OneHealthyGirl.com - Carla Golden's Get Healthier! Blog

GETTING READY TO DO THE HAPPY BOUNCE...ALL THE WAY TO FLORIDA!

It's Friday and I'm especially excited for two big reasons. First, later today I get to pick up my spanking new rebounder!! Do you know what that is? If not, it's a personal trampoline which is used for exercise, especially for the healthy movement of the lymph fluid. More in a minute...

And secondly, tomorrow my daughter and I are driving to Orlando to visit and stay the night with family and then Sunday heading to Coral Gables to see my parents FOR A WEEK...the sun, a pool, grandparents who want to spend oodles of time filling their granddaughter's day with endless entertainment. ;o)

Back to the rebounder....

I'm going to defer to excerpts from an excellent article:

The Exceptional Exercise that Really IS for Every Body: Rebounding by Sylvia Dreiser Farnsworth with Commentary by Donna Gates, Founder of Body Ecology

• Rebounding is a revolutionary form of exercise recognized by NASA as one of the most efficient forms of physical activity.

• Rebounding provides an aerobic workout that tones the cardiovascular system. But, unlike other forms of aerobics, it doesn’t stop there. The gentle bouncing motion of Rebounding actually stimulates the circulation of lymphatic fluid, the body’s waste disposal mechanism, providing direct support to your immune system.

• Gentle bouncing helps to move the lymph, creates space between the disks of the vertebrae, helps lubricate painful joints, increases bone density and improves the structure of the feet.

There are many rebounders on the market from which to choose. The most important features to look for are a well made frame with high shock absorption mat and springs. My friend Jenni of Oasis Life Spa here on Hilton Head Island is a distributor for the Needak rebounder used at the Hippocrates Health Institute in Florida. These models have steel frames, are portable (inside! outside! home! work!) and have a 85% shock absorption rate.The special price is $250 purchased through Jenni at 843.342.3361. I know that she'd love to talk with you about the rebounders, let you try one and I think she has some future group classes in the works.

When I went to Jenni's rebounder demo class last week I was able to try the rebounder for the first time. I've been wanting one for a while knowing that I would love it...and indeed I did. And more than I anticipated! So I am exceptionally excited to pick up my rebounder this afternoon. It will be traveling with me to Florida and I hope to do some joyful bouncing pool side while getting my daily dose of sunny Vitamin D.

Here are some more excellent resources:

The Detoxification Effect of Rebounding

Exercise on the Rebound

33 Benefits of Rebounding

While I'm away I have a few goals: to make some progress with my school work, to relax and repair my recenty strained lower back (gardening + bad pillows + jogging = ouch!) and to go on a blogging inner journey that I must take and I hope you'll come with me. My posts next week will be of a very personal nature but I think they'll help you better understand where I am coming from in regard to my sometimes staunch opinions about food choices and eating habits. 

Live Light, xo-C.

THAI YOGA MASSAGE ELECTRIC LIGHT SHOW!

If there were a moment when I could have had a biofeedback device hooked to my brain and body to record my thoughts and sensations to create an automated blog post, it would have been during the Thai Yoga massage that I just had. 

I met, Karen Verechia, my former yoga instructor - and I say former, not because she not longer teaches, but because it's been so long since I've been to class!! - at Jiva Yoga Center. All the cool people were there: Karen, Jean, and Marty. Good vibes were in the house already!

We got started with me lying on the mat and I fell easily into some good, deep ujai breathing. Almost immediately, my lips started to tingle. I stayed with the breathing as Karen began to loosen my joints and stretch my muscles. Before I knew it I was composing a complete blog post in real time and losing myself in the ujai. I've never been one to succeed at emptying the mind during times of meditation or yoga and part of it is because I don't want to. I usually have my best, most creative thoughts at this time. The universal creativity just flows right in!

Then my arms started to tingle and I knew for sure that I was vibrating on a higher level in the presence of Karen - her energy and the energy she was unlocking within my body. She continued to stretch me in a variety of ways, massage my muscle tissue and breathe with me. At one point, with my feet on her knees, she rolled me on to my shoulders and positioned me into a gentle back bend. I felt as if I were surfing on pure energy in defiance of gravity.

Time was flying and I couldn't tell whether I was in my body or outside of it, but I was certainly detached with my eyes closed. My body was being moved around like a rag doll while my inner life was rockin' out to an energetic, spiritual fiesta! The lights! The sounds! The colors!

Near the end, Karen sat me up into a seated position and at the very moment when my head was upright, the sun, through the perfectly positioned sunlight, kissed me warmly all over my face. Karen eased my body back down for a integrating period of Savasana. At this point my body was tingling from my lips, to my fingers to my toes. It was electrifying and so gratifying. I knew I was calibrating up!

Thank you, Karen, for this immensely satisfying session of Thai Yoga massage. I feel relaxed, energized, and peaceful and only a tad bit frustrated that I've had to recreate this blog post after the fact. It doesn't compare to the one crafted in real time!

Never, ever underestimate the power of human touch. I am convinced that if we all were massaged well regularly, world peace would be imminent. God's love (interpret as you wish) is evident in the kind, gentle touch of the human hand.

Live Light, xo-C.

The Best Place to Walk

From RealAge.com:

A walk on a treadmill or a walk in the park? Either one will get you fit, but the walk in the park may make you feel a whole lot better!

Research confirms it: Exercising in a green environment puts you in a better frame of mind than working out in a sterile gym. Go figure!

The Green Scene
In a study, people walked on a treadmill and viewed pictures of urban areas or images of rural scenes with lots of green spaces. The result? Besides bringing down blood pressure, viewing the green scenery improved energy and activity levels, raised self-esteem, and boosted mood.

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Many of us exercise not only to stay fit, but also to relieve and prevent stress. Don't let your exercise - or your surroundings while you exercise (the news, toxic people, fluorescent lights, etc.) - counteract your stress-reducing efforts. Take your workout outside if you can. If you can't (inclement weather, on-site childcare, etc.) aim to incorporate soothing music, pleasant people, natural lighting and a source of fresh air. A gym with live plants may have better level of available oxygen than gyms that don't.

Get the most out of your workout by paying attention to the subtle details. Live Light, xo-C.

Healing Exercise

From InnerSelf.com:

You've probably noticed that there's a healing side to exercise: It can chase the blues, help fight stress, and raise your energy.

Millennia ago, the people of ancient China and India developed methods of exercise with exceptional healing effects. Although they evolved continents apart, Qigong, t'ai chi, and yoga have certain similarities. They can all be described as meditative exercise and all involve: Relaxation and concentration. Gradual, purposeful movement. A focus on the breath. Self-healing, self regulation, and self-repair tend to be stimulated and maximized through simple and meditative exercise movement and breathing.

According to the 1996 U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Exercise and Fitness, mild fitness practices are at least as beneficial as vigorous fitness practices. They may even be better, because there's also less risk of injury. Vigorous exercise reuses much of the energy that is created by the movement. Meditative practices such as yoga and Qigong conserve energy, and whenever healing is the goal, conserving energy is an important consideration.

The Importance of Oxygen

From InnerSelf.ca:

Research on the link between oxygen deficiency and disease has been active for several decades. Nobel Prize winner Otto Warburg found that oxygen deficiency was often associated with the development of cancer cells. Studies that evaluated lung volume and oxygen capacity noted a parallel between reduced oxygen and disease, with reduced resistance to illness and increased mortality. In studies of older subjects, immune deficiency was found to be one of the consequences of reduced oxygen metabolism.

Oxygen plays a key role in our immune function. It is the source of the ammunition used by killer and natural killer T cells against viruses and tumors. Oxygen is converted into oxidants like peroxide and bleach (hypochlorite). People who are ill or at risk for disease tend to exercise less, so there's less oxygen available to the body. By increasing the intake of oxygen and improving its circulation, therapeutic exercise such as Qigong and yoga can assist our immune function. Since this happens through gradual movement, focused breathing, and relaxation, these practices can be done by most anyone.

Typically, when we think of exercise, we think of aerobics, running, swimming, tennis -- all vigorous activities intended to increase the supply of oxygen to the body (aerobic exercise means exercise "with oxygen"). We also exercise to build muscles, strengthen our heart, or to lose weight by burning up calories. Yet when those activities become more gradual and less intense, they still provide therapeutic benefits.

In meditative exercise, since the metabolic resources promoted by the exercise are not expended as part of the physical activity, it is possible that it is more therapeutic. Done correctly, Qigong and yoga produce and circulate powerful internal resources for health and healing. In fact, aerobics, swimming, and walking can be modified to become more therapeutic by slowing them down and focusing on the breath. At that point, Western exercise and ancient practice merge. Using this approach, walking can also take on a meditative form; in fact many religions include some type of walking meditation such as labyrinth walks or formal walking meditation.

According to the 1996 U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Exercise and Fitness, mild fitness practices are at least as beneficial as vigorous fitness practices. They may even be better, because there's also less risk of injury. Vigorous exercise reuses much of the energy that is created by the movement. Meditative practices such as yoga and Qigong conserve energy, and whenever healing is the goal, conserving energy is an important consideration.

Live Light, xo-C.

The Secret to a Healthy Body

*****Happy New Year!!!*****

From lifehack.org:

The secret to a healthy body is simple and actually not too difficult, but all the same it does take daily discipline. In addition, it doesn’t need to cost you a lot of money. There are five areas of focus that will keep your body in shape, healthy, flexible, and strong. This article will outline the 5 areas to work on and will include a sample weekly workout regimen that you can start using today.

1. Aerobic Exercise. The simplest way to meet this need is walking. Walking is the one of the best exercises for your body. The wear and tear on your joints is lower than jogging. Be sure to start off slower to warm up and increase speed slowly after about 3-5 minutes. To increase the intensity, simply lengthen your stride a bit and speed up your pace. The other strategy for increasing intensity is to increase your speed for short bursts of time. (see workout below) If you prefer, jogging is also good if it doesn’t bother your knees. Just know that walking is just as good if you go fast enough. No big investment needed. All you need is your sneakers, and maybe not even that if you walk on the beach. 30 minutes per day every day has been shown to be the optimal amount of exercise. If you don’t have time all at once, the same benefits are derived even if you break it up into 3 X 10 minute or 2 X 15 minute sessions.

2. Stretching. An important age marker is your level of flexibility. Yoga is a terrific way to keep your body flexible. If you don’t have time for a full yoga session, try to make sure you do 5 minutes of stretching each day after your aerobic exercise. To ensure you get most areas of your body, try a sun salutation, some seated twists, and a hip opener.

3. Balancing. Balance, along with flexibility, is something that we lose with age. Practice this a little bit every day and you’ll be less likely to lose it. Yoga, again, is another great way to build and maintain balance. There are several yoga poses you could use to increase balance. Try one each day. A simple one you can do is to stand on one leg and grab the foot of the other leg to stretch the hamstring in the front of the thigh. As you build your balance over time try to touch your toes with your other hand while maintaining balance. It is helpful to keep your eyes focused on one point. Do this for 15-60 seconds on each leg.

4. Strength Building. You can certainly join a gym and lift weights. But another less expensive option, which is just as good, is simply using the weight of your own body for resistance. The easiest way to do this is to do an hour of yoga a few times per week. A yoga class is great, but to save money, I recommend buying a few different yoga tapes and rotate them. Check out tapes from your local library first to see if you like them before buying, or go to Amazon and check out the reviews to find ones that are highly rated. If you don’t want to do yoga, you can do pilates or try the free online workout regimen prescribed by Dr. Roizen and Dr. Oz of “YOU: The Owner’s Manual.”

5. Deep Breathing. This is very important and here’s why. Your lymph system relies on the contraction of muscles and breathing to move the fluids of the lymph system around the body. Why is this so important? The lymph system “has three interrelated functions: (1) removal of excess fluids from body tissues, (2) absorption of fatty acids and subsequent transport of fat, as chyle, to the circulatory system and, (3) production of immune cells.” So, how do you get your daily dose? Aerobic exercise, yoga, and/or try The Deep Breathing Exercise 2-3 times per day. Here’s how:

• Empty your lungs completely by pulling in your stomach while you exhale.
• Take a deep breath in.
• Hold for twice as long as it took to breathe it in.
• Exhale for 4 times as long as it took to breath it in.
• Do this 10 times.
• Enjoy the rejuvenation!

Walking Is the Way to Go!

There's nothing like a good old fashioned visit to super-sized Disney World to lead a person to reassess and reaffirm one's dietary intake and physical output. Upon my return I am convinced more than ever that simple, daily, healthy choices are the key to lifetime wellbeing, balance and vitality and I am committed to live by example and share my understanding with the world.

Today an article came to me which affirmed the benefit of daily 30 minute walks as I have been promoting. You can do more, but this little bit is all it takes to make a big difference.

Excerpts:

A brisk 30-minute walk 6 days a week is enough to trim waistlines and cut the risk of metabolic syndrome -- an increasingly common condition that is linked to obesity and a sedentary lifestyle, a new study indicates.

People in the study who exercised the least - walking 30 minutes 6 days a week or the equivalent of about 11 miles per week -- gained significant benefit, while those who exercised the most, jogging about 17 miles per week, gained slightly more benefit in terms of lowered metabolic syndrome scores.

Read the full article here and then go take a walk, xo-C.

Fat, Carbs and the Science of Conception

In a groundbreaking new book, Harvard researchers look at the role of diet, exercise and weight control in fertility. Guarantee: you will be surprised.

Read the entire article here:
Newsweek, December 10, 2007

Stand Tall, Stand Proud, Stand Lean

A NEW WAY TO CONTROL WEIGHT?
SCIENTISTS SAY JUST STANDING UP MAY BE AS IMPORTANT AS EXERCISE
By Lee Dye ABC News • November 28, 2007

Scientists have found intriguing evidence that one major reason so many people are overweight these days may be as close as the seat of their pants. Literally. According to the researchers, most of us sit too much.

In most cases, exercise alone, according to a team of scientists at the University of Missouri, isn't enough to take off those added pounds. The problem, they say, is that all the stuff we've heard the last few years about weight control left one key factor out of the equation. When we sit, the researchers found, the enzymes that are responsible for burning fat just shut down.

This goes way beyond the common sense assumption that people who sit too much are less active and thus less able to keep their weight under control. It turns out that sitting for hours at a time, as so many of us do in these days of ubiquitous computers and electronic games and 24-hour television, attacks the body in ways that have not been well understood.

The Need to Putter

"It was hard to believe at first," said Marc Hamilton, associate professor of biomedical sciences at the University of Missouri-Columbia and leader of the research team. He said the team didn't expect to find a strong signal when they began researching what happens to fat when we remain seated. But the effect, both in laboratory animals and humans, turned out to be huge.

The solution, Hamilton said, is to stand up and "putter."

The research was published this month in the peer-reviewed journal Diabetes, and it will be presented by Hamilton's post-doctoral researcher, Theodore Zderic, at the upcoming Second International Congress on Physical Activity and Public Health in Amsterdam.

Hamilton is not suggesting that anyone quit exercising. But he says his work shows that exercise alone won't get the job done. We have to pay more attention to what's happening when we aren't in the gym, because the body's ability to dispose of fat virtually shuts down, he says, at least if we're sitting down.

Hamilton recruited a few laboratory rats and pigs, as well as about a dozen human volunteers, including himself, to learn more about the physiological effect of sitting. The lab animals laid the foundation for the research in two different experiments. The animals were injected with a small amount of fat that contained a radioactive tracer so the researchers could determine what happened to the fat.

"What's the fate of that fat?" Hamilton asked during a telephone interview. "Is it burned up by the muscle?"

The radioactive tracer revealed that when the animals were sitting down, the fat did not remain in the blood vessels that pass through the muscles, where it could be burned. Instead, it was captured by the adipose tissue, a type of connective tissue where globules of fat are stored. That tissue is found around organs such as the kidneys, so it's not really where you want to see the fat end up.

The researchers also took a close look at a fat-splitting enzyme, called lipase, that is critical to the body's ability to break down fat. After the animals remained seated for several hours, "the enzyme was suppressed down to 10 percent of normal," Hamilton said. "It's just virtually shut off."

The results from the animal studies were very convincing, he said, and human experiments were just as compelling. The researchers injected a small needle into the muscles of the human volunteers and extracted a small sample for biopsy. Once again, the enzyme was suppressed while the humans remained seated. That resulted in retention of fat, and it also resulted in lower HDL, the "good cholesterol," and an overall reduction in the metabolic rate.

You Need to Move Those Legs

The implications, Hamilton said, are clear. While much thought has been given to the good effects of regular exercise, scientists have not paid enough attention to what happens during the rest of the time when we may be fairly active but are probably sitting too much. That could help explain the rising tide of obesity, because people tend to sit more these days than they did a half century ago. Not to mention eating too much and getting precious little exercise.

Some might argue that playing video games, or even working at the computer, involves movement of the upper body, especially the hands and arms, so that's not really inactive. But Hamilton counters that arms don't weigh very much, and the big muscles in the human body which are so critical to burning fat are located in our legs and back.

"When we think about the postural muscles that are mostly in the legs and back, these are big, powerful muscles," he said. "We're talking probably 20 pounds of muscle in each leg. That's a lot of muscle that can be engaged in routine activities," including burning fat. But they can't do that without the enzyme that is suppressed while seated.

Much is still not known, including such fundamental issues as how long the effect lasts from getting up and moving around for a while, but Hamilton expects the answers to come fairly soon.

"There is going to be a flood of research on this in the next couple of years, and not just by us," he said. "This has raised the attention of a lot of great scientists around the world who have begun doing their own studies."

In the meantime, he suggests, we do the obvious. Take the time to get up and "putter" for a while. If his research turns out to be on the mark, it could save your life.

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Carla says: When you're sitting for work, drink water regularly. You will be forced to get up and walk to the toilet, avoiding those long-term chair warming sessions.

The Benefits of a Long Walk

Full article here---> Resources--->Library Articles--->Walking Tips

The Benefits of the Long Walk for the Body
Improves aerobic capacity for more efficient oxygen intake
You’ll become a hybrid, burning different fuels (including fat) more efficiently
You’ll learn to master your ChiWalking skills
Your body will learn to be more relaxed, the benefit of which is immeasurable
You’ll become a master of your body, and be able to accomplish any goal you set for yourself

The Benefits of the Long Walk for the Mind
Your will learn to focus and relax your mind
You can enjoy yourself and your surroundings
You will learn patience as you walk longer and longer distances
You’ll learn to use your mind to overcome adversity
You’ll become a master of your mind, and be able to accomplish any goal you set for yourself

Become a Hybrid

Keeping your pace well within your aerobic range for longer periods of time will elevate the quality of all your other walks. Increasing your aerobic capacity builds more extensive capillary beds in your muscles and lungs, which in turn trains your body to have a more efficient oxygen exchange. All of this talk is to get you to slow down and take it easy on your long walks. Like I said before. It's not the time for speed.

It's important to do your long walk at a slower speeds for good reason. Generally speaking, anytime you walk for longer than thirty minutes, your body begins burning it's stored fuel in a different way. Instead of being fueled primarily by glycogen (which is a quick-burning, fight-or-flight fuel) your body "learns" to burn the slower-burning fat contained in your muscle fibers and become rather stingy with burning your stored glycogen. It's like your body takes on the qualities of a hybrid car which burns a combination of stored fuel (electricity) and gasoline. In the case of your body, you're burning a mix of fat (stored fuel) and glycogen instead of burning mostly glycogen (gasoline).

Walk toward wellness, xo-C.