The Healthy Bride

Location: lululemon athletica Pacific Place & Gymboree

Mom’s Rejoice! Drop your kids off at Gymboree for story time at 4:30PM on April 1 while you get in a full-body workout with Healthy Bride/Healthy Goddess owner and personal trainer, Christi Masi from 4:30-5:30PM.

Shopping and appetizers to follow . . .

For more information on Christi Masi at The Healthy Goddess, please visit: www.thehealthygoddess.com

Foot Massage for Weight Loss, Better Sleep and Energy Earth Hour 2009
by NaturalCounselor

A foot massage helps reduce stresswhich is very important for our overall health. It increases energy, balances emotions, improves blood and lymph circulation, relieves aches and pains, and is

Here are some tips how to do self-help foot massage. You can also try it for or with your partner which can be very romantic. My husband is very relaxed and happy if I give him a foot massage after his stressful day at work.

 
Start by gently rubbing the base of your first (little) toe. Continue at the base of the second toe. Next, apply slight pressure between the first and second toes. Then, rub between the third and forth toe. Next, massage, stretch and pull the big toe gently and rub each side of the nails. Finally, massage the ball of your foot in a circular motion, followed by circling around your ankle joint with both hands in a clockwise motion.

This simple massage improves circulation and the energy level of the body. Repeat the same steps on your other foot. You can do this foot massage in the evening, a couple of times a week to give your tired feet a break.

 Foot massage also might help:

* Weight Loss:

Massage the foot’s thyroid gland, and pancreas areas

* Better Sleep:

massage the foot’s head, cerebellum, liver, ovary, testicle areas;

* Stress:

massage the foot’s stomach, intestine, gall, liver, head, thyroid gland, kidney, ureter, and uterus areas;

* Constipation: massage the foot intestine and stomach area;
*
Headache: massage foot’s head, cerebrum, cerebellum area;
* Tightness Shoulder: massage the foot’s
shoulder, trapezius, muscle, head area.

I went to Hood River last weekend to race in an adventure!  My team is Team Verve. 

 Peteris (26 yo male); Murray (53 yo male) and me (48 yo female). 

The race was hard for me for many reasons, but two that are easy to share.  1.  I have not been doing enough hard training and 2. the weather was cold and wet.  The great news was that we were the only team to finish the race.  So, I guess we won by default.  I learned a lot for our next race in May.  Here is Murray’s report on his experience in the race:

David Russell enjoys designing and organizing practice adventure races. The extent of the race and the level of detail were incredible. It is very nice that he invited our team to his event.

Team Verve consists of Peteris, Christi and me. Our competitors were Team DART (professionals), Miles and Andrew and two teams from the Portland area. Our directions were to act inconspicuous because the race was not approved by the state parks we travelled through, but you don’t often see such gritty, hardcore athletes located in one place. I thought it would be hard for these people to look like typical tourists. 

Pre-race on Friday night was very ambivalent for me. It seemed like a long drive to the “Fish Hatchery” on the Columbia River, 35 miles east of Portland. The rain came steadily down, as the trains kept me awake, but I was happy to be going on an “outing” with friends. “Outing” is my euphemism for an “epic” effort which in turn means “surpassing the ordinary”. My thoughts on Friday evening were that David had organized a course that would surpass the ordinary, and I was not disappointed.  

There was too much personal organization in the pre-race phase. I had three bags of gear, organized for each stage of the race. My two bikes were stored with the others’. The bike trailer had thirty very nice bikes worth more than $45K in total. I was borrowing Peteris’ 13ft plastic kayak. It was free and I have a boat for the race. Definitely, paddling this boat will be good training. Lisa calls me a boat snob. Adding each discipline increases the organizational load exponentially.

There were lots of last-minute organizational things, so we didn’t start the race until 10am on Saturday. The rain had stopped, and there were momentary blue spaces between grey clouds. Within minutes, the race settled down to a three-way competition between DART, Mergeo and us. Describing it as a competition really doesn’t do justice to the superb fitness and skill of the DART group. Unfortunately for them, there is a reason that these events are called “adventures”.

DART hiked the 1600 ft elevation gain and was first to reach the heather-covered hilltop checkpoint that was the 2^nd checkpoint. We arrived just as they were disappearing off the south ridge about 250 meters away. Mergeo was just ahead of us and followed DART. We looked at the map, discussed the options and retreated back the way we had come.  Did we make a mistake? Was the race organizer trying to direct us to a trail that went through to the next checkpoint, as they often do by the placement of the checkpoints?

Nearing the 3^rd checkpoint an hour later, a robust looking tourist said “Are you in an adventure race?” Not wanting to disclose the clandestine mandate of the race, I asked “What makes you think we might be?” He answered that he had been in races with our race director. From him we learned that we were the first to get to the checkpoint. Our decision had proven to be a good one. Later we learned that DART was one hour behind at that point. They had found some old ropes and rappelled off mossy, loose cliffs to get to the waterfall checkpoint rather than retrace their steps. Mergeo was 30 minutes behind us in 2^nd place, deciding early that DART had chosen the wrong route. 

We were first into the kayaks and after various running loops and kayak orienteering.  I was especially pleased with our decisions at the 4^th kayak checkpoint. The location was marked with a circle on the map, and the race director gave us compass bearings to triangulate the exact position. The checkpoint was in a wooded area, so visibility was a problem. The compass bearings were wrong, and the race director’s numbers would put us somewhere in the Columbia River. This is very typical of an adventure race so we knew we need to second-guess. Peteris speculated about how the race director had made the error, and we found the checkpoint.

 We were still first when we arrived at the “creeking” 5 hours later. The race director wanted us to walk through creek water up a spectacular canyon to a waterfall. The goal was to take a photograph at the base of the falls. The race director warned us that the cold water might be thigh deep in places, but he had walked it a lower water, and now the frigid water was waist deep at times, and there wasn’t anyplace in the canyon where we could get warmed up after the wading. Let’s just say that we didn’t get to the checkpoint even though we struggled mentally and physically with our failure. In fact, Miles was the only one to get to the checkpoint because he had anticipated the problems and brought hip waders. Smart! DART arrived just as we returned to the boats. We watched as they started through the first 100 meters. Then they just gave up! We cursed them as we left on the last section of kayaking, thinking that they made a very smart decision. They knew that we had missed the checkpoint. They knew that they were a stronger team. So they just needed to get ahead of us to win! DART beached their boats at the transition to cycling just before us.

The discussions between Peteris, Christi and me were totally wrong about DART. They were only going to do the daytime events, and were going back to Seattle that evening. So as the sun set, we jumped on our road bikes for next stage. It was a 40 mile road bike with four sections that were running. Here is a “teaser” for my next installment. We arrived at this waterfall at about midnight, but it was too dark to photograph at the time. 

 http://www.oregon.com/hiking/oneonta_gorge.cfm

Gorge Winds II: Enter the night 
Our plan was to get as many checkpoints as we could out of the impossible number set before us. The basic plan was to park our bikes at four locations to do loops on the trails on foot. In addition we were supposed to ascend on our road bikes to 2600ft over about 15 miles. Mostly, things went according to plan.

Rather than write a long account of the mud, snow and pavement trails, I’ll just describe a few of my favorite moments.

At night, in the light of our headlamps and flashlights, the waterfalls are incredibly white. Their glow is almost fluorescent. We lost count of the number of spectacular falls we saw. The mist danced in front of our lights well before we arrived at the falls and well afterwards.

 There was an occasional star, but more often we caught sight of street and house lights from cliff-top vantage points. The race director tried to get us to the great views, and since it was night, anywhere but near a city, the views would have been anticlimactic. Here the lights gave a huge depth to the landscape.

During the snow orienteering section we made some lucky decisions – finding a checkpoint in the bush and following an obscure trail. Some navigation challenges were welcome after trundling along well-marked trails in the dark for a few hours.

Now a few of my not so favorite moments.

The rain increased in intensity about the time we arrived from the 2^nd foot section. What began as a symphony of raindrops in pianissimo was now moving to mezzo-piano. After a few flat miles of cycling we started climbing, followed by some more climbing. There were many views of far-off lights, but it was hard to enjoy. The symphony of raindrops was forte.

Climbing on a bike makes it is very tough to watch the speedometer with any sense of motivation. We had fifteen miles of climbing and our speed dropped to 6 miles per hour. “Over two hours of hard climbing in the hard rain” I thought. Although we had thought there was a potential to overheat with the effort of a 15 mile uphill ride, in reality it was cold. Old snow, beside the road, incrementally grew in height after about 12 miles. There was a crescendo of raindrops which brought on a sense of foreboding about the ride down.

Wet snow started to fall, and Christi stopped the craziness. Nobody even whispered dissension though we hadn’t reached the checkpoint. We pulled off the road and struggled to put on whatever dry clothes we had in our packs. Then, we turned around and descended as the first grey-black morning light gave breadth to our narrow headlight beams.

It was cold, and I think I had the best clothes for the descent. It was hard to judge how cold Peteris and Christi were, or what to do about it. With increased cycling speed the sound of the rain increased in volume to double-forte. On the few up hills that were there, we jumped off our bikes and ran to prolong the heat generating phase of our ride.

At the base of the gorge, riding along the historic highway, we got warmer, and what seemed like imminent hypothermia retreated in my mind. The race director met us, and then he drove ahead to make hot chocolate at the finish line.   

Our finish was in disarray. We all headed in our own directions. Rugged individualists, ending a rugged 22.5 hour outing. We have lots to learn about being a team.

 Besides the great scenery and experiences, I set a personal record for the greatest quantity and weight of wet gear. There were three plastic garbage backs full of soaking wet stuff. Great memories and another story for other long outings.

photos from the race:  flickr.com/ledusledus

Wow, there are a plethora of events this weekend.  Fun ones!  How to decide!

I have to start off promoting the South Lake Union Street Scramble.  We tested the course on Tuesday and this is one fun event!  Thirty checkpoints are marked on a map of Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood. On foot or bike, how many can you visit in 90 minutes? In 3 hours? Go solo or in a team of 2-5. Be competitive or casual. Discover a new neighborhood, or one you thought you knew well. Awards in many categories including Junior, 50+, and Family. Refreshments included.

Scot Trot 5k and 2k Junior Fun Run
The race course is flat, fast and fun! There will be entertainment provided by Shorecrest High School students along the course. Post race you will want to hit the Dash-n-Dine Pancake Breakfast. All runners will get $1.00 off breakfast.
Saturday, March 21, 2009, 09:00 AM
Shoreline Stadium
18560 1st Ave N.E.
Shoreline, WA 98155

 Mercer Island Rotary Half Marathon This family-oriented run day includes the Swedish Cancer Care Institute Half Marathon Run & Walk around Mercer Island, the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance10K Run (a Bloomsday 2nd seed qualification run), the Virginia Mason Team Medicine 5K Run & Walk, and a non-competitive Half-Mile Kids’ Dash (for children age 10 and under) or register in our Kick Back for the Cause category and become part of our fund raising team.
Sunday, March 22, 2009, 07:30 AM

As for me?  I will be in a race down in the Columbia Gorge.  Fun!

Yes, you can continue with mild or moderate activity if you have a cold with no fever. Exercise may even help you feel better — by temporarily relieving nasal congestion.

So how do you determine if you’re too sick to exercise? Here’s a good rule to follow: If your symptoms are “above the neck” — such as runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, or sore throat — you can proceed with your workout.

However, if your symptoms are “below the neck” — such as chest congestion or tightness, hacking cough, or upset stomach — you should postpone your workout. Also, you shouldn’t exercise if you have a fever, fatigue or widespread muscle aches. Rarely, exercising with a fever has been associated with inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis).

As always, use common sense. If you’re not feeling well but still want to exercise, reduce the intensity of your workout and listen to your body. If your symptoms worsen with exercise, stop and rest. Missing a few days of exercise isn’t the end of the world.

I often hear people say that they don’t want to go outside when the weather is bad (like lately)  because it will “cause them to catch a cold” or “make them sick”.  Well, they in fact, have things exactly backward!  The reason we get sick more in the winter is because we are indoors more, not outdoors. 

This question has probably been asked since the first time the flu made someone sick. After all, cold and flu season occurs when the weather  is cold, so there must be a connection, right?

Well, not quite. No matter how many times your mother and grandmother told you not to go out in
the cold because you would catch a cold or the flu, it just doesn’t work that way.

The truth is, the flu and the common cold are caused by viruses. People get sick more often in the winter because they are exposed to each other more in the winter than in the summer. When it is cold outside, people tend to stay inside and are more likely to spread germs to one another.  Also, because school is in session, kids are around each other all day and are not afraid to share their germs. With so many people in such close contact, the likelihood of passing germs is much higher when it is cold outside than when it is warm and people are outdoors.

There is also evidence now that viruses spread more easily through dry air. When it is cold outside, the air is drier both outdoors and inside (where people have their heaters on) which may make it easier for germs to pass from one person to another. But it is not the cold weather that causes the cold, it just might make it easier to spread the virus.

In tropical areas, where it does not get cold, the common cold and flu season generally occurs during the rainy season. But again, these illnesses are not caused by the rain. They are just more prevalent because people come in closer contact with each other than they do during the dry season.

The most important thing to remember during cold and flu season is to remember to protect yourself against these germs when you are around other people. Viruses are passed by contact between people, so be sure to wash your hands often.

And feel good about heading outside!

Tomorrow: Should you workout when you are sick or have a cold?

We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, now learn why. Breakfast is directly correlated to cognitive development and mental performance. After sleeping for 8 hours (yes,you should be getting 8 hours of sleep each night), the body needs fuel to power the body and the mind.Not having breakfast can adversely affect your daily performance by impacting your energy level and mental focus. Breakfast should consist of quality nutrition. Moreover, people, woman especially, who do not eat breakfast end up eating more throughout the latter part of the day. Therefore, it is not in the best interest for anyone to skip breakfast as a measure of reducing caloric intake.

Several of my clients ask me about healthy breakfast ideas, and in truth, it’s a dilemma that many of us face each day. Either we don’t have time for breakfast, or we don’t have many healthy options on hand. A good breakfast is an ideal way to start changing to a healthful diet. The food choices are simple, and you can measure your progress quite easily. By eating healthier earlier in the day you will be less likely to reach for sugary snacks, caffeine or simple carbohydrate foods later in the day.

Research suggests that breakfast eaters are leaner than those who skip the morning meal, with studies suggesting that missing breakfast is associated with up to a fourfold increase in the risk of obesity. Highfiber cereals are central to breakfast’s health benefits and can help people reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and even intestinal polyps and colon cancer.

What is a Healthy Breakfast? A healthy breakfast should contain some protein and some complex carbohydrate (has fiber present). Protein sources are low fat meats, eggs, dairy (milk, cheese or yogurt), beans, or soy. Complex carbohydrates can be found in whole grains, vegetables and fruits. A good example of a healthy breakfast might be something simple like a hardboiled egg, an orange, and a bowl of whole grain cereal with low fat milk. When combined in a meal or a snack, protein and complex carbohydrates (with fiber present) satisfy your hunger and will keep you feeling full until lunch time. Stay away from the sugary cereals, syrups, pastries, and white breads because they are digested quickly
and will leave you hungry and tired in a couple of hours. You need to have some protein at breakfast. This will slow down the absorption and digestion of your meal.

Be Good to Yourself by Eating a Healthy Breakfast Every Morning. Tomorrow morning, remember that eating a healthy breakfast is the best way to start your day… Notice how much better you feel through the morning and the rest of the day when you don’t skip breakfast. If you can’t stomach anything first thing try something bland like a banana, yogurt or slice of whole wheat toast. Experiment until you find a healthful breakfast you can really enjoy.

Here are some healthy, quick breakfast ideas.

Raw Organic Bar and a whole Piece of Fruit – This is about the quickest breakfast you can eat. Raw Organic Bars (my favorite energy bars) have 200 calories and a good amount of protein and fiber. Add in a large whole piece of fruit and your total calories will come to around 300 calories.

Smoothies – Smoothies are certainly a great way to get a good dose of fruit. Chop up some fresh fruit, throw it in the blender and you have a healthy and delicious breakfast. Add yogurt, nut butter or milk for protein.

Breakfast Muffins – For breakfast try a savory or fruit muffin. For healthier muffins use whole wheat flour and instead of sugar mash a ripe banana or a little honey into the mixture. Unless you’re an early riser you probably won’t have enough time to make muffins in the morning. Simply make them ahead and either freeze or keep in an air-tight container for a few days. Try making the mini-muffin size,adding a ¼ cup crushed walnuts to the mix for protein and having a piece of fruit with it.

Wholesome Eggs – Eggs are very versatile. Try a veggie omelet with a little cheese or scrambled eggs with chopped tomatoes. Try a prepare-ahead breakfast casserole for a hearty family breakfast.Scrambled, poached, hard boiled…any way you like them…they are a perfect protein.Oatmeal – Making your own oatmeal is much healthier than the flavored instant packets. Cook up according to packet instructions and add a little fruit for extra flavor. Add a few crushed walnuts for added omega-3 and a protein source and sweeten with a little real maple syrup…a much better choice than brown sugar.

Healthy Breakfast Bar – Make up a batch of healthy breakfast bars the day before and use them for a quick, on-the-go breakfast. Use a low-sugar recipe and include lots of healthy dried fruits.

Fantastic Fruit Salad – Serve a chopped fruit salad with a yogurt dip. Mini muffins are delicious dipped in yogurt too.

Breakfast Burrito – Scramble some eggs and place them in a whole wheat tortilla with chopped tomatoes, veggies or other favorite toppings. Always add cheese to the top of your dishes (you will use less and still taste the flavor) and be sure to choose aged cheeses. These have a stronger taste and will need less present to add flavor to the dish.

Spruce up your Toast – Try whole wheat bread and serve with peanut or almond butter and sliced bananas, light cream cheese and raisins (sprinkle a little cinnamon on top), or light cream cheese and a fruit jam (pure, no-sugar added jam is best).
Pizza for Breakfast – Why not? split a couple of whole wheat English muffins in half, top with a little pizza sauce, grated cheese and some chopped turkey or even eggs. Place under the grill for a few minutes and you have a nutritious breakfast pizza.

Angela Pifer is a Certified Nutritionist, with a MS in nutrition from Bastyr University, in private practice, specializing in food sensitivities, emotional eating, digestive conditions, sports nutrition & weight loss. She founded Nutrition Northwest Co in 2005; the premier provider of sound nutrition and wellness advice in the Northwest with offices in Seattle and Kirkland. Angela has a unique approach to helping her  patients create new healthier habits: offering customized nutrition programs that inspire & educate along with a high degree of support & accountability to help them become fit & fabulous from the inside out.

My husband went to the Emergency Room with chest pain on Friday.  It was very frightening to receive the phone call that informed me of what had happened.  There are so many thoughts that race through your mind: is he dead? will he recover? will he need surgery? how long will he be out of work?

He had classic symptoms: chest pain that filled his chest and then radiated into his jaw.  The symptoms are different for women; “Symptoms such as indigestion, sleep disturbances, or weakness in the arms, which many of us experience on a daily basis, were recognized by many women in the study as warning signals for AMI.” says an NIH researcher.

What do you do if you think you are having a heart attack?  In Seattle, call 911 immediately.  Do not drive yourself! The fire department were “jonny on the spot” for Scott.  They plugged him in and started monitoring him.  Scott was taken to the ER at Swedish where they took blood, did a couple of ECG’s and eventually a stress test. All showed no signs of a heart attack.

He walked out of the hospital feeling fine.  We actually went out for dinner with friends that evening. His heart is very healthy.  None of the medical pro’s could tell him what had happened.  Was it stress? indigestion?  who knows.

I am happy Scott was fine.  I am grateful we have good health insurance.  There are a few things we don’t have – like life insurance for Scott (he is recently self employed), and no short term disability.  We seem too young.  Stupid to take your health for granted….you just never really know.

C