I’ll admit I’m always curious about the latest superfoods, and although some end up being all hype, spirulina has left me pleasantly surprised. This healthy algae works its wonders inside and out.
I prefer to add it to my food because that’s where I’ve seen the biggest benefits. It’s also easy to add it to your beauty routine now that some skin care products count it among their ingredients.
What is spirulina?
The name threw me at first. I wasn’t even sure how to say it, let alone use it. Spirulina is a blue–green algae and a bacteria known as cyanobacterium. It’s considered one of the most potent sources of nutrients.
It grows in both salt and fresh water; the key is to make sure you’re only using spirulina harvested from clean waters. Any contamination could result in harmful side effects.
Body-Loving Nutrients
I honestly thought spirulina might just be a multivitamin in disguise. It’s full of vitamins, such as A, B-1, B-2, B-3, B-6, B-9, C, D, and E. It also contains more calcium than milk, along with iron, potassium, zinc, and much more. Unlike some nutrient-rich foods, this one makes it easy to absorb most of what it contains for even more benefits.
It’s well known for being rich in protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and gamma linolenic acid. I’m personally enjoying the extra boost from the nutrients—and all I have to use is a few grams a day.
Internal Benefits
Let me warn you now: Spirulina does have a pond water taste. It is algae, after all. That’s why I prefer to either mix it into something I’m cooking or take the pill form.
It doesn’t matter which way you take it, though. The benefits stay the same. A few things spirulina is known to help with include:
Allergy symptoms – reduces inflammation and clears nasal passageways
Fighting cancer – may help reduce tumor size (especially with oral cancers) and prevent recurrences
Heart disease – helps reduce triglyceride and LDL levels while raising good cholesterol (HDL)
Boosting immune system – high antioxidant content and anti-inflammatory properties help boost immunity and protect against many diseases
Arthritis symptoms – decreases inflammation in joints to reduce painful arthritis symptoms
Using Spirulina Externally
I’ve actually seen improvement in my skin and hair just from taking spirulina internally on a daily basis. Now that spirulina is becoming more mainstream, however, more beauty brands are counting it among their ingredients.
One of my favorites is a spirulina facial mask—a great way to improve your skin and indulge yourself with a mini spa treatment.
You can also add it to most beauty products that don’t already contain it. The result is healthier, younger, and more radiant skin—but spirulina isn’t just limited to your skin.
I haven’t tried it in shampoo yet, but spirulina can help fight hair loss. Plus, all the nutrients are great for giving you stronger, healthier hair.
How to Take Spirulina
I love that spirulina is extremely easy to take. It’s healthy to ingest up to 10 grams a day, but I usually stick to five or less. I’ve noticed improvements in my health and skin just from mixing a few grams in a few meals a day.
I have researched spirulina and one important thing I’ve found is that it’s best to take the algae along with an omega-3 supplement for better nutrient absorption. I already take a fish oil supplement daily, so that wasn’t a problem.
When mixing spirulina in with beauty treatments, a gram or less is all that’s needed. I can tell you that using it internally and externally has made my skin look tighter and less tired.
There’s really nothing to lose with spirulina. It’s inexpensive, lasts a while, and works like nature’s multivitamin. Try it and see how it changes your life!
The key to good health in Chinese medicine is balancing the body’s yin and yang energies. Yin and yang energies are considered opposites or at different ends of the energy spectrum. At the same time, one cannot exist without the other. The qualities of each are like black and white. For example, yin is the moon and yang is the sun, and yin is considered feminine energy while yang is considered masculine energy. Yin is rest while yang is active and yin is west (or sunset) while yang is east (or sunrise). You get the idea. How do you keep the body’s energies balanced? Let’s take a closer look.
1. Know the signs.
To find balance, you must first know when there’s an imbalance. For example, if you have a yin deficiency (too much yang), you may feel anxiety, hyperactivity, frustration, anger, overwhelmed, overly controlling, overly judgmental, and unable to relax. If you have a yang deficiency (too much yin), you may feel depressed, stagnant, tired, hopeless, weak, jealous, or have low self-esteem. No imbalance is a good imbalance, but once you know the signs, you can take steps to rebalance the energies.
2. Channel the other energy.
If you notice you have a deficiency of one energy and an overabundance of another, take steps to channel the other energy. For example, if your mind is too active, causing anxiety, take steps like deep breathing, slow forms of yoga, or meditation to slow it down. If you’re feeling depressed or stagnant, go for a run. When you feel imbalanced, you’re often drawn to the more pronounced energy, but if you listen deeply, it’s often not the one that serves you.
3. See a professional.
A Chinese medicine practitioner can look deeply for any imbalances. For example, a practitioner can tell just from your pulse if there’s an imbalance. They may also look at a patient’s tongue as well as the texture of the skin, hair, or even the sound of a patient’s voice. Tender acupressure points may also indicate problems with the organs that they pertain to in the body. Imbalances can be corrected using a variety of methods like diet, massage, tai chi, and acupuncture. If you have a particular ailment, a practitioner can work to correct the imbalance that’s causing it.
4. Slow down.
Even though an energy imbalance can occur with either yin or yang energy, it’s important to note that we live in an increasingly yang world. We’re more active than ever before, constantly balancing work and family all via our smartphones. We amp with coffee and unwind with alcohol. According to Chinese medicine practitioner Brendan Kelly, too much yang energy can heat up the body. Foods like coffee, spicy foods, sugar, and too much alcohol cause anxiety and an overly active mind. Over time, it can also cause disease. For much of the population, finding balance may be as simple as slowing down and welcoming the yin, or rest, back into your world.
5. Get back to nature.
In Chinese medicine, nature is considered very balancing. If you’re feeling out of sorts, take a walk outside. Maybe you’ve noticed that you’re either anxious or depressed, on varying ends of an energy imbalance. In this case, consider a hike or going on a camping trip. Finding balance is all about extracting yourself from the lifestyle that’s causing the imbalance in the first place and getting back to basics.
6. Open up blockages.
Acupressure and acupuncture can open up stagnation in the flow of qi, which is life energy. Stimulating the flow of qi can clear up imbalances that may lead to chronic conditions. A Chinese medicine practitioner uses needles and massage pressure points to stimulate certain areas along meridians, or lines, of energy in the body.
Chinese medicine is all about balancing the yin and the yang energies in the body. It’s also important that the flow of qi isn’t stagnated by some sort of a blockage. By first noticing imbalances and then working to bring the scale to level once again, you can maintain optimal health and avoid chronic illness—both mental and physical—down the line.
You almost can’t go on social media without seeing it: a friend (or multiple friends) who participated in a multi-day relay race sharing pictures of their fun-yet-exhausting experience. Relay races have become incredibly popular among all types of runners, and events are popping up for competition, entertainment, charity…and sometimes even a combination of all three.
Their popularity may leave you wondering what all of the fuss is about, or more importantly, it may leave you wondering what you are missing. Here are five reasons to run a team relay race.
Run Far! But Not Too Far…
Relay races allow runners to participate in multi-day stage events without having to run the ultra length distances many multi-day stage events typically require. In a relay race, runners on teams of 4–10 (or sometimes even more) cover 100–200+ miles. The distance is typically split up into multiple legs for each runner, making the distance more doable for everyone.
With that said, you typically still have to run a significant number of miles, albeit spread out over multiple legs. Thus, relays often provide much more of a challenge—and bragging rights—than your average road race.
Bond With Friends
Nothing brings friends closer together like being trapped in the small confines of a relay van, covered in sweat, and smelling like a gym locker room. There is something special about sharing your hard-earned accomplishments—as well as your raw and vulnerable low points—with your friends. These are the types of experiences that truly strengthen a friendship.
Make New Friends
Skip the small talk and pleasantries and instead go right to the “could you please pass the Bodyglide? My thighs are rubbing.” Again, nothing brings people closer together like being trapped in the small confines of a relay van, covered in sweat, and smelling like a gym locker room. Bond over blisters, commiserate over chafing, and share stories over countless miles in the van.
Get Silly
When I posed the question to my Facebook friends “what are your top reasons for running a relay race?” I was inundated by countless comments that included back and forth banter and inside jokes between friends. And of course, none of it made any sense to me or anyone else who wasn’t a part of their relay team. But apparently chaos ensues during the middle of the night when a group of runners are deliriously tired yet full of caffeine and have some significant mileage to cover.
Relay races are also known for their participants’ willingness to don costumes, decorate their team vans, or deck out campsites in elaborate themes. It truly can be one big, running party.
See New Sights, Explore New Places
Traditional road races typically require a ton of planning that can be limiting to sights and scenery. But with a relay race, more distance is covered with fewer logistics in the way of road closures, ensuring the course circles back to the starting area, etc. This opens up a whole new world of opportunity to cover roads and trails that might be missed by a traditional race. Further, many relays are point “A” to point “B”–style races. While one runner is covering their leg on foot, a van full of the rest of the team drives to the next transition zone. Therefore, even though you aren’t running all 200+ miles, you still get to see most of it.
Relay races can be a once-in-a-lifetime, unforgettable experience for you and your running friends, both old and new. But you won’t know until you try! Gather your team, find a course, and run!
Do you ever feel like you have let life start to get the best of you? You get busy, and when that happens your nutrition tends to be the first thing that starts to go. Eating out, drive-through restaurants, grab and go…we all become victim to this cycle. When that happens, I often feel out of control and I need to gain back the control in order to feel happiness.
So how do you gain control over your nutrition and start to get your life back in order? One way that I find really helpful and that I try to do at least once—if not twice—a year is a cleanse.
Now before I continue on, I want to remind you of a few things. First, you should not cleanse often. This is something to do when you need to reset your body. It is not a lifestyle, it’s more of a quick fix when you feel like it’s time to get things back in order.
Also, cleansing is not easy. It can be very challenging both physically and mentally, so you have to go in with a prepared mindset. In addition, when it’s time to end your cleanse and go back to your normal way of eating, don’t derail your results by making your first meal an unhealthy one.
Okay, now that we have gotten those reminders out of the way, let’s talk about the benefits of cleansing in greater detail so you can decide if this is something you want to try. 1. Cleansing is helpful in removing the toxins that we endure in our daily life. Even if you try to eat organic food as often as possible, you are still exposed to pesticides, chemicals, and preservatives; too much exposure to these over time can lead to health issues eventually. 2. Cleansing is also a great way to strengthen our immune systems, which we need to be strong to keep us healthy in a world that is filled with so many germs! 3. Probably a lot of people’s favorite reason to cleanse is to lose weight, and this is why I said earlier that cleansing should only be done a few times a year. This is not a weight loss solution. Instead, cleansing helps boost your metabolism by cleaning out the toxins from your fat cells. 4. When our bodies are filled with tons of toxins, we often get headaches, don’t sleep well, have digestion issues, and may even suffer from depression. Simply cleansing can increase your quality of life, and you may find yourself sleeping better, feeling happier, and digesting your food properly.
There are a lot of cleanses out there. Once you have decided to cleanse be sure to do your research and find the one that is best suited to you, your needs, and your lifestyle. And remember, once you complete your cleanse, do your best to keep a healthy lifestyle moving forward. You just put in the work to reset your body—don’t damage it by going back to old habits. Take this opportunity to bring new healthy ways to your life for good!
I will be honest. The first cleanse I tried, I was scared and nervous and it only lasted 24 hours. However, I learned more about myself and what nutrition parameters work within my body, and I was able to be more successful when I tried my second cleanse.
It is okay if it takes you a couple tries to get it right. Health and nutrition are all about taking the “good” parts of many things, seeing what works with your body, and incorporating them into your journey.
Good luck and happy cleansing!
When I was on the Dr. Oz show several years ago, I had the opportunity to talk to an attractive older woman. She told me she was 78 years old and had lost more than 125 pounds and kept it off for six years. I was amazed and asked her why she thought she was successful when so many older women seem to struggle with their weight. Her formula to success turned out to be practical and one that anyone can emulate. It also happens to be what I recommend to my over-50 clients. Here’s how you too can lose weight after 50.
Know the hormonal challenges.
Before you try to lose weight or get depressed because you are struggling to lose weight after 50, know that there are real challenges to weight loss as you get older. Many women over 50 are dealing with hormonal changes due to menopause. These hormonal changes make it more difficult to lose weight, but not impossible.
Always talk to your doctor about your health, including asking her to run a hormone panel and assess your overall health and weight issues. In some cases, your doctor may be able to adjust your current medications in a way that facilitates weight loss.
Assess your diet.
Once you acknowledge you’ve got a tougher time ahead of you because of your age and hormonal challenges, it’s time to thoroughly assess your diet.
Make a list of all the foods you have eaten over the past several days, what’s in your pantry and refrigerator right now, and the restaurant meals you regularly order.
Look for common foods you eat. Are you eating a lot of carbohydrates, junky processed foods, high-calorie restaurant entrees, or drinking calorie-filled beverages? If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” then you know you’ve got to make some major adjustments to your diet in order to lose weight.
If you are eating relatively healthfully, then you likely need to adjust the amount rather than make drastic changes to the content of your diet.
Commit to clean eating.
Clean eating is always a good idea, particularly as you age. The last thing you need to eat is foods laden with chemicals that may negatively affect your hormone levels and slow your weight loss.
Get rid of processed foods in your pantry, commit to making most of your meals from scratch, and drink water instead of sugary drinks or diet sodas. Many over-50 women benefit from limiting simple carbohydrates and eating a diet slightly higher in protein. That means giving up starchy vegetables, most processed foods, and foods made with white flour.
Get moving.
Many experts (including those at the Mayo Clinic website) recommend that older women exercise vigorously to lose weight. What worked for you in the past may not be enough now. You need to exercise at least 30 minutes a day and possibly more. You don’t need to become a marathon runner, however. A brisk walk or gentle jog, 30 minutes on the elliptical machine at the gym, or a fast bike ride will do the trick.
Put strength training on your calendar along with your cardiovascular workout. You naturally lose muscle mass as you age, and building muscle will help you look better and burn calories more efficiently.
Track every bite you eat.
Track every bite you put in your mouth to make sure you are sticking with a low-calorie diet. Don’t go below 1,200 calories unless your doctor is monitoring you. Most older women I work with do well with losing weight at the 1,200 to 1,400 calorie range.
Track your food using an app or website. Some of my favorites are Lose It!, MyFitnessPal, and SparkPeople.
Put aside excuses.
You can make excuses about how hard it is to lose weight after 50 or you can just work hard. I know it is more difficult to lose weight after 50 but it’s not impossible. When you get discouraged and want to make excuses, remember the 78-year-old woman from the Dr. Oz show. She not only lost over 100 pounds but kept it off for years.
For more than 100 years, scientists have told us that marriage is good for our health (especially if you’re a man). It reduces stress levels, lowers the risk of heart attack and stroke, and generally leads to longer lives.
More recently, researchers have been looking at marital quality as a predictor of health, and the results are pretty much what you’d expect. Happy marriages generally lead to happier, healthier, longer lives, while unhappy ones lead to shorter, less healthy lives. There is, however, one exception.
If you’re a man with diabetes and your marriage isn’t everything it should be, you may want to resist the urge to get couples’ counseling. According to researchers at Michigan State University and the University of Chicago, your rocky relationship could be what’s keeping you alive.
Wait, what?
That sounds completely counterintuitive, if not downright crazy, doesn’t it? But the way it works is pretty simple. A woman whose husband has diabetes frequently pays more attention to his health than he does, regulating his diet, encouraging him to do plenty of exercise, monitoring his blood glucose levels, and reminding him to take his medication. Some men would characterize this sort of behavior as micromanagement or nagging.
But according to Michigan State sociologist Hui Liu, “sometimes, nagging is caring.” That irksome wife may actually be keeping her husband from developing diabetes in the first place and reducing the severity of the disease if he gets it anyway.
According to the American Diabetes Association, more than 29 million Americans have diabetes—that’s about 9 percent of the population. It’s the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S., killing 70,000 of us every year and contributing to the deaths of 230,000 more.
Liu and her colleagues analyzed health data from 1,228 married couples who were interviewed in 2005–2006 and again in 2010–2011. The team assumed going into the study that they’d find high levels of marital happiness to be associated with lower diabetes risk. Instead, they found some fascinating differences between men and women.
For men, “an increase in negative marital quality lowered the risk of developing diabetes and increased the chances of managing the disease after its onset.” This creates a rather ironic situation, where the more a man perceives that his wife harangues him, the lower the quality of his marriage—but the greater his odds of managing and surviving his diabetes
For women, however, the opposite was true: “For women, a good marriage was related to a lower risk of being diabetic five years later,” said Liu in a press release. Specifically, the happier the marriage, the lower her risk. “Women may be more sensitive than men to the quality of a relationship and thus more likely to experience a health boost from a good-quality relationship,” she added.
The study was published online May 23, 2016 in the Journals of Gerontology.
Traveling to a foreign country can be one of the most rewarding and enriching experiences ever—exposing us to new cultures, fascinating history, and breathtaking landscapes that just aren’t available back home. But those travel experiences can turn into a horrible nightmare if plans go awry and we end up facing health issues while on the road. Purchasing travel insurance can help alleviate the worries that come with dealing with those issues, however, helping to keep you safe, get you proper medical attention, and cover unexpected expenses. Here’s why you should be using travel insurance when you go abroad.
Unexpected Medical Expenses
While you’re traveling domestically, your usual medical insurance will typically cover your costs should something go wrong and you end up needing to see a doctor. But most policies don’t extend coverage to overseas travel, leaving you in the lurch if an emergency occurs. Travel insurance can pick up the slack in this department, however, providing coverage for those unexpected trips to the emergency room after you accidentally turn an ankle while walking the gardens of Versailles or get run over by a bull in Pamplona. Having travel insurance means you don’t have to worry about how you’re going to afford to pay those bills.
Prescription Medications
Inpatient and outpatient care isn’t the only expense that travel insurance will cover. Most policies will also pay for any medications that you might need should you get injured or become ill while traveling overseas. If a doctor writes you a prescription for just about any kind of drug, your travel insurance will pick up the tab or reimburse you for the expense. Once again, this can end up saving you a lot of money and help you to stay healthy while visiting another country.
Emergency Evacuation Coverage
You could potentially be hundreds—if not thousands—of miles from the closest hospital if you suffer an injury or become ill while traveling through a remote region of the world. But with the proper medical insurance, you can get emergency evacuation coverage too. That means that should you find yourself in need of medical attention and unable to reach a medical center on your own, a helicopter or other form of transportation will be dispatched to retrieve you and deliver you to the nearest facility. In some cases, you can even request to be transported home to the hospital of your choice. Be careful, though. Not all policies offer evacuation coverage, and an emergency flight can cost a pretty penny.
Emergency Reunion
Should you experience a serious illness or accident that prevents you from being able to travel home, most travel insurance policies will cover the expenses for a family member, such as a parent or spouse, to come visit. Those expenses include airfare and accommodations to your destination.
24/7 Emergency Hotline
Most travel insurance companies offer a 24-hour, 7-days-a-week emergency hotline that is available to answer questions, recommend hospitals and doctors, provide directions to pharmacies, and coordinate evacuation or rescue operations. That same hotline can also help you recover a lost passport, wire money if yours is lost or stolen, help recover lost travel gear, and more.
Other Benefits
Purchasing a travel insurance policy brings some extra benefits aside from health and medical coverage. For instance, it also protects your investment. We all know that travel can be expensive, and unexpected things can happen along the way, so most travel insurance plans also offer trip cancellation coverage to reimburse your expenses if for some reason the trip doesn’t move ahead as expected. The coverage will typically pay out if flights are cancelled due to bad weather, a natural disaster occurs, a tour operator scams you out of money, or other issues bring your dream vacation to a halt.
Other common benefits include reimbursement for expenses brought on by a trip being delayed by missed connecting flights and for lost luggage. With a travel insurance policy backing you up, the sting of those disappointments is greatly diminished, as is the strain that is put on your savings account. Many travel insurance policies will even provide a life insurance payout to a beneficiary if someone should pass away while traveling.
The cost of travel insurance varies depending on the length of the trip, as well as the destination and planned activities. Generally speaking, though, it is usually priced competitively enough that just about anyone can afford it. Considering the coverage it provides, good travel insurance is probably something that most people can’t afford to be without.
Gluten-free used to be pretty black-or-white: either you had celiac disease and needed a gluten-free diet, or you didn’t. Now, though, there’s a whole lot of gray area, and it can make for some pretty confusing health advice.
Part of the confusion lies in the difference between celiac disease (a diagnosable autoimmune condition involving physical damage to the lining of the intestines as a result of ingesting gluten) and the more mysterious phenomenon vaguely termed “gluten sensitivity.” Gluten sensitivity does not involve changes in intestinal lining or permeability and therefore may produce normal intestinal biopsy results when a person is tested for celiac disease. Gluten sensitivity is only established if celiac disease has been ruled out but symptoms seem to improve on a gluten-free diet.
Does gluten sensitivity actually exist, though?
New research seems to say it may not. A 2013 study reviewing gluten sensitivity in non-celiac irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients found improvement of symptoms not upon removing gluten from the diet, but by reducing the amount of FODMAPs the participants consumed.
…Huh?
Ok, let’s backtrack. FODMAPs are fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols, and they are the wrench in this gluten sensitivity equation. FODMAPs are carbohydrates that are often insufficiently digested in the intestine, making them prime food for gut bacteria. When gut bacteria “eat” (break down) compounds in our intestines, we may very well experience cramping, abdominal distention (bloating), and diarrhea. Do you know what those symptoms also describe? Yup: non-celiac gluten sensitivity.
Is it possible that the majority of individuals who seem to have a sensitivity to gluten are actually responding to high levels of FODMAPs in their diets? In short, yes, it’s possible, but everyone is a little different. Wheat, barley, and rye (the three gluten-containing grains to avoid) also happen to be high in FODMAPs, so feeling relief after eliminating these foods doesn’t say for sure whether it was the gluten or the FODMAPs causing the issue. More and more, scientists are considering wheat intolerance (as a result of FODMAP content) to be a more accurate explanation for this particular set of symptoms than gluten itself.
Wheat, barley, and rye are not the only foods high in FODMAPs; in fact, certain individuals who experience some relief by going gluten-free don’t find that it completely eliminates their symptoms. Total symptom relief often comes by looking at high-FODMAP foods in general. These foods fall into a few categories: foods with excess fructose (honey, apples, mango, watermelon, pear, and the vilified high-fructose corn syrup), fructans (artichokes, garlic, leek, onion, scallions, shallots, wheat, rye, barley, and inulin, which is found added to many packaged foods), lactose (milk and yogurt products), galacto-oligosaccharides (legumes, lentils, chickpeas), and polyols (apples, apricots, nectarines, pears, plums, prunes, mushrooms, and sugar alcohols like sorbitol and xylitol). Foods are constantly being tested and retested for FODMAP content, so this list should only be considered partial.
There is a way to tell if your gastrointestinal symptoms are related to gluten or these poorly absorbed carbohydrates known as FODMAPs. The first step is to find a gastrointestinal (GI) doctor you trust. Rule out actual celiac disease and wheat allergies (you must continue to consume gluten while testing for celiac or the results will be inaccurate), lactose intolerance, and a lesser-discussed condition called small intestine bacterial overgrowth, or SIBO for short. Once those are all excluded, find a registered dietitian, because this next part can be a bit of a pain.
You see, to test for FODMAP sensitivity, you have to do what’s called an elimination diet. Working closely with a dietitian, you will remove all sources of FODMAPs for up to six weeks to see if symptoms improve. Then, the dietitian will guide you through reintroducing the FODMAPs, group by group (fructose, fructans, lactose, galacto-oligosaccharides, and polyols, as mentioned above). The initial phase of the diet is highly restrictive, but the goal is to discover which specific groups of FODMAPs are causing you discomfort and in what quantities—in other words, to ultimately create as liberal a diet as possible without symptoms developing.
The gut is a fascinatingly mysterious set of organs, capable of much more than we fully realize. There is a solid chance that non-celiac gluten sensitivity either doesn’t exist or, at the very least, is considerably rarer than it seems. But that does not make your individual symptoms less real. If you feel as though something in your body is not right, find a doctor who takes your concerns seriously and explore all possible explanations.
It might be gluten, but it may be something else entirely. Don’t stop searching for answers, and don’t underestimate the power of those poorly digested, fermentable carbohydrates called FODMAPs. I think we’ll be hearing a lot more about them moving forward.
Yoga has become all the rage over the past decade. And for the most part, that’s a good thing. But practicing improperly can cause problems for your body and mind. As more yoga studios continue to open up around the country, more and more yoga newbies are starting their own practice.
While the studios are excited and ready to welcome newcomers with open arms, it’s important to be acutely aware of where your mind and body are at during your practice. Sometimes what happens on and off your mat can lead to you feeling discouraged or disappointed and may also lead to injury. Seeing people who devote their lives to yoga bend into positions you can only dream of doing can spark feelings of envy or competition. It’s this exact competitive spirit that can damage your practice and your body.
Getty Images Entertainment / Tim P. Whitby
When yoga becomes too much of an athletic endeavor and you are no longer aligned with the breath, the ego can take over. When your practice is more about what you can do compared to others in class and less about what’s happening on your own mat, the likelihood of your ego causing damage is higher. And the thing is, it’s not actually the pose that hurts us in yoga—these poses have been safely practiced for centuries.
It’s the ego wanting the physical body to go further than it’s ready to go. The ego has a funny way of overriding that internal voice that tells you when you’ve gone too far. Going too far will lead to injury and may discourage you from continuing a healthy, safe practice. Feeling like you might be getting a little too aggressive on your yoga mat? Here’s how to tell.
1. You lose your breath.
The breath is the most important indicator that tells us if we’re ready for a particular pose. Your yoga practice should constantly be aligned with the breath. If you find you’re not breathing in a posture or the breath is constrained, that’s a signal that you need to either come out of a posture or modify the pose to the level you’re at on that particular day. Just because you can do handstand one day doesn’t mean that you can do it every day.
And just because you can’t do pigeon one day doesn’t mean it’s always out of bounds. Your breath is the only tool that can tell you how you’re doing in a particular moment. If you’re finding yourself reaching into poses that just might not be right for you on that particular day, take a minute to come back to your breath. Take a resting pose and center yourself. You’ll probably find that focusing on the basics of your practice will allow you to make good decisions for your body.
Getty Images News / Joe Raedle
2. You’re over-stretching.
It’s easy to over-stretch certain muscles in yoga. That competitive spirit might push you to find a pose that your muscles aren’t ready for, which can leave you feeling sore. Listen to your body and arrive at a pose that feels natural to you. It’s crucial to protect your most vulnerable body parts, like your hamstrings, shoulders, and knees.Hamstrings injuries—especially where the muscle attaches to the “sits” bone (ischial tuberosity)—are common after years of over-stretching.
Make sure you’re engaging the leg muscles in each yoga pose rather just dumping into a posture. In forward folds, for example, focus on engaging the legs rather than just flopping forward. If your hamstrings are too tight to forward fold, bend the knees slightly to increase your range of motion. Take care to treat your body with respect; it will thank you.
Getty Images News / Joe Raedle
3. You’re over-heating.
Some of us don’t do well in hot temperatures. And it’s not because we’re wimps either. While some people thrive in hot yoga—during which the studio is heated between 87 degrees and 104 degrees Fahrenheit—other people feel light-headed and dehydrated. Don’t worry if you try hot yoga and feel like it’s just not for you.
Pushing yourself in a hot yoga studio is even worse for your body than in one set to a regular temperature. Though bikram yoga has become incredibly popular in recent years, it’s only been heavily practiced since the 1970s, so you aren’t missing out on ancient yoga tradition if you find it’s not the best way to spend your time on the mat.
Getty Images News / Matt Cardy
4. You refuse to use props.
Because of the competitive spirit that certain yoga classes can sometimes foster, some practiced yogis have come to believe that using props is a sign of weakness. After all, isn’t it always the newbies who immediately grab blocks, blankets, bolsters and straps? This is, however, extremely flawed thinking. Using these props to come into poses is a great way to understand the limitations of your body and the depth of the poses you are seeking.
Using a prop, especially on a day when your body may be a little stiffer than normal, can help ensure that you can maintain the poses you want while protecting yourself from injury. The next time you feel your ego holding you back from utilizing these props, try to get over that hurdle and pick up a strap. You’ll never know how deep of a stretch (while still being safe) it can provide if you never try.
Getty Images News / Joe Raedle
5. You don’t speak up.
Attending yoga classes is much different than grabbing a DVD and doing it in your living room. While yoga on YouTube can be much more convenient for those of us with busy schedules, you don’t have the benefit of having a teacher right there in front of you. That’s obviously not an issue with a class where your instructor is either right in front of the room or walking around making sure everyone is doing well.
An instructor isn’t just there to call out random poses—the course of the class is carefully planned to ensure that the students are getting the most out of their practice. If you’re feeling confused about a pose or don’t know of a safe but effective modification, speak up. Often the instructor will ask at the start of the class if there anyone is new, if anyone has any injuries to keep in mind, or if there are specific poses anyone wants to try that day. If any of those things apply to you, be sure to let her know. Nobody will think less of you for sharing; it’s crucial to share that information so that your practice will be safe and productive for your body and mind.
Getty Images Entertainment / Tim P. Whitby
6. You’re taking the wrong classes.
With a busy schedule, you may be tempted to take whatever class is on offer when you get out of work, but what if that class isn’t the one for you? While you should aim to try new things to deepen your personal practice, you need to make sure that any classes you take match your ability level.
If you’re new, try a beginner’s class. It’s nothing to be ashamed of; understanding the basic poses is key to advancing on your yoga journey. Any yoga studio should have a description of their other classes on their website so you can find one that matches your style. Feeling overwhelmed? Have a chat with someone at the studio to find out which class fits what you have in mind.
Getty Images News / Drew Angerer
7. You aren’t taking advantage of savasana.
Savasana, also known as corpse pose, should feel like your hard-earned reward after a full class of poses. Don’t look at it as a time to be lazy—it’s not just a time to take a nap. This cool-down period is crucial to helping you feel centered and relaxed before you leave the mat. While some people may skip this part of the class, resist this urge.
As you lie in savasana, close your eyes gently, continue to take your breaths, and focus on how your body feels. Concentrating on relaxation may sound counterintuitive, but it can help in many ways. This cool-down time can prevent your muscles from becoming sore or achy, will lower your blood pressure and heart rate at a safe pace, and can actually improve your flexibility. Close your eyes and enjoy this part of the class as a respite from your otherwise busy life.
Getty Images Entertainment / Tim P. Whitby
8.. You don’t quiet your mind.
Speaking of your busy life, try to remind yourself that yoga isn’t the time for multitasking. While you may be tempted to run through your grocery list, recall the details of a meeting with your boss, or wonder if everyone else in class is judging your abilities (or lack thereof), none of these thoughts will improve your practice.
At best, they aren’t what you should be thinking about; at worst, they’ll leave you feeling distracted and more susceptible to injury. If you’re feeling like you just can’t quiet your mind in a large class, try a practice in your living room. On the other hand, if your at-home process just reminds you of all the chores to be done, consider going back to the studio to find your focus. Center your mind on your practice and on your breath and your practice will feel more fulfilling than ever before.
While those common mistakes are general issues that can affect any yogi new or experienced, it’s important to know of the mistakes you can be making in specific poses as well. While you should always heed the advice of your instructor, don’t forget to keep these few problem areas in mind.
Getty Images News / Joe Raedle
9. You’re kicking up into headstand.
Certain poses, if done incorrectly, can cause compression of the spine. For example, the cervical spine is normally asked to support the weight of the head. But in headstand, it’s asked to support the weight of the entire body.
Kicking up into headstand dramatically shifts weight into the cervical spine, which can compress and injure the vertebrae. Instead, slowly engage the core and lift one leg at a time and then extend the legs into headstand. Additionally, build a strong base using your shoulders and forearms rather than allowing the head to carry too much of your body’s weight.
AFP / DON EMMERT
10. You’re not strong enough for chaturanga, but you do it anyway.
Shoulder injuries are common in yoga because too many people do chaturanga, also known as a yoga push-up, incorrectly. To avoid such injuries, draw the shoulders away from the ear, hug the biceps and triceps tight into your ribcage, make sure your elbow is directly over your wrist, and engage the core. If your biceps, triceps, and core aren’t yet strong enough to do a chaturanga correctly, then drop your knees to the ground until you can build the upper body strength to do the full extension of the pose.
Avoid the Hunchback of Notre Dame look when you’re doing low lunge by keeping your back low and straight. If you can’t touch the floor without rounding your upper back, modify your pose to keep your fingers off the ground. It’s important to keep your shoulders square. Lift your chest and pull your shoulder blades together. If you still can’t touch the floor with your fingertips like this, then use blocks on each side of your front foot. Make sure to fully engage your core to stay low and strong in this pose.
Pigeon is a very tricky pose with mistakes and misalignments being incredibly common, even for experienced yogis. As a fantastic hip opener, it’s used often, but given the nature of the pose, it’s hard to check yourself to make sure you’re doing it right to give your hips the optimal experience. Remember that your thighs don’t need to touch the ground—overexerting yourself here can stretch the exterior ligaments too far. If your hips are feeling too tight to stretch as deeply as you want, use a prop! Place a blanket, bolster, or block underneath your thigh or hands to prop yourself up and enjoy the pose without added pressure.
Delight In Something Yoga
13. You’re rounding out in downward dog.
Perhaps the most famous yoga pose of all, downward dog can lead to injuries in ways you never thought were possible. Despite being so popular, plenty of people still make mistakes in it. One of the worst? Rounding out your lower back. When your back is rounded, that passes your weight forward onto your shoulders and perhaps even further into your wrists. Neither of these areas of your body should be holding that much weight. By engaging your core and keeping your back as straight and strong as possible, you will have a strong current of energy to give yourself the best stretch possible.
Tree pose is a fantastic balancing posture that can lead to leg and core strength. The biggest mistake most newbies make is getting freaked out about falling over and placing their foot in the wrong place. By putting your foot directly against your inner knee, you place a lot of pressure on your knee, which is something you always want to avoid.
If you can balance enough to keep your foot up on your inner thigh, you’ll feel far more rooted into the ground; if you need to keep your foot on your inner shin, that’s nothing to be ashamed of. Place your foot in a safe place and keep your gaze lifted and strong.
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Be sure to listen to your instructor if they offer advice or suggestions for poses or pose modifications. They aren’t there to make you feel incompetent—they want you to have a practice that is both fulfilling and safe.
Yoga is a beautiful, life-long practice that balances the mind, body, and the spiritual self. But if you overdo it, you can injure yourself just like in any activity. Be true to yourself and what your body can do and let that reflect in your yoga practice.
Most of the time I do my best to hide from the sun. Don’t get me wrong! I love going for walks on sunny days and getting tons of fresh air, but I make sure that I’m protected with sunscreen, a big hat, sunglasses, and a thin outer layer for my back and arms.
It’s a fact that approximately one in five Americans will end up with skin cancer at some time in their lives—a scary thought, but there are many things you can do to protect yourself. The first is wearing sunscreen. Not only will sunscreen help prevent skin cancer, but it will also help prevent signs of aging, leaving your skin smoother, hydrated, and younger looking.
Choosing and Applying Sunscreen
When I select a sunscreen, I look for products that contain protection from both ultraviolet A (UVA, long-wave) and ultraviolet B (UVB, short-wave) rays with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30. Similar to my moisturizing regimen, I have a sunscreen that I use for my face, one for neck and hands, one for lips, and another for my body.
There are loads of choices out there as you well know if you have perused the drugstore aisle lately. You’ll find a variety of lotions, sticks, sprays, and oils, as well as both chemical and physical-based SPF. Choose what you think you’re most likely to use and follow the directions for application and reapplication.
When applying to your face, use about a quarter-sized amount and apply it last, on top of your makeup. Most people don’t use nearly enough sunscreen. You should use about an ounce on the rest of your body—the equivalent of a shot glass. For lips, carry an SPF 30 lip balm in your bag and reapply often.
We spend so much time trying to keep our faces looking young and glowing, but we forget about our hands. Don’t neglect this area—they can show telltale signs of aging.
More Skin-Soothing Benefits
It’s no secret that sun exposure ages skin. Many sunscreens are now incorporating potent antioxidants and luxurious natural moisturizers to protect and rejuvenate hot, dry skin.
The new product I can’t leave home without is the Sun Protection Cushion from AMOREPACIFIC’s Resort Collection. This nifty little cushion comes in its own compact, and you simply press it against the sheer sunscreen inside and apply by blotting over your face—just like you would apply powder. In addition to UVA/UVB protection, the sunscreen contains hydrating bamboo sap and purslane extract, which is loaded with omega-3 fatty acids that strengthen the skin’s barrier and make it smoother.
Sun Protective Clothing
You’ve probably seen t-shirts and hats with a UPF (or ultraviolet protective factor) label in stores. I swear by my wide-brimmed sun hat that protects my face, neck, and shoulders for a relaxing day at the beach or pool.
Add a UPF sarong or cover-up, grab a book, and relax knowing that you’re doing what’s good for your skin.
Disclosure: I received a sample of AMOREPACIFIC’s Resort Collection Sun Trio for review purposes, but I was not financially compensated. Opinions are based on my own experience.
