Are you feeling the pandemic blues when it comes to your daily exercise? Don’t despair, just follow three of my 30 Steps to Everlasting Youth: Keep it Simple, Embrace Failure and Let it Go. Just like me – since I’ve been having a whale of a time getting back into my old fitness groove!
In today’s Tola Talks, I also discuss Dogecoin and how I agree with Elon Musk and Mark Cuban when it comes to caution investing as well as DOGE reaching $1 (for sure) plus becoming a long term ‘store of value’, i.e., real currency. Note that I’m a happy HODL of the cryptocurrency and look forward to accepting it at my Tola Yoga Fitness & Wellness centers…one day soon!
Have an awesome day everyone…and get your workout in! Peace – R
EIGHTY FOUR AUTHORS AWARDED THE FIREBIRD BOOK AWARD
April 2021 – Speak Up Talk Radio announced the winners of 2021’s first quarter FIREBIRD BOOK AWARDS contest. Eighty four winners were announced in 98 categories.
Authors and publishers from around the world submitted their work to the Firebird Book Awards. A panel of 12 judges within the writing and publishing space then read every book and independently scored each entry according to a set of standardized criteria that evaluates the quality of the writing as well as production aspects. Only entries with the highest of scores are awarded the coveted Firebird.
Patricia J. Rullo, founder of the Firebird Book Awards, says, “This quarter’s entries were a joy to read and speak to the talent out there. At Speak Up Talk Radio, our mission is to offer radio interviews and podcasting services to help authors expand their reach. In addition to additional prizes, our winners have the opportunity to be interviewed and aired on iHeart Radio, Pandora, as well as 50 additional online venues, giving them new ways to speak up and share their work.”
Pat adds, “We’ve included a charitable component to our awards by making all entry fees tax-deductible to the author. In return, we personally make and send handmade fun and whimsical pillowcases to women and children in homeless shelters via Enchanted Makeovers, a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization. All entry fees fund this project. In this way, authors can get notoriety for their work while doing good for others. It’s been such a rewarding venture for everyone.”
The Firebird Book Awards run quarterly contests so authors can receive recognition on a timely basis. Authors from all genres, mainstream, independent, and self-published are welcome. Additional winning authors and titles as well as entry information is available at https://www.speakuptalkradio.com
How to Drink from the Fountain of Youth is available in paperback and eBook (English & Chinese) plus the Audiobook narrated by Rich. For information visit www.richtola.com
Just like it’s always best to finish the year strong, the same goes for starting strong, also know as ‘like a bat outta hell’, as the rock legend Meatloaf once sang. At the very least be sure to set your sights, aka your specific goals for 2021 – or the first six months like I do – and make sure to respect your temple along the way. Every single day that is, because who doesn’t want to stay healthy, vibrant and young while drinking from the Fountain of Youth?
In the New Year we also lowered our prices to make it easier for anyone to get motivated by my old-school “everlasting youth” advice that’s very practical and doable and most importantly, effective. Because the proof is in the pudding. Always. Not to mention a little fun and fast-paced inspiration from the plethora of wild and witty stories recounted throughout my life’s colorful journey.
Rich Tola’s books on Amazon, Kindle and Audible (Fountain of Youth coming soon!)
Whenever you find yourself getting off-track when it comes to your fitness regime or worse, your body weight, no worries. Simply Self-Correct.
Anyone who has read my memoir knows that Chapter 67 is one of my favorites and is called just that, Self-Correct. Because it’s all about getting back on-track ASAP as soon as you start to deviate from your daily fitness responsibilities as well as from your ideal weight.
Case in point: Last month I gained the COVID 5, that is to say, 5 pounds of extra weight due to the overconsumption of food (mostly cookies) during this crazy pandemic. Not sure about you, but the prolonged ‘safer-at-home’ decree has really put a damper on my fitness routine, not to mention my usually good eating habits. So rather than get mad or frustrated, I confidently chose to Self-Correct and I’m right back where I started…5 pounds lighter.
How did I do it? I increased my aerobic exercises to 8 miles of walking per day (up from 7 miles/day last month) and decreased my weight training exercises by about 50%. Thus, I kept my total monthly exercise percentage the same (12%) while increasing my total calories burned. That said, with a little time and energy and discipline (of course), anyone can make the right choice versus the easy choice. For more self-correcting details, check-out my book on Amazon.
Here’s my exercise report card for May 2020:
20 minutes/day of Abs/Stretching and Tola Yoga = 10 hours
20 minutes/day of bodyweight training = 10 hours
25 flights of stairs/day = 750 (about 3 hours)
8 miles/day of fast-paced walking = 250 miles (about 60 hours)
7 minutes/day of standing balancing poses = 3 hours
Have an awesome June everyone…and get your workout in! Peace – R
Hey everyone, hope you’re thinking, speaking and feeling positive, and most importantly, hope you’re getting your daily workouts in!
I certainly am. Not to mention I’m especially positive and grateful because today marks the 10-year anniversary of my feature film, Boulevard Zen, where “Life’s a boulevard and sometimes you get stuck.” What a day it was back in 2009, my first Hollywood premiere. Flash forward 10 years and our protagonist, the no-bullshit, east-coast attorney turned yoga master, Bobby D’Angelo, is at it again in my award winning short film, Zen Diaries: The Lockdown.
Watch the Boulevard Zen movie trailer and the 21-minute short below, plus check-out our theme song, Life’s Boulevard, performed by LA’s Best Male Vocalist of the Year, Erick Macek. Stay focused on your goals everyone, and keep rockin’ your dreams. Peace – R
Boulevard Zen is also available on Amazon.com for $9.99 click here
Like a moth to a flame, I’ve been drawn to Dallas.
I’m not sure if it’s the richness of early American history dating back to its original settlement as a good trading post in 1839, or the plethora of diverse and interesting neighborhoods like Uptown, Deep Ellum, Bishop Arts District, Downtown, Lower Greenville or the M Streets (where I landed). Or perhaps it’s that cosmopolitan feel along with that “smell the roses” Texan mindset.
Regardless of whatever “it” is, Dallas certainly has me thinking I’ll be here for the rest of the summer. Not that America’s #1 city to live, aka Austin, wasn’t a cool place to explore for a couple of months, not to mention the wonderful staff and yoga students at Castle Hill Fitness who loved Tola Yoga ..thanks everyone, especially Reesa, Autumn, Amy and Kat!
There’s just something about the Big D that reminds me of my Philadelphia roots and tickles my fancy in less than a week.
Have an awesome day everyone, and get your workout in! Peace – R
Another day, another workout…in another great American city:
Austin, Texas
How fortunate I am to experience and explore the #1 place to live in the United States for the past two years (U.S. News & World Report), the “City of the Violet Crown” with its unofficial slogan “Keep Austin Weird”, the state capital of Texas as well as the southernmost state capital in the contiguous 48 states, the “Live Music Capital of the World” and of course, home to the music, film and interactive festival, South by Southwest (SXSW), not to mention the Austin City Limits Festival(ACL) held every year in Zilker Park.
Austin also marks the 7th major U.S. city in as many years where I’ll be teaching my fitness style of Tola Yoga through the end of July. Because no doubt life is all about the journey while relentlessly pursuing your passion, regardless of where it takes you.
Have an amazing Father’s Day everyone, and get your workout in!
