Pink Ribbon Program for Breast Cancer Survivors
We believe in the healing power of exercise to help patients recover physically and emotionally from their illness. Exercise therapy is gaining more and more support from the medical community as a viable complimentary treatment for patients. In fact, some physicians are now giving patients written prescriptions for exercise, along with prescriptions for medications.
One of our goals at the Healing Moves Foundation is to bring these special physical activity programs to our communities. To achieve this goal, we are excited to announce our participation with the Pink Ribbon Program designed for breast cancer patients. This program helps restore the quality of life and healthy body image for those who have been diagnosed with breast cancer despite any physical limitations brought on by their course of treatment.
The Pink Ribbon Certification Program is open to physical therapists, occupational therapists, Pilate’s instructors, physical fitness professionals, registered nurses, and healthcare professionals. Currently, the program has certified over 400 instructors in the United States, Australia and Europe.
For more information: Pink Ribbon Program
Bad Karma: How Yoga Can Lead to Serious Injury
Sloppy teaching and overly competitive students are giving yoga lovers serious and scary injuries.
I remember only one pose from my first yoga class seven years ago: a modified seated forward bend known in Sanskrit as Paschimottanasana. I sat on a mat with my legs slightly bent in front of me, my arms wrapped beneath my thighs as my forehead reached toward my toes. It was about an hour into class, and my body felt like a stuck door slowly easing open.
A warm current of something—call it blood, call it chi—coursed from shoulder to shoulder. I felt the muscles unfurling from my spine; then, in the other direction, the vertebrae unsticking from each other—click, click, click. It was a sensation of freedom and release I remember as vividly as the first time my husband touched me. This was how I was supposed to feel.
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Do You Exercise to Look Good or Feel Better?
Recently, I had the pleasure of speaking to an undergraduate class of business students about SheerBalance.com. Being back on campus was fantastic in many ways: the intellectual stimulation, the clean air of Ithaca, the beautiful fall weather, and of course, the youthful atmosphere—it just doesn’t get better.
During my presentation, I became 
distinctly aware of how different one’s mindset is when one is in school, specifically about health. I looked around the class and I would venture to guess that a good 80 percent of the class looked healthy and fit (yeah, I know they were fifteen years my junior, but that isn’t the point). (more…)
No More Food Deserts
We applaud First Lady Michelle Obama for tackling the problem of childhood obesity in our nation. This problem involves more than childhood obesity; it involves childhood hunger too. And the crisis of hunger and obesity involves adults as well as children throughout America.
The poor access to healthy, affordable food in our inner cities and rural communities is partly to blame. These nutritional wastelands offer families fast food chains and convenience stores, with no opportunity to shop at a supermarket for fruits and vegetables. While dining in the local restaurant, patrons are frequently offered the one “healthy” food choice: an entrée salad made with iceberg lettuce and blue cheese dressing, a meal containing all fat and no nutrition. (more…)
A Call to Fitness Professionals
Meeting the Physical Activity Guidelines – A Call to Fitness Professionals
Physical activity has been shown to improve cardiovascular and muscular fitness, mental health, and the ability to perform activities of daily living. And though I hope it’s of no surprise, this holds true for everyone.
For the most part, the guidelines for people with disabilities are not much different from the guidelines designated for “active” adults. The main difference seems to be the incorporation of the phrase “who are able to” into the specific recommendations as well as the removal of the suggestion that individuals should continue to increase or progress activity to reap even further health benefits (i.e. “the more the better”). There is also an additional recommendation for people with disabilities to consult a health-care provider about the amounts and types of physical activity that are appropriate for their abilities. (more…)