On Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010 an idea popped in my head while doing a intense chest and back exercise routine. At the time I was doing a routine that was somewhat of a hybrid of my own stuff and P90x. As a student of P90x, one of the amazing things is you build this immense strength that allows you to be quite imaginative in regards to new ways that you can “push your body” for maximum intensity. I mean…even when I went to San Fran for business and I was doing a short workout routine in my hotel room and I found my mind wandering with thoughts like..”Hey, I wonder what would happen if I curled that chair at the desk”…”Hmmm..maybe I can dead-lift this king size bed and get a workout out of it”.

However, one of my favorite curl routines is strip set curls. You can practically “strip set” any exercise and it’s starting out with a heavier weight and working the weight down as you do each set. In the case of strip set curls, I could start with 25-30 pounds dumbbells and max out my reps with that. Then move on to 20 pounds and max out my reps with that. Then 15 pounds, max out, then 10 pounds. No breaks in between. As soon as you hit your last rep, you move down to the next weight. If you’ve never done a strip set routine you might be saying to yourself. “What? 10 pounds, anyone can do that”. Yes, under normal circumstances if you started with the lower weight, it would be quite effortless. But when you do a strip set routine and max out on every weight, by the time you reach the lowest weight your body is screaming from the burn, pain and muscle exhaustion.

“Pushups Around the World” or P.A.W. is a simple strip set pushup routine. Basically you start with several difficult pushup up moves in a decline position, then move down to several moves in the incline position, then move to several plank pushups, and finish off with knee pushups. I would not advise doing this routine in the beginning of a workout. Strip set should be done at the end of your workout routine. It’s what I like to call a “closure”. You close with something that you can push every last drop of energy into and then your done.

Equipment:

1. Two equal height chairs
2. Two yoga blocks
3. Pushup bars
4. A big ole object to place on the chair to get to a deep decline pushup. I used a small and sturdy suitcase but you can use whatever you have available. Just make sure it fits firmly on the chair and it’s sturdy.
5. Exercise mat (optional)

The P.A.W. Routine:


1. Deep decline diamond pushup
Grab your chair and place your firm object on the chair to get a deep decline. In the diagram to the left, the hand position is a standard shoulder length width. In my routine I start off with diamonds. Diamond pushup are pushing together your hands until your pointing and index fingers touch, including your thumbs. Once you put your hands together, it should look something like a spade (think deck of cards) or diamond. Your hands should be positioned right below your chest area.

2. Standard decline shoulder-length pushups (pushup bars)
Remove the big ole object and continue to max-out on declines with just your feet raised on the chair and using a set of pushup bars.

3. Standard decline shoulder-length pushups
Maintain the same arm and hand position, but remove the pushup bars.

4. Standard incline pushup (yoga blocks)
Still using your chair, grab your second chair and place each yoga block on the inner left and right side of each chair. Place each hand firmly on each yoga block and go for it.

5. Standard incline pushup
Maintain same incline position, but now remove the yoga blocks.

6. Plank diamond pushup
Remove both chairs and go into a plank pushup with a diamond hand position.

7. Wide plank pushup (pushup bars)
Go into a wide length plank pushup with pushup bars. Keep your wrists facing forward, with your fingers wide apart. You can adjust how wide you want to go (try not to go too wide or you’ll tip over your pushup bars), but about two hand widths outside your shoulder should suffice.

8. Shoulder length plank pushup
Go into a shoulder length plank pushup without pushup bars.

9. Shoulder length knee pushup
At this point your arms should be on fire and you are probably begging for it to end. Try to end with a big finish on this one and push until you feel smoke coming off your arms and chest.

Conclusion:
Well that’s it. Keep in mind that you can mix and match hand/arm positions on any one of these moves from P.A.W. The above “closure” works for me, but you may want to throw in some one arm pushups, plange pushups, or even a “T-pushup” . The P.A.W. routine is pretty flexible, but as long as you maintain a “strip-set” pattern going from very difficult to easy, you should be good to go.

Props to my boy Elastic Dragon (TJ) for hooking me up with pushup graphics. Homey you did an amazing job.

Photo is by “Heart Throb Tawd”

What Not to Write: More on Bad Veil Headlines
http://muslimahmediawatch.org/2010/07/what-not-to-write-more-on-bad-veil-headlines/

The above article from Muslimah Mediawatch is by far one of the most accurate descriptions of the often misunderstood purpose of the hijab (known to many as “the veil”). Never have I seen such a piece of fabric become such a point of political bias, ideological conjecture and pontification.


Conclusion:
Mind your damn business—women who choose to wear the hijab are not oppressed and juxtaposing independence with the “oppresive” veil (as if they are complete opposites) is by far one of the biggest narrative fallacies out there.

In the wake of the new maniac and psychopath of the month (i.e Joseph Stack who did a homicide-suicide plane crash into I.R.S. building in a failed attempt to kill hundreds to Faisal Shahzad failed Times Square bombing that could of maimed/killed hundreds, maybe even thousands) who in some twisted sense of righteousness believe that killing innocent civilians equates to some deed of salvation or proper retribution for past misgivings. These characters are some of the more obvious examples.

terrorism, act of terrorism, terrorist act (the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear)

Here is my open letter to “The Terrorists”, current and aspiring psychopaths and cowards who might not have thought they “fit the profile”.

Dear Terrorists,(but not limited to)

The “loose cannon” who claim they are Muslim and follow the Quran and Hadiths in Islam who like to blow themselves up (and others) thinking (Allahhualim) that they are going to see Jenna (Heaven). You better go back to the deen of Al-Islam (if you haven’t already blown yourself up) and re-study because your eyes, ears and hearts are sealed with wickedness and the shaytan.
That’s violent terrorism.

Police officers and those in authority in the justice system who beat down and kill civilians mercilessly because you think they are expendable. You have the disease of cognitive dissonance towards those that you’ve concluded have an “otherness” about them which does not fit into your own cultural matrix.
That’s enforcement terrorism. (not to mention xenophobic and prejudice)

The executives and investment houses/banks/firms sitting in their ivory tower embezzling tens of millions and creating questionable investment instruments (money schemes) while undermining the integrity of the financial system. Impoverishing tens of millions for your own selfish benefit.
That’s financial terrorism.

For the murderers and killers who worship gang violence while killing people in your own community including innocent women and children because you want a quick drug profit.
That’s social and urban terrorism.

Those in the halls of Congress (politicians and law makers at the state and federal level) that play up people’s worst fears to usurp power and mislead your constituents with a divide and conquer strategy. Laying in bed with lobbyists and playing both sides of the political coin for your own one dimensional power grab.
That’s political and institutional terrorism.

For the country that goes into other countries claiming (lying) that another country has WMDs (Weapons of Mass Destruction) because so-called intelligent organizations with fancy acronyms “certified the facts” with a faulty threat matrix then mercliessly kills over 150,000 plus innocent civilians (45 9/11s) for almost 10 years while injuring millions then arrogantly occupies the same country creating more violence and misery for the citizens. Or any country that uses occupation as a foundation for foreign policy.
That’s sovereign terrorism.

For the governments and related banks that are in cahoots with one another who indulge in “too big to fail” bailouts and print money like it grows on trees while causing inflation and devaluing the dollar. Not to mention the draconian practice of fractional reserve banking and usury which buries people under so much interest that they are financially impotent.
That’s economic terrorism.

For the racist bigot (and many don’t even know they are and will read this and say, “Oh that’s definitely not me”….well not so fast, it might be you) individual that foolishly claims to believe in God but sympathies with their ethnic, racial, or tribal identity over the inclusive and humanitarian guidelines of all monotheistic ways of life. Now called religion. 
You are a community terrorist. (Not to mention a hypocrite)

For the so-called news organizations that are muliti-milllon dollar partisan hack misinformation “non-thinking” tanks that spew misleading, demeaning, information and purposely confuse the public with empty politically inspired anecdotes and regurgitate sound bites from their corporate/ political slave masters.
That’s information terrorism.

If there was anyone who thought any one group of people have cornered the market on “terrorism”, you have not done your homework.

“He who kills a person without (the latter) having killed another person, it is as if he has killed all of humanity, and he who makes one person survive, it is as if he has caused all humanity to survive” – (32,5) – Quran

A friend of mine asked me about this and I’m sure there are others. I just want to be clear. Although I agree that this South Park episode is disrespective to the faith of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), people in America are given the right to say whatever they want. If we were in an Islamic country, they could say it but there would be consequences. And when I say consequences I’m not talking about death.

The “they should be killed” reaction from a handful of Muslim extremist do not speak for the billions of Muslims and should be viewed with caution. What I do find interesting is these same Muslims are quiet when Isa (Jesus) is ridiculed, and probably more ridiculed via entertainment than any prophet. We have just as much love for Prophet Isa so where is the love there? I find this selective rage…well..lets just say interesting. The fact that a handful of Muslims believe they have the right to selectively murder individuals on site is disturbing.

It would be nice for the MSM (Main Stream Media) to be balanced in their reporting on Muslim matters of various opinions. When Muslims are volunteering and doing good deeds, it’s seldom reported. I could care less what some writer wants to write and so do a lot of my brothers and sisters in Islam. I work with with 3 Muslims at work, a Muslim at the security desk of my building, and been attending prayer congregations at the Masjid since this has gone down, and no one has said a thing. No outrage. No one calling for the death of Trey Parker and Matt Stone. This issue is like a pin in the universe when it comes to matters in the Islamic community.

And when you see the word “Fatwa“, it’s just an opinion, albeit a significant opinion. There is nothing deadly about the word. It just a religious opinion concerning Islamic law. A fatwa is not a small matter and requires a thorough and satisfactory review from respected religious scholars from the Ulema (Muslim scholars trained in Islam and Islamic law). At this present moment I have not heard approval of the fatwa issued by the Revolution Muslims. Also keep in mind that not anyone can issue a fatwa which has global implications.

So in the future when you see this flair up from a micro-set of a particular community, you can refer to this post. Of course you’ll have some people who are more vocal and a bit more animated about this issue, but lets be objective folks. I want to be clear. I do believe that the issue is disrespectful, but I don’t agree with the response from this small group of Muslims. A better approach is to issue a respectful open letter to Trey Parker and Matt Stone explaining why this act is disrespectful. Not that things would change anyway (Allahualim), but the pen is mightier than the sword.

The ink of the scholar is more holy than the blood of the martyr.” Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

This is going to be short (at least relatively shorter than most of my posts), but over the years I’ve had quite a few online and face-to-face discussions/debates/conversations with people from different walks of life on a lot of political topics. Recently, my boy sent me a Facebook thread on a political discussion that pretty much imploded from the start. Rather than engaging in a respectful discussion about the topic, the discussion exploded into character assassination, dehumanization, and parables of mere conjecture.

In many instances these conversations fall into the trap of incessant bickering about labels and empty political affiliations. We bicker about the minutiae then go back into our social corners and preach to our choirs. Is this not madness, how can we get things done with such behavior? From my perspective, we have mastered the art of condescension, egotism, and intellectual show boating at the expense of empathy and a mutual respect for those who have walked a different path than our own. We demonize each other for cheap political points.

While we divide our selves into oblivion the same political psychopaths from the Republican, Democratic party and various Poli-tocrats will walk away with the spoils. We are all naive for not realizing this. Recently, I’ve been digging deep into a new book, You Are Still Being Lied To: The Disinformation Guide to Media Distortion, Historical Whitewashes and Cultural Myths by Russ Kick and there are several passages that reinforce my point:

Intellectuals have a problem: they have to justify their existence
pg 60 —Normand Baillargeion

Hate has the annoying tendency to turn into hypocrisy. I laugh with glee when my side catches the other’s lies and follies. To a point, that’s healthy and cathartic.

But you don’t hear me laughing when the other side returns the favor. Then I discount the point and quietly fume at the attack itself. Don’t they understand our side is the good one?

And so it goes: They smear us; we uncover the truth about them. They have corrupt contributors; we’re creating a badly needed war chest. Their moral difficulties are untenable; ours, if any, are excusable.

Hate also kills thinking.
— Seth Freeman

So here are some basic conversational rules that can lead to more progress and less pomp

1. Stay focused on the topic at hand.
2. Being a blind ideologue just makes you look ignorant of the topic at hand and biased towards others.
3. DO NOT assassinate the other person(s) character. The conversation will turn into a personal screaming match
4. Do your research and source empirical data. Don’t just say something because it sounds good or it’s some talking point that has been regurgitated from the “choir”.
5. Before you speak, think your thoughts through. If you are getting angry or frustrated about a particular response, take the higher ground. Pause, then break down your response into smaller chunks.
6. “Snarkiness”, condescension, and belittling might make for some good comment entertainment, but it can derail a good conversation into the black abyss.
7. Show a bit of empathy, morals and understanding. Try your best to know who your audience is. It’s not what you say but how you say it
8. Now if all this fails and the person you are speaking to still remains ignorant, just walk away. Although very difficult to do because it’s always nice to get the last word, but sometimes you have to agree to disagree before feelings get hurt
9. As a last resort you can just punch the person in the face. It will make you feel good but the moment will be turned into to fisticuffs (just kidding)

Don’t forget good conversational etiquette and manners. We don’t have to agree on every point to get things done.

• Real change in campaign ‘08: Stop hating the other party By Seth Freeman
• You Are Still Being Lied To: The Disinformation Guide to Media Distortion, Historical Whitewashes and Cultural Myths by Russ Kick

So the cost is quite moderate (relative to most gym memberships), you can go to amazon and get the package for about $150 bucks (including s/h and taxes). There are about 12 DVDS which are the following:

1. Chest and Back
2. Plyometrics
3. Shoulders and Arms
4. Yoga X
5. Legs and Back
6. Kenpo X
7. X Stretch
8. Core Synergistics
9. Chest, Shoulders and Triceps
10. Back and Biceps
11. Cardio X
12. Ab Ripper X

P90x is the most intense workout I have ever done. It pushes you to the edge, and creates a regiment that allows your body to maximize it’s fullest potential. What is great is it’s a perfect balance of high intense gut wrenching cardio and muscle blasting/building techniques. There are tons of strength training exercises. If you want to go heavy and build more mass, you can do that, but if you are looking for a more lean cut you can do that to. It’s engineered for that. It has a diet plan but it’s extremely healthy and hearty.

So what do you need

1. P90x ($150.00)
2. Pull up Chin up bar ($30.00)
3. Hexagon Dumbbells (This will run you about $150-200 bucks because you need 4-5 sets of dumbbells [I'll explain shortly])
4. Extra Long Extra Wide Yoga Mat ($25)
5. Recovery Drink ($40 a month)
6. Protein bars ($30 a month)
7. Exercise Bands ($40)
8. Towel
9. Water
10. A Chair

So the first thing you might be saying to yourself is “The hell with this, it’s too expensive. All this dang equipment and food costs”. The first thing you have to say to yourself is, Is it too expensive (you can’t afford it), or it’s too expensive (I didn’t think it would be that much and I only wanted to pay X amount of dollars because I thought it would cost around x dollars). Some of this equipment you might already have but I’ve been working out for over 10 years so most of this stuff I have, except for the extra wide extra long yoga mat and a set of 25 pound dumbbells. Most of these are one time costs except for the monthly costs. Another question you should ask yourself is, how much is your health worth? $200? $300? $400? Can you really put a price on health?

So let’s talk about dumbbells for a moment. the $150-200 bucks is assuming that you don’t have any dumbbells at home. I use 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 paired dumbbells for my workout. Depending on your strength and how fit you are you might need a lower or higher range. A general rule is whatever weight you can curl (standing dumbbell curl) comfortably four about 8-12 reps, get 4 pairs down and one pair up, so if you can curl 25 pounds comfortably you would get 5, 10, 15, 20, and one 30 pound set dumbbells. This is a general rule and can change based on your level of strength.

To be honest I don’t follow the program to a “T”, but I do 95% of the dietary guidelines. I might have missed a protein bar here or there, and I don’t use any recovery drinks because I was getting huge migraines from the recovery drink (Endurox R4), so I just use a whey protein with a glutamine/amino acid supplement for my recovery drink.

The biggest value to P90x is it encourages a healthy lifestyle change. I was pretty healthy before but now I’m taking it to another level. I feel so amped and pumped every day. Make sure that you heed to all the warnings because this is a serious workout. Make sure you do the P90X fitness test, and take your time. I stumbled a lot in the beginning because the program is very difficult, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get through it and be successful. I have two words for you. BRING IT!

• Official Site from Beachbody: P90x
• Hexagon Dumbbell sets
• MaxMat™ 1/4″ Extra Thick, Extra Long, and Extra Wide Yoga and Exercise Mat
  (84″ x 36″)
• Kulae Hot Yoga Hand Towel Ocean
  (I know it might seem a bit insane to spend about $18 bucks for one hand towel but this towel is insane. The amount of sweat that will be pouring off you, you’ll need it. You can suck up the Atlantic Ocean with this towel)
• Recovery Drink Reviews

I didn’t even intend to write a post today but I found a very interesting link from Kimberly Butler, a well known photographer, who has put together a spectacular short vlog series on the corporatization, politicization and dehumanization of media, or what she calls the “medium”. For the most part, I don’t watch any of the major news organizations because there is so much misinformation, sensationalized content, back biting and hearsay that it’s a complete waste of time. Not to mention you can get to the truth of most things without watching the major news stations anyway. For the most part I seldom listen or watch any television/entertainment to allow my mind not to be bombarded and warped by media frameworks of falsification. Many of you have heard me mention the book Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman or such “media truthologists” as Jarad A Ball, who is an Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at Morgan State University. The following videos speak to many of the criticisms they’ve leveled against the explosion of disinformation inside the walls of many global media companies.

As mentioned in Daniel T Willingham’s Why Students Don’t Like School: A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What It Means for the Classroom or what could of easily been called Why Humans Find Cognitive Thinking on Truth Difficult, this quote from the book sums up why we constantly stumble when dealing with new and useful information. Proper background knowledge helps to identify useful information. As the saying goes, “You can’t know what you never knew“:

Background Knowledge Is Necessary for Cognitive Skills

Not only does background knowledge make you a better student, but it also is necessary to be a good thinker. The processes we most hope to engender in our students-thinking critically and logically-are not possible without background knowledge.
pg 28 —Willingham

One thing I realized about the usefulness of any product is if you bring it home and you immediately start using it, you clearly have made a smart purchase. The first set of awesome products we reviewed had a more “baby product’ feel to it. These set of products have more of a “fitness” feel to it. As I stated on I got Purple on the Brain, my wife and I are getting serious about our health and now the time has come. So lets “carry on”, shall we?

Garlic Crusher/Press

There is something very magical about this press. Very similar to the apple corer/slicer, you say to yourself, “Something so simple can’t possible do what it says it does?”. Well it does and very well. Not only does this thing make mincing garlic a no brainer, but it peels the thin skin off the garlic too. No matter how many times I press I want to find more garlic to press. Sometimes I don’t want to take out the food processor and this makes for a quick chopping of garlic in less than 3 seconds. Like many products that have been around for ages, many companies have added ergonomic accents (rubber handles, hand shaped metal, etc) to make mincing garlic even more effortless. Press, crunch, your done!

2-in-1 Lemon and Lime Squeezer

My wife and I use a lot of lemons in our cooking and one of the most annoying tasks is squeezing lemons for lemon juice. Many times your getting sprayed in the face by rogue spurts of lemon spritzes and by the time you’re done squeezing, you feel like you’ve been peppered sprayed in the face. Not anymore. This tight little tool allows you to squeeze every single drop of lemon or lime with no rogue splatters from the squeeze. It has holes right in the bottom of the metal squeeze cup so juice comes out nice and neat. It’s a bit on the pricey side for a kitchen gadget of it’s size (Retails 19.99), but it’s worth it. Your eyes don’t have to sting anymore.

P90X

Welcome to the “mother of all workouts”. I bought P90x about 2 years ago and I was so out of shape that I failed the initial fitness test. Of course I tried to do the program at the time and ended up imploding my body. So I took a hiatus from P90x and now I’m back on the program. I have not had anything that has pushed me so hard as P90x. It’s a complete end to end exercise program that can slim you down or build mass. Coupled with a proper diet, you don’t really need to do anything else. I’ve been doing the program for almost 2 weeks and my endurance, strength, and stretching are up on all levels. If you are really interested in a true exercise challenge, this is it.

Extra Large/wide Yoga Mat

I bought this because my current yoga mat did not accommodate the space needed for P90x. I can do big moves and still stay on the mat. It’s wide, long, and is thicker than most mats so when I land on it, my feet don’t make a sound. I have hard wood floors so this mat is critical for my high intensity workout. Even if you don’t plan to buy P90x or some other intense workout regiment (i.e. Insanity) it will give you the needed space if you are tall or you just want ample space for your Tittibhasana pose (Firefly).

Over the Sink Grippboard Cutting board with Pop up Strainer

Yet another product that has transformed our kitchen. It’s like adding another counter-top to your kitchen. One of the most annoying tasks is washing and cutting vegetables/fruit. Usually I have to take out the strainer, then take out the cutting board while watching the water drip off of the veggies or fruit flooding the entire counter-top and sometimes rolling off the counter top then onto the floor. There are so many benefits to this “frankenstein” strainer/cutting board I don’t know where to start. First thing it’s rubber no-slip ergonomic handles/edges make it easier to grab and place right over your kitchen sink. It will fit most standard sized kitchen sinks. Obviously you get this nice big cutting board space (almost 1 3/4 ‘ feet of space). The icing on the cake is this nice rubber collapseable pop-up strainer that you can use to wash your fruits and veggies. Keep in mind that you can remove the strainer too. Sometimes I’ll use it as a temporary garbage collector. Like when I’m cutting strawberries and I can cut the cap/stems and dump them in the strainer. When I’m done, I just remove the strainer, flip it upside-down and dump the stuff in the garbage. This nifty tool will add a certain level of “Mickey deez” efficiency to your food preparation time.

Munchkin Powdered Baby Formula Dispenser

If you’ve ever tried pouring powdered baby formula from a plastic bag or the scooper that comes with the container in an opening of a baby bottle which is a little bit bigger than a quarter while inside a moving vehicle or subway, you’ll look like you rolled around in flour for about 15 minutes. The Munchkin Powdered Baby Formula Dispenser not only allows you to have some dignity while not looking like you’ve hung out with Tony Montana for 5 hours, but it allows you to safely get all the baby formula into the bottle. It has 3 separate compartments which allows you to carry the exact amount you need for each feeding. This has truly been a great buy.

Schwin Spinner® FIT Bike

My wife Sarah is a spinner fanatic. She actually taught spinner classes in Saudi Arabia and from what she tells me, people hated her spinner passion. Not hate in a “I hate your guts, I wish I could smack you with a rusty screw driver” type of way, but hate as in “Oh no, Sarah is going to push us to the edge until our legs separate from our body and start running away from the spinner class”. I think I noticed a subtle change in personality when my wife talks about spinning. Her eyes light up with spin wheels of excitement. Kind of the same way I’m about P90x. You would think I was a spokesperson for Beach Body. However we just ordered the bike and it’s on the way. Sarah has been looking for an efficient way to get her fitness level up and rather than going to the gym (which is almost impossible with a child at home), we decided to bring the gym to the house.

Ottoman (not the empire)

My wife and I have three ottomans in the living room. It’s really a nice and stylish way of dealing with a space problem. One of the great things about ottomans are they come in a thousand different textures, styles, and sizes. With some proper digging, you can find the right style for the right price. I’m pretty sure we’ll be on our 4th ottoman purchase down the road. We’ll probably be looking for a ottoman to store our Saud’s toys and books.

Here is a bit of history about the ottoman: Traditionally, it is believed that the ottoman takes its roots from the divan, which is essentially a long, backless seat or padded bench with cushions to lean against. In fact, in some parts of world, the terms “divan” and “ottoman” are still interchangeable. The divan style of furniture was popularly used in the Middle Eastern council chambers of the government agency called Diwan, from which it got its name. The ottoman, at least as we know it today, is not believed to have been invented by Ottoman Turks, but was called so in deference to its exotic roots. In point of fact, the ottoman most resembles the Moroccan (North African) pouf, which is a thick cushion used as a seat. (word for word I copied all of this from here.

Multi-position pull up chin up bar

If there is one piece of exercise equipment that should be the center of your day-to-day workout, it’s the a door pull-up bar. The now popular Iron Gym Chin Up Pull Up bar has become quite popular but before the Iron Gym there was a long hot water pipe in the basement of my mother’s house that I wrapped with old t-shirts for each hand which I used to do pull-ups on when I was in high school. Also known as “Da Pipe” among my brothers, this was literally the first “Iron Gym” for me. The pipe cut across the entire length of the basement. It was very stable. One of the issues with “Da Pipe” is the circumference of the pipe was thick so you had to knock out your reps before your hand started slipping. I wrapped it with t-shirts for gripping and to protect my hands from the heat. Nowadays you have tons of different manufactures improving on the door pull up chin up bar. It’s perfect for strength training and is the ultimate upper body workout. Just about every muscle is used to do a pull up. Unlike pull up bars in the early days, you don’t need any screws. You just have to check the width of your door to make sure the pull-up bar of choice fits. In addition to this, I would chose a multi positioned pull up bar (in the picture). If you compare the Iron Gym to the Iron Gym Extreme you’ll see what I’m talking about. More positions equal more parts of the back you can work out.

Reebok Push Up Bars

I just got these push up bars last week and for years I’ve shied away from push up bars because..well…I thought they were short-cuts to doing real push ups. I said to myself “Nothing will be better than using your own hands to the floor, this is the real way”. Then the first time I used a push up bar I realize that it’s a lot more difficult to do push ups with a push up bar, not to mention you can get way lower because your hands are raised about 4 inches from the ground. The Reebok Push Up bars have 3 levels and this really spongey grip so you stay focused on the push up and not the discomfort in your hands or wrist. The position of the push up bar makes doing a push more natural and for those push up enthusiasts, know that your wrist can go through a pounding over the years. This is yet another P90x accessory but I use them even when I’m not doing P90x. What is also nice about these bars are they are sturdy and they don’t tip over if you want to go wide. There are a multitude of companies that manufacture push up bars but Reebok has clearly done their research and know what works.

Honorable mentions

Lawry’s Seasoning Salt

I’ve have been using this “secret” seasoning for years to spruce up the flavor of many my dishes. Mostly I use it as part of a collection of other seasonings to pre-season my lamb, beef, or chicken the day before I cook the meat. Other than some weird chemical called Tricalcium Phosphate (prevents caking) most of the ingredients of Lawry’s are stuff you already have in your spice cupboard. I want to send a shout out to Lawrence Frank and Theodore Van de Kamp for being so creative and imaginative with your spices. If you your interested in the history you can go here and if your that big of a seasoning salt fanatic you can join the fan group on Facebook then not have any more friends after they find out you are part of the Lawry’s Seasoning Salt Fan group. Amazingly they have over 600 members.

So over the last couple years, my wife and I have collected a set of really nifty products that have just…well…made our life easier. I would even go a step further and say these products have transformed how we do things at home. Some of the products were gifts from different family and friends, while others were products we bought ourselves. If you don’t own them you should go to the store and buy them..wait a minute…that was kind of Jonesee-ish thing for me to say. First, make sure you have the cash, don’t buy it on credit cards (unless you are going to pay for it immediately) and don’t buy it because you want to be my friend. If you have fulfilled all these requirements..go for it..now here is the list:

Immersion Blender

To be honest, I have no idea where I heard about this product, but someone told me that we should own a hand-blender. The first time I saw this product, it reminded me of the handle of a lightsaber. However, over time this product has become a staple of our kitchen. I use it for porridge, smoothies, sauces, mixing, etc. I think my mother gave it to us as a housewarming gift. The key to the blender is all the extra gadgets that come with it, especially the chopper. We use this to cut up our veggies (garlic, onion, pepper, ginger, etc) for our meats. It will cut your food preparation time in half.

Space Bags

The first time I saw the infomercial for this product, I said “What a Scam”. Then we realized that we were running out of space in the closets and we were scrambling for space. I was like a junky (literally because I had so much junk in my apartment) looking for a “space” hit. Enter the Space Bag, and it completely changed our life. This thing really does work, and it’s cool seeing all your clothes, comforters, and children just shrink 20% of it’s normal size. Okay just kidding, our son Saud does not go in the bag and I wouldn’t advise using the space bag for this purpose. Now keep in mind that the infomercial really exaggerates (just like the picture) the space capability of the bags, but it’s pretty darn close. The key to the space bag is to not create more space so you can buy more junk. In conjunction with getting rid of stuff you don’t need and using the space bag, your spacial needs will increase exponentially.

Baby Bjorn: Active Carrier

We just recently bought this wonderful product and we replaced our old baby carrier by Mothercare. Before I get into how smart the product engineers are for Baby Bjorn lets first get into how the product engineers from Mothercare need to go back to the drawing board when it comes to product design. There are so many straps on this thing and in the most odd places that only a human octopus (if there was such a thing) would be able to put this thing on. Now lets go to baby carrier bliss, with the Baby Bjorn Active Carrier. Not only do we use this when we’re on the go, but we also use it to put Saud to sleep. I’ll just put him in the carrier and sway him, and nighty-night. Not to mention my wife uses it with Saud while she is doing things around the house. It’s the greatest thing since slice bread. Easy to put on and easy to take off. This is a one person job, you don’t need two people to do this. The straps are colored coded with snap-in safety locks so you know that everything is strapped in perfectly. This really changed our life, and with a child running around at 9 months, it’s even more of God send. Alhamdulilah.

Breville Juicer Elite

Okay there is one problem with me listing this product…uh I don’t own it now, but I will own it soon. The current juicer I have, the Jack Lalanne Power Juicer is good, but I know it’s on it’s way out. After using it roughly 2 times a week for a couple months, I can see it that it’s about to go. I’ve heard great things about the Breville juicer and if you are really into juicing, best to go with this model. BTW, I don’t work for Breville, I just think this juicer is great. I mean look at it…it just makes you want to not only juice your veggies and fruits, but probably juice your socks, books, batteries, etc. I mean look at that thing…it can probably juice steel.

Apple corer/slicer

This is one of those products that when you look at it, you just can’t believe that it actually does what it says. In it’s simplicity is where the genius is. This has come very handy for making my son’s food, as we make all his baby food from scratch. What is really nice about this product is it’s cheap, sturdy, and effective. With all the new product design science and ergonomics flowing into the kitchen gadgetry industry you can find a corer/slicers that have nice rubber plates with palm-friendly handles to make it real easy to put all your force on top of the apple to core and slice it in one clean swoop. You can also use it for picnics and gatherings because it allows you to core and slice a lot of apples or pears in a short amount of time.

Logitech Illuminated keyboard

One thing you notice when you have a new baby in the house is you have to be extremely quiet. Every single thing wakes the baby up. A creak of the wood you step on can wake them up. A thought of worrying about waking them up, can wake them up. Now that my wife and I have self-trained ourselves under the school of house robbery and ninja techniques, we can probably walk through a lion’s den drenched in lambs blood and go unnoticed. The Logitech Illuminated keyboard was the answer. Being the techno-addict that I am, I’m always on the computer. Sometimes my wife would be feeding Saud in the next room and my relentless typing would wake the baby up. At the same time we’d have to keep the room darker than darth vadar’s helmet so Saud would remain sleeping, once it was time to put him in his crib. With the Logitech’s laptop-silent keys and keyboard light show I was in techno paradise. Even if you don’t have a child, get this keyboard.

Titan Peeler

This is the second infomercial product that made the list, and once again, I had my doubts. First off, this peeler is insane. Titan is really an understatement. You can peel in any direction. This thing can probably peel rust off of metal and keep on peeling. It’s quick, sharp, and easy to clean. It comes with two peelers, small and large. And when they show them peeling Pineapples, it’s not a joke. You can really do that with the Titan peeler. Great addition to our arsenal of kitchen utensils and gadgetry.

Libman Tornado Mop

It took some time to find this mop, but this is my second Libman Tornado Mop (got rid of the first one because the mop head got really dirty but didn’t realize I could of just bought the mop head replacement and not the whole mop). However, what is really nice about this mop is it has 3 green scrub bands sown right into the mop head to prevent tangling and it really uproots that dirt that just doesn’t want to budge. If that wasn’t enough it has this ratchet design lock that allows you to twist and hold the mop head in a squeeze position to squeeze out the water without touching the mop head. I mean…who wants to get all down and dirty old-school style while breaking your back and hands squeezing putrid water from a mop? They really took all the hard work out of mopping and engineered it into a mop with ease.

ACME Bags™ Workhorse

In our quest to “get green” my wife and I started searching for the ultimate reusable shopping bag. I saw the insulated ones at Whole Wallet..oh I mean Whole Foods, but I didn’t want to be a walking advertisement for Whole Foods. It’s enough that they take all my dollars. I don’t need to give them free advertising. So we were looking for a nice reusable bag that was strong and durable while keeping an eye on costs. After looking at Baggu and ACME, we decided on ACME. As you can see in the picture this ingenious little bag folds into a tiny bag smaller than the size of deck of cards which is stitched into the inside of the bag. If your going to look for “go green” products I would suggest going to reusablebags.com. Although the Workhorse edition of the ACME Bag is great, you will probably need a couple ACME Bags™ EarthTote bags to round out the all the reusable bags you’ll need for grocery shopping. The workhouse edition can be easily dropped in a pocket or handbag. It’s actually one of things that I carry with me when I leave the house. So when I do the three pocket check (now the 4 pocket check), it’s house keys, wallet, cellphone, and acme bag. It’s kind of cool just rolling up to the register with my little pouch and then…BAM! it’s bag. You should see the stares. Sometimes I wonder if people think I’m unfolding a mask to rob the joint. However, it’s a great bag and very durable.

Da Innanet’ (the Internet)

Although the the internet is not necessarily a product, it’s more of a service that you have access to (home, workplace, public, etc). I have the internet as my 10th product because without it I wouldn’t be able to find all these great products. I only knew they were great products after scouring the net for reviews from various sources. Not to mention finding great books that can give you insightful information on just about anything you want to know. The internet is your friend. Use it wisely.

Honorable mentions

Northface Women’s Arctic Parka

Let’s get right to it. My wife hates the cold and since she’s been in NY, she has been shivering every since. We bought different jackets, but nothing worked. So this past December, Sarah (my wife) bought the Northface Arctic Parka. You want to know how warm this thing is? Well my wife doesn’t even know whether it’s cold or not outside anymore..Yeah that’s how warm it is. You want to know how warm it is? When people stand next to my wife and she is wearing the parka, people next to her get warm. (like those outside restaurant lamps). You want to know how warm it is? The sun goes to Northface for warming tips and techniques. There must be little nanomites creating mini campfires in the lining of the jacket to keep my wife so warm. She loves her parka.

Beaba: Baby Cook 4 in 1 Food Prep & Blender

As you can see I have quite a few baby related products on this list. Before I bring this post to an end, I have to mention this genius of a product. This cute little blender allows you to create baby food from scratch. Whether you are using meat, veggies, fruits, whatever, this blender can do it. As a matter of fact the recipe book that we bought with the blender are meals that you can probably make for yourself, and not just your baby. It will cut down on the cooking time and you know where the food is coming from because you made it yourself. With all the preservatives and chemicals in a lot of food (including baby food), we figured this was our best option. We buy organic veggies/fruits/halal meat and make the baby food with this machine. It’s bit on the pricey side, but worth every penny.

One thing that is really fascinating about juicing is the beautiful array of colors that come out of the juicer. It’s almost like having access to your own personal “vegetable rainbow” right inside of your house. No rain required for this rainbow. Since our trip to the New York Botanical Gardens, my wife and I are really getting back in the swing of things in regards to our health . I’m not exactly sure if somehow we were subliminally hit with some under the subconscious brain-wave signal by the NYBG, in a “Manchurian Candidate” type of way, but we have just been nuts for getting our diet and body correct. I mean, really correct.

We just signed up for a new gym membership at Planet Fitness (Sorry Bally’s but we are cancelling our membership). This past weekend we watched Food, Inc, which is probably the most compelling documentary on understanding the politics and business of food production I have ever seen. I would suggest everyone watch this film. Okay so what does this have to do with having purple on the brain? We just started juicing again and yesterday we had a tomato, apple and beet drink. Keep in mind that I really hate beets, but in juice form with apples, I love it. One thing I noticed is the rich beet purple that seems to overtake most drinks regardless of other vegetables or fruits that are added. Hence I had purple on the brain. Not to mention there have been studies through biochemical evidence that uridine monophosphate (UMP) found in beets, apparently increases brain synapse activity. Right now we have the JackLaLanne Power Juicer, but there is a bit of pulp and it is a bit damp. I’m not sure how much this thing is going to hold up because the beets really put stress on the blade and motor. I have my eyes on the Breville Juice Fountain Elite Juicer 800JEXL. Inshallah I’lll get that next year. It’s the Bentley of juicers. More extraction and less pulp, not to mention dry pulp.

Our new juicing regiment comes with a diet full of fruits and vegetables. Not like we weren’t doing this before but we are really getting serious about this. So here is our short “healthy thinking” to-do list:

1. Juice at least two times a day
2. Exercise daily for about 30 minutes to an hour (minimum)
3. Have fruits and vegetable with every meal
4. Sweets and fried foods are on the weekends. (and maybe sneak one treat during the week)
5. Keep our mind and thoughts clean. Be careful of what type of information we take in, especially information that falls into the category of tel-LIE-vision, or HIS-story. All information is not created equal nor is the content trivial or innocent.

• Farm Forward
  Farm Forward implements innovative strategies to promote conscientious food choices, reduce farm animal suffering, and advance sustainable agriculture.
  http://www.farmforward.com
• Save a Cow, Eat a Vegetarian? Let’s All Agree: Factory Farming is the Real Evil, Not Vegans
  http://planetgreen.discovery.com/food-health/cow-factory-farming-evil.html
• Breville Juice Fountain Elite 800JEXL
  http://www.brevilleusa.com/juicing/die-cast-juice-fountain-elite.html
• The Big Book of Juices and Smoothies: 365 Natural Blends for Health and Vitality Every Day
  http://www.amazon.com/Big-Book-Juices-Smoothies/dp/184483266X/ref=pd_sim_b_6