Study Break

Friday, Friday, Friday. Oh how I love Friday’s. And *studying.

*Sarcasm is a huge part of life.

I’m cranking out the book pages, note cards, and study guides for my American College of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer exam (yay!). Let’s just say that studying for extended periods of time is a little more challenging then I remember from my college days (way back in the 2003-2007 days- ha).

But since I’m on a mission to train others, working with my passion for exercise, I’m actually finding all the personal training information quite interesting. For example, based on the ACSM criteria, my Total (daily) Energy Expenditure (or TEE) is 2656 kcals. And damn, that is a lot of calories! (this is assuming daily exercise of at least an hour of continuous work) I’m pretty sure I am not getting nearly that many… but anyway…

Your TEE is great for seeing what your total caloric needs are, and is based on: the amount of energy needed to maintain the body’s needs at rest, the basal energy expenditure, expressed as the base metabolic rate (BMR) or Thermal Effects of Food (TEF), and the needs generated by the daily activity levels, which include employment, sport, and any other activities.

And I’m learning more in depth about anatomy, the skeletal and muscle structures and how they move and work, exercise programming (setting up workouts), injury prevention and correction, and the physiology and psychology behind exercise making behavioral change(s). And all this studying is making me hungry. With much needed study breaks, here is what I’ve been creating:

Fit Turkey Chili - gluten free, dairy free, low sodium- and just a bunch of random veggies mixed together

Roasted Squash...
...Filled with roasted greens (aka brussel sprouts and cauliflower)
...Topped with homemade red pepper hummus
...And smothered with a loaded green salad
Hello: World's Best Dish.
Edible bowl and all...

Scrambled, and seasoned, eggs... with Kabocha

Almost everything requires mustard (Dijon present) and baba ganoush

And that, ladies and ladies, and the occasional gentlemen, is eating. Lately, I have been so busy, my meals aren’t so creative, or time consuming, but tasty, nonetheless. And I’m eating so much squash, I’m surprised I’m not turning orange… or am I?

Lastly, I wanted to share something that kind of disturbed me. I will buy canned foods- tuna, beans, tomatoes, etc. But this is just wrong to me. Check out what’s canned on the left side of this picture…

Canned Hummus???????

What have you been eating (more of) lately?

What study tips do you use or suggest? How do you retain all the info you need to when studying?

P.S. Guess who I’m meeting tomorrow…Click Here.