Combining family fun with fitness; natural deodorant; cold remedy; fitness phone app

The past week has been really busy.

I started the week by taking off a few days to spend time with my son, who was on spring break. Monday was a beautiful day, and on days off like that I’m always itching to find something outdoors to do.

We decided to go to the Museum of Life and Science in Durham. They have a typical kid-oriented science museum indoors, but what I like most are the outdoor animal exhibits which is actually a small zoo. Not only do you get to see bears, lemurs, wolves, barnyard animals, and a butterfly house; it is really spread out with beautiful trails so there’s a lot of walking involved. And it’s not flat, either, there are plenty of inclines to manage.

It was a wonderful family time of education, exploring, fresh air, sunshine and fun fitness — in my mind, a perfect day!

Here are a few other nuggets from this week:

• I’m becoming increasingly concerned about toxic ingredients in personal care items and cosmetics. Having an aunt going through breast cancer treatment has me thinking even more about this. I plan to explore the subject a lot more. But for now I have made one change — my deodorant. I started using Tom’s of Maine Naturally Dry Deodorant and Antiperspirant, which I found at Target. So far it’s been working out very well, and I don’t see much difference between that and the Dove or Degree deodorants I was previously using. It seems to me that’s a small change to make for a potentially health-saving benefit. I plan on trying out other “natural” brands as well.
• Unfortunately, I’m fighting off a bad cold that’s going around. Whenever that happens, I turn to one of my favorite remedies, Emergen-C.  It’s a little vitamin powder packet that you add to water or the drink of your choice, and it contains 1,000 mg of Vitamin C. I love it in my iced tea. If I’m getting sick, I’ll use 3-4 packs during the day and it really does help me fight it off. They make several flavors, but my favorite is the MSM Lite citrus flavor. Emergen-C is available at many retailers, including Wal-Mart, but the Lite is a bit harder to find. Trader Joe’s usually has it, or I get it from my favorite online health product retailer, Vitacost.com. Here’s a link for my friends to get $10 off at Vitacost, if you’re so inclined.
• I’ve gained a few pounds. Not that this is a problem in and of itself; I don’t want to be gaunt. But after all this work over the past almost five years I want to be sure I’m not trending upwards with weight and I feel like I am. So, it’s time to nip that in the bud. I’m getting plenty of exercise and am totally faithful about that. But I’ve been indulging with food more that I was. I need to start tracking my eating so that I’m more aware of the calories I’m taking in. I just installed the free My Fitness Pal phone app, which does just that. I’ll let you know how it goes. Do you have a favorite diet or fitness app? Please share in the comments!