in no particular order:

• Always, always, always have renter's insurance. You might think your house will never get broken into, but you may find one morning your tv, MacBook, work laptop, watches, external hard drive, and car gone forever Aaron Hernandez.
• Cloud storage is an amazing technology that I wish I had utilized fully so when my external hard drive and laptop were stolen, I wouldn't have lost as many photos, graphic design files, and school projects that I did.
• People use chairs, trashcans, you name it to save "their" parking spot where they shoveled out their car after the blizzard. They may slash your tires if you take their claimed spot (all of which is technically illegal in Baltimore, but still happens).
• In a given week, you might change your life goals twenty times and doubt all your major life choices at the same time.
• Just like TV shows depict, there are some weird, yet cool dudes that are part of the crime lab.
• Don't leave anything out because your puppy will find, destroy, and consume it.
• Do not stay in the city if there's a blizzard in the forecast. Leave and go somewhere tropical or for a more realistic option, go to your parents' house where taxes are higher and therefore, roads are cleared sooner.
• Pet insurance will help you out with all the outrageously expensive vet bills.
• Insurance is just an awesome thing in general.
• The Harris Teeter in Canton has better prices than Safeway. Avoid Shoppers at all costs, even if it was walk-able from your row home in Federal Hill.
• Always have a referral from your primary care physician when you visit a specialist, even if you think you don't need one.

There you have it. These are just some of the many life lessons I learned this past year. 

Friday's here again - meaning it's been a week since my last blog post. Work, along with life in general, has been quite busy this past week. My goal is to post something everyday, but life doesn't always allow time for everything you want to do.

Anyways, I'm here to talk about my new obsession: GRAPEFRUIT! I've been eating, drinking, and even thinking about the fruit a lot lately. Last Sunday at brunch, I had a grapefruit crush with freshly-squeezed grapefruit juice and let me tell you, it was so damn refreshing. I couldn't contain an "oh yeah" when I took the first sip of the icy citrus drink.

Grapefruit is an awesome fruit. Like other citrus fruits, it's a great source of vitamin C. Just one half of a grapefruit provides about 64% of the daily recommended amount of vitamin C. Grapefruit provides an abundance of other vitamins and minerals as well: vitamin A, calcium, magnesium, vitamin E, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate, pantothenic acid, potassium, phosphorus, manganese, zinc and copper. In addition to that huge list, grapefruit contains phynutrients, such as limonoids and naringenin, and antioxidants, such as lycopene and beta-carotene.

There are many benefits to consuming grapefruit:

• Weight loss
• Stroke prevention in women
• Blood pressure and hearth health
• Cancer prevention
• Digestion and regularity
• Hydration
• Skin health
• Asthma prevention

Please note that people taking the following medications should not eat grapefruit:

• Felodipine (Plendil)
• Nifedipine (Procardia, Adalat)
• Atorvastatin (Lipitor)
• Simvastatin (Zocor)
• Lovastatin (Mevacor)
• Cyclosporine (Sandimmune)
• Diazepam (Valium)
• Triazolam (Halcion)
• Midazolam (Versed)
• Busprione (BuSpar)
• Sertraline (Zoloft)
• Carbamazepine (Tegretol)

​Yesterday, Jake, Boh, and I made a quick trip to my parents' house to see my family. While I was talking to my dad, he told me that a recent visit to the doctor revealed that his cholesterol levels are uncomfortably high again.

Sidenote: Heart disease runs in my family. My grandfather had a stroke when I was born and then died from a heart attack when I was eleven years old. My dad had a 95% blockage, had a stent put in, and suffered from a heart attack when I was a junior in high school.

Anyways, I'm worried about him. Exercise isn't a problem with him. He does at least 30 minutes of cardio daily, despite being over 60 years old and having a hip replacement. He loves it and because of him, I love it too because of him. What I am worried about is his diet and his naturally slower metabolism. So since I'm home with the flu, I've been reading up about what he should focus on eating, what food he should avoid, etc.

My goal is to make a little meal plan guide for him by the end of the week. What I can email him today is a great guide on lowering your cholesterol by making therapeutic life changes. You should check it out too!

So it's officially 2016 now. Everyone's resolutions are in full-swing...hopefully. I had a protein pancake for breakfast, played with my pup a bit, and should probably get ready for the gym soon. Today I plan on focusing on my lower-body aka my favorite day at the gym. I heart leg days. A typical leg day for me focuses on body weight exercises for the warm-up along with some of the heavy-weight exercises listed below.

Warm-Up:

• Dynamic Stretching
• Squat pulses
• Squat holds
• Squats with side leg raises
• Lunges
• Donkey Kicks
• Squat Jumps

Work-Out:

• Squats (Back, Front, Sumo with Kettlebell, Split, etc.)
• Deadlifts (Straight-leg, Bent-leg, One-leg, etc.)
• Curtsy lunges with dumbbells
• Cable donkey kicks
• Cable side leg raises
• Quad extensions
• Hamstring curls
• Calf raises

And then I walk it out on the treadmill at an incline or the step mill for about 30 minutes.