As we shop during the holidays, its hard to pass up the various goodies along the shelves. Chocolate this, peppermint that. Since we do most our shopping at our local ...
Most Recent Posts
Add These Nutrient-Packed Foods To Your…
Are you going grocery shopping today? Check out #oakleywomen for a new year nutrient packed list!
Add These Nutrient-Packed Foods To Your…
Though winter is still over a week away, the temperatures sure feel that it’s here with a vengeance. Not to fear, you can stay warm with tons of soups, stews, and warm meals. The best ingredients are always to choose local, seasonal vegetables. Here are a list of many options to throw into your next recipe and keep your toes toasty. Winter Vegetables Beets, Belgian Endive, Broccoli, Broccoli Raabe, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Beets Belgian Endive, Broccoli, Broccoli Raabe, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Kale Potatoes, Cauliflower, Celery, Kale, Potatoes, Onions, Sweet Potatoes, Turnips, Winter Squash
Lacey Calvert::Yoga Pose of the Day!
In need of a heart opener today? Check out @laceycalvert Yoga Pose of the day! #oakleywomen
Lacey Calvert::Yoga Pose of the Day!
Camel Pose (Utrasana) is an awesome backbend that opens the entire front body. The hip flexors are lengthened, while releasing anxiety and fatigue. This posture can bring up some serious emotions, leaving your feeling free and ready for the new day. Good for all levels of yogis.
Savasana…My favorite Part of Yoga
At the end of every yoga class, you often hear the teacher instructing you to lie still on your back with your eyes closed and legs long for “Savasana” or “Copse Pose”. This is the moment I am able to let out a big breath and finally allow my hour-long yoga practice to sink in. This is the best moment of my yoga practice.
But as I start to travel and teach yoga to more and more athletes, I started to realize that not many people understood the power of this pose, or asana. B.K.S. Iyengar explained in his book Light On Yoga “By remaining motionless for some time and keeping he mind still while you are fully conscious, you learn to relax. This conscious relaxation invigorates and refreshes both body and mind.” Believe me, for years the idea of laying down and clearing my thoughts seemed impossible. But once I was open to the idea of savasana, I slowly felt how beneficial this was for my everyday life.
Why do savasana?
Savasana allows the breathing rhythm and heart rate to steady and rest. In all of our hectic lives, this is very rare. With heightened heart rates, people loose control and often result in anxiety problems and stress overload. As athletes, we are really good at heightening our heart rate and pushing our bodies to the limit. It’s important that the body and mind get a few minutes to rest a day for balance. By practicing savasana, one can train themselves to slow down their heart rate and breath with complete control. I know that I can run farther distances and snowboard longer powder lines knowing that I can have complete authority over my heart rate and breath. Because of techniques learned in savasana, you learn to become aware of those things around you, and observe from a calm and pleasantly detached place. The word “hectic” and “stressed” are slowly eliminated from your vocabulary.
So take 2 minutes after your yoga practice to complete your workout. Your mind (and body!) will thank you.
Yoga Music: Flowing into 2013 Playlist
Here’s the newest Power Yoga Playlist that we’ve been jammin’ to in our classes throughout the beginning of the new year:
- “Instrumental” by Jose Gonzalez
- “Poison and Wine” by The Civil Wars
- “Crystallize” by Lindsey Stirling
- “Fineshine” by Purity Ring
- “Fortune Days” by The Glitch Mob
- “Don’t you Worry Child (radio edit)” by Swedish House Mafia
- “Azure” by Berlin Calling
- “Black and Gold” by Sam Sparro
- “Just A Boy” by Angus and Julia Stone
- “Where is My Mind” by Its Kinda A Funny Story Soundtrack
- “The Devils Tears” by Angus and Julia Stone
- “River Flows in You” by Yiruma
Healthy Holidays: Spinach and Kale Greek Yogurt Dip
As we shop during the holidays, its hard to pass up the various goodies along the shelves. Chocolate this, peppermint that. Since we do most our shopping at our local Trader Joe’s, it does help with some of the temptation, especially when we are searching for the best appetizer to bring to the many Holiday parties!
Recently, we came across this, Spinach & Kale Greek Yogurt Dip and of course we had to give it a try! Needless to say, but we will, it was good. So we got to thinking, how could we could make our own homemade version, and keep it low in calories and fat, but high in flavor?
And here is our version of Spinach & Kale Greek Yogurt Dip…with a little help from our friends over at Homespun with Love.
1/2 a box of frozen, thawed and drained spinach
3-4 medium, fresh curly Kale leaves, washed, stem removed and chopped into thin julienne slices
1 1/2 cups non fat Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2-3 gloves of garlic, minced
1 package Knorr vegetable mix
1/4 Italian red onion, chopped small
Salt & Pepper to taste
Place spinach and kale in a bowl and toss to combine. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. We found we did not need to add additional salt. Check for seasoning. Serve or chill in refrigerator covered until ready to serve.
Serve this with crackers, bread or vegetable sticks.
Optional add ins: water chestnuts, red bell pepper, green onions.
Happy Healthy Holidays!
Oakley Pro Am Halfmoon Bay
This past weekend, Lacey and the Oakley crew spent a few days at the Ritz-Carlton for the final stop of the Oakley Pro-Am. Check out some photos of the amazing experience!
Congratulations to all the winners of the Pro Ams at all the stops! Good luck to them as they continue to compete at the Skull Cup in Arizona!
Fore!!
Kona Ironman 2012…Finishing Last is Finishing First
The week of October 5th-October 14th, I had the opportunity to travel to Kona, Hawaii to be apart of the 2012 Ironman World’s Championship. I went there to represent Oakley at the Ironman Expo a few days prior to the actual race. I went there knowing I was going to be headed back to paradise, but had no idea how inspiring and moving this actual competition was.
Waking up at 6:00am on the day of the race was not an option. Sure, the expo was over and we had the day “off”, but I was so excited to be apart of this community and event, I couldn’t help but to wake up with excitement. Heading down to the start, I was overwhelmed on how many people got out of bed that early to watch the 2.4 mile swim. The environment was buzzing as the athletes took to the water, following up with a 112-mile bike ride and 26.2 Marathon run….all in the heat that Hawaii brings everyday.
Sure, it was awesome to watch Pete Jacobs and Leanda Cave win for the men and the womens, but the real action was the last few hours of the race. Around 8:00pm, I stood against a barrier lining the last few yards before the finish line. Watching athletes ranging from 20-87 years of age, pushing their body to the limits was the most inspiring, heart melting thing I have ever done. I wasn’t even there to support someone that I knew, but I cheered with all my might for each person that passed. It was exhilarating to be apart of this huge crowd, who’d all been up since before the sun rose, cheering on individuals whose bodies were breaking down, yet they weren’t giving up. Each person’s name was yelled over the loudspeaker with their own personal journey and careers. Tears filled my eyes watching the joy that every finisher had.
In my opinion, finishing last might just be better than getting first. Here’s some photos and a PERFECT video on the event. Until next year Kona!
The Oakley Expo Crew! 🙂
The swim start…filling up the beaches at 7:00am!
My View of the Finish! The crowd was so uplifting and truly a community!
Fit in Fall: A Yoga Flow to Reset YOU!
With the first few days of Fall under our belts, its a perfect time to reset our body and mind. We were very excited to find this flow from FitSugar, and happy to share it with you!
Balancing the change from summer to winter, this “Fall Equinox” flow challenges your balance and allows you to feel grounded and ready to embrace the change!
Downward Facing Dog (5 breaths)
Three Legged Dog
Warrior 1 Pose (5 breaths)
Crow Pose
Warrior 3 Pose (soft bend in your knee!)
Wide Squat
Standing Hand to Big Toe
Seated Forward Fold
Savasana (at least two minutes of silence..because, hey! You NEED it!)
Check out the full article at http://www.fitsugar.com/Fall-Equinox-Yoga-Sequence-25070224?slide=12.
And thanks for making in through the first few days, and stay tuned for more FIT IN FALL recipes, workouts and more for you!
Fit This Fall Recipe: Butternut Squash Chilli with Quinoa
Ready for the season to change? We will miss the warmth of summer and those fresh summer fruits, but we are excited for the entrance of Butternut Squash and more warm foods into our dinners!
Here’s a great recipe for Butternut Squash Chilli with Quinoa – Ready in 30 minutes and serves four!!
Ingredients:
- 1 large onion , finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves , crushed
- olive oil
- 1 tbsp mild chilli powder (Schwartz does a good one with added cumin, oregano and garlic)
- 1 butternut squash , about 1kg, peeled and cubed
- 100g quinoa , soaked in cold water for 10 minutes (available from health food shops and some supermarkets)
- 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
- 400g tin red kidney beans
- a small bunch coriander , chopped
- Cook the onion and garlic in 1 tbsp olive oil until soft (about 7 minutes). Add the chilli powder, cook for a minute then add the squash, quinoa and tomatoes.
- Simmer for 10-15 minutes until the squash and quinoa are tender and the sauce has thickened. Add the beans and heat through. Stir in the coriander and serve in bowls.
Per serving: 306 kcalories, protein 13.9g, carbohydrate 53.4g, fat 5.6 g, saturated fat 0.7g, fibre 10.1g,
We love this homemade healthy chilli and hope you can too! Its easy, fast and SO YUMMY!
Enjoy, look for more recipes coming your way soon, and stay Fit This Fall!
Yoga, Travel and Life Lessons
Recently I helped Contiki Travel with an interview on my thoughts on travel. You can read the interview here, and see some travel advice I have for you! But this really got me thinking about WHY I travel.
Throughout my career, I have become very lucky to be able to combine to of my passions: Yoga and Travel. The best advice I can ever give someone is to travel. Lots. And everywhere you can. Go somewhere you don’t know the language and travel to place without a plan. Immerse yourself in cultures you’ve only heard about and experience things that you have only read in books.
Why Travel? Because traveling shapes you into who you can become and introduces you into other worlds. You can sit for hours watching this different life walk in front of you, unconsciously taking in the culture, experiences and manners within. I watched myself grow up with each place that I visited…moving from Europe to Hawaii and stationing back in Southern California all while traveling to 20 different US states, Australia, Canada, South America and more. Each town and country added to my own values and personal beliefs and I am happy to say that I will continue this travel addiction. There’s so much more of the word to see.
Why Travel and do Yoga? Traveling through college, I spent most of my times sleeping on trains in Europe or dancing the night away at the local pubs. Once I started to emerge myself in yoga and finding a daily practice, my two worlds of yoga and travel were pushed together as one. Practicing yoga in a different place allows my body to react to change, be challenged to other perspectives and learn what the destination has taught me. Yoga in another culture or place gives you a moment on your trip to reflect. To express through movement what you are learning and gaining, while taking that serene silence to soak it all in.
So give it a chance. Grab your passport, research yoga studios near by and try something new. Just remember “it’s not the destination, it’s the journey”
California Yoga Sport 