11/06/09

A fitness lifestyle isn’t just about elevating your heart rate and trimming the fat. Sometimes the sole goal of a workout is to just calm down. After a rough day at work, a non-stop afternoon running around with the kids, or simply waking up in a funk, soothing yourself through food and exercise can quickly take the edge off. Here’s how to create that sense of ahhhh AND burn away calories:

EXERCISES that SOOTHE
Instead of quick calorie-blasting spurts or longer low-intensity doses of energy, moving to soothe is all about taking it slow. Here are a few exercises to try:

Thigh Rollover Stretch
With a big exercise ball, lie on the floor and put one leg over the ball with a bent knee. Let your other leg lie straight on the floor. Outstretch your arms to the sides. Take the leg that is on the ball and squeeze the ball between your hamstring and calf as you carefully lift the ball off the floor. Roll the ball, crossing across and over the straight leg. Without letting go of the grip, place the ball on the floor on the other side of the straight leg. Feel the stretch across the hips, low back and shoulders. Hold and breathe. Bring the ball back across. Release and repeat on the opposite side.

Tap Tall Tap
Stand up with your legs wide apart and hold the big ball in your hands. Lift the ball up and over to your left side. Tap the ball down on the floor across your left foot. Hold for a moment. Lift the ball from the floor and stretch up as high as you can to the right side. Lower the ball to your right foot and stretch. Repeat back and forth, side to side.

Criss Cross
Stand up with one foot crossed behind the other. With straight legs, bend over from your waist. Feel the stretch in the hips. Hang there and breathe. Slowly roll your torso back up. Uncross your feet and cross them on the other side. Repeat.

FOODS that SOOTHE
Some foods give you a natural dose of energy (like Vitamin C-filled Grapefruit), others make you feel weighted down (like high-fat, high-sugar desserts and meats), and there are those that soothe (like B6-boosted bananas). Here are a few healthy comfort foods sure to soothe.

Coriander - Coriander has been used for centuries by Native Americans to quell colds and soothe the spirit. Add it to any savory dish for a dose of ahhh.

Bananas - Souped up with Vitamin B6, another manufacturer of serotonin, these fibrous fruits are known tension tamers. More than B6, bananas have the healing power of potassium - a known ease-inducer helping to take the edge off. Sweet potatoes and avocado are also potent with potassium.

Turkey - There’s a reason Thanksgiving dinner puts diners to sleep (and it’s not only because they’re eating too much). Rich with Tryptophan, an amino acid that instigates the release of the mind-easing chemical serotonin, turkey is known to sedate the mind and body.

Sardines and Cheese (not together necessarily ;) - It’s the calcium in both cheese and sardines that calms. Shown to suppress nervousness in women suffering from premenstrual symptoms, calcium-rich foods (which are best absorbed in small and consistent amounts) should be an ongoing component to your diet if you want to balance your mind and keep your emotions in check.

Pumpkin Seeds - Stress can sap your body of magnesium, which helps you to healthfully handle mental strife and keep blood pressure at bay. Infuse your diet with magnesium through on-the-go options like pumpkin and sesame seeds. Halibut and spinach are also magnesium-rich.

INFUSE your WATER with these natural SOOTHERS

Drink up. Calm Down.

Chamomile - In the 1800s, chamomile was a hysteria curative. Today the subtly scented flower is used to help fight angst and ease the nervous system. Taken as a tea, it’s the perfect slightly sweet additive to water - hot or cold and sipped all day long for constant calm.

Black Tea - Black tea is proven to promote relaxation thanks to neurotransmitter-balancing catechins, polyphenols, flavonoids and amino acids. It also has the ability to balance cortisol - the body’s stress hormone.

Lemon Balm - Another garden-grown ease-inducing herb is lemon balm. The lemony spring can be fresh-chopped and steeped in boiling water. Similar to chamomile, lemon balm is caffeine-free and subtle, making it a perfect all-day soothing sipper.

Low-fat or Skim Milk - Remember when you couldn’t sleep at night and your mom would make you a warm mug of milk? There was a reason for that. Rich in nerve-calming calcium and Vitamin B, plus proteins to stabilize blood sugar, milk is a natural nurturer.

posted by: Laurel