I cant wait to teach this class at Phys Ed in New Milford.  I went to a Kineseo Taping class with my mentor and Physical therapy Guru boss, Gail Henderson.  We learned so much about how this tape can be used to serve so many purposes from pain management and swelling to limited motion such as walking or raising your arms over your head!  We have been incorporating the taping techniques at the clinic and I have seen a lot of great results.  

Here we are both celebrating Breast Cancer awareness next to our upper body bike, the BIG UBE!

We have both since taped multiple times.  I must be somewhere in the area of 50 tapings...but that doesn't nearly compare to Gail who was also an Athletic trainer, so she probably has 10's of thousands. 

This is a tape job for upper, mid, and low traps inhibition with deltoid facilitation.   

Supraspinatus taping with deltoid facilitation

So come check out the class to find out what I learned 

and to find out more about how you can use the tape 

February is National Hearth Health Month. Come to my food party!

Valentine's Day is around the corner, and to celebrate Heart Health month I am bringing some of my delicious recipes and fun information to Phys Ed on Friday, February 16th at 4:00 pm

Bring a date!  Bring yourself and meet someone!  There will be a lot of food, beverages, good information and great company!  The Fee for our party is 10 dollars, but it will be completely worth it once you see the spread of food!  

Have Fun, Relax, and Enjoy Life. Your Body needs it!

Relax!  It is so important to take time for yourself.  When you are full of anxiety, stress, and your body releases cortisol.  This makes your heart beat faster, your blood pressure rise, inflammation in the body increases, and your muscles contract and tighten up.  The list goes on!  All of these side effects to stress decreases your life expectancy.  This is why I am saying don't sweat the small stuff.  Dont worry about following the diet to the key, or what everyone else is thinking about you, or all of the items you need to get done!  Organize your day around having time for yourself or with the ones you love most.  

Find Projects that are fun, new, and exciting that you can share with friends.  For Christmas I made cleaning products for my friends and family with a goofy face of mine on the front.  DONT BE AFRAID TO BE SILLY.  I think that was the biggest lesson I learned in school.  Be yourself, learn to jump out of the box because acting like everyone else isn't going to help you feel comfortable or fullfilled.  I have always had problems with chapped lips, and dry skin.  So, I wanted to make a lip balm (which is made from beeswax, coconut and almond oil), face cleanser (made from oatmeal, lemon and orange zest, olive oil and more), and a face toner ( made with cucumber juice, vodka, and witch hazel).  Putting the picture on the front put a smile on everyone's face and at the end of the day that is what it is all about.  

Have Fun in the kitchen!

Brittany, my mother and I love to cook with each other and think of new recipes.  Yes, we will all share a bottle of wine on the weekends, but who is more deserving!?  Wine has polyphenals, an antioxidant which has been used in cancer research and other areas such as blood pressure.  Sure, wine is high in sugar, but the benefit of relaxing, the cortisol decreasing is worth it!  Just don't drink too much because then it can swing the other way.  No glasses being thrown across the room!

Paint, draw, cut things out of magazines and keep them for the future!

I was a painting major at Skidmore College, so to relax I love to create.  Cezanne made beautiful still lifes with fruit so here is my attempt to recreate his vision.  

I made this for Brittany for christmas with pastels 

Take a Day for yourself, get pampered.  

The other day I was going to head an hour and a half to North Haven to take a cross-fit class.  After a 50 hour work week I was feeling drained and tired, but I knew I wanted to go for the experience.  My Fiance Brittany convinced me to take the day off and go out with her and my mother.  We ended up having a great day which ended up with a pedicure.  Ok, so this is my second pedicure ever and I was a little nervous, but the hot rock massage on my legs after all the squats at the gym felt great, and I relaxed with green tea and a massage as well.  Guys, dont think this is just for women, open up, let your guard down, and do something new!

Have Fun with the kids!

Yes, children can be loud, hyper, and crazy.  But spending time with them helps us realize what it's like to have an open mind and play with out imagination.  Here are our neighbors playing with my balance balls and my foam roller.  They first came over to help us clean items out of our basement, which they weren't too excited about.  After learning they received a toll of an andes mint from doing one trip up and down the stairs, they started working faster. They learned a little about exercise, but mostly had fun with the cats and themselves.  After, we did some baking and decorated our own cupcakes. Teach kids to be innovative, imaginative, spontaneous, and open.  If you scold and yell at them too much, they will be closed off and reclusive.  We need to know they will be ok and at a certain time can differentiate between right and wrong, and when they do make a mistake, make sure they understand why it was wrong and ask them what they learned from it.  

What to eat on a low carb day! Amazing Creations.

Lunch was creeping around the corner and I was thinking of dishes that I could tell my clients about for low carb days.  On days where you do not eat a lot of carbohydrates, you add in foods that are rich in healthy fats.  These omega 3's and unsaturated fats can be great for cholesterol and have proved beneficial to people in Italy and in the Mediterranean who have some of the longest living people in the world!  

I know this isn't the best picture to make this look extremely appetizing, but It was and I promise you will like it too!  Plus don't you enjoy knowing that I really made this dish below instead of pulling pictures off the internet?

This tuna creation is a personal favorite.  When I mix the tuna, I don't add a lot of mayo, only a spoonful or so.  Then to add more flavor and heat, I add either horseradish, wasabi lime mustard I bought at Homegoods, and some fresh herbs and spices.  The shredded carrot on top add a nice crunchy texture and a added sweetness.  I dont know why but shredded carrots taste sweeter to me then regular, but what I do is take 3 or 4 baby carrots and then shred them on top.  Finally, I put them on top of Romaine Lettuce which is a great substitute for bread.  Endive can be another option or red peppers which are high in vitamin C.  Play and have fun!  That's what it is all about.

Brittany has been into making shakes recently.  An application available on the ipad and iphone made by Martha Stewart has given us ideas to build upon.  For breakfast we have 8 oz of either almond milk or 1% milk, a scoop of whey protein powder, a banana which is great for so many things ( see my blog post on bananas at http://davidmartincpt.blogspot.com/2012/11/banana-crazy-eat-your-bananas.html ) 

If you need a little more sweetness, try Agave Nectar, some cocoa powder!  Cocoa Powder has amazing antioxidant properties and can be added to greek yogurt, your smoothies, or on top of your coffee grinds in the morning before you brew!  

Shrimp cook so quick and are high in protein!

Last night My fiance made the best dish to date!  She made a Shrimp Linguine with a caper & lemon sauce that I could not stop eating.  

A great source of omega 3's, anti inflammatory support, and a great source of protein makes this meal a no brainer.  If you are having a low carb day in a low carb high carb cycle diet, stir fry this with some great vegetables like bok choy, onions, garlic, a little olive oil, and add feta cheese oregano at the end for freshness!

Brittany and I were having a high carb day, so In looking through the cabinet I found these chia linguine.

This pasta was so light and refined, but still had a great texture!  The Chia seeds add extra protein, calcium, and fiber to your meal!  Remember, we want nutrient dense food!

So here we go!  This is the recipe in the words of my Partner in crime!

Sautee 3 cloves of garlic, a little onion, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice (better when its squeezed right out of the lemon), add about 2 tablespoons of capers and 2 tablespoons of the caper juice in the jar.

Let this boil up a bit while you continuously stir.
THEN, the fun part! .....Add those shrimp!

Now, I don't really pay close attention to time because I think that each shrimp is different from the batch you cooked last week and so on.

SO! After you add the shrimp to the pan with the capers, lemons, garlic etc. rotate the shrimp quite often and once they start becoming the light pink color you know you have about a little over a minute left. Finally, stir in a pinch of parmesan cheese and when you think the dish is done, plate the pasta and shrimp and add a little more parmesan cheese to the top!

**Shrimp cook quickly and you want to make sure you don't over cook them... :)

Feel free to add a little salt and pepper while cooking for some spice.

ENJOY EVERYONE!

Go Green! Dark green veggies can be used everywhere to add multiplehealth benefits!

Kale, Bok Choy, and spinach are some of my favorite veggies! Maybe you could call me Popeye, but these super foods have shown multiple benefits and making sure to fit them into your daily routine is crucial to prime health!

Kale has so many amazing properties. It's very rich in Vit. K which is important for antioxidant activity, blood clotting, and bone health. Carotenoids and flavonoids are types of antioxidants that have many anti cancer properties, which this and many other dark green veggies have.

These phytonutrients have a great effect on the body, and if you swap in these foods and swap out some of your burgers, chicken (I love chicken but it does have some saturated fat) your cholesterol is sure to come down and your energy level is sure to increase!!

Try a smoothie!! Ok, I know it sounds gross but kale, banana, some protein powder, you have a great nutritious shake!! Adding an apple can give it some sweetness, coconut water can be a nice substitution for water or milk, play around!!! To start, try the green machine beverage. You won't be disappointed, and everyone who gave me an ugly look after pulling it out of the fridge, went out and bought it after one sip.



Here is a great recipe for a Kale and banana smoothie!  Afraid to make it yourself?  heck out New Morning Market in Woodbury, CT and they will whip one up for you!

This is right out of my fridge people!

Stir frys are a great way to incorporate the veggies! Ever make your own Kale chips? Email me for some more tips and recipe ideas!

I'm Back!

Hey everyone! I hope that everyone had a great winter Holiday with their families and friends. It was an exciting time for me as I started a new job and my fiancé moved into my house. With learning how to balance all of these life changes, I needed some time to move slow and take a break from the blog, but now I am back and ready to help with new year resolutions, help with ideas and tips for food, show you how to properly exercise, and share my good news and excitement!