Archive for March, 2010


The “Goody Drawer”

Filed under: Fitness, Health, Kids, The Toolbox — 3 Comments
March 31, 2010

Years ago my husband bought me this hot pink fuzzy DVD set with every season of Sex in the City. He thought I would enjoy the series  seeing as I had never seen an episode, given that we don’t subscribe to cable.  I have to admit I really enjoyed the show.  It’s funny and very well written.  Most recently I re-watched the episode where the girls are describing their “goody drawer” which got me thinking about my goody drawer.  Well for starters, I don’t own a night stand, rather what I have is a goody shelf.  I know the suspense is killing you to find out what is on my goody shelf.  Well if you’ve read my past posts, you should have guessed by now that my goody shelf is filled with health related items.

Most recently I added Pumped Magazines from the Heart and Stroke for my children.  If you have children you may want to check out this magazine. They are downloadable  from their website or you can order them directly from the Heart and Stroke. The magazines are full of good health info geared toward children. My children really enjoyed the comics, games and activities.

The other downloadable magazine that I recently added to this health goody shelf was the Gotta Move magazine from the Government of Canada Physical Activity site.  Like the magazine from the Heart and Stroke, the Gotta Move is full of information and it is fun for kids.

I think there is real value in having a “shelf”  or “space” filled with goodies of a health nature for the kids.  Over time, it becomes an indispensable resource that you can draw on to provide some focus on these types of important issues.  Let’s face it, with the bombardment of entertainment that our children are exposed to, building a resource of entertaining, but useful, health related “goodies” is critical to teach our kids about life-long health.

If you have your own “goody” shelf ideas, I’d love to hear about them!

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What Was Old is New Again

Filed under: Fitness, Food, Health — 1 Comment
March 30, 2010

Recently my mother returned from Florida and brought back an old  used book , titled “Nine Magic Secrets of Long Life” by Howard E. Hill. I thought I’d give it a read to see what people were doing almost 30 years ago with respect to health.  In his book, Mr. Hill  discusses how he  proactively searched out how to achieve good health and longevity and discovered nine secrets that worked for him.  I decided to summarize / abbreviate the contents here to see if his themes might still be around today.

THE SECRETS  for a healthy and long life according to Mr. Hill

  1. Eating lots of fruits and veggies (minimally cooked) for nutrients
  2. The use of chlorophyll, found in green plants for healing
  3. The use of leictin, from soybeans for its nutrients
  4. The use of comfrey  as a healing agent
  5. The use of Vitamin E, for it’s healing properites
  6. The use of Ginseng  for its nutrients
  7. Deep breathing exercises to cleanse the body
  8. Gentle stretching and strengthening exercises
  9. The use of light, color, sound and mechanical vibration for health and longevity

As I look at the list above, I see today the raw food movement, the shot of wheatgrass at health juice stores, the numerous soybean products at the grocery store, the naturopath and herbalist, the yoga and exercise class, light and music therapy.

So it seems that ideas from the early 80′s,  that were once novel and then passed into oblivion, have indeed returned.  What was old is new again.

The important lesson here, is not the specifics in what either Howard E. Hill said 30 years ago, or what is being said today.  The lesson is the importance of exploring what works for you!  That is why ideas from 30 years ago do indeed continue to be in use even today, because they work for certain people.  You have to be an active participant in your wellness and find the “old” and the “new” that work for you.

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My Rules for Staying Fit While on Vacation

Filed under: Fitness — 1 Comment
March 29, 2010
It’s nice to be back to blogging this week.  I was away last week in Vegas with my husband for a few days of R&R.  I was really glad that I was able to maintain some momentum in the area of wellness even while I was away.  Often, when we’ve got a set routine at home & work for staying fit and encouraging wellness, that all goes out the window when we are on vacation.  After all, vacations are suppose to be a break from the routine right?  Of course right!  Our wellness though is important enough that it shouldn’t take a back seat even while we are on vacation.
That is why I’m pleased with the “embedded” approach I’m taking to wellness.  Here at home, I’ve been threading it into my day so wellness is prevalent throughout the day rather than relegating it to a set time of day or to a set routine of activity.  So here are my rules for when on vacation:
  1. Be sure to take your pedometer. If you don’t measure your activity, you won’t keep it front and centre.
  2. Walk wherever you can. I did my share of relaxing by the pool while a way, but there were plenty of other places we went to (shows, restaurants, shopping).  I insisted on walking to ensure that I was hitting my 10,000 steps at a minimum.  On day I logged over 37,000 steps just by electing to walk rather than taking cabs.
  3. Bring a good pair of shoes. You’ll never be able to do step #2 if you don’t have the shoes for it.  Save the Manolo Blahnik for the evening when out for dinner, but don the runners during the day.
  4. Take the stairs rather than the elevator.  The various places that we went to see while in Vegas were wonderful.  Where applicable, I opted for the stairs rather than the elevator.  When checking into the hotel, I asked for a room that was on the highest floor they had available, then took the stairs when coming and going.
  5. Eat sensibly.  Of course when on vacation it is a time to indulge in food we might not normally eat  While away last week, there were all kinds of great restaurants.  I indulged somewhat in terms of what I order, but made sure I had plenty of salads, lots of water and avoided over ordering in terms of quantity.
So there you have it.  The rules of vacationing well so that you enjoy yourself while also keeping your wellness efforts on track!  Now for the next vacation, I’ll just have to keep my blogging momentum going as well as my wellness!
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Food Education for Kids

Filed under: Cooking, Food — 7 Comments
March 22, 2010

During the March break my children and their friends participated in a cooking class at the Cooking School in Loblaws.  The class was very participatory and the children enjoyed themselves thoroughly. This got me thinking about what I’d written before regarding  educating kids about healthy food and cooking.  In my opinion, local grocery stores have a huge opportunity to create a win-win situation.  By offering programs, like the one my children just participated in, directly to the school system they will achieve three things:

  1. We educate and excite children about food and cooking. Doing this will cause children to think about what they eat and  may lead them to a healthier lifestyle.
  2. In the short-term children who are educated and excited about food, may apply that “child-like” pressure on their parents and in turn drive an increased amount of cooking in the home.  Increased cooking at home is good for our health, AND, it is good for grocery store sales.
  3. In the long-term, these children of today, become the market for the grocery stores of tomorrow.  If we don’t educate our kids on food and cooking, they will continue to embrace the trend of eating out and eating processed foods – and that will force grocery stores to change their business model.

Based on the our experience, I am definitely going to involve my children in similar programs.   Hopefully, the grocery industry here in Toronto, will reach out to the school system, and see how providers of food and providers of education, can come together to give our kids an education on food.

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“Garden in the City”

Filed under: Food — 3 Comments
March 19, 2010

It’s almost that time of year again; the snow has melted, the birds are chirping, Canada Blooms is in full swing. Gardening season is about to begin.  Today’s paper featured an  article outlining the benefits of gardening with the whole family.  Gardening provides fresh air, vitamin D,  a good physical and mental workout,  can boost  mood and add nutrition to your diet.

This year I have a bit of a dilemma. I’m going to have to rethink how I go about gardening since I no longer have a “backyard”.  This is what I’ve found in preparation for the gardening season, for those of us who either have limited space or the know how to garden with limited space.

1. George Brown College offers a container gardening class to get you started, looks good sign me up.

2.  If you are a do it yourself kind of person Canadian Living has an article on successful container  gardening to get you started.

3. If you perfer to garden in bigger spaces, check out  The Toronto Community  Garden Network where you can find a community garden near you.

4. If you perfer to garden in a backyard “Yes in my Backyard” is an initiative that pairs people with backyards with those who do not have a backyard but  wish to garden.

There are many options to “Garden in the City”. And if you do decide this is for you check out for  some helpful tips and techniques from the physiotherapy association, to help keep both you and your garden healthy.

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The NEW YOU Resolution

Filed under: Fitness, Food, General, Health — Leave a comment
March 18, 2010

I really enjoyed the recent blog from countdowntoforty. It brought me back to something I had said to my husband many “New Years” ago.  As far as I am concerned  everyday is a “New Year’s day”, and by that I mean,  why wait to celebrate on that specific day and make resolutions only then?  Typically the New years resolution ends up being like a stretch goal, a goal that requires substantial effort to make happen.   These types of resolutions often fail though.  In reality you really need a strategy to achieve these goals.  To do otherwise makes it completely unrealistic and unachievable.

Why not call it the NEW YOU resolution, that way you don’t need to wait till the next year to get started.  In doing so, pick small wins, small changes, that you can introduce each day!  Keep it simple!  Below, I’ve listed a few types of examples to spark some thought on daily resolutions!

  • Day 0:  Pick a SMART goal, where SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-based.
  • Day 1.  I will drink 8 glasses of water today.
  • Day 2. I will eat an apple today
  • Day 3. I will set an apponitment for my yearly physical with my health care practioner.
  • Day 4. I will eat a green vegetable today.
  • Day 5. I will give my children/ significant other / friend  a kind word today.
  • Day 6. I will walk for 10 minutes today.
  • Day 7.I will donate an hour of my time to _________today.

Again, the above “day-ideas” are just that.  Ideas!  I would love to hear what your daily NEW YOU resolutions are going to be.

Try it for 365  days and let me know how The NEW You resolution worked out.

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Stroke and “Wii-hab”

Filed under: The Toolbox — 2 Comments
March 17, 2010

I was thinking about my experiences and observations as a  physical therapist, what I learned in school, what I learned from courses, what I learned from other health care practitioners.  All of this “learning”, but when applying this knowledge to clients, it’s like a different jigsaw puzzle as no two people are alike.

So what are  the latest pieces in my puzzle box?

1. The brain can rewire itself  through repetitive movement as per the Time magazine article I referenced in a previous post.

2. Constraint Induced Movement Therapy has shown promising results in improving function after a stroke and

3. The use of the Wii to aid in stroke recovery.

Yes, you read that last one correctly.  I am talking about the video game system from Nintendo.  Much has been written about the use of the Wii for stroke recovery and most recently an article reports that it is safe and feasible to use, there were no side effects.  That is great news, but unfortunately, in the same breath the article cautions that it is too early to recommend its use until further research, which is a puzzling statement given the obvious benefit being realized by a low-cost tool.

As a therapist,  I understand the need to follow best practices, but I am also acutely aware that we are dealing with the quality of life of individuals.  The science appears to promote neuro-plasticity.  Given that repetitive movement appears beneficial to stroke recovery, I think that using the Wii as a cost-effective adjunct to appropriately selected clients would be beneficial to improving quality of life.  Equally important, is the fact that it’s a fun activity and typically if it’s enjoyable it is more likely the individual will be an active participant.

For me,it’s not a question of whether exercise works, but  rather how long a “repetitive” treatment period patients would need to see lasting and significant improvements.

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Healthy Eating on $7.50 Per Day?

Filed under: Cooking, Food — 3 Comments
March 15, 2010

I was thinking about the OSAP diet that was recently written up in the local paper.  The dilemma is that students should be able to eat healthy for $7.50 per day.  I guess looking at this from an outsiders point of view its eay to say ‘yes you can do it’ and lay the blame on the student who is faced to deal with this food issue.  The question deserves a deeper look.  Is it really doable?

My thought is that “Yes” it is doable if you have the know how.  The environment of today’s society doesn’t enable this kind of skill set easily.  We must consider that given the fact that home economics does not really exist in schools, the youth of today don’t get this info there. Couple that with the fact that family meal times have changed and aren’t as routine as they once were, and you compound this issue.  Lastly, our society makes it too easy to order out, order in, eat out, etc., you can see how the skill (art) of cooking is disappearing.  Without that art, it would be hard to get by on $7.50 / day.   Therefore we cannot blame these students if they were never given the opportunity to learn this valuable life skill set. Now in saying that, this has now become a valuable learning experience for these young people one which can carry them throughout the rest of their lives.  We would be doing them a further disservice by just throwing more money at this issue.  The government would be wiser to fund with private organizations, the programs for the cooking-know-how.

I have been playing the game Evoke and this week’s  mission has been on food sustainability and as I discussed in that blog in Canada it is not an issue of not enough food but rather not having the skills or know how on how to grow and / or cook the food.  I found a fabulous group called FoodShare.  I would highly recommend that students consider their Good Food Box.  This type of program / resource, can help students today, while hopefully, our government does the proper planning for tomorrow.

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Initial Thoughts on Evoke

Filed under: Health, Tech — 4 Comments
March 11, 2010

I am now an “agent” in the Evoke network.   Evoke is an online game , but unlike other games it’s  a ‘crash course on changing the world’.  The mission  this past week was to master the mindset of a social innovator.    I completed the following in my first Mission: 1) learned the secret code to innovation, 2) Discovered an interesting social entrepeneur  SHE that I am following via blog and twitter, and 3) I imagined myself in 10 years.  You can see the blogs I wrote as a part of the game on my profile at Evoke.   Mission 2 is based on Food security and I will start that tomorrow.

The game is not what I expected.  My experience with games being somewhat limited to arcade type games, the Wii Fit, the Ninetendo DS and the Sony  Playstation, I thought the game was going to be something like that.  I am not normally a gamer; I participate occasionally with my husband and children.  This game, however, is more puzzle like, (imagine the pieces being scattered throughout the internet ) and you’re trying  to put the  pieces together in a collaborative environment.  I must say  that I am enjoying the “learning aspect” of this game and will continue on as I am curious to see  1) how this game /technology will tackle the issue of health and 2) what ideas will be generated in relation to health by working collaboratively with people from around the world.  In other words, is there something that is being done elsewhere in health that we can also benefit from?  I’m also curious to see if what I’m doing here can potentially benefit someone abroad.

From what I have experienced so far, I say, “kudos” to Jane McGonigal on such an innovative effort!

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10,000 Hours to a Healthier You

Filed under: Fitness, Health, Tech, The Toolbox — 12 Comments
March 7, 2010

Last week I added brain exercises to my daily routine to protect my mind against cognitive decline. I borrowed my children’s Nintendo DS and popped in the Brain Age game (which they were kind enough to lend to me), and started with the testing to determine the age of my brain.  Yikes I really needed to get exercising.  I really enjoyed the activity and have seen quick results as the cobwebs are being brushed away.

I began to wonder, what could one do if they don’t have accesss to the Nintendo DS and I came upon Lumosity.  What Lumosity provides are brain game.  Here is what their website provides as info:

  • Shown to improve memory and attention
  • Detailed feedback and improvement tracking
  • Fun and easy: full workout in less than 10 minutes/day

If you don’t have access to something like the DS, Lumosity is a good online tool.  When you exercise both the body and the mind what do you get?  Well according to research it is possible to rewire the brain, and this process is called neuroplasticity.  For more detail, give this Time magazine article a read.  This interesting “rewiring”, both through physical and mental exercise reminded me of a book I recently read.

The book is titled Outliers, written by Malcolm Gladwell.  In that book, Gladwell’s observations are that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert at something.  According to Gladwell, there is no short cut to success.  It takes time and effort.  I fully agree.  I think that this extends into the rewiring of our brains to adopt a healthy lifestyle.  You need to exercise both body and mind.  If you contiually practice and repeat over and over a particular good habit, it will stick over time.

That is why diets and New Year’s gym resolutions easily fall by the wayside.  Building off of Gladwell’s 10,000 hour premise, I posit, you need 10,000 hours to become an expert in your own health.  There is no easy way to it.  Yes, we can take baby steps that are easy to do (like a pedometer for example), but it all takes time and effort.

Tomorrow I will…..continue logging my hours!

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