I have been sleep challenged for most of my life, and definitely endured days of sleep-deprivation.  As a child, it was a fear of dark and scary things that were coming out of my closet.  As an adult, it’s been taking care of the dog, children’s needs, and too much on my plate to get done to have time to slow down or sleep!  There’s also been physical pain, emotional traumas, and medications that have inhibited my ability to get a good night’s rest.  But, with all this said, rest and sleep is a very important part of staying healthy.  And as I’m learning now to take more time for me, I’m discovering how valuable getting a good night’s sleep is for my sanity!

I don’t think this is a women-only problem…  but it sure seems like the men I’ve known have an easier time unplugging their brains and falling asleep quickly.  Here are a few things I’ve learned along the way to enjoying my own sweet dreams and a satisfying night of rest and rejuvenation.

6 Tips for Getting a Good Night’s Sleep:

1. Daily Exercise.  For me to sleep (and sleep well) I require daily exercise.  The less I move, the more sluggish I feel – which means I don’t want to move, but the more I lay awake all night.  Sounds crazy – but I recommend increasing your daily physical activities. Either more vigorous exercise, more time exercising, or both!  Play with your activity schedule until you figure out what your body needs for balance between physical work/exercise, and rest/sleep.

2. Sunshine.  The more sunshine I get, the more soundly I sleep.  (being outside in the sun, breathing fresh air – not just looking out the window.)  No sun – no sleep…  Discovered this recently while vacationing in Jamaica.  Even my sweetie commented on how well I was sleeping.  I don’t live in the tropics…but sunlight seems to make a big difference in my disposition and ability to unwind, relax, and fall asleep quickly.

3. Nourishment.  What I eat & how late I eat it – affects my ability to sleep.  Anything with caffeine past @ 11am and I have a difficult time going to sleep before 2-3am.  Chocolate past 2pm – same thing.  High sugar, or late night snacks…no sleep.  Food is energy, energy keeps us awake.  It’s a challenge for me to get dinner between 6-7pm but if I do, I’m generally tired by 10-11 and IF I listen to my body and go to bed, I’ll fall asleep quickly.  IF I blow through my “tired” moment and force myself to stay up (or eat a snack)  I might not sleep at all.  What foods are you eating & what time to you consume them?  Can you see a connection?  Is this affecting your sleep cycle?

4.  Sleeping In & Naps.  I hardly ever take naps…because a nap during the day usually means less sleep at night.  But lately – on the weekend IF I’m tired, I’m sleeping in, or napping a bit.   Definition of a nap – 10-20 minutes of “power-rest”  just enough to give me a moment of peace in the middle of a hectic day.

5.  Meditation.  If I really can’t sleep – I find that laying restfully and listening to a guided meditation is a fabulous  way to stay refreshed with minimal actual sleep.  I had almost a year on high-dose steroids, which put my body in overdrive.  Most nights IF I could lay still for 30 minutes to an hour it was cause for celebration.  Meditation helps me keep my sanity when I have times where for whatever reason I am getting very little actual sleep.  You might use soothing music, or download several different guided mediation to your phone, ipod, or mp3 player to have handy when needed.

6. Guardian Angels.  While attending a Spiritual workshop recently, during the opening prayer Guardian Angels were placed in all 4 corners of the room for protection.  This past week, I have been saying a prayer before bed and calling my 4 Angel protectors to the corners of my room and asking them to protect the space in all directions – N, S, E, W, Above, & Below – while visualizing a glowing orb of protection around my bedroom.  I have slept like a rock every night that I’ve done this!  I’m striving to remember to thank my Angels every morning when I wake up:)  This has been amazing.  I also visualize my “Day Angel” passing me off to my “Night Angel” with me sleeping like a baby:)

The Importance of a Joyous Happy Heart

Heart healing continues to come up for me on my Spiritual journey to be healthy, happy, and whole.  We need a healthy body for a healthy heart, we need proper nourishment for a healthy heart, and we need to heal our emotional baggage for a healthy heart.  A healthy heart = a happy heart!

I recently read the book, The Healing Codes by Alexander Loyd, PhD, ND.  Wonderful insights for heart healing & the emotional connection to how we react to things. One of the comments Dr. Loyd makes is positive affirmations can actually increase our stress level & create problems if we don’t really believe what we’re saying!  This book also helped me connect some of the triggers to things/events in my past when I fall off my emotional deep end, how these past events are related to my reactions to things now… And how to clear these negative emotions for a healthy heart.  I know I have spent many a sleepless night with things weighing heavy on my heart.  As I have made shifts and improvements in this area – my ability to wind down, let go, and sleep has definitely improved.  I definitely think this is a must-read book if you’re interested in looking at the possible heart connection to your sleepless night issues.

We are all on our own personal journeys.  But we’re also all human…different, but the same.  What works for one person may not be exactly what YOU need right now, but tuck it away for future reference.  I find that my body cycles thru things I need to eat, amount of sleep, different types of exercise, different meditations,….The more in-tune we are with all of this the easier it is to follow our heart and stay connected – mind, body, and spirit!

Take care of YOU – exercise, good foods, good thoughts, peace, joy, laughter…  Maintaining a healthy & whole you will help you enjoy a restful whole night’s sleep – tonight & every night!

Hope these tips for a better night’s sleep are useful to YOU!  What other suggestions do you have?  Please share…

Your life depends on learning to listen to your body and NOT overdoing it in the heat!

Did you know that between 1979 – 2003 excessive heat exposure caused more deaths in the US than hurricanes, lightning, tornadoes, floods, and earthquakes combined!  Heat related injuries and deaths are preventable…  Stay safe and be smart when exercising in extreme temperatures.

Heat Stroke is a medical emergency that is fatal if not treated properly AND immediately.

Heat stroke is a form of hyperthemia – elevated body temperature.  Normally the body dissipates heat through evaporation of sweat, but in extreme heat, high humidity, or physical exertion outdoors in the sun, the body may not be able to keep effectively regulate temperature.  Extreme dehydration also reduces the ability of the body to sweat  to dissipate heat and this can also cause body temperature to rise.  Heat stoke can mimic the signs and symptoms of a heart attack, and it’s possible to progress from heat exhaustion into heat stroke.

Become familiar with the warning signs for heat exhaustion and heat stroke so you can stay safe, healthy, and avoid illness or death while you’re enjoying your summer exercising in the great outdoors.

Here is some great information about Extreme Heat, Heat Exhaustion, and Heat Stroke from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

And here’s a great guide from the CDC for everything from heat stroke, to heat cramps, an sunburn.  “Extreme Heat: A Prevention Guide to Promote Your Personal Health and Safety.”

Enjoy whole-body health and participate in safe and  appropriate activities when exercising in extreme heat or other weather conditions.  Stay cool, stay healthy, and enjoy exercising indoors and out!  Just be careful when temperatures rise.  Listen to your body, exert less, or take your fitness program indoors (Pilates is always a great choice!)

Thought some of you might enjoy reading the blog post Marilyn wrote after interviewing me about Pilates and the Pelvic Floor. Here’s the link if you’re interested in the article & interview:  LBL from a Pilates Teacher’s Perspective

An Extra Couple of Comments From Aliesa:

From my understanding the front to back muscle contraction with the muscles between the pubic bone and tail bone (front to back of the Pelvic floor) is the more important part that needs strengthening to help reduce LBL and incontinence issues. As a Pilates teacher, I help clients identify the difference between contracting the front to back walls of the Pelvic Floor, vs. side to side contraction, vs. engaging the whole Pelvic Floor.  Along with education as to the difference between contracting the muscles of the Pelvic Floor for better posture support and movement vs. doing a Kegel.  There is a difference in benefits depending on how and what you’re doing with your Pelvic Floor!

I’m not sure that everyone that teaches Pilates, Fitness, or Pelvic Floor Exercises breaks things down like I do…but if you can find someone with a good understanding of what you need to do – the difference in core support and freedom of movement (as well as helping to eliminate LBL issues) will be dramatically noticeable with just a little bit of practice with new pelvic floor habits.

Are you challenged with LBL issues?  Has Pilates helped you?

I know this isn’t a topic that gets talked about – but look at the large number of people affected!  Isn’t it great to know that there IS something you can do to improve things!

I encourage you not to keep all your health and body issues hidden in the closet…  Ask your doctor, and other health care professionals if there’s anything you can do.  Chances are, regardless of the issue,  if you’re willing to put forth a little effort, there’s probably something that you can do to be proactive for improved whole-body health!  Keep asking, and keep trying until you find the right things that work for you, so you can enjoy optimal health & wellness.

I had a discussion at the end of a session with a very loyal and long-standing Pilates client this week.  After the many, many years of consistent Pilates this person was feeling frustrated that they weren’t super flexible yet!  “After all this time, why aren’t I any better?  Seems like by now I should be like Gumby!”

This got me to thinking how interesting our perspectives are about our own health.  By my opinion, this client has made HUGE improvements in flexibility, strength, body awareness, and mechanics.  And where I used to have to put ALL my body weight into spotting things and trying to help get things bend better, now I can lightly put a hand here or there and things start moving!

If we spend 2-4 hours a week doing Pilates, we then have 20-22 hours of time to forget (or time to reinforce other habits. (Some of which might be good, and others probably aren’t helping our body mechanics and movement.)

For Example:

If you sit for work 8-10 hours a day, and you ride a bike for cardio, your legs are always in a flexed forward position at the hip, so the hip flexors and quadriceps are probably going to stay short and tight.  Great to be doing Pilates Mat and the Side Leg Series especially…  But other exercises and activities that get your legs swinging behind the body are necessary to undo some of the restricted mobility.  Walking would be great, swimming and a flutter kick, Cross-country Skiing (or a ski machine) are just a few examples of other cardio exercises that might be a good choice to improve hip extension and mobiltiy.

OR – if you’re feet hurt, and you spend time wearing flip-flops and backless shoes…  Yes,  a couple of hours of Pilates a week will help stretch and strengthen your feet,  but when you stick those crappy shoes back on your feet and walk around with a shortened stride and bad mechanics all day – which habit is being reinforced the most?  The good one, or the bad one?

Now if you’ve been living in your body for 50 years, and doing Pilates 2-3 days a week for 10 years…  You  have 40 years of habits accumulated in your system to undo and reinforce with new behaviors.  And you’ve had less than a ¼ of the time practicing good new “Pilates” habits!

Logic would stand that it might take as many hours practicing a new behavior and you spent with an old one to replace the habit.  Yes, perhaps some things change a little faster than this – and that helps keep us motivated.  But give me at least as many years with new habits as you had with the old ones and then tell me how you feel.

So as Pilates clients, we’ve got to be patient with the process, and continue reinforcing the right behaviors and muscle use until we don’t have to think about it anymore and the right things just happen when me move.

As Pilates Teachers, we have to help our clients remember where they came from.

• What exercises could a client not do at all when they started.
• What injuries, or limitations did they used to have that don’t bother them anymore?
• What things can they do now that they weren’t able to do when they started?
• What were their original fitness goals?
• What are their goals now?

All of this is relevant to remember your journey and track your progress.

We’re now living in a fast-paced, point & click society, but our body does not change with a point and a click! Pilates is not an instant gratification sport, (although I did have a new client last week who after 1 lesson had her back pain go away!) Nice when it works like that…and now I’ve got to help her learn how to keep it this way.   Pilates is a process of getting in touch with your body and training the mind to control movement.  Learning to trust the work and release that has to happen to develop optimal strength, flexibility and core support is vital for good health.

Maintaining good health, means a daily practice of the right habits
to reinforce your healthy behaviors.

Here are a few ways you can keep track of your journey and document your progress:

• Take photos and video to document your posture and movement abilities
• Keep a record of your Pilates program, equipment, exercises, springs, repetitions
• Keep a record of your weight training workouts, exercises, and the amounts of weight you are lifting.
• Track your heart-rate for cardio, to be aware of the fitness level of this very important muscle.
• Use a tape measure to track your inches – neck, arms, chest, waist, hips, thighs, calves
• Start a food diary – write down everything you eat, to see if your intake is in your highest good to stay healthy.
• Journal – Write down your thoughts, feelings, emotions, and what’s going on in your life to become more aware of your mind-body connection, and how what you’re thinking influences what you do.

Be patient, persistent, dedicated, driven, joyful, enthusiastic, and happy, happy, happy, that regardless of where you “think” you should be, you are taking active steps daily to do good things for your body, mind, and spirit.  The results will catch up with your efforts when the time is right!

This question about the difference between toning shoes vs. a regular pair of running or walking shoes always comes up when I teach my Fantastic Feet Workshop!

Everybody’s looking for the best option to get the most bang for their buck for a workout. But lots of bucks it takes to buy these fancy “toning” shoes! Is the cost for the claims of burning more calories, solving joint pain, working your hamstrings, butt and calves harder really worth it?

According to the ACE study – there is no statistically significant increases or evidence to support the advertising claims. A regular pair of tennis shoes can provide the same benefits as your MBT’s or other Shape-Up shoes, based on the ACE research study which measured fitness and wellness benefits.

Do I own a pair of Toning Shoes – YES. Do I wear them often – NO.

Why did I buy them? Because I had so many clients asking if they should buy a pair that I wanted to experience what it felt like to wear them so I could give a more educated opinion on what these shoes felt like during a workout and how they affected my gait and stride.

What’s my opinion?
Since so many people are running around in flip-flops and other strapless or backless shoes – in general, for most of the population – stride length has been compromised. If you watch people walk, the legs swing more to the front of the body than behind the body. (We’ve made this adaptation to keep our flip-flops from falling off our feet!) Because of this the hips, hamstrings, and glutes don’t get a chance to work like they should because the legs are never in extension (behind the body) far enough for these muscles to fire.

Our strength to propel the body forward when we walk and run comes from the back of the legs – hamstrings, glutes, ankle and foot. Without a long enough stride, hip, knee, and ankle mechanics are compromised. And if you take a look at most of the cardio equipment on the market (with the exception of a treadmill) the stride/swing for the legs is primarily to the front of the body which continues to enhance the imbalance that has been created by our poor shoe choices and shortened stride!

So accepting by the research that you’re not going to burn more calories, or work harder by wearing toning shoes what might be the value of wearing toning shoes for a workout? For me, the rocker-bottom helps free up the swing of the leg and makes it a bit easier to increase stride length to feel what I should be doing all day long (in any pair of shoes) to get the legs behind the body for better stride length.

I wear my MBT’s every once in a blue moon! The rest of the time I prefer to focus my attention on making my body do things right (rather than rely on my shoes to do the work.)

What Do YOU Think About Toning Shoes?

• Do you own a pair of toning shoes?
• Why did you buy them?
• How much do you wear them?
• What’s your overall opinion of toning shoes?

If you want to read the research, click here for the ACE Fitness article.

Do you LOVE Yourself?  Do you LOVE your body?

Are you doing healthy things on a regular basis to treat you with love, affection, and kindness?

I am well aware that I’ve got my own challenges with body image, and have spent my entire life struggling to overcome them. (Some days I’m completely happy with me, and other days I feel like I’ll never have the body of my dreams… which causes me to feel bad that I’m not a lean, wispy, 5’6″ and 110 pounds. But instead a mere 5’4″, compact & muscular, and a fluctuating 150-155–Funny, 20 years ago when I was only 118-125, I had the same poor attitude and thought I was fat!) And unfortunately, I know that I’m not alone. With the hype and peer pressure from the media, and magazines–too many of us always point a negative, critical eye to our own body and we end up focusing on our flaws instead of our features!

So let’s take a moment to celebrate how much we LOVE our features!

I love sharing this exercise, and hope that you’ll drop me a line and tell me about your experience.

Here’s What To Do:

• Find a photo of yourself that you LOVE!
• Blow it up to an 8×10 glossy and print a copy.
• Get out a sharpie or your favorite magic marker.
• Around your body, write as many positive words as you can think of that express who you are and the things you love about yourself.
• Strive to fill the page with words. (if it doesn’t happen when you first sit down to write–don’t worry… keep your pen handy and as things pop into your head, you can continue to add them.)
• Frame your photo & put it somewhere where you will see and reflect on it daily!

There is great power in positive words. The messages that we send and surround ourselves with (our mental self-chatter) really does affect our attitude and our health. Negative chatter = negative attitude, and positive chatter = positive attitude!

Tell yourself daily how much you love YOU, and use this exercise to keep all the great things you love about yourself front and center so you’ll confidently be sending yourself daily doses of positive energy to stay focused on your great features instead of your flaws!

Self-love is a key to wellness success!

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.It seems evident to me that this author has probably never experienced a Pilates workout!  And in my study of Pilates, Yoga, Tai Chi, Qi Gong, and meditation,  I believe that these great mind-body methods are more similar than one might think for improving whole-body health.

Here’s Why:

It’s not just, let’s move the body, but let’s be aware, in-tune, and conscious of what we’re doing, how, we’re doing it, the initiation point, end point, and in-between points for every movement.

I think it’s wonderful that we have options for focused fitness and enhanced wellness for improved mind-body health.   There is a method out there to help meet the needs of each of us as individuals.  And if you want to develop and fine-tune your skills, cross-training and exploring different mind-body methods may give you an increased appreciation for your body, health, and the ancient wisdom that is at the root of each of these techniques.

Look for my series of upcoming posts on the benefits of each of these great mind-body methods.

• Pilates
• Yoga
• Tai-Chi
• Qi Gong / Chi Gung
• Martial Arts
• Meditation

And I’m curious to know… What’s your  #1 favorite Mind-Body Wellness method?  Answer the  survey, and if you have a moment – tell me why it’s your choice in the comment section below.

There are so many different reasons that each of us is inspired to exercise.  And your inspiration might change throughout the year.  Finding the motivation factor to keep fit is one of the keys to success.

I believe that if you know what motivates you, you’ll be more apt to do whatever it takes to stick with your workouts.  And if your reason isn’t important enough…well you might workout occasionally, but not enough to really reap the benefits you’d like to achieve.

So take a moment to answer this question on my poll for the day.  And then on those rare and occasional moments when you’re feeling un-motivated, and un-inspired to “get your sweat on…” perhaps you can think back to your response to this survey and recommit to your self and your health to get your tennies on (or swim suit, or Pilates attire) and make the most of your workout!

If you’re one of those die-hard, “I never miss a workout” types – Congratulations, You are truly inspirational and it shows in your attitude, commitment, and physique.

I’d love to know the WHY behind your #1 reason too, but there’s not a fill-in the blank response on the poll form, so if you’re inspired to comment and share, please pop your thoughts into my comment form below.

Have a Fit & Fabulous Day!

Out of their sample of 230 teenagers studied, 64% of the girls and 50% of the boys reported that they had experienced pain in the last 6 months.  Foot, ankle, and knee pain seemed most prevalent, low back pain was also reported.

The Study Concludes:

“The high prevalence of pain and its effect on daily activities suggests a need for greater focus on health promotion.”

My Thoughts on Health Promotion and Pilates:

I would love to see some research done on Pilates to reduce pain and improve motor function for adolescents with Cerebral Palsy. All I can go by is the actual improvements that I’ve seen with my CP clients!

Over the past 15 years I’ve had the opportunity to work with three CP kids, (2 were short-term clients, one has been consistently participating in Pilates programs for more than 12 years) All three of these amazing kids showed dramatic improvements that they carried back into their daily life activities.

I have seen changes in gait, motor control, balance, flexibility, strength, body awareness, confidence, coordination, and the list goes on…

One of my CP clients has transformed from extreme pigeon-toed gait and tripping over her own two feet on a regular basis, to trying out for the basketball team in high school, taking ballet classes for a while (requires external rotation of the hip and the ability to move in a toe-out position) wearing high-heeled shoes for her school dances without fear of falling, and she even learned to roller-skate!  If you can’t keep your feet both facing forward, roller-skating is not an option.

All these activities she was unable to even consider before Pilates, and the day I knew Pilates had made a dramatic difference was when her grandmother brought her in for a lesson and said to me, “I went to see my granddaughter’s perform in a play last weekend, and I had to go back and see the show twice!  I missed her entrance…  She used to walk with a funny gait and now she walks just like everybody else.”

The combination of strengthening and stretching that is at the core of Pilates equipment training makes it an optimal choice for helping improve balanced muscle development which leads to better body alignment, strength, and flexibility.  The fact that on the Pilates Reformer you start flat on your back and work to stretch and strengthen the hips, knees, ankles, and feet actually targets the most prevalent reported pain that this study brought to light.

The muscles of child with Cerebral Palsy might be a bit more tightly contracted, and more resistant to increasing flexibility, but in my experience,  just like anybody who has a tight muscle, it will require consistency with the right exercises and activities to begin achieving positive improvements.

It’s evident to me that regardless of your physical condition, the right exercises done consistently over time can only lead to one outcome – health improvement! In my experience…Pilates can be an excellent choice to reach this goal.

The cause of most adolescent scoliosis is unknown. It affects 3-5 out of every 1,000 children, and is more common and more severe in girls.

Scoliosis can be:

• Idiopathic – Of unknown cause.
• Functional – From poor posture and body alignment habits.
• Structural – Caused by disease, or birth defects.

So why is bracing used if the experts aren’t positive it’s actually working?

Based on the severity some sort of treatment is required, because if left untreated damage to the spine, heart, and lungs can occur as an adult.  Bracing is less evasive and still allows the option to strengthen the body through exercise and movement to balance and support the spine.  The alternative option of surgery and spine fusion is a permanent and last-resort option to protect the health of internal organs and quality of life.

What else can you do to treat Scoliosis?

While studies so far show that none of these can prevent the progression of scoliosis, they may offer some relief of symptoms.

• Manipulation by a Chiropractor, Kinesiologist, or Osteopathic Doctor
• Electrical Stimulation
• Diet & Nutrition
• Exercise

The benefits of Pilates for clients with scoliosis

Over the years,  I’ve had many clients with varying degrees of curvature of the spine participate in Pilates programs.  And while there might not be documented research to the benefits of Pilates exercises for scoliosis…From my experience, I have seen amazing gains in strength, and mobility.  The curves  don’t  go back to normal, but it is possible to learn how to strengthen the body and retrain some of the weaker muscles to better support the spine and achieve more optimal muscle balance.  Plus increased body awareness of good and bad posture habits is vital to learn how to avoid falling into the poor alignment that the scoliosis curve would prefer.  Spend more time using your own muscles to strive for good posture through Pilates and other fitness exercises, and you’re retraining the body for better health.

Looking at the Difference in Support Options

A brace is an external support for the spine. If the brace is doing the work, our muscles don’t have to work as hard (and in my opinion….may become weaker over time.) But if you don’t have the muscle awareness or strength to properly support the body all day long…bracing may be required to assist.

Spine fusion surgery creates permanent internal support for the spine. (While this might solve one problem, it has the potential to create others) And generally speaking fusion surgery is a last resort option.

Exercise strengthens the core and back muscles so your body can provide it’s own  muscular support for the spine. Pilates  exercises with the focus on core stabilization, and functional mobility of the spine in all directions – flexion, extension, side bending, and rotation, and should be considered as a primary care option to assist in improving health and supporting the spine.

The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases continues to research and learn more about treatments for scoliosis to determine the best modalities for improved health.  I hope in time, that more documented research into the benefits of Pilates for scoliosis will be conducted.