The Wellness Mandala By Mirabai Holland, MFA ©2012

Spring is in the air and flu season seems to be hitting us later this year. Thinking about avoiding the flu always makes me wax philosophic.
So I started thinking about wellness. What is wellness anyway?
It’s the absence of disease. If you are not sick you are well.
But it’s more than that isn’t it? It’s quality of life and for some it’s the balance of all things. I like this balance concept so I dug out one of my favorite balance tools:
The Mandala: the wheel of life. I wrote down all the types of wellness I could think of and ended up with 6 categories that I stuck on my Mandala. Here they are:
Physical Wellness
· Taking care of your body, eat right, exercise
· Visit your doctor regularly

Mental Wellness
· Keeping an open mind and trying to see other’s point of view
· Allowing your curiosity to take you to new places and learn new things.

Emotional Wellness
· Trying to keep a positive state of mind
· Cultivating self esteem
· Reaching out to others for support

Spiritual Wellness
· Recognizing your beliefs.
· Allowing your core values to direct your actions.

Social Wellness
· Developing positive inter-personal relationships at home and work
· Allowing yourself to give and receive love: to and from everyone that means that much to you including animals
· Participate in social situations; try not to stay on the sidelines.

Environmental Wellness
· Making your home environment peaceful, pleasant, safe and comfortable.
· Choosing an occupation and a workplace that doesn’t drive you nuts.
· Try to have a positive impact on our natural environment.
Recycle more, pollute less.

When the wheel is in balance it spins evenly. When even one of these categories is out of whack, the whole wheel starts to wobble.
So as a wellness professional I respectfully suggest you get rolling!

Send your Moving Free with Mirabai questions to: askmirabai@movingfree.com

GETTING IN SHAPE ONCE AND FOR ALL by MIRABAI HOLLAND MFA © 2011

At this time of year when New Year Resolutions are just around the corner, I’d like to offer some suggestions on how to get into shape and stay there once and for all. Many of today's fitness programs are all about the quick sell and even quicker results. Many are based on dangerous fitness myths. Here are 5 fitness myths to steer away from:

Myth #1: Pain Equals Gain It is a popular misconception that only when you feel the pain are you gaining anything from your workout. "The "no pain, no gain" mentality contributes to more injuries and more burnout than any other fitness factor, especially among my age group (baby boomers). It is wiser to exercise sustainably over a longer term, than to push yourself to the breaking point.

Myth #2: A Taskmaster Equals the Best Teacher Reality Exercise Shows that have recently become popular portray drill-sergeant-style trainers as being the most effective fitness mentors. While leveraging fear and using intimidation techniques may mean instant short-term fitness results, they’re sending the wrong message about how to get and stay fit for a lifetime. Attainable short-term goals and positive reinforcement are more likely to create good fitness habits that are sustainable for life.

Myth #3: Pumping up the Volume Equals Pumping up Your Physique It seems some fitness instructors think screaming louder and blasting the bass is motivational. It's time to think again. While high-decibel workouts might be temporarily motivational, over time these techniques become draining and stressful leading to faster fitness burnout. Look instead for uplifting music and gentle coaching in your workouts.

Myth #4: Fitness Equals a Fight Against Your Body Sales pitches that encourage "shaving off the pounds" and busting your abs or your butt have solidified the image of fitness as a battle against your body. Fighting is not a sustainable activity or philosophy. Instead, think of partnering with your body. Meet it where it is at right now and provide the environment and tools to reveal your body's best potential. When you take this approach you are setting yourself up for success every step of the way.

Myth #5: Force Equals Fit Today's popular exercise routines promote pounding your body into shape. But ancient fitness modalities, such as Yoga and Tai Chi had it right. Fitness is not about pumping the most iron or performing the most reps, it is about teaching your body how to move efficiently, using all of your muscles groups, and sustaining these movements over time. Exercise including strength training should be approached as a gradual lifetime process. This way, exercise becomes a pleasure not a chore.

Mirabai Holland's Moving Free Becoming Social

Moving Free is social! We have recently entered into the wide world of the
social web. Become our Fan on Facebook by searching “Moving Free” and
follow us on Twitter @Moving Free in order to receive the latest news,
videos, updates, little tips, promotions and much more. Feel free to share
your pictures, ask us questions, write your reviews and have some fun with
us in our new communities.

Thanks for supporting our effort, and please feel free to forward this email
on to your friends and family who might like to learn more about us, or
after Fanning/following us suggest us to your networks!

Have a Social Day! ☺"
Fan us on Facebook @ Moving Free!
Follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/movingfree
Find us on Youtube www.youtube.com/movingfreedvds

Exercise Smart: Remember The Tortoise And The Hare! By: Mirabai Holland, MFA © 2011

Have you started that exercise program that you promised yourself? If not, you’re not alone. Only about 8% of Americans keep their New Year’s resolutions, and starting an exercise program is a particularly tough one. The very thought of knocking yourself out with exercise every day makes you cringe. Me too. It reminds me of the old story of the guy who beats his head against the wall. When his friend asks, “ Why on earth are you doing that ”, the guy replies “Cause it feels so good when I stop”. Crazy? Maybe. But that’s what’s going on with fitness today. We’re told we have to push our selves beyond all reason to get fit and then maintain with some austere, joyless regimen forever. Yea, can’t wait.
Well that’s just nonsense. Exercise should be something you look forward to instead of dread. You can get every bit as fit without the drudgery. I’m not saying that you should never do vigorous exercise. I’m saying don’t do it until your body is ready to enjoy and benefit from it. It’s not exercise Light; it’s exercise SMART.
So here’s the plan. The first step is get up and move. Start today and spend 5 minutes doing something really easy like putting some favorite music on and dancing around. Or take a 5-minute walk.
Try to do this at the same time every day, the earlier the better.
Pick something fun, something you can look forward to doing again tomorrow.
Do 5 minutes a day until it gets too easy. Then add another 5 minutes.
The idea is to ease up to 30 minutes of moderate movement a day.
This may take weeks or months. It doesn’t matter how long it takes.
Trying to go too fast is what makes people quit. Remember the tortoise and the hare!
If you have already started apply this gradual method to any program you’re on. It will help you stay on track.

Let me know how you’re doing. If you have any questions or comments my email is at the bottom of this article.
Of course always consult your doctor before beginning this or any exercise program.

You can contact Mirabai at: askmirabai@movingfree.com

MOVING FREE WITH MIRABAI

Holiday Moderation: Bah, Humbug!
By Mirabai Holland, MFA ©2010
http://www.movingfree.com/
Mirabai Holland M.F.A. legendary fitness pioneer, specializing in preventive and rehabilitative exercise. Her Moving Free® approach to exercise is designed to provide a movement experience so pleasant it doesn't feel like work.

It’s starting again. All that advice about how not to gain weight, how to reduce stress and how to stay on your fitness program during the holidays. Well good luck with that. For years I’ve been giving out advice of my own. Moderation I’ve always say, “Just take a little taste of everything”.
Exercise on holiday mornings. Huh? Well, I’m throwing up my hands this year, kind of.
I’m not going to tell you to just take a little taste of pie when you really want to eat the whole piece, nor to bypass that great stuffing that you only eat once a year. Life is short and this behavior is not the culprit anyway. The fact is holidays are a time to embrace life, be social and enjoy activities bordering on the excessive.
And when you come right down to it, it’s not what you do during the holidays, it’s what you do the rest year.
So, if you really need to hear about moderation in your daily life, here goes.
Know that every pound equals 3500 calories and all calories are not created equal. Some are more nutritious than others and some are downright empty. Try to make healthy food choices, watch your portion size and read your labels.
Get at least a half an hour of moderate exercise most days of the week.
Take a few minutes to do something for yourself, something you like, every day.
For instance, every morning when I get up, I kiss my cat.

If you’re already doing this then you’ve got nothing to worry about this holiday season.
If not, you have my humble suggestion for a New Year’s resolution.

Send your Moving Free with Mirabai questions to: askmirabai@movingfree.com

The Skinny On Your Hidden Fat

A too-thick waistline, especially paired with high levels of a particular fat in the blood called triglycerides can greatly increase your risk of developing coronary artery disease. Triglycerides are both produced by the body and ingested through the food you eat.

High triglyceride levels can increase your risk for heart disease and are more common among inactive people with larger waistlines. Normal triglyceride levels are below 150 mg/dL. The risk of developing coronary artery disease doubles when triglyceride levels are above 200 mg/dL.

Triglycerides are called the hidden fat because they are too often overshadowed by the highly publicized LDL bad cholesterol.

However triglycerides are above 200 mg/dL and “good” (HDL) cholesterol is below 40 mg/dL, a person is at four times the risk.

The good news is that a study at Duke University Medical Center has produced some surprising and encouraging results. Moderate aerobic exercise like walking a half hour at least five days a week can signicantly reduce the triglyceride levels in the blood as well as boost your HDL (good cholesterol). Burning 200 calories or so on that half hour walk doesn’t hurt either.

The study also showed that more intense exercise did help with belly fat but produced only half the triglyceride lowering results.

So my recommendation is: consult your doctor, find your triglycerides level and get clearance to exercise.

If it is elevated and belly fat is not an issue do moderate aerobic exercise like brisk walking or cardio dance. If you also have extra belly fat, consider adding strength training exercise every other day to help your body burn more fat.

Don’t over do it. Ease-in. Start with a few minutes a day of something fun. Pleasure is the key to sustainability.

Couple this with a low fat diet and moderate alcohol consumption and you’ve got a recipe for better quality of life and maybe even a longer one.