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Whether you’re up to your ears with shopping, working, visiting or hosting, you’ll enjoy this season more if you’re relaxed and aware. It’s easy to get caught up in the busy-ness, become stressed and miss the fun.

Give yourself a relaxing break with this Sun Breath exercise.  This simple move will work for you in multiple ways: You’ll increase your circulation, bringing in energizing oxygen and releasing deadening carbon dioxide; you’ll also activate your parasympathetic nervous system, releasing neurotransmitters that create feelings of calm and also lowering your blood pressure, your breath rate, even allowing more blood to flow to your digestive system. Plus, Sun Breath can help release shoulder and neck tension, no matter if you’re tense from highway miles, airplane delays, shopping, social obligations or, well, you have your own list!

Your prescription: Eight to ten repetitions, timed as follows: Upon awakening, before bed; before shopping, after shopping; before a party; during holiday baking; anytime you need a break.

Sun Breath
Begin standing, arms down by your sides. Take a few breaths to center yourself.  Feel yourself standing on the floor; notice your body.  As you inhale lengthen the spine and as you exhale relax your shoulders down your back.  After a few centering breaths, exhale then raise your arms directly out to your side and then up overhead as you inhale. When your fingertips touch, join the palms over your head and turn your gaze to look upwards.  Relax the shoulders and pause to hold the breath in.  As you exhale, slowly lower your hands to your sides, coordinating the full release of the exhalation with the contact of arms to your sides.  Repeat again with the inhalation, arms moving upward, creating a flow of breath and movement. Allow your awareness to be absorbed by the sound of your breath and the movement of your arms. Experiment with moving at half the speed. Notice your feet on the floor connecting to the earth while you lengthen towards the sky.  Continue for several minutes, completing at least eight repetitions. When complete allow the eyes to close and notice your body and your breath as you take in the moment.

Experience more calming exercises in APOGEE Unwind.
Our complete list of holiday stress-busters
Try a basic breath meditation

Pregnancy is a time of change during which much is out of your control. Yes, you can eat healthful meals, take time to rest and follow your caregiver’s advice, but let’s face it: the baby grows and moves in ways that are quite unpredictable.

There is now evidence that you can make the whole nine months—and especially the last few weeks and even the birth—less stressful by practicing yoga during your pregnancy. Three recent studies show the benefits of yoga during pregnancy. Click the links for more details on each study.

In the first study, a group of women who received six one-hour yoga sessions were compared to a group of women who did not undergo yoga training. The yoga group had improved comfort during and after labor, the first stage of their labor was shorter as was their total labor time. There was no difference in the amount of pain medication that the women received, and both groups’ babies had similar Apgar scores (a test of reflexes, heart rate, activity, appearance and breathing given to all newborns).

Another study compared women who walked for 30 minutes a day to women who did yoga for an hour a day, starting between 18 and 20 weeks of pregnancy. The women who practiced yoga had less preterm labor and pregnancy-induced hypertension, had no increase in complications, and their babies had better birth weights than the walking group.

Yet another study enrolled women who were between 12 and 32 weeks pregnant . For seven weeks, these women practiced mindfulness-based yoga, a combination of Iyengar yoga and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, a relaxation and stress management program. Compared to a control group, the women who practiced yoga during their second trimester had significantly less physical pain, and those who practiced during their third trimester had greater reductions in stress and anxiety.

We are offering two 8-week prenatal yoga series starting in September 2010. In White Plains,  classes will be held on Sundays from 2:00 to 3:00pm, starting September 19. In Bedford Hills, classes will be held on Saturdays from 1:00 to 2:00pm, starting September 25. Click on the locations for more information.

Here is a collection of recent health news you can use.  We’re focusing on whole-body health. Click on the links to read more about each topic.

Keep on doing it: Women who were active for an average of an hour a day didn’t gain weight over a 15-year period. That’s a good reason to make movement a daily habit: Schedule an exercise class, take the stairs instead of the elevator, ride your bike to the store, or exit the bus early and walk to your destination. Another reason to spend more time on your feet: Women who walk reduce their risk of stroke.

Pilates keeps a pro in the game: How does a 37-year-old man stay competitive in professional basketball? Six-foot, four-inch Dallas Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd credits his long career to yoga and Pilates. The Mayo Clinic agrees: To prevent injury, Mayo researchers recommend a balanced fitness program that includes yoga and Pilates, especially for middle-aged Boomers.

Connect for your health: Yes, you can work out alone. But joining others—in a group exercise setting, for example—can boost your health in many ways. In this study, feeling lonely raised the blood pressure in those 50 and older. Connection with others is a key component of wellness.

What’s on your plate does matter: You know you’re supposed to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Now a study of half a million Europeans shows that high intake of fruits and vegetables reduced incidence of cancer cases by just 4 percent a year, not as much as experts expected. But there are so many other reasons to eat more plants: In another study, a Mediterranean diet (based on vegetables, fish, and healthy fats such as olive oil) cut risk of Alzheimer’s by nearly 40 percent in a group of New Yorkers. And don’t forget your heart: Research shows that replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat reduces risk of heart disease by 19 percent.

Your breakfast choice determines your day:  A new study shows that if you include fat in the first meal of your day, you set your metabolism to burn fat the rest of your waking hours. The sugary breakfast turned on carbohydrate metabolism. What’s the difference? You have unlimited fats stores in your body, but your supply of carbohydrates is scant. Just make sure your breakfast fats are healthy: Pass by the bacon, and reach for nuts, eggs, and fish. Another reason to quit the simple carbs: High glycemic index foods may raise risk of heart disease in women (Good-bye, plain bagel! So long, cornflakes!).

by Holly Niles, RNCP, RHN, RYT,
APOGEE’s General Manager

Pilates or yoga? Yoga and Pilates? APOGEE offers both, and if you’ve been a devotee of one you might wonder: Why should I try the other? 

There’s good reason to: Yoga and Pilates complement each other perfectly. You’ll find that the strengths and skills you’ve built in one class will transfer well and support you in the other.

Yoga to Pilates…
If you practice yoga regularly, you have developed flexibility, balance and awareness. Yoga also builds sustainability—the ability to remain calm and present in a posture no matter how much doubt you’re experiencing. When you go to your first Pilates class, you’ll find you have excellent balance and can get right to work. Stiff muscles won’t encumber you; you’ll have the ability to access the deep muscles that Pilates calls on. Depending on the kind of yoga you’ve been practicing, you may or may not be familiar with how Pilates routines flow between exercises. But you will have the resources to sustain yourself throughout the workout: With your yogic awareness, you can identify the mental and physical resources you’ll need in Pilates.

Pilates to Yoga…
If you practice Pilates, the asanas or poses in a yoga class might be new, but you’ll be able to do them because of the strength you’ve built in Pilates. In yoga practice, core strength is a tremendous asset. While Pilates seems to be less meditative than yoga, the deep muscle work, rhythm and flow of Pilates does develop mind-body awareness that you can use during a meditative yoga class. In your Pilates class, you use your breath to sustain you during routines; in yoga, the breathing patterns might be different, but your breathing skills will apply. In yoga class, the teacher might talk about chakras, the energy centers on the spine. In Pilates, you work to create flexibility in the spine, creating connections to all of the organ systems—you have been training to access these energy centers in your body.

At the end of a yoga class, you lie down in corpse pose, or shavasana, to experience deep relaxation. At the end of Pilates you are standing, experiencing the well-being that comes from having moved your spine and connected to your highest self. Either one is a reward for an hour of physical and mental engagement. 

Enjoy the differences and explore the similarities between these two disciplines. Your body, mind and spirit will be better for it!

Last weekend delivered hurricane force winds; this weekend’s forecast is balmy temperatures near 70 degrees. If you’re still walking around with a protective winter posture and attitude, take a minute to stretch and open yourself to the possibilities of a new season—after all, spring arrives tomorrow, Saturday, at 2:35 a.m. So reach up: You’ll feel better, trust us!

Upward Bound Fingers Pose
Stand with feet hip width apart. Reach your arms out in front of you and join your hands by interlacing your fingers, taking note of which index finger is on top. Rotate your wrists and turn your hands so your palms face out, then raise your arms over your head. Your elbows should be straight and your upper arms in line with your ears. Both palms should be equally facing the ceiling. If your shoulders are up, lower them by drawing your inner shoulder blades down. Keep your arms energized. Take a few breaths and feel your ribs opening. Then lower your arms, change the interlock of your fingers so the other index finger is on top and repeat. Welcome, spring!