*Disclaimer - this is only my opinion and is based solely on what works for me. I have great respect for you, veganism, but we need to talk. I think we should both just call this what it was: a fling. A stupid fling that didn't mean anything :). Here’s the thing: I hate this. After being rear-ended (ha ha ha) last week, I took a week off from inducing this self-imposed “six weeks of veganism” experiment. I should also add that it is not just veganism that was part of the plan, it was also refined sugars that had to go, as well as pretty much any heavily processed foods and any other foods that I know full-well irritate my acid reflux like tomato sauce, chocolate candies, etc. Knowing how hard it would be for me to get over the vegan hump though, I was willing to cut myself a little slack with the sugar thing, but I really wanted to stick to the other guidelines I’d set up for myself (particularly not eating foods that are heavily processed - that is more important to me than pretty much anything else; organic, local and minimally processed by industrial means - and I’ve been very good on that front to tell the truth).

A study recently released by the Archives of Internal Medicine shows that initially normal-weight women who consumed a light to moderate amount of alcohol gained less weight than their abstaining counterparts. Researchers charted the drinking habits of 19,220 American women "aged 38.9 years or older who were free of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes mellitus and had a baseline body mass index within the normal range of 18.5 to less than 25" over the course of 13 years. Approximately 60 percent of the women reported drinking lightly or moderately and the remaining 40 didn't drink at all. The results showed that 41.3% of the women became overweight over the 13 years and 3.8% became obese. The non-drinkers gained an average of 9 pounds each, while the regular drinkers only gained 3 pounds.

When Georgetown's Austin Freeman started experiencing symptoms of diabetes, he thought it was a stomach flu. Once word got out that he has diabetes, the media spread the word like wildfire. Freeman isn't even sure what type of diabetes he has, all he is sure of, is hoping to be a mentor for other athletes battling the disease. Hoya's coack, John Thompson III, told the Star-Ledger that he has a constant eye on Freeman in the game. “I’m watching him, trying to read his body language. Fortunately we have a great medical staff, so that’s all they’re doing. But at the same time, you’ve just got to watch him.” Diabetes is not an uncommon condition for athletes. Millions of people in the U.S. are undiagnosed, it's likely the star basketball player has had diabetes for years. Symptoms of type 1 and type 2 are similar. According the American Diabetes Association, type 1 symptoms include frequent urination, unusual thirst, extreme hunger, unusual weight loss, extreme fatigue and irritability.

A rabbi, a yogi and a Buddhist walk into the Manhattan JCC…What sounds like a stock opener of a joke actually happened at an event March 1 connected to Dani Shapiro’s newly released memoir, “Devotion” (Harper). The author invited her spiritual teachers to join her in a conversation moderated by writer and former television producer Abigail Pogrebin, who not only feigned surprise that attendees didn’t arrive in yoga pants, but also declared herself the most high-strung person in the room. Spiritual searching seems de rigueur for the modern memoir, and when Shapiro’s first blipped my radar, I thought, the world does not need a Jewish “Eat, Pray, Love.” Luckily, with “Devotion,” we’re getting much more. After relocating to rural Connecticut from Brooklyn, Shapiro suffered a general malaise. A mother in her mid-40s, she’d buried her father in childhood, battled drug addition and alcoholism, and abandoned her Orthodox upbringing. Yet it was her young son who nudged her toward a transformative journey. He asked about God; she sprung into action, seeking out teachers to guide her through her own head.

Here I demonstrated a yoga sequence to help strengthen your lower back – the most vulnerable part of the spine – to protect the sacrum, and improve the stability and flexibility of the hips.
As I’ve mentioned in the previous article, when done regularly and correctly, this therapy can help reduce pain and inflammation, increase circulation, improve function and increase a sense of self-confidence and well-being. Before you start, always be mindful of breathing. Inhale deeply and freely and exhale completely through the nostrils. In the practice of yoga, inhalation and exhalation are used to integrate the spinal movement. We breathe in to lengthen the spine, creating space in our vertebrae, and we breathe out to move or to go deeper into the posture. Last but not least, follow the order of the sequence. It starts with gentle warm-ups before going further. These hatha yoga poses have been modified to meet therapeutic needs. In this part, we cover poses on the floor and standing, while the next column will cover those lying on the belly and on the back.

Bollywood actresses are slimming down, as an increasing vogue for showing bare flesh on screen and Western ideas about body size and beauty take hold in India's big cities.Whereas former leading ladies like Mumtaz and Zeenat Aman once found their curvaceous figures no barrier to success, their modern-day counterparts are as famous for their diet and fitness regimes as their acting and dancing skills.
"There's been a lot of changes in the last decade, whether it's in modelling or in Bollywood," said Venu Hirani, a nutritionist and fitness consultant in Mumbai. "Today, the basic requirement for someone wanting to go into either is that they need to be a (US) size zero," she said. Actress Kareena Kapoor has been the focus of much media attention since appearing in a bikini in the 2008 film Tashan (Style) - a significant development in an industry known for its chaste treatment of romantic love. The 29-year-old star slimmed down dramatically for the role and reportedly collapsed on set. She has since had to deny suggestions that her current weight is unhealthy, instead attributing her smaller size to eating correctly, regular exercise and yoga.

"The Biggest Loser " trainer Jillian Michaels sits in with "The Doctors" with tips for a healthier, and happier lifestyle. We all know her from The Biggest Loser, fitness expert and trainer Jillian Michaels visits the set of The Doctors today to talk about exercise, health, and her new workout DVD, Yoga Meltdown. Yoga is considered by many to be less about developing strength and more about increasing flexibility and balance. In Jillian's new video, she combines the traditional power poses of yoga with circuit training to create a workout that combines both flexibility and power. Jillian also talks with the docs about hangover cures and foods to help relieve PMS. Hangovers are due to alcohol's toxic effect on the body, one of the largest and most significant of those being dehydration. Doctors cast member Dr. Travis Stork suggests balancing out your alcohol consumption with water by drinking a glass of water with every alcoholic beverage. Another key hangover component is acetaldehyde which is a toxin formed in the liver as the body tries to process the alcohol.

Wow, two weeks in a row I have been super busy! But this past week has been all about my family and friends and for a change work was not a major part of my week. In fact this week work really got in the way. Ever notice how things come in waves? Sometimes there is not much social activity and suddenly, you have a couple of events in a week, it's either feast or famine! But this past week was fun, it was good busy. And there has been more snow. Yes, just when we thought that perhaps the snow would melt, we had more snow on Thursday and Friday (with our office closed again.) Between my busy schedule and the snow, riding Nitro had to be put on hold until this coming Tuesday. All of this activity meant that it was tough week to get to the gym, but I still did my cardio,yoga and Pilate's at home. For these busy days I use exercise DVDs, specifically ones for yoga and Pilate's. I discovered these DVDs by accident when I won a Rodney Yee Power Yoga one at the gym. Exercise DVD's never appealed to me and I was skeptical, but after using the Power Yoga one I was convinced and they are now my yoga back-up. The two other yoga DVD's were gifts and I LOVE the AM/PM DVD.