Can Yoga Really Build Muscle?

May 21, 2012

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

Just like Yoga Expert Rodney Yee, I have been asked, “What else do you do besides yoga for strength training?”

It’s a well known fact that as we age, women need to be sure to continue to build strength to fight against osteoporosis – and yoga has been my first line of defense for years. Some people still think yoga is something you only do for relaxation, so I was glad to see that my local studio, The Yoga Company in San Ramon, California recently included this article in their newsletter from The Yoga Journal. I obviously have work to do, I am far from being as buff as Rodney Yee, but I’d like to think that I’m headed in the right direction.

Can Yoga Really Build Muscle? 

“People always ask me, ‘Don’t you lift weights?’” says yoga expert Rodney Yee. “I sort of giggle to myself and say, ‘Yes – I lift my own body weight!”

When you do yoga poses, Yee explains, “You’re putting your body in positions and orientations that you ultimately have to support with your muscles. So you are lifting weights.” Like many yogis, Yee doesn’t like focusing on how yoga can sculpt your physique. They want students to focus on yoga as a way of thinking, feeling and being, versus getting preoccupied with perfecting their outer appearance.

Still, when you look at Yee’s arms (this photo shows him in a strength-building yoga pose), you can’t help but want some of the yoga poses

Rodney Yee has built muscle with yoga

Not Rodney Yee (but getting there)

they’re having for breakfast. The upshot is that you can increase muscle tone and definition – and even muscle size – with yoga. But because you’re limited to “lifting” your own body weight, it may take a lot more skill, time and determination than it would with lifting weights.

“Yoga can be just as effective as weights when it comes to building a stronger, more impressive physique,” says Nicholas DiNubile, M.D.

Her Parents Were Right

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

Some of you might agree that there comes a time in a parent’s life as her child turns 18, when a mother might be searching for some sort of confirmation that she has made good choices for her daughter. The following is one of three articles my daughter wrote for her school newspaper which came out today (in the form of a blog). It suggests that my husband and I “done good” when we chose Margaret’s school where she has spent the last 7 years.

Editorial: Sweet Sentiments

May 2012 by Margaret MacLean

Have you ever climbed the steepest part of the Tim Holm trail to watch the sun set? Have you ever sat on The Swing in those hot months at the beginning of the year and felt the cool breeze in your hair as you swing back and forth?

Have you admired the mustard flowers on the walk up to the Center for the Arts? Enjoyed an ice cream sandwich from Miguel after a satisfying half-hour of stacking chairs for work crew? Been more than happy to welcome a sweaty, dirty, smelly friend home with a huge hug?

Have you looked up at the stars after a late night of rehearsals or sports practices, and wondered how many other kids can see this many stars without even leaving their school campus?

We can’t deny that Athenian is a special place. Strange, yes. Imperfect, yes. Quirky, oh yes. But despite its flaws, I love Athenian for who it really is. That, I would argue, is true love. Loving while seeing the faults, the freckles, and the wrinkles. Loving even without completely agreeing with all of the details. Knowing the details, and wanting to change them simply out of love. I love Athenian for its exquisite natural beauty, for the amazing people I have known during my time here, and most importantly, because Athenian has become home.

I have had my highest highs and lowest lows at Athenian. I have met my very best friends, worked my hardest, and discovered what I truly care about. I have been pushed and pulled in all different directions, and I have emerged as what I hope is a better person. If my twelve year old self saw me now, she would hardly recognize me, but I’m sure she would grow to admire me. I have Athenian to thank for that.

This may seem like a lofty pile of sappy sentimental stuff better suited for Senior Cry Day or the back page of yearbooks. But on a campus that so often loves to change, in a newspaper that so often likes to point out thoughtful criticism, I feel like the time is right for a little bit of love. It’s all you need, right?

Now, as the mustard flowers fade and we eagerly await Dick Bradford’s end-of-the-year poem, the most anticipated moment of any high schooler’s year is fast upon us: summer. For most of us, that summer bliss is enhanced by the knowledge that we can return again in the fall. When the memories of writing two papers at once in the dead of night vanish, the thoughts of returning home to beloved friends and teachers remain.

However, for some of us, we don’t have that security; we can’t count on coming home next year to fresh fruit in the Main Hall and pizza on Wednesdays.  As a senior, now is a nostalgic time of anticipation and excitement mixed with a heaping tablespoon of wistful longing.

So appreciate what you have now. Channel that Zen mindset for a little while longer after you step out of Sam’s classroom. Watch the sun set from hills, have a picnic at Rock City, look up at the stars. Talk a little longer, savor that last bite of corn bread on Soul Food Day, and admire those stormy clouds that pass over the valley before it rains.

Summer is fast approaching, but the future is coming even more quickly and silently too. Though it might take you twenty-six days in the wilderness or even four years to realize it, Athenian is an amazing place. There’s nothing quite like it anywhere else, so enjoy it while you can.

Choose Joy

May 11, 2012

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

I have often used my mantra “Choose Joy” to get me through many dilemmas in my life. When my parents were sick and nearing the end of life I tried to focus on the joy of having them close to me here in California rather than 3000 miles away in Ohio. When my health was being challenged I tried to focus on the great information I was learning about my body. When my husband and I argue or my teenage daughter is being self-centered, I try to remind myself of all the love they have shown me in the past.

It isn’t easy, but I find the more I practice this, the more it works. Another example is as I am learning to play the guitar, I am focusing on the few barres I can play well and how I can sing them loud and proud. That takes my mind off of all the difficult barre chords and boring scales I have to practice. I think of the JOY that singing loud and proud brings me and the rest just melts away.

Susan Iida-Pederson, motivational speaker and founder of Choose Joy and the Joy Keeper, is always reminding us to choose joy. She recently said it best:

“JOY is the highest energy of all. It is the magical sense that everything is possible.”

And, for anyone facing a dilemma or decision right now, here’s one way to decide… and the rest of the above quote….

“The answer to your question is the route that brings you the most JOY.”

This one decision changes everything for the better. Because when you feel good … you act. And when you act from a place of joy … your outcome can only be positive!

Choose joy!

A Mother’s Apology

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

After one of our more serious conversations about college hunting, I realized I had said something that upset my daughter. It was a stressful time for all of us and I felt badly for adding to her stress. I thought maybe a light-hearted poem from Mom might cheer her up. I’ll never really know if it did, she was polite in thanking me, like any good teenager would. But what I do know is that it felt great to take the time to write it.

A Mother’s Apology

This is a time that we are in together

Both feeling vulnerable and raw;

You are about to fly away leaving

The MacLean nest this fall.

Please know I only want

For you the very best.

The very best I pray and  hope

For you and your new quest.

I may not know just how to say

The things a mother should say.

But my heart is true and all I want for you

Is a life where you can dance, sing and play.

To your own drumbeat and not to mine

That you can be sure;

It may seem I think I know best

But really my intentions are pure.

I trust you. I admire you.

I know you are wise beyond your years.

It’s just that I am sad and afraid too

And you’re not the only one to shed tears.

I love you Margaret.

More than you even know.

I believe in you Margaret.

In you I see a glow.

Of a light and love, an adventure new

Of a light that shares and lives;

I see your glow that shines so bright

In one who cares and gives.

Please accept my apology

For being insensitive and rude.

Please know I trust

And I respect you, too.

I love you Margaret.

More than you even know.

I believe in you Margaret.

It’s just that I hate to see you go.

Love,

Mom XXOO

Who might you have to apologize to today?

The College Conundrum

April 19, 2012

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

Mark Twain said, “When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.”

My daughter is a high school senior who was accepted at 7 colleges. That’s the good and the bad news. Now that the last acceptance letter has been received she has less than 30 days to make a choice and she thinks her Mom and Dad need to learn a thing or two – just like Mark Twain did when he was 14. This college business and the stress it can have on your relationship with your son or daughter can be so over the top – and then what happens? Our kids end up choosing their school based on whether or not freshman can have their cars on campus!

So, how to handle the stress? How to maintain a warm, loving and open relationship with Margaret while communicating with her that her parents really do know a thing or two about all this? How do we limit the stress through the next two weeks when we will be spending more time and money to re-visit colleges, having more painful conversations about what she is looking for, what does she want, how does she plan to make this decision? How to stay cool, calm, and collected while Rory and I choose our words carefully, try not to bug Margaret too much, yet attempt to come to some sort of agreement about how this decision should be made? That’s the college conundrum.

And the best answer I have so far is to resort to all the things that have gotten me through much of the stress over last few years: letting go, listening, and trusting.

I have to let go of the idea there is only one way to choose a college and that my husband and I are the only two people in the world who know what that way is. I have to listen to my daughter when she asks us to let her make this decision her way. And I have to trust that she is capable of making this decision –  and together with her guidance counselor, college admissions departments, a little help from her parents, and her own ingenuity she will choose a college that will work just fine for her.

And when I do all that the college conundrum just might be solved – and Margaret’s parents just might have learned a thing or two.

Partner with Your Doctor

April 14, 2012

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

I went to my doctor yesterday for a follow up on my quarterly blood tests for hormonal imbalance and for my annual exam. Ok, you women out there, did you just wince at the words “annual exam?”

I really like my doctor. She is a forward thinking naturalist who combines western knowledge with eastern philosophy and the result is someone who looks at me as a partner, not a problem to be solved. I’ve had a lot of experience over the past few years with a multitude of medical professionals for my Mom and Dad’s cancers, dementia, and nutritional issues. So although I don’t pretend to be an expert in any of those fields, I do know what I expect and require from the medical field.

First of all my doctor gave me almost an hour of her time. She reviewed my test results and together we came up with a 6-step action plan for changes I need to make regarding my vitamin and hormone regimen. Secondly, she listened to my concerns about my current health issues. She didn’t make me feel guilty for asking too many questions. And lastly, she partnered with me to come up with solutions to any problems I was having.

My previous doctor of almost 10 years retired in 2010. I found my current doctor by asking friends and coworkers about their own doctors. I tried two other doctors before I found this one. It was inconvenient changing doctors three times, and it took time to make more appointments, but it was worth it. I didn’t wait to get sick to look for a new doctor, I was proactive. I really believe we all need to be in charge of our own health and that it’s our responsibility to find the resources we need. My doctor is just one of those resources. I was looking for someone I could trust and have a collaborative relationship with.  I may not have looked forward to the “annual exam” part of my appointment yesterday, but I did look forward to meeting with someone I consider a partner in my journey towards health.

Wear High Heels in the Kitchen

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

I bought some new shoes last week for a special event. It was a black tie affair and I don’t wear high heels very often, so it made sense when my husband suggested I wear them around the house just to make sure I could walk in them before I decided to keep them.

I’m not sure what gave me the idea to shed my blue jeans and don my sexy, short, black, silk robe, but that’s exactly what happened. And what better way to try out the shoes but by doing something that would keep me on my feet in my home – like making dinner? My thought process went something like this: “If I’m going to wear these elegant sleek black gorgeous shoes while working in the hot kitchen, I might as well look hot myself, right?”

Then I thought, “Wow, this is fun. I feel like a mix of Desperate Housewives and a little bit of June Cleaver.” Turns out the shoes were quite comfortable and as my robe started to slip and show a little cleavage, I felt like a million bucks.

Of course, I was brought back down to earth very quickly when my husband and teenage daughter came into the kitchen for dinner. In my high heels and slinky robe, and with a big smile on my face, I served up veggie burgers and broccoli – while they exchanged a surprised look that suggested not only had I lost my jeans and t-shirt, I’d lost my mind.

Although I suggest giving your family a little bit of warning before you do it, I highly recommend wearing high heels in the kitchen. In addition to feeling great about the meal you’ve just prepared for your family and served up in style, you’re guaranteed to feel really great about yourself.

How to Say So Long To Sugar

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

OK. Now that I’ve put it out there that I’m on a mission to say good-bye to sugar, I had to ask myself how will I do this? Well, Weight Watchers http://www.weightwatchers.com certainly helps. Our meeting leader Marianne is always telling us about all of these great products from Trader Joe’s that help make losing weight more fun. It gets a little boring eating the same thing all the time. So I took a trip to Trader Joe’s http://www.traderjoes.com/index.asp for the first time in a long time and here’s what I came home with.

Trader Joe’s Big and Chunky Applesauce. ½ a cup with some cinnamon on top is quite flavorful – almost tastes like apple pie – and has only 80 calories. If you do WW it is only 2 points – for a dessert, that’s a real treat.

Better’n Peanut Butter. I love my apple and peanut butter for an afternoon snack, but it was really hard to not eat half of the jar – and with my sensitivity to sugar, that was not a good idea. Now I measure out 2 tablespoon of this yummy low sodium, all natural peanut butter and I can make it last for the entire apple. There is 85% less fat than most peanut butters with only 100 calories in 2 tablespoons. Again if you are on WW it is only 2 points instead of 5 points for regular peanut butter.

And to counter my sugar cravings with a salty food, I found Trader Joe’s Sea Salt and Pepper Crisps made with rice that are only 120 calories for 38 chips – wow, feels like I’ve died and gone to heaven to be able to eat more than 6-7 chips. On WW 38 chips is only 3 points.

Along with some other fun foods like carrot sticks with a tablespoon of ranch dressing and ½ a bag of Orville Redenbacher popcorn, I was good to go on my 4-day scrapbooking retreat last weekend with 9 other women. With planning, purpose, and great products, that’s how I will say so long to sugar.

Saying So Long To Sugar

Saying So Long to Sugar

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

I have decided to deal with my addiction to sugar. I am choosing to use my blog as a public place to share my journey and keep myself accountable. I have a few things going for me that should help me be successful: 1) I have a good friend doing the Weight Watchers Program www.weightwatchers.com with me; 2) I have another friend whom I report daily to about what I drink and eat and 3) I am part of an accountability group that reports to each other weekly. The only thing now is to do the work.

Just what is that work? Stop eating sugar, would be the obvious answer.

But first a look at why.  My body seems to crave sugar the more I have it. I believe that’s what makes it an addiction, right? So I eat much more of it than I really want and my body doesn’t know what to do with it. I have these highs and lows of energy throughout the day so that by the time afternoon comes around, I am exhausted from all the ups and downs. After doing all this work to get my energy back by balancing my hormones (see previous blogs), why would I go messing with that by using sugar to get fake or short term energy?

Also, when I eat or drink sugary things I don’t want the good stuff. Vegetables and fruits taste bland and uninteresting. So I go for more sugar instead of the better choices that my body is really craving but just doesn’t know it.

I ask myself, could all this be handled with just more will power or discipline?

Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D., http://www.radiantrecovery.com/  wrote Potatoes Not Prozac about changing our diets to overcome addictions. She says: “You probably think your sugar addiction is about lack of willpower or discipline or motivation. It is not. It is about your biochemistry. You were born with a body that responds to sugar, alcohol and refined carbohydrates differently than other people. You are sugar sensitive. Sugar acts like a drug in your body. In fact, it affects the very same brain chemicals that morphine, heroin and amphetamines do.”

I think there is another reason I consume so much sugar. It dulls my senses. I am looking for a way to not feel what I am feeling, maybe anger, fear, or frustration. I look forward to a trip to Starbucks, or watching a crime show on TV with a plate of cookies, or a glass of wine instead of doing what I say is important to me like writing, exercising or practicing guitar. It’s crazy. I say I want to write, but then I run out of time because I went to Starbucks to meet a friend and have a latte. I say I want to play guitar, but I was too tired to practice after having some wine.

Elizabeth Bohorquez also writes about Licking Sugar Addiction at http://www.healingwell.com/library/health/article.asp?author=bohorquez&id=1. She says there are only two roads to travel. One goes towards disease and the other towards health. Which one will you take?

I plan to take the road towards health . . . stay tuned and let’s go on this journey together.

Rhymes With Orange

Fuzzy Red Socks – A Journey Towards Health

Do you ever read the comics? I think we should all read the comics just to make sure we smile at least once a day. Smiling is such great therapy for taking care of ourselves, laughing is even better.  In our household the comics are one small way to connect and share a laugh or two with our teenage daughter. If you have teenagers, you must read Zits.

But this blog is about a comic called “Rhymes With Orange” by Hilary Price. I love that it is written by a woman.  Hilary has been writing her comic since 1995 and is one of the few women in the field. You can read more about her at the end of this post or by going to her web site http://www.rhymeswithorange.com/

Rhymes With Orange was perfect for me the other day. Here I am finally blogging with some sort of regularity after months of procrastination. I have found the joy in writing about everyday things that pertain to taking care of ourselves and I think I’ve made it – right? Is that what other new bloggers think? Oh wow, I have put myself out there. Now that I’m on the internet I have thousands of potential readers and am now a well known person. I’m sure my inbox will soon be filled with many requests for me to be a guest blogger on some other famous person’s site and soon I’ll be asked to be on the Good Morning America show!

Well, Hilary made sure my head didn’t get too big for very long. And if you were thinking about sharing this same piece of news with me, no need. I got it. I realize that blogging isn’t taken that seriously in the writing world of authors and columnists. But for me, I just want it to be a place for me to start my writing practice, a place to come out of the closet and show the world I believe I have something to say.

And Hilary’s comic strip made sure I had no illusions about exactly where I am starting from.

PS. Hilary Price has been drawing and writing Rhymes With Orange, her daily newspaper comic strip, since 1995. It has twice won “Best Newspaper Panel” by the National Cartoonists Society and appears in 175 papers. Her work has also appeared in Parade Magazine, The Funny Times, People and Glamour. When she began drawing Rhymes With Orange, she was the youngest woman to ever have a syndicated strip.

Hilary draws the strip in an old toothbrush factory that has since been converted to studio space for artists. She lives in western Massachusetts with her overly large dog and hoodlum cat.

For recreation, Hilary plays women’s ice hockey. When skating, she no longer looks like a Labrador retriever on a hard wood floor scrambling for a tennis ball, but the memory is not very distant.

And now, a welcome break from third person writing into the more personal first person:

One of my goals in the strip is to inspire more women to join the field. One of the ways I do that is by teaching a two hour gag writing workshop to folks (of all genders!) interested in how to get and keep getting cartoon ideas. I am also happy to look at people’s work if they want to send me a dozen of their cartoons for critique. Check out her site at http://www.rhymeswithorange.com/