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Embracing Inner Pelvic Health

Inner Pelvic Health | A New Approach to the Squat

By Mia Munroe

 

The Prevalence of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction

Pelvic floor dysfunction is becoming all too prevalent, affecting women in every stage of life, and unfortunately is acknowledged as the norm. Incontinence is not comfortably discussed among women yet the growing number of various adult bladder control products is rising steadily. Mainly following childbirth, varying degrees of prolapse severity (different inner organs falling out of place) is a frightening reality for too many women. The female body was built to handle childbirth and bounce back to full recovery, yet this appears to be no longer the case. It seems apparent that perhaps it is our lifestyle habits that no longer support our pelvic health. By approaching inner pelvic healing from a logical and comprehensive standpoint based on its design and uses, there are alternative answers to healing damage that typically stems from childbirth.

Ineffective Treatments for Pelvic Floor Health

In my exercise teaching experience, I found not only that pelvic floor issues have become the norm following childbirth but the treatments are ineffective and in many cases harmful. Surgically implanting slings and mesh suspension systems, wearing pessary insertions, and injecting bulking agents more commonly used in facial plastic surgery, are some of the current choices offered by traditional medicine. As I began researching and discussing the issue more openly with my clients, I heard Kegel exercises were, if anything, found to be frustrating and seldom reaching beyond a superficial fix of bladder control. The less invasive yet initial option of “X number of Kegels per day” has failed to be effective on it’s own and could even be argued as detrimental to pelvic floor health.

Extensive anatomical research revealed slightly differing graphical interpretations. Its given label of the pelvic floor denotes a complex group of muscles layered and designed to work together in ways that differ depending on the specified function. Where the traditional Kegel exercise is most often learned by isolating the Kegel muscle (pubo-coccygeous), stopping your flow of urine, in truth, that is but one component of a complex family of muscles with differing yet definable actions. Documentation shows Alfred Kegel working with patients primarily using a perineometer (a phallic shaped balloon used to measure and exercise the muscles of the pelvic floor). In actuality, ‘kegeling’ around nothing results in a tight, weak pelvic floor.  Consider the dissatisfaction of chewing with nothing in your mouth. Perhaps if the labeling of these muscles weren’t limited by being called “a floor”, the potential for isolating and emphasizing certain areas along the natural cylindrical shape would be better understood. 

Letting Go of the Kegel and Embracing the Squat

By incorporating movement in one’s legs, pelvis, and spine supported by deep breath work, I teach cylindricization (extending the base downwards and narrowing the top upwards), in either a seated or standing position. With repetitive practice and proper use of breath, one can learn to simultaneously flex at the top and extend at the base. Deep inner pelvic muscles exist to not only to lift but to extend or cylindricize the vaginal canal. However, accessing this level of sophistication led me to what may be the most important component missing from our pelvic health – the opposite of a “Kegel”, which is squatting.

All muscles become stronger when stretched deeply. Unfortunately multiple squatting practices have sociologically disappeared. We no longer harvest our own food and the ones who do, sit on a tractor. Waste cannot be properly eliminated while sitting on a toilet, currently our only social and economic choice (with the exception of many Asian countries). Is it possible that all these near universal changes have contributed to tight, weak pelvic floors? Certain cultures, unlike our own, do embrace squatting as the preferred position during childbirth. Yet this practice is only recognized in a handful of states that accept midwifery.

Our sedentary lifestyle tightens our hips and knees, making squatting difficult for some but not impossible. There are ways to modify a weight-bearing squat by using pillows underneath the sitz bones and positioning ones weight either forward onto ones hands or backward by hanging onto a door jam. Anyone can find their own comfortable squat by adjusting leg width and pointing ones toes either straight front or slightly out. Finding the correct modifications will take pressure off of fragile knees and avoid over-stretching tight hips. As I worked with more and more clients, results have proven that alternating squatting and standing with one’s legs strongly extended will in time result in taking pressure off this central mid-pelvic region. I always insist on completing a squat by standing with the legs as close together as possible if not touching. It is afterwards that one will feel a deep internal lift taking pressure off of the bladder and lower organs.

“Perhaps the best approach to these pelvic disorders could be reversed by letting go of the Kegel and embracing the squat.”

 

Mia Munroe is a GYROKINESIS® Master Trainer. She will be teaching two GYROKINESIS® for Pelvic Floor Health classes at MOVE Wellness Studios State Street on Monday, June 18 and Wednesday, June 20th from 6:00-7:30pm. They are open to the public and all levels. CLICK HERE to sign up

Gyrokinesis Instructors can take the GYROKINESIS® Applications for Pelvic Floor Health Workshop with Mia Munroe on June 18-20 from 2-6PM. CLICK HERE to sign up.

 

This article was originally published in “Healing our World” from the Hippocrates Institute

 

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MOVE Wellness Now Offers Nutrition Coaching Services

Sarah Baruch, M.D. tells the story about how she discovered food could be a better remedy than the drugs she was prescribing. For a limited time, Dr. Baruch will be offering a three-session Nourishment for Everyday Living nutrition coaching package at MOVE Wellness Studios to help our clients understand how to eat for optimal health.

My journey in medicine began over a decade ago when I worked as an Emergency Medical Technician. After stabilizing and transferring my patients to the hospital, I longed to be on the receiving end of patient care. With aspirations of becoming a physician, I completed the premed course work and was accepted to the University of Michigan Medical School.

During my clinical rotations, I felt the rush of primary care physicians who were double booked every fifteen minutes and scrambling to write notes for the electronic medical records between patients. With appointment time constraints and unrealistic expectations that a lifestyle change can happen in minutes, we quickly turned to medications to bring down elevated blood pressures, blood sugars, and cholesterol levels, measures which were necessary to prevent coronary artery disease, heart attacks, heart failure, strokes, and the endless complications of diabetes including retinopathy, neuropathy, and nephropathy. While these drugs temporarily calmed our worries of downstream complications, I felt that we were superficially masking the symptoms and labs revealing the body’s cry for help.

Having personally struggled with weight fluctuations, I found myself emphatically lost and confused as I watched dozens of physicians recommend that their patient try to “eat better,” a generic phrase that carried little to no meaning for many of our patients. As a medical student, my education barely addressed nutrition, a shocking fact given that according to the Center for Disease Control eighty-six percent of the nation’s $2.7 trillion annual health care expenditures are spent on chronic health conditions most of which are both directly and indirectly linked to foods consumed in the Standard American Diet .

As my fourth year of medical school was coming to an end, I reflected deeply about where my time and learning would be most effectively spent. I questioned how I could turn my apprehensions and concerns about medicine into a narrative in which I could make an impact. I wanted to delve into the root causes of the chronic illnesses that plagued so many of my patients and do something about it. In researching the major determinants of health, including policy making, social factors, health services, individual behavior, biology and genetics, I found my answer. Food was intertwined in all of them.

In my search, I came across “The China Study,” the most comprehensive study of nutrition ever conducted, detailing the connection between nutrition and heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. I discovered Dr. Esselstyn’s research demonstrating the dietary ability to not only prevent heart disease but also to reverse it, and was inspired by Dr. Barnard’s program for reversing diabetes. Upon completion of my medical degree, I pursued training and certification through the McDougall’s Starch Solution Certification Course. I then traveled to the McDougall Medical Center in Santa Rosa, California where I worked with an incredible team of physicians, nutritionists, phycologists, and pharmacists to treat patients with food and knowledge.

The results I witnessed demonstrated the miraculous power of food as medicine. Over the course of 10 days, one woman’s cholesterol dropped by 60 points (greater than what is expected when initiating lipid lowering therapy with a Statin) and one man had lost 9 pounds. Despite having thought that I was eating pretty well before the program, I was pleasantly surprised when my own labs revealed a 12 point cholesterol drop, a number I happily accepted knowing that a lower cholesterol decreases the risk of heart attacks and strokes. It was all about food and yet it was the medicine I had been dreaming of. I was empowering patients to make decisions that enabled their bodies to return to a state of health.

My goal is to share with you that which I have learned about food as medicine and medicine as food, so that together we can become advocates for our own bodies and our collective health. I enjoy partnering with clients to address their health and wellness holistically. I adhere to the belief that optimal care is only possible when looking beyond the physical manifestations of diseases and taking into consideration the multifactorial influences on health.

I am very pleased to be partnering with the MOVE Wellness Studios community and am offering a three-session package for those who are looking to gain the skills and knowledge about the most evidence based approach to eating in a way that nourishes your body and optimizes the path to healthy aging.

The sessions will be structured as the following:

1. Getting to know you and an education session (2 hours)

A week prior to our meeting, I will send you a list of questions.  They are meant to address a variety of questions about your health, eating habits, and life. This gives me the opportunity to get to know you before we meet.  It also helps me to assess where you are and what goals you are hoping to meet. The second half of the meeting will be an interactive presentation to deepen your understanding of the benefits of a whole-foods plant-based diet.  We will discuss the details of what happens to food as it is processed, how to read nutrition labels, and the basics of how to create satisfying meals.

2. The grocery store (2 hours)

I love walking clients through the grocery store and putting the pieces together.  This is a key piece as I find that successfully changing one’s preferences and patterns requires looking at the items in a grocery store through a new lens.  This gives you the opportunity to practice picking things off of the shelf and being able to confidently answer if it is something that you want to put into your body or not.

3. Tying it all together (1 hour)

At this final session, we will meet to strategize what you can do to smoothly transition to this new way of eating.  Together we will create personalized meal/snack/treats that you feel happy and comfortable with.

Additional hours for consultations can be booked following completion of the package.

In my approach, a “whole-foods plant-based” diet does not mean “vegan.” Unless it is medically advised, I do not encourage anyone to fully cut anything out of their diets. My approach is to teach you the big picture of a healthful eating style with an openness and complete acceptance for each individual to fit it into their lives in whatever way they choose. Changing eating habits can be a long journey and it is my greatest wish, at the very least, to plant a seed of knowledge and provide encouragement that change is possible and to guide you in the right direction.

In good health,
Sarah Baruch, M.D.

Invest in your health with a three-session Nutrition Package with Dr. Baruch. After your purchase, we will contact you to set up your sessions. Contact the studio at 734.761.2306 or office@movewellness.com for more information.

https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/overview/index.htm

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Meatless Monday Vibrant Vegetable Chili

Going meatless, with meals like this delicious vegetable chili, for one day a week not only helps your budget, but also helps you incorporate extra servings of heart-healthy foods and fiber-rich vegetables. Try out this delicious recipe on a cold winter day – your heart will thank you!

Vegetable Chili1 tbsp olive oil
2 medium red onions, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 large carrots, chopped
1/2 can (about 1 cup) red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 can (about 1 cup) white beans, rinsed and drained
2 red, yellow or orange peppers (capsicum), chopped
1 jar (about 2 cups) low-sodium organic tomato sauce, or make your own
1-2 tsp chili powder
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp dried or fresh basil
2 tbsp dried or fresh oregano
4 – 5 handfuls chopped kale (Tuscan cabbage), about 5 leaves
cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Directions:

  • Heat oil in large pot over medium heat.
  • After 2-3 minutes, add onions and garlic, stirring for 3-5 minutes or until browned.
  • Add carrots, peppers, beans, tomato sauce, chili powder, salt, pepper, basil, and oregano then raise to medium/high heat until boiling.
  • After about 4-5 minutes, stir the mixture and lower the heat to simmer/low and let the soup cook, stirring every 5-10 minutes for about 45 minutes.
  • Add kale to the soup, stirring every few minutes for about 5 minutes (less or more if you want the kale more or less cooked).
  • Serve and enjoy!

Rachel Cook, owner of Raw Materials and MOVE Wellness Studios’s Juice Bar manager, makes these suggestions:

– If you’re buying jarred tomatoes or tomato sauce try to make sure it doesn’t contain added sugar- you’d be surprised how many do!

– Add a half teaspoon of cinnamon to your chili- it helps stabilize blood sugar levels and could help lower lipid levels, including LDL cholesterol and triglycerides

– Top with whole milk greek yogurt instead of sour cream for extra protein or some sliced avocado for heart healthy fat

– Try leaving off the cheese- It’ll still be delicious! If you can’t live without it,  try a really sharp cheddar- you’ll naturally use less because it packs such a flavor punch.

– Always use fresh herbs and lots of them (this recipe calls for basil, oregano, and cilantro)- herbs are nutritional powerhouses!

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/12/30/255778250/cinnamon-can-help-lower-blood-sugar-but-one-variety-may-be-best

 

 

 

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Join the MOVE Wellness Studios Heartbeats Team and Help Fight Heart Disease and Stroke

Join the MOVE Wellness Studios Heartbeats Team and Help Fight Heart Disease and Stroke, the #1 Killer of Women.

MOVE Wellness Studios is passionate about many things, and in particular, heart health.  This year we have formed a team, the MOVE Wellness Studios Heartbeats to participate Washtenaw County Heart Walk, which takes place on Saturday, May 5, 2018.  We would love for you to be a part of it! There are several ways you can participate:

1. Purchase our Special “12 Week Heart Health” Package for $199.

This package will help you get ready for the walk and it includes:

  • 1 MOVE Wellness Studios Class per week for 12 weeks
  • Weekly Accountability Call/Email from your Team Leader
  • MOVE Wellness Studios Goes Red T-Shirt
  • Weekly walking group for 6 weeks (Starting March 24th)

2. Join the MOVE Wellness Studios Heartbeats Team.

  • CLICK HERE to join us, then look for the “Join this Team” button on the left side of the screen and follow the prompts to set up your profile. Set your personal goal and share your link with friends and family to raise money for the Heart Walk.

3. Create or Join a MOVE Wellness Studios Mini-Team.

  • To create some friendly competition while we raise money for the Heart Walk, the teams with the most donations ($$) and most (# of people) participation will each win a celebratory private class with their trainer with wine and nibbles.

Why Join Our Team?  Borrowing the tagline of Go Red for Women “Life is Why”. Heart Disease is the #1 Killer of Women and we want to help bring awareness to that alarming fact and provide education on Heart Health to help you make a changes.  

Watch for special ways to get involved each month leading up to the Heart Walk.

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Massage as Medicine

The Benefits of a Winter Massage

Originally taught and practiced by physicians, massage is regarded as one of the most ancient forms of medicine. The healing nature of massage continues to hold true in the age of scientism of medical drugs. Today, more and more disillusioned health professionals—physical/occupational therapists, chiropractors, DO’s—make inquiries into the healing wisdoms of the past and seek training in various massage and bodywork modalities.  There is growing evidence that therapeutic touch often produces tangible results when other conventional methods fail. Comparing to other medical research, therapeutic touch is starkly underfunded science, yet the data on its practical health benefits continues to mount up. Massage and other bodywork techniques are known to:
  • Alleviate depression and anxiety due to demonstrated release of happy hormones endorphins
  • Improve self-image.
  • Support recovery from psychological stress and trauma – the research program in CranioSacral Therapy launched by Upledger Foundation and The Ricky Williams Foundation has now brought hope to victims of chronic traumatic encephalopathy – the widespread diagnosis among athletes and soldiers that otherwise has no known cure.
  • Ramp up sluggish circulation of blood and lymph, normalizing the blood pressure and eliminating toxins.
  • Enhance digestion and quality of sleep.
  • Boost post-operative recovery and wound healing.
  • Massage and associated neuromuscular techniques are incredibly beneficial for joint health and mobility.
Science is still in the very beginning of uncovering the rationale behind the intuitive wisdom of the many healing practices of the past, including therapeutic touch. In my most recent read, “Human Heart, Cosmic Heart”, the author Thomas Cowan, MD, dismantles the idea of a living heart being a mere blood propulsion system; he calls it a spiritual and energy-giving organ. While explaining the alternative mechanism of blood propulsion, Cowan offers an interesting insight on the benefits of the human touch. According to the author, the propulsion of the blood occurs when positively charged water component of the blood is repelled and advanced towards the heart by the negatively charged hydrophilic surface formed by the blood water on the inner surface of the blood vessels. Walking barefoot on Earth and exposure to sunshine will increase the negative charge of the inner surface of blood vessels and improve blood circulation. What is important to our conversation today is that the third crucial way to increase the negative charge of the inner blood vessels is through human touch. Aging, living without a partner, and the very fact of the hectic pace of the modern life are factors that put us at a risk of upsetting body’s healthful electricity.  During the upcoming winter season, when we are so limited in the ability to walk on Earth with our bare feet or to expose our skin to the sun, give yourself a gift of a regular massage at MOVE Wellness Studios to enhance your health and replenish your energy! –Oksana McGettigan, MS, CMT, NHE, MOVE Wellness Studios Massage Therapist
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5 Secrets to Keeping Your Resolutions

Tried and Tested: Secrets to Sticking to Your Resolutions This Year

MOVE Wellness Studios Wellness Coach  Rita Seith offers up her tips to making New Year’s Resolutions that stick.

According to TIME magazine, five of the ten most commonly broken New Year’s Resolutions are related to health. People leap into the New Year with grand hopes to lose weight, drink less, quit smoking, eat healthier, and be less stressed. Why don’t resolutions stick and what can you do to make this year different?

1. Make SMART goals:

All of the resolutions listed above have one thing in common; they’re vague and lofty. When we talk about making SMART goals, we mean they should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely.

You want to lose weight? How much? By when? By what means? Make sure the path to achieving your resolution is a clear one, you want to know what success looks like! Take a step back and think about what your overarching goal is; do you want to like what you look like in the mirror? Or do you want to be able to play with your kids all afternoon? Think about what the barriers are on you reaching that place and what has and hasn’t worked before. Instead of deciding to lose weight, tell yourself you’re going to lose X pounds in X weeks and how you’re going to get there. If you tried running last time and didn’t like it, then try a cycling class this time! Instead of just eating healthier, tell yourself that 3 times a week, you’re going to trade out your afternoon bag of chips for hummus and carrot sticks.

2.   Don’t do it alone

One of the biggest predictors of sustained physical activity is whether or not someone’s partner is active. This resolution doesn’t have to be an endeavor you do alone! Team up with someone in your life who has similar goals and create a game plan together. For example, if you have a coworker that you eat lunch with, who also wants to be more active, go for a walk together for part of your lunch break! Not only will you have someone to keep you accountable, but you might end up improving your social ties in the meantime!

3.   Know thyself

A key to making a sustainable change is making it easier than the alternative. You are the only one who really knows yourself inside and out. If you notice that you’re struggling to keep up with going to the gym or stave off the dessert cravings at night, change your environment. One of my favorite examples of this, something I’ve done myself, is the kitchen counter bowl trick. I wanted to be more consistent with flossing and it felt like absolutely nothing was working until I just set out a bowl of flossers on my kitchen table. After a week I realized that I had been absentmindedly picking them up and flossing – easy solution! You can use this same idea on a number of things. It can be anything from setting out a bowl of carrots to putting all your beer in the cooler outside and moving sparkling waters inside.

4.   Change your mindset

The mentality that you use to approach making a change is almost half the battle. There are two secrets here; focus on what you’ve already done and don’t give up the first time you “crack” or “slip up”. This sounds basic, but catching yourself in a negative mindset and focusing on the positives instead is going to make it way easier for you to stick to your goals. For example, if you want to eat healthier, it’s actually a good idea to give yourself a few pats on the back for the healthy foods already in your diet. Further, a lot of us forget that a new year’s resolution is meant to be something we work on all year. If you have a few days one week where you drink more wine than you wanted or don’t go to the gym, have no fear! there are 365 days in a year to continue working towards your goals. Take a step to evaluate why you slipped up, and change your methods if it’s not working for you.

5.   Make moves with MOVE Wellness Studios

Let us help you! It’ll be easier to stick to your resolution with social support, and we have a whole community of health and wellness professionals who are excited to work with you. MOVE Wellness Studios has a slew of classes that you can test out, instructors and members who are ready to support you in your endeavor, and wellness coaches that work with you to personalize your plans to your lifestyle.

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Staying Sane During the Holidays

Elaine’s Top Tips for Staying Sane During the Holidays

MOVE Wellness Studios Co-Founder Elaine Economou offers her tips for trying to stay sane during the holiday season.
When it was first suggested a few years ago that I write a wellness blog that would help with tips and strategies for the holidays I said “hell no.” If someone suggested that I “take time for myself” in my sleep-deprived, constantly overstimulated, trying-to-do-it-all state when my kids were young, I might have come unglued. Mind you I was not, and am not a perfectionist but trying to be present to all the season’s offerings and my regular role was sometimes just too much. So, the idea of staying sane during the holidays is funny.  Maybe funny in a “you’ve got to be kidding me” way with a note of hysteria underlying my voice. Or funny in a “I’ve got this” kind of way.For me, this shifts during the season, over the years and sometimes even day by day and minute by minute. What I have learned though is that staying somewhat sane during the holidays is possible and that it is about making choices.  The sooner I remember this each season the happier I am.  Over the years, I have had plenty of moments of insanity.  Usually because I was exhausted and trying to do the things I needed to do in addition to the things I wanted to do.  After 19 years of parenting, working and navigating the holidays here’s what I’ve learned:
  1. Limit social media. There is too much pressure on us for Pinterest perfect, Instagram worthy, Facebook meaningful experiences. Take a break or minimize your exposure so that you are experiencing your life genuinely and not focusing on your next post or what your friend’s tree looks like.
  2. Get sleep. This is so important. The more rest I get the better I feel overall. A sleep deficit might help you get your project done, but will deny you the opportunity to enjoy it or the days afterwards.
  3. Drink water. The more water I drink the more aware I am of my thirst.  This goes a long way to helping with energy throughout the day. (BTW – Be sure your first morning urine is the color of pale lemonade.  Any darker and you are dehydrated.)
  4. Stabilize your blood sugar.  Try to intentionally decide how many drinks or sweets you will have at an event.  If you decide beforehand to only have one glass of wine and one cookie you are more likely to stick to it. The older I get the less my body can tolerate too much of either of these. Sigh.
  5. Eat fresh food. Eat liberally of fresh vegetables and fruit and enjoy the synergy of nutrients to help your mood, your strength, your energy and your immune system. Just like water, the more you eat fresh food, the more your body wants it.
  6. Practice mindfulness. Stop right here and upload the apps Insight Timer and Headspace onto your phone or computer. As soon as you wake up in the morning do 3-10 minutes of mindfulness or meditation. The evidence suggests that mindfulness has many health benefits and from my own experience, you will not be sorry. I look forward to this every day. Let me know how this one goes.
  7. Control what you can.  No, you cannot control (insert name here) and their behavior.  You can control your reaction to it.  In her book “Braving the Wilderness,” Brene Brown encourages us to look at those who challenge us with their views or opinions as human beings by trying to see our shared humanity in others. This is a process of knowing yourself well enough to be able to be present and is not easy. But if someone is harming you or so toxic you cannot manage this – have good boundaries and get the heck out.
  8. Let go. This is similar to #6 but bears repeating. If you cannot prepare the meal/host the event/spend time in the way you want to ideally, then try to control what you can. Awhile ago when I felt hurt and excluded from the preparation of Christmas meals, I realized that I actually had NOTHING TO DO on Christmas afternoon.  Not one thing.  I never brought it up again and now I play games with my kids or nap.
  9. Get outside. For at least a few minutes every day, spend some time outside. Breathe and really enjoy the fresh air.  The longer you are outside the better, but here in Michigan where it was 25 degrees today after five inches of snow fell, a few minutes was all I could do.
  10. Practice gratitude. Gratitude rewires your brain for happiness. I’m not kidding! Listen to this two minute video and you will understand the power of this simple tool. Maybe if you practice mindfulness for two minutes in the morning you can do your gratitude reflection in the evening. Think of three things you are grateful for that day and spend a few seconds appreciating them in your mind’s eye. Write them down if you can.
  11. Mindfully move. You may not have time for your regular schedule of classes or workouts with all the events and activities going on this time of year. Don’t give up! And don’t beat yourself up. Try to move and breathe mindfully for a few minutes each day.  Consider it a vitamin for your muscles and tissues. Plan your time in the new year once you are back in your routine and if you’re local, come see us at MOVE Wellness Studios for an Introductory Private Session and let us help you plan your fitness regime. In the meantime, here are some great Stretches for Sitters that we recommend to our clients.
  12. Self-compassion. Notice your own feelings and emotions during this season.  It can be very overwhelming with feelings of loss, grief, sadness and more. Honor whatever feelings you are experiencing and do not judge them. Speak to yourself in a way that is supportive and loving.  By practicing self-compassion, you will be able to be more present to others, their suffering and meaningful connections.
I get it if you read this list and think that I have no idea how hard this is. You are right, I don’t know all the challenges that each of you face in trying to navigate this season of the year.  But I do know that what I describe above can be done in less than 20 minutes each day and it will have a hugely positive impact so that you enjoy all that you can in your life and this season.  You deserve it!
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How to Build Lasting Habits for the Holidays

MOVE Wellness Studios Wellness Coaching Healthy HabitsIn 2012, habit master and author of The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg, talked to Scientific American about the neuroscience of habits. He reveals that two parts of the brain–the basal ganglia and brainstem house habits. These are the same regions that are exploited by pharmaceuticals and drugs to induce compulsive, addictive behavior. And in a sense, ingrained habits work like addictions in that the brain is programmed to send and receive specific neural impulses over and over again when the habitual behavior is performed.  This is why habits are so hard to break. They are “literally etched in our neural pathways” as Psychology Today phrases it.

Understanding the Habit Loop to break bad habits

One way to break old habits is to overcrowd them with new, healthy habits. If you get an urge to reach for something sweet after every meal, you’ve programmed a habit. Some researchers have identified a phenomenon called the Habit Loop to explain how habits operate. There is a cue that triggers the behavior (e.g. the time of day after dinner). After the cue comes the routine (eating dessert). And the outcome of the habit is the reward (e.g. feeling pleasure from dessert).

The cue, routine, and reward offer three different places to intervene with new, good habits. Usually, the reward, or what people want to receive from their bad habits, will always remain the same. We all typically want to feel pleasure and happiness and so engage in unhealthy habits that get us there. The problem is that these habits are unhealthy in the long run. So what do we do? You can target the cue and the routine facets of the Habit Loop.

First, identity a habit that you would like to implement. The trick is that the new habit must have the same reward as the old habit e.g. If your reward for eating dessert is feeling pleasure, going for a brisk walk or jog after dinner will give you an endorphin release. If it is the social aspect of eating dessert with someone, schedule a post-dinner activity you can do together (playing a board game, washing dishes together, etc.). Then pick a simple, easy-to-remember trigger. For instance, you can use 7:45 pm as your cue. Once it hits 7:45 pm, you know you’re supposed to engage in your habit.

Habits can take months to form, so don’t get discouraged if you’ve been at it for a few weeks. Eventually, they become part of your brain chemistry, which is why it’s critical to engage in good habits early on!

Need some support as you embark on healthy new habits for the year ahead? MOVE Wellness Studios’s expert Wellness Coaches can help! Contact us today to schedule an introductory session.

Team Nuggets (2016). The habit loop: The science behind building good habits. CBT Nuggets.

 

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Recipe: Green Lemonade

Summer may be over, but glowing skin is always in season!

Lemons are one of nature’s magical healing remedies. Abundant in Vitamin C and other vitamins, lemons will leave your skin glowing, give your liver a boost in detoxifying your body, and help fight major diseases. Lemons are also  hands down one of nature’s best remedies. Aside from being edible, this versatile fruit can be used in skin care, cleaning products, acne solutions, first-aid treatment, and incense.  Perhaps one of lemons’ best features are their alkalizing properties. They harmonize your internal chemistry and reduce inflammation, helping fight diseases from the common cold to potentially even some cancers.

Vitamins and Minerals in Lemons:  Vitamin C, B complex, Phosphorous, Potassium, Magenisum, Flavanoids, Copper, Iron, Calcium and Fiber

Did you know most lemonade is far too sugary to have any lasting benefits? MOVE Wellness Studios’s green lemonade will help your skin glow and your stomach feel amazing. You can try this recipe at home with a juicer or stop by our Westside location  for freshly-squeezed, organic ingredients!

RECIPE:

  • ½ green apples
  • ½ cucumber
  • 2 lemons, peeled
  • 1 inch piece of ginger
  • 1 loose cup of spinach

You will need one juicer (blender may also be suitable for a thicker lemonade smoothie recipe).

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/283476.php

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Is Extreme Fitness Worth the Risk?

This blog has been updated December 13, 2019.

The risks of extreme fitness workouts can range from minor injuries to downright frightening medical emergencies. I just finished reading an article on CNN.com about Rhabdomyolysis and a young man who got this potentially life-threatening disorder after his first spin class. He was fit but new to spinning and mentioned in the article that he felt that he needed to “go big or go home” in the class. He worked so hard that his muscles started to release a potentially damaging muscle tissue protein myoglobin into his bloodstream, taxing his kidneys and causing excruciating pain. His thighs swelled up and almost caused another issue called “compartment syndrome”, where the swelling needs to be reduced surgically. He was hospitalized for a week while they flushed the toxins from his kidneys so they would not shut down. Luckily, he was ok in the end and did not have to go on dialysis.

Spinning bikes

Feeling the burn — types of extreme fitness workouts

We live in a culture of extreme sports and badass, warrior-like fitness. Back in the 80’s Jane Fonda exhorted us to “feel the burn” and “no pain, no gain” — slogans which have contributed to seeding a generation that qualifies being fit with having large, hard muscles and participating in activities that are the most extreme of their kind. Gyms have become one-size fits all, stylish destinations. New extreme fitness challenges of all varieties are popping up regularly. For example, there’s the Tough Mudder — an obstacle course featuring a variety of extreme challenges. There’s even one obstacle titled “Electroshock Therapy” that features real electric shocks. Enrolling in Kokoro Camp promises you’ll be trained like a Navy SEAL and working to the point of complete mental and physical fatigue. P90X offers you mind-blowing results in only 90-days from your very own living room (performed without any professional supervision).

Compared to all that, spinning sounds pretty tame. But spinning as a workout trend has reached high levels of popularity and attracts people for its potential to burn 400-600 calories on average in a class. These students, like the author in the CNN story are likely to push harder than their body is able to handle. I’m not surprised at the author’s story, though I have never heard of this rare disorder, but I am disappointed that this man had to turn off his own body’s cues to complete the class. He essentially disassociated from the pain he felt and used external cues (the instructor and/or the pace of the class) to make it through. 

Elaine Economou smiling on the Pilates Cadillac

Enjoying fitness as a lifelong habit

This is exactly the opposite of why I teach fitness and movement and co-founded MOVE Wellness. In the Pilates and Gyrotonic methods and the other systems we teach at MOVE Wellness (including yoga), we first ask people to connect to their breathing and take a minute or two to connect with the sensations of the body or internal cues so they can inform and guide clients during their workouts.  We call these practices mind-body fitness because it is that connection and awareness, which builds with each session, that allows the client to move with integrity, in alignment and connected to the deep support of the core to avoid injury. This maximizes the efficiency of the exercises so people get stronger faster.

The importance of listening to your body

“Burn Calories!” was the mantra of the 80s and 90s, and as a middle aged female with a metabolism that seems to have left the building, I understand. I think this growing culture of extremes is why people who are busy also flock toward cardio-type classes as their bread and butter of fitness, but a well-rounded fitness program (and good diet) are fundamental for optimal health. An informed practice is key to our breathwork, mindfulness, and movement instruction. Do we work hard? Yes. Do we help people build strength in a way that supports their lifestyle and activities? Yes. Should people work hard, sweat and challenge themselves?  Yes. But do this through the deep act of listening to your body and understand it’s unique needs.

Light filtering into a Pilates studio while people work with trainers.

Our mission at MOVE Wellness is to help people live a joyful life in a fit and healthy body. Our vision is a world where fitness is defined by moving your body in ways that bring you joy and is determined by the desire to understand and listen to your body’s cues.

Ready to get going with a plan that’s right for you and your body?

Sign up for an introductory package today, call 734-224-2560, or email us to chat about your options, or stop by the studio to say hello in person.

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