#RealPeople Fitness goals: No Shrinking!

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One of my clients said to me,” I decided I have a new goal: I want to maintain my height as I age!”   I LOVE that!  What a great goal!  Did you know that Research from the Baltimore Longi­tudinal Study of Aging found  average woman between 30 and 70 loses 2 inches?   What if you decided to keep your body healthy, strong and tall as you aged as one of your fitness goals?  What would that look like?  

First let’s look at why we shrink as we age.  What actually causes you to get shorter as you age?

  • You can lose height because the discs between the vertebrae in the spine dehydrate and compress
  • The aging spine can also become more curved, and vertebrae can collapse (called a compression fracture) due to loss of bone density (osteoporosis).
  • Loss of muscles in the torso can also contribute to stooped posture.
  • Even the gradual flattening of the arches of the feet can make you slightly shorter.

So what can we do to slow the shrinking process?

You may be able to slow shrinkage by taking steps that will help protect your bones and muscles.Things like consuming adequate calcium, vitamin D, and other bone-healthy nutrients; not drinking alcohol to excess; and not smoking will help! Doing weight bearing exercise and strengthening the muscles that support your spine is also very important.

 If you are wondering what type of exercises might fall in to this description, let me tell you about my favorite two!  

#1 is walking.  I love walking as part of your fitness and health plan because it really doesn’t take a lot of special effort or equipment.  All you need is you and a place to walk.  It’s also a skill that we all already have so you don’t have to learn anything new. Besides being a great weight bearing whole body exercise it is also great fro keeping your heart healthy.  

My other favorite type of exercise is Pilates.  The Pilates method of exercise is designed to teach you how to strengthen your body in a way that strengthens and balances out the muscles along your spine which is exactly what we all need as we age to help us shrink less.  Many of the Pilates exercises are designed to move your spine in a way that actually hydrates the disc in between the vertebrae, helping you maintain a healthy spine.  All of the exercises focus on moving from your center and strengthening your core muscles that help you maintain your great posture and avoid stooping.  The exercise method also focuses on always working in alignment which basically means every time you are doing Pilates your are practicing your strengthening your ” good posture muscles”. 

Want to learn more about how learning the Pilates method can help you keep your height?  Give us a call and schedule your complimentary private session today!  

 

 

 

 

http://www.berkeleywellness.com/self-care/preventive-care/article/why-you-shrink-you-age

 

 

 

 

 

Your Shoveling Snow Fitness Plan!

We had our first snow last weekend and like every year after the first snow I heard lots of clients talking about their achy backs from shoveling. As winter settles in here in Iowa I’d like to challenge you to start thinking of your shoveling duties as part of your movement and fitness routine. After all, walking for 20 minutes or more while you use a shovel to pick up and throw heavy wet snow is work and can be a great way to get some exercise! Like any exercise program though you’ll want to make sure you are doing it properly so that you get the maximum benefits without getting hurt!

Here’s my top tips for your winter Shoveling practice!!

  1. Warm up your body a little before heading out. Try a little standing warm up that moves the body in each plane (gentle twists, side bends gentle roll down, gentle standing swan) so that your body feels ready to move.
  2. Check in with your shoveling form. How’s your posture as you pushing that snow? Are you tensing your shoulders and neck unnecessarily? Are you rounding your shoulder and back?
  3. Bend your knees when you pick up the snow to throw it.  That moment where you pick the snow up and throw it is an important one. Make sure you end your knees, engage your abdominal muscles and keep your back lengthened!!
  4. Engage  your core!! I know I mentioned this before but it’s so important and could save you a backache!!  Pulling your abdominal muscles up and in and engaging them will keep your back supported and safe while you are pushing and shoveling.
  5. Take swan breaks! Even when we are paying attention to our posture we are likely to end up spending some time rounded forward pushing snow. So every once in awhile stop and do a few standing swan to counter the stiffness and tightness that start to happen in our neck and back muscles.

Relieve neck tension by being Mindful!!

If you haven’t noticed it has turned COLD this past week or so here in Iowa.  I don’t know about you, but it usually takes me a little while to adjust to the colder temperatures and all of the layering up you end up doing in the winter season.  One of my clients mentioned this week that she noticed her neck muscles being tighter this week and thought maybe it had to do with the cold weather as she hadn’t gotten her scarves out yet.  As soon as she said that I had a big aha moment for myself.  I am completely guilty of not dressing warm enough and then doing things like scrunching my shoulders up and trying to use my body position to keep me warmer!

So since then I have just been trying to make an effort to be more aware and more mindful of my shoulder scrunching, especially when I go out into the cold or when I’m driving in a chilly car.  It’s amazing how many times I catch myself scrunching, although it’s getting much better now that I’m aware of it!

I’ve also been trying to add some gentle stretches ad movements into my workouts and into my daily routine the relax and stretch those tight neck and upper trapezius muscles.  Check them out in the video below!

 

 

 

Mindful Mat Pilates Basics

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This short video reviews the Pilates fundamentals utilizing a 5 count breath pattern designed to help you focus and fine tune!  It’s great for beginners and just as great for non beginners who want to fine tune their basics!

 

What if exercise didn’t make you sore?

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I started a new Beginner Pilates Mat series this week, and at the beginning of class I found myself saying something to this group of new Pilates students that I felt like more people should hear.  I told them that they probably wouldn’t be sore after their first class and that’s OK and it’s actually a good thing. I told them they may feel some muscles they haven’t used in awhile and have what I like to call “muscle awareness” but really the last thing I wanted was for me to check in with them in a few days and find out they were so sore it almost hurt move!  I could just feel a sense of relief spread through the room when I said this.  My guess is that many of my participants who had finally gotten the courage to try Pilates, were already dreading how sore they might be after their first class.

I think in today’s society we have this perception that if you are not miserably sore after you exercise- it isn’t effective.  I asked them to get rid of this belief when they started their Pilates journey.  I asked them to start looking at movement and exercise from a different perspective.  Don’t get me wrong…I’m not saying you should never have sore muscles from your Pilates practice- you will.  What I’m saying is that it is actually better and more effective for your body to gradually progress through exercises feeling mild soreness from the strengthening process, versus trying to do too much too soon and overloading your muscles to the place where you are likely to injure yourself.  I’m also saying that it’s OK if you are not sore from a Pilates/movement session!

The belief that you have to be sore from movement for it to be effective is really a little ridiculous if you think about it.  For instance, I walk on a daily basis to make sure I get my plenty of cardiovascular movement time in and to strengthen my body as a whole.  I would never think to myself, ” Wow, I’m never sore from walking so it must not be doing me any good!”  We all know that regular cardiovascular exercise like walking is great for your cardiovascular health, your muscles and even your bone strength!

Is the dread of post exercise soreness keeping you from trying Pilates?  I encourage you to rethink some of those old movement beliefs and come in and try out a complimentary introductory private session with one of our instructors.  Let us help you change your mind about how exercise should feel!

 

 

An Introduction to Mindfulness

 

I am very excited to focus on mindfulness at Rivercity Pilates this month. I have to admit, a few months ago I am not sure I really understood mindfulness. I am still not sure I do, but I am excited to share a few insights from my experience taking the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program through the University of Iowa.

When I signed up for the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program, I was apprehensive and not entirely sure what I was getting myself in to….What is mindfulness? How do I achieve it? What will it do for me? What I learned is there are many possible answers to these questions.

While my understanding of mindfulness continues to evolve, after participating in the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program, I have some initial answers to my questions.

What is mindfulness? According to Jon Kabat-Zinn, “Mindfulness is the awareness that comes from paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally.”

How do I achieve it? Mindfulness is a practice, not a destination. It is a way of living. In the words of Jon Kabat-Zinn, being mindful is simple but not easy.

A few ways that we practiced mindfulness during the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program include a guided body scan, meditation, mindful eating, mindful movement, and paying attention to our senses (smelling, tasting, feeling, seeing, and hearing) during events throughout the day.

What will it do for me? There are many potential benefits of practicing mindfulness, including decreased stress, decreased chronic pain, decreased anxiety, improved anger management, and improved quality of life. Personally, practicing mindfulness is helping me become more responsive rather than reactive. It is helping me focus on the present, rather than dwelling in the past or worrying about the future. It is helping me become a little less judgemental with myself by focusing on the process rather than the outcome. And for all of that, I am grateful.

“Mindfulness means seeing things as they are, without trying to change them.  The point is to dissolve our reactions to disturbing emotions, being careful not to reject the emotion itself.  Mindfulness can change how we relate to, and perceive our emotional states.”

Tara Bennet-Goldmen,PhD in Emotional Alchemy

For more information about mindfulness programs at the University of Iowa, visit https://uihc.org/mindfulness-programs