Jan 10, 2012 Posted

Weigh-in Wednesday: 10 Tips to Being Healthy at CES

Last week when I wrote Did You Feel It, I felt life was going at warp speed. This week, make that times 2. Not only did I push a new website and concept out last week – 52Wines52Weeks.com but I brought in over 10 new projects in just one week! On top of that, I am currently sitting at my brother’s house so tired and crazy pumped up from being at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) in Las Vegas. I covered the Microsoft Keynote last night and was awestruck by the awesomeness of what they have coming this year. Ford Fusion Energi blew me away today with unveiling a car that gets over 100 MPGe!! Can I get a WOWsers!!

I think I found my next car. Ford – we need to talk. Call me.

One of the greatest opportunities was seeing Jillian Michaels up close and personal. I mean, literally, I stood mere feet away from her. She spoke about fitness and how technology had greatly impacted the way her and Bob Harper trained the contestants on The Biggest Loser. They used to be proud of when they would have someone lose 100lbs in 12 weeks, with the help of the BodyBug spitting out dating such as how many calories were burned per exercise, the trainers were then able to customize everything to each person. They then were able to have a contestant lose 100lbs in 6 weeks! She was taking questions, but I wasn’t able to get mine in on time. It was – what are some healthy tips people can do while at conferences. Well, since I didn’t get to ask her, these are the ones I try to live by.

Eat a healthy breakfast each day.
Put half a lemon in your water bottle for the day << I brought lemons with me. Half in the morning, and the other half in the afternoon for a refreshing drink
Hydrate – drink more water than you normally do because I am pretty sure you are drinking more than normal too!
Apples. Plain and simple – I brought 1 for each day and cut them up. They went into my computer bag for a great mid-morning snack. Remember, apples & lemons are a couple of the best thing you can do for your liver!
Healthy snacks – nuts, raisins, pretzels, and nutrition bars
Don’t eat out of anything that vaguely resembles a high school cafeteria line
Prepackaged salads or sandwiches are your best bet
Lay off the soda. I know, it’s hard.
Take 10 min every couple hours to sit down, even up against a wall.
Breathe. Deep breathes to help center your mind and focus on your goal for that day.

My brother Rick and I at Ford’s unveiling at CES 2012.

Weight Loss

Loss: 1 pound

What I Did Right This Week:

Eating 1 lemon every day. Squeeze 1/2 into my water in the morning and then again at lunch. Even while on travel!
Eating 1 apple every day
Making green shakes. Lots of them with spinach, kale, apples, cranberries, and citrus << so good!
Eating as little wheat and gluten as humanly possible << although I can’t seem to kick this completely
Hiked 2x
Meditated each morning

What I Did Wrong This Week:

Had a couple Pepsis
Had fast food twice. I did though, really think about what was the healthiest on the menu (even looked up nutritional data on my smart phone & made the better choice)
Haven’t made it back to yoga yet
Not drinking as much water as I should

Goals For This Week:

Eat 1 lemon daily
Follow my own advice when it comes to eating healthy while at CES
Training for my upcoming 5k. Run 2x this week.
Run 2x, hike 1x, Golf 1x, Gym 2x, Yoga 2x
Meditate every morning

Goals For This Month:

Eliminate gluten and grains out of my diet
Stay focused and motivated
Eat 2 cups of spinach a day & 2 apples every day
To not wake up by an alarm. I need to wake up at 5:00am… then I better be in bed by 9. I wake up so angry whenever my alarm goes off, I want to wake up in peace.

My intention for last week was Make it Happen! I have been doing this! I am working super long hours and really doing my due diligence on everything in both my personal and business life. I am admitting my faults, and working hard on the things I do well. I am Making it Happen! This is my year 2012!!

My intention for this week is to Trust in Myself. I need to trust in my abilities, my knowledge, and my quest for greatness. Sometimes I waiver in my own self-confidence and it shows. I have to remember, only I can make a difference in my life. Others may impact it, but only I can change it. When I trust in myself, I trust in my future. This is my year 2012!!

Share on Facebook

Jan 9, 2012 Posted

Microsoft Keynote at CES

Sitting in the last ever keynote given by Steve Ballmer, current CEO of Microsoft at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES), waiting to hear all the amazing things coming to market this year. It is not lost on my that I am writing this post using Microsoft’s Live Writer. I’m a Microsoft junkie. I wish I could have seen Bill Gates here but I am stoked to see what Steve Ballmer has to say.

Photo courtesy of Kotaku.com

Started out showing all the amazing sweaters that Bill Gates has worn over the years. I loved it! Made Microsoft seems personable, like they were my Microsoft. Bill Gates always said – Update your software! It is the 1st question I ask my clients actually. Will admit, was a tad surprised to see Ryan Seacrest helping to emcee the event. Is it sad I didn’t readily recognize him readily and had to turn to the official #CES and #MSFTCES Tweet stream to verify?

Microsoft has shown bold ambition in the past, can they for the future too? You decide – here are a few of the tech loveliness we get to anticipate to release in 2012.

Metro User Interface

Metro User Interface is fast, fluid, and dynamic across all the Microsoft experiences to be able to connect all Microsoft platforms cohesively. Everything being released is based on this interface.

Microsoft 7 Phone

This phone makes it easy to mirror the social world that you have created. You can have groups of people, just like in your real life. Doesn’t use proprietary chat software, so you can use the ones you are most used to, even Facebook Chat. Voice is built throughout Windows Phones so it makes it easy to voice-to-text and be more hands free. One of the great things about the Microsoft Windows Phone is that you can shortcut right into the app that you love without having to go through all the regular screens. << I love this.

HTC Titan 2 just launched today – 4.7 in 16 megapixels << Wowsers!!

Bing

Is truly a decision engine – makes seeing all sorts of information easy to then make an informed decision. Once you select it comes into a Quick Card and then connects to other apps that are related. Such as when researching a restaurant, you can open up the reviews then make a reservation on OpenTable, all from inside just 1 app. << Love that it is all together and makes things so much easier! I think I need a Windows Phone to play with!

Windows 8

Don’t need to unlock the device to see the important things of the day. Gone is typing in a password – now you can hit different points on an image to open up your device. Windows 8 is designed to work with touch or mouse and keyboard. T=Microsoft wants a no compromised experience. Get everything you want with just a single swipe. Through Charms you can access your apps, programs, everything you need at your fingertips. Metro style apps are full screen so the things you want to do are front and center. Every Windows 7 PCs and tablets are able to use Windows 8. All 3 million of them!

Windows App Store

This opens up in late February. The Windows App Store is global and available in every language that Windows is currently offered in – that is incredible reach. The Windows Store is designed to offer something for everyone, both for fun and for work. One cool thing is take these Apps and roam across all your platforms and devices using Windows 8. One cool feature is that you can group apps so if you have kids and they use specific apps, group them together and then you know those are the ones you want for when they are playing on your tablet. It even integrates two apps apps at work together. This I have to try!

Even Internet Explorer has been updated to the new Metro style as well. To be honest, I don’t know the last time I have ever used IE. I will check it out, but I’m holding my breathe.

OMG – The Tweet Choir came on stage and sang some of the tweets from the night. How freaking awesome is that??? I have *never* seen that. Loved it!!

This pic courtesy of TechCrunch

XBOX

What’s new on XBOX? One thing is now you say it and XBOX does it. The new Metro design is central to the experience. The only controller you will need is your voice using Kinect and Bing. Using a single voice command let’s you search across all of XBOX from games, to movies, to apps, to the providers who offer those services. Discovery is more than just through titles, but even actors. It’s awesome that you can use your voice to fast forward, play, or pause the movie. << That is really kind of cool.

All the News Corps brands will be on demand on XBOX in 2012 such as Family Guy, Simpsons, Fringe, New Girl, and even Glee.

Instead of just having a one-way experience with your TV, using Kinect TV it now will become two-way. The demo Microsoft showed was collaborating with Sesame Street and making the episodes truly interactive. For the 1st time ever you can impact what you are seeing on TV. << Wow. Your kids are going to be enthralled. It is truly epic. Wonder if they will do the same thing with some adult shows?

Metro will drive the new magic. Ryan Seacrest asked Steve Ballmer ‘What’s next?’ He replied: ‘Metro Metro Metro and Windows Windows Windows!

Share on Facebook

Jan 4, 2012 Posted

Weigh-in Wednesday: Did You Feel It?

Did you feel it? The shift in the world and in yourself as 2012 started? I certainly did. I felt this peace, this optimism, this hope, and this outright determination I hadn’t felt in a very long time. Quite a few people I have talked to have also remarked on feeling this energy shift in the world. It’s good energy. It feels like balance. For me, it has struck a light under me that I just can’t explain. I am on fire!

I have never been a resolution girl. I’ve made them, and I’ve certainly broken them. I have researched goal setting though – how when you actually write down your goals and say them out loud, that you actually give them life. For the last 6 weeks I have been working diligently with my business coach @CoachLynda on my business and my personal goals. And wouldn’t you know it, quite a few of them are intertwined. Here are just a few of them.

Personal Goals for 2012

Run a 5k every month! (I’ve signed up for 4 so far!)
Live a Soy-Free life (Hard for sure, but I’m doing it)
Understand how my body reacts to each type of food I put into. (Do you ever really consciously do this. It’s amazing when you do.)
To not let clutter accumulate (I am not OCD clean, I’m afraid)
Go to Europe – Italy and Ireland to be exact

Business Goals for 2012

Write a specific wine blog. It’s called 52Wines52Weeks.com (1st post & website up this week so check back!)
Increase my business by 50%. (Lofty goal I know, but this girl has a plan!)
Attend some awesome conferences so I stay fresh and at the forefront of my industry (CES, BlogWorld, BlogHer, NAWBO to name a few)
Be a great mentor to other women and other women business owners
Write. Write. Write. I need to be writing 4 days a week on Weight Loss, Technology, Wine and Food/Recipes, and a tish of Gardening.

Now just imagine for a moment… writing my blogs on a Tuscan vineyard sipping the wine and enjoying the countryside as I write. Oh, there’s a 5k this weekend, you don’t say. My goals are intertwined. My wine blog is a sponsored blog that I am planning on taking me to Sonoma and Paso Robles all the way to Italy. I can do this, I will do this! And why not run in a 5k while I am there? These are my goals. This is my year 2012.

If you noticed, I didn’t say anything about weight loss in my goals. BECAUSE IT’S NOT IMPORTANT. It really isn’t. What IS important is being healthy. I’m overweight now for sure, but since I have taken soy out, I feel so much better. While I train for these 5Ks by running, hiking, strength training, and practicing yoga. By eating soy-free and being as gluten- and wheat-free as possible (Paleo diet) then my body will react by releasing the stored fat. I am certain of this. By accomplishing my life’s goals, I will release this weight. This is my year 2012.

I’ve gone through extreme pain and loss over the last three years. I’m done with that. I have learned those lessons. I am now ready for greatness. This is my year 2012.