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Prescriptive Health's Newsletter
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017
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CORE ANTI-ROTATION and NEVER CRUNCHING!
For the past year we've been employing the concept of "anti-rotation" in the studio. No more crunches or sit ups. The core is meant to help stabilize you, not bend you forward. Sorry, people who love crunches - they're not good for you! (read why here). Training your core as an anti-rotator vs flexor, you will have less back pain, better balance, and improved ease of movements in daily life. Think about it: your core connects your upper and lower body. If your core is stronger that means you have a more stable foundation from which to move from. More stability, more strength means better movements with no pain. That brings much more quality of life to every day. Check out this video for a simple, yet challenging core exercise you can do at home. If you don't have a sandbag, you can use anything that has weight and can slide across your floor. Now go get strong and functional!
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COFFEE BOOSTS YOUR PERFORMANCE
 Not all coffee is created equal (i.e.
Black Insomnia coffee), but all coffee has benefits to your performance. It's an established fact that coffee can boost athletic performance and is widely used every day! I remember back in my bodybuilding days (before I knew better!) it was common to guzzle a cup of coffee before your workout to feel the rush as you trained. As crazy as it sounded, it totally worked! Caffeine has been a performance enhancer for as long as people have been drinking it. People used to think that if you were a regular coffee drinker then it wouldn't give you much of a boost, that you already had a tolerance for it. Not true. Caffeine boosts performance whether you are a regular coffee drinker or a
newbie. And it doesn't have to be coffee - the enhancer is caffeine. You can get that from the
Punch'd Gummies in the studio or online. They're easier to travel with, no spilling in the car, and you can keep them in your gym bag.
Have caffeine, can travel, will train hard. :)
Click
HERE to learn more about how coffee can boost your performance.
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METABOLIC SYNDROME: WHAT IS IT?
Metabolic Syndrome is not a word you hear often, but the number of people with the condition is rising quickly! Research suggests that it may overtake smoking as the leading risk factor for heart disease in the near future! You've heard that name before - heart disease! What IS the metabolic syndrome? It's a name for a group of symptoms that happen at the same time AND increase your risk of heart disease, diabetes, & stroke. A major contributor to the risk factors is obesity (the 2nd leading cause of preventable death!). Not just any obesity, but "apple-shaped" obesity. Aging, genetics, hormones, insulin resistance, and a lack of exercise also contribute to the risk factors.
So why is this so important? All these factors are associated with "gunking" up the body systems. If you have Metabolic Syndrome, you might also have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, & high blood sugar. You can see the relation to heart disease and diabetes. Because you are in this exercise program, you are obviously making a conscious decision to be active, but how much attention do you pay to your daily diet? Do you eat refined carbohydrates, white flour, processed foods, soda, etc.? All of these factors can affect your risk for Metabolic Syndrome. Below is a video that helps explain a little about carbohydrates then you can click
HERE to review and test your understanding. Your diet impacts more than just how your clothes fit.
- Eating a diet low in fat, with a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain products
- Getting REGULAR exercise, at least 30 minutes of moderate activity almost every day
- Losing weight
- Managing blood pressure and blood sugar
- Not smoking
- Trying to include fish, preferably oily fish, in your diet at least twice a week
Best advice: keep active, reduce/manage stress, & eat healthy!
FYI - the guy who put together this video is a Springfield College Alumni (like me) who is highly sought after for his research in the role of nutrition to maximize health and athletic performance.
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STINKY MOXA
I'm a big fan of using moxa in my acupuncture practice. Most days, you can smell it as you enter the studio. Moxa, i.e. mugwort, is a form of Chinese medicine. I use it in conjunction with my acupuncture practice, but it can be used as a stand-alone practice as well. Moxibustion is the treatment modality of burning mugwort to promote/affect healing.
Moxa, like acupuncture, functions to
strengthen the blood, stimulate the flow of qi
, and maintain general health. Moxa is used on people who have a cold or stagnant condition. Burning moxa is thought to expel cold and warm the meridians, which leads to smoother flow of blood and qi. According to Acupuncture Today, "...moxibustion has successfully been used to turn breech babies into a normal head-down position prior to childbirth. A landmark study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1998 found that up to 75% of women suffering from breech presentations before childbirth had fetuses that rotated to the normal position after receiving moxibustion at an acupuncture point on the Bladder meridian." Moxa can be used to treat most conditions that acupuncture can help with. I typically use moxa for orthopedic injuries, arthritis, emotions, sleeping disorders, gynecological disorders, stomach upset, and sinus congestion.
Moxa is a great energy mover and tonifier. The one downfall to moxa is that it is very smokey and stinky. Not all offices can use moxa because of the smoke and smell. Next time you go to see your acupuncturist, ask about moxa.
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BEET JUICE HELPS AGING
I knew that beets were high in anti-oxidants and overall good for you, but I had no idea just HOW good they were! A friend sent me this article published in the Journal of Gerontology (Nov 2016). They
examined whether there are synergistic effects of beet root juice and exercise on neuroplasticity in the aging brain. What they found is incredible. Click HERE to read the article! Go buy yourself some beet root juice!
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AMERICAN MADE JEANS FOR ATHLETIC WOMEN
If you've not heard my jeans dilemma, let me share. Most of you know me. You know my body, or at least how it looks. Buying a pair of jeans that actually fit me is a nightmare. Powerful glutes and thighs don't fit nicely into today's jeans. If I find jeans that fit my quads then the waist is too big. If I find jeans that fit around my waist then I can't get them past my calves! Yah, it's not fun! Let me introduce to you a new brand of jeans that are specifically made to fit ATHLETIC women! They take into account our bigger thighs and glutes and smaller waists. Check out
Tenacity Jeans!
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LOCAL STUDIO SPACE AVAILABLE FALL 2017
Ferrovia Studios reside in an artist-owned and occupied former warehouse on Railroad Avenue in midtown Kingston. (Ferrovia means Railroad in Italian.)
With the intention to keep working artists working, the 15,000 sq.ft mixed-use building offers a se
lect number of artists studios, a large ground
floor space, an exhibition space, and two storefronts. Each studio has high ceilings with ample natural light, and most all of the building's electricity is generated by solar power.
Studios of all sizes will be available starting in September 2017.
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BLACKBERRY BALSAMIC GRILLED CHICKEN SALAD
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INGREDIENTS
FOR THE BLACKBERRY BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE DRESSING:
- 1/2 cup blackberries
- 2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon tamari or soy sauce
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- salt and pepper to taste
FOR THE FRIED GOAT CHEESE:
- 8 ounces goat cheese, either sliced into 1/4 inch thick discs or formed into small balls
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (or breadcrumbs)
FOR THE SALAD:
- 1/2 pound chicken breasts
- 6 cups lettuce
- 1 cup blackberries
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 1/4 cup red onion, sliced
- 1/4 cup walnuts (or pistachios or almonds)
INSTRUCTIONS
FOR THE BLACKBERRY BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE DRESSING:
Mix everything well.
FOR THE FRIED GOAT CHEESE:
Dredge the goat cheese slices/balls in the flour and coat in egg followed by breadcrumbs and fry in oil over medium heat until lightly golden brown before setting aside on paper towels to drain.
FOR THE SALAD:
- Marinate the chicken in half of the vinaigrette for 30 minutes to over night before grilling over medium-high heat until cooked and slightly charred, about 2-5 minutes per side, and setting aside to cool and slice.
- Assemble the salad and enjoy!
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- The name for the shape of Pringles is called a 'Hyperbolic Paraboloid'.
- There is a McDonalds in every continent except Antartica.
- Mr Potato Head was the first toy to be advertised on TV.
- The two tiny holes drilled in every BIC pen is to ensure that the air pressure is the same both inside and outside the pen, which helps the ink flow to the tip.
- The medical name for a butt crack is "intergluteal cleft".
- Snails have 14000 teeth and some can even kill you!
- Even though Froot Loops are different colors, they all have exactly the same flavor.
- Most toilet paper sold for home use in France is pink.
- The human nose can remember 50,000 different scents.
- The television was invented only two years after the invention of sliced bread.
- Bullfrogs do not sleep.
- It took the creator of the Rubik's Cube, Erno Rubik, one month to solve the cube after he created it; the current world record is 5.55 seconds.
- Tigers have striped skin not just striped fur. The stripes are like fingerprints and no two tigers have the same pattern.
- If you sneeze while travelling at 60 mph your eyes are closed for an average of 50 feet.
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Thank you!
Thank you for continuing to support me and Prescriptive Health. It means alot to me that health and wellness are valued and strived for. I try to live every day with the values and habits that I instill in my practice. Thank you for sharing in my quest for a healthy lifestyle.
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Tanya Miszko Kefer, Ed.D., L.Ac., CSCS
(845) 659-6133
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