Keyboard Athletes

Counting Sheep – and Other Sleep Tricks

sleep tricks Sleep and I have NOT been good friends over the past few weeks – I don’t know what’s going on, but for someone who could get a gold medal in the sleep Olympics if there were such a thing, this not sleeping thing is NOT good. Not good at all.

And as I lay awake unable to sleep, I consider things like the layout for a home page redesign on my web site, do teens REALLY spontaneously break out into song in high school these days, and why the heck were we taught to count sheep when we couldn’t sleep.

Yes, there is a new home page coming, I’m pretty sure Glee is pure fiction, and I think I cracked the code on counting sheep. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Lifestyle

Why You Can’t Blame Your Genes

By Jen Waak Leave a Comment

I frequently hear, “well, it just runs in my family” or “my parents and grandparents all have [horrible disease x] so I’ll get it too.”

And while it’s true that you likely have the genetic marker for [horrible disease x] – you can stop the story there. Just because you have the genes for something in no way guarantees that you will develop [horrible disease x].

And we now know this because of a relatively new field of study called epigenetics.

What is Epigenetics?

The easiest way to define it is to break down the word itself. The Greek prefix epi- in epigenetics implies features that are “on top of” or “in addition to” genetics, so in the case of epigenetics, we are referring to features (in this case, lifestyle and environmental factors) that influence our gene sequence (or DNA). [Read more...]

Filed Under: Lifestyle

Taking Martial Arts Back to the Basics

By Jen Waak Leave a Comment

Have you ever been in a class trying to learn a new activity, such as dance or a martial art, and absolutely struggle to remember which foot goes back, which arm is up, which way to rotate, etc?

For years, that was me, too.

But then, last week, as you may recall, I started taking Capoeira classes. Stepping into that room for the first time was a daunting experience – after all, I was always the liability on the field growing up. So, the idea of getting in there and doing something that was not only active, but downright acrobatic, was scary as hell for me.

And then we started…

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Movement

Learning a New Sport: More Than Just Physical Skill

By Jen Waak Leave a Comment

For some of us, taking up a new sport is nothing short of intimidating.

Growing up, between the severe asthma, broken collarbone at 14, and broken back at 16, I wasn’t exactly a childhood athlete. I was always picked last for teams, placed in team positions where I could do the least damage, and was generally considered to be a liability on the field. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Motivation

5 Eating Habits for Creativity and Productivity

By Jen Waak 1 Comment

Did you know that changing your eating habits can improve your creativity and productivity?

It can.

For many people, the word Sustenance means food. But, the definition is actually MUCH more broad, and is defined by terms such as: support from below; maintain; encourage.

And as such, your eating habits can support and enhance your creativity and productivity. And, it’s not as hard as you might think.

Instead, it’s a matter of linking together a series of small changes to create a big change. We don’t expect infants to be able to run – it’s a progression. The same is true of developing any other skill or habit – we have to start with small changes and build on them. [Read more...]