100-Mile Diet Recap

We're going bananas here!

Well, I wouldn't take it that far but now that we've just about completed this month's 100-Mile Diet Challenge, we are looking forward to adding some of our favorite non-local foods back into our diet... and bananas are on top of just about everyone's list.

Going into this challenge, we were all very nervous and everyone seems to agree that it was the most difficult challenge we've done so far, but it also may have been the most educational and rewarding. We've missed our apples and bananas but we are happy to have discovered some amazing local finds such as sweet corn from Salinas, squash blossoms, and delicious berries and have discovered tastes that we may not have explored if not under these circumstances.

This challenge also led us many of us to make new friends from within the foodie community and taught us about an amazing local food delivery service in Santa Cruz: http://santacruzlocalfoods.com/. Santa Cruz Local Foods provides an online marketplace filled with products from within 100 Miles of Santa Cruz. You shop online and either pick up your bounty at one of their pick up locations set up throughout the week or they will deliver them to you on bicycle. Their service is amazing and the vast array of local foods they offer is incredible. They took a lot of the legwork out of this challenge for us and made it possible for even more of us to be successful throughout the week and for that, our bellies are thankful!

Moving beyond this challenge, we will all put a lot more thought into our food choices and will try to support our local farm community as much as possible. Eating locally does come with a price tag but having the chance to be further involved in our local community and economy and filling our bodies with fresh, local foods is a pretty great return!

100-Mile Diet Challenge

This weekend, the Laptop Lunches staff members are likely to be found at one of the several Farmers' Markets around town. As part of this month's weekly challenge, we will be on the hunt for foods that were grown within 100 miles of Santa Cruz. Yes, that's right, we've chosen to follow the 100 mile diet for 1 week... and we are nervous!

Of course, we all choose to support our local economy as much as possible and we are lucky to live in a community abundant with locally produced goods but, after some thought, we've realized that many of the staples in our diet cannot be found locally. We will definitely be missing our coffee, tea and bananas but we are also excited to learn more about local products and to discover new flavors and possibly even a local can't-live-without product or two.

To learn more about the 100-mile diet, visit the following link: http://100milediet.org/faqs.

Strength is in numbers, so please let us know if you're in!

Having Fun Being Active

For this month's weekly challenge, we have been on the move! We've increased our daily exercise by 30 minutes and are feeling great! Although we are a busy bunch, we've found that increasing our activity level has been fairly easy to fit into our schedules by making small adjustments to our normal routines.

We've been challenging our dogs to power walks and hikes, riding our horses, tending to our gardens, deep cleaning our houses, and having dance parties with our toddlers!

Some staff members have also taken it a step further and have tried new exercises to amp up their regular routines. Power walking, stretching, running, lifting weights, and yoga have been some of the most popular of the traditional activities. In keeping with trying something new, a couple of us will be trying our first Bikram yoga class this weekend, so wish us luck!

This month's weekly challenge has been very enjoyable so far and has reminded us that being more active can be easy, fun and great for those around us. We are all looking forward to an active weekend and hope you'll do the same!

Getting Active

Last month's challenge of going out for a 10 minute break each day inspired us to take our daily activity a step further. For this month's challenge, we've decided to add 30 minutes of activity to our routines. So, starting Monday, we'll be spending a little extra time running, walking, skipping, hula hooping, swimming, playing catch, riding our bikes, or anything else we can think of doing to get our bodies moving. Increased physical activity is important for both our minds and bodies, so we're looking forward to starting the month out on the right foot and hope you'll join us. We can't wait to hear about everyone's favorite activities!