Who’s been nice? Fluid’s December Deals are here!
This week’s deal: Fluid Fitness Package
Meet with Anne for a thirty minute personal training session (Pilates, Yoga or Strength work), plus a sixty minute massage and she will send you home with your choice of a foam roller, Swiss ball, dumbbells or exercise band and your customized home workout program. $125
Offer good until Thursday December 23rd, call or email Anne today – 503-705-4762, Anne@FluidPortland.com
Feeling stressed? Overwhelmed? Join us February 4th to the 10th in beautiful Maui Hawaii for a healthy relaxing stress free vacation in paradise! Think you are too busy? Studies show that constant work with no down time can lead to decreased productivity and creativity. Scheduling a vacation gives you an opportunity to recharge, gain a new perspective and can even help stave off depression. Think of this as a mental and physical health boost!
The focus of this trip is stress reduction and Anne has an awesome week planned for you! You are welcome to take part in daily group classes, organized outings like snorkeling and hikes or just hang out in the hot tub. This is your vacation for you to do as you please. Here is a sample day:
All meals are prepared for you with a focus on whole foods, fruits and veggies and local seafood. Anne welcomes special dietary requests and there are no restrictions on what you can or cannot eat. Want to go raw for a week? Anne will support you. Want to start your day with a mimosa? Go for it. This is your vacation.
Included in the price of this trip:
To view our house visit http://www.mauihouse4rent.com/.
Want to bring the hubby but he is not interested in yoga or massage? Ask Anne about her special “companion rate”.
Call or email Anne to reserve your spot today! (503) 705-4762.
Many of your know Karen Klever who passed away this past May. The Komen Race for the Cure is happening this month and Karen was a strong supporter of this cause. Her daughter has organized a team to walk/ run in her honor.
Their goal is $5000. According to the Komen website “If 10 people give at least $10, we can save a life by providing an uninsured woman a mammogram.”
Click here to support Team Karen with your tax-deductible donation.
Last weekend I attended a YogaFit teacher training in Hood River. The weather was perfect, sunny and warm, and our hotel overlooked the gorge! I ate yummy food, did lots of yoga, meditated and met some cool people. The focus of the weekend was meditation, and chakra balancing.
We discussed learning styles especially right brain vs. left brain. Ideally we want a balance of left brain (where are my keys) and right brain (imagination, visualization, creativity etc). This allows us to seamlessly move through our daily activities while feeling connected to those around us, having a sense of community. Our instructor, Kristy Manuel showed us this video of Jill Bolte Taylor, a brain scientist who while having a stroke watches her brain functions shut down one by one – motion, speech, etc… Hers is a fascinating story. I love her ideas about how to connect more with our right brain, or creative side. As she says our right brain thinks “We are perfect, whole and beautiful”
Also during the weekend we did several chakra meditations visualizing the colors, shapes, and qualities of the energy throughout our body. We also incorporated the colors and characteristics of each chakra into our vinyasa yoga flow.
For the uninitiated, chakras are energy centers that connect to major organs and glands which govern certain parts of your body. There are seven major chakras and their locations correspond to nerve bundles branching out from the spinal column. They can be visualized as spinning wheels or vortexes, and each one has a separate color and sound associated with it. Ideally all seven chakras should be balanced. If our surroundings are healthy and positive, we receive positive energy and feel good.
Sometimes of course we may become out of balance, having an excess of energy in one area, or a deficiency in another. How do we solve this problem? One way is to meditate and visualize your energy flowing evenly throughout your body, There are specific chakra meditations available (we were using a “Chakra Balancing Workbook” by Anodea Judith) but a good start could be sitting quietly for five minutes and just listening to your body.
Try resting your hand on your lower belly and see how it feels. Rest your hand on your heart or on the top of your head. Do any of these areas feel more vibrant, louder, softer, bigger, more fluid? Imagine light or warmth spreading up from your feet all the way out the top of your head, then back down out the bottoms of your feet grounding you into the earth.
I have done a chakra meditation several times in the last few weeks – last night at a bachelorette party for instance (it’s Portland – go figure) and see different things each time. Sometimes one color is more vibrant or feels stronger, some times I can barely sense energy moving. Experiment with tuning into your body and see if you can start to pick up the messages it is sending you.
According to this N.Y. Times article you may not be getting enough Vitamin D.
Studies show that those suffering from Vitamin D deficiency are at a greater risk for developing certain cancers, cardiovascular disease and autoimmune disorders to name just a few.
A person’s vitamin D level is measured in the blood as 25-hydroxyvitamin D, considered the best indicator of sufficiency. Maximum bone density is achieved when the blood serum level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D reaches 40 nanograms per milliliter or more.
The best source of Vitamin D is the sun and we may be able to absorb enough D in the summer to last the whole year. According to Dr. Michael Holick, the author of “The Vitamin D Solution” we can get an adequate dose of D:
…by going outside in summer unprotected by sunscreen (except for the face, which should always be protected) wearing minimal clothing from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. two or three times a week for 5 to 10 minutes.
The current recommended intake of vitamin D is 200 I.U. a day from birth to age 50 (including pregnant women); 400 for adults aged 50 to 70; and 600 for those older than 70.
While our bodies “make” Vitamin D from sun exposure we can also get some Vitamin D from foods such as wild-caught oily fish (salmon, mackerel, bluefish, and canned tuna) and fortified milk and baby formula, cereal and orange juice. Experts say the amount we convert from these foods may not be enough and most recommend supplements – from an additional 200 IU’s to 2000 IUs a day – depending on who you ask.
Here’s Dr Weil’s take on Vitamin D deficiency. He recommends supplementing with 2000 IU’s a day and says:
No adverse effects have been seen with supplemental vitamin D intakes up to 10,000 IU daily. Exposing the face and hands to roughly 10 minutes of direct sunlight daily is also quite safe and a good way to boost vitamin D.
Here in the Pacific northwest where are especially sun deprived (sorry Portland – love you but it’s true) and we may need to supplement for optimum health. A simple blood test will show if you are D deficient. I suggest you discuss this with your health care practitioner if you are concerned that you may not be getting enough D.