“Good morning Mrs. Finch, the men will be there to pack out your home in fifteen minutes.”
“Pardon me, I wasn’t at the meeting. Pack out…aren’t the men coming in five days and only
to move furniture?”
“Oh no Mrs. Finch, the entire downstairs needs to be packed up and moved out today.”

Gulp…

That’s the essence of the experience we enjoyed last week after learning that our hot water heater broke, spilling all over the basement and creating large scale damage throughout our beautiful home. How did our family of two boys, two dogs and two parents pack up and move out in two in a half days? Thanks to administrators at Chandler, my savior Lynette Heydorff and the kindness of Board Chairman, Matt Wright and Buildings and Grounds Executive Members John Berger and Michael Albrecht we were able to move swiftly and safely to another location.

What helped me to maintain my composure throughout this ordeal?
Movement, proper nutrition and rest.

Because our move caught me so off guard, I needed to create balance in my life. I set about managing the factors that I could control, mainly when, where and how was I going to exercise, obtain proper nutrition away from home and seek rest in our hotel and new apartment.

The first morning I swam one mile in a three foot deep postage stamp pool at the Embassy Suites in Glendale. It was great except for the chain smoking dude. On day two, I left the Embassy Suites at 4:50AM so that I could teach my 5:15AM outdoor boot camp at 1010 Armada. On day three, I took Noah to play lax in Thousand Oaks. The night before, I googled “public lap swim” in Newbury Park. Newbury Park didn’t disappoint. Not only was the pool on the premises of the high school, I had a lane to myself for a whopping two bucks! On Sunday, I enjoyed an extra long swim buoyed by the motivating, long distance swimmer who shared my lane. Our last meal out will probably be at Soup Plantation (how can you go wrong?) after evening mass where we’ll give thanks for our many blessings and look forward with anticipation to our new life commuting from the Paseo!

I’m going to start posting our workouts.
If you find yourself in Hawaii this summer and you’re not motivated, look no further.
Just get up a little earlier, and get outside. Do this workout and start your day energized!

Warm-UP:
Bodyweight stretches including:
hamstring cross overs
forward lunge and reach
cossack lateral lunges
walk outs with push ups
curtsies

Quick Round of Body Weight Moves- one time through 20 reps

Jumping Jacks, Squats, Seal Jacks, Backward Lunges, Flings

Today’s Circuit: :45 work/:15 rest
Try this three times through!

Jump Rope (100)
Squat with leg extensions
1/2 burpee, push up and jump
Ice Skaters
Reverse Ab Crunches
Lateral Step Overs (side to side)
Push Ups
Side Planks (knee to elbow) 10 each side and alternate

• 1 eight ounce package Udon Noodles
• 2 tbsp. coconut oil
• 1 tbsp. ginger, peeled and minced
• 8-12 ounces chicken breast, cut into thin strips (season with sea salt and cumin)
• 1/2 head Chinese cabbage, sliced thin
• 1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced thin
• Sea salt
• 2-3 tbsp. organic tamari or shoyu
• 2 tbsp. mirin (rice wine)
• Cilantro, minced

Cook noodles according to the directions on the package. While noodles are cooking, heat coconut oil and ginger in a skillet. Sauté chicken cubes 1-2 minutes. With tongs, remove chicken from the pan. Add more oil if needed and sauté Chinese cabbage 2-3 minutes with a pinch of sea salt. Add red pepper and another pinch of sea sea salt. Add tamari and mirin and saute vegetables 2-3 minutes until lightly cooked and crisp. Return chicken to the skillet with the vegetables. Toss cooked noodles with sautéed chicken and vegetables. Garnish with minced cilantro.

Tags: chicken, chinese cabbage, cilantro, coconut oil, ginger, organic recipes, red pepper, sea salt, udon noodle

Mitch Sawasy recently climbed Mt. Whitney with his family.  Mitch embarked on a several month preparation for the climb, with hill training in Pasadena and strength and cardio at Finchfit4life.

Mitch was quoted as saying, “This was a great way to celebrate Father’s Day with my sons!”.

Finchfit4life salutes you Mitch!