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Home Equipment Favorites: The Resistance Band

Working out at home is a beautiful thing. Especially if you live somewhere like Buffalo where, as we have recently learned, snow and wind can keep us cooped up inside and all of our gyms and Pilates studios closed! Being an in-home Pilates instructor, I have found a number of really awesome pieces of equipment that greatly increase the number of exercises my clients can do in the comfort of their own homes while keeping their muscles guessing and their brains excited.

The resistance band (or Thera-band) is one of my absolute favorite pieces of home studio equipment. Not much more than a long piece of latex (they come in non-latex too), the resistance band can be tied around your legs, held in one hand, held in two hands, folded in half, stretched long from foot to head, wrapped behind your back…the possibilities are infinite. My top reasons for loving the resistance band are:

1.  Varied Resistance: Need more tension? Grab further towards the middle of the band. Too much? Just move your hands back to the ends. Manipulate the resistance band in any number of ways to change your tension: fold it in half, tie it tighter, or just move your hands along the band to change the resistance.  This allows you to progress through your workout, making exercises more challenging as you grow stronger.

2.  Durable: Resistance bands can take a lot of pulling, twisting, tying, and getting stomped on before they come anywhere close to ripping or breaking. Resistance bands are inexpensive and can last for years. The only major threat to the bands are cats. Even the best resistance bands will break more easily once they have cats scratching holes in them (yes, I know from experience). Cat scratching aside, this piece of equipment will take all the pulling you can give it!

 3.  Adds an Extra Challenge: There are resistance band specific exercises, and then there are the millions of exercises you can simply add a resistance band to in order to make it harder. I love adding resistance bands to the Pilates side-lying leg series or tying it around my clients’ legs during Hundreds to challenge the outer thigh more. There are tons of ways to make an old exercise seem new again with the extra challenge a resistance band adds.

 4.  Therapeutic Benefits: The bands are great for adding an extra challenge to a workout, but they can also be used to help rehabilitate injuries, work on muscles imbalances, or help stretch and strengthen in a gentle way. For example, the bands assist in a 3-way stretch that is typically done on the Pilates Reformer to stretch the hamstrings in 3 different directions without stressing the upper body or forcing the body in to an incorrect posture. I also use resistance bands for exercises that rehab ankle injuries, knee injuries, and shoulder injuries in a safe and effective way.

5.  E-C-C-E-N-T-R-I-C Muscle Contraction: Resistance bands are awesome because they encourage you to strengthen muscles in an elongated position through eccentric contraction. The nature of the bands forces you to control the movement as you return to the starting position of each exercise, giving you an added benefit that you can’t quite get when lifting weights. That little extra work may be all you need to find the muscle tone you’ve always coveted!

Click the links below to try some of my favorite resistance band exercises.

For the Legs and Hips

For the Shoulders (Careful not to let those shoulders inch up to your ears)

Stretch it Out

Buy your resistance bands HERE!  

*I recommend starting with a heavy resistance, you can always adjust where you hold the band to give yourself more or less tension. I like buying the 6 yard spools because the precut bands are never as long as you want them to be! Cut yours easily with scissors to a length that is about the same as your height.

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Pilates is Perfect for Pregnancy!

Pilates is a safe and effective form of exercise for everyone. Literally, every body can benefit from Pilates. No matter what your age, stage of life, body type, injury, or condition you may have, Pilates can be used to help you achieve your goals, ease your pain, and keep your body healthy.  This is even true for pregnant women, in fact Pilates can actually help women have an easier time during child birth. How’s that for incentive to exercise—EASIER CHILD BIRTH! Read on for a few reasons Pilates is amazing during pregnancy.

Pilates is SAFE: A well-educated Pilates instructor can help make sure you do not work until your flush, lie on your back, stay in one position too long, or do any of the other things that are not recommended for exercising during pregnancy. A prenatal certified Pilates instructor will help you feel good, stretch, and strengthen the correct muscles in a way that will keep you and baby safe and sound.

Pilates Provides Pelvic Floor Power: Your pelvic floor is very important for support and organ function,especially during pregnancy and labor. Pilates offers a very effective way to strengthen and stretch your pelvic floor so it performs properly. A strong and supple pelvic floor will not only help you support your growing baby and aid in bladder control, it will also help make labor a smoother process. Pelvic floor strength, as well as mobility (just as important), can be achieved through a prenatal Pilates workout.

Pilates Helps You Breathe Properly: Breathing is so, so important for the vitality of mamas and their growing babies. Pilates will help you focus on proper breathing techniques, potentially increasing diaphragm strength, increasing lung capacity, and aiding in more effective breathing. Plus, focusing on your breathing now will help you utilize breath better during labor. Get this: better breathing can even help make more room for your baby so you’re more comfortable!

Pilates builds the PROPER Core Strength:  You may not want to hear this but, doing crunches to strength your superficial abs (the six pack muscles) can actually make labor and recovery MORE difficult for you. The good news? Strengthening your deep core muscles can actually help support your baby and make your labor easier. Pilates can help you strengthen those deep core muscles, and a prenatal specific workout will avoid overworking your more superficial abdominal muscle, the rectus abdominis. This core strength will also help you walk, stand, and move better during pregnancy and help ward off back pain and other aches.

Pilates Can Make You Feel GOOD: Pregnancy is a beautiful miracle, but sometimes it makes you feel like crap, yea? Doing exercise regularly will help you build confidence and just feel good about yourself. Plus the core strength, breathing, and stretching that Pilates focuses on help to alleviate aches and pains, improve posture, and…well…make you feel better!

 

Note: Hayley Sunshine of Buffalo In-Home Pilates is a prenatal certified instructor.  Contact hayley@betterbodybuffalo.com to set up a free prenatal Pilates consultation.

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5 Reasons Your Body Loves Pumpkin Season Too!

Photo via beanurbanfarmer.com

Pumpkin is EVERYWHERE during the beautiful fall season and we all go crazy for it! The good news is your body can benefit from the pumpkin overload that your mind and taste buds crave. Let’s be honest for one minute here; your pumpkin spice latte probably does not have real pumpkin in it. Also, the benefits listed below aren’t good reasons to eat pumpkin cream cheese muffins everyday. BUT you should indulge in pumpkin treats every once in a while and explore some healthy pumpkin recipes this fall to reap these awesome pumpkin plusses:

1. FIBER Keeps You Full: Pumpkin has a really good fiber-to-calorie ratio (7 g. of fiber for every 80 calories) so it can keep you feeling full and satisfied without consuming tons of calories. In case you weren’t sure, more fiber and fewer calories equals weight loss!

2. Beta-Carotene Can Fight Cancer: Just like with carrots and sweet potatoes, pumpkin’s festive orange hue means it’s a great natural source of the antioxidant beta-carotene. Beta-carotene may be influential in fighting cancer and you’re much better off getting it through food than a supplement. It’s good to eat orange!

3. Carotenoids Keep You Young: The same antioxidants that make your body a lean, mean, cancer-fighting machine also help your skin stay young and beautiful by slowing down the development of wrinkles.

4. Potassium Gives You Energy: Similar to bananas, pumpkin puree packs a powerful dose of potassium that can help you refuel after a workout. In fact, one cup of cooked pumpkin actually has MORE potassium than a banana. Pumpkin’s potassium will help your body restore its electrolyte balance so your muscles can continue to function properly.

5. The Seeds Are Super:  Pumpkin seeds, often thought of with nostalgia, are actually powerful super foods for your health! Can you believe a little seed can pack in protein, magnesium, potassium, and zinc? These nutrients, plus the high level of phytosterols in pumpkin seeds, can help ward off depression, lower risk of bladder stones, reduce cholesterol, and help prevent cancer.

So go ahead, roast some pumpkin seeds, make pumpkin waffles, or try a savory recipe like this one for Pumpkin Risotto. Your body will thank you.

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7 Reasons to Believe the Wheatgrass Hype

This morning I had a wonderful drink of pineapple juice and wheatgrass. It was delicious even though I could tell my drink was healthy. Knowing that we’re consuming something healthy is one thing but actually knowing what those health benefits are is an entirely different thing though. I found myself asking: why is there wheat grass in my juice? Why are wheat grass shots such a popular health habit? Is it all just a façade of green goodness? Hmm…

Turns out there are some very real and very awesome benefits to drinking wheat grass (a young grass in the wheat family) juice. Here are just a few:

1. Wheatgrass Packs a Powerful Nutrient Punch

Calcium, magnesium, iron, amino acids, chlorophyll, and vitamins A, C, and E can all be found in your little wheat grass shot. Even further, wheatgrass has more vitamin C than oranges and twice as much vitamin A as carrots

2. Protein Building in a Glass

The 19 amino acids found in wheatgrass, the “building blocks of protein,” are essential for cell growth and regeneration. All 19 amino acids means wheat grass is a complete protein!

3. 70% Chlorophyll Makes a Difference

Here’s the deal: chlorophyll can slow down the aging process, stop bacteria growth, refine and renew tissue, and may even improve functions of the heart.

4. Greater Detoxification Powers

Wheatgrass has proven to be a more powerful detoxifier than other fruit and vegetable juices such as carrot juice.

5. Quick Energy Boost

Because of how the starch of the wheat berry is broken down into simple sugars, a shot of wheatgrass juice acts as a quick source of energy.

6. It Literally Contains EVERY Mineral Known

That’s over 90 different minerals! Vitamins and minerals are super for your health.

7. Lots o’ Magnesium

Wheatgrass contains a good amount of magnesium which can actually improve fertility and aid in digestion (bye-bye constipation!)

 

Despite it’s name, wheatgrass is totally gluten free, alkalizing, and boasts all of the above health benefits and many more! I definitely recommend adding some wheatgrass juice to your diet here and there, but make sure you enjoy it! Health benefits aren’t worthwhile if you’re choking your drink down, so try adding a shot of wheatgrass to a juice you already love. May I recommend fresh Pineapple juice with a shot of wheatgrass? Yum!

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Hayley’s Quick Detox Tips

It’s Monday (or in some cases, Tuesday) and you’re feeling gassy, bloated, and lethargic. The culprit? One too many cocktails, brownies, and dinners ending in utterly too full bellies over the weekend….right?

We’ve all been there, and I’ve just had one of those weekends full of refined carbs, dairy, sugar, and overall over indulgence. I’m not one to encourage total avoidance of those “naughty” foods like bread, sugar, and cheese but I do try to limit them. So, after a weekend full of unhealthy eating, my body is desperately craving a bit of cleansing. Luckily, I believe in the reset button, and you should too.

I don’t layout a step by step plan that you have to follow all week, I simply have a few favorite tips that I do for a day or two…or three… to reset and get my body back to feeling good, increase my energy, and set myself up to continue making healthy decisions. Try some of my Quick Detox Tips, either all or just some, and you’ll get your body back to feeling fresh, light, and healthy before you know it!

Drink Green Juice

Freshly juiced veggies and fruits are super cleansers! Whether you have a juicer and can do it yourself or you can stop at a place like O3 Café in Buffalo, get a hold of a juice that contains some greens first thing on your cleansing day. Fresh raw veggies are full of live enzymes that help clean out your cells and refuel your body. Juicing the fruits and veggies makes the enzymes super accessible and allows you to drink more because the super-filling fiber is removed (it’s okay, you’ll get your fiber elsewhere).

Consume Lots of Raw Fruits & Vegetables

It’s simple; raw fruits and vegetables have live enzymes, which not only help in the digestion process, but also help clean out your cells, remove toxins, and purify your body. When you’re craving a snack during your cleansing time, reach for an apple, celery, carrots, any raw fruit or veggie will do!

Eat a Raw Lunch

Keep on the clean path with a raw food  lunch. You can have veggies, nuts, sprouted grains, seeds, cold-pressed oils. Any large salad will do! If you’re a meat eater, you can go ahead and add a lean meat like chicken breast or fish but don’t add processed marinades or mayo and if you have a protein, don’t have any sprouted grains. The more veggies you eat, the more cleansing power you give your body, so fill that plate up with lettuce!

Eat a Clean Dinner

Similar to lunch, you want to keep your plate full of raw or lightly cooked veggies and keep the extra sauces/oils to a minimum. You can have some cooked food here, like rice or a lean meat but if you have one, don’t have the other. Eating rice? Keep it to raw or steamed veggies on top. Eating chicken? Skip the rice. Keeping your meal organized to contain either starch OR protein will help your digestive system efficiently process your healthy meal.

Avoid Salt, Coffee, Dairy, Sugar, Artificial Sweeteners, Alcohol, and Wheat

Like I said before, I’m not one to avoid the so-called ‘naughty’ foods, but when you’re trying to cleanse, you absolutely must say no for at least one day. I like to limit these foods as much as possible and on a day of cleansing, you will really feel the difference if you avoid salt, coffee, sugar, alcohol, dairy, and processed wheat (Sprouted grain bread is acceptable). Give it at least one day without these no-no foods, and then see how long you can go without a few of them. The longer you keep these foods out of your diet, the better your body will feel so go ahead and see if you can avoid these foods for more than a day.

Drink Lots of Water

You should always drink lots of water, but when you’re cleansing it is very important to flush toxins out with water. Drinking water at room temperature is better for your digestive system, and adding fresh lemon to your water will give it an even greater cleansing boost. Bottoms up!

Keep Your Portions Small

Give your digestive system a break, and only eat as much as you need to feel satisfied, not full. Eat slower to give your body time to process what you’re consuming and put the fork down before your plate is empty and really take a moment to check-in and see if you really need to eat more. It should only take your body 4 hours to get hungry again after a meal, but eating too much can challenge your digestive system, make digestion inefficient, and keep waste in your body too long (hello gas, indigestion, bloat, and discomfort)!

Only Eat When You’re Hungry

Similar to keeping portions small, eating only when you’re hungry will ensure that your digestive system isn’t over taxed and your energy levels stay high. Don’t make your body work super hard to digest extra food it doesn’t need. If you aren’t hungry, your body is still using energy to digest what you’ve fed it before, so feeding it more food will only tax your body, deplete your energy, and cause you to hold on to waste. Eat small portions and only when you’re hungry to keep everything running smoothly and help your body cleanse and replenish.

Get Plenty of Sleep!

Always get at least 7 hours a night. But really get at least 7 hours when you’re trying to cleanse. The more tired you are, the harder it is to make great, healthy decisions and the less energetic you will feel. You need rest to restore your energy and get your body for another successful day!

Have questions!? Feel free to email Hayley@betterbodybuffalo.com for personalized quick detox tips.

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