With her permission, I’m sharing Suzanne’s story to offer some encouragement this Breast Cancer Awareness month.
She recently wrote, “I owe you big time!…You instilled in me the importance of continuing to practice and move correctly.”
Suzanne has been practicing Pilates for over 18 years now.
That foundation really helped her recently.
A mammogram earlier this year showed a few scattered calcium deposits and after biopsies, Suzanne had to have a mastectomy. Thankfully, there wasn’t anything in the lymph nodes and all cancer removed.
The incredible thing was that 6 weeks after a mastectomy she was back to class and had full range of motion!!!
Suzanne said “I think it was because I was in good shape before the surgery. And thanks to you teaching me the importance of movement everywhere will pay off in the end! So true for me.”
Suzanne is healing well and taking medication but fortunately didn’t have to have chemo or radiation.
Suzanne also said she “will keep up her Pilates practice hopefully another 18 years because as you know, when you rest you rust!”
As a cautionary tale, Suzanne strongly advises not to skip your annual mammogram. Her spots happened in less than a year.
I hope Suzanne’s story encourages you to take care of yourself with regular checkups and to stay active and keep moving! It might pay off in ways you couldn’t have expected!
“The use of a good stiff brush…stimulates circulation, thoroughly cleans OUT the pores of the skin and removes dead skin too.”*
~ Joseph Pilates
The first way Pilates likes to detox is of course with breathing.
You may be familiar with his quote “to ‘squeeze’ every atom of impure air from your lungs.”**
But besides breathing, I want to focus on something Pilates taught that you may not have heard before.
Pilates was actually into brushing the skin.
We brush our teeth and our hair. Why not our skin? It is our biggest organ.
A few of the purported benefits of skin brushing are:
Stimulates circulation
Improves Lymphatic flow
Softens skin
Helps with cellulite
If we can give our skin a little brush, makes sense that might help our overall health too.
Pilates was pretty serious about brushing and there are stories that he would even enter into the showers at the studio and make sure everyone was brushing. Yikes!
And as you can imagine, everyone was sure to diligently brush.
Pilates recommended a brush without a handle so you would have to contort to reach all the places.
And with a “good stiff brush” he did call it a “‘Spartan-like’ treatment”. ***
The practice of skin brushing dates back thousands of years to the Egyptians.
But other cultures practiced brushing as well including the Greeks, Chinese and Indian (who developed Ayurvedic medicine).
I’m not sure if Pilates picked up the idea for skin brushing from the ancient Indian practice or from the Greeks or Chinese. Or perhaps they all influenced him.
While you don’t have to do a Spartan treatment, here are a few tips:
Skin brushing can be done wet or dry.
Dry brushing is considered to have more benefits or be more effective than wet brushing.
Try brushing in shower before you turn on the water. Then the shower can rinse off the dead skin cells.
Use gentle pressure or light strokes.
Lots of information is available online about skin brushing. If you would like a specific recommendation you might check out – this youtube channel by a Lymphedema Physical Therapist to learn more about how to properly skin brush for your health.
One more important tip:
Despite Mr. Pilates advice of a good stiff brush…
if you have sensitive skin or mature skin (skin does get thinner with age and more susceptible to tearing and bleeding), you can use a washcloth instead of a stiff brush.
If you have a wound, blood clot, rash, sunburn, psoriasis, eczema, area of active cancer or other skin condition, obviously you would not want to skin brush.
As always, please be sure to check with your medical professional before starting any new health routine.
Hope you have fun detoxing the Pilates way and practicing a little spring cleaning for the body!
Happy Spring!
With Best Wishes Always,
Shannon
*Pilates, Joseph H. and William John Miller. Return to Life Through Contrology. Pilates’ Primer: The Millennium Edition. Presentation Dynamics, republished 1998, p 20.
**Pilates, Joseph H. and William John Miller. Return to Life Through Contrology. Pilates’ Primer: The Millennium Edition. Presentation Dynamics, republished 1998, p 12.
***Pilates, Joseph H. and William John Miller. Return to Life Through Contrology. Pilates’ Primer: The Millennium Edition. Presentation Dynamics, republished 1998, p 21.
Just last month I shared the annual fitness trends. If you missed it, you can catch the article here.
It’s only February and already there are more amazing technological advancements to share.
You may have seen this in the news. Elon Musk’s Neuralink implanted it’s first brain chip into a human! This neural implant apparently decodes “movement intention”. If you would like to read more, here is an article from the BBC on the topic.
February is American Heart Month and it also happens to be the 100 year anniversary of the American Heart Association.
They are celebrating this year by renewing focus on CPR training and teaching as many people as possible this lifesaving skill. If you would like to learn CPR, here is a list of classes with the American Red Cross.
Also, World Encephalitis Day is happening this month. If you would like to get involved, you can learn more here. Or you can show your support in other ways, like wearing red on Thursday, February 22.
February is a busy month! In addition to Black History Month, Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day, here are a few lesser known events that you may want to celebrate:
Happy New Year! Hope you had a beautiful Holiday with your loved ones and that you are looking forward to an exciting and purposeful 2024! To help you along the path, here are some of the top fitness trends. One of them might even be a little surprising! Keep reading to find out what it is.
To get things started, here’s something new that I have begun recommending to students. I think you’ll enjoy…
How would you like to improve balance and focus? Not to mention your movements and coordination.
I’ve mentioned before that there are 3 systems that work together for balance – the proprioceptive, visual and inner ear. You can read a previous article on the topic here.
While Pilates is very strong on the proprioceptive component, the BrainSpeed Ball® is a wonderful compliment to Pilates by exercising the visual component of balance.
Developed by fellow Pilates Educator, Trent McEntire, I think you’ll find the BrainSpeed Ball® useful and fun!
The bright orange ball has the alphabet and the numbers 1-12 randomly placed on the ball. There are a variety of exercises where you literally keep your eyes on the ball. It is more like playing a game than an “exercise”.
It is used for balance & fall prevention, ADHD, enhancing athletic brain performance. They have also had success with programs for neurological conditions. The BrainSpeed Ball® has recently developed a program for Parkinson’s and another for concussion recovery.
The BrainSpeed Ball® is appropriate for ages children to seniors.
Whether a kid needing focus and motor control, or an adult who stares at a computer screen all day, or a senior who needs to work on balance, the BrainSpeed Ball® can be of benefit to you.
Their tagline is “Fire Up Your Brain”. You’ll find it does that and a whole lot more!
2. Recovery – Light Therapy
One of the top trends and buzzwords this year is recovery.
This is the surprising trend for 2024. That is a bit of a change from the traditional “no pain, no gain” mentality.
Post workout recovery is something that sports have used for years but is now moving more mainstream.
Whether cryotherapy or specialized massage therapy, there are a lot of possibilities.
One I specifically wanted to focus on is light therapy.
You might have seen it in the anti-aging arena – from lasers for hair growth like the Laser Hairmax® to face masks like the Omnilux.
The benefits of red light therapy include increasing collagen, decreasing inflammation and helping muscle recovery and pain relief.
But you can also find smaller straps that you can wrap around a certain part of a body (like a knee) to give a targeted treatment.
3. AI – Tonal and Tempo still lead the pack
The trends for 2024 would not be complete without a look at AI.
ChatGPT is being used as a personal trainer along with various AI fitness apps.
As you might imagine, there are advantages – like brilliant, speedy computation for recommendations on reps and sets based on all the data it collects from everyone that has used it.
But as they are finding in other industries, there are some downsides.
Mainly lack of human interaction and feedback to know if you are performing the exercises properly.
It sounds like Tonal and Tempo are still leading the way in terms of having proprietary motion sensing technology that is able to offer feedback as you workout.
These are just a few of the fitness trends for 2024. The BrainSpeed Ball® could be a valuable and fun addition to your routine. The focus on recovery is a surprising change of trends this year and light therapy is just one of the many possibilities in this category.
As the world and technology continue to grow and change, we’ll see what AI and the future holds.
When it comes to staying hydrated, fluids are what come to mind rather than food.
But food can actually make up to 20% of the daily requirement of water.
So if you don’t like drinking water or you are looking for a way to beat the heat while engaging in outdoor activities, here are a few of the most hydrating foods:
Cucumber
Iceberg Lettuce, Romaine and Spinach
Celery
Radishes
Tomatoes
Zucchini & Summer squash
Asparagus
Bell Peppers
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Mushrooms
Strawberries
Watermelon
Apples
Peaches
For a previous article addressing in more detail how much water you should drink, you can check it out here.
The general recommendation is to “drink when you are thirsty”.
That said aging and certain medication can impact whether you feel thirsty. So of course check with your doctor to find out what’s right for you.
In the meantime, enjoy a nice summer salad and some fresh fruit for desert.
Having juicy food is a surprising and fun way to support you in staying hydrated during hot summer days!
“Forever Young” is the title of a new book by Mark Hyman, MD. While this author is a new find for me, you might already have heard of him. He has written many books including 14 New York Times bestsellers!
The direction science is going is fascinating. The combination of biology and technology and the things they expect to be able to do in 10 years is mind-blowing and sounds like something out of science fiction.
But you don’t have to wait for new inventions.
There are important things you can do now to invest in yourself and in your health.
As you might have guessed, exercise and nutrition play a vital role.
If you would like to learn the “#1 Hack To Stop Aging”, here is a video by Dr. Hyman discussing his new book. The story about the 95 year old who walks 5 miles a day is especially inspiring!
And here is a longer interview with Dr. Hyman where he talks about “metabolic flexibility” (my favorite new term) and he shares his smoothie recipe from the book!
