“You can be gorgeous at thirty, charming at forty and irresistible for the rest of your life.”
“In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.”
Page 131 of 199
Don’t Take It The Wrong Way…Friend Requests On My Personal Facebook Profile
I get a lot of Facebook friend requests each day, anywhere from 20 to over 100. I have maxed out on my profile a number of times over the years and have endured the weed-out process that some people will do in an effort to keep a personal profile truly personal or industry-related. This time, however, I am no longer able to clean up my friends list because I truly know the people on it. Despite being almost maxed out, I get random requests from people whom I do not know, and I have to delete these requests. Let’s do the math here: even if I wasn’t already right at 5,000 friends, how could I possibly add all the requests I get daily? If I had a friend-free profile, and received an average of 80 requests a day, I would max out in two months.
Some people are nice enough to message me beforehand, asking permission to send a friend request. What amazes me though, is how pushy and sometimes rude people can be when I kindly say no. Some people will cuss me out, saying that I am not that special and that they didn’t want to be friends with me anyway. Others will keep messaging me repeatedly, pleading with me to add them. Some will mention that “we have a few mutual friends” when I can see that the mutual friends are random. I have had to resort to blocking people who became aggressive or threatening. I have also gotten requests with messages along these lines: “You’re very beautiful. We should be friends.” This tells me that the person has no clue who I am, but just saw my avatar and thought I was hot.
I will be very clear and say that a message stream similar to the one you see above will never be endearing, only extremely annoying. Anyone who dares to scold me for not responding shows his or her insanity and gets blocked. What I don’t understand is how a complete stranger can conjure up notions that anyone with even the smallest bit of celebrity status is somehow a messaging buddy, a kindred spirit, a best friend, or a virtual lover? Sorry, but that just spells crazy, and I will not tolerate it.
So if you and I don’t know each other and you send a Facebook friend request which I reject, please don’t take it personally!
Spontaneity
Some people fly by the seats of their pants constantly and love navigating through life that way. Ideas like last-minute dinner plans, jaunts to the movie theater, or an unplanned weekend road trip flow through their minds like a constant river stream. I think that’s fine if you have enough free time to randomly throw new things into the mix, but I am the exact opposite. It’s not that I am incapable of being spontaneous, but with the packed schedule I have, I can’t just drop everything and do something unplanned at the last minute.
Here’s the extent of my spontaneity. If, by some odd and rare chance, I have a day or weekend which is not jam-packed, and someone contacts me to see if I can get together for a movie, dinner or other outing, I still need at least a day’s notice so that I can schedule my gym time and make sure that any random chores or errands I might have been planning to do get moved to another time or day. If it’s a weekend road trip or other getaway, I will never be available on a moment’s notice. I simply never have more than one free day on a weekend. As a matter of fact, I cannot fathom the idea of having an entire weekend free and wide open unless I move heaven and earth to make such a thing occur!
I can’t help but feel that there are two strong correlations at work when it comes to living spontaneously. First off, I have noticed that my friends who are very spontaneous on a consistent basis have creative careers and VERY flexible schedules which give them the freedom to move things around. In many cases they can work from home or, in some cases, completely take off from work. The other thing that I have noticed is that my more spontaneous friends tend to have attention deficit disorder, and are accustomed to bouncing around mentally. Both of these correlations are beginning to make me think that creative brilliance and attention deficit disorder go hand in hand.
Difficulties arise when a spontaneous spirit becomes shackled by a rigid schedule. Even the most spontaneous person, provided that person is responsible, will not be able to let loose and do things at the last minute if he or she has a crazy work schedule. It’s quite possible that my spontaneous energy got squashed many years ago when I began medical school, but I am more inclined to believe that I have always been more organized and regimented, and have sought the structure which defines my daily life. We create the environments in which we live.
Another thing I have noticed personally is that when I do something spontaneous, there are certain harsh critics in my life who will always question my decisions and make me feel as if I have made a terrible mistake by allowing myself to get a small taste of personal freedom. It has been a challenge to stand strong and support my beliefs when I make a decision which seems to be spontaneous or random to these critics. After all, I rarely change the rhythm of my life, and I think such a habit is in some respect a bit damaging to my spirit. My sense of wonder and fun often gets squashed by all of my career responsibilities and other obligations which keep me locked into a certain predictability.
Probably the most spontaneous thing I have done this year is to decide to see a movie by myself, and it was one of the most enjoyable days of the year. I had made a snap decision on a Saturday around noon to see a film I very much wanted to see which had just been released (“Grand Budapest Hotel”). I checked showtimes, finished my workout, went home to shower and change, then two hours later, was sitting in a movie theater by myself. Instead of waiting to schedule the activity into my busy schedule, I had just said, “screw it” and reworked my schedule to accommodate a fun two hour date with myself.
In conclusion, I believe that a certain amount of spontaneity, especially when added to a particularly demanding schedule, is healthy. I also think the “birds of a feather” concept applies when it comes to degrees of spontaneity. Spontaneous people should hang out with each other, while individuals who are more regimented would be better off scheduling outings with each other. Otherwise, a spontaneous person could get extremely frustrated, while the more rigid person would only become anxious with the last minute ideas a spontaneous person always seems to present.
Great Shot A Moment After I Won The Master’s 40+ Bikini Overall Title Last Year
A Fun Stage Shot After Bikini Open D Awards At Team Universe 2013
I have no recollection of what Denita Clark and I were chatting about, but I have a strong suspicion that we were talking about what foods we were planning to eat since Finals were over for us! It’s a fun shot! You can also see Stephanie Mahoe reaching for the 1st place trophy which got her a Pro Card win, and the lovely Justine Moore.
Powerful Image By Trudge Photography
This incredible image was shot by Steven Trujillo of Trudge Photography in June of this year. Concept by Steven Trujillo. Wardrobe and makeup by me.
Venus Freeze Treatments For Cellulite
No, this is NOT me, but this shows how effective the Venus Freeze can be in reducing the appearance of cellulite.
I am a sucker for any non-invasive treatments that promise to reduce the appearance of cellulite or tighten loose skin. So when I kept hearing about the Venus Freeze treatment and its promises to address both of these issues, my curiosity grew. The Venus Freeze employs radio frequency waves to heat up treated tissues, causing it to contract, while magnets stimulate production of collagen and elastin. While many platforms will only treat the face OR the body, the Venus Freeze can be used anywhere on the body. You can expect to see response to the treatments after a few weeks to up to 3 months following the first treatment. The best results are seen when treatments are done weekly, for a total of 8 to 10 treatments. About 10% of people who undergo the Venus Freeze treatments will show no response, which is indeed frustrating both for the non-responder and for the practitioner who is administering the treatments. However, there is no way to determine who falls into that 10% until treatments are well under way. The good news is that the majority of individuals who undergo this treatment should see noticeable improvement in the areas treated.
Here’s where I was completely sold: the treatment feels like a hot stone massage, with no pain involved, and there is no down time. After enduring two rounds of the intensely painful BodyFx treatment, which incidentally did NOTHING to improve the cellulite on the backs of my legs, I was ready to try something that did NOT have me writhing in pain on a treatment table.
I had my first treatment last week at a wonderful facility called Laser Creations in Simi Valley, CA (http://www.lasercreations.org/venus-freeze-skin-tightening-and-body/) and am happy to report that I felt no pain at all during the entire treatment. It truly did feel remarkably similar to a hot stone massage, down to a couple of hot spots which were almost at the point of pain but not quite. After the treatment was completed, the area was massaged manually, and some fat pockets popped from this manipulation. It was a strange sensation, feeling those pockets pop, but I felt victorious because I knew that the technology was already bringing about an effect.
I noticed no change in the quality of my skin, nor did I see any improvement in the appearance of cellulite after the first treatment, but that is normal after only one treatment. I did notice that the more proximal areas (areas closer to my glutes and on my glutes) actually looked more pronounced with respect to the dimpling, but I think that has something to do with the localized swelling. I returned today for my second treatment in the series and experienced one spot which zapped me for a second, causing me to flinch. However, the rest of the treatment was fine, and the heat, though intense, was not painful at all. We got more pockets to pop today, but not as many as from the first treatment. I am very excited to see if visible changes begin to emerge after this second treatment! There are six more treatments left in the series for me, with cumulative effects expected over time. I also practice very clean eating and I drink 1-1/2 gallons of water a day, which will enhance the process of lipolysis (breakdown of fats in fat cells).
I am hoping that a noticeable difference in the areas treated will emerge shortly after my fourth treatment. As a physician who actively works in the field of aesthetic medicine, I am well aware that it takes the body about 5 to 6 months to fully generate a round of collagen, and that small, visible changes can be seen about 30 days into a Venus Freeze treatment regimen.
Video Review Of Cellucor Cor-Performance Whey Cookies And Cream Flavor
Creatine-Rich Foods or Creatine Supplements?
Original post can be found here:
Creatine has been established as an important component of maximal muscle growth, strength and energy in the world of weightlifting, hence its almost ubiquitous presence in pre-workout formulations. Though creatine can be formed in the kidneys and liver from arginine, glycine and methionine, weightlifters should supplement this production, either by taking powdered creatine supplements such as creatine monohydrate, or by consuming large amounts of creatine-rich foods.
Beef is hands down the richest food source of creatine, with two grams per pound of meat. If you are opposed to the idea of eating red meat, alternative sources of creatine are found in poultry and in fish such as salmon and tuna. Those of you who are vegetarian or vegan will be hard pressed to pull sufficient creatine from foods and will have to supplement via synthetic forms such as creatine monohydrate, micronized creatine, or creatine citrate.
You may be able to consume massive amounts of meat and supply your body with the 3 to 5 grams of creatine which are considered the norm in bodybuilding circles, especially if you are adamant about obtaining all of your performance substances from whole food sources, but that would require massive dedication and a lot of meat chewing! However, if you are in a building phase, then I truly believe that you are doing yourself a disservice if you are trying to get all your extra creatine solely from food sources.
The original form of creatine which was used by bodybuilders and which is still very much in use today is creatine monohydrate. This is the cheapest form of creatine, but it is poorly absorbed, which explains its tendency to cause bloating and digestive upset. Another negative aspect of creatine monohydrate is that some people don’t respond at all to it. If this is the case for you, then you might want to explore the different forms of creatine which are out on the market. The two best forms of creatine, in my humble opinion, are:
1. Micronized creatine – The micronized form of creatine features smaller molecules, so absorption is significantly better, eliminating the issus of bloating and diarrhea which are often caused by ingesting the non-micronized form of creatine monohydrate.
2. Creatine ethyl ester – This is by far the most absorbable form of creatine, but more expensive than the monohydrate form. You can find this substance in capsule form.
Another form of creatine which is at times used in some of the more popular pre-workout formulas is creatine nitrate. The extra NO2 makes creatine water soluble and also lends a decent pump to workouts. However, when purchased alone, creatine nitrate is costly and thus is not one of my recommendations.
If you want to enhance your creatine intake, consider food sources in combination with supplement sources so that you can obtain an optimal amount which your body is able to utilize.
Image In A Handmade Chainmail Cape
This thing was HEAVY and quite spectacular in person! What an honor to model it, and always an honor to work with Ian Sitren of Second Focus Photography and the incredible Blanche Le Beau!
dr. stacey naito's blog 