Welcome to fitness

As a very small woman, I've never found a bicycle that really fit me. So, several years ago, my husband and I decided to buy custom-built bikes.

When the beautiful little bike came, it felt amazing, as though I'd never ridden a bicycle before. But it was also difficult adjusting to a completely new way of riding. After a time, I got extremely frustrated.

The manager of the bike shop coached me, pep-talked me, got me through. "Think of yourself as an athlete," he said.

That threw me.

Athlete? Athletic? Those aren't words I use to describe myself. Never have. Yes, I did gymnastics, cheerleading, and dance as a kid, but even at the height of that, I wouldn't have used the word "athletic" to describe myself. In fact, sort of the opposite.

Several years later, here I am; I've just completed my aerobics instructor certification, and am starting my Pilates instructor training. I'm in better shape than I've been in...well, ever?

I still wouldn't call myself athletic. And why not? I don't even know. I suppose in positive terms, I think athletes are people who go to the Olympics. I'm definitely not that. And in negative terms, "athletes" were the mean jocks who made fun of me in school (and chose me last for their stupid dodge ball teams). Ugh.

Not that a particular word really matters. I'm a 48-year-old woman embarking on an exciting new journey, a journey that will hopefully raise my quality of living, as well as those around me.

When my Pilates teacher describes the women in my class, she calls us "movers." Yes, for whatever reason, that's a term I like. It's a term I can comfortably use for myself. Who knows why. Maybe it's a little softer, or more feminine. Maybe it's because the logical conclusion to the sentence, "I'm a mover" is "and a shaker."

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Winter Recess (A Diet Change Rebrand)

The beginning of the year, my husband and I do a "fast." For six weeks we take things out of our diet. Sugar and alcohol are always included and sometimes other things. The first year we did this, we were insanely ambitious: sugar, alcohol, dairy, most meat, all wheat, in fact anything that rhymed with "eat", particularly if it was brown, looked like the moon, or had been blanched. That's my memory at any rate, and no, it did not go well. (Lotsa cheats.) Subsequently, we've been more modest. And generally it has gone better. (I won't lie. There are still cheats.) At the end of this detox, sure, you go back to a retox. But each year (Is it ten years we've done it now?), you go back less. Your tastebuds actually change. You get more sensitive to sugar and stop wanting it so much. You start truly liking and desiring the things that are good for you. It's incredibly valuable. But it is a negation. We take things away. It's hard not to feel ...

The other head problem

Though not as common as Forward Head , let's talk about another postural deviation I'll call Chin Up Head. Here's a good example. By our cultural standards, she's gorgeous: that neck goes on for days! But in addition to her head being forward, her chin is lifted. End result: stunningly beautiful uh....compression of the neck vertebrae. The technical term is cervical extension and it usually isn't as extreme as the model above. Here are more subtle examples: It's a little hard to see but all these people have their heads lifted a few degrees off neutral. Held habitually for years, it can add up to neck problems or even chronic headaches. It can even affect your eyes. Chin Up Head is very frequently associated with Forward Head because of issues in the upper back and neck muscles. But there are two other important reasons people acquire this postural problem: Limitation in thoracic extension and overstretched tissue in the front of the neck. Huh? Limit...

Baked Rolled Rye and Oatmeal

I found this at the Polish Mexican grocery store near me: it's rolled rye flakes. How could I pass that up? But, uh, what to do with it? So, at the blog Flavor the Moments, I found a delicious recipe for baked oatmeal and I altered it a little: Apple Blackberry Baked Rye and Oats Ingredients: 1 cup old fashioned oats 1/2 cup rolled rye flakes 1/2 cup steel cut oatmeal 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 2 1/4 cups milk 1 egg 1/3 cup pure maple syrup 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups fresh blackberries 2 Pink Lady apples peeled and chopped 1/4-1/3 cup sliced almonds Instructions Set the oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8x8" glass baking dish. Scatter the apple chunks on the bottom of the prepared pan. Set aside. In a small bowl, stir together oats, rye flakes and cinnamon. Pour half of the oat mixture over the apples, then layer with half the blackberries, the remaining oats, and then the remaining blackberries. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, egg, maple syrup, and v...

Jill McGowan Pilates

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