Life with Caitlyn - Fitness Archives

Dosha Mat Review: the Acupressure Mat that Helped Relieve my Back and Neck Pain

September 5, 2020

*I was sent the following product by Dosha Mat to review. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own and I would never share something I didn’t love myself. Thank you for supporting brands that support Life with Caitlyn.

The Dosha Mat acupressure mat is everything I didn’t know I needed in my life.

I’ve never used acupressure before and have only ever had one real therapeutic massage. However, I do foam roll often and used to get my leg muscles rubbed out a lot when I was involved in sports years ago. I rarely ever get rubbed out professionally any more but I do sometimes attempt to do it myself if I have major leg knots.

However, that’s not something I can really do for my back and neck knots. My middle to upper back is almost always sore and I feel like I’ve had a perpetual crick in the right side of my neck since college. Stress will do that to you.

I sit at my desk while at work trying to rub out my shoulders and adjust my sitting position so my spine didn’t feel like it’s in so much agony. Neither ever really provide lasting relief, especially since for work I’ve always sat at a desk for hours staring at screens.

Then I discovered the world of acupressure mats. Specifically the Dosha Mat.

What is Dosha Mat?

Dosha Mat has thousands of little lotus flower tips to provide pressure on your body to provide pain relief and relaxation. The mat itself is made of hypoallergenic natural linen and the cushion inside is made of 100% natural coconut fiber. The lotus flowers themselves are made from toxic-free surgical plastic. Making the Dosha Mat 100% eco-friendly.

Dosha mat is about 2.25 feet by 1.5 feet and easily folds in half, making it almost as easy to transport as a yoga mat.

The best part of Dosha Mat as a company is that they donate 15% of their profit to non-profit organizations that work to provide exercise programs like yoga to youth in need. Combining that with the fact their mats are 100% eco-friendly makes me love the company even more.

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Comparing Four Popular Gym Chains: which gym is right for you?

August 28, 2019

As much as I loved using my college’s gym for four years, there’s no way you’ll catch me working out there now that I graduated. I don’t want to be that girl who just can’t move on, you know? So while I was in search of a new job, I was also in search of a new gym. Right away I started comparing gyms for me to join.

Originally, I was just trying out one gym that I thought I’d love and then switch to immediately. But then I realized basically every gym gives 1-5 day passes and I could go to the gym free for almost three weeks. Fine by me!

After trying out the second new gym though, I realized I could write a post comparing all the chain gyms I was trying out. I’ve never seen anyone do anything like this, and I love putting out content that I know can help you guys. So, today I’m going to be comparing four popular gyms that operate around the US: Planet Fitness, Crunch Fitness, LA Fitness, and Anytime Fitness. (People really need to get more creative with their gym names it seems)

Planet Fitness

Planet Fitness is the one gym on here I’ve used the most. My mom, my sister, and my boyfriend all have (or had) black memberships here so I used to tag along with them as their free guest. I’ve been to at least three different locations as well.

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Why I Switched to Decaf

January 13, 2019

It’s so easy to get addicted to caffeine. I should know because I’ve become addicted multiple times over just the past three years. So last summer I made the conscious decision to drink decaf.

Telling people I drink decaf usually gets me the same reactions I get as when I tell people I’m a math major. Picture people with their jaw dropped, eyes bugging out and whining, “Really? Ew how!?” To which I always say, “It’s actually not that bad.”

I actually did a small experiment two years ago where I went three weeks without coffee. If I could go almost a month without any coffee, then I was pretty sure I could go forever with almost exclusively drinking decaf. I say almost because sometimes I do forget to ask for decaf, or I get regular caffeinated coffee if I’m really struggling that day. But I only keep decaf coffee in my apartment, which means I can drink and make coffee whenever I want without losing any sleep.

Before I give away the whole post in the first 200 words, let actually get to the the big reasons why I made the switch.

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I Tried to Eat Vegan for a Week

November 11, 2018

Sooo I tried to eat vegan for a week. Keyword being tried. There were a few mishaps, but none were on purpose! I’ll get more into those later, but first let me explain why I wanted to try this challenge.

I’ve been vegetarian a little over two years. I started it because I started to dislike the taste and texture of meat and it soon evolved into also advocating animal and the planet’s health. I’m not one of those in your face vegetarians. When I’m out with friends I don’t tell them how gross I think their steak and bacon bits are. I don’t say anything unless they bring it up. I wanted to make sure I said this so you didn’t think I was telling you that you have to try to eat more vegetarian or vegan. You don’t have to, it’s just honestly better for you and the world if you do. And I have the 11-page paper to back it up that I literally sent to a co-worker after we got into a heated debate. (You’re more than welcome to read it, too).

That note aside, I realized a while ago that I actually eat vegan a lot without realizing. Lots of foods you eat are probably vegan, too! Pasta, bread, fruits, veggies, rice, almond milk, coconut yogurt. All vegan. So I thought I’d try to eat vegan for a week to see if it was easy and if I could make the switch from vegetarian to vegan. Read more…

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