ONE WEEK OF FREE CLASSES!
Helping us launch our new session at the studio, we will be offering a week of complimentary classes January 12-17.
Space is limited so please e-mail or phone (250-480-7050) to reserve a space.
Ramblings from behind the desk...
Over the holidays I was reading a book called the "Power of Intention" by Dr. Wayne Dyer. Within the book there came a section about respecting ourselves and it led me to think about this respect as it translates to our New Year's resolutions.
Many of us tackle the New Year's resolution with much enthusiasm and vigor but often with little kindness or respect for ourselves. We sit down and outline all the things that we need to change in order to be a better person physically, mentally and emotionally. We make these lists with an idea that once we have conquered these new habits in our daily routines that our life will improve in some manner. Perhaps it is true; but, how many of us actually take the time to sit down and look at what we do well. What habits, attributes and natural talents do we possess that we do effortlessly already. We should take the time to think about what these are, to write them down and to honor them within ourselves. It is true that as a human we are always striving to achieve new and higher levels within ourselves but I do not believe these levels will be recognized or appreciated unless we already know and respect where we already are.
For me, this is where I am starting this year. I am stripping away all the intentions I had in my head for self-improvement and I am going to take some time to re-acquaint myself to myself. After I have completed this then I will begin to look at how I am disrupting my health with some of the choices I am making in my daily routines. The focus should always be about health - the health of your family, the health of your body, the health of your spirit. I think when we focus our intentions on health, choices become a lot easier and the changes made have an opportunity to become permanent.
For those already a few days into resolutions I remind you to be kind to yourselves. Change is difficult and new habits are challenging to form, however; being hard on yourself or reminding yourself that you are not being 'good' is not the answer for self improvement.
"When you disrespect your being, you set into motion a chain reaction culminating in unfulfilled intentions." ˜Dr Wayne Dyer
Yours from behind the desk,
Monica Candy
New Classes at the studio:
We have 4 new classes at the studio that I would highly recommend.
- Monday @ 10:00am Eugenie Parker is teaching Adult Ballet
- Wednesday @ 12:05 Michelle Mitschrich teaching Yoga Lunch
- Wednesday @ 6:30 and Saturday @ 10:00 Kathleen Fournier is teaching Gentle Beginner Yoga
These new classes will begin the week of January 12th.
Yoga for Menopausal Symptom Relief
By Shirley Archer, JD, MA, IDEA Fitness Journal
Good news for sufferers of hot flashes and night sweats. Yoga for Menopause. Peri- and postmenopausal women who practice yoga increase flexibility and improve their quality of life, according to a study conducted at Richard Stockton College of New Jersey in Pomona (52nd Annual Meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine).
Researchers recruited six women, ages 44-62, to take a 1-hour yoga class twice a week for 8 weeks and to practice a home exercise program on days they were not in class. Participants in the yoga for menopause study did an Iyengar sequence of poses designed to address menstrual disorders, menopause and pregnancy.
"Five of the six women who participated in the yoga program had an increase in low-back flexibility, and five out of six had reduced menopause symptoms," said M. Alysia Mastrangelo, PhD, PT, lead author of the study. While this yoga for menopause study was too small to yield more generalized conclusions, the results provide further evidence that yoga can improve quality of life without harmful side effects.
Yoga for Back Care
By Elise Browning Miller, MA
Up to 85% of American adults experience back pain at least once in their lives (Andersson 1999). No doubt some of your clients are among them.
Why is the back so prone to injury? As we age, ligaments and tendons shorten and joint range of motion (ROM) decreases. Disks lose their ability to absorb shock, muscles weaken, and bones lose mass. To add to these inherent biological weaknesses, we spend too much time sitting-in cars, at desks and in front of televisions or computers-and our back muscles weaken. Bad posture makes matters worse. The low back, which bears much of the burden, is particularly prone to disk problems. More »
Anatomy of the Abs
The body's core region is very complex, being composed of several muscles, each with a different shape and function. It is important ot understand the location and function of these musles before exploring specific abdominal exercises. The core muscle groups are the transversus abdominis, internal and external obliques, rectus abdominis and the erector spinae. More »
The Transverse Who...
You are sitting in your pilates or yoga class and sure enough the instructor tells you to lift and tighten your transverse abdominals. If you are like me, the first time I heard this I contracted everything I could think of in an attempt to "appear" to look like I knew what I was doing. Years ago abs were just abs ad sit-ups were what you did to create the six pack abs we were all trying (and still trying) to get.
Times have definitely changed and with the explosion of pilates and yoga along with research into sport specific training, we are now equipped with a vast array of knowledge to lend us a hand in better understanding how to functionally train our bodies and to aid in the understanding of the reasons behind these training methods. More »
Health Benefits of Cabbage
A sturdy, abundant vegetable that is rich in Vitamin C, cabbage is almost on par with potatoes or corn as a long-standing dietary staple. An inexpensive food that is easy to grow, almost universally available, and keeps well, cabbage--as a member of the large family of Cruciferous vegetables--is rich in nutrients. Along with vitamin C, it contains significant amounts of the nitrogen compounds known as indoles, which appear to lower the risk of various forms of cancer. Cabbage also contains a good amount of fiber, both soluble and insoluble. More »
If you would like to include some interesting articles or fabulous recipes in our next newsletter please send them to info@balancevictoria.com