“Concentration-wise, we’re having trouble crossing the line mentally from a toughness standpoint.” – football coach Bill Parcells.

I could picture it right now…

My sweetheart ex, Rele {Rell Lay} rolling on the floor laughing about me and football in the same sentence, let alone me quoting a football coach.  You see it took me quite a while to understand American football as “foot” ball, having been raised in South America…surrounded by some of the world’s best football players (Brazil, Suriname, Argentina, Venezuela) who play the entire game with their FEET.  Are ya with me on this one or what?

I’m…Just sayin’… Just sayin’ {and I’m shrugging my shoulders as well as raising my eyebrows here}

Rele is, who I would refer to as, a professional fan of all things football, what’s pretty ironic is that he has the stallion legs of a football player soccer player.  Anyhow…bless his heart for having to teach me the rules of the game every single Sunday and then again on Mondays, it was a real life scene from50 first dates.

The technique we used to help me remember teams was through the matching the “Quarterback” couple.  The Quarterback… usually he is the ridiculously good-looking hunky dude who is easy to spot because he’s got some famous equally ridiculously good-looking lady on his arm. So we’re talking…

the Quarterback & the Bombshell

He’s the quarterback and they are both bombshells… relax on the labeling here

…Tom Brady/Gisele Bundchen types or a Kim K and Reggie Bush, wait a sec… Reggie’s not a quarterback but who cares…

Anyhow… while I’m learning how to master the game of American football I must tell you that I do love using football drills {cones, ladders, sprints and all sorts of fancy footwork} which are great for conditioning the body, excellent for helping you get better at agility and just ups your game and overall endurance levels.  More to come on this when I introduce you to my athletic friends who are prepping for World Championships right now.  Football is an exciting world… it is… one I’m still discovering and finding myself in conferences with former Chicago Bear’s coach, Mike Ditka.    The first person I called was Rele;  we had a great chuckle.

that’s Mike!

“If God had wanted man to play soccer, he wouldn’t have given us arms.” – Mike Ditka

Really Mike? Really?

Feet!

Feet!

FEETball!!!!

Mike’s main point, the day that I “happened” upon his conference, was that as people we really need to go after what we really want in life; to be prepared to work and to work hard to be better than average.  If that’s what you want.  I’m paraphrasing here because the man was quite savvy with his words and hilarious too.  He’s like the grandfather you never met.  Another great coach is Bill Parcells, former coach of the Cowboys, Giants & Jets…

Mr. Parcells… {Bill… in my head} is F.U.N.N.Y.  He just cracks me up with his candor.  I’m not going to get into his hilarious quotes because I know you’ll have to go potty at some point so here’s the quote from up above

“Concentration-wise, we’re having trouble crossing the line mentally from a toughness standpoint.” – football coach Bill Parcells.

Here’s why Bill is relevant to you and getting the results with your body:

I’ve observed many many many gym goers, almost a trillion of you out there who are just not concentrating on what the heck you’re doing when you get to the gym.  Loves, you’ve got to stay focused if you’re going to make that change.  There’s no place for reading a magazine or a book; the gym is not the library nor is it the nail salon.

Concentrate on your form and what your body is doing. Don’t just fling your body around in a class or swing your arm back and forth so that it looks like a bicep curl or bounce on your joints in a lunge.  Slow the movement down and break it down into steps so that you get it right.  It’s better that you get 10 correctly formed repetitions of an exercise than you do a 100 incorrect ones that could lead to joint overuse and injury.

The 3 keys to maximizing your fitness:

1) Concentrate on making the mind-body connection which is just focusing on allowing your body to follow the movement and correctly use the muscles that should be working.  Again…with most workouts it’s better to do ten correct movements by contracting the right muscles than to complete a hundred without any real contraction.  Seriously… contract by squeezing the muscle… YOU have to do this… not your friend or your trainer.

2)Think positively. Like Henry Ford says, “If you think you can, or you think you can’t… you’re right.”  So you’d better be thinking you CAN!  It might be hard as heck but you’re sure going to try and try and try again, and if that doesn’t work you’re going to find some one that knows how to make it work Yes!

3) Discipline yourself by remembering the bigger picture.  You’re on a journey of creating a lifestyle of health, vitality and balance within all aspects of life.  Fitness is a tool that aids your journey and mental toughness will set you apart, build character and guide you to where you want to be.  This looks like… one step in front of the other… one day and then another… try and try again till you get it… and most of all this looks like… you winning!

Concentrate on what you’re doing and prepare mentally with these key lessons.  They will take you further than you might think.
See you tomorrow,
-Dee

The post 3 Keys. 2 football coaches. 1 You. appeared first on BeautifullyFitLife.com.

This move, has been the most life altering venture of my time.  I earned my stripes with this one. Let me tell you… Gray hairs, wrinkles, cellulite… ohhhhh my.

Yup, there… I said it.  Cellulite. It’s only pockets of fat lodged* under the layer of the skin often found on hips, thighs, arms…butt. 

I almost got chewed up and spit out; no amount of consolation from friends with similar stories could soothe or ease the various levels of discomfort.  One day I will share with you the magnificence of all the great things God did for me and how I exited with grace and in favor beyond anything I could wish for myself.

For now, I will tell you all you need to know right now about cellulite.  The good news: it is not an incurable disease.  The pretty good news: it takes some intentional effort to erase it from your life.

Here we go:

1. Put down the muffins and croissants

This is not limited to just muffins and croissants but to all the transfatty starchy white breads, pastas, bagels, donuts, cakes, brownies, cookies and company… they will undoubtedly create inflammation in the body.  They may taste good mid chew but they do more damage than good because they break down the cells and set up camp on your hips, thighs and butt.  They will take away the pretty sheen from the skin making it dry and dull.  Instead replace them with healthier, natural and filling foods like sweet potato, oats, rye bread, brown rice.

2. Add weight training

Ladies… please.  Fear not.  Trust me, you’re not going to look like a man. Lifting weights will start to create {I’ve got to say it…m.u.s.c.l.e.} which in turn will help chew up the fat pockets lodged beneath the surface of your dermis.  Leg curls will help clean up the cellulite on the back of the legs.

3. Drink an ocean’s worth of water daily.  Move the toxins out of the body by drinking a lot of water.  This will clear up the complexion and start to dilute the fat deposits.

4. Omega 3 your life .  Unless you’ve  been living under a rock for the last few years {and you haven’t} you must have heard or read about the massive benefits of using Omega 3s.  If you’re not already taking them then you should look into it under the guidance of your doctor.     When added to your diet, Omega 3 fatty acids help stimulate brain function and protect the heart, and the fights inflammation in the body and even pesky wrinkles.  So here are some sources of Omega 3s…Write these on your grocery list for next week: fresh water fish like salmon, halibut, tuna, mackerel, sardines. Nuts like sunflower seed, flaxseed.

5.  Circular Rubbing.  Coconut Oil and Shea Butter in the raw form are like magic in a bottle and will practically revolutionize your skin.  Alternate these two, every two weeks and massage them into the skin in a circular motion.  I know you probably feel like it should be more complexed than that but no.  The answer is often quite simple..

6. BONUS.  Follow your dreams

Butt let me tell you…I would do it again… in a heartbeat because following your goals and dreams gives your soul… unexplainable joy.

Hugs on a Monday,

-Dee

*temporarily housed there if you do something about it; begin with these 5 solutions

The post 5 Best Ways to get rid of Cellulite appeared first on BeautifullyFitLife.com.

Beautifully Fit Doll

It’s true, Lauren is beautiful.  The girl belongs on a runway in Paris.  Her brunette locks cascade down her back, her legs go on for days and she’s got a shape that I’m sure coca cola patents their bottles after.   She’s easy breezy, effortlessly comfortable with people and warm.  And kind.  The kind of gal you would feel comfortable leaving your kids with.

I should probably take this time to tell you that she was also one of my dearest clients from years past.  I remember meeting her and thinking… “Now if only we…

…Eased up on the one hundred and one bagels

…Cut out the ciggies

…Nixed the beer garden visits”

Her body was the perfect canvas.  I would get to be the lucky artist.  She was already beautiful, so it was just a matter of getting her fit.  Tears, fears and months later… the bagels disappeared.  A laundry bag full of tough love and hundreds of thousands of leg work hours logged… there she was…

Beautiful as ever. And Fit.

Love this girl… meet Lauren!

-Dee

The post Lauren… so Paris appeared first on BeautifullyFitLife.com.

morning. noon. night.

One of the greatest gifts I’ve been given is the ability to make friends easily.  I am genuinely just interested in people.  It comes from a curiosity to learn about fascinating differences in cultures, tradional customs and layered lifestyles that dictate skirt lengths, which days to worship, peculiar beauty regimens, creative remedies to ailments and even how we celebrate life and death.

Our human needs and wants bind us closer than the words “Thank” & ”You.”  Whether you live in Madrid or in Rio, Guyana or in Senegal what I’ve learned is that at the end of the day we are more similar than we are different. Our ’need’ for love and our ever present ‘want’ for importance is clearer than the glass of water sitting on the table beside me.

Which brings me to tell you about my friend Hideiki {hee day you kee).  He’s Japanese.  He speaks Spanish fluently with his Japanese accent but somehow sounds French. Can you hear that?  Hideiki is a delight, his style is very clean cut. Fitted pants. Crisp shirts. Trench coats. And cowboy boots. Always cowboy boots.  The kind of person you always feel a little bit smarter around and more informed about social relations after leaving his company.

Remind me to tell you about the time when his sister who speaks no English helped me (And I don’t speak Japanese) navigate Tokyo.  Who needs words when you have body language, universal hand signals and a whole lot of intuition?  And a smile. Always a smile.  It’s that human connection I mentioned earlier.  Oh oh and… I’ll also tell you about how Hideiki and I met in bartending school and about the time when I almost threw up all over his car in my quest to get a ‘A’ in class.  Overachiever dreams.

Yes...again! It's that good.

Most of all though I want to share with you my love of tea.  I’m a tea luva.  Aside from saving the world, putting together my first ever family reunion, attending flight school and living like a French girl in Paris, opening a tea store is high up on my To Do List. Notice there is no mention of mountain climbing.

Tea…Aahhhh.  Green. Ginger. White.  They are all very high in cancer fighting agents (people come on now, we really need to be proactive in our fight against cancer).  They are also very slimming and soothing.  And if pizza cravings ever linger for more than two seconds…grab a cup of tea.

I usually switch up my teas every two weeks or so to avoid boredom and to keep my body responding to the different compounds… right now I’ve got Genmaicha Green with Roasted Rice in my cup.  In Japan, every place that serves food offers green tea… for free.  It’s similar to the way water is offered at restaurants in the U.S. 0$.  It’s pure, fresh, soothing and is loaded with antioxidants.  You can get the tea bags in any tea store and just add hot water.  For clear skin and a beautiful complexion do like the Japanese do and pass on the sugar.

In case you missed the first two.

Make friends over tea,

-Dee

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75 and sunny* is a little brrr this morning. Somehow I feel okay with the sweater today, almost as if I’m paying homage to my New York.  I could feel the chill in the text messages and in the voices of the loved ones three thousand miles away.  Ahhh… winter twenty eleven is pretty white.

In other news… check out the list below for some little things that will make an AWESOME difference in your day.

Balance

prayer

journaling

reading

laughter

alone time… with yourself

trying something new

Lifestyle

saying hello to everyone with a smile

being genuine

watching anything Oprah produces

traveling

listening to and learning from other people

The food

water

green tea

using more spices

adding a daily fruit

making time to eat more than one meal

eating breakfast

The fitness moves (1 minute each)

stationary high knees

mountain climbers

simple stand up/ lie downs

old fashioned situps

vintage pushups

old school jumping jacks

& A turtle neck sweater will make a big difference in below 5 degree weather.

Side note… I  also wanted to know how you all felt about lists?  I’m  not sure if I like that act of listing.  I personally tend to forget the contents of the list but I find “To Do” lists quite effective.  Over the next few days… try to do at least two things from each category above.

Let’s start making these days…AWESOME.

Cozy Hugs,

-Dee

* California… to me California always seems to be 75 degrees… and sunny.

The post How to make your day AWESOME appeared first on BeautifullyFitLife.com.

Anyhow… in CHOW, which is a category here on the blog* I’m talking abs friendly restaurants, the New York edition. Wouldn’t it be great if the chef at the restaurant just understood that we need all the meals to be ‘lite’ and ‘low’ and ‘free’ of all things fatty but still be high in flavor?  Wouldn’t that be a perfect world?  If only.

It’s up to you.  Up to us!   During my time in New York I discovered some excellent restaurants for keeping the waistline small and abs flat.  These places  stand out when it comes to flavor, health and are wallet friendly.  I give you:

GYU KAKU

DINNER is where we finish for fine dining and lower east side culture.

calling Japanese… after visiting Asia and seeing how the other side of the world lived, particularly the Japanese I fell in love with two things: their barbeque and their green tea.  Oh and their dishware… heck, I loved all things Japanese.  What was great about their barbeque dining was that the seating consisted of pillows on the floor and the table had a big round grill in the center of it.  I had no idea what was going on but then I realized I was going to have to cook my own food.  What the…?  No worries.  All the meats and veggies were the best cuts, thinly sliced and seasoned to perfection LMMI**. The best part was that it took T-2 seconds to cook.  The ambiance and healthy assortment of veggies and meats make this a great place for a celebration like a birthday or an anniversary… I’d reserve it for a special occasion!  Not say… a blind date.  Kapeesh?!

Midtown & Lower East Side: Gyu Kaku {YOU KA COO}

*promotes self cooking *great ambiance *delicious & yummy at the same time *healthy cuts, no extras, perfect portions *budget friendly *ideal for lunch or dinner  (Oh, good news, there’s one in my new hometown of Los Angeles)

JUICE FOR LIFE

LUNCH allows you to take a nice stroll through the borough of Queens.

FRESH FRESH FRESH with Flavor!  After all they are Brazilian inspired.  Options for deliciously healthy food.  They’ve got wraps, juices, brown rice, salmon, chicken, beans, some of the freshest cleanest romaine lettuce I’ve ever seen.   They’ve got locations all over NY in Bayside, Astoria and Manhasset.  Oh, and they are very consumer friendly, they even named a wrap after me – called the Deeyarah Wrap!  Check it out!!!  I was never a “salad” person but they made me love the salads, particularly one called “the Caribbean Salad” with mandarine oranges and avocado… like a volcano of love in my mouth … yummy!  And, if that is not enough Juice for Life offers a lunch special that combines a whole bunch of meals/juices/soups for the cost of one… crazy!  Crazy goooood.

NOEMI

BREAKFAST is where we start out; the upper upper upper West Side of Manhattan… a hair strand away from the Bronx.

Just ask them and they’ll make it like you want it.  What I love about Noemi is that you have tons of options and all meals are made fresh and with the healthiest ingredients.  You can get a great shot of wheat grass {this is a whole other post} but the benefits of wheat grass are ridiculous {in the best way… ever}.  I usually get the egg white omelette with bell peppers and feta cheese & a side of grapefruit (a big side).

These restaurants have mastered taste and food presentation but it is the professionalism, the attention to detail and the friendliness of the staff that make them true gems.

The best part though… they’ll help you keep your abs in check.

75…and sunny,

-Dee

* Dad is a big fan of the blog.  He’s probably the biggest. Bless his heart as he diplomatically tries to tell me every single day that I should list out the categories.  I will.  I Love you Dad.

** LMMI -Like mamma made it

The post

Top 3 Abs Friendly New York Restaurants

Stretch Your Boundaries

Why people don’t stretch is beyond me.  Well not really… I used to be one of those people.  I’d do a great leg workout on the stairs and then a very brief, mild cool down and then rush out the gym.

Too busy.  Too concerned with just the workout.  I figured the body would take care of the rest if I did the entire workout at full throttle for an hour.

Well… it doesn’t work that way.  Not for longevity any way.  If you want to stay in the game and stay relevant and uninjured then stretching should be a huge part of your workout.

You elongate your muscles fibers

You ease tension and release muscles preventing fatigue

You allow the muscle to tone up faster and grow they way you want

You become more flexible and in tune with the way your body feels

You heal faster

You feel like a million bucks

* Stretches are like a bath… they are best WARM so remember to warmup the body first and of course, after your workout.

That’s Rachele… Start stretching and you’ll be on your way to that pose in no time.

xoxoxoxo

-Dee

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CLICK this pretty blue link to meet some of my friends We did a lot of “hanging” this particular afternoon…. eating salads, chicken wrapped in spinach and

the coveted Sweet Potato Fry.

Now … they are not actually fried {think fried… think cholesterol…think … not so good for you} and fried is certainly not going to make your skin sexy beautiful.  The antioxidants {and yes, you know how I feel about antioxidants} are uncanny especially since it is orange in color and looks pretty … I’d say… um, starchy.  Well, it is a starch so yes, it is a carb… a very good-happy carb… and it’s naturally sweet.   Are you smiling yet?  And it is filling and helps your skin look younger.

I’m all for food with minimal prep time… let me tell you… there is a deep appreciation for meals under 30 minutes.  Here’s how to prepare sweet potato fries:

1. Chop them up like you would french fries or however you want them (circles, squares, triangles … doesn’t matter)
2. Add a whisper of salt… just a whisper… or Mrs. Dash flavoring herbs whichever you like (mine: basil/garlic)
3. Dribble a light coat of olive oil (almost like you’re rubbing tanner over the sweet potato)
4. Bake for 17-20 minutes at 350 degrees
5. Serve with a dash of cinnamon.

They are really gooooood…

The post There’s a New French Fry in Town appeared first on BeautifullyFitLife.com.

To be outdoors.  Fresh air. Clear skies. Sunshine. Brisk cold. Flowers. Trails. Wildlife. People. Sand. Water. Hills. Rocks. Lake. Ocean. Rain. Clouds. Deer. Road. Grass. Butterflies.

Ahhhhh…

To be outdoors.  It’s an awesome way to enjoy what’s purely natural, what’s life giving.  You might not even notice that you’re working out.

Ahhhhh…

To be outdoors.  Pay attention.  Yes to the safety of your surroundings.  But also to the pockets of breath taking beauty all around you.  Find it with your eyes.  Listen. Smell. Touch.

Ahhhhhh…

To be outdoors.  Is to be alive.  In that, is the blessing.

Ahhhh… yes, to be alive is the blessing.

-Dee

photography: 28 photos

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Hi, I’m Deeyarah and I am a non-runner.  Well not really. Kind of. A little tiny tiny bit.  And so the story goes… All my life I’ve never enjoyed running or jogging or sprinting or anything that resembled running.  Nevvver!

Nunca!!

Nada!!!

Nope.

Not me.

My dad ran track in his young days, my brother did too, and so did my high school sweetheart.  There were no signs of athleticism in my coordination, I wasn’t exactly a girly-girl but I wasn’t being selected for anyone’s team.  I tried to play squash but lost every game I played so I wasn’t really amazing at it.  Basketball wasn’t my thing either, and although I would have tried soccer the opportunity never presented itself.  In my early teens my girlfriends and I became pretty conscious of our bodies so we started to try to keep in shape.  That looked like a run on the seawall, for me it was the most painful thing.  I didn’t have physical pain but I was bored out of my mind.  I just didn’t enjoy it, at all.  On the best day I’d have the most lazy looking run, you should have seen it… my feet barely left the ground, I was huffing and puffing and out of breath, all I could think of was ‘When are we going to stop?’  Just five minutes of running felt like two hours, of sprinting.  The experience was ughhh… what I’d imagine birth pains to be.  I just wasn’t having a good time.

Fast forward to adulthood growing up today I understand the value of running, the cardiovascular benefits, the conditioning and endurance, the proprioception and coordination.  I appreciate it.  One of the reasons I enjoy becoming Beautifully Fit is the appreciation for all kinds of fitness.  Understanding that you don’t have to be doing just one kind of discipline to be fit, and in fact, the beautifully part is about the balance of finding your thing and experiencing other things… even to just appreciate them.  I’ve never experienced a runner’s high like my mother does, I can remember every moment of thinking when are we going to stop in the half marathon, I’ve count every second of every treadmill run, I’ve fallen and bruised scraped the flesh off my knees, I’ve run into a sign which hit me so hard in the face I almost passed out but was so embarrassed that yaddy yaddy yada,  I’ve lost a toe nail after a 5k, I’ve run in the below twenty blistering cold weather wearing three sweaters -no gloves-no hat just so I could spend time with my brother before he moved to Texas.

I’m not a runner but I run.

And I kind of like it.

Sort of.

-Deeyarah, a non-runner runner!

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