Is Yoga A Good Workout? Yes, Ma’am!

I’ve been exercising for like 150 years. OK, maybe it isn’t quite that long, but it feels like it. Why? Because I get bored. Lift weights, hit treadmill, blah, blah, blah. Meh. So over it. What I am not over is how exercise makes me feel – lean, strong and healthy. I recently set out to find a new exercise program that would give me a good workout but be different what I’ve been doing. Enter Rodney Yee’s Power Yoga Total Body.

This is not for wimps. I only recommend it if you have a some yoga experience under your belt. It’s done in a flow style, where one pose flows into the next. Rodney calls the poses by their names, so if you don’t know Warrior One from Downward Dog you’re going to be lost. Even if you are an experienced yogi, this is a challenging workout. It’s meant to help you gain strength as well as flexibility. You will sweat. You will curse Rodney repeatedly (or maybe that’s just me). But in the end you will be damn glad you plunked down the $8.99 plus shipping for this baby. Like I said, I’m an experienced yogi/exerciser and this is challenging for me.

The workout is 60 minutes – that’s one hour of almost constant movement. The pace is quick, not relaxed like you may have experienced with other yoga workouts. This is not for relaxation and centering, it’s for toning and conditioning your body.

I like Rodney Yee as a yoga instructor. Sometimes I giggle at him, but it’s in the privacy of my own home, so it doesn’t count (does it?). Other instructors  irritate me because they talk too much or too slowly or whatever, but I think Rodney gets it about right.

If you’re looking for a new challenge or just want to add new dimension to your workouts, try this video. It’s under $10 and since you do it at home, no one can see you when you can’t get your head off of the floor in Reverse Bow.

Namaste indeed.

Oh! Look what I found at Target! Why did no one tell me about this before?!

Neti Pot: Natural Allergy Relief & Sinus Health

Things I love: springtime, most flowers, trees, dogs, cats, popcorn, and the smell of eucalyptus.  Things I am allergic to, but am experiencing in some form or another: please see my previous sentence.  I know people effectively manage their seasonal allergies with the use of inhalers, shots and medication, and, believe me, if that stuff worked for me, I would use it.  But, it doesn’t, so I have to rely on the methods of “natural health” to manage my allergies and chronic sinus issues.  So far, the absolute winner among those is the NeilMed NasaFlow Neti Pot that I stumbled across about a year ago while I browsed the aisles at a drugstore.

In case you don’t recall from watching Dr. Oz on Oprah, a neti pot is an ancient “technology” that has been used by practitioners of yoga for over a thousand years.  It works on the principle of gravity and essentially flushes the nasal passages using low pressure water irrigation. Basically, you fill up this little thing that looks like a mini tea pot, press the spout opening against one of your nostrils, tilt your head in the opposite direction from said nostril, and flush out your nose.  There are all sorts of neti pots available to folks interested in this method of allergy management and health maintenance, but my vote is for the NeilMed Neti Pot because it’s cheap, readily available in drug stores, and seems to be a thoroughly researched product by its manufacturers.

For example, research on nasal irrigation as a technique for maintaining sinus health suggests that the sinuses have to be irrigated with a minimum of 200 mL of salinated water for the irrigation technique to be effective.  The NeilMed pot holds 240 mL, and the company makes an affordable saline packet that is readily available in most drug stores.  The salt in the packet has been formulated with pharmacy grade salt that should be mixed in with the water prior to use.  Some people who use neti pots either forgo the salt altogether or use table salt, which is a huge mistake.  The saline reduces inflammation, so it’s an integral part of maintaining sinus health.  Furthermore, table salt has impurities in it, so you might be snorting more than just salt if you decide to fill your neti pot with it.

It might also interest you to know that neti pots aren’t just effective for sufferers of chronic allergies, but has been advocated as something that should be used to maintain general health.  Think about it this way, you’re breathing in about 14,000 liters of air every single day and that air is filtered by one thing: your nose.

How often are you cleaning that filter and how well are you cleaning it?

NeilMed has a myriad of solutions for people looking to maintain sinus health through natural methods, and the neti pot is just one of them. A great little feature of my neti pot was that it came with a little booklet that both explained the principles and techniques of sinus health in great detail.

Featured image by Jason Verwey

GE Strong As Steel – A Good Laugh And A PRIZE!

I get a lot of emails from PR people who are both very serious and very excited about their very serious and important products.

I usually roll my eyes because, really?  We’re jumping up and down about razor blades?  No.  Not really.

Not that we don’t need razor blades, mind you – but let’s not pretend that OUR LIVES! THEY ARE CHANGED! BY THIS AWESOME RAZOR BLADE!  THAT I HAVE BEEN COVETING!

This is not, by the way, a post about razor blades.

What this is, in fact, is a post about a marketing campaign that made me laugh so hard that I couldn’t wait to share it with you.

Ladies (and gentleman), I give you the latest craze in workout videos…

Strong As Steel from Strong As Steel on Vimeo.

My witty and insightful commentary – after the jump.

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I finally found the perfect workout pants!

For the last four years, my favorite workout pants have been a pair of maternity yoga capris.

Yes, maternity.

No, I’m not – nor have been in the last four years – pregnant.

But these were the only pants I’d found that were comfortable and flattering, probably in part because of the extra support in the belly.  Unfortunately, while I have no shame in wearing maternity clothes for years after I’ve given birth, I’m not willing to walk into a store and buy maternity clothes when I am obviously not pregnant.

But I’ve been tempted.

I’ve started taking a weekly cycling class and they demand you wear pants to class.  I’ve also taken a pilates class and showed up to the gym to use the elliptical routine – and all of those activities require pants as well.  For months I’ve struggled to find workout pants that I loved as much as my solitary pair of maternity capris.

I’m happy to report, my quest for the perfect workout pants is finally over.

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Yoga Is Awesome. At Home.

I am an inherently lazy person.

I’m convinced that God made me that way.  That’s why I am not one of those people who glistens when they workout.  I sweat.  And get red faced.  And swell.  And my legs itch when I run.

I’m practically allergic to strenuous exercise.

Which makes yoga perfect for me.

What is not perfect for me is a yoga class.  That you take with other people.  In front of mirrors.  In a room that discourages swearing.

If I’m going to fall over trying to stand on one leg, I’d like to be able to do it in the privacy of my own home where only my children can mock me and be scarred by my inevitable cursing.

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