4 Ways to Not Lose Your S**t While in Traffic

When I moved to Austin a few months ago, a local friend warned me about the traffic here. Being from Boston--where over the course of the past 13 years I honed my wicked Massholian driving skills--I casually brushed off his warnings much like I'd flick away a buzzing insect. Now, 5 months into adjusting to life in Texas, I will say that I'm still quite puzzled by how people drive here. I honestly don't get it, and I'm pretty confident that it's a large contributor to the traffic issue. But, I digress.

There have been times when I have felt stressed while in traffic; several local clients of mine have also expressed that driving is a source of lots of stress and tension for them (especially if they're Yankees like me). So, here is some advice about how not to lose your s**t while in traffic, regardless of where you're commuting to or from!

1. Find ways to experience pleasure / fun: this is actually my favorite strategy, which is why I list it first. An example of a safe way to do this while driving (or rather sitting in a parking lot that should be a highway) is to put on some awesome music. I prefer the up-beat, old-school, belt-it-out variety, but you may prefer more relaxing, new-age, meditative tunes, or listening to that book you'd never have time to sit down and really read.
    
   
2. Generate compassion for other drivers: this may be the most difficult, and also the most rewarding technique. Instead of thinking of what "that guy/gal" isn't doing right, try to imagine all the ways they are just like you. Maybe they're tired, hungry, or just had a fight with their partner. Maybe their minds are on their jobs, or thinking about doing something more fun. Another way of doing this is recognizing that it's not THEY who are traffic; to them, YOU are traffic!
    
   
3. Practice breathing: so many of us breathe shallowly throughout the day, and we are more prone to it when feeling stressed out. Breathing deeply engages the parasympathetic nervous system, increasing our oxygen intake and helping us feel calm and centered. Yet, we don't often have time to sit down and focus on our breath in meditation. As part of your daily self-care, use the fact that you're sitting (especially when you're not moving) to try a simple breathing exercise like counting your breath: e.g. "one" on your inhale, "two" on your exhale, "three" on your inhale, and so on. Don't force your breath, just notice how it is naturally. And when you lose count, notice that, and begin at one again. (Check out Andrew Weil's site for some other useful breathing exercises--though be careful of which ones you choose to engage in while driving! You never want to feel lightheaded or overly distracted.)
    
   
4. Create a mental gratitude list: we often read that listing things we're grateful for can help improve our mood and improve our relationships, among other benefits. But taking time to do this in a journal (at least for me) rarely happens. So, why not use the time in traffic to start listing off all the things you're grateful for? You can start with your current day, or look to your past, or even run through your intended future plans. Or you can think about people, places, or things. For more ideas, check out 60 Things to Be Grateful For in Life.

We tend to think of being "stuck" in traffic as negative, but each of the above strategies ask for a shift in our perspective. More specifically, traffic gives us time to enjoy and engage in practices for stress reduction. Since most of us find it difficult to include time for self-care as part of our typical day, traffic offers this to us. (Think of it this way: it's like when you're run down because you're doing too much, and then you get sick. Your body actually forces you to rest and slow down.) So, if we re-frame the time we spend behind the wheel, traffic is actually a gift!

How can YOU make your experience of being in traffic a gift today? If you have another idea to share, please let me know. We can use all the help we can get. :-)

Meditating Your Way to Healthy Digestion

In my previous post, I described 4 ways that yoga can support your nutrition and weight loss goals. Here, I'll offer some advice about how a mindful meal meditation might move you along in these endeavors as well.

About Meditation & Mindfulness

Meditation is essentially a practice in training one's mind, so it can be done anywhere, using anything as a point of focus. Applying meditative techniques when moving throughout one's day can be thought of as mindfulness. Since we eat at least 2-3 times a day, meal times are a natural opportunity for meditation, using food as our focus.

A Mindful Mealtime Meditation to Try

Light some candles, dim the lights, maybe put on some relaxing background music. Ensure there are no potential distractions, nothing within reach to multitask with. Then, sit down at a table in front of your plate, and take a moment to connect with your meal. Look down at your food, noticing the different colors and textures, as well as the arrangement of the food. You might like to use a simple statement, like, "I eat this food to be healthy and happy, to care for and nourish my body." This prepares your body for a relaxed eating experience.

Take only enough food as will comfortably fit on your utensil. Notice the first contact of the food with your tongue. See if you can identify the flavors: sour, salty, sweet, bitter, and so on. Notice how the food changes form as you chew it slowly. To help you focus on this, it may be helpful for you to place your utensils (or food, if it's hand-held) back down on your plate between bites. If you get distracted or find yourself hurrying, simply notice, take a deep breath and start again.

When your plate is empty, observe that. Bring your attention to your belly, and notice that you are nourished and satisfied.

Note: A nice book for bringing meditation into your daily life is Making Space by Thich Nhat Hanh, from which some of these concepts were adapted.

Why This Matters

In Inside Tract, Mullen et al. state that “mindful eating is one of the most important techniques you can use [to improve your frame of mind and prepare yourself for excellent digestion].” In Digestive Wellness, Lipski posits that "focus[ing]...awareness of the favors in each bite...can dramatically enhance [people's] total digestive function more completely than can enzymes, bitters, or other digestive supplements."

Why? Because eating mindfully and with presence not only activates the relaxation response, but also initiates the first phase in the digestive process, called the cephalic phase. Cephalic means "of the head", and it's how the brain registers that the body is about to receive a meal. It's how the brain knows to "turn on" digestion by doing things like releasing enzymes and activating stomach acids, as two examples. When we don't pay attention to our food as we eat it, we bypass this phase, meaning:

• our digestive capacity (i.e. ability to break down, process, and assimilate nutrients from the food) is hampered by 40-60%
• we are more likely to overeat because we are not aware that we are full
• our digestive system has to work harder overall, which can result in issues like gas, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, and over time, more serious ones like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), ulcerative colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Note: Why Being Mindful Matters is a nice, readable article on this topic.

4 Simple Ways Yoga Can Support Your Nutrition & Weight Loss Goals

Here are 4 ways that taking up even a basic yoga practice can support your nutrition and weight loss goals:

1. Deeper breathing. One of the fundamental concepts in any practice of yoga is its focus on coordinating breath with movement.
   
   Try this: sit or stand with your spine tall and long. Close your eyes and observe how you feel physically and mentally. When you feel ready, inhale as you reach your arms out to your sides with your palms up, through shoulder height and then up to the sky, where the palms turn to face each other. Then flip your palms out and exhale as you reverse the movement, bringing the arms and hands back down to your sides. How was it to coordinate your breath with the movement of your arms? Just notice. Repeat this a few times, seeing if you can slow the movements of your arms, thereby lengthening your breath.
   
   Why this matters: Slowing down the breath helps to calm the body, reducing the effects of chronic stress and inducing a relaxation response. When the body is in relaxation response, digestion improves, nutrients are better assimilated, and toxins are more easily released. Bringing this deep breathing off the yoga mat and into our daily lives helps us become more present to what is happening now, so we learn to pay closer attention to our food as we're eating. In other words, we become aware of the colors, textures, tastes and sensations that naturally encourage our bodies to metabolize food as part of the cephalic phase, leading to natural appetite regulation (not to mention, actual enjoyment of our food!).
   
   
2. Increased body awareness. How were you able to "notice your breath" in point one? Well, there's a part of you called the "wisdom body" or "witness consciousness" in yoga, which has the ability to observe what you're doing, thinking and feeling. In the practice of yoga postures (asanas), instructors encourage their students to "listen" to their bodies--for example, to notice areas of tightness, where there may be more space to move, how to improve their alignment by feeling the body, etc.
   
   Try this: For one day, set an alarm to alert you every 30 or 60 minutes. (Here's a chime I like, if you happen to work at a computer.) When you hear the alarm, pause what you are doing, close your eyes and pick a word to describe how you're feeling emotionally (e.g.: happy, sad, overwhelmed, frustrated, confused, etc.) Don't think too hard about it, just go with your first, best guess. Then, scan your body for sensations, starting at the crown of your head. Move your focused attention all around your face. Notice the areas around the eyes, the jaw. Feel your neck and shoulders. Scan down your arms to your wrists and hands. Observe the body all around the torso, front and back, along the spine, up and down. Connect your mind to your hips, moving your attention down your legs to your toes, first one side and then the other. Where are you tightening your muscles? Are there any places that feel "uneven" between the right and left sides? Is anything pinchy? Repeat the scan, this time making small adjustments--see if you can relax the tight areas, balance the uneven ones, or tweak your posture to feel better. When you're finished, call to mind a word describe your emotional state. Maybe it's the same one as before, or perhaps a new one. Whatever comes up is perfectly OK. Now continue with what you were doing until the next alarm, when you will repeat this process. See if you can discover places in the body you favor, or whether new areas of your body grab your attention.
   
   Why this matters: Increasing body awareness has many benefits for nutrition and weight loss. Much like the breath, our body does a lot for us without our needing to attend to it. But in today's busy world, we often "dis-embody"--meaning we tune out important signals, such as when we're hungry, when we're tired, when we're feeling full, when we're holding a shape that's causing muscular stress (e.g. sitting with poor posture), and when we're feeling upset. Dis-embodiment often lead us to overeat and binge eat, since both are "unconscious" activities that are really serving as distractions from difficult emotions and inducing relaxation (which we might find in other methods more supportive of our weight loss goals). By receiving our bodies' signals about when we're naturally hungry, we improve our eating rhythm (i.e. have more regular times of day when we nourish ourselves with food). This reduces the likelihood of us getting ravenous, eating too fast and too much. We also benefit from better regulation of blood sugar and energy throughout the day.
   
   
3. Yoga postures help improve digestion. Arranging the physical body in different shapes offers your internal organs a gentle massage, including the ones involved in digestion and metabolism regulation.
   
   Try these: Seated forward fold, wide-legged standing forward fold with twist, half lord of the fishes pose, cobra pose, bridge pose (or supported bridge). See also Best Yoga Poses for Digestion.
   
   Why it matters: Yoga postures (asanas) help improve blood and oxygen flow to the digestive organs, are stimulating to the digestive tract, and help to regulate the thyroid gland² "which is important for not only digestive function, but also the nervous system, reproductive system, respiratory system and metabolism regulation.³"Yoga has also been known to help with chronic digestive issues like constipation and diarrhea, bloating and gas⁴. A healthy, optimally working digestive tract is critical to meeting any nutritional and weight loss goals. If your system isn't working properly, your efforts will be in vain.
   
   
4. More compassion and self acceptance. Yoga isn't just about physical postures and breathing. It's "a progressive process of replacing our unconscious thought patterns and behavior with new, more beneficial patterns that are helpful towards a better life¹." Yoga provides a way for students to experiment with different class styles and instructors until we find some that suit us. It invites us into a safe space where we can explore letting go of our egos, going only as far in a posture as we can in that moment, regardless of what we may have done before or what we hoped we could do. Yoga encourages us to surrender competition with self and others, and to accept that this body is what we have to work with right now.
   
   Try this: Wearing something form fitting that allows you to really see your body, strike a simple yoga pose in front of a mirror. (Mountain pose is the easiest one to start.) With your eyes open, notice what comes up for you as you sustain the pose for a comfortable time. Are you holding your breath? What are you thinking? Are you worried about doing it perfectly? Are you involved in an internal dialog about a part of your body that you wish looked different? Are you comparing yourself to a photo of someone else in the posture? Do you want to look away? See if you can simply notice these thoughts as they pop up in your mind. Practice accepting whatever comes up for you. If it's helpful, you can imagine putting the thought into a "thought bubble" (like you see in cartoons) and allowing it to float away.
   
   Why this matters: Finding a style of yoga that you enjoy can replace the punishing exercise that you may do solely for the sake of calorie burning. (Note that over-exercise and exercise one doesn't like can contribute to the stress response, therefore defeating our best intentions at improved metabolism and weight loss.) Yoga's focus on acceptance and self-love can also help improve body image issues for those of us who struggle here. As Marc David says, "acceptance moves energy". Meaning, when we become more aware of our self-criticisms, self-judgements, and ways we habitually cause "self-induced hate stress", we can figuratively and then literally "lighten up". If you're someone who constantly beats yourself up over losing that last 5-10 pounds, or feel impatient at your progress if you have a lot of weight to lose, this refined view of the situation may be just what you need to not just let go of body weight or fat, but also toxic beliefs about yourself and the importance of these things in the grander context of your life.

Notice that I've said nothing about what food you actually eat. ;-)

New Year Green Smoothie Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1c hemp (or almond) milk
• 1/2 banana
• 1 Tbsp ground flax seeds or 1 squirt Flax oil
• 1c kale
• 1c spinach
• 1/4c flat parsley
• 1/4c pea sprouts (optional)
• 1/4c blackberries (or raspberries)

Instructions:

• Combine ingredients in a blender, preferably in the order listed above.
• Drink up and enjoy!

Different Ways to Welcome the New Year

Like many people, I look forward to the "clean start" that a new year brings. Yet this New Year, I'm doing things differently. This New Year, I will NOT:

• Write down a bunch of resolutions or goals that make me feel good temporarily, but then turn into obligations that I can't reasonably meet and resulting in me feeling like a failure.
  
  Instead I will have a loose "intention" to surrender the direction of my life to the Universe, trusting that each step I take is the one that is best for me in the moment that it happens, and is leading me to my true purpose.

• Look back on the prior year, noting all the things that had gone wrong. I will not think "good riddance", because all the trials and tribulations have taught me important lessons, and I'm a better, stronger person for having experienced them.
  
  Rather, I will say goodbye to the prior year with respect. I will keep the lessons I learned in my mind and close in my heart as I move forward, so I don't make the same mistakes and create the same suffering for myself and others.

What will YOU do differently this new year?

Yoga and Chiropractic Care: Gentle, Complementary Ways to Heal Your Body

Dr. Ellen Wolk is a Waltham-based chiropractor I had the pleasure of meeting a few months back. Since that time we've had some fascinating discussions about how yoga and chiropractic care complement each other to encourage the body to heal itself, and Ellen has dispelled many misconceptions that I know I had about chiropractors! I've been personally adjusted by Dr. Wolk several times, and I was thoroughly impressed by her gentle touch and the lasting results, especially around a hip imbalance that has plagued me--and my yoga practice--for years.

In this guest blog, Dr. Wolk answers a few of my burning questions about chiropractors, how chiropractic care works, and how it jives with yoga. Isn't it fortunate that there are so many choices when it comes to self-care, health and wellness? Hope you'll find this post interesting and explore a new modality in the near future. :-)

1. How did your interest in chiropractic care begin? 
   I had always been interested in healing, even as a young child.  Then in my 20's I had a fairly serious car accident and experienced whiplash and shoulder injuries.  I went the "traditional" route of seeing an orthopedist who gave me drugs that did nothing but make me sick to my stomach. He also sent me for physical therapy, which felt good but months later I was still struggling with the effects from this accident.  I finally went to see a chiropractor and was astonished at how quickly I felt better!  I began talking with my chiropractor and decided that this was where my interest in healing was meant to go.


2. When I first heard the word "chiropractor", I thought of people who crunch you and crack your back. Yet, your approach is gentle, nothing like that perception.  What do you want people to know about chiropractic care that is different than they might assume? 
   First off, I specialize in "gentle" chiropractic care which means I use only low and non-force adjusting techniques.  I have an instrument that I use that uses very gentle impulsing to move vertebrae and other bones back into alignment just enough to get the pressure off the nerves, then the body can heal itself.  I also make non force adjustments using my thumbs and use muscle work to relax the muscles so the adjustments can hold better.   People feel VERY relaxed with these techniques that are so gentle yet very specific.   There is no popping, snapping or cracking.  What many people don't realize is that the major premise behind chiropractic is that the body can heal itself.  However, when you have pressure on the nerves (also known as "nerve interference" or "subluxation") the body can NOT heal. So, we are freeing up the body's natural ability to heal itself. And the body can heal from amazing things when it has proper nerve flow.  The profession of chiropractic began when a janitor in D.D. Palmer's building in Davenport, Iowa, was checked by D.D. and had his hearing restored with an adjustment.  Yes,  a vertebra was found out of place; it was the vertebra that provides nerve supply to the ears so chiropractic is really about full body healing.  Pain may be in the low back, the neck, the arm, headaches, etc. but the nerves that are causing that pain to let you know the body is not getting proper nerve supply also supply every organ, muscle and gland in the body. This is why people are often surprised to find their allergies, fatigue, sinuses, PMS, reflux, etc.,  improve along with their spinal or joint complaints.  The only thing that chiropractors "treat" is nerve interference; this however, has a major effect on everything in the body.  With 100% nerve supply we have the best chance for full and robust health--and who doesn't want that!!!


3. What is the most common issue you see in your patients, and how do you help them heal? 
   Nerve interference can occur anywhere in the spine or our joints.  I would say that the most common symptoms that bring patients in to see me are low back pain and shoulder/arm/hand problems (numbness, tingling, pain down arms/hands).  A big part of both those complaints is related to folks sitting on computers all day at work.  Symptoms are most often what bring folks into a chiropractor but then they learn how good they can feel without constant nerve interference in their bodies and often will continue to get adjusted on some regular basis in order to stay healthy,  in balance and prevent bigger problems from recurring.


4. You do yoga and meditate. What are your thoughts about the relationship between chiropractic care and yoga?  
   Chiropractic and Yoga are a terrific combination. I know that I personally find that I hold my adjustments better when I have some kind of regular yoga practice.  I find the same with my patients. Especially, as we age, yoga is so great for maintaining flexibility, for balance and in general, to help our bodies deal better with stress.  Meditation is also wonderful to help with "de-stressing" our minds and bodies.  Stress is what causes "nerve interference", be it physical, chemical or mental/emotional stress.  Our muscles tighten up in response to stress and the job of muscles is to move bones.  Once bones in the spine ("vertebrae") move far enough out of place, they put pressure on nerves and the body will at all costs try to protect that nerve.  The way the body protects the nerve is by tightening (sometimes "spasming") muscles  and creating swelling around that area--none of this feels good, but it will limit our ability to move fully or to move with comfort so we won't create further pressure in an area where nerve interference already exists.  Anything that will reduce stress on our  bodies and minds including chiropractic adjustments, yoga and meditation will help our bodies have less nerve interference.  Chiropractic care can allow bodies to have more "ease" in doing poses.  Sometimes yogis find that one side is much tighter than the other, this can often be due to muscle tension resulting from nerve interference so many yogis see me for care and find more ease in their practice.


5. Many people today live fast-paced lives and are extremely busy.  How do you work with people who think they just don't have time to take care of themselves? 
   This is VERY common. Most of us live lives that are extremely fast-paced and busy. Taking 15 minutes out of that busy life, on a regular basis, to make sure your nervous system is functioning at 100%, allows the body to better deal with the constant stress coming at it and for folks to be as healthy as possible.  The nervous system controls all other systems of the body so if someone is under constant stress eventually their immune system will not be able to work at 100% and they will be more prone to getting sick.  The nervous system controls the immune system.  So, often my patients who get adjusted regularly seem to get sick much less frequently because their bodies can work as well as possible to fight illness.  First thing I do if I am feeling run down or perhaps something is "off" in how i am feeling, is get adjusted.  Yoga can help with decreasing the stress load on the body.
   
   
6. If someone doesn't have an acute problem, would they still benefit from a chiropractic session? 
   ABSOLUTELY!  I have many patients who seem me for what is called "Wellness Care".  This means they are past any acute problem/symptoms and we are able to address the root cause of the problem--nerve interference (also known as "subluxation").  In this way we are able to get them past the symptoms (Symptoms are the last thing to show up and the first thing to go away, when there is a problem.  Bear in mind, that "lack of symptoms" is not health.), get them healthy and keep them well. PREVENTION really is the key.  In the same way we want our dentist to find a cavity BEFORE we have intense pain, we want to find nerve interference, BEFORE your body has to let you know with intense pain.  I would say that most patients come due to an acute problem/pain.  When they see the many positive changes in their health that come from getting adjusted regularly, often they come to understand that they are healthier with getting adjusted and want to stay that way.


7. What would you recommend to people to have a healthier spine?
   Get adjusted and MOVE (yoga is great for that).  Don't sit a lot. Stay hydrated.

Dr. Ellen Wolk is conveniently located in Waltham.  She can be reached by phone at 781-894-4890 or by email at: drgentle@verizon.net. If you want to know if chiropractic care could help you or if you have questions, a FREE consultation is always available. Start on the road to better health NOW!

Butternut Squash & Leek Soup

• Olive oil
• 1/2 butternut squash (cut lengthwise)
• 1 leek
• 3 scallions
• 2 cloves fresh garlic or 1 Tbsp chopped garlic from a jar
• The tops from one fennel bulb
• 2 c water
• Salt and peppa

To soften:

• Roast the squash in the oven until really soft. Cool until you can scoop the innards into a bowl.
• Roughly chop the garlic (if fresh), leek, the scallions, and the fennel tops. Then heat a medium-sized pan or wok over medium heat, adding a few Tbsps of olive oil. When the pan is hot, add the garlic, scallions, leek, and fennel. Sauté until they soften.

To soupify:

• Place the quash innards and the sauté mixture into a pot. Add the water, salt and pepper.
• Cook on medium-high heat for 30-45 minutes, or until everything is squishy.
• Place near soup mixture into a blender (I love my Vitamix!). Run it through until the soup reaches your desired consistency. (I did mine by moving slow through variable speeds 1-10 and then quickly back down.)
• Ladle into a bowl and ENJOY!