by kelsey | Apr 10, 2013 | Food, Weather
Well for once Watertown has dodged the bullet with this winter storm. It sounds like there is more coming, but we have avoided the terrible ice that the Sioux Falls and southeastern SD region has gotten. There are many without power and it sounds like it may be days-week before they get power back on. These poor conditions are not ideal but, like I said yesterday, we can’t change the weather so we must do what we can to keep safe. Without power to the fridge and freezer, many may be wondering how to keep their food safe. Even though we aren’t dealing with these issues here in the Watertown area, you may have friends or family dealing with them so be sure to share these recommendations with them! Keeping cold foods cool and hot foods hot may be a challenge without power so follow these recommendations to keep your food safe in an emergency.
- Keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to maintain the cold temperature. Watch the temp on both using a thermometer. You want your fridge to stay under 40 degrees and your freezer under zero degrees F.
- The refrigerator will keep food safely cold for about 4 hours if it is unopened.
- A full freezer will hold the temperature for approximately 48 hours (24 hours if it is half full) if the door remains closed.
- If are you able to, get dry or block ice to keep your refrigerator as cold as possible if the power is going to be out for a prolonged period of time. Fifty pounds of dry ice should hold an 18-cubic foot full freezer for 2 days.
- If you are wondering if your food is safe to consume, you need to evaluate each item separately using a thermometer as you cannot rely on the appearance or oder! If the food still contains ice crystals or is 40 °F or below, it is safe to refreeze. Refrigerated food should be safe as long as power is out no more than 4 hours. Keep the door closed as much as possible. Discard any perishable food (such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and leftovers) that have been above 40 °F for 2 hours. The way it sounds, this will be case for many in the Sioux Falls area. Remember…it’s better to discard and buy new than risk it and get sick!
For more tips and detailed recommendations please visit the USDA’s website: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fact_Sheets/keeping_food_Safe_during_an_emergency/index.asp .
Stay safe and warm everyone!
-Kelsey
by Dan | Mar 17, 2013 | Exercise, Goals, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health
The hardest part about getting going with an exercise program is just that: Getting going! We can come up with all kinds of excuses to put it off: I will do it later when the weather is better; I will start when I am not so busy; Once I get this project done, I will have more time to start exercising more. There is never a better time to start than now! Forget all of the excuses. Get out of bed, get out the door, and get moving!
We would sit and watch the pelicans on the beach while we were recently in Mexico. They would take off, fly around, and coast back in, and then just keep repeating the process. Well, it really is no different for us. First, we have to get going, so push off…
…once we get going, we need to “spread our wings”, and work a little…
…then, we can really take off! We can “spread our wings”, move around, enjoy the scenery, take all of our surroundings in, and in the end, feel better!
It truly is amazing how much more you can enjoy life if you take off and explore. See what is all out there. It is easy to take for granted those things that are around us all day, until we no longer have it. I forget how nice it is to look at something green, and not all the white of snow this season. I am ready for Spring, and can’t wait to really enjoy being outside again when it is nice. Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 1999
by Dan | Mar 10, 2013 | Exercise, Goals, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health
After another weekend of really rotten weather, I can safely say I am ready for Spring! It is getting really tough to stay motivated to exercise, as the treadmill is getting extremely boring. This is where you have to get creative. Music, TV, something to help keep your attention so you are not continuously looking at the monitor to see how far you have not gone!
I keep bringing myself back to Mexico, where it was warm, and I could be running or walking outside, and looking at all of the scenery. It even helps to have pictures of this coming across the TV as well, to help remind me of being back outside, where it makes running/walking almost effortless because it keeps your mind busy. Here are some of the pictures.
The colors are so cool to look at, it never gets dull. I will have some other scenery images coming to help get through this last part of Winter. Keep you chin up. Remember why it is important to keep doing this. We are on the home stretch of this phase of the season. Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 1992
by Dan | Feb 28, 2013 | Exercise, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health, Winter
This time of year, when you are limited by the weather for how much you can exercise outside, it gets kind of tough to stay motivated. The treadmill only gets you so far. Using other equipment, like an elliptical, or the bike, or weights, can help keep things interesting. This is also a good time of year to get out of the cold and snow, and go somewhere warm. Sarah and I have tried to do this for 1 week each year, to help ease the burden of winter. We got back from Mexico a week ago, and running along the beach everyday was absolutely wonderful!
There were lots of new things to look at, and we would go out 2 miles, and come back. The furthest we went along the beach in one direction was 3 1/2 miles. You can see lots of foot prints here. Quite a few people would do the same thing, and this was 6:30 in the morning, before it would get too hot. The ocean waves rolling in, the birds flying, the other flowers, green areas to look were great. We hardly felt like we were running. We would run in the AM, and go for a long walk later in the afternoon. We did not want to miss any ocean time!
What a great way to start each day! There was alwasy something different to look at each day. The sound of the ocean was amazing. This was the easiest it has been in a while to get up and go for a run! I took many different pictures, and I will show over the next few posts different things we would get to see first hand by running, or going for a walk, along the beach. Fun! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 1982
by Dan | Feb 10, 2013 | Equipment, Exercise, Goals, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health, Winter
When I got up this morning and looked outside, I knew I was not going to be able to run outside. Out here, there was already about 7 inches in the driveway. So I did go out and blow snow, and some shoveling, but was kind of dreading having to do a long run on the treadmill. Some days, no problem, but other days, it can be a chore trying to fire up to do this on a treadmill. I had just gotten back last night from a conference in the Black Hills, and ran hills out there. Well, not really hills, more like Mountains! I was still sore, and the thought of trying to knock off 12 miles on the treadmill was not my idea of a really good time. So I decided to bike instead. At the pace I set, I rode 36 miles on the bike, which when converted over based on the speed, was equal to just over 12 miles.
By doing the biking, it allowed my legs a little more recovery time from doing the hill workouts in Deadwood. Sometimes, you just need to listen to your body, and make adjustments. Next time, it probably won’t be an issue to be on the treadmill, but the outside option for me will always be first. Running outside is just so much more enjoyable, and you can look around, and the time goes by so much faster. Just remember, you can come up with an alternative way to exercise before saying you are not going to do anything that day. Be creative. Some people I know, Jill and Steve, ran their 11 mile run outside this AM. More power to them! In South Dakota, if we let the weather dictate whether we will exercise at all, whether inside or outside, we would not get much done. Stay positive! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 1964
by Dan | Jan 31, 2013 | Exercise, Motivation, Weather, Wellness/Health
Since getting my Nike+ Fuel band watch, I have been keeping track of my daily steps. It makes a big difference when you where this, and then go run a marathon. Wow!
At roughly 2000 steps/mile, you can see what kind of mileage this leads too. With the cold spell hitting here right now, even though it was hot and humid at the Disney marathon, I really appreciate it more now. I would rather put up with the heat versus the cold. Sometimes, you just have to go back and relook at things to remind you of those better weather days as well.
Looking back at how things looked then, when it is cold here, brings back those memories quickly, and can still fire you up to get motivated. Anytime we go somewhere warm during the winter, this helps keep your attention, and remind you of those fun times. It sure helps keep me going! Keep moving everybody!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 1954
