The Spa on Green Street

While massage is a wonderful treat to pamper yourself, it also has many benefits you may not know about. Just a few of the benefits are:

• Helps to alleviate back pain and improve range of motion
• Stimulates lymph fluid and blood flow, therefore enhancing immunity
• Increases joint flexibility
• Relaxes overused muscles and stretches weak and tight muscles
• Helps to reduce migraine pain

Experts estimate that about 90% of disease is related to stress. Massage can help manage stress by decreasing anxiety, enhancing sleep quality, and inproving concentration. Arthritis sufferers note fewer aches, pains, and stiffness after receiving massages because of the chemical changes that cascade throughout the body.

Getting a massage can do a world of good, and getting a massage frequently can do even more! So be sure to budget time and money for regular visits with your massage therapist. Your body will thank you!

As a mother of three girls ranging in age from 20 to 10, I find that starting a new school year creates  an upheaval relative to rhythms and routines. Now that  routines are setting in and we have gotten through the first few weeks of school, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief and begin to refocus on my priorities. Even those of us without children find the fall brings on new rhythms that cause us to rethink our priorities and seek change. NOW is the time to shake things up and take care of our number one priority, our HEALTH. I have developed a class here at The Body Sanctuary, Inc for those who are looking to improve their health with minimal time invested! Please come and join me for our “30 Minute Lunchtime Express” training session. I can only take 4 people at a time but together we will maximize our fat burning potential in only 30 minutes on Tuesday’s and Thursdays. This class will be a non-stop session with weight training and cardio combined for a great workout!! The class begins Tuesday September 22. Call for details and reserve your spot today, space is limited.

“Yoga is the best exercise of all, and Carmen is the very best instructor.” Jo Stone

“I’ve been taking Yoga classes from Carmen for six and a half years and she is the best.” Another morning class would be nice. ”Yoga is a full mind body experience that is so wonderful for all ages. Carmen is an instructor extraordinaire who combines her wealth of yoga knowledge and experience with humor, kindness and a sense of wonder for the body and world we live in. She has become a vital part of my life.”  Karen McHugh

“For those men out there that think Yoga is only about stretching and an exercise for women, think again. I have learned that Yoga offers a perfect balance of flexibility and strength training. Every class I finish, I go home feeling like I had a deep workout and pretty whipped. I am an avid tennis player and feel like my balance is better on the court as well as increased endurance and strength. It is critical for my overall health.” Rolando Boye

Hello everyone! I wanted to post the results of our local ‘Weight-Loss Challenge’ that we did along with a few of the staff at Gainesville Physical Therapy. It was a great learning experience for everyone, as the program was designed with some pretty lofty goals in mind – mainly to indicate that it is possible in a calorie restricted condition to have all weight loss be from body fat stores, without losing any lean muscle mass in the process. This is the ultimate goal for folks who are looking to lose weight after all – to burn off fat, not muscle. Now, when typical calorie restricted diets are successful at producing weight loss, it always is some combination of fat, muscle and water weight. One problem with this approach is that when you lose muscle mass, your overall metabolism can become less effective in the long term to keep the weight off because your metabolic rate suffers as a result of the loss of muscle tissue. This is why many folks experience the ‘yo-yo dieting effect’, when after the initial weight loss occurs, it tends to come back and sometimes with a vengeance. Armed with a well-designed exercise and nutritional program, a few key supplements, and one large serving of motivation, the ‘contestants’ set out on their mission.

With a series of weekly coaching calls, the particpants were able to keep their motivation high which helped propel them through their workouts. They all participated in 2 short, high-energy resistance training sessions per week with Teryl, which all got their heart rates elevated to say the least! They continued their conditioning at home and work with some form of daily aerobic exercise. A free ‘treat meal’ was alloted on Sunday, which also served for rest and to fuel up for the week ahead.

I worked with a technology of monitoring body compostion called bioelectrical impedance analysis which utilized a four point tactile electrode method. This provides a much higher degree of accuracy than common devices which utilize this technology. The measurements were drawn first thing in the morning before they had breakfast to insure even greater accuracy. The program was designed for 3 weeks, after which a lifestyle program was then introduced to help the individuals maintain their weight loss. So, maestro…….drum roll please!

The net fat loss in the 3 participants totaled an impressive 21.1 pounds, with a net increase in lean muscle mass of 0.7 pounds.

Good work for everyone who participated in the process! A shining example of what 4 businesses can do working with a group of highly motivated individuals. Perhaps even more importantly was what each learned throughout the process in terms of their lifestyle behaviors and how it directly affects their overall health. We’ll get a chance to personally hear from them in the upcoming posts.

As I prepare my sons to begin preschool this fall, along with shopping for book bags and school supplies I also made sure to consult with Ricardo Boye who has been our naturopath for years now.  I wanted to make sure their immune systems were functioning optimally and could easily handle the onslaught of shared preschool germs that they undoubtedly will be exposed to.  Along with having a follow-up assessment prior to school starting to make sure there were no underlying health issues, he recommended two things almost all children (and adults!) can take to boost immunity. 

1) Flora Synergy- Probiotics and Prebiotics (good bacteria and natural sugars that encourage the growth of friendly bacteria in the gut) have been shown to support whole body immunity as well as decrease the occurance of intestinal issues such as diarrhea.  Comes in a chewable (that tastes like candy according to my oldest son) and as a capsule you can open and add to juice, milk, or even water.

2) XenoForce -A blend of immune-supportive herbs (Echinacea, Wild Cherry Bark, Ginger root, Licorice root) along with Vitamin C, A, and Zinc.  I open a capsule and empty it into a small cup of juice for each of my boys.  For older children or adults you can also open capsules into hot water to make a “XenoForce tea” by adding lemon and honey- great for times when you have a cold.

I give my boys Flora Synergy on a regular basis and have added Xenoforce as well for the weeks prior to school starting. 

If your child is experiencing chronic health problems as my oldest son once did, I definately recommend making an appointment for an assessment with Ricardo.  I have noticed a huge difference in his ability to fight off colds and flus since he has been seeing Ricardo.