#I mean I guess it fits to the canadian 6 degrees week :)

[eaion]

"And I love you both very much. More than I love myself, which is saying a lot, believe me."

Slings & Arrows S01E01 - Oliver's Dream

for @paulgrossaddict :)

[normalsdotheolympics]

The Slightly Unhinged Plan

Here we are, about a month after the Paris Olympic Games, and a though occurred to me: "Wouldn't it be fun to try some of these sports?" And so the plan takes shape. Let's introduce ourselves. I'm Avi, and my wife Katy and I are in our early 30's. We're both sort of your average Americans. We don't exercise much and we're both out of shape, probably a good 15-20% over our ideal body weight. We don't eat super healthy, and struggle to find the time to cook at home as much as we would like, both of us working full-time jobs. I'd guess that description would hold true for the vast majority of Americans.

About two months ago, we decided to try to make some changes. We decided to focus a little on cooking more at home and tracking our calorie intake, with the goal of losing some weight. We started to use our long-forgotten Peloton, riding once or twice a week, and we decided to check out our community pool. Now, Katy grew up swimming, having competed on her high school swim team. That was many years ago, however. I really have never swam - I mean, I can swim around, but never learned the technique of swimming laps. So learning to swim was going to be a bit of an adventure, and it was certainly slow going. The first time we went out, I only managed to swim 6 laps of our 20m community pool before I got tired out. So for a few weeks, we worked on some of these goals, cycling a bit, swimming a little as well, tracking our calories, lifting some weights at home, and the results were showing. But this isn't a fitness blog! So, to business, and where things got a little out of hand.

Katy and I love the Olympics. We get really into it. To a degree, it's when my Canadian pride comes out most, but I think we just love the competition and the spirit of the events. Watching Duplantis dominate the pole vault while his competitors cheered him on as he set the world record. Seeing the two competitors decide to share the gold instead of fighting for supremacy in the high jump in the prior games. Surprise champions, and devastating losses. Back in 2018, while dating, we bonded while watching a four screen split screen of the curling tournament at the Winter games, and I knew she was the one. So suffice to say, we get really into the Olympics every 2 years when they come around, even when the time zones make it challenging to watch everything we'd like. We particularly enjoy watching some of the more obscure events - this year, we found some new favorites in synchronized swimming, modern pentathlon, and rugby sevens. Four years ago, we became quite enamored with archery and fencing. I perhaps didn't mention that Katy and I are avid curlers, so we certainly appreciate how engaging some of these more obscure sports can be. On the surface, watching on TV, you maybe don't appreciate it, but once you really understand them, learn them, you realize how challenging they can be. I mean, race walking is just...walking right? Well sure, but very few people can even RUN at their 2:40 marathon pace - and they do that while - walking? So many fascinating events, and how incredible would it be to really experience them, learn how challenging they can be?

I sometimes have a tendency to get grand ideas, maybe to get a little overambitious. So here we are, having just watched a few weeks of Olympic sports, and it occurred to me that maybe we could motivate ourselves to achieve our fitness goals in a unique way. And so the plan was born. The Plan Katy and I, over the next four years, prior to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, will attempt to complete every summer Olympic event. Now, when I say complete, I don't mean that we're going to find a ping pong table at a bar and play a round or go swim a couple of laps in the pool. The goal will be to really learn and practice these sports, and to achieve some basic level of proficiency. So, for example, it would not be sufficient to go to a gym and hang off of the rings, or stand on a balance beam. The goal would be to practice for a few months in order to be able to do some basic routines. There are 156 events (158 for women) across 50 sports and the plan is to complete each and every one of them. For the sake of this exercise, we're going to include any sport/event that was in the 2024 Paris games and those being added for the 2028 Los Angeles games. The new events being added in 2028 include cricket, squash, coastal rowing, flag football, baseball/softball and lacrosse. Breaking is going away after its one-time inclusion, but we'll keep that on the docket. We won't plan to include events such as karate, which took place in Tokyo but weren't in the last games, nor in the upcoming games. The Challenges You can imagine there are quite a few challenges we face here. The first and most obvious is physical limitations. We're not a young as we once were and certainly not in the best shape either. This will require a ton of training and exercise. Some of the endurance events will probably be the most daunting for us to have any hope of completing; the marathon for example, the cycling road race (which is a whopping 160km for the women, and an absurd 273km for the men), and the 10km marathon swim jump our as particular challenges that I'm not sure how we'll be able to achieve. Then, there are some very technical events that require a lot of skill and precision, flexibility and balance, such as trampoline, gymnastics, and diving. Frankly, the thought of doing a 10m dive sounds terrifying. Then there's the question of access - how do we even find some of these sports and gain access to some sort of training and facilities? We've struggled to find some in our area, specifically lacrosse, handball, slalom canoe, and we can't find a 10m diving platform in the area. Some things we'll have to work out as we get further along in this, but we may need to recruit help for access, even for simple things such as getting someone to agree to set up hurdles, pole vault bars, etc... Some of these events we can't even do here in our landlocked state. We'll need to do a few trips to work on sailing, surfing, and a few others. The last big challenge we're anticipating is cost. We'll need to hire some trainers and pay for lessons for many of these things, enroll in leagues for many of the team sports, and there will be some equipment we'll need. I'm sure we'll come across further unexpected challenges along the way. The Rationale Why do this? Why push ourselves into this insane endeavor? I think for one, it would be great to have something to work towards to push ourselves in our fitness goals. It's so easy to just skip a few days of exercise, to eat poorly, to go for fast food. If we have clear goals, perhaps we'll be more likely to stick to our routines. It would certainly help us be healthier and if we even achieve a small portion of these goals, we'll be in the best shape of our lives.

Secondly, it sounds like fun. I mean, who wouldn't want to try some of these sports? Pole vault? Yes! Learning to ride a horse? Sign me up. Fencing, rowing, gymnastics....not only that, but maybe we'll even like a few of them and find a few we'd want to continue with when all is said and done.

So, where do we go from here? Well I'm writing this in mid-September and I'll provide an update on our current progress in the next post. But, more generally, I've designed a schedule that encompasses the next four years and every event, to try and map out how we could best approach these tasks. The first steps are to work on running, cycling, and swimming, as these will help us with our fitness, endurance, and move us towards a triathlon and a total of 34 events just using those 3 skills. We have some specific monthly goals as we move towards triathlon distances, trying to slowly increase our endurance. Because of time constraints, we will need to pick up a new sport every 3 months or so, and our first will be badminton in the fall.

And one last thing before I wrap up this inaugural post. We're thinking we want to plan to do a video blog as well and record as much of our training as we can, and certainly to record all of the events as we complete them. I'll post the link if we get it up and running!

[queenchrysalisrps]

[ooc] Ranting

That shit’s below the read more because I am a fucked up individual who is maybe a little bit tipsy and tired and depressed simultaneously.

my life’s shit, i’m stupidly jealous, and nobody cares, a rantpost. read more if you want i fucking guess you already clicked the link at this point and it’s all about me being a whiny bitch who nobody cares about

positive: ordered herbal testosterone blockers and estrogen boosters because the training we were supposed to get navy-wide on transitioning in the military had a due date of January 31st and it’s now almost a month later and we haven’t gotten it

here’s hoping i don’t get in trouble for that haha (spoilers: at this point I DON’T give a SHIT because if I didn’t start this then I’d probably fall even further down the apathy barrier and fail out of the nuclear programme, which is the only reason I’d like to be in the military at this point aside from staying away from moving back home)

trump is a shit as fuck president, rapist, dumbass, rascist, misogynist, transphobic, and basically using the american flag as toilet paper with his in-office state

there’s a handful of people I have mutual care for/about: -Lara’s my go to most days, best princess -Button’s a cute switch, but if I vanished I doubt she’d realize it -Amburro’s around sporadically these days -Chel has her own problems -i’m not sure how I feel about paul but he’s kind of precious -Audjob plays with other people a lot, acknowledges my existence but that comes close to -it- -and lauralai just came out from the abyss, went “i really like you and spending time with you, you’re kind of awesome” only to kind of do her own thing with other people instead

i’m quiet as fuck, nobody notices me, the only thing i’m particularly good at aside from being smart at this point is lying through my teeth unless i’m not serious about it at all

i’ve been trying to get a car for about a month and it’s finally about to happen con: another 6,000$ loan, around 200$/mo even through usaa for insurance

i’m moving into a co-worker’s apartment to set up a better way of getting to work since i have a habit of sleeping 4 hours a night during the work week; also 12 hour workdays of rotating shiftwork are literally satan

i feel unwanted by basically everybody, the people who aren’t straight-up apathetic prioritize other people way before they even think about me, i’m like a footnote cute girl

i never got below a 3.0 on a test before i joined the navy, now at least i know what it takes to be a genius (answer: complete social ineptitude)

i prioritize dumb shit, my life’s a mess, the navy is garbage, and the best thing that’s happened at all in my life so far is meeting a cute canadian girl

i went from public school in 5th grade to christian school the next, then back to public for 12th, then into the navy instead of staying home and going to college because i couldn’t take my parents at that point: which led to, because of the church’s doctrine, self-isolation as well as social isolation (aka different schools) from my gradeschool friends, who were awesome.

I miss Jennette, Molly, Aislinn, Maegan, Fernando, Miles, Langston, and the friends-of-friends situations I got into with them because those friends of friends were also fan fucking tastic. I miss the friends I made in 12th grade too, which basically includes the whole goddamn class because the school was bigger than the situation of “haha i’m the only one in the high school (11th grade)” by a margin of 40-50, + everyone was so great and it felt wonderful after transitioning from christian school to be around sane people again

nothing against christians, but sports and bible aren’t the only things that exist and if those are your main focuses in life you end up prty goddamn dumb and sheltered and overall a shitty human being from my experience

i’ve never cut myself but I sure have held objects that could close to my skin and thought about it

but then again

that’s probably why i’m completely starved for attention

sic: quiet; add: nerdy, kinky

i’m glad to be one person’s priority

i’m glad to feel wanted, at least in that respect

and it’s not like i outright burned bridges, i just let them fall apart

is that 6 year period to mean nothing in my life?

the things I learned since: transgender was what defined the odd feelings i had had for many more, following a religion is a lazy excuse for not trying to think about things too much (aka if the christian god were real i’d side with satan because that dude’s insane), i’d really like to write things but given success rates of authors it’s probably best to have a safety net, drugs will get you high, i am not a lightweight in terms of alcohol but 151 is some GOOD SHIT, i’m not emotionally dead but i have enough walls that the inside of my head is probably a hedge maze

if i do get discharged early, i’m just going to hit up my dad’s work through him and renovate my parent’s basement if they actually accept my “deviant” behavior.

if i don’t, then I’ll finish my 8 year contract- and yeah it’s definitely 8 years because even if electricians get the shittiest bonus that’s still 2 years for automatic advancement in rate that’s impossible to get off of just the test until you’ve got a year or so in the fleet; if I like it enough I might go reserves. regardless I’ll finish up the engineering degree and apply to civilian power plants and electrician companies, whatever it takes to live in washington because then I can make good pay and be happily close to princess, making enough $$ to save and retire soon after, staying fit and pretty and focusing on writing things from the world that’s been building in my mind’s eye for 5+ years now

i needed to write this down and it’s still not everything but it’s most of it

to include, “not everything” is largely “I don’t feel satisfied with the content of this post but it’s already so long” this is probably just going to be a summary of later posts on how fucked up my life has been from a personal standpoint

not to say that it’s the worst or anything like that

but it’s definitely not the best

i’m socially stupid/awkward and friends I’ve made in this program seem to keep being either in different spots than I am or being removed for various issues

also sorry not sorry for my first post on this blog in forever being complaints for far too long; that’s another thing i’m shitty at, because there are so many good muns out there that i practically abandoned talking to

[gawaine]

Rules: Complete the survey and say who tagged you in the beginning. When you finished tag 5 people to do this survey. Have fun and enjoy!!!

Tagged by the wonderful @wwwinteriscoming, who also gave me Isbah’s new URL (thank fuck @softdiego, I keep losing you)

1: Are you named after someone? Nope! The only criteria for my name was that it have an Arabic and English meaning, and could be easily pronounced in both.

2: When was the last time you cried? Yesterday, watching A Year in the Life on Netflix. Richard Gilmore died. It was sad. That was ‘single tear’ type crying though, the last time I had a proper cry was... Last week, maybe? I had a little cry after throwing my ankle out at the gym and it triggered my PTSD.

3: Do you like your handwriting? I have a love-hate relationship with it? Char and @drlegendaryhands swear it’s beautiful, but when I’m rushing it’s reduced to a mess, so... It depends on how much time I have when writing!

4: What is your favourite lunch meat? This is an odd question. But chicken. It’s filling, you can do lots to it, it tastes good and it’s healthy.

5: Do you have kids? No, thank fuck. Bleeergh, the thought of having a child this young is repellant to me (... and not even necessarily ‘this young’). No thanks. That’s what nieces and nephews are for - babies you can love, but give back.

6: If you were another person, would you be friends with you? Probably not? I like to think I’m a good friend, who is funny and loyal, but in reality I’m really out of touch with emotion and a load of other shit. Ref: all previous best friends for proof.

7: Do you use sarcasm? It’s my native tongue.

8: Do you still have your tonsils? No! It’s so weird to be able to say that now! Nope, I had my tonsillectomy in October. I was scheduled to have a coblation procedure, but it ended up being a standard electrocautery tonsillectomy instead :)

9: Would you bungee jump? Yes. No. Depends on why. I like the idea of conquering my fears but I also don’t want to die (today) so??

10: What is your favourite kind of cereal? Golden Nuggets or Weetabix. I have no chill. It’s either a sugarfest or really good for me. Plus, they absorb milk really well and I’ve gotten really fussy recently: milk left over from cereal disgusts me, I can never finish it, and it makes me feel bloated.

11: Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? Low-top sneakers, like Vans and Converses, absolutely not, but boots and high-tops, yes. I don’t actually own any other type of shoe.

12: Do you think you’re a strong person? emotionally? or physically? lol no, but I’m arrogant enough to acknowledge the evidence shows otherwise. I think it just comes down to the fact that I’m very good at pretending, emotionally? And physically... HAHA. Actual quote from me at the gym today, talking to my trainer: “You know I said I have the upper body strength of a worm? I think that was too kind.”

13: What is your favorite ice cream flavor? This... Is not... Thorough enough. If it’s Ben & Jerry’s, it’s One Love (banana, chocolate and caramel) though that’s up for debate because I have new flavours in my freezer that I’m yet to try; Haagen Dazs, it’s cookies and cream (macadamia nut brittle is a close second); if it’s sorbet, I prefer berry because of its sharpness, though mango is smoother; if it’s unbranded, then mint chocolate chip. Gelato can only be from the place I went to on Borgo Pio in Rome, so fresh, made only of fruit and milk, where melon is a preference (I take ice cream very seriously, wow).

14: What is the first thing you notice about people? The way they look at people. You can tell a lot about a person that way.

16: What is the least favourite physical thing you like about yourself? My injury scars (whoa, look at me being honest today).

17: What color pants and shoes are you wearing now? I’m not wearing shoes - I’m at home - so I’m wearing grey skinny sweats and stripy ‘Fries Before Guys’ socks.

18: What was the last thing you ate? Butter biscuits I made a few days ago, but I can’t actually taste that - I can still taste the tuna crunch salad I had before that, because I put in a lot of crunch (read: a shit-ton of red onion and celery).

19: What are you listening to right now? Bollywood music from Shahrukh Khan’s new movie. If I wasn’t, I’d probably be listening to some The Pretty Reckless, I’ve been on a grunge trip recently.

20: If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Purple. No idea why. I guess it’s lighter than black but more complex than a primary colour? Oh, look, my English degree is showing.

21: Favourite smell? Fresh water.

22: Who was the last person you spoke to on the phone? My big sister, Reehana. She wanted to see how I felt after I text her from the cardio machine at the gym, saying my arms felt like lead. They still felt like lead. Arm days kill.

23: Favourite sport to watch? Watching the cricket is more a tradition, so martial arts, probably? Or swimming? But I’m not a big sports enthusiast.

24: Hair color? Very dark brown. It looks black, but you can see it’s not in the light, and because in the summer, it reddens.

25: Eye color? Dark brown. I’m very boring.

26: Do you wear contacts? I’m beginning to. I hate it. I thought taking off a normal bra in exchange for a sports one was a pleasant feeling, but taking contacts out after 11 hours of wear and putting on your glasses is just... Heavenly.

27: Favorite food to eat? This is unfair, so I will go by my favourite cuisines. (Savoury) Italian: pizza. Mexican: burritos. Persian: grilled lamb is amazing. American: burgers and fries. Canadian: fresh maple syrup pancakes. (Sweet) French: macaroons. Italian: ice cream cake. I’m also a total ho for traditional Punjabi food, but that’s complex. (I also take food very seriously).

28: Scary movies or comedy? Ha, half the time, aren’t they the same thing? The girl moves towards the scary noise and drops her phone, the non-white person dies first, everyone trips over their laces? Okay, sorry - comedy! Definitely. Rom coms are cute too. 

29: Last movie you watched? Ummm, Dhangal, this Bollywood movie about a man who trained his little girls to become Olympic wrestlers. Based on a true story. Was absolutely excellent. I can’t remember the last English movie I watched at the cinema... Ghostbusters, possibly?

30: What color of shirt are you wearing? Grey. It’s a jumper with my university logo on the front.

31: Summer or winter? Summer, though I always die, because I wear too many layers. Usually I’d say winter, but our heating is being a little shit, so the whole warm-and-snuggled-while-it-rains ~aesthetic has gone to shit.

32: Hugs or kisses? Hugs. More intimate, they feel more safe and, whilst I have never been kissed on the mouth romantically, I’d assume less gooey, too?

33: What book are you currently reading? HA, I don’t think I’ve finished reading a whole book for pleasure since I graduated. I’m reading multiple. Attempting to re-read A Series of Unfortunate Events (struggling, no idea why) and Muhammad Ali’s memoirs (but Mum stole it). The Princess Diaries set so I could read the newest one, but I’m bored at no.5 because I’ve read that multiple times. Still a quarter of the way through reading The Da Vinci Code for the third time, so I can read the newest two of the set. Reconsidering breaking out my non-fiction book on the Medici that I started about four years ago, after watching Medici: Masters of Florence. You did not expect this long an answer, did you? Your fault for asking!

34: Who do you miss right now? My Dad, he’s away on business.

35: What is on your mouse pad? What is this, 2005? Who still has a mouse pad?

36: What is the last TV program you watched? sense8, I’m rewatching so I can watch the special/second season without having to rush a recap watch.

37: What is the best sound? The sound of rain on glass, or my brother laughing.

38: Rolling Stones or The Beatles? I feel like I’m not white enough for this question, I would struggle to name a Rolling Stones song from the top of my head and the only Beatles songs I know are ones that have been covered by other people. Sorry!

39: What is the furthest you have ever traveled? Had to Google this, but - Florida, USA. Thought it was Pakistan. I went to Disneyworld when I was 8.

40: Do you have a special talent? Yes, isolating myself and being able to fit more ice cream in the top drawer of the freezer, even if it’s full. The TARDIS has nothing on my freezer drawer.

41: Where were you born? St George’s Hospital, London. I’m a city girl, through and through :)

I tag @barefootonbrokenglass, @franklyineedcoffee, @nancyywheller, @intoxicatedinthedark and... I do not know enough people on this site to do shit like this

[tkg204official]

Health and fitness: A thought

           Today is National Health and Fitness Day, as recognized by the Canadian Kinesiology alliance. It had me thinking, what does it mean to be healthy and fit? This is what I thought of in my professional opinion.

           Taking care of your health extends beyond lifting heavy weights to get big, being able to touch your toes bending down, or going out for a stroll every day. When I think of what being healthy means, I consider 6 dimensions that influence our wellness and where our homeostasis finds its balance. You will find that these dimensions do not exist in their own vacuum. One aspect of your life will influence another in varying degrees. What you may agree with me is that purposeful physical activity can offer direct benefits to each one of these dimensions.

           The first dimension is the name of the game, as far as my scope of practice is concerned, and what I can influence the most: Physical health. The ability for the anatomy and physiology of our whole body to function as it should. It is not enough to be merely absent of disease. We need to feel like we can move how we want our body to. Our body is not meant for sedentary pursuits; there are a number of deleterious effects that occur when we do not move around enough. We also have to ensure we’re taking in the proper nutrients through whole foods while also enjoying our snacks consciously. The average Canadian spends their last ten years unhealthy because we developed a disconnect on what we’re putting in our bodies, as well as neglecting exercise. If you don’t know what to look for, or how to get started, we are here to help you. Sometimes all that people need is reassurance that living a healthier lifestyle is within their powers. And it is never to late to start thinking about the habits we engage in. So, for better physical health, exercise in good amounts at the proper intensity, reduce or break-up the time spent sedentary, and be mindful of what you ingest in all its forms.

           The second dimension I would like to bring up is mental health. There is a lot at play when we are physically active. Brain-derived neurotrophic factors, endorphins, motor cortex plasticity. Something as simple as walking outside 30 minutes a day does wonders for your brain. Engaging in physical activity, especially sports, allow you to challenge your brain through developing strategies, patterns, and predicting the movement and behaviour of those around you. The brain weighs about 3 pounds, yet uses about 25% of your total energy during that day. Make sure that energy is put to good use. Have sound thoughts throughout the day. Reduce stress to avoid any excess or deficiency in key hormones and neurotransmitters. Abstain using anything that can result in chemical dependency. There are substances that might make you feel right at the moment while self-medicating. However, there are independent and dependent pathways that can wreck havoc on your brain. If you are unsure about your current mental state, seek a licensed Psychologist. It is a very important organ, so be kind to it.

           Closely related to mental health is our third dimension: Emotional health. There is a myriad of emotions out there. Some of these are tied to language or built-in from culture. For that reason, I will refer to our seven basic emotions: Happiness, sadness, contempt, surprise, anger, fear, and disgust. None of these emotions are good or bad in themselves. It is a matter of how we project them. Are we using them in our creative outlets for good? Are we expressing them to the wrong person? Do our emotions sway judgement before the slower-acting logical side of the thought process can sort information properly? Exercise can help regulate our emotions. Not to say you necessarily want to throw haymakers at a heavy bag because you’re raging. You may hurt yourself; trust me, I’ve done that. Use exercise to clear your mind, let your endorphins get you into a state of calm. Being physically active outdoors is a wonderful bonus. Being able to feel the Sun, rain, coolness of an Autumn breeze, whatever weather picks you up, taps into our wild side that is often too sheltered or blocked off from the outdoor environment. I find my mood does a 180 and lasts for hours after I get my sweat on, especially on a crisp Winter day.

           Social health is another important dimension in our health. As you may guess, this is a reflection on how we interact with others around us. During the lockdowns in the developed World, it is very hard to connect with our friends and family we rely on for support. While modern technology allow for several options to remain in contact with our loved ones, being removed from the real thing for big chunks of time feels weird. As a personal trainer, a professional who works closely with someone, we become very important in maintaining human contact. Especially for those where becoming physically active is something new, without a lot of immediate support around them. My approach is to be empathetic, always encouraging good efforts, and following up on what the past week was like. Make sure that the circle you maintain is the one that makes you feel like you can set the World on fire.

           Occupational health doesn’t necessarily mean your job is hazardous, or that you make it rain. The question to ask here is: does your job add fulfillment to your life? If you feel great about your role in society, that goes a long way with how positive you feel about your life. We see coworkers for more time than we might see our close family members. Kinda weird to think about it, but it’s true. If your job revolves around mostly sedentary activities, find ways to get out of your desk to stretch your legs and give your tiny eye muscles a break. First responder? Work out as a group in your station. Being able to move around a bit at your work, or finding those in your team with the same ideals of health, will help your work culture be less stressful and more fulfilling. Plus, the healthier you keep yourself by not burning out your body before retirement, will allow you to live out the rest of your life in the way that you see fit.

           The last, but not least, dimension I want to go over quickly is spiritual health. This is different than abiding to a form of mainstream religion or denouncing all mythology as an atheist. This is about finding a purpose in life, understanding what you can and cannot control, how you connect with the physical world, and bringing out the potential of actualization by recognizing your roles. It’s gratitude for good days, and strength for bad days. In my personal reflection, the strongest connection that you can ever have is within yourself. I like to think that exercise offers a spiritual piece in-itself. What I mean by this is that I always instruct my clients to make a mind-body connection. If someone is performing a deadlift and I want them to maintain neutral spine, I’ll get them to stand normally so they get a sense of good posture. I would ask them to hinge at the hips while maintaining that feeling of vertebral alignment and adding in core engagement. For the concentric phase, I would ask them to engage the glutes to maximize force output. This sense of kinesthetics is transferable to all aspects of life; it serves as a constant reminder to be conscious of the body in space. From there, you can become more aware of the natural World, becoming more appreciative and respectful of it.

           So much as for health on a physical, mental, emotional, societal, occupational, and spiritual dimension. Nothing occurring in its own vacuum, there is a lot of interplay here. Consider a dimension that you feel is not a strong point, and you might feel that as that improves, then all the other dimensions will follow suit in a way that is beneficial to you. Once these dimensions of health are well-adjusted, we can now become fit.

           If I was a Biologist, I would state that fitness is the ability for an organism to pass their genes in a certain environment. As a Kinesiologist, fitness to me is function at peak potential. This is the ability to pass certain tests for the military, getting a grasp on sport-specific tasks, and competing at events. The greatest assests here are agility, balance, coordination, and power. I will argue at to become fit, you must become healthy. Fitness is regarded as being physiologically and metabolically sound, and adapting to environmental stress effectively. Using the six dimensions above, you can unlock your fitness by getting sufficient amounts of cardiovascular, resistance, and flexibility training; keeping your brain healthy and sharp; understanding the emotions you are feeling and coming to terms why you feel that way in the moment; keeping a circle of friends that you share common hobbies or that you can confide in; keeping a positive mindset at your job; getting in tune with your body and the natural world around you. Surprise yourself, and go find out what you are very capable of!

[dietsauthority]

7 Foods That Are Harmful For Your Brain

Eating healthy is necessary. And also, in these modern times, a great deal of focus is placed on looking cosmetically great. Seeing nearly every Hollywood celebrity with torn and chiseled figure has only sustained need to get sensational physiques. It is not the best technique. Do not obtain me wrong, I have nothing versus developing wonderful physique. I make certain getting 6 pack abs would certainly be a wonderful achievement. I do have an issue with diet plans developed with emphasis only on getting most visually pleasing body.

For example, often people start ketogenic diet regimens to get shredded physique. The typical ketogenic diet regimen contains eating just protein and also fats, and also totally refraining from carbs. Now, although such diet plan can assist you obtain incredibly lean physique, but it does a great deal of harm to your body. Not just it will adversely impact your crucial physical features that utilize carbohydrates for gas, but could leave you feeling blurry and dizzy.

Similarly, the foods below could have an unfavorable influence on your memory as well as cognitive abilities. Take them off your diets or at least modest usage to ensure that one of the most vital muscle mass in your body stays healthy and also continuouslies working from its best.

Tofu

Tofu has actually gained considerable popularity as a terrific replacement for meat. This high healthy protein food is extensively eaten by the vegetarian fitness lover as well as professional athletes that would certainly or else lose out on important amino acids that are usually existing in meats. Nevertheless, current studies and also research study have disclosed that eating great deal of tofu can have poor effect on your mind as well as cognitive capacities. In fact, one research study conducted on more than 700 senior Indonesians discovered that high tofu usage (at the very least once daily) was connected with worse memory, particularly among those over age 68. The researchers placed research subjects with a series of memory tests. They found that those who ate even more compared to 9 servings of tofu each week encountered higher memory difficulties compared to those who did not. The factor behind the organization isn't clear, nonetheless, it is guessed that the existence of phytoestrogens in soy might contribute to the enhanced threat of dementia. The various other adverse results of eating tofu include boosted thyroid damages, especially in ladies, enhanced risk of bust cancer in women, weakened immune system and also prospective severe food allergies.

The research study also exposed that all soy foods aren't negative. The scientists found that Tempeh, the popular fermented-soy food, was really great for memory and cognitive functions. Plus, daily usage of tempeh could raise consumption of folate, vitamin K, calcium, magnesium, iron as well as fiber.

Sodium

It is all too well recognized that high sodium consumption is related to high blood pressure trouble as well as heart diseases. Nonetheless, a recent research study has actually exposed that high salt when combined with reduced levels of exercise can be problem for your cognitive abilities. For this Canadian research study, the researchers examined the physical task and also salt intake of 1262 individuals, aged 67 to 84. The research subjects were split into three teams - reduced, mid, as well as high-sodium consumption. It was discovered that low physical task was a significant variable in the study. For instance, those that did reduced physical task and also consumed the most sodium had the most cognitive decrease. In comparison, those who did low exercise and also at the same time were on reduced salt diet had a slower cognitive decrease. Nonetheless, the bright side is that the result of the high sodium diet regimen could be quickly reversed by raising the quantity of exercise you do daily.

Also, it has actually been discovered that high sodium diet regimen could have negative influence on your kidneys too. Salt plays an essential duty in stabilizing the degrees of fluid in our bodies by telling kidneys when to keep water as well as when to get rid of it. The high salt content decreases kidney function, which indicates much less water would be removed from the body. This could cause hypertension. Plus, it can bring about kidney stones.

Trans Fat

Well, this is another need to stay away from Trans Fat in all expenses. To the already expanding listing of Trans Fat related health and wellness issues such as weight problems, heart problems and diabetics issues, the recent study has actually added lowered cognitive capacity. Therefore, the Obama administration's pledge to stage Trans Fats from the American food supply over the next three years is an excellent news.

In a research study released in the journal PLoS One, it was discovered that high Trans Fat consumption is associated with problem in bearing in mind words. For the research, 1018 subjects were chosen and their consumption of Trans Fats was differed from 3.8 grams each day to 27.7 grams each day. Ultimately, the topics were asked to finish a job that required them to determine brand-new versus reoccuring words in a collection. It was usually discovered that even more the Trans Fat consumption, even worse the efficiency was. For each and every gram of daily Trans Fats consumed, the individuals can keep in mind an approximated 0.76 less words, which means the participants with highest amount of Trans Fats consumption each day remembered 65 words properly, whereas the average individual recalled 86 words.

The all-natural fats are vital permanently mind wellness as they create as well as preserve cell membrane layers and carry fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E as well as K. However, the Trans Fat can cause mobile destruction, have negative result on hormone production, detrimentally impact memory and increase inflammation in the mind. The enhanced swelling could reduce the body's production of Omega-3 fatty acids.

Tuna

Tuna is just one of the contemporary superfoods. Omega-3 fats, iodine, iron and also B vitamins are a few of the lots of important nutrients and minerals existing in tuna. Being a superb resource of nutritional healthy protein, it is especially enjoyed by athletes as well as body builders. The other advantages related to the regular usage of tuna consists of decreased threat of coronary heart problem, boosted immune system, much less triglyceride levels and avoidance of high blood pressure.

However, the current research study discloses that the tuna isn't really as ideal as it is constructed to be. The routine consumption of tuna could harm working of your mind. The research conducted at the Carillon Outpatient Center in St Petersburg, Florida found that consuming greater than three portions of types of fish that are high on the food web such as tuna, grouper, snapper, bass, swordfish, as well as shark each week (or even more compared to four servings monthly) puts you in jeopardy of cognitive dysfunction. For the research, the seafood-eating habits of 384 males and females, mostly business execs, who were attending an all-day extensive physical assessment were examined. Before we continue in advance, I desire to make clear that the reason for issue below isn't really the fish and shellfish really. It is the amount of mercury existing in the seafood. As well as, it was discovered that those with the highest degree of mercury in their blood racked up even worse on the cognitive tests.

Although, your body can secreting mercury gradually over time, yet by ingesting as well much mercury, you put your body at the risk of mercury accumulation. The various other illness besides mind damages related to mercury are feeling numb in your skin, drinks or tremblings, problem in walking and also vision problems.

Saturated Fats

According to a recent research released in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, a diet regimen high in saturated fat in addition to causing host of heart troubles could additionally lead to cognitive feature problems. The research study was performed at the University of Montreal. There is a catch that the research study was performed on team of rats. Nevertheless, the research study discovered that irrespective of weight gain and obesity, the high-fat intake can create impairments in the functioning of the brain sector that is responsible for state of mind disorders, drug dependency, and also overeating. It has actually to be noted below that high fat diet plan is that where half of the calories originate from fats and also in this situation saturated fats.

The diet plan high in hydrogenated fats causes cognitive function impairment by dulling the dopamine benefit system while raising the dependency on undesirable foods. The increased reliance on unhealthy foods could then trigger wide variety of wellness troubles such as obesity, diabetes mellitus as well as cardiovascular disease. The dopamine system controls inspiration and health and wellbeing. As well as, when this system suffers, your mind will certainly spur you to eat way too much to compensate for feeling unsatisfied.

Sugar

A study carried out at the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman College of Medicine, Philly, has discovered that people with type 2 diabetic issues might lose much more brain volume compared to is expected as they age. And, surprisingly, this contraction is not associated to unfavorable effect of diabetes mellitus on capillary in the brain. The shrinkage was associated to the means brain manages sugar. The mind quantity loss was especially severe in the noodle which consists of areas of the brain included in muscle control, seeing and also hearing, memory, emotions, speech, decision-making and also self-control. For the research study, the researchers evaluated MRI scans of the minds of 614 people with kind 2 diabetic issues. The volunteers had actually been struggling with the clinical condition for an average of about 10 years.

As verified by one more research published in Brain, Behavior and Resistance, even if you aren't diabetic person, the consumption of excess sugar will certainly harm your mind. The research located that consuming large amounts of sugar causes swelling of hippocampus, the brain's memory nerve center, which hinders it from working at its complete capability. High sugar intake is connected with depression.

Alcohol

Alcohol clearly has a distinct result on your mind. After a lot of drinks, you might experience difficulty in strolling, blurred vision, slurred speech, slowed response times and also damaged memory. These negative effects distribute after some hrs of sleep. If a person is a raging alcoholic and also has been in love with a pint for too long, there could be brain deficiencies that could last also after he or she attains sobriety. The several research studies have actually discovered that alcohol consumption big quantities of alcohol for lengthy durations of time can increase the risk of developing serious and also persistent adjustments in the brain.

In a research conducted at the Boston College School of Medicine, it was discovered that the half of study subjects who could be called as problem drinkers faced some troubles in believing as well as memory features. It was located that prolonged consumption of alcohol hinders the method the mind usually works, and also people end up being highly vulnerable to some forms of brain damage.

[thrashermaxey]

20 Fantasy Hockey Thoughts

Every Sunday until the start of the 2018-19 regular season, we'll share 20 Fantasy Thoughts from our writers at DobberHockey. These thoughts are curated from the past week's "Daily Ramblings".

Writers: Michael Clifford, Ian Gooding, Cam Robinson, and Dobber

  1. Will people still consider Nicklas Backstrom a premier asset heading into drafts this season? Last year, he was the 20th player off the board in Yahoo leagues. This was after he produced an 86-point campaign in 2016-17. That season, he played around 60 percent of his even-strength minutes next to Alexander Ovechkin. He produced 36 power-play points and hadn’t yet turned 30.

Heading into 2018-19, things aren’t so rosy. His production dipped to 71 points in 81 games. His power play production was the lowest per-game since 2010-11 and he’ll be 31 by the time puck drops this fall. His five-on-five time with Ovechkin was around 580 minutes – roughly the same percentage as the year prior.

The big playoff run will help ease some GMs concerns about taking the Swedish pivot early. However, the emergence of Evgeni Kuznetsov cannot be overlooked. The younger Russian played roughly 475 even-strength minutes with Ovechkin last season. But the two were connected at the hip down the stretch and throughout the playoffs. The results were fruitful.

Backstrom has proven to be a reliable performer. His ability to generate offense away from Ovechkin is admirable. However, it’s not at the same level it could be if he was consistently dishing the puck to this generation’s greatest goal scorer. With the extreme depth at the centre position, there’s no need to jump up and grab Backstrom in the first two rounds. Hell, I may even wait until closer to the 35-spot to take a swing on him. (aug11)

  2. One of the most underrated players of this generation, Blake Wheeler has been lethal on the power play for the Jets (having Patrik Laine and Mark Scheifele helps). Can he replicate the 40 power-play points (!) he had last year? That’s a pretty tall task. Seems likely he comes down to the 75-80-point range he had been the previous couple seasons. Then again, there is a lot of talent on that top power-play unit. He has one year left on his deal and will be 33 years old for the 2019-2020 season. (aug7)

  3. Is anyone else a little concerned that Dallas Stars’ new bench boss, Jim Montgomery, will be inclined to split his top line to spread out the offense? We can assume at least one of Jamie Benn or Alex Radulov will get to live next to soon-to-be potential upcoming unrestricted free agent, Tyler Seguin, next season. But, will the other end up driving offense from the second line to help get Jason Spezza and company going?

The Stars top line produced 103 of the team’s 231 total goals. Seventy-three (73) of those goals came at even-strength, where the team scored 187 total goals. That’s 40 percent of the team’s offense during five-on-five play. Meanwhile, no other forward cusped the 20-goal or 35-point mark. The secondary scoring is non-existent in Big D.

It’s certainly a situation to watch carefully. Seguin will reap the best of everything as he’s the focal point of the attack down the middle. The team will also be looking to give him every reason to sign a massive extension before testing the market next July. Benn and/or Radulov could be seeing their even-strength production take a dip next season if they end up away from the top line. (aug11)

  4. How much does Shayne Gostisbehere’s value depend on Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek's ridiculous power play production? Giroux has a history of racking up massive production on the power play. Over the past five seasons, he’s averaged 34 points on the man-advantage. And his 168 total PPPs over that time are tied for most in the league with Nicklas Backstrom. Voracek has been a little more inconsistent, producing 23 power play points in three of the last five seasons. But, he's sprinkled in 33 in 2014-15 and 35 last season.

Gostisbehere saw his average powerplay deployment dip by 15 seconds per night last season. Yet, his power play production shot up from a previous career-high of 23 to the 33 he experienced last season. That result led all blueliners and has propelled him to being one of the best fantasy hockey blueliners out there.

For those who concern themselves with Ivan Provorov breathing down Gostisbehere's neck, don’t. Let's say the Flyers decided to promote Provorov to the top unit. The increase in his level of production would pale in comparison to the deficit that moving Gostisbehere off of it would cause. This is a Kevin Shattenkirk–Alex Pietrangelo situation all over again. The club will play their players to their strengths. That means Gostisbehere gets all the fun minutes and Provorov remains an all-around stud who is limited offensively due to his deployment. Until the Philly power play begins to show signs of slowing, Gostisbehere will remain an elite producer. (aug11)

  5. In case you’re wondering where Brady Tkachuk might fit in now, the Sens have a number of established NHL-level players at the left wing position. But, with the departure of Mike Hoffman, the Sens also lack a true top-liner at that position. So, Tkachuk could receive an opportunity to latch on to a scoring line right away.

It's anyone’s guess whether Tkachuk would stay in Ottawa for the full season or not. But it’s worth mentioning that brother Matthew went straight to the Flames right after being drafted and stayed the entire season. So, it’s possible that Brady is trying to follow the same path. But ultimately it will be the Senators’ decision. If the Sens are a Canadian tire fire again, then playing in London would be a better option for the 2018-19 season. (aug12)

  6. One left wing that Tkachuk will be battling for minutes with will be Ryan Dzingel. With all the turmoil in Ottawa last season (and stretching into the offseason), it’s easy to overlook the fact that Dzingel tied for the team lead in goals with 23. There’s lots to like with Dzingel as a potential deep sleeper. Not only is he playing for a contract, but he is also entering his fourth season (if you count his 30-game 2015-16 season). His production climbed as the season went on, which was at least partially due to his deployment with Matt Duchene later in the season.

At this point Dzingel might be the preferred choice on the top line while Tkachuk becomes accustomed to the NHL either this season or next. But long term, he’s probably keeping the seat warm for Tkachuk. In the meantime, you can have fun saying the name "Dzingel!" Doesn't it just roll off the tongue? (aug12)

  7. Dylan Larkin inked a five-year contract extension worth 6.1 million per season. That's a nice chunk of change coming to the 22-year-old. Larkin epitomized the dreaded sophomore slump in 2016-17. After taking the NHL by storm in the first half of his rookie campaign, things turned a little sour for the former University of Michigan standout. He witnessed a dip in goals, assists, points, shots, and time-on-ice. A great deal of that can be explained by his transition to the middle of the ice and the responsibility that comes with it.

The 2017-18 campaign was the re-emergence. He posted more than double his previous season point totals (31 to 63) and was a force at even-strength. His 53 points at five-on-five were good for 23rd in the league. Wedged between Steven Stamkos and Evgeni Kuznetsov. (aug11)

  8. I’ll be very interested to see what the Arizona Coyotes do with their top power-play unit this year. If we look at their PP line combinations from Frozen Tools, their three most-common PP lineups had three forwards and two defensemen. However, with the addition of Alex Galchenyuk and the hopeful emergence of Dylan Strome, as well as the lack of scoring talent down the lineup, it would make sense for the team to run a heavily-used four-forward top PP unit.

They could go with Galchenyuk-Clayton Keller–Derek Stepan-Strome-Oliver Ekman-Larsson and just play them 70 percent of the time. It would give them four lefties but that’s not really a huge issue. You can have Galchenyuk on his off-hand wall, Strome or Keller on their strong-side wall, the remaining forward and Stepan playing low/high in the slot with OEL on the point.

Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, but it seems to me they finally have the offensive pieces necessary to run a very threatening top PP unit. Arizona was bottom-10 in five-on-four goals last year and if this team wants to earnestly push for a playoff spot, a boost on the PP would go a long way in helping. It’ll be curious to see what they run in exhibition games. (aug10)

  9. Eric Staal has been lights out for the Wild since they signed him, culminating with 42 goals last year, 11 of them on the power play. For reference, he had 12 power-play goal totals from 2014-2017 combined. He hadn’t cracked the double-digit goal mark on the PP since 2010-11.

Minnesota is a team that splits their power-play units to a degree which, as written above, is a concern. He shot 28.12 percent at five-on-four last year. If that comes down to 10 percent, or so, in 175 five-on-four minutes, that’s a huge crash in production. Just that loss in PP goal production alone would knock him down to 35-ish goals. I don’t think anyone expects him to repeat 42 goals again but just be aware of where the goal drop will come from. In leagues that count PP goals (or even PP points), it could be a double-whammy as the loss in production will likely come from the man-advantage side. (aug10)

  10. With the Sedin twins gone, there is presumably two open spots on Vancouver’s top power-play unit. Sven Baertschi signed a three-year deal with the Canucks and though they have some young guys coming up among their proven, top-end forwards, they have two. And one of them is a sophomore. Does Baertschi crack that top unit? There is Adam Gaudette, Elias Pettersson, and Jonathan Dahlen, but how many rookies do they want to put on PP1? Surely, Baertschi won’t shoot 30 percent at five-on-four again,but if he can manage to skate with Brock Boeser and Bo Horvat at 5v4 for most of the year, that extra ice time could mitigate some of the percentage drop. We’ll see. There are a lot of moving parts in Vancouver this year. (aug10)

  11. Ryan Johansen has a 33-goal season to his name, which was followed up with a 26-goal season. His last three seasons, though, have seen totals of 14, 14, and 15. His last two years have seen fewer total power-play goals (five) than either of his seasons with the Blue Jackets from 2013-2015. Now, when you skate with Filip Forsberg and Viktor Arvidsson, there really aren’t many shots left to go around and Johansen doesn’t need to be a scorer. That doesn’t mean he can’t pop a handful of power-play goals this year, though, especially if his five-on-four shooting percentage rebounds from a six-year low of 3.7 percent.

Again, Johansen isn’t a scorer now, and he doesn’t need to be. With a bit of good fortune at five-on-four, though, he could push for 20 total goals. That’s not overly impressive, but it’s better than what he’s done lately. (aug9)

  12. Once a prolific goal scorer on the power play, Bobby Ryan had just one PP goal last year and two the year before. When you look at just five-on-four power plays, he had zero goals in 2017-18 and two in 2016-17. That’s two goals at 5v4 over a span of 124 games and 302 power-play minutes. This is from a guy who once posted back-to-back double-digit 5v4 goal seasons.

Ryan’s hand injuries over the last few years are lengthy and well-documented. It’s a wonder if he’ll ever get over them again. With the exodus of talent in Ottawa of late, there should be a lot of PPTOI available for Ryan if he can stay healthy. And that is a big, big if. (aug9)

  13. Helen St. James covers the Red Wings and states that the team wants to be competitive this year, which reads as playoff aspirations to me. In that vein, she thinks Jimmy Howard’s starts could be reined in with the signing of Jonathan Bernier. Howard’s 57 starts in 2017-18 were the most for him since 2011-12 and largely due to the underperformance of anyone else they tried to use. If Bernier can perform at the level he did the last couple years, this could be a split-start situation rather than Howard starting 50-plus again. Even if Howard performs well, he could be a trade deadline casualty.

Though there’s nothing from management or coaching staff, she would like to see Filip Zadina play alongside Henrik Zetterberg if – IF – Zetterberg is healthy enough to play this year and Zadina makes the roster out of camp. Given that Zetterberg still possesses good playmaking abilities, this makes sense. There is a lot of time between now and the start of the season, though, so this is obviously just speculation for now. (aug9)

  14. Though there’s no official update on Ryan Suter’s status, Minnesota Wild beat reporter Michael Russo said he talked to Suter and recent scans on his ankle/foot came back clean and he’s been doing very light on-ice work. Suter’s expectation is that he will be ready for training camp. Now, what an athlete believes and what actually happens are often two very different things but that’s what we have for now.

Russo also believes we could see Nino Niederreiter on the third line this year. He says Bruce Boudreau wants to be able to throw three scoring lines at the opposition and that means there’s going to be a very skilled player on the third line. That might be Niederreiter. In which case, it’s a downgrade. No offense to Joel Eriksson Ek but he’s not Eric Staal. If Nino has third-line minutes and split power play time, returning to his 57-point performance in 2016-17 will be tough to accomplish. He also had Charlie Coyle on that third line as well, which kind of makes sense if you want to balance things out. (aug9)

  15. For anyone concerned about Vladimir Tarasenko’s off-season surgery, there was some news that came out late Monday night in that regard. Long story short, there shouldn’t be much to worry about from one of the league’s elite snipers.

Months ago, I wrote in these Ramblings about how he could be a bounce-back candidate. That was before the shoulder injury, but I still stand by it. His average draft position (ADP), as it does with all players, will ultimately determine how much value he can return, but the revamped lineup with some natural progression from last year makes me a believer.

As with all returning injured players, though, there’s always risk attached. It’s up to the individual fantasy player how much, or how little, risk you want to assume in the draft. Every player has injury potential but one of the better indicators of future injury is prior injury. Tarasenko coming off long-term shoulder injury obviously fits that bill. If you’re really concerned about a second- or third-round pick only playing 65 games then he can be avoided. Again, each fantasy owner is unique so the decision is ultimately up to the individual owner. (aug8)

  16. I remember a week ago (or so) that fellow writer Cam Robinson was on Twitter discussing Jake Guentzel and his hopes that he would see top PP minutes this year. As a Guentzel owner in multiple keeper leagues, nothing would delight me more. Patric Hornqvist’s proficiency on the power play, however, is going to be a big stumbling block. He does a very good job at playing that Wayne Simmonds-type role around the net and Guentzel is more of a slot shooter like T.J. Oshie. Guentzel isn’t going to replace any of the other forwards, so it’s hard to see him getting consistent top PP minutes without someone suffering an injury. (aug7)

  17. Sam Reinhart is going into his fourth season (something we love around here at DobberHockey), will almost certainly play on Jack Eichel’s wing (good spot to be), and is going to be on the top PP unit again. How the team fares without Ryan O’Reilly or Evander Kane in the fold is another story but the ice time and quality linemates should be there for Reinhart. Will a true breakout follow? (aug7)

  18. The John Gibson signing – already discussed at length (by Ian Gooding here) but I’ll chime in – was a good cap hit for the Ducks, of course, given his consistent top save percentage. But, eight years is a risk given his injury history. He had always been a little under-ranked as a prospect goaltender on my list because he was injury prone. And this was before he stepped a skate onto NHL ice!

– 2014-15: He missed the middle of the season with a groin injury – 21 games; – 2015 playoffs: Missed seven games with a UBI; – 2015-16: Missed two games with a UBI; – 2016-17: Thirteen (13) games with a LBI (two injuries, or the same one twice, I don’t know); – 2017 playoffs: He missed the last game with an LBI and then had all summer to heal, so who knows how much time he would have missed; – 2017-18: Missed one game (concussion), four games (LBI), three more games (LBI), three more games (UBI).

In four seasons in the NHL, Gibson has sustained nine injuries after having a reputation as being injury-prone well before he even turned pro. And now he’s locked in for eight years. Good luck, Anaheim! Hope it pans out for you and he stays healthy. If so, it’s a steal. (aug6)

  19. While looking at the Ducks, Jakob Silfverberg popped out at me because he’s an unrestricted free agent next summer. Here’s a guy in his mid-20s who possesses more offensive talent then he’s shown and is under-used offensively because he’s so good defensively. Players like him always surprise in a UFA contract year – Josh Bailey and Evander Kane sure did it last year. The latter two had expected production of 50 points and they certainly exceeded that. Silfverberg is in that ballpark, too. Kevin Hayes another one. In fact, I’m just going to list the guys I think best fit this mold as I go through Cap Friendly. In no particular order: Silfverberg, Hayes, Derick Brassard, Gustav Nyquist, Marcus Johansson, Richard Panik, Joonas Donskoi.

The latter two names would be pushing the term ‘breakout’ but if they get into the high-50s, I’d call that a contract year. Jeff Skinner isn’t on this list because he’s already had huge seasons. But, I’m willing to bet two or three of the above players really surprise us in a good way. (aug6)

  20. Did William Karlsson just sign the same contract that Kevin Hayes signed? That’s pretty nuts. Yeah, I know, it’s the ‘only one year’ thing…but okay, take two years then. Karlsson had 103 points in two years to Hayes at 93 and he’s a year younger and scored 49 goals to 42 (game winners he’s up 9-8, too). I think Vegas got a bit of a deal there but at the expense of possibly getting taken to the cleaners next summer. But the Rangers? They overpaid Hayes just a little and they let him become unrestricted at the end of it, too. You’d think they’d get a discount from his agent for helping him do that. (aug6)

  Have a good week, folks!!

        from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-home/20-fantasy-hockey-thoughts/20-fantasy-hockey-thoughts-36/