Tag Archives: exercise

Lighthouse Park

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Region: The North Shore
Difficulty: Easy
Time: 10 minutes
Distance: 600 meters
Elevation Gain: minimal
Season: year-round
Camping: No
Dog Friendly: Yes
Approx. 40 minutes from Vancouver

This is not the hike listed on Vancouver Trails website. This is a very short ‘walk’ from the parking lot to the actual Lighthouse. It’s only a 10 minute walk, but do come with walkable shoes – though I did see one Asian girl in super high-heels and dressed as though she was headed to Cactus Club or something. Most of the trail is a wide gravel path, but once you go up some stairs, you need to walk over boulders and rocky surfaces to see the Lighthouse well. You will definitely not be able to go up on them with such high heels!

There is also a hike trail, but instead we biked on the streets in the area for a while until my bike had a flat tire :( Man, the roads here are hilly!! not that I didn’t expect that…my calves burnt and I was panting like crazy.

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Huge tree that indicates how old it was

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From the viewpoint

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Small hut for children to play and learn

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Closer to Lighthouse

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View of downtown Vancouver

The small parking lot is really bumpy with holes everywhere. Good luck trying to finding a parking lot on a nice summer day…it’s always full. No bikes are allowed on the trails, but there is a place where you can lock up your bikes if you happen to ride up to the parking lot and walk the rest to the Lighthouse.

At the viewpoint there is a small house for kids to play and learn about nature. I was surprised to see no gift shops. LoL. Lighthouse Park is open year-round, park gates close before dusk and there is no camping permitted.

Hip Hop at Urban Beat Dance

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Located in the heart of downtown, it’s a small dance studio that shares the building with another dance studio. Urban Beat is on the second floor – don’t get confused!

You can sign up for hip hop lessons (usually 7 classes, 1 hour long each) online, but you can’t pay over the internet. In fact, it’s only cash only! It comes to $92 with tax, and no receipt either! Not sure what’s happening on the business side of things there, but that’s not my business I guess.

It’s kind of disorganized. You come up the stairs to the second floor. There are no signs or directions for new students. I remember that I was confused the first time I had went (which was over 6 years ago). Although, back then, I remember them setting up a table so you could sign in and pay. This time, it was pay and sign up as you went through the door.

It had been years since I took dance lessons, due to school, work and health reasons. I had been wanting to come back, but it just didn’t work out till now.

The first half of the class is exercise. Stretching and building up strength. I had been worried that I would be so out of shape or wouldn’t be able to follow due to health issues, but was surprised that although I had some trouble following, it seemed I was in much better shape than those who looked like they were in their late teens to early twenties.

The great thing about hip hop classes at Urban Beat is that they teach 2 classes per week. Once you register/pay for one, you can go to the other one for no additional cost. No other dance studio does this! I use to do this to get more practice and a good workout. Tuesday classes are 6:30-7:30pm, while the Thursday one is from 6pm-7pm. Unfortunately, I’m not able to make the Thurs one since I wont make it in time from work…

The instructors are great. Super friendly and energetic. Very patient so don’t hesitate to ask questions! The studio is a bit run down, but for the price and quality of lessons, it’s a great deal.

Heart Month

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Happy Valentine’s Day!

February isn’t just a month for couples look forward to, or be dreaded by those of us who are single, or simply don’t care about the hype that the mass media creates. There’s something that everyone should be aware of – your heart. It’s important to know the risks that Canadians (both male and female) face since 9 in 10 will have at least one risk factor for heart disease and stroke. You definitely look at life in a different way when you do find out of a particular heart condition. But whether you have a condition or not, it’s essential to keep your heart healthy for a long and happy life.

Things to remember for a healthy heart:

  • quit smoking (will be beneficial for you and those around you)
  • exercise (if you have a heart condition, remember to talk with your doctor to see what kinds of exercises are right for you)
  • eating a healthy balanced diet
  • reduce stress levels (yoga is great!)
  • go for regular checkups (a bit tough to do in Canada…hard to get hold of doctors here!)

There has been studies which showed that participants who had 270mg of magnesium daily had a 30% lower risk of stroke. (recommended daily does of magnesium is 280-500mg). You can get magnesium from eating spinach, nuts, yogurt, soybeans, bananas and much more.

Most people today are consuming two or even three times the recommended amount of salt. The Heart and Stroke Foundation suggests that Canadians use no more than 1 tsp (5 mL) of salt a day (2,300 mg). This includes salt that you actually sprinkle on your food to sodium in processed and packaged foods. Too much salt in the system can increase the amount of blood in the arteries, raising blood pressure and increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Reduce taking in too much salt by:

  • cutting down on prepared and processed foods
  • eating more fresh vegetables and fruit
  • reduce the amount of salt you add while cooking/eating
  • use other seasonings (ie. garlic, lemon juice and herbs instead)

Look for the Health Check™ symbol on foods.
Health Check is the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s food information program, based on Canada’s Food Guide.

Let’s keep our hearts happy! Love the heart!!

References from 24 Hours, Heart and Stroke Foundation, and Choices Newsletter