3 Perfect Spots To Float The River In Edmonton

3 Perfect Spots to Float Down the River In Edmonton

We recently bought kayaks (If you follow me on Instagram, I'm sure you are already sick of seeing my pictures of it!) I've been getting a lot of questions lately of where to go or how to do it! Realizing not everyone has kayaks or canoes, but float devices seem pretty accessible to most, here is three of the top places to get into the North Saskatchewan River. 

These locations are perfect for a float after work one day or you can do an all day trip on a weekend afternoon. Over the course of summer the sun sets anywhere from 10:30pm (June) to 8:25pm (early September)

Terwillegar Dog Park

Bonus to this location: the dogs you get to see and pet along the way. Based at the bottom of Rabbit Hill Road. Park in the parking lot and walk out to ward the water and there is a lot of space to get in from there.  

Quesnell Bridge Edmonton

Make you way as if you are heading to Fort Edmonton Park, and before you head into their parking lot, you can park underneath the Quesnell Bridge. There is a bit of beach space, but mostly it's from a concrete pad.

Under Henday between Lessard Drive and Terwillegar Exits

If you park on either side of the Henday at the bridge between Terwillegar and Lessard exits, there are trails that will take you all the way down to the water. You can also park your car at 321 Heath Road and follow the walking path down. This will be a longer walk however. 

Quesnell Brudge

 

You can park your cars and/or get out: 

  • Laurier Park (shorter float)
  • Emily Murphy Park (Medium Float)
  • Dwson Park (Medium Float)
  • Capilano Park (Long Float)

Couple of Tips:

  • Pack snacks
  • Pack water
  • Bring Extra Sunscreen
  • If possible, I recommend buying a dry bag like this one from Amazon. Keeps your stuff (including your phone dry) and because it's made for this you can attach it to the side of the float so it doesn't take up float space. 
  • Grab some friends and tie your rafts together or go in on a big one together!

Wall Climbing Wall Brawl is Happening at The UofA July 27


Wall Climbing at The University Of Alberta

Wall Brawl is a series of wall climbing events being put on by the Climbing Centre at the University of Alberta. All ages and skill levels are welcome to come try out new boulder problems!

The next one is being hosted Friday July 27 6-9:30pm and only costs $20 for the public! $15 for Alumi and current students. Great date night or grab a friend or older kids possibly?

When: Friday July 27th 6-9:30 Pm

Where: University of Alberta Wilson Climbing Centre 8708 114 street

Register here or call 780-492-2231

 

 

Mega Bounce Run Comes To Edmonton July 28

Mega Bounce Run 2018

Who says kids get to have all the fun? This July the Mega Bounce Run is coming to Edmonton! A fun run with 10 different bouncy obstacles to bounce through, over, under and down!

This race isn't for those looking for best times. Honestly I'm going to sign up and see if I can make it the slowest run possible and enjoy ALLLL the time on the bouncy castles!

You can grab a friend or your kids (yes it's kid friendly) and enjoy a fun time on the bouncy castles! Everyone gets a t shirt and medal to take home afterwards too. Below is the course. I'm looking forward to finding out what "Pillow Land" is!

 

Where: Capilano Park

When: Saturday July 28 9am- 12 pm. Groups leave the start line every 20 minutes. 

Grab your tickets for the event HERE Use The code BITCHIN5K to get 15% off!

Pina Colada Protein Smoothie Recipe

Pina Colada Protein Smoothie Recipe

Sometimes a smoothie is a nice refreshing way to get in a meal or a snack in between meals. I am all over the smoothie train especially in the warmer months. 

Because I have smoothies so often I like to experiment with them often so I don't get bored. This one is a simple 4 ingredient recipe (that can be easily swapped for rum instead of protein powder, hint hint)

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup frozen pineapple
  • 1/4 cup orange juice
  • 3/4 cup coconut milk (can be swapped out for other milks)
  • 1 scoop vanilla protein powder. (Ive been using this allmax one)

Blend it all up and enjoy. You can add more juice for a thinner smoothie. (or rum ha ha)

How To Do A Social Media Cleanse

CLEANSE /klenz/ - Verb - rid (a person, place or thing) of something seen as unpleasant, unwanted or defiling. 

I think we can all agree social media is both amazing and aggravating. It's amazing how we connect with old friends, make new ones, find spouses and hear about the latest news all in a couple of websites. No matter what your "poison" you can find it all on most social media channels. 

The problem is when we feel triggered, incompetent, addicted and/or just plain shitty by logging on. Actually the real problem I guess would be logging on and not being completely aware that we are having these feelings. So maybe let's start there. 

How you know you need a social media cleanse:

Take some time after logging out of social media maybe once a day or once a week to "check in" with how you feel afterwards. Ask yourself a couple of questions:

  1. How do I actually feel? Jealous? Inspired? Angry? Annoyed? Connected?
  2. Was there a specific topic/post that made you feel this way?
  3. Was there a specific person/group of people that made you feel this way?

After answering these questions you can make a decision from there. Is how you are feeling, a way you want to feel? If the answer is no, maybe it's time to "cleanse". 

Schedule Your Cleanse:

Just like you would schedule some sort of food cleanse, schedule your social media one. Especially if you work in an industry that requires you to be on social media. For those that are social media strategist, one day might be all you can plan for example. 

In the scheduling of your cleanse think about taking a decent amount of time if you can though. It's interesting to pick up on what fills your time after a couple of days without. I've done anywhere from 3/4 days to over a week. Which seem like online suicide a bit from a blogger/Instagramer's stand point, engagement and all that shit. However like anything else in life. When you take a break from it you become better at and more efficient at it usually. (I actually find myself most inspired right after a social media break.)

Tell bosses/coworkers you will be taking some time away. Schedule posts if you can/need to. Ask for help from others if possible. 

For those that are on social media for the fun of it: well I actually recommend NOT announcing the break. You don't need a bunch of comments and even possibly negativity about it right before you log off. Plus, it is so interesting to come back and notice that you probably haven't missed much at all!

During the Cleanse:

If you can, delete the apps from your phone and log off on your computers. This is important. The harder it is to access it, the easier it is to stay away from it. Have you seen the commercials for those snack vaults? Put your favourite snack in there and set a locked timer on it, so you have to wait the days/hours until you get it. I also remember hearing about people freezing their credit cards in blocks of ice so they had to spend so much time getting it out to buy things. These are hilarious and extreme but in reality, if it makes it harder to get at, you are less likely to use it right?

Enjoy your time. Note when you typically grab for your phone to fill your time with social media. Red lights, line ups, bored on the couch, at the park with your kids, at a socially awkward party (see the irony there? lol). Make mental note of when you grab for you phone and how else you spend your time.

After the Cleanse:

Like a bad diet or juice cleanse, after the discomfort, you may actually feel better, but once it's over you can easily go back to your old ways. So here are some tips for mindful social media consumption post cleanse.

  1. Turn off notifications on apps. This may give you some sort of anxiety, but honestly I haven't had notifications on any of my apps for months. Maybe even closer to a year. Seeing the notifications and messages and all that's going on every second it comes in can be overwhelming. 
  2. Log on with purpose. You purpose might be to kill some time, avoid that socially awkward party, check the latest news, promote something or so on. But log on trying to acknowledge and be mindful of what you are doing. 
  3. Check your emotional state before, during and after. Notice if you log on to kill time and end up feelin inadequate afterwards. Do you log on to you favourite youtube channel to be inspired but end up feeling shitty afterward? Do you log on to Facebook and into a private group of people who uplift you? Make you feel better? Checking in with all these feeling can help us guide us to the last step.

Delete/Unfollow anyone or anything that makes you feel shitty:

Pretty straightforward I think. Forcing ourselves to follow people or look at their shit even though it makes us feel shitty serves nobody. Even the person you are following. Maybe I'm a bit more cut throat but I regularly unfollow friends on Facebook. We are still friends but have so I don't see their updates. I do this when I'm noticing I'm feeling triggered by them. Whatever they are up to or posting about. Then turn back on maybe when you've sorted your own feelings. 

This one can be tough especially is it's family or a co-worker you see every day. Facebook easier then other platforms of course. If your business includes following people/business that make you feel this way, be conscious. Mindful of how you are reacting. This alone will help you work through the feelings so much faster. 

Personally I log on and feel angry let's say, I seek attention from my husband, connect with loving my children or workout if I'm especially irritated. I know I don't have to like everyone and they don't have to like me, so I connect with those I do. And that's okay.

How do you take care of yourself in regard to social media? What do you struggle with? Let's chat it out.

 

Love, Jen

 

Anti-Inflammatory Tumeric Mylk Recipe

Anti Inflammatory Tumeric Mylk Recipe

If you follow along on Instagram you'll know I'm totally into studying Ayurveda. It's basically a very old traditional Indian style of medicine, using herbs and food and oils and practices to heal. I've been studying holistic nutrition methods for years as well. One of the big things I noticed as a cross over between the two is that they are both big on anti-inflammatories AND they both love ginger and tumeric as a key anti-inflammatory. 

I've been playing around with making Chai and even this yummy Digestive Tea for a long time, and I stepped up the game with this yummy Tumeric Mylk Recipe. 

Why "Mylk"? Well because its just a way of identifying that is milk from a non animal source. I used coconut milk, but almond milk, soy milk or even regular milk would work here. 

Additionally, don't worry about the spices being fresh or already ground in your cupboard. I like to have the whole spice and grind them myself, it's like a little ritual for me. 

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 cup of chosen milk or mylk.
  • tsp nutmeg
  • tsp tumeric
  • tsp cardamom (this is what makes a good chai for me personally!)
  • 1 stick of cinnamon (or 1 tsp cinnamon)
  • 2-3 pieces of star anise (or 1 tsp)
  • 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger (or powdered)
  1. Put everything into a pot and let simmer 5-8 minutes. 
  2. Strain in to a mug with a fine mesh strainer. 
  3. Enjoy!

Seriously it is THAT simple. 

 

Oh Go Float Yourself - Float House Review

What is floating you ask? This recent trend is gaining popularity and for good reason. It is suuuuper relaxing and in my opinion, one of the ultimate self care "me" times. 

This past weekend I had the opportunity to go check out the Float House Edmonton. It was basically pure bliss. But before we get into my review of the Float House, first let's chat about what floating is.

What is a float tank?

Basically it's a tank you lie in with a high salt water content so that you actually float in the water without effort. The tank is enclosed to block out noise, light and basically most sensory stimulation. It's sometimes called a sensory deprivation tank.

The amount of salt that goes into every tank!

What's the point?

By removing the stimulus of noise, light, draft etc the body can go into a deeper state of relaxation and/or meditation. 

What if I'm claustrophobic?

This is a REAL question. I 100% have claustrophobia issues. about 5/6 years ago I had my first experience in a tank and it wasn't too bad (I had already done lots of work on my claustrophobia), but I was able to keep the door of the tank open to ease my anxiety. That said the tank I was in was on the smaller side so I found myself not completely relaxed. Personally at Float House Edmonton in particular their tanks are so big that I was completely comfortable and even closed the door all the way .

What do you in there the whole time?

Well, whatever you want to do I guess. Dominic did a great job of explaining some things about being in the tank. He suggested some things like playing in the space a bit, ways to find comfort, doing a body scan or meditation. I personally found it comforting to play around with my positioning a bit, make waves in the water and feel around the walls a bit before coming into a settled position. The great part is that whenever you feel ready you can leave. The tank is in it's pwn room and you can get out and shower whenever you feel you are ready too. 

What are the benefits of floating?

There are tons! I go for the relaxation and meditation. But check out the Float Houses #WhyWeFloat page for the best resource on this subject.

So about Float House. 

I love the vibe in there. Located just off Whyte Ave it's amazing to come off a busy street into the chill setting. The space is very clean, relaxed and inviting. Sitting down with Dominic, he helped put me at ease about the process, giving me a lot of good tips. 

Inviting front reception with the stunning at work.

The amazing intention setting wall.

The room itself is beautiful. A private shower in the room, just outside the tank. It makes it easier to have a cleansing shower before the float and a nice warm shower upon stepping out. There is a few lighting options. You can choose total darkness, which sets on a timer. You set it to total dark and it gives you time to get into the tank and settle before it goes all dark. Additionally you can choose more light or a little bit of light. There are a couple of small holes in the ceiling of the tank that let in the smallest amount of the room light. I chose this option to help keep me oriented. 

The tank itself is really large. I'm 5'2" and had lots of space to bounce back and forth from foot to head. Additionally height wise I'm pretty sure I could actually stand up in the tank. So It felt more like floating in a room then a tub. 

One of the best parts however is the post float. There is this beautiful room where they encourage you to sit and have some tea, or maybe read, write or reflect. I had a beautiful conversation with Dominic and another floater afterwards. It was like hanging out with long time friends. 

Calming and relaxing please to come back to real life stimulus in the post float lounge. 

Reading selection in the post float lounge. 

Overall, I really love this place. Personally every Sunday I have a morning bath and I think I will be replacing that time once a month with a float. 

Have you ever floated?

 

Love, Jen