Photo: Flamingo Pictures (Shutterstock)

Supporting black businesses can be tricky if you don’t know where to look. Thankfully, several apps have tried to fix this, making it easier for you to find both commonly used and unique items that you need – all from Black business owners.

Official Black Wall Street

The Official black wall The Street App pays homage to the all-black Tulsa, Oklahoma community that was burned to the ground by white supremacists in the 1920s. The app continues the legacy of black commerce by compiling a directory of black businesses from across the country and using location technology to find businesses near you.

We buy black

We buy black is called “Black Amazon” and offers users everyday products – from detergents and toothpaste to books and shoes – made by black companies. The website’s simple layout and neat categories make shopping so convenient that you’ll wonder if you even need Amazon.

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With us

While the other apps are for US companies, With us offers a global list of BIPOC, women and LGBTQIA owned companies to choose from. The app is updated every week with new entries provided by consumers and other business owners. The website is beautiful, with vivid images, and proudly displays its vision of inclusivity for business success. You can search by categories like music and culture, ally approved people, health and wellness, and even job opportunities. If you feel like surfing, the recommendations section is a useful tool.

Originally published in 2017 and updated February 04, 2021 with new recommendations.

Photo: BublikHaus (Shutterstock)

Jumping is a useful skill in sports like basketball and a great way to work on your explosive power. If you want to jump higher and better, we have some tips for you.

Test your vertical jump

Before you start working on your jumping ability, establish a baseline by figuring out what your vertical jump is. Sometimes gyms have a device to do what it looks like a series of flat blades on hinges. They reach up and try to knock them out of line. The highest one you’ve moved marks the top of your jump.

But when you are at home, there are low tech ways to test. Ball up a piece of duct tape with the sticky side out and tape it to your fingertip. Jump next to a wall and hit the wall on top of your jump to glue the ball to the wall. The difference between the ribbon ball and the tallest one you can reach while standing is the height of your vertical jump.

Another easy way to test that works well on outdoor walls is to just apply some chalk (pick up chalk or chalk on the sidewalk, whatever) to your fingertip. Touch the wall while standing and again while jumping, then measure the difference.

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Learn to land properly

If you are going to jump a lot, make sure you do it safely. Land gently and absorb the force of your landing with your knees and hips bent into a very light squat. Your knees should not collapse when you land or take off, and your feet should be about hip-width apart. Here is a video demonstration of the safe landing principles.

It’s also important not to jump a lot if you’re not used to it. Landing jumps is tough on your body and you need to exercise slowly to get your body used to full plyometric training.

Build strength

While jumping exercises will improve your jumping skills and help you develop strength, you will still need weight training to develop strength. The stronger your legs, the higher you can jump.

USA basketball recommends The drop bar deadlift is the best exercise for building strength to jump. This is a movement that is sort of a hybrid between the squat and deadlift, and builds strength in your hamstrings, glutes, and quads. The technique is also relatively easy to learn.

If you don’t have access to a trap bar, make sure you have some other heavy leg exercises in your routine. Squats, deadlifts, and lunges are some of the most useful.

Build power

Power is not exactly the same as strength. Strength refers to force exerted quickly over time. Jumping itself is a strength exercise, but other strength exercises can help you build strength without the effects of actual jumping.

Despite the name, powerlifting is not suitable. The squat, bench, and deadlift strength are usually not done quickly. One exception that might help with jumping are speed deadlifts. They are exactly what they sound like. Deadlifts are quick and easy. (Sets of three repetitions, say 60% of your max.) Kettlebell swings also work on strength, especially if you make them heavy.

Olympic lifts are classic examples of strength training. The tearing and cleaning and jerking are the lifts performed in competition, but their variations can be useful as part of an exercise program. Perhaps you’ve done Power Clean, Power Snatches, or One-Handed Dumbbell Snatches. All of this requires a quick explosive lift that requires your legs to press against the floor to get your body into an upright position and then immediately bend over to absorb strength – much like what you ask your body to do when jumping .

Practice jumping

If you want to jump better, you actually have to jump. Try some or all of the steps below, but make sure you don’t overdo it on your first day. Work some of these into your routine over time:

• Squat jumps
• Tuck jumps
• Split jumps (like a lunge but alternating feet with each jump)
• Long jumps (as far forward as possible)
• Box jumps

Overcome your fear of box jumps

Box jumps are a special category because there is a bit more going on than just jumping. First, note that very high box jumps often have less to do with your jumping ability than with your ability to pull up your knees to prevent landing. For this reason, many coaches prefer to keep people on medium sized boxes rather than jumping higher and higher.

Second, they can be intimidating. To overcome your fear, start with a very small box to build trust. Even if you’re jumping on an aerobic step or bumper plate on its side, this is still a start. We have a few You can find more tips on box jumps here, take a look and jump!

Photo: Zephyr_p (Shutterstock)

Heating up an entire oven takes a lot of energy, and it can be a little wasteful to use it all to heat a single food (whether it’s a party pizza or a small pork loin). But as anyone who has ever used an oven knows, ovens stay hot and roasted even after they are turned off – that’s the marvel of thermodynamics – so you might as well get that heat working.

For example, let’s say you’ve bought (or baked) a nice baguette to have with your oven-cooked dinner, but all of your butter is (tragically) cool and cold in the refrigerator. Place the butter in a rimmed bowl, set the bowl on the warm oven and let it sit and soften while you set the table. (How quickly it softens depends on how hot the thing ran, so use your best judgment.) If your bread is a little stale, don’t fret. Residual heat can also be used to crisp bread that is a day or two old (Let it run underwater at first it’s really stale).

When a good chunk of time has passed and most of the heat is already seeping out of your oven, you can step up your cheese course by using the final heat to bring a fancy cheese to room temperature. (Room temperature cheese tastes much better as cold cheese.) You can also throw bread dough in there and use it as a proof drawer – but only after it has cooled significantly; You want it to be warm – between 75 and 95ºF – not hot.

I find a warm stove in the morning to be particularly helpful. I will often keep my bacon in the oven after turning it off to keep it hot and I will throw the toast in to toast it well until the eggs are done. (I always cook the eggs last as they have to cook quickly and be served hot.) If your oven wasn’t set too high to begin with, you can even use it as a plate warmer. Nothing ruins a hot egg like a cool plate.

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The company continues Apple’s celebration of black culture and has released new (and beautiful) “Unity” wallpapers. This addition to Apple’s Black Unity Collection follows on from Apple’s introduction Watch faces on the theme of unity, Apple Watches, and Apple Watch bands, available now in every Apple Store.

As a reminder: The Black Unity Collection takes its colors from the pan-African flag and emphasizes: “A symbol that connects people across the African diaspora.” As Apple wrote when it launched its new watch faces:

“Red stands for the blood that binds people in the African diaspora and was shed for their liberation. Black is for the people whose lives are confirmed by the flag. And green is a symbol of the living, natural wealth of Africa, the mother country. “

The new Unity wallpapers are a bit buried on Apple’s website. To find them, drag the Apple Watch Then click on the “More Information” link that appears here:

Screenshot: David Murphy

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The following screen will appear:

Screenshot: David Murphy

Scroll down and you will find the links to the wallpapers for Mac, iPad and iPhone. Click “Get Wallpaper” to download each file, then transfer it to your device as you wish. (As a Windows user, I find it easiest to just upload the wallpaper to the Photos app on icloud.com, but you can use any number of other techniques.)

Screenshot: David Murphy

As a reminder, you can switch your macOS wallpaper by clicking the Apple logo in the top left corner and going System Preferences> Desktop & Screen Saver.

Screenshot: David Murphy

Under iOS / iPadOS you have to go to the option the settings App and navigate to the aptly named background Section. And yes, Apple’s offering is just a single Unity wallpaper for each device. Those of you looking for a fancier option – like a dynamic wallpaper that changes color depending on the time of day – will have it look elsewhere for a similar thematic background. Or you can use too an online tool to create different color-shifted versions of the Unity wallpaper, and then use an app to combine them into a single dynamic wallpaper. This is a bit of work, but it will look great.