Christine Burke Fitness

Alan’s Words of Wisdom: French vs. Italian Roast

Christine Burke — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 17:45:45 +0000

Today, Alan asked me what was the difference between French and Italian Roast coffees. Upon consulting The Magic Answer Box, Alan attempted to sum up Seattle Coffee Gear’s post:

So… the French are dark and oily… and the Italians are darker and oilier?

For the record, there does not seem to be a consensus about the darkest roasted coffee. Most of the other sites seemed to suggest that French is the darkest roast.

5 New Resolutions

Christine Burke — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 18:59:45 +0000

Ok, I know… we’re going to lose weight, stop smoking, save money, get a new job, and be nicer to people we like, right?

Here are 5 “other” resolutions that I’d love to see people make:

(1) I will WRITE DOWN my goals and get some coaching in making them specific, measurable, and realistic. “Write down” means hard copy on paper, either handwritten or printed out.

(2) I will, once a day, take a moment to think about something good that came out of the last 24 hours. Even better, I will WRITE IT DOWN.

(3) I will plan for rest and recovery in my schedule. This may mean leaving time in the day for naps, or it may mean scheduling a real vacation.

(4) I will support friends and coworkers who have fitness goals, and I will NOT sabotage their programs by being “nice” (“oh, you can have that cupcake,” “here, have another drink,” “yeah, I’m good with cutting this workout short,” etc).

(5) *** THIS IS IMPORTANT *** says the nice fitness trainer to no one in particular: I will SHOW UP for my workouts, even if I’m tired or hungover or sore or on my period (yes, I said it!!!). I will only skip my workout when I’m contagious or I will get fired.

Hey trainers and coaches! What’s the resolution you’d like to see your clients make?

Week of Grace: Cold, Gray Summer

Christine Burke — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 19:00:24 +0000

Aside from maybe two weeks this summer, I heard people complain about how cold and gray it was. But not me! I love cold and gray! It’s perfect for running! Oh sure, blue skies and sunshine generally puts me in a happy mood, and it’s harder for me to wake up when it’s dark, but who needs hot, humid, and sun poisoning?

So, the moral of this story is, take up running and enjoy the cool summer! Hee hee.

I have quite a bit to be grateful for this month, so I will be journaling those stories for August’s Week of Grace. If it reminds you of something you’re grateful for, please please please share them here in the comments. I love reading them!

Week of Grace is a 7-day journaling project, scientifically designed to make you happier, healthier, and more productive. For 7 days, please join in and respond to the gratitude story posted! To get the full benefits, you should write out your response rather just think about it. You may comment here, tweet #weekofgrace, email a friend, or even write out your response longhand.

Week of Grace for August 2010 starts Wednesday the 25th and ends Tuesday the 31st.

Week of Grace: New Clients

Christine Burke — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 04:06:20 +0000

I’m always grateful that I am able to make a living with a business I can be proud of. This month, a client brought her boyfriend, and then they invited another couple. Since they are training all together, they can support each other and have a blast egging each other on. They are all such nice folks, too. I couldn’t ask for more…

But I did get more! One of my favorite trainers wanted to accommodate a client’s schedule better, so he referred her to me, and it looks like that’s going to work out great. She’s so wonderful, and I am looking forward to designing her program.

Week of Grace for August 2010 starts Wednesday the 25th and ends Tuesday the 31st.

Week of Grace: Embracing the Blonde

Christine Burke — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 19:00:27 +0000

This is going to sound VERY silly… but I LOVE putting a little blonde in my hair. My hairstylist and girlfriend Sarah of… gosh 10? 15??? years just added some in. It makes me feel all sunshiney summery beachy. It also camouflages my white hairs! Woo hoo!

It used to be that blond on Asians didn’t work so well. The hair typically turned out in unpleasant shades of orange. Or ashy greenish. Hair color technology has progressed, and while blonde still looks unexpected and a maybe a bit rebellious on Asians, I like it! Unexpected and rebellious appeals to me! Blonde also makes me feel a little silly and a little vain and a little self-indulgent, but all in happy ways.

I also love red. Red makes me feel daring and mischievous.

I should add I also like black with blue highlights, but that feels too glam for me. I have not yet embraced my glamness.

Today, I’m enjoying my blonde. Thanks, Sarah, for helping me be me!

PS – You can find Sarah at Tahiti Nails & Hair in Scripps Ranch. Please call her 858-442-7814 and let her know I recommended her. Sarah stands out because she is amazingly competent and technical about all the gunk she puts in your hair. And of course, she is artistic, methodical, and professional to boot.

Week of Grace for August 2010 starts Wednesday the 25th and ends Tuesday the 31st.

Week of Grace: Running Faster & Better

Christine Burke — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 19:00:39 +0000

My running pace has been feeling sluggish for a while, and I always want to be a better coach, so I was eager to attend Dr. Jason Karp’s VO2Max Distance Running Clinic. WOW am I grateful I went! It was great to review the material I’d seen before, and AMAZING to get more information on how to put all of it together. I was also very impressed and motivated by speaker Paul Greer of the San Diego Track Club. He made me want to join on the spot. I hope to see more of Paul and Jason in the future.

Top three things I got out of the seminar:

(1) I’m running too fast on my easy runs. Almost everyone I know does. I suppose that’s good news.

(2) I now know how to better schedule my hard runs and incorporate them into my training season.

(3) Lots of fun workouts in Jason’s book 101 Developmental Concepts & Workouts for Cross Country Runners. I recommend it for all fitness trainers, even if they don’t run… actually, I’d recommend it ESPECIALLY if they don’t run.

Thanks for a great seminar, Jason! I’m happy to talk it up to all my running buddies and fitness peeps!

PS: I’m also grateful that my best running buddy, my sis, kept me company when I attended and had brunch with me after!

Week of Grace for August 2010 starts Wednesday the 25th and ends Tuesday the 31st.

Week of Grace: The Puppy Party

Christine Burke — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 20:42:30 +0000

Today, I’ll tell you about my mom’s birthday earlier this month, and how it was one of the best parties ever.

To celebrate, our long-time neighbors and good friends Ace and Jill invited my family to their daughter Diana’s house in Valley Center. Jill was celebrating her birthday, too! On top of that, Diana’s beautiful show dog had puppies a few weeks earlier, and wouldn’t we like to play with them a little before they were sent off to their new homes? You bet! How can anyone resist puppies?

The puppies, of course, were totally awesome. And Ace seemed content being a good granddad to the fuzzy little ones. And the dinner was amazing. And the cake. And most of all, the company. We had such a good time, and someone remarked that wow, we hadn’t been all together since my wedding 10 years ago! 10 years! How does time get by like that?

The party ended, as did the weekend, then life resumed as usual… but just later that week, I got the completely unexpected message from my mom that Ace had died of a heart attack. What? Heart attack?? Ace??? I was more confused than upset because my brain kept wanting confirmation that this was the-same-Ace-that-we-just-partied-with-puppies??? Oh, I was so sad for Jill and Diana. And I was so sad for my parents, who would so miss him.

For myself, all I could keep thinking was how grateful I was that I got to spend one last awesome day with a truly wonderful man. It made me appreciate any time I spent with anyone I cared about. Love to you and everyone who loved you, Ace.

Week of Grace for August 2010 starts Wednesday the 25th and ends Tuesday the 31st.

Week of Grace: Anything Else?

Christine Burke — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 19:00:00 +0000

Did anything else happen in the last month that made you feel grateful?

Week of Grace is a 7-day journaling project, scientifically designed to you make you happier, healthier, and more productive. For 7 days, please join in and answer to the gratitude question posted! To get the full benefits, you should write out your response rather just think about it. Like the featured guests, you may comment here, or you can tweet #weekofgrace, email a friend, or even write out your response longhand.

Week of Grace for July 2010 starts Monday the 26th and ends Sunday, August 1.

Week of Grace: Group Support for Goals

Christine Burke — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 19:00:02 +0000

What groups or organizations have you joined to reach a goal?

Week of Grace for July 2010 starts Monday the 26th and ends Sunday, August 1.

Week of Grace: Weekends

Christine Burke — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 06:12:36 +0000

What do you look forward to on the weekends?

Week of Grace for July 2010 starts Monday the 26th and ends Sunday, August 1.