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Our studio is growing!!!
We are adding more space, more teachers and more classes to help you achieve your fitness goals. We will be posting a new schedule soon. Please keep checking back for more information.
How does your Waist size measure up???
Simply put, your waist size should be less than half your height. How does your waist measure up? Are you doing enough to work on your body? Not just how it looks, but for your overall health. Check out this article from the New York Times blog.
Imagine if your employer started measuring your waist as a measure of your health. That is what is happening in Japan. read more…http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/13/how-does-your-waist-measure-up/
Ringing in the New Year
It’s a new year. “Twenty ten” – Wow!
Along with the new year comes so many hopes, and dare I say it… “resolutions”. I did a little searching on the internet for the “Top 10 New Years Resolutions” and can you guess what I found over and over again? The number one resolution was to “get fit” or “loose weight”. And guess what else I found – most people will not keep their new years resolutions. Surprised? I doubt it. A little depressing? Perhaps. But, while I was surfing the net I also found some encouraging information to help you keep your resolutions.
After wading through all the “how to” articles I came across some practical advice. The first one is to avoid all fad diets and have realistic weight loss goals. Another is to find activities that you enjoy enough to commit to them. Also, seeking the help of a trainer and maybe even a dietitian can be a great help in tailoring a fitness plan just for you.
However, we all know there is much more to it, don’t we? I mean, if it were that simple we would all be the size and weight we want to be. So, here is where the less concrete advice comes in. The advice that explains how to actually follow through and do the things you want to do. How to live, what is referred to as, a “mindful” life- a life where you are actually able to do the things you have resolved to do, rather than continue on auto pilot with old habits. I read this quote from Victor Frankl (a Holocaust survivor) that sums it up- he writes “Between stimulus and response, there’s a space, and in that space is our power to choose our response, and in our response lies our growth and freedom”. He goes on to say that “Mindfulness gets you into that space”. Some of you may be familiar with the term – but for those of you who are not, it is, simply put by Jon Kabat-Zinn, “paying attention in a particular way”. This may seem silly or unusual, but waking up and being present – even some of the time, will make a world of difference in changes you are trying to make. Be patient with yourself, this takes time and practice.
Pilates is actually a great way to learn mindfulness. Because the exercises we do in class require your complete attention, focus on breath, and total presence – you will automatically get in the habit of being in a mindful existence. Doing this, even just a couple hours a week, will help you develop a new way of functioning that you will be able to apply to any area of your life.
Well, my dear friends, I hope this gives you some new insight and tools to make some positive changes in your life- whatever they may be.