Do you Know any Backseat Drivers?

I used to hang out with a group of friends and we would go places together. We would go out to eat all the time and even went on vacation once. It was a lot of fun most of the time, however one of my friends was a horrible back seat driver. He always would say he knew the best way to get somewhere. I sometimes wondered if he was listening to a police scanner or if he was tapped in to the traffic report around town. This was before apps and most smart phones. Sometimes he was right, but other times we would end up in construction or stuck in traffic. He really thought he was always right. It was pretty annoying to go places when he would start driving from the backseat. Sometimes we would have him drive because it was just plain easier. It was his fault if the traffic was heavy since he picked the route. He wasn’t really that bad, and he was a great guy so we put up with it. If he wasn’t driving he was in charge of the directions. However that wasn’t a perfect plan either, as we got lost a few times. Honestly it was fun though. I miss hanging out with them and even hearing the backseat driver chime in with his opinions about the best way there. I remember being excited once when I knew there was only one way to get somewhere.  

Through this experience I learned ways to deal with backseatdrivers and I can’t wait for you to check out my post.

YourGymGF App Provides Support for Working Out

Working out takes a village, you need a cheer squad. Before there was social media, you had to call your friends and cheer them on or all work out together. Some people are new to their area and they don’t have work out buddies. They can feel pretty isolated when it comes to working out. When you feel isolated you can give up pretty easily. Thankfully, we can virtually work out with our friends and family all over the world through social media and apps. There is a brand new fitness/lifestyle app for iPhone and Android called YourGymGF, which is ultimately a social network for women that are looking for new ideas on diets, workout plans and ultimately lifestyle changes, as well as motivation/support. The app allows users to stay involved with other users within the community. It sounds amazing especially if you share healthy recipes with your friends. The app is totally free. It is like your very own support system and brainstorming app for all things fitness and being healthy.  It’s also a great Kickstarter campaign you can consider donating to. Every little bit helps. They are trying to add a really cool feature and they need a little help reaching their goal. The new feature would help you by notifying you of new things and lets you notify others of things you want to share with them. 

We all are pretty busy, so we don’t always check in on our apps as much as we would like. Some of us juggle work and parenthood and everything in between.   

If you would like to donate you can do so on the YourGymGF Kickstarter Page. 

You should also follow YourGymGF on Facebook!

Remember that the app is totally free and fun too!

You can find the app in both iTunes and Android.

YourGymGF in the Apple Store

 YourGymGF in Android

Now you have no excuse not to become healthier and support your rockin’ friends along the way.

Headphones and Hearing Loss in Teens

Blaring music is a standard teenage behavior, but chances are, your son or daughter doesn’t realize the potential damage they’re doing to their hearing. 81% of teens listen to music with earphones, but only 8% of adolescents believe that hearing loss is a major health concern.

And in fact, rates of hearing loss among teens today are about 30% higher than in the 1980s and 1990s. Also, 46% of teens show potential signs of hearing loss with occasional ringing, roaring, buzzing, or pain in their ears, and one in six teens report that they experience hearing loss symptoms some or all of the time.

Often, teens don’t realize the dangers of hearing loss because they fail to realize we only have a set number of hair cells in our ears. When sound travels into our ear and vibrates through various passageways, it ripples hair-like cells in our inner ear. Excessive noise kills the hair cells, and when enough of these hair cells die, we experience hearing loss.

Remind your teen that at full volume, digital music devices can make as much noise as a live rock concert, and it only takes eight minutes of listening to music at a very high volume to cause hearing loss. You should be able to hear someone speak to you at a conversational level from about three feet away; if you can’t, your headphones are too loud. You can also recommend the 60/60 rule to your teenager: listen to music for no more than 60 minutes at a time and at no more than 60% volume. Finally, caution your teenager against buying ear buds, which are closer to the ear drum and can cause more hearing loss when used.

As a parent, it’s your job to make sure that your teenager isn’t hurting himself. Make sure that your teenager is well-aware of the dangers of headphones so that they don’t run the risk of hearing loss, and who knows? Maybe hearing loss is the reason they haven’t been listening to you!