Author Archives: Dominic Broadwood

Welcome to the Couv

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Are you planning a trip to Vancouver? Or maybe you’ve lived here for a while and you’re looking to explore. Whether you’re a first-time visitor or you’ve called the city home for years, Vancouver has something for you. From breathtaking natural beauty to vibrant cultural scenes, the things to see and do here are endless. In this guide, we’ll take you through some of the top tourism spots in Vancouver, from iconic landmarks to hidden gems. By the end of this, you’ll have a new adventure awaiting! 

Let’s start with the big one. Stanley Park is easily one of Vancouver’s most famous landmarks, and for good reason. The park is over 1,000 acres, and is a mix of dense forest, stunning views, and cultural landmarks. Have you ever seen a postcard of Vancouver? If so there’s a good chance Stanley Park was front and center. But what’s the must do here? Well, it depends on what you’re into. If you’re a fan of leisurely strolls, then the Seawall is where you’ll want to be. It’s a ten kilometer path that wraps around the park and has some of the most beautiful views you’ll find on the West coast. Whether you walk, bike, or even rollerblade the Seawall is a great way to take in Vancouver’s natural beauty. Are you looking for something a bit more cultural? The Totem Poles at Brockton Point are iconic. These are one of British Columbia’s most famous attractions, showcasing Indigenous art and history in a beautiful outdoor setting. The totem poles are some of the most photographed attractions in all of Vancouver. So yes, your Instagram will thank you for it later. Stanley Park is also home to Beaver Lake, Lost Lagoon, and the Vancouver Aquarium which has everything from playful sea otters to beluga whales. So if you’re traveling with kids or maybe you’re just a big fan of marine life, this could be the place for you.

Next up is Granville Island, it’s one of Vancouver’s most unique neighborhoods. Originally it was an industrial district, however it has since transformed into a vibrant hub for art, food, and culture. It’s also home to the Granville Island Public Market. If you’re a foodie, this market is paradise. Fresh seafood, cheeses, gourmet chocolates, and some of the best baked goods you’ll ever try can all be found here. Pick up a snack and take a seat by the water to enjoy the view. The market is also a great place to find unique souvenirs, so you can take a piece of Vancouver home with you. Aside from just the market, it’s a cultural hotspot. The island is filled with art galleries, theaters, and local boutiques. The Arts Club Theatre and Granville Island Stage are perfect spots to catch a play or live performance. If you’re into visual arts, the Emily Carr University of Art + Design gallery often will showcase works from local artists and students. Want something a little more unique? Try taking a tour of the Granville Island brewery. Just don’t take too many samples.

Maybe you’re a fan of outdoor adventures, Grouse Mountain might be the spot you’re looking for. It’s just a short drive from downtown and is open year round. In the winter, it’s a snowy wonderland perfect for skiing, snowboarding, and snowshoeing. If you want to visit in the warmer months, the mountain is a top hiking spot. One of the most popular activities is the Grouse Grind. It’s a challenging hike, but ask anyone and they’ll tell you that the payoff is worth it. Once you reach the top, you’ll be treated to a beautiful view of Vancouver as well as the nearby mountains. If hiking isn’t up your alley don’t worry, the Skyride gondola will take you to the top. 

On the topic of views, next on the list is the Capilano Suspension Bridge. It’s suspended 70 meters above the Capilano River,and the iconic bridge is one of Vancouver’s most exciting attractions. Walking across the swaying bridge might make your heart race, but don’t worry it’s completely safe, and the experience is one you won’t forget anytime soon. As you make your way across, you’ll be surrounded by towering evergreens and beautiful greenery, with the sound of the rushing river below. But the bridge is just the start. The park also features a treetops adventure which is a series of smaller suspension bridges that let you walk along the treetops on a bridge like contraption. It’s a great way to immerse yourself in nature without ever having to leave the city. If you’re more into hiking, the cliff walk is a cantilevered walkway that hugs the side of a granite cliff, offering unique perspectives of the forest and river below. Pro tip from experience, the Capilano Suspension Bridge is particularly magical during the Canyon Lights event in the winter, when the entire park is decked out in sparkling lights.

For a taste of history mixed with some modern day charm, check out Gastown, Vancouver’s oldest neighborhood. Founded in 1867, Gastown is where Vancouver began, and it still has some of its cobblestone streets, historic buildings, and vintage street lamps. Of course, you can’t forget about the Gastown steam clock, a quirky piece of history that whistles and chimes. It’s a unique landmark and another one of those places you need to get a photo of before you end your visit. Gastown also has some of the best shopping and dining in the entire city. From local boutiques selling handmade jewelry, quirky souvenirs, to award-winning restaurants and trendy coffee shops, you’ll find no shortage of places to explore. 

Finally, let’s head to Kitsilano beach, or as the locals call it, “Kits Beach.” If you’re visiting Vancouver in the summer, this is a go-to spot to spend your days. The beach offers sandy shores, volleyball courts, and an outdoor saltwater pool all set against the backdrop of the North Shore mountains. Kits beach is a beautiful place for relaxing, swimming, or just soaking in the sun. It’s also a popular spot for paddleboarding and kayaking. If you’re feeling active, take a stroll down West 4th Avenue, where you’ll find plenty of shops, cafes, and restaurants. At sunset, Kits Beach is the place to be. Grab a spot along the shore and watch as the sun sets, casting a golden glow over the water. It’s the perfect way to end a day of exploring Vancouver.

There you have it! Some of the best tourism spots in Vancouver that will leave you with unforgettable memories. Whether you’re soaking in the natural beauty of Stanley Park, exploring the cultural hub of Granville Island, or taking on the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver has a little bit of everything. So, what are you waiting for? Pack your bags, book that trip, and get ready to experience the best of what Vancouver has to offer. Whether you’re an adventure seeker, a foodie, or just looking to relax by the water, Vancouver has something for everyone. Time to explore!

Lifting for dummies

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How long have you been working out at a gym for? Have you ever been to a gym? Regardless of your answer, at some point in your fitness journey you’re going to find yourself feeling a little lost. That’s the purpose of this! This is going to be a beginner to intermediate guide on all the do’s and don’ts when starting out in the gym and some secret pointers that you might not know about if you’ve already been going for a while. By the end of this you’ll be ready to start making your Mr. or Mrs. Olympia dreams come to life!

Let’s get some of the no brainers out of the way first. Make sure you’re wearing gym clothing. Have you ever been to the gym and seen someone wearing steel toe boots? What about a big winter jacket? Let’s not even get started on that one person who thought jeans would be a good idea. It’s suboptimal and quite frankly can be down right dangerous. You don’t want to wear any sort of clothes that are going to restrict your range of motion or worse, your blood flow. Second, it’s just going to look silly and give off an unserious impression. Remember those kids that never brought adequate gym attire in high school? Exactly. Lastly, it’s just not drippy, we’ll get to that later though, the point is: wear proper gym attire! 

 

Another seemingly no brainer is to make sure to bring a water bottle. I know what you’re thinking: “it’s the gym obviously I’m going to bring a water bottle” wrong. As obvious as it seems, next time you’re at the gym take a look around at how many people have water bottles, it’s probably less than you’d expect. The water fountain is NOT sufficient. If you were consuming a sufficient amount of water during your workout using  only the water fountain, you’d be there for six hours. That or you’re the guy who backs the water fountain up to ten people. Solution? Just put the bottle in the bag bro.

 

Finishing off the obvious ones with probably the most important thing to ever know when going to the gym. For the love of whatever is sacred to you, please wear deodorant. It is appalling the amount of people that don’t wear deodorant to the gym. There should never be any excuse to not wear deodorant when going to workout in a public gym. Keep it in your bag if you have problems remembering or are someone that needs to reapply throughout the day. Whatever you have to do to make sure it’s on, do it. It will not go unappreciated by the people around you at the gym. Nobody wants to smell you during their workout. 

 

Now that we got the barebones out of the way let’s get into the workout itself. There are so many different types of workouts you can do and an endless amount of ways to do them. We’re just going to look at some of the most popular types of workouts and some effective ways to get the best results to have you achieving your goals in no time. For this we’ll be focusing on bodybuilding training as it can apply and easily be transitioned to other types of training like powerlifting. 

 

Starting with bodybuilding, let’s talk about the different splits. There’s the classic push, pull legs, or the Arnold (Schwarzenegger) split. You could also do a more unconventional split like; chest and biceps, back and triceps, shoulders, and legs. Are you a psychopath or maybe just have a sporadic schedule? You could just go in and do whatever you feel like on the day. No matter what split you choose, you’re going to be hitting the same group of muscles so let’s look at some of the must knows. For hitting chest it’s best to hit an incline exercise, a flat plane exercise, and a fly motion. The big three for building the Terminator chest would be; cable flys, incline machine press, and a flat dumbbell bench press. These three exercises will hit all parts of the chest while giving you a good stretch from the extended range of motion. Working the back is just as simple with its own big three; lat pulldown, cable rows, and you could do face pulls or a T-bar row for the last exercise to make sure you’re not neglecting that upper back. Arms are even more simple, it’s important to remember repetition matters more than weight. Biceps you just need a couple sets of simple dumbbell curls and go until failure. Working triceps, you could do a cable pushdown or a dumbbell overhead press. They’re practically the same workout just pushing in different directions, and once again you’ll want to push through till failure to really get that mountain peak on your arms. Legs get a little more tricky. Because of how big the leg muscles are it’s best to always start with a compound lift. What’s a compound lift? A compound exercise is one that hits all parts of the leg in a singular exercise. Some examples are; leg press, hack squat, or bar squat. If you’re a beginner I’d recommend going with the leg press as it is the easiest to control and get the hang of. For legs because of the muscle size it’ll be necessary to do more warmup sets to get the blood flowing and reduce the risk of injury. It’s recommended to do more working sets as well (again) because of the sheer muscle size. It gets easier from here, after the compound you only really need to do one more exercise for each part of the leg. The most effective ones will usually be; calf raises, hamstring curls, and leg extension. Finally it’s time to learn how to get those boulder shoulders of your dreams. The shoulders are interesting because they’re largely what give your size impression. Think of the shoulder split into four different parts; front, lateral, back, and your traps (neck/upper back). Each of these usually just need one exercise each or you could elect to go with a compound lift like a shoulder press to hit all aspects of the shoulder at the same time. It’s a lot of information, and that’s barely scratching the surface of the workout world. 

 

Now you’ve got some of the gym etiquette basics and some core workouts to get yourself started, but there is one important thing that still needs to be touched. Remember the whole gym attire thing? Not only for the reasons stated previously is it important to wear the right clothes to the gym, but for the mentality. Ever heard the term look good, feel good? Dress to impress? Dress for the job? It all falls under the same umbrella idea. If you’re going to the gym there’s probably a reason, and it’s probably along the lines of wanting to feel good. Showing up to the gym dressed in your favorite workout clothes is a feeling like no other. The confidence or for lack of a better term the aura radiating off of you when you show up to the gym stylish is unmatched. People will be turning their heads looking at you and not just for your muscles. This will help improve your confidence and the gym experience for you as a whole. It’s largely unsaid but this might be the best tip you could get when starting your gym journey. Now that you have all the core concepts for getting started, what are you waiting for? Go get those gains!       

 

A companion for you

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We as humans are social creatures by nature. We gravitate towards people from a young age instinctively, and struggle in solitude. But what is it that draws us to people? How do we scout out potential friendships or even relationships? It was a lot simpler as a kid. You could be friends with another over almost anything. Maybe they had the same toy as you or their t-shirt had a dinosaur on it. Elementary school itself is in essence a social experiment meant to teach kids to socialize, and build the social skills they’ll need going forward. As we get older and go into highschool we make friends for different reasons. Sometimes it’s because we’re looking to fit in or be popular, and other times it’s a shared interest. Usually at this point we still don’t think too hard on what exactly we’re looking for in a friend, and it shows. How many friends can you think of from highschool that just weren’t a good fit? Oftentimes the friends we make in high school don’t last for this exact reason. As we grow we learn to look for certain qualities in the people we keep around. Some take this process more seriously than others and not everyone learns to do this. Letting go of people is a hard thing to do and not everyone is capable of it. Have you heard the saying that you are the sum of the five people you’re around the most? Here are some important qualities that you should look for when deciding who to let into your circle.

 

It seems simple, but do they make you laugh? Not just do they make you laugh but do you have fun with them? At some point you’ve more than likely had a friend that was just no fun. Always a downer and seemingly always killing the vibe. This might not have been their intention and maybe they were just stuck in a temporary rut. But we all know how mentally draining it can be to always have an aura anchor following you around. Having people that bring the vibe and keep it light make for easy friends. You can be playful and joke around and not have to constantly worry about if they’re keeping up. The friendship aside, you’ll be feeling better if you keep these kinds of people around as you’re not going to be the one to bring down their energy.

 

Another seemingly simple trait that is good to have in a friend is confidence. Why confidence, you ask? Think about this, if your friend group is going out for the night and everyone around you is lacking confidence, would you have it? Probably not, it’s not very fun being insecure or hanging around people who display it. They get jealous easily, their moods will swing. Insecurity can be a very difficult trait to deal with at times, and definitely something you’d want to look to avoid when choosing friends as well as not displaying it yourself, just not a good look for anyone.

 

Take a look at your best friends and tell me, how dependable are they? It’s important to be able to lean and rely on the people closest to you. This isn’t always as simple as getting a fast text back or having them agree to hang out. Are they on time to the plans you make? Can you trust them to keep a secret or trust them with anything for that matter? This is where quality over quantity really comes into play. Would you rather have one friend that you can depend on to call at three in the morning or ten friends that you couldn’t call past nine at night? What brings more value?  If you’ve never had friends that you can always rely on, you might not know what you’re missing. However once you see what a real friendship looks like, the flaking and tardiness gets old quick.

 

What’s another thing that makes friendship easy? When the person you’re friends with is low maintenance. Like some of the other traits we’ve gone over, having high maintenance friends can just be incredibly mentally exhausting. Whether it stems from jealousy, attachment issues, taking the friendship for granted, or all of the above, it can be a very challenging task to constantly be having to coddle another person’s feelings. These kinds of friendships naturally can’t last, as over time it takes a toll on the one person’s psyche. Moreover staying in a high maintenance friendship will often lead to toxic behaviours being overlooked and even accepted. This can quickly turn into a toxic and manipulative friendship.

 

Moving onto one of the most important aspects to look for in a friendship: respect. What is a friendship without respect? Respect should be the baseline of any friendship past, present or future. Without respect it’s a bold statement to even call it a friendship. It’s necessary for any one of the other qualities that we’ve looked at so far. If you have little respect for a friend would you care what you ask of them? Being manipulative would be a norm, because why care as long as you’re getting what you want. There’s no reason to be available and dependable if you don’t respect the other person. Moving beyond that, respect is a basic emotional need. Have you ever felt disrespected? How did it feel? The disrespect only feels worse coming from a friend. Look for people who not only respect you, but respect your feelings and emotions. People that won’t invalidate your feelings. We all have our reasons for feeling the way we do, and the last thing someone needs whether it’s understandable or not is to feel like they’re feelings are worthless. Key takeaway from this is make sure you not only demand it but you show your friends respect!

 

There’s a brother to respect in the “big two” of friendship and that is loyalty. Loyalty is the most important thing that you could ask for in anybody. Relationship, friendship, family, coworker, you name it. Loyalty is the most important thing that you could possibly get from another person. Life is tough, we face trials and tribulations every day of our lives. It never gets easier, in fact it only really gets harder as we grow up. It’s crucial to have people that you can not just depend on, but know that that dependence knows no bounds. Mistakes are made in life, and they’re made often. Sometimes those are going to be really big mistakes. We all make them, and it’s important to have people that will stick with you through it, no matter how hard it may be. To show that you can stick by another person through their absolute worst so that you can be with them at their absolute best is a beautiful thing. Not everyone has the patience or the capacity for doing this though. Have you ever been pushed to your absolute brink with a person? Did you manage to stick it through with them? Any type of human relationship, will be tested at some point or another, and through history the amount of tales of unwavering loyalty and hardship have always made some of the greatest stories. Making loyalty the most valuable quality you could find in a friend and the greatest gift of all. 

The meaning of it all

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It’s estimated that we as a species have been around for 300,000 years. That of course depends on what you believe in. Science tells us that we’ve evolved and with that our purpose has as well. If you believe in a higher power then you might have a different idea on how long we’ve existed and why exactly we were put on this earth. No matter what your belief is, we all like to believe that we were put here for a specific reason. Is it simply nature, that we’re born, we grow, we reproduce and then we die? Or in our limited time here is there an objective that is supposed to be achieved? Were historical figures, whether they were good or bad here so that they could teach us a lesson? Maybe Einstein was here to help us make discoveries about our world. Perhaps Gandhi’s purpose was to empower people across the world to make change for the better. Most people have some sense of direction and purpose and live their lives in accordance with that. The people that don’t have direction tend to live their life more chaotically, however that doesn’t mean that’s not their purpose. Everyone has a purpose known or unknown during their short time on this earth.

It’s safe to say that most people know that one person with a more damp view on life that thinks we’re simply animals. That we’re here to reproduce and die to perpetuate life’s food chain. Now that might be the case at our core, but where’s the fun in that? It’s a grim way to live, believing that we’re born to do the same for another. A single purpose life is one with less meaning, the experiences you have are tainted by the thought that they aren’t your own. That you simply live, not to experience. Although this could be true to natural evolution it’s a way of living that lacks fulfillment. 

 

A large portion of the world population would say that we are put here to experience. That the meaning of life is to experience as much of the world as we can in our limited time. To travel the world, try all kinds of food, meet people of all sorts. To make memories that will last until our final breath. In those experiences we are to leave a lasting mark on everything and everyone we encounter. Are you scared to do something? Does skydiving terrify you? Possibly bungee jumping is the one that gets your stomach turning. Those experiences are what gives life excitement. But it’s so much more than the experience of activities. It’s all of the feelings that you experience as well. The excitement and joy of getting married, having your first child, your favourite team winning a championship. What would those moments be without the experience of sadness and disparity? There’s a beauty to all of the emotions we feel in life. The feeling of losing a loved one. Have you ever felt the feeling of being overwhelmed by school, work, maybe a relationship or friendship? These feelings are important to feeling the gratitude and accomplishment of working hard, making your relationships work, graduating school. If all of these things were easy and had no hardship what would be the point? Nothing worth having isn’t worth fighting for and that goes for emotions as well. All of these experiences put together are what makes life worth living. The fight you face to have all these experiences are what makes it so special.

 

Do you believe that your life belongs to your god? It’s said that about 85 percent of the population identifies under a religion according to populationeducation.org. Not all of that population will of course devote their life to their respective religion, however there will be a sense of purpose there. Is the purpose to live your life by the word of God? Is the bible the end all be all of guidance through life. There’s a peace to living your life by God’s will. A lot of people who don’t grow up religious find religion as a way of feeling direction and purpose. It’s a fulfilling feeling to believe you’re living life the way God intended, and to serve a greater good.

A segment of people believe they have a singular purpose in life that isn’t reproduction. Similar to the examples earlier of Einstein and Gandhi, what if your purpose is to create or discover?  If you were to create an invention that could change the world, would that have been your purpose in life? Now what if you created that invention and yet you believe your purpose in life is to experience? What would your true purpose in life be? Do you really have one singular? This begs the philosophical question of “is our life purpose what we choose it to be?”. Let’s take it a step further, what if you were to live through the most boring life ever. You created nothing, and discovered nothing, You experienced very little and nothing had any meaning to you. Does that mean that you had no purpose? If you believe that there’s no purpose to your life does that mean that there is none? It’s a tricky question that there isn’t any real answer to, and is based fully on your individual belief.

 

After going through some popular beliefs, it’s time to look at one that gets a little more niche. What if the purpose of life is to love. Not only love but to be loved as well. You could argue that love is just part of the human experience, but what if it’s so much more? It’s said in some religions that the purpose of creation was to share love. To love God, to love our neighbours, for everyone to love each other. To reflect God’s image and care for each other the way that God does. What do you think about this idea? I know you’ve been waiting for what I think the purpose of life is, any guesses? It’s exactly this, to love and be loved. Without love what would the world be? Of course experiences through life are important. Laughing, crying, but what’s at the root of all of those things? The most painful, and the most enjoyable moments in life are all caused by love. Some of the best moments in my life were; my brother being born, Christmas dinners with family, and meeting the love of my life. Some of the worst moments were losing grandparents, watching a parent slip into a spiral of depression and addiction, watching my friends lose important things to them. What do all of these instances have in common? Love is what made all of these experiences what they were. Without love any one of these examples would just be another human experience, and have no weight. I believe that love is something that all people inherently yearn for. Some people have a bigger capacity for it than others and maybe that’s what determines how it weighs in on the perceived purpose of life. To love and be loved unconditionally is the most beautiful, special feeling that one could experience in life and if it were to not exist then life would have less meaning and the world would be a worse place.

 

The perfect trip

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What comes to your mind when you hear “the perfect trip”? Is it laying in the blazing sun on the beaches of Mexico, or maybe skiing in the Swiss alps? How about somewhere a little more tropical like Hawaii? Is the concrete jungle of New York your vibe? No matter what kind of vacation you’re going on and whatever the climate is, there’s always going to be some important criteria that needs to be met. This may vary from person to person, but here are some factors that need to be considered when planning the perfect trip.

 

The perfect trip has to be something different! Meaning it has to be a stark contrast from what you’re used to. If you’re living in downtown Vancouver you already get a mix of the sun, the beaches, and the big city vibe. So what would be the fun in going to New York when it would just be a practical reskin of what you’re already used to. Somewhere like the Austrian mountains would be a perfect getaway from the big city life where you could have opportunities that you might not get in the urban complex. The seclusion could be a nice difference from the packed street, while you snowshoe Stuhleck mountain. Make sure that it’s something you know you’ll enjoy! If you’re a fan of the heat rather than cold, don’t go to Russia in the winter!

 

This may seem basic, but another thing to give your trip an extra gear is to simply be sporadic. Society is all about routine and repeating your day over and over. Instead of planning ahead, go for a walk to see if there’s anything interesting that catches your eye. Now don’t be too sporadic, if you’re going to do this make sure to at least get a survey of where is safe, and what areas you should maybe stay away from. This could be fun though as it makes your stay seem like more of an adventure and maybe like less of following a tour guide. Check out markets, or small local shops and see what the community has to offer. 

 

It’s important to plan your trip for an ideal amount of time. Some people like breaking out of the norm and are away any chance they can get. A longer trip would be perfect if that’s your lifestyle. If you’re someone who gets homesick easily, don’t make your trip too long. It would be a shame to plan your trip for two weeks just to spend the last week miserable and wanting to go home. If you want to be really sporadic and that vibe suits you, maybe don’t plan a length at all! Fly out to your desired destination and see how long you can last. Every year lots of people take trips backpacking across Europe, seeing all of its charm and even sometimes living off the land.  Everyone’s different and make sure to know what suits you best!

 

This next one will divide people in half, but when going on vacation, try going technology free. In today’s day and age obviously that’s not always entirely realistic, but consider limiting the amount of time spent on your phone. We’re hooked to our phones constantly whether it’s for social purposes or maybe we need it to do work. A break is always good, vacation or not so don’t let your phone drag you back home when you have the opportunity to get away. If that’s not a suitable option, staying off social media might even be a breath of fresh air and help to let you live in the moment. 

 

It goes without saying that the ultimate purpose of a vacation is to have fun, but saving a big activity for the end could be the perfect way to cap off your trip. This could look different for everybody. If you’re headed to New York, you could save Times Square for the last night there or if you’re an architecture nerd then the Empire State Building could be a cool final destination. Same applies for The Colosseum in Rome. If the purpose of your trip is to relax and have some lazy days, you could plan for your final day to be where you go out and try all the activities your landing place has to offer. 

 

Another aspect that’s somewhat of a given when planning out your stay is the accommodation. Have you ever been on a trip where the hotel you stayed at made or broke your trip? If you’ve been on both sides of the spectrum, it’s abundantly clear that the place you stay is a gamechanger regardless of your destination. The difference from even a three to a four star hotel is a splash of water to the face. It’s essential to feel comfortable wherever you’re staying. Not only is it important for enjoyment, but also sleep. Get yourself a place with a nice bed that you can sink yourself into after a long day of activities and maybe even a jacuzzi to wind down in. If you’re spending the time and finances to travel, you may as well go all out.  That pool could be a difference maker when looking back on your time.

Trip aside, let’s take a look at the travel. Assuming that you’ll be traveling via plane to your chosen spot, it’s crucial to make sure you get those good vibes on your way in. Firstly, making a seat selection. The court of public opinion seems to be vastly divided on what the ideal seat is when flying. For someone that’s scared of heights the window seat might not be the best spot. Anyone with tiny bladders here? The aisle seat might provide a little more comfort because, who wants to climb over people every twenty minutes. First class might be a little out of the price range for what it is, although it is heavily recommended if you have the means to do it, but making sure to get on a high end flight where drinks and snacks are available could be just what you need. Make sure to check ahead of time for what the flight provides as well as things like baggage fees.

The final and most important factor when putting together the perfect trio is to make sure that you create memories. What’s the point of a trip if it was forgettable? Memories are core to us and are what we take with us on every journey we take. They stick with us throughout our day and are something we keep until the end. You could even argue that the purpose of our time on earth is to see, discover, and experience all there is to offer. The best things we do in  our lives are the ones that leave everlasting memories and stories. So make sure you do everything you want to and make your trip something that you won’t forget anytime soon. Now that you have all the pieces of the puzzle to make your perfect trip. Where do you plan on visiting? What kind of activities will you do? Most importantly what kind of memories are you going to make along the way?

Healthy habits to live by

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How many people go through their daily life practically reliving the same day over and over? Now how many are living that same day to the best of their ability? Because of the way society is constructed, many of us are stuck in the same old routine never straying from what we know and what we’re comfortable with. What would happen if you were to branch out of your structure? What would happen if you raised the minimum required effort of your day to day life? To achieve greatness one needs to get out of their comfort zone and do something different as why would anything change if you don’t change as well. Here are some habits to help kick start breaking down some of those bad habits and building new ones in their place.

 

A great first place to look when trying to develop new habits is your sleep schedule. After all, you do it for about a third of your total life anyways. Although some people are natural early birds and others are night owls, there is one that in most cases is better to get into the habit of. If you guessed early bird, you’re probably already on the right track. Studies have shown that there are various positive health effects associated with waking up early like; better sleep, better mental health, and improved cognitive function. Scientific mumbo jumbo aside, how many times have you not woken up early enough and had to skip breakfast? Maybe you were stuck in traffic and were late to work or school. Let’s talk time zones. If you live on the West coast you’re as far back in the past as anyone metaphorically. If you’re waking up at seven in the morning on the West coast, the stock market has already been open for half an hour meaning the business world is already on the go. If you can manage to shift your schedule to wake up early, you’ll already be ahead of 94 percent of the population. This might not be the easiest habit to change, and so here are some pro tips to help transition yourself to be that early riser that you’ve always dreamed of. You could start by soft launching your new schedule, getting up and sleeping earlier by 15 minutes everyday. Next if you’re someone who enjoys exercising, try doing your exercise when you wake up. It’s a good way to get motivated to get out of bed and jumpstart your day. This might not be for everyone, but it certainly is a good starting point for someone who’s trying to build healthier habits.

The next key habit that most of us struggle with is our diet. Granted this one can be a little expensive and may not be a super attainable option if you’re on a stricter budget. So much of the food that we consume, whether it’s fast food like McDonald’s or even the food you find on the shelves at your local grocery store, is heavily processed. Much of the typical food we buy is high in calories while lacking many of the essential nutrients that our body needs. Unfortunately these less nutritious meals are cheaper than buying the less processed organic foods and so you’re kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place if your wallet is light. Luckily for you, here are some tips to try and eat a little bit healthier on a budget. First one and this sounds like a no brainer but drink more water. It costs nothing and it’s readily available almost anywhere, especially when you first wake up as oftentimes we wake up very dehydrated from not consuming any liquids for up to eight hours. When grocery shopping, it’s essential to look at the nutritional facts on the back of the products. There is a daily value percentage section on the label that tells you how much of your recommended daily intake of the given ingredient you should be consuming. It also tells you macro nutritional facts like; calories, caffeine, sugar, and protein. Fruit and veggies will also be your best friend. They’re relatively cheap to buy, just make sure they’re fresh and not pre packaged!

 

If you’re not already doing some form of daily exercise you’re falling behind. AT one point working out at the gym was a more niche thing that a small percentage of people actually did consistently. Today with social media all around us and people trying to show off their healthy lifestyle whether it’s a front or not, the gym has become trendy and more people are finding themselves taking it seriously. If the gym isn’t for you there are tons of other ways to get your daily exercise in. Some good alternatives to weight lifting could be; going for a scenic run, doing calisthenics (body weight workouts) at home, or even going for bike rides! No matter what your preferences are, there’s always time in the day to get some level of exercise in even if it’s just a walk with your headphones on.

 

Another good habit to get into is practicing mindfulness and gratitude. It’s easy to get caught up in the go go go of our lives and overlook some of the small things that could really make a big difference. Have you ever mediated? I’m not just talking about sitting with crossed legs with your eyes closed and humming. Actual meditation requires you enter a deep, almost sleep-like state of your mind, where you let the stresses in front of you fade away and find mental clarity. Meditating is very helpful grounding yourself, and it is recommended to do before or after a busy day. In addition it’s helpful to practice gratitude which can be done while meditating or could just be something you keep in mind as you go throughout your day. It’s easy to get down on life and let the negatives get to your head without appreciating the beauty in front of you. A good idea to try is to practice making a list of things that you’re grateful for at the end of the day as well as a short list of positives that occurred. In addition, “cutting strings” before bed can be a useful tactic for retaining positive energy and letting the not so good vibes of the day fade into the abyss.

Lastly as far as the core habits go, is journaling. Journaling works similar to meditation in the sense that it’s essentially grounding your thoughts when you put the pen to paper. To take it a step further, add goal setting to your journaling. Studies have shown that goals are up to 42 percent more likely to come true when put into writing. Writing down your thoughts at the end of the day is helpful; because it provides a look into what your mindset is at the time of writing. It also provides a tangible reflection where you can see your growth as you’ve progressed through the days. Couple that with goals and you’ll be building a healthy mindset at a rate you didn’t even know was possible. When putting all these pieces together you’ll be ahead of 99 percent of people. Which of these habits do you already have? What do you think is the most important habit to contribute to a healthier, happier lifestyle?

Cooking 101

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Have you ever felt hungry but couldn’t decide what to eat? Or have you ever wondered what various effects different preparations may have on the body and to your health? The discrepancy of cooking proteins may be quite a surprise to you. It may just look like a piece of meat, but there is a vast array of benefits based on different ways of cooking. 

 

Starting off strong with grilling. Imagine sitting in your backyard with your friends and you’re in front of a barbecue. Sizzling steak and dripping sauce. Grilling your food allows for excess fat to drip away from the meat, potentially reducing the overall fat content of the dish. When grilling, much of the essential nutrients are preserved. If we look at a piece of pork for example, protein, niacin and vitamin B6, zinc and selenium are heavily retained. The taste of being on the grill? Extra smoky flavour is present without having to add extra calories from oils or heavy sauces. 

 

 

But for those who don’t like the fiery taste of the barbecue, you can also put your food in the oven to bake. Baking allows for even cooking and can help retain moisture and nutrients in the dish. If you have little to no oil, this could be a good option for you as baking requires little oil, often making it a healthier option than frying for example. It’s also convenient as it doesn’t require much attention, just a simple timer so that you can catch your favourite reality TV show while your food is in the oven. Baking is easy; you put your food on a tin tray, add some seasoning if you’d like, and then turn on the oven and wait. Simple right?

 

We can’t forget about boiling. As basic as boiling can be, it is a very healthy cooking method, as no oil or fats are needed. Boiling simply requires water and heat. It can preserve your food’s nutritional value, especially if cooking time is kept to a minimum. Do keep in mind however that water soluble vitamins like B6 can leach into the cooking water and may not be consumed. Although not everybody would like the texture of the wet meat, there are some folks who would prefer it to charred or darker cooked food. Boiling meat can be a good option for you if you don’t care too much about the flavour or colour of your food. It can also be a great option for those who like their food more pliable. This can also allow for you to add  more seasoning to your desire. 

 

 

Similar to boiling, there is also steaming. Steaming has little to no flavour like boiling, but it retains nutrients and vitamins better than the former because the food does not come in direct contact with water like it does in a boil. This is a commonly used method of cooking for traditional Asian dishes, and is often used with vegetables to add pliability while retaining the nutrients and flavour. Like boiling, steaming requires no added fats or oils, which is a healthy option, but you may still  want to add seasonings for extra flavour.

 

Additionally to boiling and steaming, there is also slow cooking. This is a better option for making proteins softer and easier to chew as it can tenderise some of the tougher cuts of meat. Slow cooking also allows for the flavours to meld and develop which oftentimes results in a richer taste to your plate. For example, birria beef, found commonly in traditional Mexican tacos is extremely flavourful and very easy to chew and digest. It’s a personal favourite to many, especially to chef Kuiack. It’s also important to keep in mind that the sodium content in slow cooking is often higher if the meat is prepackaged. Water-soluble vitamins and minerals are retained better when the cooking liquid is consumed as part of a dish (e.g., in soups or stews). 

 

Lower on the health list, there is sauteing. If you’re not too worried about the added oils or fats, this method is packed with flavour while retaining its nutrients. Adding in herbs, spices and some healthy oils can add depth to the flavour and nutritional profile of your choice of protein. Cooking at high temperatures can be detrimental as it can lead to the formation of unhealthy compounds. Using moderate heat and avoiding burning can help to avoid unhealthy compounds, which makes sauteing an optimal option to cook. 

 

Another water heavy option is poaching. Have you ever had a poached egg? Like slow cooking or boiling, poaching requires simmering in a liquid, which helps to retain natural moisture and flavour. Because poaching involves cooking at a lower temperature, it tends to preserve more of the nutrients, contrary to boiling or sauteing. The gentle cooking process helps maintain the protein’s tenderness and prevents it from becoming dry, which is particularly beneficial for delicate proteins like fish or poultry.

 

When eating raw preparations, it’s always a good idea to freeze the food first to kill off any potential parasites. Eating food raw is good in the sense that it preserves the nutrients and enzymes that would often get lost when cooked. On the flip side, eating raw food can be harder to digest as it’s not broken down. Food like sushi, and tartare are some of the more popular dishes that are eaten raw, they’re also better for dieting as the minimal preparation saves the added on calories from things like oil. 

 

Stir fry is good for cooking on a crunch as it’s often a quicker cook. It does not require a lot of oil, and because of it’s high heat it brings out the aroma and brightens the flavours of much of the ingredients without entirely drying them out oppositely to lower heat and longer cook times. It’s a very popular method of cooking in Asia as well as being very similar to the more western take of it being sauteing.

 

If you like grilling your food, you’ll love trying to broil it. Broiling in essence is upside down grilling where radiant heat is applied to the meat with minimal heat coming from the pan itself, slightly different from pan broiling where meat is put directly into the pan and cooked by conduction. In pan broiling the fat that builds up during the cooking process is often poured off.

 

We’ve come a long way from the days of bonfires in caves. Now that you have all the basics of different ways to cook, you can begin turning yourself into the chef that you always wanted to be. If you’re a dad who likes spending his time out on the back patio firing up a grill, you can try picking up a wok and making a stir fry. Maybe you’re someone who traditionally cooks sauteing, it might be time to broil that chicken. There are so many ways to cook all kinds of different food each providing their own unique spin on the dish. Or maybe you’ve never cooked a day in your life and you only eat raw foods and tap your Uber Eats app. Wherever you’re at in your cooking journey , there is so much to experience in the world of cooking and so many flavours to unlock. What are you going to try cooking next?

The Perfect Drink

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Imagine a scorching summer day, the sun is blazing, the sky is clear and you just went for a run in the park. There’s a table setup on the side of the path with bottles on it for the passing by runners. What’s in those bottles?  Universally we’re all supposed to drink water, it’s the most natural thing on earth and makes up about 60 percent of the human body. However everyone has a favorite drink, some more legal than others. From fizzy to flat, fruity to bland there are so many options in today’s age, it’s a drink connoisseur’s paradise out there. Luckily for you that’s exactly what you got right here, and we’ll be going over some fan favorites and some sleeper picks for quenching your thirst.

 

Let’s start off with one of the most underrated drinks on the market and if you’ve tried this then you know exactly what’s up. Sparkling juice. This is a sneaky one as there’s a lot of people out there who haven’t even heard of sparkling juice and to those people I say: where have you been? You can get it at most local grocery stores and they come in flavours like; apple, pomegranate, mango, and even grape. Want to feel fancy, but don’t want to pop that bottle of champagne? Sparkling juice. Want to cook up a cocktail with something a little on the harder side? Sparkling juice. It’s the perfect balance of taste, elegance, and versatility. Who says no?

 

Next up for you soda lovers were going to take a look at Fanta. The beautiful thing about Fanta is all the flavors that it comes in. It started with the original orange but has since branched off into lemon, pineapple, and grape among many more. It’s a little different from classic sodas like Pepsi and Coke in the sense that it’s still fizzy, but goes down your throat a lot smoother with what tastes like a real fruit “punch” to it.  What makes this drink even more interesting is the history behind it. It was created in 1940 by Nazi Germany at their Coca-Cola plant because they weren’t receiving any shipments from the United States, they couldn’t make the classic Coke we all love today. Instead they began concocting their own drinks and so came Fanta!

 

 

One of the more forgotten drinks out on the shelves has to be sparkling water. Now I know what you’re thinking, and you’re not alone. Why not drink regular water, why have the water sparkle for no reason? EVen though sparkling water is still just water, that carbonation gives it a taste that just can’t seem to be replicated. Even when you compare it to flavoured sparkling water, something about that plain H20 carbonation just hits a little different. What makes this even more convenient is the emergence of Soda Streams over recent years, making it much more convenient to make at home and saving you the consumer the feeling of wasting money that lots of us have when purchasing water out and about.

 

Are you an athlete? Chances are if you’ve done a sport competitively at some point you were running on a steadfast diet of gatorade. Similar to the many of the previous drinks gatorade has tons of flavour options with the new and limited time ones coming out semi regularly. Trying to cut down on a diet? Gatorade also released a zero option in late 2018 for people trying to slim down on their calorie intake making it a suitable option for athletes no matter what their weight goals are. For those looking for something a little sweeter in the sports drink market a new gatorade competitor has burst onto the scene, that being Prime Hydration. Prime after it’s initial release was one of if not the most popular beverage in the world for a period of time and consumers were dashing to stores the second they were in stock to buy them off the shelves. There was even a supply issue for months due to people buying up every last bottle and they were even being resold for up to five times their retail value. This was in large part due to the fact that famous United States and United Kingdom youtubers Logan Paul and KSI founded the drink and were marketing it all across their social media platforms.

 

Back onto the topic of sodas, there’s only one correct answer when it comes to the best tasting sodas. You may not be a cherry fan, but who doesn’t like a good flavoured cherry soda. Across the market there are various great tasting cherry sodas, most notably Dr. Pepper. EVen regular cola based sodas like Pepsi and Coke carry a cherry flavour in their ranks. Feeling double cherry? Although it’s hard to come by in Canada these days, cherry Dr. Pepper has to be up there when talking about the all time greatest soda.

 

Another goat worthy mention for the soda lovers out there is root beer. The market is rich in root beer options with some big brands such as Mugs, Barq’s, and A&W leading the way. They’ve all had their time in the spotlight with A&W’s iconic recipe, Mugs recent TikTok trend garnering popularity as well as Barq’s seemingly being the generation before us root beer of choice. Because of these three brands hogging the spotlight it only seems fitting to give some of the smaller brands a shout out. Not much can beat a “Dad’s Root Beer” on a hot day and they come in the classic glass bottles that always give a drink an extra bit of appeal. Preferring the can? Phillips Soda company’s “Galaxy Root Beer” is a hard to find yet expensive root beer that has its own unique twist on the classic drink.

 

Similar to Fanta, Mountain Dew has in a sense branched off from Pepsi into its own brand with as of August 2024 there being 28 different flavours of the citrus drink. Nothing beats the classic lemon-lime soda, however they do have some runner up spinoffs. Code Red and Voltage are among some of their more successful flavours, while quietly Major Melon and Spark bring a whole new twist on the beverage. There are also a ton of much lesser known flavours that are harder to come by in addition to a former Taco Bell exclusive in Baja Blast. Do you prefer Mountain Dew over Fanta?

 

 

Last but not least the greatest drink of all time, did you guess what it was? If you said chocolate milk you’re absolutely correct. Milk in general has to be one of the greatest things on planet earth, you give it a flavour? That’s game over for the competition. The refreshing taste of having a glass of regular milk with dinner gets taken to an all new level when you factor chocolate in. It’s sweet and creamy and you can drink it with just about anything, excluding chocolate of course. For the rare person that doesn’t see the hyper around chocolate milk, there are other not as good but suitable replacements like strawberry and even banana milk. Do you think that chocolate milk is the goat drink, if not what could top it?

Evening the score

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How exciting is this time of year!? The NHL regular season is less than a month away, and pieces are falling into place for this to be an all time season, no matter who you’re rooting for. One team ripe for a spectacular upcoming year is the Vancouver Canucks. Nobody could’ve predicted how perfect last season would go after the constant disappointments over the previous decade. To recap, the Canucks went into last season with little to no expectations as a team considered hopeful to snag one of the last playoff spots in the west. However they came out flying with an eight to one win over rival Edmonton Oilers in last year’s season opener before beating them again just days later. At the time of the annual Christmas break, Vancouver sat atop the league standings and stayed in the hunt for first until the very end. The good guys finished sixth overall in league standings as well as clinched the first place spot in their Pacific Division. With a strong foundation to build on coming off of last year’s campaign, there’s a lot to be excited about as October nears.

Electricity is in the air surrounding a few of the Canucks new acquisitions. Some big names like Jake Debrusk, Danton Heinen, and Daniel Sprong signed to the “Couv” this summer giving the Canucks offensive core a makeover. The cherry on top was seeing fan favorites Dakota Joshua and Arturs Silovs resign with the team, exhibiting their belief in the teams future. Of course you know this came at a cost with beloved faces Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov leaving to Vancouver’s staple enemy the Boston Bruins in free agency. As much as this might seem like a downgrade, there was a method behind the madness. One of the least talked about and most underrated in any sort of roster transaction whether it’s a trade or simply signing (in this case unsigning) a player is the cap space. If you aren’t familiar with the salary cap, every team is limited to paying their players a maximum of whatever the NHL designates its salary cap to be for that given season. In recent years the salary cap is around 85 million per roster, however this number increases every year. Because of the importance of salary cap space, teams are going to have to make tough but smart decisions when it comes to constructing their roster. That is exactly what the Canucks did here. Zadorov and Lindholm signed for a combined total of 12.75 million dollars this season. Granted given their former contracts, the Canucks only received about 8.6 million in cap relief from their departures. Let’s move away from the numbers now and talk about what this means for the roster itself. Because of Vancouver’s savvy cap decisions, they managed to sign a young high potential forward in Jake Debrusk as well as re-signing breakout power forward Dakota Joshua to long term contracts. These two will be key pieces in the upcoming season for Vancouver as both Debrusk and Joshua will likely be getting time in the top six. Joshua is coming off a career year where he scored 18 goals and 32 points, while playing mostly on the third line. He also scored four goals in the playoffs, all of which came in clutch time. Some time closer to stars like Pettersson or Miller and he could be a safe bet for a full on 50 point breakout season. Debrusk on the other hand is a proven 20 goal scorer who seems to be again similar ironically enough to JT Miller whom he’s likely to share a line with this upcoming season. The Canucks star could be seen as a potential blueprint for Debrusk’s trajectory going forward with the club as he enters his prime.

 

 

Depth is talked about a lot around the week and has been something the Canucks have been desperately missing for the better part of a decade. You could go as far to say that this is the deepest the roster has ever been.  NHL ready Players like Mark Friedman, Nils Aman, Phil Di Guiseppe are overflowing the organization. When looking at great cup teams and recent champions, there’s a real argument to be made that depth is the biggest factor. One of the main reasons the Oilers were able to defeat Vancouver in the playoffs last year, was their superior depth. Scratch depth aside, it’s important to have penciled in regulars that you can insert anywhere in the lineup. Vancouver ultimately lacked that ability to move their lines around when things got stale. With one star player (in that series being Pettersson) not performing it throws the entire team’s rhythm off. Couple that with your top goal scorer missing a game and you got a problem on your hands. However, too much depth is a good problem to have and we’ve already seen the Canucks make some moves to address it this offseason trading forwards Ilya Mikhayev and former tenth overall pick Vasily Podkolzin for draft capitol. Going into this season coach Tocchet has an abundance of lineup options and wingers to play with his star centers and will make for an interesting dilemma come opening night.

 

 

How could you forget about goaltending? The Canucks also have a top five goaltender in the NHL, by award standards top three in Thatcher Demko but that also comes with an asterisk. As you may recall Demko after putting on a spectacle in Vancouver’s playoff opener last season went down with a knee injury following the game. This came after just his third game back from an unrelated knee injury the previous month. You see the pattern here? As good as Demko is between the pipes, he has a lengthy injury history and has raised questions on if he can be relied upon to stay healthy. As October draws near the goaltenders availability come opening night is still in the air nearly six months later. To address the internal concern the Canucks have brought in Jiri Patera as a third string goalie to come in if Arturs Silovs is given the reins. Silovs had a fantastic playoff showing in Demko’s absence and should have you excited as the next franchise goaltender of the Vancouver Canucks. WIth a good year this year and possibly some heavy minutes given the status of Demko, Silovs could be a guy they look to take over sooner rather than later if Demko’s issues persist. The team also has reportedly reached out to other NHL journeymen to give the roster that extra depth, because well you can never have too many goalies as we’ve seen in recent years. 

 

The Vancouver Canucks have a very bright future ahead of them with young guns like Raty, Lekkerimaki, Pettersson, Willander, and Bains all expected to be fighting for potentially the final spot on the roster. In addition to the confidence and swagger the team will be riding coming off of last season, the stage is set for the franchise to build off of what was a giant leap forward last year. The Canucks will kick off their season October ninth at home where they will host the Calgary Flames in what is expected to be the start of a very special season.

National Football What?

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Have you ever tried to get into a new sport and no matter how hard you try, you can’t quite grasp all the rules? Well that’s exactly what I’m going through right now as I attempt to get into the NFL. If you’re trying to get into a new sport it’s likely that lots of your friends are fans of that sport. For years now I’ve had tons of friends that are crazy about football as well as play it, and I figured it’s time that I get in on the action that everyone talks about. I’m going to be breaking down my first week of trying to become an avid football fan, American of course.

 

First thing I had to start with was what my favourite team would be. Seems like a good start right? Usually we get into a sport from a young age because our families are into it, and so we tend to gravitate to what’s on in the house. If you’re from Vancouver, I’m sure you’re just like me and was indoctrinated into the Canucks fan base from a young age. However, what if you didn’t grow up rooting for a team, how do you choose? I broke it down into three different categories; team name and city, team colours and jersey, and limited pre-existing knowledge of the teams. Obviously this doesn’t come without a bit of bias as I do have friends who cheer for their own separate teams, but I wanted to pick one for my own. After a lot of time and thought, it came down to two teams, which were the Detroit Lions and the Miami Dolphins. The Lions have the appeal of a young up and coming team (because who wants to wait forever to see their team win) as well as a city with a long interesting history. Meanwhile the Dolphins called to me immediately as their bright teal orange and white drew my eyes like a moth to a flame. It helped that I’ve always had an inkling to the city of Miami as somewhere I’d love to visit in addition to with my limited knowledge of the sport they are led by one of my favourite players in Tyreek Hill. Needless to say I decided to go with the Dolphins.

 

 

You got your favourite team now what? You start watching. Because I’m actually trying to get into the sport as a whole, I didn’t want to just watch my favourite teams games, and luckily for me the first thing I learned is that the first football game of the year is always a big game to draw viewers and that it was. It was a playoff rematch between the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens. I tried to follow along but it was a little difficult not knowing all of the rules and often found myself texting my friends dumb questions like; “what’s an onside kick” or “what’s a blitz” but as the game went on I felt like I began to have a better grasp on what it;s all about. It was a little frustrating at times not completely understanding what’s going on which I’m sure you can relate to if you’ve ever been in this position, but it’s all part of the process. By the conclusion of watching my first full football game I now had more knowledge than I did prior, however the real learning would come on an action packed thirteen game Sunday coming up.

 

 

Out of the thirteen games that took place on Sunday I managed to catch probably about four games worth and I gained a lot of knowledge through the nine or so hours I spent watching the screen. From player names like Geno Smith, to positions I didn’t know existed such as cornerback. Even learned some new rules like a lateral. Some of my new found knowledge made a lot of sense and some of it not so much. One of the more interesting ones to me was learning what a safety was. I had no idea that if the offensive line was backed into their own endzone and couldn’t clear it during their down that the play is called a safety and the defending team is awarded two points. Ironically one of my closest friends favourite teams the Seahawks gave up two safeties in their game which was the first time that had happened in seven years! I also learned about a play called a lateral where players can throw the ball more than once on a play, provided the ball is thrown at least a degree backwards and that now pop culture star Travis Kelce is the king of the lateral. I also learned that player stats are measured in rushing and receiving yards, although I’m still not quite sure as to what is a good number for each position to achieve as it seems it’s varying. That was one of the more difficult things I’m still grasping with thinking in hockey terms of shots on goal, or blocked shots. The statline in football seems to be a lot more complicated and when i asked around as to how to know what a good number is for each category, everyone met me with the same answer: “just got to watch and it will come with time”. So I guess for now I’m still in the dark on what good stats are. I’ve also learned a lot of player names that I desperately have been trying to retain from all positions like George Kittle of the San Francisco 49ers or  Matthew Stafford the quarterback who was traded from Detroit to the Los Angeles Rams. It’s been a lot of info to retain and I’m going to need to keep watching every week, oddly enough it’s a lot like studying for school. Have you ever experienced this?

 

 

Luckily I still have another eighteen or so weeks until the big one comes (the Super Bowl) so I’ve set a goal to know everything I need to by the time that comes around because the last thing you want is to be asking stupid questions at a Super Bowl party right? It’s ironic because I now know how my friends who I got into hockey feel, albeit I think hockey is a much easier sport to understand. Football seems like such a whacky concept, the constant starting and stopping, the “O-Line” and “D-Line”. The way flags are thrown and sometimes is a penalty and sometimes is replaying a down?  Why are the plays called downs? Why is the quarterback only allowed to hear the coach for fifteen seconds? These are all questions that I hope you had when you started watching football as well. I’ve found a new found appreciation for people attempting to learn a new sport. It’s not easy and it takes a lot of thinking, time and effort. It makes me feel bad about maybe being a little sarcastic or snarky to people that were trying to get into my sport asking me questions. It might take a few years, but it’s the journey that you’re supposed to enjoy anyways right? Have you ever taken the time to learn a new sport from scratch and how would you go about it?