Personal Fitness Instructor

Your personal guide in a World of Fitness

Last week, I posted a blog about and got a variety of interesting comments from readers, many of whom said they have a hard time finding balance in their diets. As one reader said, “To lose weight or maintain my proper weight I am a very restrictive eater…I just have not been able to incorporate the “no BAD food” reality into my daily diet.”

With the holidays coming up, this struggle can add even more stress for some people. On the one hand, we want to enjoy ourselves and indulge in foods we don’t get very often. On the other hand, we don’t want to go overboard or gain the 5 or so pounds that some of us put on during the holidays.

So, what’s the answer?

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One of the things I’ve learned from my yoga practice is that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Sure yoga can help you rehabilitate an overstretched muscle, but it can also teach you had to move your body mindfully so that you never hurt that muscle in the first place. Personally, I prefer the latter scenario.

This is a lesson I take off the mat and extend to other areas of my life, too. It has helped me come to the conclusion that I should always practice yoga, manage stress, eat healthy foods, floss daily, get regular check ups at the doctor, etc. Read more

Yoga for Kids is one of the fastest growing yoga niches out there today. It’s taught in hundreds of studios across the country. A recent report from CNN featured kids that use yoga to cope with everything from ADHD to divorcing parents. But can a 4-year-old really appreciate the depth of the practice?

Who cares!? As long as it’s helping them manage their stress and feel better, they’re getting the benefit of the practice.

“I think the younger kids may not know exactly what they get out of it. It’s kind of like when you put zucchini in their muffins and don’t tell them,” yoga instructor Cheryl Crawford told CNN. Read more

One of the most common questions I get from readers and clients alike is: “How do I fit all these different workouts – cardio, strength and flexibility – into an already overloaded schedule?” The answer is very simple: Quit your job, give your kids away and stop doing all those time-sucking chores like laundry and cleaning the toilet. The response to this is usually, ” You mean I can do that?” Well, at least one of those things might actually be illegal and the rest are fantasies most of us can only dream of.

can be confusing. Should you do ? Which one should you do first and which do you choose if you run out of time?

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The shooting at the army base at Fort Hood that resulted in 13 lives lost and 30 people wounded was a tragedy that saddened the nation. But in the last year, the leaders at the base have been experimenting with new ways–including yoga–to help soldiers deal with the stress and pressure that comes with their jobs. In the aftermath of the shooting, they hope the “resiliency campus,” which in a huge facility that offers programs like yoga, aromatherapy, and video games with traditional counseling,  will help troops recover from the tragedy, reported the Wall Street Journal.

“The campus … Read more