@LouLebentz & I Discuss Addictions – Underlying Causes & Some Solutions

Speaker & Therapist Lou Lebentz & chat about addictions such as food, exercise & alcoholism & ways you can move through to a healthier place. Excerpts taken from a recent Periscope Live interview.


Watch the Video here:

 

Find Lou at her website or on twitter @loulebentz
www.loulebentz.com

Beach Workout – Track Drills

At this time of year I start thinking about the beach! The sun on my face…..This is the one we visit every summer in Canada.

I know I should live in the moment and mostly I try to but I feel lovely memories are great for us too.
My beach longing took me back to this little video I made of track drills on the beach. They can be done anywhere, anytime, any season….park, gym, home, hallway, sidewalk. Enjoy the sounds of the birds and water.
The different versions will get you moving sideways and twisting. These are great for anyone who walks, jogs or runs.
Let me know if you have any questions.

The Lake Winnipeg Foundation is doing wonderful things to get our lake as clean as possible for future generations. Check them out.

#VictoriaBeach #LakeWinnipeg #SaveOurLake #LakeWinnipegFoundation #BeachWorkout

Post-workout | Green Juice

– Experts now know it is important to take in post workout nutrition to enhance recovery and future performance.

Let’s keep it simple…..

This post-workout green juice is fabulous for replenishing energy stores and rebuilding tissues because of the carbohydrate (natural sugars) from the apple and the protein of the hemp powder.

The wheatgrass is an added bonus as it has been shown to increase hemoglobin levels which in turn allows for greater transport of oxygen around our bodies. This can enhance performance when being active.

The spinach is a nice addition to increase our daily intake of vegetables!  We can all use a little more veg in our lives!!!


 


Naturya – Organic Hemp Protein Powder

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Gluten and lactose free, has a perfect 3:1 ratio of Omega 6 and 3

Great post-workout to help with recovery

 

Press on the photo (left) to order yours through Amazon today.

Rainy Day Workout

– Not feeling like going outside in the rain or snow? Use this simple indoor workout as an alternative.

Use the stairs in your apartment or office building.
Walk up 4-10 flights (dependent on availability), do a set of pressups, complete “on the spot lunges” (both sides) and finish with tricep dips.
Do 2-5 reps of the stairs, each time you complete the stairs go through a set of 8-15 reps of each exercise.

I usually complete all 7 storeys of stairs in my block 5-6 times including the exercises after each set of stairs – this takes between 18-24 minutes.

Enjoy the workout…..Let me know how you get on! Here or on twitter @positivelyslim

See more workouts & programmes here

Be mindful when you move

Be mindful of how your body feels

Wikipedia defines Mindfulness as:

“The practice of mindfulness involves being aware moment-to-moment, of one’s subjective conscious experience from a first-person perspective.”

I remember in my first year of University sitting in a Psychology lecture and the professor saying, “Become a conscious thinker.” This was a new concept for me.  Over the years I have explored different views on this, one of my favourites being from Eckhart Tolle in his book The Power of Now, which I highly recommend.


✔How and Why we can apply this during workouts….

…Focusing on your muscles that are working during movement leads to increased muscle contraction in turn meaning better body results than if your mind is distracted.
You will also use better form & breathe better leading to more effective & safe workouts.
I believe being mindful during workouts also opens you to a feeling of empowerment as you feel the capabilities & strength of your body.
✔So, let go of distractions when next you move.
✔You don’t need to know each muscle group name to do this just allow your mind to go to where you feel contractions.

Practice:

If you are doing a squat you will feel your legs and hip muscles engaging, and even your abs and back.
You can also follow your breath during the squat, breathing in as you lower towards the floor and breathing out as you push through your feet and legs to stand up.
Try a squat now and tell me how it feels. Can you focus in on some muscles? How does your breathing feel? Can you imagine your lungs moving like balloons filling and emptying?
Discover your body again.


For more ideas on mindfulness while you move and ways to ease into being active and healthy check out the Simple Healthy Living Online Programme here…


Be Mindful

Magnesium to improve your fitness performance

– It is vital for your health and sports performance – yet the ‘forgotten mineral’.

 Guest author – Dr. Britt Cordi

Magnesium is one of the most important minerals for our health – and ensuring an adequate intake has never been easier. Yet studies show that most people regularly eat half of the daily recommended dose!

Very few people are aware of how vital magnesium is for overall health and performance and it has been singled out as the ‘forgotten mineral’ by health specialists. 


Magnesium is involved in over 325 different biochemical reactions vital to health and performance.

It protects against heart disease and heart attacks, high blood pressure and stroke, type II diabetes and much, much more.

It is more important than calcium, potassium or sodium and regulates all three of them. Contrary to popular misconceptions, it is magnesium that is actually most important in building strong bones and preventing bone loss.

When we get too low on oxygen, water or food, the consequences are serious. Yet, we often don`t realize the consequences of magnesium deficiency or imbalance, which are listed below:

  • Insomnia
  • Sleep-disorders
  • Fatigue
  • Body-tension
  • Headaches
  • Heart-disorders
  • Low energy
  • High Blood Pressure
  • PMS
  • Muscle tension, craps, tremors
  • Backaches
  • Constipation
  • Kidney stones
  • Osteoporosis
  • Accelerated aging
  • Depression and mood swings, irritability
  • Irregular-heartbeat
  • Anxiety
  • Muscle cramps (also in pregnant women)
  • Spasms Irritability

Just how important is magnesium to athletes?

Well, new research suggests that even small defiencies in magnesium intake can inhibit athletic performance.

The UK’s Food Standards Agency estimates that the average daily intake of magnesium in Britain for both men and women is just 227mgs – only two thirds of the US recommended daily amount (RDA) and studies carried out in 1986/87 revealed that gymnasts, footballers and basketball players were consuming only around 70% of the RDA (1).

So What’s The Take-Home Message For Athletes?

First, it’s all too easy to go short of magnesium, especially if your diet is light on foods like whole grains and cereals, green leafy vegetables, pulses (peas/beans/lentils), nuts and seeds. One study of male athletes supplemented with 390mgs of magnesium per day for 25 days resulted in an increased peak oxygen uptake and total work output during work capacity tests (2).


So how do we get enough magnesium – and what is the right proportion?

One of the major benefits of getting your nutrients from a varied whole food diet is that you’re far less likely to end up with too much of one nutrient at the expense of others. Whole foods in general contain all the co-factors and needed co-nutrients in the proper amounts for optimal health and performance.

The easiest way to secure your daily intake of magnesium in the right proportions is through:

  • Green leafy vegetables, such as kale, spinach, wheatgrass, flaxseed, pumpkin seeds.

For vegetables, the greener the colour the higher the magnesium content.

Outdoor grown Wheatgrass is exceptionally high in natural magnesium, as it is the darkest green you have ever seen. Wheatgrass Juice has been highly regarded for its nutritional properties for many years amongst health professionals and is known as the number One Superfood as it contains over 100 nutrients.

 


Wheatgrass Juice – the No 1 Superfood

1 oz wheatgrass juice contains:

  • 5 times the amount of precious green chlorophyll than broccoli
  • is equivalent to 1.5 lbs of broccoli in Vitamin E content!
  • 530% RDA of B12 – that is almost as much as in shellfish and making it suitable for vegans and vegetarians
  • 17 times more Vitamin B5 than banana

 


References

  1. J Am Diet Assoc;86: 251-3 (1986) and Nutr Res;7:27-34 (1987)
  2. Endocrinol Metab Clin N Am 22:377-395 (1993)

Rest and the goodies it can provide

✔Rest is just as important as moving in your workout plans✔
?Are working out like crazy lately & not seeing results, strength gains, slimming or performance improvements?
✔You may be missing rest✔

I find for some clients it is tough at first to learn to slot rest in their plans because they feel more is better but if they aren’t seeing the results despite trying their best then rest should be implemented.

?This is where a change in mindset comes in. Starting to accept and understand that rest is hugely valuable.


?Rest can come in different forms.

✔It may be a lighter workout to what a person normally does.

A cyclist or runner may go for a short swim one day instead.

A body builder may do an easy bike or walk session.

A dancer may have a stretch session.

A rower may do pilates.

You get the picture!  This is called active rest.

✔Or rest can be full rest…have a seat…take a load off. You will come back stronger in your next workout as the body has time to repair & restore.
✔Rest can also be meditation or visualization techniques to aid in calming the body, this in turn allowing the physical body space to recover.
✔The nervous & hormonal systems also need time to rest in order to reset & do their jobs properly, in turn allowing the body to functional optimally.

?Your body will thank you for taking rest with great goodies?

 

Post originally seen on my instagram

Making the leap from heels to trainers

Making the leap from heels at work to trainers for workouts can be a painful experience! Many of my female clients have complained of this over the years.

Why does this happen to women who regularly wear heels and how can they improve their lower leg health?

The reasons are simple:

  • Wearing heels for prolonged periods allows the calf muscles to sit in a shortened position
  • Women wear heels at work up to 8-12 hours/day – 5 days/week in this shortened position compared with only 1 or more hours in flat trainers working out per week
  • When switching to flat shoes or trainers the calf muscles are then put into a lengthened and stretched position
  • Heels can also be restrictive to the front and middle of the feet which can have a knock on effect to the backs of the legs – this is because everything is connected from the toes, underneath the feet and running up the backs of the legs

____________________________________________________________________________________

Solutions & tips:

  • Alternate your shoes at work
    • One day wear high heels, the next mid-size heels, the next flats
  • If the style conscious you can stomach it, wear trainers to work and then change into heels on arrival
  • Ease into exercise starting with shorter bouts of ten minutes, working your way up each week by several minutes
  • Perform an easy non-impact warm up (3-6 minutes) before the more intense portion of your workout especially if you are going into a class of some sort (walk on the treadmill flat, cross trainer or bike)
  • Take 5 minutes at the end of your workout to stretch your calf muscles
    • Stand on a bottom step with both feet, drop one heel off the step, keeping ball of this foot on the step – repeat other leg
    • If you have healthy knees – kneel down slowly into a full squat and hold the position keeping heels on the ground
    • 3 times each leg for 30-60 seconds each

____________________________________________________________________________________

  • When starting exercise keep moves non-impact and grounded (so, no leaping around!) – if you want to try jogging then start with a mix of 2 minutes walking, 1 minute light jogging (keep alternating for ten minutes, working your way up each week)
  • Keep exercises on flat ground – no hills for a few months until calves become lengthened more as walking hills puts the backs of the lower legs on a stretch
  • At home wear your trainers, slippers or bare feet to balance your time against being in your heels at work

IMG00136

Golf stretches, pilates & core

Is Golf for you?

It’s a game for life…

Golf is one of those games you can play your whole life. Why not try a lesson or two at your local course and see if you like it? If you are nervous don’t worry, once you are on the course you will see there are people of all sorts of levels. Golf need not be expensive either. There are local authority/council courses that are very reasonably priced.

 

Already playing?

Need some stretches and core strengthening moves to improve your game….

 

Pilates for Golf…

Here are a few Stott Pilates for Golf videos for you….

Pilates on the Green #1

Pilates on the Green #2 (moves can be done without the balls as well)

 

TRX for Golf…

Check out this video from TRX Training for Golf  

 

20 Songs to Shake It!

– Following my recent post “6 Songs to Move Your Booty” on Psychologies Magazine Life Labs Blog I want to share with you 20 more of my favourite tunes to get us moving!

In random order:

  1. The Clash – “Rock The Casbah”
  2. Bruce Springsteen – “Dancing in the Dark”
  3. Depeche Mode – “Just Can’t Get Enough”
  4. MC Hammer – “U Can’t Touch This”
  5. Reel 2 Real – “I like to move it”
  6. Madonna – “Vogue”
  7. Beyonce – “Single Ladies”
  8. Gloria Gaynor – “I Will Survive”
  9. Duran Duran – “The Reflex”
  10. Whitney Houston – “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”
  11. Jake Bugg – “Lightening Bolt”
  12. Gary Numan – “Cars”
  13. Delerium – “Silence ft Sarah McLachlan”
  14. David Guetta – “Titanium ft Sia”
  15. George Michael – “Faith”
  16. Fine Young Cannibals – “Suspicious Minds”
  17. Kenny Loggins – “Footloose”
  18. Dolly Parton – “9to5”
  19. David Bowie – “Modern Love”
  20. Jamiroquai – “Virtual Insanity”

I urge you to choose your own list to keep you moving!

Need some home workout inspiration?

Try my new Coronavirus Movement & Calming Plan here…

DISCLAIMER: This is not a cure for coronavirus rather a way to boost your spirits and keep your body fit through exercise and meditations at home.
Please do not undertake this programme if you are ill.