Aspire Pilates is turning 2.....  April is packed with presents for YOU!
Aspire Pilates & Spa 2464 W. 12600 S. Suite 190 Riverton, Utah 84065 (801)302-5720 www.aspireptc.com  Our studio started with a dream.  We are celebrating 2 years of business through hard work and supportive friends and family.  We love what we do because of the amazing relationships we have with YOU!  Thank you for your continued support of Aspire Pilates Training Center & Spa	Birthday Cake & Open House    Come help us blow out our candles!  We will be serving birthday cake Saturday, April 2nd from 9:00 a.m. to noon.  You'd better come to class and burn up some calories.....so you can have your cake and eat it too!!     If you haven't been in for a while, visit us to see how we have grown.  If you have "been meaning to" drop in and check us out, this is the perfect time!  Bring a friend and have a tour.  Zumba Toning unveiled April 2nd! Zumba® Toning - When it comes to body sculpting, Zumba Toning raises the bar (or rather, the Toning Stick). It combines targeted body-sculpting exercises and high-energy cardio work with Latin-infused Zumba moves to create a calorie-torching, strength-training dance fitness-party. Students learn how to use lightweight, maraca-like Toning Sticks to enhance rhythm and tone all their target zones, including arms, abs, glutes and thighs. Zumba Toning is the perfect way for enthusiasts to sculpt their bodies naturally while having a total blast. Shaelynn and Jan are our certified Zumba Toning Instructors and this class is not yet offered in our area.  We are THRILLED to be the first to launch this amazing class!  We only have 12 Zumba Toning sticks, so sign up in advance to reserve your spot! Cardio Tramps Arriving Soon Happy Birthday to US!!  We will be receiving two STOTT PILATES Cardio-Tramp Rebounders for our Private and Semi-Private sessions.  This accessory will turn our Reformers into a unique Pilates cardiovascular machine!  Add a Private Session, or share with a friend on a Semi-Private session, and kick up your Pilates practice!  More info coming soon.

ZUMBA for $5	We could not be where we are today (celebrating our second birthday) without YOU!.  For the month of April, enjoy Zumba Fitness and Zumba Toning classes for $5!  Bring a friend and share the unique energy only found at Aspire Pilates!   Classes are limited to 12 participants, so sign up ahead of time as they will surely fill up FAST! (New April Schedule available soon)
Offer Expires: April 30, 2011

• Seated on Stability Ball, neutral spine (neither arched nor flattened).
  Feet flat on the Mat, hip-distance apart, and hands behind head.

• INHALE to prepare
• EXHALE keep torso in an upright position and lift one foot off the Mat, maintaining balance and neutral spine.
• EXHALE slowly lower foot to the Mat.

• longer, leaner muscles (less bulk, more freedom of movement)
• improves postural problems
• increases core strength, stability and peripheral mobility
• helps prevent injury
• enhances functional fitness, ease of movement
• balances strength & flexibility
• heightens body awareness
• no-impact, easy on the joints
• can be customized to suit everyone from rehab patients to elite athletes
• complements other methods of exercise
• improves performance in sports (golf, skiing, skating etc.)
• improves balance, coordination & circulation

• Breathing
• Pelvic placement
• Rib cage placement
• Scapular movement
• Head & cervical spine placement

• Pilates is three-dimensional
• (i.e. exercises can be performed using all movement planes)
• spring resistance more closely resembles muscular contraction
• emphasis on concentric/eccentric contraction for injury prevention
• STOTT PILATES exercise is customizable for special needs
• in Pilates exercise, emphasis is placed on rebalancing muscles around the joints
• Pilates corrects over-training and muscle imbalance that leads to injury
• Pilates emphasizes balancing strength with flexibility
• (for injury prevention and more efficient movement)
• STOTT PILATES exercise leads to an improvement in posture and body awareness
• Weight training and STOTT PILATES can be combined in your fitness program and are a great compliment to each other.

Your boyfriend offers you a gargantuan bowl of his butter-soaked fettuccine alfredo. Your friends hand you a fork and beg you to share the chocolate tower truffle cake at the Cheesecake Factory.

It's tough to stick to a healthy eating plan when those around you are indulging. It's even tougher when they're bent on making sure you indulge, too. But don't stress it. These eight tricks will help you stay on track without alienating the not-so-healthy eaters in your life. Heck, you may even inspire them to join your cause.
Indulgence loves company, so expect a guilt trip if you pass on a temptation your friends gave in to. Make it easy on yourself, then: Pick up your fork and have a small piece of whatever is being served.

If you say, "I'm stuffed, but this looks so delicious I can't pass up a bite," you'll avoid peer pressure by turning the situation around—you're indulging, not depriving yourself. And you won't make your friends feel bad by rebuffing their generosity. Besides, one bite of dessert won't make a dent in your diet, says Lacie Peterson, a registered dietitian with the University of Utah.
[6 Ways to Boost Willpower]
Can't enjoy a bite without whetting your appetite for the whole cake? You needn't explain why you're skipping dessert—just divert attention from your pass. As the serving dish goes around, strike up an amusing conversation or excuse yourself to make a phone call. Better yet, bring along a bag of almonds and say you're craving a handful of those instead. Again, you'll put others at ease by having a treat along with them.

By creating a distraction, you'll fare better, too: Making a fuss over food restraint often intensifies cravings, which can lead to overeating, according to a 2005 University of Toronto study.

You can still stick to your healthy eating streak while having what others are having—just adjust your portions. Fill half your plate with fruit or vegetables, a quarter with meat or protein, and a quarter with starches like potatoes or bread, Peterson suggests. Bonus if you can swap starchy carbs for whole-grain pasta, rice, or bread.

If you can't prepare your own plate, there's nothing wrong with asking the server for smaller portions. In the end, though, it might be better to stray from your diet once than offend the host by eating nothing more than a dry turkey shaving and a spoonful of peas.

In group settings, it's easy to get caught up in an eating frenzy, subconsciously matching others plate-for-plate. You can prevent gorging by filling up a little beforehand, says trainer Mark Verstegen, director of performance for the NFL Players Association and founder of the website Core Performance. "Make sure you arrive hydrated and have a small snack like a handful of almonds, or a banana with peanut butter, so you aren't [as] hungry," he says.

Watch out for drinks, too. "Cocktails can pack up to 500 calories a glass," says Verstegen. At the bar, sip slowly or alternate between high-calorie beverages and water. If your friends catch you empty-handed while they're drinking, they'll likely order another round.
[The Skinny on Alcoholic Beverages and Weight Loss]

You might think you're being a polite dinner guest by saying you wish you could have some of that creamy artichoke dip. But it's better to leave diet sabotage out of the conversation. It can make the cook feel bad about preparing food his or her guests can't eat. Instead, shift your focus to the fresh fruit salad or the presentation of a low-fat dish.

By treating healthier items like indulgences, the host may be more inclined to foist those on you—or at least let you off the hook when it's time for dessert.

You feel great since you started eating healthier, and naturally you want to share that with others. But if your friends aren't ready to assess their eating habits, pushing them to avoid foods loaded with fat, salt, and sugar could feel like an ambush. Smugly waving food away with an, "I don't eat that garbage," or "Do you know what's in that?" might actually make them redouble their efforts to sway you.

If you don't want to be hassled about your eating choices, don't put your friends on the spot either. Wait until they express interest in your diet. Then humbly share the details.

Don't let food be the centerpiece of a social gathering, advises psychologist Susan Albers, author of Eat, Drink and Be Mindful. Get-togethers are often focused on eating, and if you're distracted, nervous, or simply basking in how much you're enjoying yourself, you'll probably get carried away.

Albers suggests bringing a board game or some photos to a dinner party. Going for a walk after the meal is another good way to shift the focus away from the table. And you might sidestep the dessert dilemma altogether.
[4 Easy Ways to Prevent Mindless Eating]
If you have a habit of caving in when pressured by your friends, make sure you're not sending mixed messages. Come prepared with a game plan that defines in your mind what you'll eat and how you'll respond to temptation. This way, they won't interpret your hesitation as a cue to push the chips and dip your way.
It's also helpful to guard against common diet saboteurs, including sleep deprivation, stress, and proximity to unhealthy food options, Albers says.

Bottom line: If friends are pressuring you to indulge, it's probably because they want you to enjoy yourself. The best way to respond is to keep the dialogue positive. Rather than saying you can't or shouldn't have something, say you aren't hungry or it's not your favorite. They can't argue with that.

Source: Health.USNews.com

About 21 million adults have osteoarthritis -- the wear-and-tear condition that causes achy joints and may eventually lead to can't-get-up-from-the-sofa pain.

"A third to half of doctor visits deal with musculoskeletal issues. They're one of the most common health problems," says Sharon Kolasinski, M.D., an associate professor of clinical medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Depending on risk factors, joint pain can affect anyone, though osteoarthritis mostly starts as our bodies begin to show the effects of aging.

In women, it occurs more frequently after age 50; in men, it's more likely before age 45. Also, sites of joint pain are different. Women are more likely to develop osteoarthritis in their hands, knees, ankles, or feet, while men are more likely to develop it in their wrists, hips, or spine.

But just because a condition is prevalent doesn't mean it's inevitable, or that you can't do a number of things to either prevent or control it. Here are the basics of how your joints function and how to keep them moving smoothly.

There are various kinds of joints; shoulders have a ball-and-socket-type construction, while knees work more like door hinges. Still, all joints have the same basic anatomy and function: They connect one bone to another to give us the ability to bend, twist, or win dancing contests.

Inside a joint, similar features reside. There's the connective tissue -- the ligament, which essentially serves as a bridge from one bone to the other via your muscles. There's also cartilage -- a fibrous and somewhat elastic tissue that acts as a cushioning material between joints. Cartilage acts as a shock absorber to prevent bones from grinding against each other.

Osteoarthritis appears when we start to lose that cushioning, and a number of factors contribute cumulatively to the loss.

Aging: "Cartilage thins as we age," says David Felson, M.D., professor of medicine at Boston University, who specializes in bone and joint problems. "That makes it easier to damage." Over time, the surface of cartilage can change from smooth to fissured. That's when erosions in cartilage begin to appear.
Previous injuries: Seemingly minor joint injuries (an unlucky twist here or there) when you were younger can be a factor. "Even people who don't remember injuries see areas of damage with age," Felson says.

Inflammation: Small injuries upset the biomechanics of your joints. That, in turn, changes the molecules that make up cartilage. "Part of the destructive process of osteoarthritis is that microtraumatic injuries can cause low levels of inflammation," Kolasinski says. "Inflammatory cells can gather at a site of injury and release chemicals destructive to cartilage."

Loss of muscle mass: Everyone naturally loses some muscle mass as they age. If you don't work to maintain it, your joint -- instead of your muscle -- will absorb more of the pounding from daily living, and that contributes to more damage.
Excess weight: The more a joint has to carry, the more damage it experiences in the long run. This is especially true for knees, which have to support your body weight. "All these little wear-and-tear events throughout life erode cartilage," Kolasinski says. "The cushion can get thinner until there's nothing left."

You can't bring back cartilage that's already lost.
However, there are several common-sense steps you can take to either prevent the wear or reduce the pain associated with osteoarthritis.

Maintain a healthy weight. It's the best thing you can do to preserve your joints. Keeping your weight down will help reduce those small tears that break down cartilage. In fact, a weight loss of as little as 11 pounds can reduce arthritis pain by 50 percent for many women. Weight loss may also help slow the progression of osteoarthritis over time.

Vary your exercise. Working out helps reduce stiffness in the joints. Kolasinski recommends varying your exercise routine -- low- or no-impact aerobic exercises (swimming, walking, or cycling) twice a week, strength exercises (lifting light weights or household items) twice a week, mixed with stretching and relaxation exercises.
"You don't want to overtax any one area, because that'll increase pain, and then you might avoid exercise altogether," Kolasinski says.Keep your muscles in mind. Weight training helps strengthen the muscles and ligaments surrounding joints, protecting them from damage. Modify muscle-building moves so they don't strain the joint of the part you're exercising. For example, Kolasinski advises that people with arthritis do seated leg lifts instead of squats and lunges, which can increase pressure on the knee. Sit on a chair with both feet on the floor. Bend your knee and raise your leg so it's parallel to the floor. You can do one leg at a time or both; as the exercise becomes easier, you can add ankle weights to increase the resistance and build even more muscle strength.

Add ice. Icing your joints after exercise can help you manage pain and prevent swelling. When you exercise, you draw a lubricant called synovial fluid to your joints. But if the fluid sticks around too long after exercise, it can cause cracks in the cartilage. "Ice gets the fluid out of the joint and into the lymphatic system, the garbage disposal of the body," says Kevin Olds, M.S.P.T., C.S.C.S., a physical therapist at Campbell Clinic in Memphis, Tennessee. Olds suggests icing the joints you use during exercise for 10 minutes after the activity.
Eat beneficial foods. Studies show the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish can help not only reduce symptoms associated with joint pain but also change the levels of inflammation that may be causing some of the pain. Fish oil slows the production of inflammation-signaling cells. The best sources are fish such as salmon and tuna. Research shows vitamin D may help protect your joints, too, via an anti-inflammatory effect. Make sure you get 400 to 800 International Units of vitamin D daily; one cup of milk contains 100 IUs, and three ounces of salmon has 300-650.

Late last year, a study of 1,583 knee osteoarthritis patients conducted by the University of Utah School of Medicine found that glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate -- two of the most popular dietary supplements used as alternative therapies to treat osteoarthritis -- provided a modicum of pain relief for patients whose arthritis was deemed moderate to severe. However, people in the study with milder forms of arthritis pain reported no benefit whatsoever.

Source: CNN.com

Sleep Cycles & Stages, Lack of Sleep, and Getting the Hours You Need

The power of sleep

Many of us want to sleep as little as possible—or feel like we have to. There are so many things that seem more interesting or important than getting a few more hours of sleep. But just as exercise and nutrition are essential for optimal health and happiness, so is sleep. The quality of your sleep directly affects the quality of your waking life, including your mental sharpness, productivity, emotional balance, creativity, physical vitality, and even your weight. No other activity delivers so many benefits with so little effort!

Understanding sleep

Sleep isn’t merely a time when your body and brain shut off. While you rest, your brain stays busy, overseeing a wide variety of biological maintenance tasks that keep you running in top condition and prepare you for the day ahead. Without enough hours of restorative sleep, you’re like a car in need of an oil change. You won’t be able to work, learn, create, and communicate at a level even close to your true potential. Regularly skimp on “service” and you’re headed for a major mental and physical breakdown.

The good news is that you don’t have to choose between health and productivity. As you start getting the sleep you need, your energy and efficiency will go up. In fact, you’re likely to find that you actually get more done during the day than when you were skimping on shuteye.

How many hours of sleep do you need?

According to the National Institutes of Health, the average adult sleeps less than 7 hours per night. In today’s fast-paced society, 6 or 7 hours of sleep may sound pretty good. In reality, it’s a recipe for chronic sleep deprivation.

While sleep requirements vary slightly from person to person, most healthy adults need between 7.5 to 9 hours of sleep per night to function at their best. Children and teens need even more. And despite the notion that sleep needs decrease with age, older people still need at least 7.5 to 8 hours of sleep. Since older adults often have trouble sleeping this long at night, daytime naps can help fill in the gap.

Sleep needs and peak performance

There is a big difference between the amount of sleep you can get by on and the amount you need to function optimally. Just because you’re able to operate on 7 hours of sleep doesn’t mean you wouldn’t feel a lot better and get more done if you spent an extra hour or two in bed. The best way to figure out if you’re meeting your sleep needs is to evaluate how you feel as you go about your day. If you’re logging enough hours, you’ll feel energetic and alert all day long, from the moment you wake up until your regular bedtime.

Signs and symptoms of sleep deprivation and lack of sleep

If you’re getting less than eight hours of sleep each night, chances are you’re sleep deprived. What’s more, you probably have no idea just how much lack of sleep is affecting you.

How is it possible to be sleep deprived without knowing it? Most of the signs of sleep deprivation are much more subtle than falling face first into your dinner plate. Furthermore, if you’ve made a habit of skimping on sleep, you may not even remember what it feels like to be wide-awake, fully alert, and firing on all cylinders. It feels normal to get sleepy when you’re in a boring meeting, struggle through the afternoon slump, or doze off after dinner. But the truth is that it’s only “normal” if you’re sleep deprived.

 

You may be sleep deprived if you...

While it may seem like losing sleep isn’t such a big deal, sleep deprivation has a wide range of negative effects that go way beyond daytime drowsiness.

The effects of sleep deprivation and chronic lack of sleep

Stages of sleep: REM sleep and non-REM sleep stages

All sleep is not created equal. Sleep unfolds in a series of recurring sleep stages that are very different from one another in terms of what’s happening beneath the surface. From deep sleep to dreaming sleep, they are all vital for your body and mind. Each stage of sleep plays a different part in preparing you for the day ahead.

There are two main types of sleep:

• Non-REM (NREM) sleep consists of four stages of sleep, each deeper than the last.
• REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep is when you do most active dreaming. Your eyes actually move back and forth during this stage, which is why it is called Rapid Eye Movement sleep.

THE STAGES OF SLEEP
Non-REM sleep
Stage 1 (Transition to sleep) – Stage 1 lasts about five minutes. Eyes move slowly under the eyelids, muscle activity slows down, and you are easily awakened.
Stage 2 (Light sleep) – This is the first stage of true sleep, lasting from 10 to 25 minutes. Eye movement stops, heart rate slows, and body temperature decreases.
Stage 3 (Deep sleep) – You’re difficult to awaken, and if you are awakened, you do not adjust immediately and often feel groggy and disoriented for several minutes.
Stage 4 (More intense deep sleep) – The deepest stage of sleep. Brain waves are extremely slow. Blood flow is directed away from the brain and towards the muscles, restoring physical energy.
REM sleep
REM sleep (Dream sleep) – About 70 to 90 minutes after falling asleep, you enter REM sleep, where dreaming occurs. Eyes move rapidly. Breathing is shallow. Heart rate and blood pressure increase. Arm and leg muscles are paralyzed.

The sleep cycle: Understanding the architecture of sleep

You may think that once you go to bed, you soon fall into a deep sleep that lasts for most of the night, progressing back into light sleep in the morning when it’s time to wake up. In reality, the sleep cycle is a lot more complicated.
During the night, your sleep follows a predictable pattern, moving back and forth between deep restorative sleep (deep sleep) and more alert stages and dreaming (REM sleep). Together, the stages of REM and non-REM sleep form a complete sleep cycle that repeats until you wake up.

The amount of time you spend in each stage of sleep changes as the night progresses. For example, most deep sleep occurs in the first half of the night. Later in the night, your REM sleep stages become longer, alternating with light Stage 2 sleep. This is why if you are sensitive to waking up in the middle of the night, it is probably in the early morning hours, not immediately after going to bed.

The importance of deep sleep and REM sleep

Getting good, restorative sleep is not just a matter of spending enough hours in bed. The amount of time you spend in each of the stages of sleep matters. A normal adult spends approximately 50 percent of total sleep time in stage 2 sleep, 20 percent in REM sleep, and 30 percent in the remaining stages, including deep sleep.
Each stage of sleep in the sleep cycle offers benefits to the sleeper. However, deep sleep (stages 3 and 4) and REM sleep are particularly important.

Deep sleep

The most damaging effects of sleep deprivation are from inadequate deep sleep. Deep sleep is a time when the body repairs itself and builds up energy for the day ahead. It plays a major role in maintaining your health, stimulating growth and development, repairing muscles and tissues, and boosting your immune system. In order to wake up energized and refreshed, getting quality deep sleep is key. Factors that can lead to poor or inadequate deep sleep include:

• Being woken during the night (by outside noise, for example, or in order to care for a crying baby)
• Working night shifts or swing shifts. Getting quality deep sleep during the day can be difficult, due to light and excess noise.
• Smoking or drinking in the evening. Substances like alcohol and nicotine can disrupt deep sleep. It’s best to limit them before bed.

REM sleep

Just as deep sleep renews the body, REM sleep renews the mind. REM sleep plays a key role in learning and memory. During REM sleep, your brain consolidates and processes the information you’ve learned during the day, forms neural connections that strengthen memory, and replenishes its supply of neurotransmitters, including feel-good chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine that boost your mood during the day.

To get more mind and mood-boosting REM sleep, try sleeping an extra 30 minutes to an hour in the morning, when REM sleep stages are longer. Improving your overall sleep will also increase your REM sleep. If you aren’t getting enough deep sleep, your body will try to make it up first, at the expense of REM sleep.

Paying off your sleep debt

Sleep debt is the difference between the amount of sleep you need and the hours you actually get. Every time you sacrifice on sleep, you add to the debt. Eventually, the debt will have to be repaid. It won’t go away on its own. If you lose an hour of sleep, you must make up that extra hour somewhere down the line in order to bring your “account” back into balance.

Sleeping in on the weekends isn’t enough!

Many of us try to repay our sleep debt by sleeping in on the weekends. But as it turns out, bouncing back from chronic lack of sleep isn’t that easy. One or two solid nights of sleep aren’t enough to pay off a long-term debt. While extra sleep can give you a temporary boost (for example, you may feel great on Monday morning after a relaxing weekend), your performance and energy will drop back down as the day wears on.

Tips for getting and staying out of sleep debt

While you can’t pay off sleep debt in a night or even a weekend, with a little effort and planning, you can get back on track.

• Aim for at least 8 hours of sleep every night. Make sure you don’t fall farther in debt by blocking off a minimum of 8 hours for sleep each night. Consistency is the key.
• Settle short-term sleep debt with an extra hour or two per night. If you lost 10 hours of sleep, pay the debt back in nightly one or two-hour installments.
• Keep a sleep diary. Record when you go to bed, when you get up, your total hours of sleep, and how you feel during the day. As you keep track of your sleep, you’ll discover your natural patterns and get to know your sleep needs. 
• Take a sleep vacation to pay off a long-term sleep debt. Pick a two-week period when you have a flexible schedule. Go to bed at the same time every night and allow yourself to sleep until you wake up naturally. No alarm clocks! If you continue to keep the same bedtime and wake up naturally, you’ll eventually dig your way out of debt and arrive at the sleep schedule that’s ideal for you.
• Make sleep a priority. Just as you schedule time for work and other commitments, you should schedule enough time for sleep. Instead of cutting back on sleep in order to tackle the rest of your daily tasks, put sleep at the top of your to-do list.

Source: HelpGuide.org