NEW CASTLE —
A new year, a new you!
I would like to offer you an invitation in this New Year, and you won’t have to turn yourself into a pretzel to do it.
Consider learning and gaining ownership of stress management techniques proven to bring you health benefits and a sense of well-being. Make this your time to begin meeting the new you.
The benefits of incorporating yoga-based exercises into your daily routine are numerous. Also referred to as “stress management” in our culture, these ancient techniques have a positive impact on all the systems of the body.
Research shows that when you consistently include gentle stretching and breathing into your daily lifestyle, you will lower you blood pressure and improve your circulation, your sleep patterns, and your strength and flexibility.
Gastrointestinal issues improve in both men and women.
This is due to the massage that you give to your organs and glands from creating a squeeze and soak affect while deeply breathing while holding body “poses” such as the twist.
Cardiovascular disease is greatly improved with increased circulation and increased amounts of oxygen in the body. Another powerful affect, is the regulation and slowing of the heart rate and respiratory rate. Cholesterol levels also improve.
Yoga’s stretching and breathing helps combat aging through a natural detox process, resulting in the release of toxins and tension. Much of the aging process is due to the breakdown of our skin and tissues from toxins that remain trapped in the body.
The physical stretching prepares your body for sitting quietly which can profoundly impact your mental and emotional well-being, creating an awareness of inner peace.
Gaining peace of mind and improving your mood is another advantage of yoga-based stress management. This is the practice of “you meeting you.” It is an inward exploration that many of us, especially men, are not taught to take seriously.
Never being taught to meet your body and mind with awareness, and continuing to not give yourself permission to explore your body and mind patterns, can result in an inability to concentrate, stress, anxiety, depression, or hostility.
Be willing to create some quiet time to relax and breathe.
Turn off the television and phones, make yourself comfortable. Some people use a small blanket around their shoulders to symbolize creating a boundary between the outside world and the time they are taking to go inward.
Then, just be still. Relax and breathe. Close your eyes, or create a soft, relaxed gaze. Relax the muscles of the face and jaw. Relax the shoulders. Sometimes this practice can be done without much preparation.
However, if you are anxious or you hold a lot of tension in your body, you may want to learn the gentle movement and stretching techniques which will help you get more out of your quiet time.
Yoga is all about you. It is a non-competitive, focus on what you feel and how it is impacting you.
Only you know what you are thinking. Only you can feel your own sensations and emotions. Only you can breathe your breath with more awareness.
To seek instruction to learn the physical poses and stretches, look for a gentle movement class or a class that is specifically for beginners. You may also feel more comfortable in a “chair yoga” class.
Be willing to try more than one class and more than one instructor until you find the right fit.
Also, look for the following DVDs for home support: “Yoga For the Rest of Us: Easy Yoga for Arthritis,” with Peggy Cappy, and “Yoga For the Young at Heart,” with Susan Winter Ward.
(Lori Brothers is the director of The Dean Ornish Program For Reversing Heart Disease at Jameson Hospital, www.jamesonhealth.org.)
Smashed White Bean
and Avocado Club
Ingredients:
2 15-ounce cans white beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
12 slices multigrain bread
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 cucumber, peeled if desired, thinly sliced
1 4-ounce container of alfalfa or broccoli sprouts
2 ripe avocados, pitted and thinly sliced
Preparation:
In a medium bowl, combine the beans, oil, salt and pepper. Roughly mash the mixture with the back of a fork.
Place 8 of the slices of bread on a work surface. Divide the mashed beans among the slices. Top with the onion, cucumber, sprouts and avocado. Stack the open-faced sandwiches on top of one another, avocado side up, to make 4 double-decker sandwiches. Top with the remaining 4 slices of bread. Cut each sandwich in half and serve.
All About You ...
Related Photos
-
About Lori Brothers: Lori is the director of The Dean Ornish Program For Reversing Heart Disease at Jameson Hospital. Her blog appears each Thursday.
Discussion
Yoga & you: Learn to manage stress in 2013 with gentle stretching and breathing exercises
- All About You ...
-
-
Sarah Stright-Hartley: ‘With child’ doesn’t have to mean without style
Over the past month we've talked about wedding styles for women and wedding styles for men. I didn't want to leave out my pregnant ladies! Dressing for a wedding during the hottest months of the year while you're pregnant can be understandably difficult.
-
Kali Davies-Anderson: Ten things I’ve learned from my father
By the time you read this, Father’s Day 2013 will have come and gone. However, I would still like to take the time to wish all of you dads out there a happy Father’s Day, with special wishes going out to my own father, the infamous Bob “Booby” Davies and my husband and father to my children, the not quite as infamous Erik “Crow” Anderson.
-
Mitchel Olszak: Excuses for data sweep sound hollow
Perhaps 2013 will go down as the year privacy and civil liberties became too inconvenient for government. Listening to assorted officials defend massive programs that scoop up vast amounts of data certainly gives that impression.
-
Culinary Conversation: Lighter fare great during summer months
Sometimes a cook just wants to hear the word “easy.” And in warm weather, who wants to turn on the oven? We would love to hear what you’re making during these warm months.
-
Dave Ramsey: Offer settlement to creditors — not information
“Dave Says" is a weekly column featuring financial advice from nationally syndicated radio host Dave Ramsey. His column is filled with timely, relevant questions and answers taken from actual letters and calls on Ramsey's radio program, “The Dave Ramsey Show.
-
Need a last-minute gift idea for Father's Day? Pick up a ’Canes’ DVD!
One team. One vision. One heartbeat. TWO incredible keepsakes! Relive all the magic of New Castle High’s WPIAL championship basketball season by purchasing a collectible DVD or special section that was given out at the team’s banquet.
-
Lori Brothers: Tips to keep your breath from stinking
I remember, when I was about 12 years old, my grandmother talked about how mint was excellent to chew on because it prevented halitosis. She actually used this word, which expanded my vocabulary, but also horrified me.
-
Sarah Stright-Hartley: Summer sandals can go with just about anything
Ah, summer! The time to relax on the beach, sun yourself and attend many barbecues. And also the time to free your feet from the confines of the past several months being bundled up in boots and closed-toe shoes.
-
Kali Davies-Anderson: If I remember correctly ... aw, nevermind, I don’t.
I used to think I was good with remembering faces. In fact, I would see a person one time in the checkout of a grocery store and the next time I would see them I could recall the contents of their shopping cart. However, somewhere along the line this gift of facial recognition somehow dwindled
-
Mitchel Olszak: Casino satire comes to fruition
Several years ago, I wrote a satirical column about government subsidizing casinos. In it, I envisioned a time in the future when casinos became so prevalent that the gambling market was glutted with them.
- More All About You ... Headlines
-
