503-705-4762

Author: Anne

Balance Workshop for Fall Prevention

Purchase the recording here

Do you struggle with your balance?

Have you (or has someone you love) fallen recently?

Watch this recording and learn exercises you can do at home using minimal equipment to improve your balance.

In this workshop I’ll guide you through simple exercises to:

  • Improve foot and ankle strength
  • Boost your confidence walking on uneven ground
  • improve big toe mobility (important for a healthy gait)
  • Increase hip strength and mobility

According to the CDC, 30% of adults aged 65 and older fall each year. Falls can result in serious injuries, limited mobility, and loss of independence.

A fall can impact not only the injured person but their entire community.

One of my friends recently shared that a relative had a fall that resulted in a hip fracture. While not life threatening, her injury has impacted the entire family. She is the primary care giver for her husband who suffers from dementia. This injury temporarily impacted her ability to care for both herself and her husband. Friends and relatives have stepped in to provide care for both adults. She is already up and moving and will soon be living independently again. She’s a very active senior with good muscle tone and mobility and I’m sure that has played a part in her rapid recovery.

You can take steps, starting today, to help build muscular strength and coordination so that you do not become sidelined by a fall.

Fall prevention tips for inside your house:

  • Remove all area rugs. These can be a tripping hazard.
  • Plug in night lights (especially if you get up in the night to go to the bathroom).
  • Wear grippy soled socks, or slippers that cover your whole foot (not slides).
  • Slow down. Often when we fall, we are rushing, or not paying attention.

As we age our foot and ankle mobility can diminish. Calf raises, toe taps, calf stretches, and step ups/ step downs are all good exercises to build ankle strength and mobility.

A really simple awareness exercise is to notice your gait. Do you shuffle? Can you practice picking up your feet, and rolling forward from your heel to the front of your foot as you walk?

click here to purchase the recording

If you need help with your balance, please join us Saturday January 13th at noon!

Hope to see you on Zoom!

~Anne

Mattie’s Cornbread Dressing Recipe

Here’s my favorite Thanksgiving recipe, my grannie’s cornbread dressing.

I grew up in north Florida, and in the south, “dressing” is very different than “stuffing”. This is a side dish, cooked separate from the bird, that is the consistency of lumpy mashed potatoes, rather than crumbly bread cubes.

Depending on where you are in the south, you may see sausage or seafood in your cornbread dressing. The recipe below is what I ate growing up. If you’re looking for a vegetarian side dish you could easily make this using vegetable stock in lieu of turkey drippings or chicken stock, and leave out the milk. Please don’t try to leave out the butter. This is Thanksgiving, the high holiday of fat, baby!

My Mom’s mom Mattie was born in South Georgia and raised in Florida. She used curry powder (not sage) and moistened the dish with drippings from the turkey. My Dad’s Mom Mary Del grew up in Louisiana and she would put oysters in her dressing.

Below is Mattie’s recipe with an option to add oysters for Louisiana style.

Cornbread Dressing Recipe

Cornbread Ingredients:

  • 1 8.5 oz box jiffy cornbread mix
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup of milk

Dressing Ingredients:

  • 8 tablespoons butter (reserve one tbsp. to grease the pan)
  • 4-5 ribs of celery, chopped
  • 1 small green pepper, chopped
  • 1 small yellow onion, chopped
  • 5 slices white bread, dried in warm oven, and crumbled
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2-3 cups chicken stock (or pan drippings from the turkey)
  • 3/4 cup whole milk
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons curry powder
  • Optional: 1 pint fresh oysters, drained

Directions:

  1. Make cornbread according to package directions. Cool and crumble (best to do this a day or two ahead.).
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9×13 inch baking dish.
  3. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and sauté the celery, green pepper, and onion until soft (5-10 minutes).
  4. In a large bowl, place the celery, pepper, and onion. Add the cornbread, white bread, eggs, chicken stock, milk, salt, pepper, and curry powder and mix well (add the oysters now if you are using them).
  5. Pour into prepared dish and bake at 350 for 30 – 45 minutes, or until lightly browned on top. (to test for doneness, carefully and gently jiggle the pan, and if the center of the dressing moves cook it a little longer, til it’s set).

Hot and Bothered – Tips for Surviving and Thriving during Menopause.

How sleep, diet, exercise, stress management, and hormones all play a role in your health, and what you can do about it!

Registration for this live 4 week series is closed. A recorded version of this will be available soon.

If you’d like Anne to speak to your group (in person or on zoom) about menopause reach out today!

Anne@FluidPortland.com

(503) 705-4762

Hot flashes. Hot blooms. Power surges. No matter what you call them unexpected fluctuations of your internal thermostat can wreak havoc on your clothing, and your social life.

Menopause symptoms can impact your relationships,
your self-image, even your career.

Educating yourself as to what is coming, what you can do about it, and knowing when it’s time to seek professional help can drastically improve your experience during the menopause transition.

Join us as we learn about menopause, how it impacts our lives, and what small steps you can take every day to help you transition to the next level with ease.

Hot and Bothered! How to Survive and Thrive during Your Menopause Transition.

  • Who: You! And your friends, spouses, coworkers…
  • What: A 4-week series including a thirty minute weekly Zoom call, a short homework assignment, and support from me!
  • When: 6-6:30pm PT, on Tuesday September 12th, September 19th, September 26th, and October 3rd.
  • Where: Online via Zoom meetings and email support.
  • Why: Educate yourself about menopause and learn what you can do to take charge of your mental and physical health.
  • How much: FREE for Fluid Fit Club subscribers. $100 for guests.

Who am I to tell you about menopause? I’m a personal trainer and licensed massage therapist. I teach weekly fitness classes and meet with clients for one-on-one strength training and nutrition coaching. I’m 49 years old and am nearing my menopause transition and have been researching how best to approach this. I’m excited to share what I’ve learned with you!

Please email me your menopause questions: Anne@FluidPortland.com.

Want to take this course for free? Become a Fit Club Member! Sign up for one of our weekly small group classes or contact me about one on one strength training or Thai massage.

Watermelon Mint and Feta Salad

 

Hooray for watermelon season!

I made this watermelon mint and feta salad for a potluck this weekend and wanted to share the recipe with you. Fresh, light, and easy to throw together this will be your new favorite summer salad.

Here in the Pacific Northwest, we’re lucky to have sweet and juicy Hermiston watermelons. I found a small seedless one at Chuck’s Produce.

We have a crazy amount of mint growing like weeds in the back yard so I’m on the lookout for summer recipes that include mint. This weekend as part of my Sunday meal prep, I made a big batch of green soup and thew in two big handfuls of parsley and mint.

Watermelon Mint and Feta Salad

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbsp white balsamic vinegar
  • 4 Tbsp Olive oil
  • 1 tsp honey
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 cups of seedless watermelon cut into bite sized cubes
  • 4 oz feta crumbled
  • 2 Tbsp fresh mint finely chopped

Directions:

  1. Pour vinegar, oil, honey, salt and pepper into a jar with a lid.
  2. Secure the lid tightly and shake to combine.
  3. Place watermelon, feta and mint in a large bowl.
  4. Pour dressing over fruit mixture and stir gently.
  5. Serve immediately. 

The July Five Exercises


Your July Five exercises:

  • Pelvic Clock
  • Bird Dog
  • Farmer’s Carry
  • Med Ball Push Up
  • Chest Stretch

Click here to watch the July Five video.

The order of these exercises is based on my trademarked R.O.S.S. protocol (Release, Organize, Strengthen and then Stretch) for pain free, economical movement.

Do this as a standalone strength and mobility workout by watching the video and following along with me or use this 9 minute series as a warmup prior to your next hike, bike, or swim.

To get the most out of these exercises please listen carefully to my cueing (especially while doing pelvic clock and bird dog).

I’m super excited to share this month’s farmer’s carry exercise with you!

I have some friends who are literal farmers and the husband recently told me a story about how he was proud of his wife. They were at a feed store and the employee thought the bag of feed they bought was too heavy for him to roll out to the truck using a hand cart. My friend’s bad ass, farm strong wife took one look at the 50lb bag, hoisted it over her shoulder and carried it out into the parking lot.


While you may not be working on a farm, or doing heavy manual labor this summer, let me ask you this – how much does your suitcase weigh? Or your dog? If they pack the box heavy at Costco, would you feel confident lifting it out of the cart and into your trunk?

Do you have the shoulder, back, core, and leg strength to pick up and carry a heavy thing?

Could your core stabilize you enough to carry a heavy thing in one hand only?

If the answer is no, join us for our Wednesday 6 pm Pilates class on Zoom. We’re combining traditional Pilates exercises with these shoulder and core strength moves.

 

None of these exercises should hurt. YOU are in charge of taking good care of you. If you feel pain, stop immediately. Please see your medical professional prior to beginning a new exercise program.