbit, you do not see the number of steps immediately on the watch face. Wait, what?
Steps don’t automatically appear on the watch face. Which can really decrease your motivation when you are trying to track steps. The good news: There IS A WORKAROUND. I learned it, I did it, and so can you! All is right with the world.
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Have you ever taken a pair of jeans out of the closet you haven’t worn in a while? There is already an inner battle in my head when I do. Should I try them on? What if they don’t fit? What if I’ve gained weight? How did they fit the last time I wore them?
Now you shimmy them on. You might already be on the struggle bus in the shimmy process. Or you might get them all the way up but they don’t quite zip. Or they might zip, but that’s only a technicality. It zips but doesn’t quite fit.
In my day job, I like developing a “mode of analysis” for all my projects and issues I handle. So here is the DAOFitLife “Mode of Analysis” for your tight-jean issue. Step by step, with decisions along the way that you make based on what you feel is right for you!
(more…)Spring cleaning may not be the most exciting task on your to-do list, but it can actually be a sneaky way to get a workout in. Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy we burn during our daily activities, and cleaning and organizing your home can be a great way to boost NEAT and burn some extra calories. In this article, we’ll explore some common spring cleaning tasks and how many calories they can burn per hour, as well as tips on how to tackle cleaning out and organizing your closets and kitchen cabinets.
(more…)As Easter approaches, it can be challenging to resist the temptation of indulging in sugary treats. Especially if you have kids and Easter baskets to fill. But even without, there are aisles of colorful candies in every store, office candy bowls, and commercials witth the clucking bunny.
(more…)You probably have seen it on some form of social media – women rolling odd shaped jade tools over their faces. This practice of gua sha is centuries old, but it has resurfaces as a way to decrease puffiness and act as a “natural botox”.
But is it really that magical? Here is what you need to know and my experience. As an initial reaction, I found that a regular gua sha practice was so much more than skincare. It helped relieve tension in my jaw, forehead, and sinus pressure. So read on if you have any of these issues especially at your job! This is now part of my daily routine – rise, wash face, coffee, lemon water, meditate, and gua sha. By the end of this five minute routine, I feel like a million bucks and ready to face the world!
(more…)Spring is here, and it’s time to start thinking about getting those arms ready for tank tops, sundresses, and other warm-weather attire. Whether you’re looking to tone up, build muscle, or just feel more confident in your own skin, there are plenty of ways to get nice arms for spring.
Here are some tips to help you achieve your goals. It might be only spring but it generally takes about 8 weeks to notice a difference when you start a new training program. Be patient, and follow along!
(more…)Spring break is a time to let loose and enjoy yourself, but it doesn't have to come at the expense of your health and fitness goals. Whether you're planning a…
In a morality-laced wellness culture, the world is divided into two food groups: Virtue-signaling “clean” foods, and evil, bad foods.
You know what? In many cases, the virtue signaling-food is actually not materially healthier. I have identified several common categories that compare the demonized food and the halo effect, then shine a light on reality. As for a solution, you can now eat the food you really want knowing that there is no real moral superiority to the alternative. OR you do what I do in many cases which is identify the core craving behind wanting a particular food and satisfy it with a healthier alternative, not a “faux healthy” version of that food.
(more…)“You don’t need to do cardio if you lift weights!” “Weights will make women bulky.” “You have to lift heavy to see your body change.”
Ever since bros have been lifting, there has been “broscience.” A classic way to spot one of these broscientists is the guy walking around the gym with a protein shake and a brightly colored pre-workout drink. And he may also be sporting a bag of trolli gummi worms, because it’s “chest day.”
A lot of the myths surrounding strength training make it more of an intimidating world to approach. How can you dedicate hours of extra time a day to doing sets when you can barely tear yourself away from that spreadsheet?
Here are 5 common beliefs about strength training and how to keep your busy schedule without having to become a “bro” parked in the gym for hours.
(more…)Do you ever wander through a grocery store, and you start snaking through the center aisles through the bright beautiful colors of foods in boxes and bags? If you stop and pay attention to how you feel, it may be giddy, excited or just want to eat everything in sight?
Believe it or not, you are being seduced.
(more…)Is your daily life consumed by jumping from one tab to another? Do you constantly lose track of what you are working on and find yourself staring blankly at a row of open tabs? Have you ever opened a tab for an article you are interested in reading, knowing deep down you realistically will never read it but it just makes you feel better to have the tab open? Do you multitask during calls, clicking through different tabs and then totally have to make someone repeat a question?
We have ALL been there. Modern corporate culture has a twisted, tab-hoarding problem that is draining our productivity. So how can we take it back?
(more…)You want to try a diet. I get it. I am not here to stop you. It’s that time in the middle of winter when you have that panic moment – you’ve been super busy at work the holidays threw you off and you started a fitness kick but stopped it at the end of dry January.
So here is a list of popular diets – and some criteria to consider before going on one. I am also including DAO resources with deep dives on the super popular ones – Keto, Paleo, and Intermittent Fasting.
(more…)If you have been listening to mainstream media, you probably are convinced that sugar is the devil incarnate when it comes to healthy eating and weight loss. Yes, sugar is delicious and tempting and even comforting. But eating too much can lead to all kinds of problems – including weight gain and obesity, . And most Americans eat way, way too much. (up to 5 times the recommended amount by the American Heart Association).
Sugar is also really sneaky. It is EVERYWHERE…in places you don’t even suspect. So when you are at a conference and innocently picking up that cup of yogurt at breakfast, thinking you are being “good”, you are likely just inhaling a bunch of sugar. You might as well have had that danish! Even when it comes to less obvious “evils”, there are so many conflicting opinions. Fruit is good. No, fruit’s just like sugar, it’s bad. White sugar is bad, but honey and date syrup are legit “clean eating.” Or the “sugar is sugar is sugar” trope.
It all comes back to being smart, not being dogmatic. In this article, I boil down what you need to know to be smart about sugar. Most of the reason we overconsume is lack of information and marketing hacks. This article will give you the knowledge you need, so you don’t have to deprive yourself.
(more…)The Wall Street Journal had a recent article, “Why Working Out During the Workday Is the Ultimate Power Move”. The article has an interview of CEOs who humblebrag about being able to disappear for two hours unaccounted for to do sets at the gym. This is the exact kind of messaging that makes the rest of us think that we have to be some big wig to “get away” with midday workouts.
I beg to differ. I have been doing mid-day workouts for years – when I was an on the clock government worker, as a junior associate at a law firm, and now as a director at a Big 4. The secret is knowing exactly what you will do and exactly how you will do it. And being PREPARED. You may not be the CEO of a company, but you should be the CEO of your own body.
(more…)Yes, that’s right, 2023 is going to be our year! But first, you have to get through day 1. And most of us will not wake up on January 1st fresh as a daisy. It’s ok, you earned the right to celebrate. Whether you stayed up later, ate more treats or just had one too many glasses of champs (or um, shots) here is your ultimate DAOFitLife hangover toolkit.
(more…)– and sustain it. If resolutions are not sustainable, then what IS sustainable? Changing your daily HABITS is a sustainable way to make lifelong differences. That is because you…
