Eating & Drinking Options Along the Great LA Walk

 

No ocean views at the end of this year's walk, but that's OK.

I can't believe it's time for the Great LA Walk again this Saturday, my favorite of the organized urbanhikes in the area. This time, walkers will be tackling "the Valley" with the fearless Franklin Avenue leading a 17+ mile hike down Ventura Blvd from Woodland Hills to Universal City, then an upward swing to NoHo via Lankershim Blvd.

Of course, equally exciting is the prospect of checking out some of the eats/drinks in the area, since I don't find myself in this area all that often...

...and this quickly turned into a behemoth list of a to-trys & to-revisits, so figured I might as well share this map with fellow Great LA Walkers too.
Hopefully, this will disprove any notion of the Valley being devoid of good food & drinks. Whether you want something casual but tasty (Mendocino Farms, BatterFish), more exotically ethnic eats (e.g. Apey Kade, DarbinZ), a refreshing glug of potent potables (Boneyard Bistro, Murph's, The Local Peasant) or a guilt-free, healthy bite (LYFE Kitchen, SunCafe), there's something on the map that should fit the bill. And failing all else, I also put in a few markets for stocking up on hiking provisions.

Now the hard part is figuring out where I will be stopping along the way... (asides from the official afterparty @ District Pub, obviously.)

Embracing fitness for the new year...

A shadow selfie during one of my urbanhikes
around Socal.

... I know, not a very novel concept around this time of year, when gyms are filled to brim, workout classes are booked to the max, and people are generally scrutinizing every calorie they consumed & burned.

But for the Type B me, I'd much rather take a relaxed approach to fitness & healthfulness. And thus, some of the "goals" for the year include:

• Finding more activities I enjoy and just do them.
• Naturally incorporate more activity throughout the day (taking the stairs, parking further from destination).
• Focus on how I feel after the workout.
• Progress on my exercise performance without over straining.

And for something more concrete, putting in the recommended 150+ minutes of activity a week & hitting my 11,000 daily steps at least 3 days a week.

All of these were notions that were reinforced in a resolution-themed tweetchat I participated in last week under my @foodie_fitness alter-ego*. The two biggest takeaways, doing anything is better than nothing at all . . . and unless you're really enjoying the workout itself—as opposed to its effects—it's all too easy to throw in the towel.

With this in mind, I plan on going on a little "fitness dating" (a term I'm borrowing from Jeanette DePatie a.k.a. The Fat Chick, who co-hosted the tweetchat) this & next month, just so I can have a few more fun workouts to add to my usual mix of tennis, hiking, rollerblading, cardio-dancing & kickboxing, yoga and good ole fashioned jogging.

Here's to a healthy & fit 2014!

*Disclosure: City of Hope, the other co-host of the tweetchat, is where I punch my 9 to 5. But thoughts, opinions expressed on the @foodie_fitness twitter handle are my own.

Keeping Fitness Fun...

I've never been one of those exercise-obsessed folks, but I'm aware - as someone who eats & drinks enthusiastically - an active lifestyle should probably be a priority to keep the scales in balance (metaphorically & literally.)

For me, the best way to do that is to keep that lifestyle fun, so I don't start dreading the routines and consequently, make excuses to avoid it altogether. And given the pleasantness of this summer, here are a few things I've been doing regularly to keep fit & have fun doing it.

Urbanhiking - which also makes for a great opportunity to check out the various scenes of the city that's too often ignored when we just whiz by on wheels.

Not-so-urban (purists will call this "real") hiking - for those times when I just want to escape from the city and get an extra challenge from rocky trails & hilly inclines.

Rollerblading - my more convenient alternative to biking, since I don't have to dismantle/reassemble anything or have to install a rack on my car.

Playing dance performance games (Dance Dance Revolution/Pump It Up/In The Groove) - still the first cardio exercise that I ever truly loved. I only this doesn't do me any wonders on a real dance floor but at least I have a better sense of rhythm & beat.

Tennis - another early exercise love from my grade school days, though I guess I should invest in a new grip.

While these are my favorites, there are still routines I do because of their proven effectiveness (running for calorie burn, weightlifting for strength, pilates/yoga for flexibility, etc.) But it's always reassuring to know that I still have a mix of enjoyable exercises to swap in when I feel like having more fun instead (while still helping me keep fit.)