There’s a brand new workout debuting this week on Let’s Move! and it’s a slow-flow, all standing, 20minute yoga sculpt called Yoga With Weights. I love love love mixing yoga with fitness modalities because 1. it’s fun, entertaining, and helps hold people’s attention. 2. it provides movement variety, and 3. it saves time. 20minutes of yoga is always an excellent choice – and I am not knocking pure yoga when I say this – but 20minutes of yoga with weights turns up the “yang”...
Happy Baby pose, where you lie on your back and grab your big toes, is a natural action that I remember watching my own baby organically do, way back when he was an infant in his crib. I marveled, thinking, wow, yoga is innate. Plus, the name of the pose was so apropos. Then there’s the dancers I’ve spent time with over the years. They are so body-oriented, they can’t be idle for long. Even when...
The idea that “gentle” is for babies or for the injured, but aside from those specific demographics, you should be embracing intensity, is still alive and well in the world today, but not in my world. In my world, gentle is sustainable, nurturing and a winning aspect of longevity. What is a gentle workout? First, gentle might just be slower. It might just be shorter. It might just be avoiding certain ranges of motion that cause pain. Gentle doesn’t mean less effective. Secondly,...
The biggest problem I come across these days in yoga classes, which I don’t remember ever seeing twenty years ago, is excessive restlessness. There are lots of people who just cannot get settled on their mats. At the onset of class, they twitch, they breathe with irregularity, their eyes struggle with being shut or with holding a singular focus, and there is an overall inability to find a comfortable seat. This type of person used...
Ladies, it’s our nature to ebb and flow. Our energies and moods fluctuate and our needs constantly shift. One day we’re extroverted and have loads of energy, and the next day we might need to prioritize a good nap. In 2013, the big catalyst for writing the 28 Days Lighter Diet was my realization that our culture ignores – and rewards us when we do – one of the most important aspects of women’s health, the menstrual...
A happy body needs happy hamstrings, yet nobody pays much attention to their hamstrings unless they’re tight or sore. I say ignoring your hamstrings is a fitness cardinal sin. Here are three simple ways to create some hamstring happiness: 1. Give your hamstrings a massage. Sit on the floor with your legs in front of you and knees bent. Then take your fingers and “dig” into the backs of your thighs. Start behind the knee and work...
You want to know what the most neglected, underrated, and underestimated aspect of physical fitness is? Extension. In most people’s daily life – and in their workouts – the body stays in its tiny little box, never busting out. Overtime, ranges of motion get smaller and smaller, and the body’s comfort zone shrinks. In turn, the body is easily uncomfortable. Don’t be an average Joe! Take this call to action: be sure to stretch. Stretching can...
The other day, I heard a word and knew it was special: vitalist. A vitalist is someone who believes energy is what it’s all about, and therefore wants to optimize it. A vitalist seeks vitality – he or she is an “energy snob” so to speak, but in the best way. It’s important to know that we can conjure up more vitality, not always but very very often. Here are five big vitality boosters: 1. the consumption of high...
I was just talking about how I like to get creative with naming workouts and here I come out with a “boring” title that’s not all that exciting, and seems a bit generic. I know, I know….but the workout told me its name. The workout was adamant it be called FEEL GOOD FLOW. All the other names (“Barre Flow” was a frontrunner) were shot down by this workout’s incessant whispers I couldn’t drown out. Feel Good...
More and more I see the reciprocity between the body and the mind. Let’s face it – exercise gives us a leg up in life. It’s a well-being tool, not merely about physical health. I heard the term recently, whole self thriving, and just love it. That’s how I feel about exercise – it’s whole self thriving – and that’s probably why I prioritize it. So let’s all prioritize regular exercise. Let’s Move! and let’s thrive. 💚
