Student Blog
Life Hacks

“Flowing” ⟩
September 26, 2011, by Chelsea

Life Hacks

Have you ever done something that was so engaging it made you completely forget about everything else on your mind? In occupational therapy, we call this the “flow” state because it is the point at which every move you make has a seamless connection with everything that precedes it and follows it. It is a state of deep concentration and great autonomy, in which the person experiences a perfect balance between their skill level and the level of difficulty. Why do we seek out these experiences? The result is explicit emotional satisfaction.

I experienced “flow” last weekend.

It was in San Diego, my hometown, where I had this experience after my friends and I decided to go wakeboarding. Being an avid snowboarder, wakeboarding came naturally to me, yet it was still a new and invigorating sensation. From the moment the boat lifted me out of the water, I was in the zone. It felt so awesome to be carving through the cool water with the wind whipping across my face. And the best part was being able to completely clear my mind of everything — for a few minutes I had no deadlines, no papers to think about, and no places to be . . . just sheer bliss. I can’t wait to help my future patients find their flow state! As for you . . . you may already know — what makes you flow?

⋯

Be Active and Be Happy ⟩
April 17, 2011, by Austen

Life Hacks Living in LA

As you may already know, running is part of my daily routine. I roll out of bed every morning and get outside for a little jog, rain or shine. It wakes me up, gives me energy, and clears my mind. Days without a jog in the morning just are not the same. I feel lethargic and lazy, I do not eat as healthy, and I am not as alert and energetic. I had to take some time off from running last week, and I realized the negative effects not exercising has on my lifestyle.

I woke up Tuesday morning and set out on my typical loop around campus. Around one mile in, both of my legs started cramping. My shins felt like they could not relax and my calves were tight. It was so uncomfortable that I could barely run 2 miles, when my daily mileage usually reaches 4. After jogging/walking the rest of the way home, I noticed my left knee was stiff and swelling. I have had meniscus repair surgery done on that knee, but it usually does not act up when I run. Something was up, but I could not figure out what the issue was.

I got up Wednesday morning and tried again. No luck. Leg cramps and tightness. At that point I gave up and decided to take a couple days off. During those 2 days, I noticed a huge change in what my lifestyle is like without exercise. It is much unhealthier in all aspects. I eat more, I lay around more, I watch more TV, and it just feels terrible! There is a physical feeling inside that I do not like, it is hard to explain. But, I realized how exercise affects me both physically and mentally. It gives me more energy and makes me a happier person in general. It makes me feel alive and well. There are so many things about exercise that make me feel good that it will need to continue to be a daily activity throughout my life. Interesting how much you learn about the importance of something when it is taken away, right?

I had a sneaking suspicion that my leg issues were related to old running shoes. So during those couple days off, I bought some new ones. I tried them out yesterday on a light jog, and it made a huge difference! I was worried I was having muscular or skeletal problems, but I do not think that is case anymore. And yesterday was a great day after that run. I felt rejuvenated, I wanted to be outside, I felt alive. And my body craved nutritious and healthy meals, which always makes me feel better. I love running! Even though it is not always easy and can be boring (especially running around South Central LA), it feels so good once you are done.

Go be active! It feels great! 😊

⋯

Finished a half marathon! ⟩
February 6, 2011, by Austen

Life Hacks Living in LA

This morning my OT friends Jen, Lauren, and I ran the Surf City Huntington Beach Half Marathon! A good number of first and second year OT MA students ran in the race, and it was great to see some familiar faces down there.

I typically run 3-4 miles a day, at about a 9:30-10 minute per mile pace. The farthest I have ever gone is 6 miles. But at the beginning of this year, Jen encouraged me to start building on some more distance. Little did I know, the Surf City Half Marathon was on her radar. She told me and Lauren to register and do it with her, so that is what we did! I have never run in a race before, but always wanted to someday. I guess I did not realize that day was coming so soon.

I started training over winter break. I would do 4 short runs, about 4-5 miles, a week, then one long run (7 or 8 miles) on a weekend morning. Once we got back to school, Jen and I ran an 8.5 miler together. That was the longest I had gone, and farthest I would go before race day.

So after Motivation Interviewing on Saturday, Jen and I drove down to Huntington Beach and stayed at Lauren’s parents’ house for the night. We loaded up on carbs (spaghetti and garlic bread) and had big bowls of oatmeal for breakfast. We certainly were energized! At 8:12am, we were off, starting the 13.1 mile adventure. Jen and Lauren bolted out, weaving through the slower runners. I decided I could not do that and wanted to keep an even pace. So I stayed behind maintaining my comfortable pace. Mile 5 I was feeling good. Lauren’s parents were on the sideline cheering us on there. But by mile 7 I was seriously doubting why I chose to do this. When the mile 10 marker showed up, I was feeling great again, on that runner’s high. Only 3 to go, and they flew by! I ran all 13.1 miles in 2 hours 8 minutes 52 seconds, with a pretty steady pace of 9:50 minute miles. I beat my goal of 2 hours 10 minutes!

I never really understood why people run marathons. But now I do. It was a great feeling running alongside thousands of other people who enjoy doing the same thing you do. The other runners kept me going, they kept me energized, they kept me strong. Even though I was separated from my running buddies, I had lots of other runners to keep me company. There is also quite a bit of an adrenaline rush, especially when all the friends and families are yelling on the side line down the entire route. What a rush! It was just a great experience overall. I think I will do one again someday.

⋯

Working My Way to a Healthier Routine ⟩
January 30, 2011, by Carissa

Life Hacks School/Life Balance

Recently, I have been reflecting on how I can create a healthier lifestyle for myself. I realized that in order to create an exercise routine, I must take my aversion to the gym into consideration. I have tried to deal with it by going with a friend or bringing fun, energizing music. However, I always end up finding excuses not to go. It is a 20 minute walk from my apartment, and by the time I get there, my energy is already depleted, and I’m already thinking about going home. So this past week, rather than push the gym on myself any more, I bought myself exercise DVDs. With them, I don’t have to go anywhere to exercise. I have the privacy of my apartment. No energy is expended on picking out clothes to wear. I can jump in the shower as soon as I’m done. It is pretty amazing, as I was able to wake up early Saturday morning, complete the video, and have the time and energy to run errands and be productive the rest of the day. I feel like I can be much more successful with this routine than trying to include the gym in my day. Week 1 towards increased health. 😊 Also, regarding the creation of a healthier routine, I realized that I finished some homework early (accidentally). It feels good to not procrastinate, even though it was not really intentional. I need to try that more often.

⋯

Happy holidays! ⟩
December 30, 2010, by Carissa

Life Hacks

Happy holidays everyone! I have really enjoyed taking this time off to relax and spend time with my family. I hope you have enjoyed yours too. My family loves hosting holiday parties for our relatives and friends, but has always struggled with getting everyone engaged and interacting. However, while I am not usually the biggest fan of videogames, I must applaud the Wii. My brother, an avid videogame player, tends to keep to himself during these parties and tucks himself away in his room playing his games. However, this year, my sister and I decided to try to bring the Wii out to the living room and buy an extra remote control so that others could play with him. It was a big hit, and encouraged everyone to come together and interact, versus sitting on the sofa watching a movie. The biggest effect was on my usually shy brother, who was able to join and play the role as a leader and teacher during this time. He was all smiles, and I could tell he was having a great time. Playing the Wii created laughter, joy, entertainment, and exercise! I am continually amazed by the effect of different occupations in our lives.

⋯