PUSH UP! FOR NICOLE & THE EXPLORERS CLUB

We are FUNdraising in Tour 37 for the Simi Valley Police Department Explorer’s Club!

Every push-up earns .05 toward this great cause.
The SparkleDot Foundation will be matching the amount raised by 805 Boot Campers (through their push-ups).

Nicole Anderson was a Simi Valley Police Officer who was killed in a terrible plane accident while on a visit to her family in Colorado.

Nicole was an integral part of the Explorers Club in Simi Valley. The mission of The Explorers (as written on their website) is definitely worth supporting. “The mission of the Youth Services Section is to forge and maintain an alliance between youth, families, the community, and the Police Department, utilizing teamwork and accountability that provide the necessary tools to assist our youth in becoming mature and responsible citizens.”

Nicole worked directly with Youth at risk of becoming involved in delinquent or criminal behavior.

In lieu of flowers her family asked donations be made to this Foundation.

Where are we at? 1,166 with a WEEK 4 CHALLENGE!

Starting Saturday August 13th any 805 Boot Camper that does push-ups on their own (not at camp) can count them toward the big goal! This will go until Friday August 19th at Midnight.
If you DO PUSH-UPS please send Randy an email letting him know how many.

Our Push-Up Challenge (with some helpful donations) raised $350 for the Rancho Simi Recreation and Parks Department “Fighting Youth Obesity” Program in 2009. Let’s BEAT that goal.

Do the math…see how many push-ups that means we need .

Next time you see a camper ask them how many push-ups we’re up to!

Broccoli and Spinach Soup Recipe

Have all of your ingredients out and ready to roll.

1 white onion (chopped small)

3 cloves garlic (pressed then chopped)

3T EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

Pepper (to taste)

kosher salt (only a pinch)

2T of parsley

5 stalks of broccoli - cut to the size of an egg (leave large, it will puree later) use the stems too (cut to about 1 1/2 inch)

5 handfulls of fresh spinach

3 cups 2% milk

2 cups chicken broth

Place onion, cloves garlic in a deep pot and saute in 3T EVOO for about 2 mins, add 1 pinch of salt, a bunch of pepper (depending on what you like) and parsley. Get that all cooked up (maybe total of 3 mins).

Add brocolli and swish around in the saute. About 3 mins. Add spinach on top (it will steam up) Just mix around so it doesn't get too cooked on bottom.

Add milk/broth.

Bring to simmer then lower heat for 10 mins.

Take the large clumps of veggies (strain) out and blend them for a few (maybe 5) seconds in batches of 2 cups. NOT TOO MUCH. You want the texture of the veggies still (well, I did).

Leave the milk/broth/saute delicious juices in pot.

Add the blended stuff to the pot, stir and serve! YUM.

WHAT IS METABOLISM - WHY IS IT IMPORTANT

Your metabolism is simply the ENERGY your body burns to operate.

A higher metabolism means you are burning more calories...lower metabolism burns less.

Your body size, weight and overall composition all are factors in how your metabolism manages your body.
Someone with a lot of muscle will burn more energy...it is why building muscle is so important.

You might have a slim bodied person who "looks great" but they have little muscle fiber built up. Their metabolism is going to be lower.

You can increase and improve your metabolism by stabilizing your intake (no more than 3 hours between) and exercising! It is very simple, not rocket science. This applies to a normal body, without medical issues.

The word DIET should be right there with the other "4 letter words" we shouldn't use. It's been messed up to be a way of NOT EATING rather than EATING HEALTHY.

Eating every 3 hours (all valuable and nutritious filling foods) is like stoking the fire in your wood burning stove. Keep adding logs (and if you get an oak piece it burns even longer...right??) throughout your day and the fire will burn long and stay HOT. Same goes for your body. That "oak piece" would be like eating something that is low on the glycemic index (GI) and a bonus would be that it is ORGANIC so you aren't infecting you body with toxic waste!

To see some good examples of foods with LOW GI click here. I (we) do NOT want you to eat artificial anything whenever possible.
But back to METABOLISM. Now what does exercise have to do with it? You need to MOVE YOUR BODY ACROSS THIS PLANET regularly. We want you to also use the Perceived Rate of Exertion to keep your workout aerobic level between 7 and 9 for 20 minutes at least. That's basically unable to speak more than a word to almost feeling fully POOPED OUT.

When we are working with weights you need to have enough to BUILD MUSCLE. If you are flinging the weights like toothpicks, it's time to get heavier weights. If you have options ALWAYS BRING ALL OF THEM TO CAMP.

The above is the secret that everyone knows! You just need to make it part of your lifestyle and hopefully those around you will clue in too.

We've posted at THUMBTACK

CHECK IT OUT if you get a chance!

Outdoor Fitness and Nutrition Program

What is a Ciccarelli?

Waaaaaaaaaaay back in 2006 when we first started our program there was a camper (a legend) named Stephen Ciccarelli. He worked HARD at camp - we'd guess he was always at 110%. That meant when it was time for COOL DOWN STRETCH he was ready! One day, after an excruiciatingly exciting workout he returned to his mat first. He was A-Team so had a sort of a "following" of enamored boot campers. A-Team campers are held to a high standard of perfect execution of exercises, running at 100% every second...and helping all of their fellow campers in the entire camp push through whatever they are experiencing mentally to DO IT. Stephen fit this expectation. And when he returned from this exhausting workout he threw himself down on his mat - flat as a pancake and just concentrated on BREATHING and RELAXING his mind, body and soul. Not surprisingly, the other campers (Alpha, Bravo and Charlie) all noticed this and proceeded to follow his initiative AND THE CICCARELLI WAS BORN. It is known as the most favorite loved "exercise" of all camp in all of our years. Once our new campers find out what it is...they LOVE it too. This is a photo of Stephen receiving his SAINT CICCARELLI award. Soon....The Dee-Dee. What is it? What does it do? Who loves it THE LEAST? The mystery unfolds...

What are some good snacks for after 3pm?

We don't make this stuff up out of the blue - we get it from boot campers that have been incredibly SUCCESSFUL on our program!

Here are some suggested ideas for AFTER 3pm.

1) Hummus with 3 giant celery sticks
2) 2 cups of popcorn (no butter!)
3) A giant apple
4) Hard boiled egg
5) 2 large carrots (dip them into that hummus!)
6) Grapefruit
7) Apple chopped up in 1/2 cup of PLAIN yogurt
8) Baked apple with cinnamon
9) Steamed broccoli and cauliflower with sprinkles of cheese (or 2T cottage cheese)
10) Cucumber, tomato, olive and celery chopped up and mixed in a oil/vinegar/spice dressing (make at home "to taste")

If you can get your snack in BEFORE 3pm...like 2:50pm!

1) 1 piece of ezekiel (or sprouted wheat) toast with apple butter
2) 4 giant corn chips with salsa
3) 1/2 baked potato with salsa
4) 1/2 to 3/4 cup of oatmeal with raisens or fruit chopped up (as the sweetener)
5) 1 serving (read your nutrition facts) of granola and 3oz of OJ
6) 5 plain crackers with turkey slices
7) Corn on the cob with pepper seasoning

We hope this has helped!